Drenched Heart's || COMPLETED✔️||

PAST UNFOLD

Arushi took a deep breath, gathering her emotions before speaking. Her eyes were red from tears, and she could barely look at Aryan. 

"You don't know anything about her past, Aryan," she began, her voice soft but heavy with sadness. "Anjali has been through a lot in her life... this wasn't just a panic attack. It's much deeper than that."

Aryan's throat tightened. "Tell me, Arushi... I need to understand. Please."

Arushi exchanged a glance with Aahan, who nodded for her to continue. "She was raped," Arushi's words sliced through the air like a knife, leaving a deafening silence in their wake. Aryan and Aahan froze, their minds struggling to process what they had just heard. 

Aryan felt like the ground had been ripped out from under him, a cold wave of horror washing over him.

"She was... raped?" Aryan whispered, his voice cracking as he looked at Arushi, eyes wide with disbelief. His chest tightened, trying to grasp the magnitude of the pain Anjali had been carrying.Arushi nodded, her own emotions barely contained. 

"Yes," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "Anjali endured the greatest trauma of her life that day, Aryan. Her trust, her sense of security—everything was shattered. That man didn't just break her physically, he destroyed her mentally."

"She never told his name. She doesn't talk about it much. Maybe once or twice she opened up a little to me, but it was always the same thing—that man became a living nightmare for her. After that day, she started seeing her life in a completely different way."

Arushi wiped away a tear that had escaped, her hands trembling. "That's why she has these panic attacks. Sometimes, a touch or a situation brings back the memories of that trauma... and she just shuts down. You saw what happened today," Arushi said, glancing toward the room where Anjali was sleeping. "She was triggered."

Aryan's mind raced back to their moment in the library—how he had pinned her against the shelf, their bodies close. His intentions had been innocent, but it had clearly been too overwhelming for her. His heart sank deeper, weighed down by guilt.

Aryan's fists remained clenched as a storm of emotions surged through him—rage, helplessness, guilt. He felt sick, thinking about the trauma Anjali had endured. Before he could speak further, Aahan, who had been quietly listening, broke the silence, his voice hesitant and low.

"Did she... file a police complaint?" Aahan asked, almost afraid of the answer.

Arushi looked down, her expression pained as she shook her head slightly. 

"By the time I found out, it had already been a year. Anjali hadn't told anyone—neither the police nor her family. She was too scared, too broken. By then, her confidence had been completely shattered... she had started blaming herself."

Aryan felt a knot tightening in his chest, his breath catching. "What? She blamed herself?" he whispered, horrified.

Arushi nodded, wiping away another tear. "Yes. She fought her pain alone, believing that no one would believe her. She thought that somehow, it was her fault—that something she did made that man act the way he did." Her voice broke, and she wiped her face, trying to stay composed.

Aahan clenched his jaw, struggling to contain his own anger. "How could she think that? What did she do wrong?"

"It's the trauma, Aahan," Arushi explained softly. "It messes with your mind, makes you doubt yourself. She thought she had done something to invite that man's behavior. And by the time she finally told someone... it was too late for a police complaint. Too much time had passed. The evidence, witnesses... everything was gone."

Aryan stared at the floor, a heavy silence settling between them as he tried to imagine the depth of Anjali's pain. "That's why she kept everything to herself," he muttered, finally understanding.

Arushi nodded again. "She didn't want to relive it. So she started building walls, disconnecting herself from everything that reminded her of that night. Trusting people became almost impossible for her. She wanted to move on with her life, but her past kept pulling her back."

Aryan's heart sank deeper with each word. He couldn't fathom the pain Anjali must've endured, and his own feelings of guilt kept resurfacing. He clenched his fists, staring blankly at the floor, lost in thought.

Arushi's voice broke through the silence. "Aryan, it's clear that you love her,"

she said softly, her eyes meeting his. "But you have to understand that Anjali needs time. Your feelings are real, but her healing is the most important thing right now."

Aryan looked up, his eyes filled with conflict and emotion. "Yes... I love her," he admitted, his voice heavy. "But now... now's not the time to tell her, is it?"

Arushi nodded gently. "Right. For now, she needs your support, without any expectations. Your love will mean the most to her when she feels like she's healing in her own life. You have to be her anchor."

Aahan, who had been quietly listening, placed a reassuring hand on Aryan's shoulder. "Bro, if you're there for her, she'll never feel alone. But it's going to take patience."

Aryan let out a deep breath, feeling the weight of the situation but also a sense of purpose.

 "I'll never leave her side. No matter how long it takes... I'll always be there for her."

Arushi smiled softly. "That's all she needs right now. Sometimes, love means having patience."

Aryan looked towards Anjali's room, determination and love shining in his eyes. He knew the road ahead wouldn't be easy, but for Anjali, he was ready to walk that path—one step at a time.

They all didn't notice someone was listening to their entire conversation. It was Tanishka, standing just outside the room, her face pale and eyes wide with a mixture of shock and realization. She had heard everything—about Anjali's past, Aryan's love for her, and his unwavering support.

Tanishka leaned against the wall, her mind spinning. She hadn't known about Anjali's trauma, and guilt washed over her for the way she had been acting around Aryan, trying to insert herself into his life while being unaware of the depth of his feelings for someone else.

"What was I thinking... and how different everything really is," she whispered to herself, feeling a pit forming in her stomach.

As she stood there, the weight of the situation became too much. Tanishka realized that her petty jealousy and attempts to come between Aryan and Anjali were not only misplaced but cruel, given everything Anjali had endured. She felt conflicted—part of her wanted to continue fighting for Aryan, but the other part, the one now filled with empathy, knew that she couldn't compete with the kind of love Aryan had for Anjali.

Despite her inner turmoil, Tanishka quietly slipped into her room and sat on the edge of the bed, her mind still spinning with everything she had overheard.