Intensely Twisted Fate

Chapter : 29

Laranya’s POV

I stirred slightly, feeling the warmth of Shravan beside me. For a moment, I thought he was just shifting in his sleep, so I buried my face deeper into the pillow, hoping to drift back off. But then, a noise from downstairs jolted me awake, pulling me from the comfort of my dreams. My heart raced as I rolled over, realizing the space beside me was empty.

“Shravan?” I whispered into the stillness of the room, my voice barely above a breath. Silence answered me, and I glanced towards the bathroom. Empty. Panic began to creep in as I pushed the blankets aside and made my way downstairs, half asleep but driven by an instinct I couldn’t ignore.

As I descended the staircase, the faint sounds grew louder—shuffling, a faint crinkle of paper. My heart pounded harder with each step. When I reached the living room, my breath caught in my throat. Shravan was there, hunched over, folding a piece of paper. My heart sank when I saw him pick up a knife. The air thickened around me as I realized what he was about to do.

“Shravan!” I shouted, my voice breaking the stillness like glass shattering. He jumped, startled, and the knife clattered to the floor. I rushed to him, falling to my knees in front of him, grabbing his hands with frantic urgency. Tears sprang to my eyes as I felt his pain radiating from him. “What… what the hell were you thinking?” My voice trembled as I searched his gaze, willing him to see the gravity of the situation.

He collapsed, trembling, tears streaming down his cheeks. “Lara… I can’t keep pretending. The sacrifices my mom made, the lies… your dad losing his job because of me. They never had another child because of me. I’m a burden, and I can’t repay any of it. I can’t fix anything.”

His words cut through me, and I felt a mixture of anger and desperation bubbling up. “And this is how you thought you’d make it better? By leaving us? Leaving me?” My voice was fierce, refusing to let him fall into that darkness. “We were just talking about our new home, our future together. Was this part of your plan too? Because if it was, I never signed off on it.”

His gaze fell, and I pressed on. “You’re the hope your parents have, Shravan. Don’t you see? You’re everything to them. If you hurt yourself, you’re hurting them, too. You’d break them, and you’d break me.”

“Lara, I just… I need to keep my parents safe. They’ve sacrificed so much for me, and I can’t be the reason they keep suffering. You should be with Aarav. He can make you happy, and I can’t be the one to drag you down.”

“No! Stop saying that!” I exclaimed, my heart pounding. “We decided on our new house, our plans together. This isn’t just about you; it’s about us. You’re not a burden, and you’re not allowed to decide who I should be with. You think I want to build a future with anyone but you? You’re it for me! I refuse to let you throw that away because of guilt.”

His face was a mix of anguish and disbelief. “But Lara, you deserve someone who can give you everything, who isn’t weighed down by this…”

“Listen to me,” I insisted, grounding him with my stare. “You’ve signed a lifetime contract to stick by my ass, and you’re not allowed to tear that agreement. You made a choice to be mine, and we’re building a future together. I’m not letting you go anywhere.”

For a moment, shock held him frozen. Then, the corner of his mouth twitched, and a soft chuckle escaped. “A contract, huh? I should’ve read the fine print.”

“Damn right you should have! Now, get your shit together!” I squeezed his hands tighter, hoping to pull him back from the edge he was teetering on. “You can’t give up now. You’re stuck with me, so let’s face this together.”