Second Chance

Chapter 15 'I Love Her'

 'It was a mistake,' says Mahi letting out an intensely stressed and disturbed look. 

'What!' exclaims Dev at her response. He continues,' What are you trying to say?'

'Yes. It is a mistake,' says Mahi, not looking Dev in the eyes as she is still lost in her horror. She further breathes,' We shouldn't have done...' and before she could complete that sentence, she takes off running towards the house. 

Dev gets stunned at the turns of the event. He stands still, gathering himself from what just happened. He sees Mahi leaving the garden and running to the house. He as well doesn't stay and follows her calling her out to stop to get some answers. Mahi doesn't stop and runs straight upstairs to her room, drenched wet, dripping water on the floor. So does Dev. However, when she reaches her room, she locks it from inside. Dev fails to get hold of her in time. Dev calls her out from the door.

'Mahi! Open the door. Please. Talk to me,' says Dev knocking on the door. 

Mahi becomes still when she locks the door, drawing blank in mind. She doesn't say anything when she listens to Dev on the other side of her door. 

Not getting any response from Mahi, Dev takes a failed calming breath and then continues softly,' Mahi. You are making me worried.' He says,' Please. Talk to me. Just...say something.'

Mahi listens to his soft voice on the door. Her eyes fill up as she rests her forehead on the door, closing her eyes in despair. 

'Mahi,' says Dev, moving closer to the door.

Mahi gathers her voice as she replies in a low voice,' I don't want to talk. Please leave me alone...for some time,' holding in her tears.

'Okay. Okay. I can do that,' says Dev becoming a little relieved yet not completely satisfied with her response. He puts his forehead on her door for a few seconds before he decides to leave. 

When Mahi listens closely, the receding footsteps of Dev, she let lose control over her emotions and cries her heart out. She feels helpless at that moment. There was no doubt about what happened in the garden was the most beautiful moment of her life so far. But, she knew in that instant that it was nothing less than an alluring dream for her. A moment, she could only dream and experience once but cannot have for life. Somehow she is convinced that this moment of happiness cannot be part of her life unless Dev gets to know that chapter of her life. However, she believes that it is a far fetched idea even in some alternative universe, she decides to tell him. In this universe, it ain't happening for sure. She cannot, in the right state of her mind, recite that chapter again to someone. Not even to someone like Dev, for whom she feels so strongly. 

Dev, on the other hand, sinks in the chair placed in the corner of his room. His thoughts go back and forth about what happened downstairs in the garden. He tries to figure, where he went wrong for Mahi to react in such a manner. He did notice her terrified looks but, he couldn't place them at the appropriate place. What happened in the garden with both of them was the most natural outcome. Dev wouldn't have initiated it if he wasn't sure about Mahi's feeling. He did see consent in her eyes before pulling her in a kiss. And he was sure, after that night. A person usually tends to shows his/her true feeling when they are drunk. And Mahi drank in the first place because she got affected by Dev's actions. And Dev was well versed with it. He could simply join the dots when Mahi showed up drunk at her door. Then how everything could go south in a moment. Dev jogs his head the whole night on repeat to get at the least one different piece, which could explain Mahi's reaction. 

Dev looks for Mahi, the first thing in the morning the next day. However, he doesn't find her in her room or in the house. From house help, he gets to know that she left for work early. Dev tries hard not to read anything from it and thinks that she'll eventually get home. Then he'll talk to her. However, he fails to do so as he returns a little late. She had already locked herself up in her room, pretending to sleep early. He tries the same the next day. However, he finds her room locked as she hasn't left yet. He tries to knock on her door but doesn't get any response. He becomes restless but, he gets called off to the office urgently. He was already getting a little busy at the office to arrange his younger sister's engagement. Again he fails to meet Mahi. This repeats the next day too. This time, his self-esteem doesn't allow him to knock on her door because he already read this very rightly that Mahi is avoiding him. But he stayed downstairs to wait for her to come out of her hiding so that she could give him some answers that he deserves. However, he gives up as his priorities at the hotel takes over.