A love Built in Shadows

"I don't know, Vamika. I really don't know how or when I-" Akshita paused, her breath hitching. "-how or when I fell for him. But now that I have... it feels like breathing." Her voice trembled as the truth finally slipped past her lips, fragile and terrifying all at once. "Do you even realise what you're saying, Akshita?" Vamika whispered, though the disbelief in her voice made it sound almost like a yell. "I-I tried," Akshita stammered, shaking her head helplessly. "I tried not to fall for him. I tried to get a grip on myself, but I... I can't. I know it sounds stupid. I know it's wrong. And I know he will never feel the same but-" Her words shattered before she could finish, her voice breaking under the weight of everything she had been trying to hide. Vamika softened a little, though worry still clouded her face. "He's leaving, Akshita," she said gently. "I think you should stop yourself before it gets worse." But what neither of them realised was that someone else stood just beyond those closed doors. Someone who wasn't meant to hear any of it.