A promise

 Under the old banyan tree at the edge of their village, Meera and Kavya made a promise.

“If life ever pulls us apart,” Meera said, tying a thin red thread around Kavya’s wrist, “we’ll come back here. Same day. Same time. No matter what.”

Kavya smiled. “A promise is a promise.”

Years passed. Life didn’t just pull them apart—it scattered them. Meera moved to a busy city chasing her dreams, while Kavya stayed behind, carrying responsibilities that came too early. Calls became messages, messages became memories, and slowly… silence.

But promises have a quiet way of living in the heart.

One evening, after a long, exhausting day, Meera found an old box. Inside was a faded red thread. Her chest tightened. She checked the date—it was today.

Miles away, Kavya stood beneath the banyan tree, fingers brushing a worn thread still tied to her wrist. She had come every year… just in case.

The wind stirred softly as footsteps approached.

Meera stopped, breathless. Kavya turned.

For a moment, years disappeared.

“You came,” Kavya whispered.

“I said I would,” Meera replied, tears in her eyes.

They hugged, not as strangers who had drifted, but as friends who had simply paused.

Because time can change many things…

but a true promise between friends never breaks.