"You walked into the lion's den, sweetheart," he whispered, stepping closer. "And lions don't let go so easily."
He looked down at her leg, at her trembling hands, and the fear in her eyes.
"A beautiful young girl like you," he chuckled, "shouldn't...
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The house had quieted.Mishti moved like a ghost through the hallway-soft steps, her cotton dupatta trailing behind her.
She stopped outside Aaliyah Bhabhi's room. Knocked softly.
Aaliyah opened the door, surprised. "Mishti?"
"I need to talk to you."
Aaliyah ushered her inside.
"I've decided to leave," she said quietly.
"What do you mean leave?"
Mishti sat at the edge of the bed, eyes heavy with something deeper than sadness-resolve.
After a stressful conversation,she managed to talk it out.
She was adjusting the little boy's blanket when the door burst open.
Sultan.
Disheveled. Eyes wild.
He stepped inside and shut the door behind him, the click of the lock sharp as a blade.
Her heart stopped. "Don't. Don't do this here," she said in a lowered voice, glancing toward the bed. "He's asleep."
But he didn't listen. He walked toward her with a dangerous kind of urgency.
"What the hell are you doing? Bhabijaan just told me you're planning to leave?"
"I told her in confidence," she said, stepping back. "Not for you to come charging in like-like this."
He moved closer. "Why are you doing this, huh? Who's giving you this courage all of a sudden? What-some moral compass woke up overnight? Did you meet someone? Is that it?"
"Sultan-stop," she said shakily. "You're not well. This-it's deranged."
That struck him. His breath hitched, something dark flickering in his eyes.
Then he stepped forward, gripped her waist, and kissed her hard-angry, wild.
She pushed at his chest, but he didn't let go. His teeth sank into her lower lip, just enough to sting. She whimpered.
He pulled back only slightly, forehead pressing to hers. "That's not your answer," he said hoarsely. "Say it again. Say you don't want me."
Her voice cracked. "I can't... breathe around you."
She wiped her lips with the back of her trembling hand, her breath still unsteady. He stood close-too close-his chest rising and falling with the weight of words he hadn't said yet.
"You're worried," he said softly."Worried about something that's never going to happen."
Her eyes met his, broken and wet. "It will happen," she whispered. "Eventually. Someone will find out. She will find out. And it'll destroy her."
