Shadowed Desires

Chapter 13

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Atharv and Kritika got seated in the car. Kritika was again a little lost after their encounter with that girl, while Atharv was trying to understand the storm she hid behind her silence.

She had built strong walls around her heart, never letting anyone in. But Atharv hoped he could scale those walls and uncover just how deeply her heart had been wounded. Maybe today was the day he’d finally understand her pain—and maybe it would be the day it broke him too.

9:00 PM

They were about to reach home. Although he wanted to spend more time with her somewhere else, he decided to save it for another day.

When they arrived, a slow and pleasant breeze lingered in the air. Atharv asked,
"Waise tumne mujhe ye nahi bataya ki mujhe maafi mili hai ya nahi?"
("By the way, you still haven’t told me if you’ve forgiven me or not.")

Kritika just nodded, still out of the zone.

The gentle breeze was soon replaced by strong gusts of wind. The moon disappeared behind clouds—signs of an approaching storm.

They exited the car. Atharv was about to say something, but before he could, Kritika walked away silently, unwilling to engage in conversation.

He watched her disappearing figure and then followed her to their room. When he reached, she had already changed into comfortable clothes.

Atharv headed to the closet to change. When he returned, Kritika was scrolling on her phone. Then, the sound of raindrops filled the room. Atharv glanced at the window and said,
"Mausam kitna acha hai na?"
("The weather is so lovely, isn’t it?")

Kritika replied in a bitter tone,
"Mujhe baarish pasand nahi hai."
("I don’t like rain.")

Atharv frowned and said,
"Baarish jaisi achi cheez kise napasand ho sakti hai?"
("How can someone not like something as beautiful as rain?")

Kritika replied simply,
"Mujhe."
("Me.")

Before Atharv could respond, his phone rang. After a brief conversation, he said,
"Aditya is calling me. I’ll be back in a while."
Saying that, he left the room.

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The rainfall grew heavier. Thunder cracked in the distance. Kritika stared out the window, her body tense, her heart sinking.

Flashbacks from Kritika’s P.O.V.
21 years ago…

Five-year-old Kritika was playing with her dollhouse in the evening. Her mother, Meera, approached her with a smile—but behind her eyes were unspoken emotions. Little Kritika was too innocent to understand the pain Meera hid behind that smile.

Meera started hurriedly packing Kritika’s clothes.
"Mumma, hum kahi jaa rahe hain kya?"
("Mumma, are we going somewhere?")

"Beta, hum kuch din ke liye bahar ja rahe hain ghoomne ke liye."
("Sweetheart, we’re going out for a few days on a trip.")

"Papa nahi jaayenge humare saath?"
("Papa won’t come with us?")

"Nahi beta, aapke papa ko kaam hai. Abhi sirf hum dono ko jaana hoga."
("No, your papa has work. Just you and I have to go right now.")

Suddenly, Dev entered.
"Meera, ek baar meri baat to sun lo."
("Meera, just listen to me once.")

"Mujhe Kritika ke aage kuch baat nahi karni."
("I don’t want to talk in front of Kritika.")