Silent Vows

Chapter 16

Karan sat in his room, leaning back against his chair with his hands clasped behind his head, staring up at the ceiling. The quiet hum of the fan above him was the only sound in the room as he let his mind wander—again.

The accident. The memory still lingered, vivid and unsettling, no matter how much he tried to push it aside. He couldn't forget the crash, the blinding pain, and then, the softness of a voice that had brought him back from the edge.

“It’s okay... You’re going to be fine.”

It was the voice of the girl who had saved him. He had never been able to fully remember her face, only the calmness in her tone, the tenderness in the way she had spoken to him, as though she truly cared. But he couldn’t get her out of his head. He needed to find her. He needed to know who she was, why she had helped him, and—most importantly—he needed to thank her.

His fingers tapped restlessly on his desk, the sound of his thoughts mixing with the quiet beat of his heart. No matter how many times he tried to remember, he could only picture a blurry silhouette. Nothing about her stood out in his mind except for her voice.

He had tried asking around, even going so far as to search the campus for any trace of her. But there was nothing. It was like she had disappeared, vanishing as quickly as she had appeared.

Karan, you’re obsessed, he thought to himself. He couldn’t understand why it bothered him so much.

Meera's face flashed in his mind, and he quickly dismissed it. She wasn’t the girl who helped him. It couldn’t be her. Meera, with her cold demeanor, her aloofness, her indifference—she was nothing like the girl who had shown him such care that day. And yet, the thought lingered in the back of his mind, unbidden, refusing to let go.

Karan sighed and picked up his phone, unlocking it without much thought. A text message from his mother appeared on the screen.

"Dinner tonight? Your dad’s making butter chicken."

He smiled, the mention of his dad's cooking always managing to ground him. Despite everything, his family had a way of pulling him back to reality. It was probably just what he needed to clear his mind.

He quickly typed back, "Sounds good. I'll be there."

As he sat back in his chair, staring at the ceiling once again, the door to his room opened with a slight creak. Raj strolled in, uninvited, as usual, carrying that familiar grin on his face.

"Still lost in thought, huh?" Raj asked, leaning against the doorframe with his arms folded.

Karan shot him a glance, annoyed but not surprised. "Can’t stop thinking about that girl. The one who helped me after the accident."

Raj raised an eyebrow, amusement flickering in his eyes. "You’re really hung up on her, huh? I thought you’d be out there living your playboy life, but here you are, thinking about some girl from months ago. I thought you were the last person to get all sentimental."

Karan frowned, his mind still on the mystery girl. "I’m not sentimental. I just want to find her. To thank her. I don’t even know who she is."

"Well, you’ve got that look on your face again," Raj teased, walking over and flopping down on Karan’s bed. "The one you get when you’re thinking about her. It’s almost like... I don’t know... like you’re falling for her."

Karan immediately stood up, his hands clenching into fists. "Shut up, Raj. I’m not falling for anyone."

Raj just laughed, not taking him seriously. "Alright, alright. But if you’re really that interested in finding her, maybe you should ask around more. I’m sure someone saw her that day."

Karan ignored him, lost in thought once again. He couldn’t help but wonder what would happen if he never found her. Would he always wonder about the girl who had been there when he needed someone the most? Would she remain a ghost in his past, forever out of reach?

The thought bothered him more than he wanted to admit.

Raj, sensing his friend's mood change, decided to lighten the atmosphere. "But hey, Karan," he said, sitting up on the bed with a grin, "there's this new girl in your class who's been eyeing you lately. You don’t seem to notice, but I can tell. She’s been sitting at the back, watching you."

Karan raised an eyebrow, shifting his attention from his thoughts to Raj. "A new girl?"

Raj nodded, still grinning. "Yeah. She looks interested. What’s the harm in talking to her? Could be a distraction from all this mystery girl nonsense."

Karan scoffed. "I’m not interested in anyone right now. And you can drop the whole ‘distraction’ thing. I’m not looking for that."

Raj just shrugged, clearly unconvinced. "Well, you can keep pretending, but I’m telling you, man, the signs are there."

Karan ignored him, focusing on the text from his mom again. He needed to get away from all the noise in his head. Butter chicken, he thought. That’s what I need right now.

Raj, sensing he wasn’t going to get a rise out of Karan, stood up and stretched. "Alright, I’m out of here. But seriously, you should think about it. Who knows? Maybe this new girl will make you forget all about that mystery girl. Not everyone’s a ghost, you know."

Karan didn’t respond. He didn’t need to. His mind was already elsewhere. Maybe Raj was right. But no matter how much he tried to push it aside, his thoughts kept drifting back to the girl he couldn’t forget.