𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒃𝒊𝒅𝒅𝒆𝒏 𝑳𝒐𝒗𝒆

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟑: 𝐉𝐚𝐛𝐬𝐞 𝐓𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐍𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚

••• 𝑺𝒖𝒉𝒂𝒂𝒏𝒂 𝑲𝒂𝒑𝒐𝒐𝒓 •••

" Thank you." I smiled at Mrs. Malik as she placed a plate full of sandwiches and salads in front of me. " There's fresh juice in the refrigerator, can you please bring that?" Reyaansh asked and my eyes snapped towards his. " I don't want fresh juice." I scrunched my nose and saw Mrs. Malik walking to the kitchen. " But you need that, don't you?" I rolled my eyes and looked away from him. " Did you search about what a COPD patient needs or what?" I asked and was gifted with his sigh that he always did whenever I was around.

" I did. Happy? Now, where are your shoes?" I looked up at him and pointed towards his room. It's in the closet. Tucked in a corner of your closet." I sniffed and he rolled his eyes at my overdramatic answer and silently walked inside his room before just appearing after two minutes and entering my room while Mrs. Malik was talking to me. Taking a sip of the juice and instantly scrunching my nose at the taste, I wondered why did I even listen to him. " That's pomegranate!" Before Mrs. Malik could reply, he appeared their with a pair of white sneakers. " And you're going to drink that." He muttered before kneeling down and rotated my chair effortlessly before making me wear the shoes. Shoes as in my white sneakers and not my heels. Atleast it's something that would go with my outfit.

Am I really so light?

" But why?" I fake-cried and then looked at the juice again. His mom went away muttering something about how we are always arguing with each other. " You're not going to torture me in the morning itself, are you?" I asked while taking the most torturous sip of the juice. " I am going to torture you in the morning itself and you won't do anything because," he stopped and then looked at me after tying the shoelaces of my right leg. " I'm the one helping you here so you better behave." I smiled sweetly and leaned forward, keeping my elbows on my knees. " And if I don't?" He carefully placed my left foot inside the shoe and then tied it loosely. " Then I'm going to leave you abandoned near a forest while driving you to the airport." I scoffed and leaned back but not before ruffling his hair thoroughly. Just before he was about to slap my hand, I pulled away. " Don't you dare touch my hair again?" He grumbled while fixing his hair and then got up, sitting beside me while I continued eating my breakfast.

" When will you come back from Italy?" He asked me, looking distantly at the door through which his mom had just left. " Why? Will you miss me?" I asked nudging his elbow and a small smile appeared on his lips. " You can never answer a question without trying to irritate me, can you?" I laughed and leaned back in my seat. " That's what I live for, Mr. Malik. I'll come back on twentieth. In fifteen days. You?" I asked him while looking keenly at him. His nose bridge, his eyelashes, the shape of his lips everything is perfect. And then when he looked at me, my eyes travelled to his brown eyes, those were captivating. When eyes hold more emotions than a human can decipher, I think that's when we really feel inhuman, don't we? All our life we had known everything, every smallest facts of a human body but when it comes to the thousands of emotions swirling inside our eyes, we don't know anything.

" Three weeks. I'll come back on twenty-sixth," he told me while his eyes roamed everywhere on my face. " You'll miss out Holi." He nodded and looked away. " Atleast the winters would be over by then," he mumbled and took out his phone from his pocket. " I think we should go," he said looking at his phone. I nodded and completed my food. He helped me get up slowly before shouting to his mom. " Mom, we're leaving!"

" Okay, take care!" She shouted back from her room and we both walked out with my tote bag slung over my shoulder and the suitcases in his hands. He held my waist firmly as I walked-no almost hopped out until we reached the elevator. He was silent the whole time, not uttering a single words and being so patient me. Although I love annoying him but right now, I felt bad for ruining his morning with me. " Are you okay?" He muttered while he took the bag from my shoulder and kept it above the suitcases that he tucked into the corner of the elevator. I slowly leaned backward on elevator wall and pulled up my left foot a bit to give it a little relief. " Almost," I answered him while taking a quick breath. When the elevator finally reached the ground floor, he took the suitcases and the held me firmly before walking out. " I don't think I can walk anymore," I sighed when even a little bit of pressure gave too much pain to my foot. He sat me down on the white couch in the lobby and then held the suitcases. " I'll be back in a minute," he mumbled and walked out when I gave him a nod. I looked around and there was absolutely no one in the lobby right now. It was dim with little lightings attached to the ceilings and when I realised the cold here, I tightened my coat around me. Closing my eyes, I leaned back until my head hit the back of the couch. After some minutes, I could hear his footsteps approaching me but the unfinished sleep had almost taken a toll on me till that time and I was unable to open my eyes look at him. But when I felt him put his arms under my knees and back, and lifting me up, my eyes snapped open and I looked at him with wide eyes. " What the fuck? Put me down." My hands instinctively flew around his neck when his grip tightened on me. " Just shut up and let me do what I'm doing," he grumbled and walked out of the lobby. I sighed and put my head against his chest. And then I felt something, my body froze, mind numb and eyes turned to him. His heartbeat. His heartbeat were so fast, beating wildly against his chest.