Here After!

36. Mending the Pieces

Anu

The sunlight filtered through the window, warming the room, but I barely felt it. Sitting on the edge of the bed, I stared at the half-empty glass of water on the nightstand, my thoughts running in circles. Giri's apology from morning kept playing in my mind—his tears, his regret, the way he held me so tightly as if I might slip away.

I wanted to believe him. I wanted to feel like everything could go back to how it was before. But deep down, I wasn't sure. His words from that night, the ones that hurt so deeply, still lingered, refusing to let me fully breathe.

Was it enough? Could I let this go?

I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to push away the weight in my chest. Giri had always been my safe place, the person I leaned on when everything else felt like too much. But this time, he had been the one to hurt me, and the crack between us felt impossibly wide.

I sat there, running my fingers gently through his hair as he lay asleep, his face calm for the first time in days. My own thoughts, however, were far from still. They darted back and forth, replaying the events of the past few days, his outburst, the silence that followed, and finally, his tearful apology just a few hours ago.

His words lingered in my mind, soft and broken, yet so full of regret. It wasn't like him to let his emotions overwhelm him like that. And while I wanted to hold on to the comfort of his embrace and the sincerity of his apology, a part of me still felt raw, unsure if I could let go of the hurt so easily.

He had asked me to take the day off, promising we'd spend it together. I agreed, hoping that maybe, just maybe, we could begin to rebuild the pieces that had fallen apart. True to his word, he took a day off too. He had drifted off to sleep not long ago, his exhaustion finally catching up with him, while mine refused to let me rest.

Wiping away my own fatigue, I stayed there, brushing his hair gently, wondering how we had let it get to this point. The man lying beside me was the same Giri I had fallen in love with, but the weight of life had turned him into someone I barely recognized over the past few days. And me? I wasn't sure if I was still the same Anu he loved, either.

The quiet of the room wrapped around us like a fragile cocoon. Could we fix this? Could we still find our way back to each other?

For now, I stayed there, holding onto the moment, hoping that when he woke up, we'd take the first step toward something better. Something stronger.

Exhaustion finally caught up with me as well. My thoughts, though restless, could no longer fight the weariness of the past few days. I shifted carefully and laid down beside him. The bed felt warmer, safer, as if his presence somehow softened the weight I'd been carrying in my chest.

As I settled, he stirred slightly, his arm instinctively reaching out to pull me into his hold. It wasn't demanding or forceful—just a gentle, familiar pull, as if he knew I belonged there. Despite everything that had happened, his embrace still felt like home.

I closed my eyes, my head resting against his chest, listening to the steady rhythm of his breathing. Gradually, the turmoil in my mind began to quiet. The hurt wasn't gone, and neither were the doubts, but in that moment, I let myself surrender to the comfort of being in his arms again.

And just like that, surrounded by his warmth, I drifted into a peaceful sleep in my comfort zone—the place that, no matter what, always felt like it was meant for me.

I woke up to the sharp ringing of my alarm, a reminder to get up and prepare for work. It took me a moment to remember I had applied for leave and forgotten to cancel the alarm. Groggy but awake, I stretched and realized Giri wasn't beside me.