Petrichor to his Heart

9.7

The atmosphere outside of her safe haven was color splashed filled with occasional loud cries of joy and drum beats leaving no questions about the festive mood of the surroundings. it was a shame to hide inside her house but then who she had to spend this day with. Batting the sadness away she glanced down the small balcony at her door where the group of five tall and bulky men other than Kanishk though scattered congested the small parking around her two-storey apartment.  They seemed to observe the colorful surroundings and turned to her when she stepped down the stairs and appeared from behind Kanishk.

The faces were all strangers for her but she had a faint feeling they knew her and this was not the first time they were seeing her But it was the pensive look on almost every face that was the reason for her agitation.

"Guys! I really don't understand why..." she started when the guys closed around her keeping a respectful distance but none said a word.

"Shhh, Captain!" Kanishk leaned towards her and whispered. " I know how you can create a ruckus if the need arises but then I don't want to restrict your movements like the last time."

Pallavi could never forget the steel grip his arms had engaged in when all she wanted to jump down the chopper towards Raghav. She knew Kanishk was just doing his duty at that time, saving the civilian he was ordered but the whole thing had left her with a sour aftertaste about him.

"Don't you dare try touching ..." Her words hung mid-air when she spotted the same military van or a similar one she had spotted just a couple of hours ago on the runway, crawling towards the parking.

"What is that..." Her feet wobbled a bit and steadied before she took a step towards the van when Kanishk gestured her towards it.

She could make out a familiar face in the front seat beside the driver but she had stopped believing in any of her instincts and visions that belonged to him in these past few months.

She could feel the smiling gazes of the rest of the soldiers when she passed them but without giving it any thought she walked towards the van which had now stopped in the brief seconds she had taken to dodge the kids with colored balloons away.

When her eyes met his from the other side of the glass, a low cry left her throat and she took a dash towards the van not caring about anything in the world, The Holi songs vanished, the people around her playing with colors disappeared, the world disappeared and left was only him and her.

In her haste, she didn't notice he was not making any move towards her, he didn't even come out of the vehicle but just like the soldiers his face wore a pensive look. She stopped before his side of the door, tears falling freely seeing him alive and breathing in front of her.

Raghav's eyes were fixed on her right from the moment she came into sight, she was not part of that deadly nightmare he had been experiencing for quite a few months now after he had gained consciousness but as real as this moment, just a door away, her agonized cries when she had realized he was not going to join her in the chopper two years ago had kept him awake and ached him more than any of his bodily aches. 

But it also meant now was the decision-maker moment for him. It could have been better if he had tried a little more and not jeopardized both of their rather moved-on phases even if never him, she definitely was trying to live without his presence.

His heart started constricting inside the rib cages with the apprehension of what would her decision be, whether he would be okay if she didn't want to come back to him, NOW.

and then it happened in a moment, her tear-soaked eyes changed emotion and before he could have given himself a moment she had clutched the handle, and the door was yanked open and she lunged at him, and pulled him out by his shirt.