AvNeil - A Special Bond of Destiny

Chapter - 19

She walked backward as he approached her. She realized she had nowhere to run when she hit the wall. She tried walking away from there briskly before Neil advanced closer, but he held her wrist tightly and yanked her back to the wall. He held her by her arms in a tight grip, while she looked down, tears threatening to flow out of her eyes. "I told you to wait for me, right? Why did you get out of there?" he asked not raising his voice, but the rage and annoyance were quite evident from his tone. She looked down without answering him. He gripped her more firmly and pressed his hands harder into her skin, while her tears begin to make their way down. "I am asking you something Avni. Answer me" he yelled. She continued to cry not looking up at him. She had been petrified thinking about the fiasco that had chanced a few minutes ago. She shuddered to think of what could have happened, had he not reached there on time. The mental turmoil coupled with his rage made her break down. She sobbed, sinking down towards the floor, dragging him along with her as she collapsed and sat down on the floor. Neil's face changed from anger to worry and then concern, as his grip on her loosened. He couldn't fathom what was bothering her. It pained him deeply to see her in tears. Her tears melted his insides. As they settled on the floor, he hugged her tightly and rubbed her back slowly trying to calm her down. "Shhhh..Relax Avni. Please calm down. I am extremely sorry for having yelled at you" he said as he stroked her back comfortingly. She held on to his shirt and continued to cry as her head rested against his chest. They sat in that position for a few minutes. He realized she needed her time and allowed her to vent out her emotional outburst. After he felt that her sobs had sunk to some extent, he released her from his hold, held her chin and forced her to look into his eyes. Their eyes met, hers still moist, which hurt him deeply inside. He wiped away her tears softly, and held her face in between his palms. "I am extremely sorry Avni. I didn't mean to intimidate or scare you. It was just my concern for .." he blurted out and paused not sure if he should continue that statement. She continued to look into his eyes, "Don't be sorry Neil. I was frustrated about something else and that led to me walking out of there" she said meekly as she placed her hands over his warmly. After all, she couldn't afford to tell him the actual reason as to why she had stormed out of there. "What's bothering you Avni? Maybe I can help.." offered Neil gently. "No Neil. You have already done so much for me. If you hadn't been there today.." she said as tears made their way down. "Shhhh..Nothing happened..No one can dare to lay a finger on you as long as I am there." he said as he hugged her again. "You must be tired. I think you should sleep now" he said and got up to leave. She held his hand as he got up to go. He turned back and looked at her. "What is it Avni?" he asked concerned, kneeling in front of her. "Please don't go." she said. "What?" asked a confounded Neil. "Can you please stay with me here tonight? I feel safe with you near me" she spoke up. "But Avni.." he said still taken aback and uncertain as to what to do. "Please Neil" she implored.

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He never had the heart to say no to her, ever. "Okay. Alright" he said as he sat beside her, holding her hand in his. "Do you mind if I get us some wine?" asked Neil. "Wine sounds good" she said. He smiled and walked to the fridge, while she sat on her bed resting against the headboard. He poured the wine into a couple of glasses and settled beside her, handing her one glass. "Neil" she said. "Hmmmm" he replied. "We have been staying together in this house for quite some time, yet we don't know much about each other. Would you mind sharing a bit about your family?" she asked him softly in a hesitant tone. "Well, this topic never came up. And no, I do not mind at all Ms. Cleopatra" he said smiling, as she couldn't hold back her blush which he of course didn't miss. "I was maybe 8 years old when my parents left me. They died in an accident" he said with a straight face. "Neil I'm so sorry..I didn't mean to.." she fumbled as she looked at him her eyes wide in shock but pain writ in them. "It's okay Avni. Relax. That was a long time ago. Ever since, I have been brought up by Juhi's parents. My parents and Juhi's parents were great friends. They have always treated me as their own son and never ill-treated me. They gave me everything I needed. I will forever remain indebted to them and they mean the world to me." he replied. "So, what's your story, Ms. Avni? Do you want to share?" asked Neil casually. "I stay with my mother in Delhi. I too lost my father in an accident when I was in college.." she said. "I am sorry to hear that Avni.." he said as he rubbed her hand softly. "So how did you meet Vidyut?" he probed. "The time around when my father left us, Vidyut entered my life as a friend. He was my sole support system. He was the only one I could share everything with. In a way I became emotionally dependent on him." said Avni as her face fell, realizing how he had broken his promise of marrying her. "So, I believe you and Juhi grew up together. Is that how you fell for ..??" asked Avni unable to continue further. "Yes, we did grow up together. I initially had a lot of respect for her. With time the admiration and respect grew stronger, and in no time, even before I could realize it, I was in love with her." he replied. Hearing about his love for Juhi hurt Avni so much. She felt like her heart was crumbling into pieces. She had no clue why everything he said or his association with any other woman bothered her so much. Frustrated she blurted out "She was stupid to have left you". Neil looked up at her, surprised out of his wits. 'It must be the wine talking', he thought to himself. "He too was a fool to have let go of this precious gem" he said. She looked up at him to meet his eyes which looked deeply into hers. As their eyes locked, their faces inched closer to each other. He placed one hand over her cheek and stroked it softly while she closed her eyes in response to his touch. He advanced closer to her face and bent over beside her ears and whispered softly, "I want to tell you something". "Hmmm..Neil?" she whimpered. "You look extremely gorgeous. I don't think even Cleopatra will be able to surpass your beauty. Need to start thinking about a new name. Let me see..Should I refer to you as my Apsara or my Greek Goddess?" he said huskily. Her cheeks went in a deep red blush and her heart pounded rapidly. She looked down not wanting to let him know how hard it was for her to stop blushing. Strangely her blush always affected him. His heart leapt in joy as though he had achieved something precious which he could never let go of. The couple continued to talk through the night, sharing anecdotes of their past, laughing occasionally, hitting each other playfully, reliving their lives before they had met each other. It was almost 3:00 AM when they finally fell into a deep slumber.