"Here, drink this first.." Srinivas said handing her the water bottle sitting her on the couch.

All the rooms in the mansion were similar. All had a king-size bed, closet, attached bath, a couch, and some miscellaneous furniture.

Zee just drank the water greedily while her mind raced to find anything at all to get her out of her predicament. But all she heard were the click sound of the doors as Srinivas closed behind them.

After that silence ensued between them while Zee tried to drag the time as much as possible by drinking water as long as she possibly could.

Srinivas did not really talk anything. After all, he had already asked the question and was waiting for her to answer them honestly. And of course, he was a very patient man. So he just sat at the bed facing straight at her. And the door was behind him.. so, if she wanted to make a run for it, she would have to get past him which was not a small task.

Zee, on the other hand, went into a trance all over again as her mind raced a million miles per hour without her consent. She did not even know what she was thinking about in the first place. Pictures of her life just kept popping up on her head

The one thing that she feared above all was commitment.. She never got too attached to anybody... or any place or thing. She was a nomad. The very thing that was supposed to spread warmth to a person actually scared her shitless.. Family. She had long made peace with being alone. Now she did not know how to get away from it.

Zee was an orphan. She grew up in an orphanage from the time she could remember. But since she was smart and very good with studies, she had a better education than anybody else in her state. And she earned a full scholarship almost throughout the course of her studies. And she had to fight each and every day just to survive.

So by the time she had met Shreya, she had already long forgone any semblance of hope.

Maybe when she was really really young.. there might have been a time she wanted someone to be with her.. to look out for her.. Maybe there was a time when she earnestly wanted a family for herself. But that hope had far died and buried by the time she had gone to university and met Shreya.

That is why to this day, she could never reciprocate the absolute trust and commitment Shreya had towards her. She cares about Shreya very deeply. More than she ever cared about anyone else ever in her life. But she still never trusted in the relationship as such. In fact, she did not know how to.

A long time passed without Zee ever uttering a single word. Srinivas let out a sigh resigned.

He walked up to her and ruffled her head and said gently, "Go on. Get some sleep." One can't possibly miss the disappointment in his face.

Seeing him hurt.. knowing it was because of her.. her heart throbbed uncomfortably.

These months she had spent with him.. there was hardly any time she was alone. If it had been anyone else, she would have been irritated with them and thrown them out by now. After all, she was the lone wolf of the gang. But Srinivas.. she did not even know his presence around her but the second she needs him for anything at all, he would just show up in front of her making himself know. He had been watching over her and guarding her like a Guardian Angel. Wherever she went.. whomever she met.. whatever she said.. he would just stand there two feet behind her silently protecting, comforting, and listening.?And she knew for a fact if there was ever to come a time.. he would take a bullet for her without blinking an eye.

She was yet to realize how much she got used to his presence in her daily life.

But since he had already brought it up, she did not want to leave him hanging. So she started talking in a clear unwavering voice.

"We are very different Srinivas. Our expectations are different. I don't want to commit.. I don't know how to. And you are not someone to settle for a causal relationship. You don't know how to play around. Maybe with time.. we can match other things. But these two things would never change.. So we would invariably end up being on odds with each other sooner or later. I would rather not start anything.. at least not with a person I value." Zee whispered. Her voice was very low but was firm without any leeway for negotiation.

Srinivas did not reply. He just looked at her with a complicated gaze.

"You are going to end up wanting things I could never give.. a commitment.. a family.. Marriage.. Children.. PROMISES.. I cannot give you any of those and I know for a fact you would want them.. each and every single one of them. SO it is better to not start things that are sure to end up in a disaster. I don't want to lose a friend like you in my life.. I already have so few people as it is who really cares about me. I don't want to lose one on an impulse.

This will go away.. I promise. It is just an infatuation. We spend so much time together that it is almost inevitable to not have one. We can just ride it out as we had so far."

Zee then looked straight into his eyes as she continued, "I might be many things, Srinivas. But I do not want to be that bitch who carelessly tramples over a sincere heart. I do not want to trample over yours especially. We can compromise on anything.. but we can't possibly compromise on what we need from a relationship.."