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Back to the Present:
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The drive back to the palace felt longer than it should have. The tension in the car was palpable, stretching like a thin thread ready to snap at any moment. Rooh sat beside me, talking non-stop, her voice filled with nervous energy. But as much as I loved her, her words were a blur, barely registering in my mind. My thoughts were elsewhere—on what could have happened tonight, on the chaos that could have unfolded if we hadn't found her in time.
"I love your beard, how you talk, and how you walk. I love it when you flex your muscles," Rooh continued, her voice playful, but I could hear the undercurrent of anxiety. "You know a little secret of mine? I want to click a picture where we both are standing—"
"Shut up, Rooh! Just shut up," I snapped, my voice harsher than I intended. I immediately regretted it, but the embarrassment had already set in. Her brother, Abhishek, who was behind the wheel, glanced at me briefly before returning his focus to the road, a smirk playing at the corner of his lips.
Rooh's words stopped abruptly, and the silence that followed was thick and uncomfortable. I glanced at her, and my stomach twisted when I saw her eyes brimming with tears. She didn't say anything, but the way her lips trembled told me I had hurt her more deeply than I realized.
I panicked, my heart racing. "Rooh? Rooh, are you hurt? What happened? Why are you crying?" My words came out rushed, but before I could reach for her hand, she turned her face away, shaking her head.
Her silence tore at me, and just as I was about to apologize again, she burst into sobs, hitting me with her small fists. I flinched, not from the force but from the sheer emotion behind her actions. She wasn't just upset—she was heartbroken.
Abhishek, unable to hold back any longer, let out a low laugh from the front seat. His amusement only seemed to fuel Rooh's tears as she whipped around to face him.
"Bhaiya!" she wailed, her voice breaking as she cried even harder. "He's so mean! He told me to shut up! Can you believe that?" Her sobs were now punctuated with hiccups, and I felt my heart sink even further.
Abhishek's laugh turned into a chuckle, but he tried to soften his tone as he glanced at us in the rearview mirror. "Come on, Ruhi. Calm down. You know he's just worried about you. Don't cry, okay?" His words were gentle, but I could see the glint of amusement still in his eyes.
I sighed, reaching for her hand, which she stubbornly kept clenched in her lap. "Rooh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. I just—" I paused, searching for the right words, trying to make sense of why I had been so harsh. "I was scared, Rooh. I thought something happened to you, and I—"
