Cherreads

Chapter 6 - Chapter 5: Shadows of Doubt

The next morning felt heavier than usual.

At first, Aditi didn't notice anything wrong. But by the time she reached her desk at school, something was off.

Too many glances.Too many whispers.Too much silence right after she walked into a room.

Her best friend Reet sat beside her, tense.

"You need to see this," she said, pulling out her phone.

And there it was.

A photo.Posted on Nisha's Instagram story.

Café Bloom.Two cups. A half-eaten brownie.And most painfully… Abhimanyu's hand beside hers on the table — their fingers barely touching.

The caption read:

"Study dates >>> regular ones 💕"

And the comment section?

A storm.

"Is that Abhimanyu?""Omg finally!!""Aditi who?"

Her breath left her body.

Reet looked at her. "You okay?"

Aditi nodded. Lied.

Inside, she was crumbling.

So this was it?

He moved on.So easily. So quietly.

Without a word.

Without a goodbye.

Without her.

She didn't cry in school. Not once.

But as soon as she got home, she collapsed onto her bed and let it all go.

The hoodie he gave her still lay in the corner.Still smelled like him.Still held too many memories.

She threw it across the room.

Her phone buzzed.

Reet had sent a screenshot of a comment under the post:

"Looks like Abhi's upgraded."

And still… he hadn't said a thing.

No explanation.No message.No denial.

That night, Aditi did something she swore she wouldn't.

She opened his chat.

"Just tell me the truth. Are you with her?"

But she didn't send it.

She stared at the blinking cursor.

Waited.

Hoped he'd text first.

He didn't.

She locked her phone.Put it face down.And blocked him.

On everything.

Because if he didn't care enough to explain…

Then she didn't want to keep begging to matter.

Meanwhile, across town, Abhimanyu was completely unaware of what had exploded online.

He hadn't seen the post.

He hadn't even been on Instagram in two days.

Why?

Because his father had taken his phone after finding out he'd secretly registered for NEET coaching. The fight had gotten ugly.

"You think you'll run away from your legacy for some white coat and stethoscope? You're a Singh!"

All he could think about — even in the middle of that shouting match — was her.

He didn't even know he was losing her in real time.

Some stories don't end with cheating or lying.Some end with silence… and a screenshot.

More Chapters