We all gathered on the terrace that night.
Plastic chairs scraped against the floor as cousins pulled them into a loose circle. Fairy lights glowed softly above us, and the Hyderabad breeze carried distant traffic sounds mixed with laughter.
We started with dumb charades.
Me, Tarav, and Sri were one team.
Aarav, Laksh, and Akka were on the other.
We decided to be evil and gave Aarav the toughest movie to guess.
He struggled miserably.
Hands flying everywhere, expressions getting more dramatic by the second — until finally he gave up, almost on the verge of tears.
“Why are you all like this?” he complained, half angry, half emotional.
We burst out laughing and finally gave him an easy movie.
He guessed it immediately.
After almost twenty minutes, Akka’s team was leading.
That’s when Tarav suddenly leaned back and said casually,
“Let’s play Two Lies, One Truth.”
Something inside me tightened.
I don’t know why.
I just sensed something fishy was already coming.
Akka started.
“She hates me,” Akka announced.
“She loves food.”
“And she wants to get married.”
Tarav immediately jumped in.
“I know I’m handsome,” he said dramatically, flipping his hair,
“but still I won’t marry you.”
Akka hit him on the head.
Everyone laughed.
The air was light. Easy.
Then it was Sri’s turn.
She said she wanted to move abroad, she’d kill Laksh, and she wore pink every day.
Laksh made fun of her, and we all guessed quickly.
Still playful.
Still harmless.
Then…
it was Laksh’s turn.
My heart started racing.
I don’t know why all of a sudden.
He lifted his eyes.
And he looked straight into mine.
Not casually.
Not accidentally.
Straight into my eyes.
Time slowed.
“Hates his bike,” he said first.
Everyone groaned. Obvious lie.
“Hates Art.”
My breath caught.
Then there was a pause.
A dangerous pause.
And softly, steadily, he said,
“I’ve always been a one-woman man.”
It shot straight into my heart.
I forgot how to breathe.
Everyone turned to look at me.
But I couldn’t take my eyes off him.
God knows how long I kept staring.
My chest felt tight.
Heat rushed to my face.
A sudden blush appeared on my cheeks — and I saw it bring the cutest smile to his face.
Not teasing.
Not playful.
Soft.
Warm.
Real.
For one moment, it felt like the whole world disappeared.
Just him.
Just me.
Just that truth hanging between us.
Ammamma’s voice echoed from downstairs, calling us for dinner.
Reality crashed back in.
None of us wanted to leave in the middle — especially not now, not when Laksh hadn’t even told us which one was the truth.
Everyone complained loudly while standing up.
But my mind was still stuck on his words.
One-woman man.
Was it part of the game?
Or was it meant for me?
As we walked downstairs, Tarav slowed beside me, his eyes moving from Laksh to me.
He didn’t say anything.
But I saw it.
Tarav was the most curious one among us.
And tonight…
he had started noticing everything.
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