Chapter 34: The Anchor and the Eve
Time, Aarav was learning, was no longer a steady river; it was a series of rapids followed by stagnant pools.
The first week after their initial meeting with Mr. Rao was a blinding rapid. It was a blur of late-night preparation, adrenaline, and coffee. The four of them were now an indivisible unit. While Aarav and Ayushi buried themselves in financial models and market-entry slides, Akash and Pooja acted as their support structure—Akash providing an endless supply of Nandini coffee and terrible jokes, and Pooja using her "master hacker" skills to dig up non-public (but not quite illegal) competitor analysis that made their pitch razor-sharp.
The day of the senior partners' meeting was nothing like the first. This wasn't a casual chat; it was an interrogation. They stood in a glass-walled boardroom on the 30th floor, overlooking the city.
A partner, a severe woman with a hawk-like gaze, immediately attacked their logistics. "Your decentralized sorting model is a pipe dream, Ms. Ayushi. The infrastructure cost will bankrupt you before you deliver a single package."
Ayushi, who had spent the last week running simulations, didn't flinch. "It would, sir, if we used a traditional hub-and-spoke model. But we're not. We're leveraging existing gig-economy driver routes, integrating our sorting algorithm as a software-as-a-service patch. Our infrastructure is the network that already exists." She was brilliant, every answer backed by data, her confidence soaring.
Then, the senior-most partner turned to Aarav. "And you. Your projections are... aggressive. You're predicting a major market shift in six months. What are you, a fortune-teller?"
The room went cold. Aarav met his gaze. He thought of the tombstone in his memory, the rain on the flyover. "Not a fortune-teller, sir. A student of history."
He began to speak, not of predictions, but of patterns. He used his knowledge of the coming market collapse (which, in this timeline, was still six months away) and framed it as a "strategic foresight model." He spoke of supply-chain vulnerabilities and over-leveraged tech assets that sounded theoretical, but were, in fact, concrete history. He laid out a case so compelling, so prescient, that the partners were silent.
He wasn't just pitching a business plan; he was pitching a new, more stable future. And they bought it.
They walked out of the building two hours later, blinded by the afternoon sun, a verbal commitment for seed funding secured. Ayushi was so overcome she actually grabbed Aarav in a fierce, breathless hug right on the pavement. "We did it, Aarav! We actually did it!"
He hugged her back, the relief so profound it almost buckled his knees. This was real. This was a win, a tangible anchor in the new reality he was trying to build.
Then, the second week began. The rapids gave way to a still, deep pool.
The VC's lawyers began sending documents. Life settled into a strange "new normal." The four of them were perpetually in the library, but the dynamic had fundamentally changed. Akash and Pooja were now "disgustingly cute," as Ayushi called them. They still bickered, but now it was punctuated by shared smiles and hands linked under the table while they worked.
Aarav and Ayushi, meanwhile, had become true partners. They had a shared language of business plans, investor decks, and logistics. The trust between them was absolute.
But beneath this placid surface, a frantic, secret current was moving.
A new group chat had been created: "Project: Anchor." Members: Aarav, Akash, Pooja.
Akash: OKAY TEAM. The day is almost upon us. I've secured the fairy lights. MANY fairy lights. Pooja, status on the venue?
Pooja: Rooftop cafe, 'The Gilded Sky.' Booked for a 'corporate event.' Completely private. I've handled the deposit and scrubbed the reservation details. They think we're a start-up called 'Logistix.'
Akash: Hahaha! You're the best, Pooj.
Aarav: Good. That's perfect. Cake is handled. I'm picking it up tomorrow. Just remember, nobody says a word. This has to be a total surprise.
Pooja: My security is flawless, Aarav. The variable is Akash. Can you *not* tell her?
Akash: I am wounded! I am a vault of secrets! Ayushi has no idea.
Aarav closed the chat, his heart thudding. He looked at the calendar on his phone. It was the eve of the day. The day he had been counting down to since he'd woken up in this new timeline. The day he'd vowed would be his "lifeline."
He was terrified.
The VC win felt huge, but this... this felt elemental. This was the real test. The cosmic forces he feared had been quiet, lulled by his successes. He felt that if he failed at this, if he fumbled the confession, all his other wins would be meaningless. Destiny would find a way back in.
The next day, the day of Ayushi's birthday, dawned bright and clear. The sky was an innocent, piercing blue, as if mocking the turmoil in Aarav's chest.
He went through his classes in a fog, his leg bouncing under the desk. He'd sent a simple text to Ayushi that morning.
Aarav: Hey. Big news. The VCs are fast-tracking the term sheet. We *have* to celebrate. All of us. Tonight. 7 PM. Wear something nice.
It was the perfect cover. She'd replied immediately, her text full of happy emojis, completely oblivious.
Ayushi: OMG! Yes! That's amazing! I'm so excited! See you then! 🎉
Aarav spent the rest of the afternoon in a state of controlled panic. He picked up the cake—a beautiful, custom design that subtly referenced their business logo. He coordinated with Akash and Pooja, who were already at the rooftop venue, "deploying assets" (which meant Akash was hanging fairy lights while Pooja set up a sound system).
At 6:30 PM, he met Ayushi near the university's main gate.
She looked stunning. She was wearing a simple, elegant dark blue dress he'd never seen before, her hair down. She was smiling, her face lit with genuine, uncomplicated happiness.
"Aarav! You're here!" she said, her voice bright. "I'm so ready to celebrate! This week has been insane. A real term sheet... I can't believe it."
"You... you look amazing, Ayushi," he managed to say, his throat dry.
"You clean up pretty good yourself," she teased, gesturing to his own button-down shirt. "You're acting so serious, though! We won! Loosen up!"
"I am. I am," he lied, trying to force a smile. "I'm just... focused on the evening."
Akash and Pooja pulled up in a cab, waving them over. "Your chariot, 'Partner-Sir' and 'Partner-Ma'am'!" Akash announced, bowing extravagantly as he held the door.
Pooja, in the front seat, just rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. "Get in, you two. We'll be late."
Ayushi slid into the back seat, and Aarav got in beside her. The cab pulled into the Bengaluru traffic. The mood was light, but thick with unspoken tension.
"So, where is this big celebration?" Ayushi asked, looking out the window. "This isn't the way to Toit, or any of our usual places."
"It's new," Aarav said, his hand clenching into a fist in his lap. "Exclusive. Just for... partners."
"Ooh, fancy," Ayushi laughed.
Akash caught Aarav's eye in the rearview mirror and gave him a subtle, encouraging nod. Aarav just nodded back, his jaw tight.
After twenty minutes, the cab pulled up to an unassuming commercial building in a quiet neighborhood. It was definitely not a restaurant.
"Aarav... where are we?" Ayushi asked, her smile fading into confusion. "This is an office building. Is this another meeting?"
"In a way," Pooja said, getting out of the front seat. "Akash, come on. Let's make sure our 'reservation' is ready."
"Right-o!" Akash said, practically vibrating with excitement. He grabbed Pooja's hand, and they disappeared inside the lobby.
Ayushi turned to Aarav, her brow furrowed. "Okay, what is going on? You're both acting so weird."
"It's a surprise, Ayushi," Aarav said, his voice suddenly thick with emotion. He got out of the cab and held the door for her. "Just... trust me."
Her expression softened at his tone. "Okay..." she said, taking his hand as she stepped out. "I trust you."
He led her into the lobby and toward the elevator, his heart feeling like it was trying to hammer its way out of his chest. This was it. The moment.
"Aarav, seriously, my heart is pounding," she said with a nervous laugh as the elevator doors slid shut, sealing them inside.
"Mine too," he whispered.
The elevator climbed, the silence broken only by the soft mechanical whir. He looked at her, at the woman he had crossed time to save, and knew that his life, his real life, began in the next ten seconds.
The elevator dinged, and the doors slid open.
Before them was a dark, open space, the night air cool.
"Aarav... it's pitch black," Ayushi said, taking a hesitant step forward into the darkness. "What is this? I don't understand."
Aarav didn't let go of her hand. He gently guided her forward, his own breath hitched in his throat. "It's okay," he said. "Just a few more steps."