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Chapter five
Vikram looked at her, assuming that she would be nervous, when he deliberately stated that he might've had idea about who the culprit must be. But she didn't respond the way he imagined she would — instead, she looked hopeful, waiting for the closure of her husband's death.
"Look," he spoke, deciding to break the silence, "I'm not sure whether my guess is right or not, but, there is a guy who despises Aditya — I don't mean it as a childish rivalry, but it's much beyond — he actually hates my brother."
Dhriti's interest piqued. She nods her head, while she learned the new information. "Who's he?" She decided to ask.
"Aakash Varma."
Dhriti's face became pale; as if she looked at ghost. She gripped the steering wheel as hard as she could; her knuckles getting paler as she did so. Before she could hurt a muscle; Vikram put his warm hand over hers, detaching her hand from the steering wheel.
"You're hurting yourself, Dhriti."
She couldn't utter a word. Aakash Varma — a name she wouldn't forget, even if she wishes to. He is a vile stain in her life — a stain that won't stop haunting you until the last breath of your life.
"Dhriti," he whispered, while she didn't reply to him, he repeated once again, a little louder and she looked at him. "What happened?"
"H-how do you know about him?" She asked, wiping her sweaty palms on her jeans.
"About Aakash, you mean?" She nods her head, while he continues, "He was Aditya's classmate. They were good friends, I'm sure you know about him, as you were in the same college. Both of them liked the same girl; and decided to leave the choice to the girl they liked. I don't know what happened on that day, Aditya went to Aakash's house and they began—" "— to fight, leading Aditya to leave a permanent scar on Aakash's face. Since then, both of them couldn't stand each other's existence." Dhriti finished the sentence and Aditya nods his head.
"But, how do you — hold on, you are the girl they were fighting about, weren't they? You are the reason why they fought? You ARE the reason why Aakash was trashed!" Vikram accused Dhriti.
Dhriti's nostrils flared as she threw a glare at Vikram's way. "Shut your mouth, Vikram! You don't know anything about it! You don't know what Aakash did! You can't come out of nowhere and accuse me like this. YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT AAKASH DID! SO SHUT THE FUCK UP."
Her pent up anger was slowly coming out and Vikram is the victim of her wrath. It took her years to let the tainted memories not affect her, while Vikram's accusation brought up all her old memories and she don't have Aditya to embrace her, caress her hair and tell her it'll be okay. She didn't have him — she felt alone. She is alone.
➴
In the morning, she woke up with a pounding headache and emptiness in her chest. She realised it was because of the loneliness and the screams she has let out last night in the presence of her dead husband's brother.
Inhaling, she put her feet on the cold wood, slipping into her flipflops. Walking through the hallway, she examined the rooms, searching for Vikram. Nowhere in sight, she strode down the stairs, having the thought of finding him there.
"Vikram," she called out, realising she wandered the whole house — still, him nowhere out there. "Vikram, where are you?"
Nearing the dining hall, she saw a figure in the garden, across the dining hall, deep in thought. Sighing, she pushes the door and walk to him in the garden.
Vikram didn't realise Dhriti's presence as he was still in the trance of her outburst last night. He was curious, what happened to Dhriti and Aakash? Why was Aditya so angry?
"Vikram," she put her hand on his shoulder and shook him out of his thoughts. Blinking, he looked at her and smiled. "Am I disturbing you?"
"Nonsense." He said, while she adjusts her dress and settles beside him. Facing the morning sunlight, they could feel the warmth on their skin, which was much needed for what was happening in their lives. Dhriti close her eyes, grasping as much as warmth she could. Even though, she's a fan of winter; she understood the importance of sunshine and it's warmth after Aditya left her.
"We're going to meet Aakash." She spoke, her eyes still closed — while his eyes shot up surprised.
"I don't th—"
"It's necessary, Vikram. He is our first lead, he may know something we don't," she looked at him, "we need to find him."
✗ ✗ ✗
a/n:
don't kill me! I'm so sorry that I didn't update in a very long time. My laptop went for service, I had online classes and I lost my inspiration to write. This lockdown literally sucked my will to write. But, I assure you I'll write soon. I'll come back with a bang-bang chapter!
