Chapter 1
Kiyah
In a dark, cozy room, the early morning breeze slipped in through the half-open window, carrying the fresh scent of cold air and the soft chorus of birds just beginning their day. The air was cool against my skin, brushing past the curtains like a secret intruder. On the bedside table, my alarm blared which was entirely unnecessary. As the bed beside it was perfectly neat, untouched, as if no one had dared disturb its tidy folds through the night.
The room itself was dim, cloaked in shadows. Only a warm yellow glow from the corner desk lamp kept the darkness at bay. That lamp illuminated the small patch of my world where I had been stationed all night, hunched over the keyboard, typing like a woman possessed. My eyes burned, my back ached, and my brain throbbed, but my fingers hadn’t stopped moving. Another night surrendered to deadlines. Another sunrise witnessed without sleep.
Ring... ring... ring...
“Shut the fuck up, you stupid clock!” I snapped, stomping toward the side table to silence it. My voice came out rough, scratchy from hours of disuse. “I didn’t even close my eyes for a second last night.”
Mondays. Then five more days of continuous work. The bane of my existence. Yet another weekend past in vain.
Why do I always make the wrong decisions?
On Saturday morning, I’d made a beautiful plan for coming evening and next day. Finish a little pending work first, then indulge in self-care. Face masks, Netflix, junk food, eight glorious hours of uninterrupted sleep. Sorted. Perfect.
Except, of course, I forgot one tiny detail: I have friends. Friends who apparently see it as their life’s mission to destroy my perfectly curated plans. So instead of my peaceful Saturday, I ended up partying until 3 a.m., drinking enough cocktails to give myself a world-class hangover. Sunday was lost to sleep and self-pity. And here I was again, Monday morning, exhausted, caffeine-deprived, and having pulled yet another all-nighter.
My life sucks. Why does this always happen to me? I whined internally, pressing my palm to my temple.
“Okay,” I muttered aloud, trying to convince myself, “I should just go for a run. Get out of this depressing room before I collapse.”
I lingered for a moment, torn between the cozy bed calling my name and the slivers of sunlight daring me to face the world. With a sigh, I shut down my laptop after attaching my final layout file to an email, and hit send. The assignment was out of my hands. Freedom, at least until the next crisis.
This would be my fourth run of the month. A record, considering last month I only managed once, and even then, I turned back in thirty minutes because I’d forgotten to charge my AirPods. Who runs without music? Not me.
I changed quickly, joggers, sports bra, oversized T-shirt, sneakers. Checked twice for my keys; I wasn’t in the mood to give my roommates fresh ammunition to scold me with.
Finally stepping outside, I popped my AirPods in, hit play, and let the music flood my head as I jogged around the apartment block. The morning air felt almost magical, fresh, alive, full of promise. With each stride, some of the exhaustion drained away, replaced by a fleeting optimism.
I should do this every day, I thought, a little too hopefully. But then reality smacked me: as long as I was addicted to late nights, early runs would remain rare miracles. Even my boss wouldn’t approve of me running instead of finishing work.
Stop thinking, Ki. Just run. Who knows when you’ll do this again.
By the time I got back, sweat clung to my skin, and my muscles were awake in that sore-but-good way. I locked the front door behind me, debating my next move. Breakfast or sleep? Eggs or two hours under a blanket? My stomach growled. My eyelids drooped. Tough choice.
“Good morning.”
“AAAHHHHH!” I yelped, nearly dropping my keys.
Ashi stood grinning at me, her burgundy hair tumbling down her shoulders, her water bottle in hand like she just didn’t give me a heart attack. My best friend since school—one year older, five-foot-two, and radiating enough confidence for someone twice her size.
“You scared me!” I pressed a hand to my chest.
She tilted her head, amused. “Why are you up so early?”
“I didn’t sleep all night. Had to finish my drawings,” I muttered, still calming my racing heart.
Ashi paused mid-step, turned, and gave me the kind of stare only she could manage—the perfect blend of concern and disapproval. “Your boss really needs to stop dumping work on you. Ki, seriously, you need to get a grip. Always working, always exhausted. Even Saturday night, it was a battle to drag you out. You need a vacation.”
I rolled my eyes. “I know, meri maa. My assignment’s almost done. After this, I’m taking a break. Visiting Mom and Dad too, it’s been a while. Karan’s graduated, moving to another city. If I don’t go now, who knows when I’ll see him again.”
Her expression softened. “That’s better. And don’t forget, you have to be there for my engagement in three months. So much to plan, I’m already making lists in my head.”
“Of course, yaar. Don’t worry, you’ve got me.” I patted my chest dramatically. She giggled, which made me laugh too.
Then, slyly, she added, “You should also think about dating again... it’s been...” She stopped herself, remembering how touchy I’d been on the subject before.
“I’ll think about it,” I said, the words tasting strange even as I spoke them. But maybe... maybe it was time.
“Ki! Are you serious? Oh my god!” Her eyes shimmered, and before I knew it, I was hugging her. Ashi cared for me more than a sister could. Honestly, all my friends did. For them, and for myself, I wanted to try again.
“What are you two doing?” a third voice interrupted. “Don’t you have office? Why are you crying and hugging like somebody killed your dog?”
“Shut up, Reva!” Ashi snapped, pretending to throw her bottle.
“I was just trying to lighten the mood!” Reva grinned, strolling towards us and then squeezing each of our shoulder, “But seriously what happen?”
If Ashi was my forever friend, Reva was the one who joined our gang in twelfth-grade coaching classes. We’d chosen different careers - Ashi in engineering, Reva in business, me in architecture, but stuck to the same city, even renting a place together. It worked. It always worked.
“Nothing,” I said quickly, smirking. “We were just worried about your boyfriend. You’ve kept him waiting forever, trying to choose between him and your new senior at work.”
“Ki!” Reva groaned. “How many times do I have to tell you? Veer is just a friend! And my senior is engaged.. I found out yesterday. Worst. Day. Ever.”
Ashi cracked up, literally slapping the surface of table on her side as she laughed. I chuckled too. Because if you knew Reva, you’d know, she could develop a crush in five minutes flat, and by another weekend she’d be stalking someone new.
“Don’t worry,” Ashi teased, finally standing. “You still have your little boyfriend.”
“For god’s sake, Ashi! He’s NOT my boyfriend!” Reva exploded, hands flying up.
“Reva,” I said, softer this time, “we can all see he likes you. Maybe give him a chance? You’re too old for these weekly meaningless crushes. Veer’s a good man, you’ve known him for five years. But I don’t think he’ll wait forever if you keep shoving him into the friend zone.”
Reva’s bravado slipped, replaced by a small, uneasy frown. “I know, Ki. But friendship and relationships... they’re not the same. What if we ruin it? What if we can’t go back? That scares me.”
“It’s okay. No rush. Just take it slow,” I told her. Advice was all I could give, choices were hers.
I stretched, yawning. “Anyway, I should get ready. Office won’t wait.”
I shuffled to the kitchen, settling for a quick cup of coffee instead of a proper breakfast or my two hours of sleep. The aroma filled the space, rich and comforting, promising at least temporary survival. The girls were still bickering in the background, Ashi scolding, Reva protesting, their voices bouncing off the walls like the soundtrack of my life.
And for a moment, despite the exhaustion, despite the deadlines, despite my messy weekend, I smiled. Because no matter how chaotic everything got, I had them. And maybe that was enough.
_
