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  Part- 316:

  Dipa looked bad forth between them, her brow furrowed with fusion. “Okay… well, let’s just get some coffee and catch up!” Her enthusiasm was iious, a bright trast to the charged energy still crag between Toya and James.

  Toya noticed Dipa’s i excitement a a pang of guilt wash over her. Here was Dipa, who always wore her heart on her sleeve, ready to dive into the day with unreserved joy, a, here she was, caught up in a whirlwind of frustration and fusion. “Sure,” she said, f a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Coffee sounds good.”

  As they sat oable and took the menu, Dipa practically skipped ahead, her eyes sing the menu with delight. “I ’t decide between a caramel macchiato and a chai tte! What do you guys think?” She gnced over her shoulder, her enthusiasm unwavering.

  James exged a sidelong gh Toya, who was still grappling with her thoughts. “I think you should go for the chai tte. It’s f, and it suits your sunny personality,” he said, hoping to distract both Dipa and himself from the tension that had brewed moments before.

  “Great idea!” Dipa excimed, her smile widening as she nodded. “Chai it is! And you two? What are you having?”

  Toya sighed, the weight of the moment still lingering in her chest. “I’ll just have a bck coffee, thanks,” she replied, attempting to sound casual. She needed something strong to cut through the uainty swirling in her mind.

  As they waited for their drinks, Dipa couldn’t help but chatter away, filling the air with light-hearted stories about her ret adventures. “You won’t believe what happehe other day! I went to this new park, and there was a dog that looked just like a panda! I swear, I thought I was losing it. I had to take a picture for proof!”

  Her joy was iious, and even Toya felt her spirits lift a little at Dipa’s enthusiasm. But as she tried to engage in the versation, her mi wandering back to her earlier flict with James. “Why did I let it get so heated?” she thought, feeling a mix of frustration and longing.

  Finally, with their drinks in hand, they found a cozy spot in the er of the café, away from the hustle and bustle.

  Toya tried to focus on Dipa’s cheerful chatter. “We are going to crush it at the matorrow! I ’t wait to see you guys in a!” Dipa excimed, her eyes shining with enthusiasm.

  Toya attempted to smile, but her heart was still heavy with unresolved feelings. “Yeah, it’ll be iing,” she said, gng at James, who seemed lost in thought, gazing into his cup as if it held the ao the universe.

  Dipa leaned closer, her voice l spiratorially. “What’s really going oween you and James? I sense some tension.”

  Toya hesitated, weighing her words. “It’s plicated. We’re... pretending to be in a retionship. But sometimes it feels like there’s more to it.”

  Dipa nodded, her expression shifting to one of uanding. “I get that. I was in a simir situation o’s hard to separate feelings from the act.”