Rainbows And Sunsets ~ A Dhruv Jurel Fanfiction

17.

The lights of Ahmedabad twinkled faintly in the distance as Ishita lay curled up in bed, deep in sleep next to Heer. The warmth of home, the comfort of her own room, and the gentle sound of her family sleeping in the house always gave her a sense of peace whenever she was in her hometown. It was a different kind of quiet—a familiar one.

She had spoken to Dhruv earlier in the day, listening to him complain about how often she seemed to escape to Ahmedabad.

"You really go to Ahmedabad a lot, Ishita," Dhruv had grumbled playfully over the phone. "Do you know how much I miss you?"

Ishita had chuckled, shaking her head even though he couldn’t see her. "Mann banalo toh Ahmedabad itna door nahi, waise," she had teased him lightly, fully expecting him to counter with something witty. But instead, he had grown silent, and she hadn’t thought much about it. It was just a lighthearted remark, after all.

Now, in the quiet of the night, her phone buzzed beside her. Too deep in her sleep to notice, it was Heer who nudged her awake, rubbing her eyes as she whispered, “Di, your phone’s ringing.”

Ishita, still groggy and disoriented, reached for her phone on the nightstand, blinking at the caller ID. Dhruv. A soft smile tugged at her lips, even though she was half asleep.

She answered the call, her voice heavy with sleep. "Hello?"

"So rahi thi kya?" Dhruv's familiar voice came through the line, laced with amusement.

Ishita, still not fully awake, responded sarcastically, "Nahi, aadhi raat ko pakode tal rahi thi."

Dhruv chuckled on the other end, clearly entertained by her half-asleep banter. "Come to the balcony," he said, his voice soft yet insistent.

Ishita, still too sleepy to process what he meant, furrowed her brows. "Kya?" she mumbled.

"Ek baar bahar to niklo," Dhruv coaxed, his tone gentle but persuasive.

"Dhruv, tum itne der raat ko—" she began, yawning, but before she could argue further, he interrupted her.

"Please? Bas ek baar?"

With a heavy sigh, still yawning, Ishita reluctantly got out of bed. Barely awake, she shuffled toward the balcony, rubbing her eyes. As she slid open the glass door and stepped out into the cool night air, she looked down, her mind still foggy with sleep.

And then she saw him.

Leaning casually against his car, bathed in the soft glow of the moonlight, Dhruv stood there, smiling up at her, his phone still in hand. His face was lit up, not just by the moonlight, but by the soft expression he always seemed to wear when he looked at her. He raised his hand and waved, the light from his phone screen catching her attention.

For a moment, Ishita just stared at him. Shit, He’s really here.

She quickly snapped out of her daze, her heart suddenly racing. "What are you doing here?!" she whispered into the phone, her voice a mix of excitement and disbelief. Her eyes darted around the quiet neighborhood, hoping none of her family members had woken up.

Dhruv just smiled, not saying anything for a moment, letting her take it all in. "Mann banalo toh Ahmedabad itna door nahi, right?" he teased softly.

Ishita rushed downstairs quietly, trying her best not to wake anyone up. Her mind raced as she unlocked the front door and stepped outside, her heart thudding in her chest. As soon as she reached him, she threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly, as if to make sure he was really there. Dhruv wrapped his arms around her, holding her close, his heart steady against hers.

When they finally pulled back slightly, Ishita looked up at him, still in disbelief. "Are you insane? You drove all the way here in the middle of the night?"

Dhruv grinned. "Not all the way. I had a flight."

"What?" she asked, still confused.

He took a step back, pulling out his phone to check the time. "Two days from now, I have a T20 series in Ahmedabad. I thought it’d be better to come a little early and... see you."

Ishita blinked, processing what he just said. "Wait, so you're... here for the match? You have a game in two days?"

He nodded. "Yeah. But I didn’t want to wait until then to see you. So here I am."

Her heart melted at his words. Here was a man who could have easily waited, but instead, he showed up, right in the middle of the night, just because he missed her.

"Dhruv," she whispered, her voice filled with emotion as she stepped closer to him again. "They were right. Tum sach mein pagal ho."

Dhruv chuckled softly, leaning down slightly so their foreheads touched. "I missed you, Ishita," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

She smiled up at him, her eyes sparkling. "I missed you too."

For a few moments, they just stood there under the moonlight, wrapped up in each other’s presence. The night was quiet, the only sound being the occasional rustle of leaves in the breeze.

Ishita rested her head against his chest, closing her eyes as she breathed him in. "My parents don’t know about us, you know," she murmured against his shirt.

Dhruv hummed softly. "I know." He stroked her hair gently. "I’ll leave soon. I just wanted to see you."

She pulled back slightly, looking up at him with a playful smile. "Next time, maybe try a normal time of day?"

Dhruv laughed softly, pulling her back into his arms. "Deal."

But in the quiet of the night, with the moonlight surrounding them, neither of them moved. Neither of them wanted to let go.

As Ishita stood there in Dhruv’s arms, she couldn’t help but smile. Maybe it wasn’t so bad to fall for a guy who would show up at her balcony at midnight just to see her. Maybe, just maybe, this kind of love was exactly what she needed.