The Rathores in Therapy: A BCHD Epilogue

Chapter 14: Healing Starts Within

Last Time: Atharva was happily giggling and clapping to the rhythm of the birthday song, and Kabir was filled with a sense of contentment. He knew he would do everything he could to keep his family safe and happy. He was resolved to make things right and to create many more beautiful memories like this one.

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February 10th, 2023, 10:30 pm, Rathore Bhavan, Jodhpur

Kabir was pacing around his bedroom, waiting for Banni to come upstairs. It had been hours since the party ended, but Banni was still avoiding being alone with him, and he was starting to get frustrated. He couldn't understand why she was acting this way. Was she still upset about what had happened earlier in the day? He had tried to talk to her about it, but she had continuously shut him down.

Just as he was about to go downstairs and bring her upstairs, he was stopped in his tracks.

"Kabir?" a familiar voice called out.

Kabir felt a sense of dread wash over him as he turned and saw Yuvaan standing there. He knew that Yuvaan only appeared when he had something to say, and his displeased expression was enough to tell Kabir that he wouldn't be happy with what Yuvaan would suggest.

"Kabir, you need to calm down," Yuvaan said, his voice firm and commanding. "You can't go after Banni like this. She needs time to process everything that has happened today."

Kabir felt a surge of anger building up inside him. He didn't want to hear this from Yuvaan. He wanted to talk to Banni and get some answers. "I don't care about that right now, Yuvaan," Kabir said, his voice tinged with frustration. "I need to talk to her. I need to know what's going on. Don't you want answers too Yuvaan?"

Yuvaan shook his head. "No, I don't want answers at the cost of Banni's smile. And neither should you, Kabir," he said sternly. "You need to give her some space; let her come to terms with everything in her own time."

Kabir gritted his teeth, feeling the frustration and anger build up inside him. "I can't just sit here and do nothing, Yuvaan," he said, his voice rising. "I need to talk to her. I need to know what's going on."

"You already did enough, Kabir," Yuvaan said, his voice rising with irritation. "You told her about my trauma. You forced her to see her mistakes; now please don't hurt her further."

Kabir felt a pang of guilt shoot through him. Had he been too forceful with Banni? Had he pushed her too hard? But he couldn't help it.

"She needed to know, Yuvaan," Kabir said, his voice barely above a whisper. "She needed to know what you've been through. She needed to know why things are the way they are."

Yuvaan raised an eyebrow. "Why did she need to know, Kabir?" he asked, his voice softer now. "It's all in the past. Why couldn't you let sleeping dogs lie?"

Kabir's frustration boiled over. "Because the past is making you panic right now, Yuvaan!" he exclaimed, his voice rising. "Banni is only in the kitchen and you're freaking out. Don't you get it? The past is not in the past. It's still affecting us today! If it was only about you, Yuvaan, I wouldn't have interfered," Kabir said, his voice laced with frustration. "But I'm not going to sign up for more panic attacks, or hospital stays just because you're too selfless for your own good."

Yuvaan looked at Kabir, his face expressionless. "Fine! Do what you want, Kabir," he said coldly before disappearing.

"Yuvaan... "Kabir started saying, but Yuvaan had already retreated. Kabir felt a sense of frustration wash over him. Why did Yuvaan have to be so complicated? Why couldn't he see that Kabir was trying to help?