Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Trending for All the Wrong Reasons

Anaya’s thumb hovered over her keyboard like a warrior with a sword.

One text.

That’s all it would take to remind Ishaan Malhotra exactly who he was messing with.

Anaya (Private Chat):

“Funny how you always behave… when someone’s watching.”

Delivered.

Sharp. Clean. Deadly. Just like her eyeliner on good days.

It didn’t take long for the three little dots to appear. Typing. Typing. Typing.

 Typical Ishaan—always quick with a comeback, slower with apologies.

She could practically hear his stupid smug tone forming on the other side of the screen.

Ishaan:

“Watching? Come on, Verma. Don’t flatter yourself. I’m here for the wedding. Not for you.”

Oh, he did not just use her own last name like an insult.

Classic Ishaan. Sweet words with sharp edges.

The kind of guy who could hand you a rose—with thorns hidden under his sleeve.

The typing dots popped up again.

Ishaan:

“But since you brought it up… Miss me?”

The nerve of this man.

Two years of silence, heartbreak, and rage…

and here he was, sliding into her life like a discount coupon she never wanted but somehow couldn’t block.

Before she could unleash the full fury of her typing fingers, another notification interrupted her inner dramatic monologue.

But this time—it wasn’t private.

Simran (In Group Chat):

“GUYS GUYS GUYS 😱😱😱 Guess who’s coming to the pre-wedding dinner?!”

No. Absolutely not.

Her stomach dropped like a bad signal at a live cricket match.

Please. No. Anyone but—

Simran: “ISHAAN.”

Anaya could already feel the disaster forming like storm clouds over her carefully maintained peace.

And before anyone else could react:

Mom:

“Wow that’s great, Bring him! It’ll be so nice to meet him properly. Anaya dear you both used to be such good friends, na?”

Friends. FRIENDS?

Anaya wanted to scream.

Friends don’t ghost you. Friends don’t leave you on read for two years. Friends don’t kiss you on rooftops and then disappear like unpaid electricity bills.

And just when she thought it couldn’t get worse, Simran’s evil laughter arrived in the chat:

Simran:

“👀👀👀 This dinner’s going to be spicy.”

Spicy? SPICY?

Anaya could practically see her sister cackling in the next room like a Disney villain over a bubbling cauldron of chaos.

Her phone buzzed again.

Private chat. Of course. Him again.

Ishaan (Private Chat):

“Guess I’ll see you at dinner, then.”

Smiley emoji.😏

Not the polite kind. The smug kind.

The kind that says, “I know exactly how much this annoys you, and I love it.”

Anaya glared at the screen, her pride wounded, her dignity hanging by the thinnest thread, and her inner chaos screaming: I will not let him win.

Tomorrow night. Pre-wedding dinner. Her family. His family. One tiny,overly decorated dining room.

And her ex looking at her like she was dessert on a menu labeled “Bad Decisions I’ll Order Again.”

Wonderful.

Anaya’s decision was clear.

If he wanted war—

she’d bring memes.

Petty. Savage. Full power.

Let's see who wins this time.

_____________________________________

Bye bye lovelies. 👋 See you in the next Chapter to know who wins this war.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***