Raise Café – Outside
“Avni di, aap akele kyun ja rahi ho? Main bhi chalta hoon. Agar woh ladka kuch creepy nikla toh? Ek toh chachi ne dhang se details bhi nahi di. Bas photo aur naam. Kya karta hai, kaisa hai, kuch bhi nahi bataya,” Avyaan kept murmuring the entire ride to the café.
Avni was already nervous, and Avyaan’s nonstop chatter was only making her more anxious.
Until now, every rishta her chachi had shown her had been irritating and full of ridiculous expectations.
The first boy she met was decent looking, but he spent the entire meeting asking about her company—almost like he was marrying the company, not her.
The second one kept explaining how leaving her job and becoming a stay-at-home wife would be “the greatest work” she could ever do.
And the third one…
She didn't even want to think about him.
He had been an absolute creep.
All these experiences made her uneasy about tonight.
She silently prayed that Divyansh would not turn out to be like those men.
Because somewhere deep down, though she didn’t want to admit it, she had already liked him a little—from the photo.
In the picture he was wearing a black kurta.
From the photo she guessed he must be around six-two or six-three, tall with curly hair, broad shoulders—muscular but a little lean.
But what had really caught her attention was his smile.
Something about it had given her strange butterflies.
She wanted to look at the photo again… but she didn’t want to seem desperate in front of her brother.
“Di… di… DI!” Avyaan said loudly.
She snapped out of her thoughts.
“Kahan khoyi ho? Kab se bula raha hoon. Hum almost pahunch gaye.”
“Haan… theek hai,” she said quietly.
The car stopped near the café.
“Bas mujhe yahin drop kar do. Main wapas driver bhaiya ko bula lungi.”
“Aap sure ho main jaaun?” Avyaan asked suspiciously.
“Haan bhai. I will be fine. Tum jao. Ghar pe milte hain.”
She stepped out of the car.
Avyaan still looked unsure but finally drove away.
Inside the Café
Avni entered the café and quickly looked around.
Divyansh wasn’t there yet.
She chose a table near the window and sat down.
While waiting, she started scrolling through her phone.
A few seconds later, something outside the café caught her attention.
Through the glass window she saw a man crouched on the sidewalk.
He was helping a small injured puppy.
The poor animal was limping badly.
The man’s back was facing her, so she couldn’t see his face.
For a moment she hesitated.
Then she stood up and walked outside.
Outside the Café
As she reached closer, she saw the man gently lifting the puppy in his arms.
When he turned slightly—
She froze.
“Divyansh?”
Divyansh looked up immediately.
The moment he saw her standing there, time seemed to pause for a second.
For a split second he genuinely felt like violins were playing somewhere in the background, like a dramatic Bollywood scene.
He stared at her, completely mesmerized.
She looked even more beautiful than the photo.
He quickly stood up, still holding the puppy.
“Avni… I’m really sorry,” he said immediately.
“Main actually café ke andar aane hi wala tha, par yeh puppy almost car ke neeche aa gaya tha. Isko kaafi chot lagi hai. Isko abhi vet ke paas le jaana padega.”
He looked genuinely apologetic.
“Agar possible ho toh… kya hum kisi aur time mil sakte hain?”
Avni looked at the puppy and then back at him.
“No need to apologize,” she said calmly.
“Main bhi help kar sakti hoon tumhe. Puppy ko vet ke paas le chalte hain.”
Divyansh shook his head politely.
“Nahi nahi, main le jaaunga. Meri bike yahin khadi hai.”
Avni crossed her arms.
“Achha? Aur tum puppy ko pakad ke bike kaise chalaoge?”
Divyansh paused.
He awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck.
“Uh… woh…”
Avni smiled slightly.
“Toh Mr. Singh… kya main help kar sakti hoon?”
Divyansh smiled back.
“Help toh kar sakti ho… par ek condition pe.”
“Kya?”
“Mujhe Mr. Singh mat bolo. Bas Divyansh.”
“Fine,” she said.
“Divyansh.”
He handed her the puppy carefully.
“Tum puppy pakdo. Main bike le aata hoon.”
He walked toward the parking area and brought his bike.
After wearing his helmet, he started the engine and gestured toward the seat behind him.
Avni carefully sat on the bike while holding the puppy.
“Tum comfortable ho?” he asked.
“Haan.”
Then he hesitated slightly.
“Tum… chaaho toh balance ke liye mera shoulder pakad sakti ho.”
Avni paused for a moment before placing one hand lightly on his shoulder.
The moment her hand touched him—
Both of them felt a strange shiver.
Divyansh suddenly realized something.
She was the first girl—other than his sister—ever sitting on his bike.
Meanwhile, Avni realized something too.
The last time she had sat on a bike…
was with her father when she was a teenager.
Both of them suddenly became a little awkward.
Neither said anything.
But the unexpected closeness between them created a strange feeling neither of them had experienced before.
Divyansh cleared his throat slightly.
“Ready?”
Avni nodded.
“Haan… chalo.”
And the bike slowly drove off toward the vet clinic.
With a small injured puppy between them—
And the beginning of something neither of them understood yet.
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