BETWEEN TWO WORLDS | Chapter 1: The Coffee Shop Encounter

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BETWEEN TWO WORLDS | Chapter 1: The Coffee Shop Encounter
Aarav Malhotra had exactly seventeen minutes before his 3 PM client presentation when he decided coffee was non-negotiable. The Bangalore heat had turned his shirt collar into a damp noose, and his laptop bag felt like it carried bricks instead of a MacBook. The new café on MG Road— Chai & Stories —had been calling to him for weeks with its Instagram-worthy aesthetic and promise of cold brew that didn't taste like disappointment. The place was packed. Of course it was. Every software engineer, content creator, and freelance graphic designer in a five-kilometer radius had apparently had the same idea. Aarav squeezed past a group of college students arguing about some web series, nearly tripping over someone's canvas tote bag with "Wanderlust" printed on it in swirling fonts. "One cold brew, large, and please tell me you have it ready to go," he said to the barista, a kid who looked barely old enough to vote. "Eight-minute wait, bro. Rush hour." Aarav…