Transcend

Chapter 2: Loose Ends

She didn't get very far after leaving the station.

Just outside the precinct, Constable Cheetashwar Chaturvedi's tall frame halted her to a screeching stop. She haphazardly wiped her tears. His callousness currently was beyond her comprehension and she didn't have the conviction to decipher it.

But she had unfinished business with him.

"Santu Ji, are-are you crying?" he asked, reaching out to wipe the tears that had fallen past her eyelashes.

"No," she denied instantly swiping her hand at her cheeks. Making the mistake to look at his face, she bit her lip. There stood her...boyfriend? She wasn't sure what to call the man since they went on a break. She barely recognised him and the cold eyes that stared back at her.

When a picture becomes too blurred due to close proximity, it is best to take a step back and re-evaluate its beauty. Sometimes the beauty of it turns out to be an illusion, a concoction of expectations and rose-tinted truths.

Given the nature of their jobs, it wasn't counted as much of a break or a step back since they still saw each other every day. Thankfully, she did have some time off in between her training period and medical leave of absence to give her relationship with him serious thought.

"We need to talk."

For the first time in weeks, it seemed like he was serious about something. Morbid that it has to be this of all things. Not even the station closure news derailed his stubbornness.

"If this is about my change in attitude that everyone keeps pointing out and talking about, I don't want to hear it."

"It's not about your behaviour, Cheetah. It's about us," she said firmly, walking past him and gesturing to the crowd around. "I don't know about you but I don't want to do it where we have an audience."

He nodded and the pair silently made their way to a nearby park. They found a secluded spot amongst the small afternoon picnic visitors.

Cheetashwar stood stiffly staring at the junior constable expectantly. "I am all for surprises but now I am getting worried. What is happening?"

Santosh made it a point to look him in the eye as she spoke. "I have been thinking about us and our relationship," she noted the twitch of his eyebrow and slowly forming crinkle. "This isn't healthy. We are two individuals with different goals in life..."

He was quick to cut her off. "I know my recent behaviour hasn't been the best or up to your standard..."

"Cheetah."

"I'll go back to being the same old me. I promise..."

"This isn't about that, Cheetah."

"Then what? What is this about?" he asked, running a shaky hand through his tousled hair. "Throw me a lifeboat here because I am lost."

Seeing as there was no point in cushioning the blow, she went in straight to the issues in their alliance. "You were the one who locked me in my house that day wasn't it?"

The question caught him off guard and silenced his rambling. "What?"

"When I was supposed to go meet sunny that day, you were meant to be guarding the wedding apparel. Instead, you came all the way to my place and locked me in," the anger she kept buried over this incident came bubbling to the surface of her composure. "There is no point denying, Cheetah. I saw the CCTV and I know that the wedding gown went missing."

"If you knew, why didn't you confront me earlier?"

"Because I was waiting for you, to be honest with me. Clearly, I expected too much. I am not someone's property. I am a very capable human being who can make her own decisions and choices. You had no right to do that."