Epiphany

You're My Dad and You're Dead

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"Aakrith, come on, wake up!"

"No, shoo away!" Aakrith mumbles from beneath his comforter. He has already heard Kabir waking him up in the last half an hour but he doesn't want to leave his bed.

Kabir, who is tired of trying to wake up his brother, snatches the comforter from Aakrith.

"Babaaaa!" Aakrith whines. "That's my precious comforter. You'll be charged for stealing it from me."

Kabir laughs at his brother's antics. "Go ahead and press the charges. I won't mind."

Aakrith glares at Kabir, too exhausted to give any comeback. He finally had some good sleep after sleeping with his brothers.

Aakrith is used to getting nightmares as his life was constantly filled with death threats for Kabir, almost everyday. However, after he started living at the agency, the nightmares gradually stopped.

Raghav, returning back home has triggered Aakrith's memory, which he wishes he could forget.

Noticing Aakrith getting quiet for a while, Kabir sits beside him and pulls Aakrith in his arms. "How are you feeling?"

"Just peachy." Aakrith replies.

"Stop lying, Aakrith." Kabir says, breaking their hug. "You need to talk about what's going on."

Kabir has this feeling that his brother is hiding something, something big. His mind can't stop thinking about Aakrith's secret past. He is sure that the nightmare is connected to it somehow. His nightmare is just a tip of the iceberg. There is definitely something more to it.

"I'm really tired, baba. Can we talk about this at some other time, please?" Aakrith knows what Kabir is asking, but he can't reveal his past to his baba.

Kabir notices the dark circles under Aakrith's eyes, which are getting heavy due to exhaustion. His brother is in dire need of rest.

Aakrith feels the warmth again when Kabir places the comforter on him. "Go back to sleep. You can arrive at the agency after lunch."

Aakrith couldn't believe his ears. Kabir hardly allows anyone to come late.

"Who are you?" Aakrith taps Kabir's face, checking if it's really Kabir. "Are you an imposter?"

Kabir glares and pushes Aakrith's hand from his face. "It's only a one time thing." He says, tucking in the comforter.

"One time thing, occuring every week, right?" Aakrith asks with a hope like a kid asking to buy a candy.

"Don't push it!" Kabir warns, making Aakrith pout.

Kabir chuckles and places a kiss on Aakrith's forehead. As he turns to leave, Aakrith grips his hand.

"Baba, I'm really glad that I'm with you now." Aakrith blink back tears in his eyes. "I-I'm happy that you had doubted Falcon."

Kabir kneels down and caresses Aakrith's face. "Me too." Clearing his throat, Kabir smirks at him.

"And you weren't that good at keeping it a secret anyway. You gave yourself away, kiddo."

"What are you talking about?" Aakrith asks in an offending tone. "I'm an awesome actor alright."

Kabir outright laughs at him. "Yeah, more like overacting."

"Hey, I made you believe that I had sprained my ankle."

"That's because I was worried as you were already injured."

"Whatever, I still got you." Aakrith yawns, pulling up the comforter to his chin.