The Reunion

"5 years, 3 months and 20 days since we last met. Only if I knew then that I would have to stay away from you for even longer. You must have came back by now. How I wish I could see you and tell you about my feelings. If only our families hadn't become rivals. It's been two years since we last talked on the phone or even texted. I know you are angry but I can't do anything. I have to stay away from you for my family." Andrew held a picture of Rose and him close to his heart. “If only all this never happened, we would all still have been happy and close together, sharing our problems and happiness with each other. I can’t even talk to you now because if I do, dad will be upset, your dad will be angry, everything will go wrong. So this separation is necessary, my love.” He stroked her picture. 

Ruby walked inside his room and he hid the picture under his pillow. "You don't need to hide anything Andrew. I already know" she said. 

"Mom, I was just-." 

"You don't need to explain anything to me. I know how much you love her and how deep your relationship is. I miss her a lot as well. Oh by the way, I talked to Sandra today and she told me that Rose has come back. Kyle went to pick her up and although she didn't say anything, disappointment was clearly visible in her eyes. Why don't you go and meet her?"

Andrew sadly chuckled when he heard this. "Mom, it's true that I really want to meet her and talk to her. I know she must be angry with me for not answering her calls or texts for the past two years but you know very well what will happen if I meet her. Don't you remember how her family cheated us? How heartbroken Dad was when he realised that his best friend cheated him. I know uncle Alex is your brother but it doesn't change what he did to us. We almost became bankrupt and got humiliated in front of everyone when he got our biggest investor to cancel a deal and invest in his company. Don't you remember how hard we all had to work to make up for it and pay the other investors. It has been 2 years but I can never forget that. For the first time in my life I saw my Dad in a state where he wasn't able to do anything and looked so helpless."

Ruby had tears in her eyes as past memories washed over her. "I know Andy. I know that what my brother did was not anywhere near right. He didn't even think once about me or any of us before doing that but Rose, she wasn't even here. In fact she doesn't even know about all this rivalry or anything. Then why are you punishing her when it doesn't have anything to do with her?” 

"I know she has no fault in any of this and I am also not punishing her but I also know very well that the moment I see her I will forget everything, all this rivalry and whatever there is and I will hug her, kiss her, hold her so close to my heart that she can hear each and every one of my heartbeats which beat for her in her name. I don't know what all I will do but I will do something and I can't afford that right now. I have changed myself with great difficulty over these two years. I can't let my love and affection for her allow her family to take advantage of us again. Anyway, even if I do meet her, you know what will happen right? There will be uproar. This rivalry hasn’t caused any bloodshed so far but that’s also possible if we start meeting. I'll call Kyle and ask him about her well-being and everything from time to time." 

After saying this he walked out of his room leaving Ruby alone. She sighed. Andy was not like this before. He and Rose were so close since childhood that not even a day went by without them seeing each other and today he was staying away from her despite being incomplete without her. It was true that she had always wished for Andy to marry Rose ever since they were children. Rose was the solution to all of Andy's problems. If Andy was the lock then Rose was the key. She smiled to herself as she remembered the time when Andy was sick with fever and how Rose went and sat with him inside his room despite everyone telling her not to. She had persuaded them using some logic which only made sense to her. She sat beside him all night and even fell asleep in that position. The next morning, everyone was surprised when Andy’s fever went down as if it was never there. He was up and about playing and jumping with his best friend for life. "If only Rose was the solution to all these problems" thought Ruby. 

A week later

Rose had found out about the rivalry. She was broken from inside and thought that Andy hated her. “If he doesn’t then why did he not answer any of my calls or texts? Why did he not try to see me even once? Why does he hate me when he knows this is not my fault?” If only she knew he was dying internally from not seeing her. 

There was something that didn't make sense though. In the version that she had heard of the story, the investor coming to their company was purely coincidental and circumstantial. The Kingston family had almost gone bankrupt and blamed her father for stealing the investor and broken all ties with him. Slowly as time went on, the resentment grew and eventually blinded the two once best friends. Only their fathers were very involved in the rivalry. Everyone else wished for it to stop and for everything to go back to normal. As she thought about it, she had to agree that it couldn't just be circumstantial and that something else was going on.

Andrew walked inside his office. As soon as he sat down he could feel something. It was as if he was at ease all of a sudden. As if all his problems had vanished. "Rose" he called out hoping it was really her. Only her presence could do that to him. She came out from behind the couch. He was mesmerised looking at her.