The still darkness of the storm-laden night seemed to mirror the tempest that raged within my own heart. With Rishi's absence, the house was too quiet. It wasn't the first time I was alone with lights cut off and thunderstorms singing lullabies of doom above me but it was different this time. Now I had a stalker and I could still feel his gaze on my skin. Hot and heavy - an unsettling, unfathomable, sensation lingering at the edges of my consciousness.
As I moved through the dark corridors, a shiver skittered down my spine, amplifying the sound of my breathing as it echoed in the stillness.
To calm my nerves, I turned on the radio. Leke Pahla Pahla Pyar by Asha Bhosle, Shamshad Begum and Mohammed Rafi started playing and sighing, I walked into my bathroom on silent feet. The sense of familiarity guiding me as I bathed under faint moonlight that filtered through the small window. It was too quick for my liking and I was already buttoning my blouse, just as I finished slipped on the satin petticoat to hold my saree, I heard a noise from the darkened hallway that curdled my blood and warned my demons that were cold and asleep.
The next thing I knew, I was walking out on my blouse and petticoat, my eyes focused on any movement. I was clutching a big knife I kept on the table beside the door. The lamps were all blown off. Whatever light source was outside my room was gone. My heart thundered in sync with the sky above and chest rose and fell heavy with the assault of the organ trying to work it's way up my throat.
I cursed under my breath.
"Whoever you are, I know you're there. If you're trying to scare me, try harder. Or get the fuck out of my house."
And then, that very second, without warning, he was there... a shadow emerging from the inky blackness, a predator closing in on it's prey. My heart lodged itself in my throat, a mixture of fear and adrenaline started brewing within me.
"Hello, Little gazelle." Came his whisper like passing smoke.
"Who are you ?" I called out, my voice controlled while my legs were shivering. He was there and I was overwhelmed with the need to see him. If his voice and silhouette were any indication, he was a powerful man.
A low chuckle resonated through the darkness, sending shivers crashing down my spine. "Just a wanderer, exploring the mysteries hidden within these walls." In the voice like a seductive melody, a whispered symphony of desire, his words both a taunt and a promise.
"Curiosity killed the cat, you know," I retorted, my words laced with equal balance of defiance and caution.
"And satisfaction brought it back. Are we really doing this, Little gazelle ?" He replied, his voice closer now, as if he were right behind me.
I spun around, my heart thumping as I tried to locate him in the darkness. "You picked the wrong night to play hide and seek."
A soft chuckle resonated again, the sound tantalizingly close. "Ah, but what a thrilling game it is, Kathavali. The chase, the tension... it's electrifying. I know you love it. I do."
My full name on his lips sent a shockwave through me, I took a step back. Then froze in place.
The heat of his body only a wicked addition to the inferno I was engulfed in. I was a mess of hot and cold.
Goosebumps appeared all over my skin as he nuzzled my neck from behind and made a sound somewhere between a groan and a moan, "God... You are my favourite scent. I want to bathe in it."
Likewise. He smelled like rain, spice, man and temptation.
"How dare you stalk me you maniac ? And how dare you break into my house you shameless scoundrel ? Dirty bastard. Son of a b--" He roughly grabbed my hair, slammed my front to the nearest wall almost knocking me out by the force and tilted my head back. His lips brushed against my ear softly so in contrast to the tight grip on my hair,
YOU ARE READING
KATHA
RomantizmI got a wolf on my back, chasing me through the woods. The forested nights held secrets that whispered through the winds, and I had unknowingly become a part of them. With each passing second, I felt a magnetic pull as the knowledge of unseen eyes b...
