The destiny of Red String

chapter 23||confession?

"I was just a body without a soul but when I met her she became my         
                             Soul"
                                ~james Arthur ~

The lessons between Aanya and Austin had started off innocently enough. Each session felt like a normal exchange of knowledge at first, but as the days passed, Aanya noticed how her heart would skip a beat when he leaned in to correct her stance or whispered guidance in a low, deep tone that only she could hear. Austin's gaze lingered longer than necessary, his fingertips brushing against her skin, sending shivers down her spine. There was something unspoken, something hot and intense in the air between them.

Despite this, Austin maintained a rigid professionalism. He never crossed the line, treating her like any other student. But Aanya felt the difference. There was an energy that ignited whenever they were in the same room-a smoldering flame that neither of them acknowledged out loud but burned in every stolen glance, every near-touch. It was a silent understanding, a dance that neither wanted to end.

One day, Aanya began to notice a subtle shift. Austin started distancing himself. The lingering touches stopped, and he pulled away the moment their eyes met. The lessons became shorter, his words clipped, and the playful banter they shared disappeared. There was a wall he built between them, a line that Aanya didn't see until she ran into it headfirst.

Confused, she tried to ignore the change. But as time went on, the coldness in his demeanor gnawed at her. She couldn't shake the feeling of something precious slipping away, and the silence between them grew unbearable.

One day, she could take it no longer. Aanya confronted him during a lesson, her voice firm and eyes determined.

Aanya was pacing the room, her emotions barely contained as Austin stood on the opposite side, a cold wall between them. Her frustration had reached a breaking point, and she couldn't take the distance anymore. She stopped, staring him down, her eyes blazing.

"Why are you acting like this, Austin?!" she demanded, the anger in her voice barely masking the hurt. "One moment, you're close-closer than anyone has ever been-and the next, you're miles away. What are you so afraid of?"

Austin's jaw tightened, his eyes fixed firmly on the floor. He could feel the pull of her gaze, like gravity, but he refused to meet it. He couldn't let her see the turmoil raging inside him.
"I'm not afraid," he muttered, his voice flat, a blatant lie that hung heavily in the air between them.

"Yes, you are," Aanya shot back, stepping closer. "You're terrified. Of what? Of me? Of how you feel? Tell me, damn it!" Her voice broke at the end, and Austin flinched as if struck.

He finally looked up, his eyes meeting hers with a fierce intensity that made her breath catch. The anger, the pain, and the desire swirled together in a dangerous storm.

"I'm afraid because you don't understand what this is!" he shouted, the rawness of his voice echoing in the room. "You don't know what you're asking for, Aanya! I'm not-" He stopped abruptly
"I'm afraid because you don't understand what this is!" he shouted, the rawness of his voice echoing in the room. "You don't know what you're asking for, Aanya! I'm not-" He stopped abruptly, struggling for control. His chest heaved, and his fists clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white.

Aanya's eyes narrowed. "Not what? Not enough? Not worthy? That's not your decision to make!" Her voice was a mix of fury and pleading. "I get to decide what I want, and I want you."

"No, you don't!" Austin roared, his frustration boiling over. "You think you do, but you don't know me, Aanya. You don't know the things I've done, the person I really am. I don't deserve you. I'll never be good enough for you .
Aanya's eyes flashed with anger, a fire igniting in her that matched his fury. She took another step forward, refusing to back down. "Stop making excuses!" she snapped, her voice trembling. "Stop hiding behind this façade of not being good enough. You think you're protecting me by keeping your distance, but all you're doing is pushing me away."