The days following Vivek's confession felt like an endless stretch of time to Nisha. The words he had spoken, so gentle yet so sure, echoed in her mind with each passing hour. She had tried to push them away, to ignore them, but they lingered like a soft melody, a quiet rhythm she couldn't escape.

The river, as always, was there, flowing with its endless motion, and yet it felt like Nisha herself was standing still. The weight of Vivek’s feelings pressed on her heart, a constant reminder of the words she had been too afraid to say.