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Darshan couldn’t shake the feeling that things were spiraling out of control. He had tried to keep Trisha at a distance, to protect her from the dark world he was entangled in, but now, it seemed impossible. The moment the men showed up in the café, she had become part of his world, whether he liked it or not.
As the café emptied out for the night, Trisha locked the doors and turned to find Darshan still sitting at his usual table, lost in thought. She walked over, taking the seat across from him. The soft glow of the dimming lights cast long shadows on the walls, and the silence between them was thick with unspoken tension.
“You’ve been quiet all evening,” Trisha said softly, her voice cutting through the stillness. “You don’t have to keep things from me, Darshan.”
He looked up, meeting her gaze. “I’ve kept a lot from you,” he admitted. “For your own good.”
Trisha leaned in closer. “But I’m already involved, whether you like it or not. You know that.”
Darshan sighed, rubbing his hands together as if trying to work through the weight of the decision. He had always been good at compartmentalizing, keeping his personal life separate from the crime world he ran in. But with Trisha, that line had blurred.
“I’m in deep, Trisha. These people—these men—they don’t care who gets hurt as long as they get what they want,” he said, his voice tense. “And right now, they see you as leverage.”
Trisha’s brows furrowed. “Leverage for what?”
Darshan hesitated, the truth weighing heavily on him. “I owe them. I walked away from that life to try and start fresh, but they don’t let go that easily. They want me back under their control, and they’ll use you to get to me.”
The gravity of his words hung in the air, and Trisha’s heart sank, but her resolve only grew stronger. She wasn’t the type to run away from a challenge, and she wasn’t about to abandon Darshan now, no matter how dangerous things got.
“Then we’ll fight back,” she said, her voice steady. “You don’t have to do this alone, Darshan. I’m with you.”
Darshan shook his head, his jaw clenched. “You don’t know what you’re saying. This isn’t a fight you can win with courage or kindness. These men are ruthless.”
“And so are you,” Trisha said, surprising him with her confidence. “You’ve spent your whole life fighting to survive, to get out of that world. You think I don’t see that? You’ve done it once, and you can do it again.”
Darshan felt a wave of emotion he wasn’t used to—gratitude, mixed with fear. No one had ever stood by him like this. “But if something happens to you... I won’t forgive myself.”
Trisha reached across the table and took his hand, her touch soft but firm. “I’m not afraid, Darshan. You don’t have to protect me from everything. Let me help you.”
He stared at her for a long moment, her words sinking in. She wasn’t just some innocent girl anymore; she knew the risks and was still willing to stand by his side. For the first time, Darshan realized he wasn’t just protecting her—she was protecting him too. And that terrified him.
“They’ll come back,” he finally said, his voice low. “And when they do, it won’t be just a warning. They’ll try to hurt you to get to me.”
Trisha’s expression didn’t waver. “Then we’ll be ready for them.”
Darshan’s eyes searched hers, looking for any sign of doubt, but there was none. “You don’t understand how dangerous they are.”
“I don’t care,” she said, her grip on his hand tightening. “I’m not leaving you to deal with this alone. I’ve made up my mind.”
He felt a strange sense of relief but also a deep fear. Darshan had spent his life keeping people at a distance because the moment you cared about someone, they became a target. But here was Trisha, refusing to walk away, even as the danger grew.
“I’ll have to make preparations,” he said, finally relenting. “There’s a safehouse I know, in case things get out of hand. But you need to stay out of sight when they come.”
Trisha nodded. “I’ll do whatever it takes.”
Darshan stood, his expression serious. “Good. We’ll need to be smart about this. They’ll try to catch us off guard, and when they do, we need to be ready.”
As he turned to leave, Trisha caught his arm, stopping him. “Darshan,” she said quietly. He turned to face her, and she looked up at him with a softness in her eyes. “No matter what happens, I’m not going anywhere. We’re in this together.”
For a moment, he just stared at her, the weight of everything he had tried to hide crashing down around him. He had been alone for so long, never letting anyone in, but now, for the first time, he realized that Trisha wasn’t just someone he needed to protect—she was someone he could lean on.
“I know,” he whispered, his voice barely audible. “And that’s what scares me the most.”
With those words hanging between them, Darshan left the café, stepping into the night. The streets were quiet, but his mind wasn’t. The shadows of his past were closing in, and now, more than ever, he knew he couldn’t keep Trisha out of the storm that was coming.
But together, maybe—just maybe—they stood a chance.
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Darshan and Trisha, highlighting their growing bond and the stakes of what’s to come.
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