AAROHI POV

How could anyone in this world possibly hate an afternoon nap? Afternoon naps were sacred to me, the only thing that truly belonged to me in this chaotic life. I would sink into that soft warmth, drifting into oblivion, and by the time I woke up, the sky outside would already be painted in soft strokes of orange and pink, evening slipping in . 

My phone It was sitting on my nightstand, screen blinking like a little devil begging for attention. I groaned, already knowing who it would be. And of course, I was right. The notification was from the one person who made it her personal mission in life to never leave me in peace—Misthi.

Her message glowed across the screen, sarcastic as always, her tone practically audible even through the words.

"So tell me, madam, aaj kahin ghumne chalna hai abhi?"

I chuckled under my breath, still half-asleep, but my fingers moved quickly across the keyboard. I typed back with all the dramatic energy I could gather after just waking up:

"Abhi just soke uthi yrr, mann nahi kar raha."

I smirked as I hit send, already imagining her rolling her eyes so hard she'd probably see her own brain.

Her reply came within seconds—because apparently she had absolutely no life outside of harassing me.

"Chup chap ready rehna, main aa rahi hoon 10 minute mein. Aur agar nautanki ki toh do thappad mardungi."

I snorted out loud, "Idiot," I muttered under my breath, though the fondness in my tone betrayed me. My fingers flew across the screen again, replying with mock annoyance:

"Very funny..."

Almost instantly, she sent back a string of laughing emojis so long that I was convinced my phone would explode under the weight of her laughter. And before I could even roll my eyes properly, another message pinged in:

"Thik chal chal main aa rahi hoon..."

This time, I couldn't help but bite my lip to stop the grin tugging at my face. I shook my head like she was the dumbest person on earth though in my heart, I knew she was also my favorite dumb person.

"Gadhi," I muttered softly, typing back with exaggerated defeat:

"Fine, fine, you win. Aaja."

The typing bubbles appeared instantly, as if she had been waiting with her phone in hand just for that surrender.

"Yeah, yeah. Anyway, hurry up. I'm waiting outside your house in ten minutes. And don't you dare make me stand there like an idiot again, Aarohi. If you're late, I swear I'll leave without you."

I rolled my eyes so hard that time, I thought they might get stuck. "As if you ever could," I whispered to myself, because we both knew the truth—Misthi could threaten all she wanted, but we wouldn't last five minutes without each other.

Still, for the sake of drama, I typed back:

"You wouldn't dare."

And almost immediately, her voice note popped up instead of a text. I pressed play, and her familiar dramatic voice filled my room.

"Aarohi Sharma , don't test me. I am perfectly capable of leaving you behind and enjoying pani puri alone.."

-

"Dadddiiiiii!" I screamed at the top of my lungs as I came rushing out of my room into the hall, almost tripping over my own steps in the process. My voice echoed through the house like a siren. "Dadi! Where are you?"

From the kitchen, I heard the clinking of steel utensils before my grandmother's voice came, calm and amused as always. "Haan, haan, what is it now?."

Before I even had the time to process her words, a muffled yet familiar voice echoed out from the kitchen itself.

And there she was. Misthi walked out, her cheeks bulging , her hands occupied with a freshly torn paratha in one hand with aloo ki sabzi. She chewed with zero shame, her eyes gleaming mischievously as she looked at me .

"Dadiiii!" I pointed at herc. "yae janwar yha kya karrhi aur ghar aai aur khanan thus rhi aesa nhi ki mereko bula lae yae toh janwar hai aap bhi nhi btaye?"

Before I could rant more, my grandmother came marching out of the kitchen with that signature frown that always managed to shut me up for at least two seconds. She lifted her hand and gave me a sharp little smack on the head. "What nonsense are you spewing this early in the morning? This is how you talk about misthi ? Janwar? Really? Misthi is such a nice child, and look how thin she has become and here you are calling her names as if she's some outsider."

Misthi immediately leaned against Dadi like the spoiled brat she truly was, smirking at me with food still stuffed in her mouth. She even tilted her head innocently and batted her eyelashes as if she were some angel who had descended from the heavens. "See, Aarohi? Someone in this house actually loves me and cares for me. Unlike you, who only knows how to insult and scream."

I gasped dramatically, pressing a hand over my chest as if my heart had just been ripped out. "Excuse me? Dadi, whose granddaughter am I exactly? Because the way you're pampering her, it feels like you adopted her yesterday and threw me away without notice. And patli? Seriously, Dadi, kis angle se patli lag rahi hai aapko?."

But my grandmother, as always, completely ignored me and patted Misthi's head as if she were stroking a crown princess. "Arre, tum dono meri bacchiyan ho. You're both my daughters . "

"Ufff!" I threw my hands up in frustration, spinning in a circle as if the universe had betrayed me. "My own grandmother, siding with my best friend instead of me."

Misthi laughed so hard she nearly choked on her paratha, clutching her stomach.

I rolled my eyes so hard they nearly got stuck.

Before I could argue, Misthi quickly snatched another paratha from the plate on the counter and waved it in my face like a flag of victory.

I narrowed my eyes at her, then snatched the paratha right out of her hand and took a huge bite, chewing deliberately in front of her ..

She gasped, clutching her chest in fake betrayal. "How dare you! That was my paratha!"

I smirked, licking my fingers. "Correction. That was our paratha. Learn to share."

By now, Dadi was laughing from the kitchen, muttering, "pagal hai dono."

And honestly? She wasn't wrong.

AUTHOR POV

Nishu tapped her foot impatiently, pacing back and forth like a little storm waiting to explode. Her phone was clutched tightly in her hand as she almost yelled, "Sarah, for God's sake, find their location fast, you idiot! Jaldi kar na, we're getting so late. I swear I can't wait anymore. I just... I want to meet them right now, badly."

Sarah, rolled her eyes dramatically but didn't lift her gaze. "Yes, yes, relax, madam restless. I'm already trying to find them on SnapChat. Just give me one second. "

"Time?!" Nishu almost shrieked, throwing her arms up as if the universe had personally decided to test her patience today. "Fast, Sarah, do it fast! My heart is literally racing here. Jaldi batao! I feel like if I don't see them today, I'll actually die. Sarah, I'm serious."

Sarah's fingers flew across her phone screen as she muttered under her breath, "Uff" Then suddenly her eyes widened, and she gasped loudly, jumping up from her place like she'd just discovered buried treasure. "Found! Found! I got them!"

Nishu ran to her. "Huh?! Where, where, where?! Don't just keep me hanging, you useless woman. " Her words came out so fast they almost tangled together, her excitement radiating in waves.

Sarah grinned, the thrill of the hunt making her voice high-pitched. "Guess where, Nishu? You'll never believe it. They're at the Rajasthani gupchup , that small street stall near the corner. Can you imagine? Out of all places, they're right there!"

For a moment, both girls froze, and then Nishu's face broke into a grin so wide . She clapped her hands like an overjoyed kid. "No way! No freaking way! Our favorite stop in the whole city when we were small ? "

Sarah's eyes sparkled with the same excitement, her voice nearly trembling as she added, "Exactly! Remember how we used to sneak pocket money just to eat there every evening? And that bhaiya always gave us one extra puri for free."

Nishu grabbed Sarah's shoulders and shook her dramatically, almost knocking the phone out of her hand. "Yes, yes, yes! Sarah. We have to go right now. We can't waste a single second. Do you understand? This isn't just about pani puri, this is about us, about childhood, about memories, about—"

Sarah interrupted with a laugh, "About you being extra as always. But fine, I agree. Let's go. Let's just go now. Wait, do we take the car or what?"

"Car, obviously!" Nishu almost screamed, as if the car would appear the moment she looked outside. "I already told Dad about it. He's sent the car, and it should be here anytime now."

Sarah laughed, shaking her head as she slipped her phone into her pocket, her heart racing just as fast. "Oh, I feel it. My stomach's already dancing at the thought of those spicy pani puris. But more than that, the idea of meeting them there, in that place, after all these years .."

"Yes!" Nishu shouted, nearly bouncing on her toes, her grin unstoppable. "So no more delays. Fast, fast, fast. The car should be here in a second, and then we're off. Get ready, Sarah."

-
"Arre bhaiya, tikha dena, jab tak aankh se aasu na aa jaye tab tak," Aarohi demanded dramatically, her eyes glinting with mischief as she leaned over the golgappa stall.

The vendor chuckled, shaking his head as he filled the puris with extra spicy water. "Haye bhagwan, tum dono kabhi nahi sudhroge .."

Misthi clapped her hands like a child, grinning ear to ear. "Exactly, bhaiya, give us the spice that makes us cry but still crave for more. That's the only real pani puri!"

Both girls burst into laughter, exchanging playful looks as they popped golgappas one after another, competing on who could handle the spice better. The vendor simply watched, amused.

And then—
A sudden voice cut through the air, loud, familiar, and filled with excitement.

"Miiiiissstthhhiii! Aaaaaroooohhhiiiii!"

Both Aarohi and Misthi froze, gupchup halfway to their mouths, their eyes snapping toward the sound. A sleek car had just pulled over, and before they could process it, the doors flew open.

First came Nishu, rushing out with her usual dramatic energy, followed by Sarah, looking equally shocked and thrilled.

For a second, Aarohi and Misthi just blinked, their brains not ready to believe what they were seeing. Then, almost in second, their voices cracked in disbelief.

"Nis...hu?!" Aarohi gasped.
"Sa...rah?!" Misthi squealed.

The pani puri bowls clattered back onto the stall as if forgotten forever. Without another word, both of them sprinted toward the car, their sandles barely holding on as their hearts pounded with joy.

And when they reached, they didn't waste even a breath. Aarohi jumped into Nishu's arms, hugging her so tightly that Nishu almost stumbled backward. Misthi wrapped her arms around Sarah, squealing like a child .

"Shiv ji kasam kitne bhai kitti khus hu maain thankyou narmada maiyaa finally itnae salo bad!" Aarohi's voice cracked with both laughter and tears as she squeezed Nishu harder.

Nishu laughed, brushing Aarohi's hair out of her face. "Well, surprise! Did you really think we'd disappear forever? As if I'd ever leave you two mad girls to eat golgappas without me!"

Sarah, still holding Misthi, added with a teasing smile, "Exactly. What kind of reunion is this? Having pani puri without calling us? Do you even know how rude that is?"

Misthi's eyes welled up as she pulled back just enough to look at Sarah's face. "You idiot, do you even realize how much I missed you?!"

Sarah laughed, her own eyes suspiciously shiny. "I missed you too, stupid. You and your dramas."

Meanwhile, Aarohi slapped Nishu's arm lightly, her voice trembling. "You didn't even tell me, you idiot ..."

Nishu grinned, guilt mixing with mischief. "I wanted to see your shocked face. And damn, it's worth it. Look at you, you're literally shaking."

The four of them finally ended up in a tangled group hug, laughing, crying, and pulling each other's hair in that messy way only true friends do. People at the stall were watching, some smiling, some confused, but none of that mattered.

"Okay, but first things first," Sarah pulled back, wiping her tears and pointing toward the golgappa stall. "We are not leaving without eating together. It's been ages since we've shared one plate."

"Yes!" Misthi's eyes lit up, her sadness instantly replaced with excitement. "Bhaiya! Four plates, extra spicy, full pani! Today, nobody cries alone!"

The vendor laughed, shaking his head again. " ha bachaee !"

They all laughed together, hands still intertwined, hearts finally complete again.