Keshav, still in his Bangalore flat for work, carried the weight of it all. Every night he opened the fake account with a mix of excitement and guilt. The secret had become part of his routine now — five months of daily connection with his own mother, plus the lingering knowledge of Sonam’s hidden videos that he had never deleted from his mind. The guilt about deceiving Kalpana was still there, but it had softened under the warmth of their growing closeness. He told himself it was just chat. Just words. But every time she replied with warmth or vulnerability, his body reacted.
On a quiet Thursday night, three weeks after that goddess confession, Keshav sat in his Bangalore flat after a late dinner. The lights were dim, the city humming outside. He opened the account around 10:40 PM and sent a casual message.
Aryan Malhotra 10:40 PM Hey Sav… rough day or good one?
She replied after a few minutes.
Kalpana Rao 10:45 PM Mixed. College was fine but I’m tired. How about you?
They chatted lightly for a while about their days — her classes, his “work” in Pune (the fictional version he maintained). The conversation was easy and warm, like it had been for weeks. Then, while scrolling through his phone to find a funny reel to send, Keshav accidentally tapped the wrong one.
A soft, romantic reel started playing — a couple under fairy lights, slow dancing, then leaning in for a gentle, lingering kiss as the music swelled. He had meant to send a comedy reel but sent this instead.
He stared at the screen in horror for two seconds, then quickly typed.
Aryan Malhotra 10:58 PM Oh shit… sorry. I didn’t mean to send that one. Wrong reel. Ignore it 😅
Kalpana Rao 11:01 PM Haha… too late. I already watched it. It was nice though 😉
Keshav blinked, then smiled despite the embarrassment. She was teasing him. After months of growing comfort, she felt safe enough to flirt back playfully.
Aryan Malhotra 11:03 PM Nice? Really? I was trying to send something funny and accidentally sent a kissing reel. My bad 😂
Kalpana Rao 11:05 PM It was sweet actually. Romantic. Made me smile. Don’t be sorry. I liked it.
They both started laughing through text — short messages filled with emojis and playful jabs.
Aryan Malhotra 11:07 PM Okay okay, I’ll take the win. At least it made you smile. I’ll be more careful next time… or maybe not if you liked it that much 😏
Kalpana Rao 11:09 PM Don’t push your luck, mister. But yes… it was nice. Made the evening a little less boring.
The teasing eased into comfortable laughter. Keshav felt the familiar warmth in his chest — and lower. After three weeks of normal, easy connection, tonight already felt different. She was in a lighter, more open mood.
Then she brought up something from before.
Kalpana Rao 11:14 PM Aryan… can I ask you something? A few weeks ago you said some very nice things about me. About my beauty… my curves… and that I’m a goddess. You said you would love to have me. I’ve been thinking about it since then. Was that just to cheer me up after that bad day, or did you really mean it?
