you are my destiny

chapter 61.

Rajiv grinned. "It's no joke, right?"

She just smiled at him, and at that moment, the balcony door creaked again. Ahana turned to see Abhimaan step out.

Rajiv stood immediately, winking as he passed by.
“I’ll leave you lovebirds to it.”

He slipped back inside, leaving Ahana and Abhimaan alone. Abhimaan walked over and sat opposite her.

Ahana looked down at the envelope, then back at him.
“I was going to deal with it all alone… but I ended up getting help.”

“I’m glad,” Abhimaan said softly. “At least it lightened the load a little.”

She hesitated, then asked in a fragile voice,
“Don’t you… hate me? I broke up with you because of my circumstances.”

Abhimaan’s gaze lingered on her.
“Back in Pune, you asked me if I wasn’t lonely being alone, remember?”

The memory unfolded—

They had been at the beach, fireworks cracking in the distance. The others were laughing, dancing, setting off firecrackers. Ahana had sat beside him on the sand, her voice quiet but thoughtful.

“Were you lonely?” she asked, eyes fixed on the ground.

He had turned to her, surprised.

“For me, it was less lonely because I had Yash. But you… your brother was in boarding school, and your sister was with your mom. You must’ve been alone. I wouldn’t have been able to bear it.”

He had stared at her, struck by how deeply she understood him. She had looked so sad for him that night.

“I was okay,” he had said quietly.

And she had turned her face toward him.

The memory faded.

Back on the balcony, Abhimaan spoke again. His voice was steadier now, heavier with truth.
“I really thought I was okay back then… because I didn’t know what it was like to be with someone. But after I met you, I learned. And when I look back now, I realize those times must have been so lonely. That’s why I never want you to feel that way. I want to be by your side, so you’ll always have someone to lean on… so you’ll never be alone.”

He reached his hand across the table toward her.
“Let me be with you, Ahana. Two… might just be better than one.”

A tear slid down her cheek. She stared at his hand, then slowly placed hers in it, smiling through her tears.
“Thank you…”

Abhimaan’s lips curved into a smile. Then, as if unable to resist, he pulled out a small sticker and pressed it on the back of his own hand. In bold letters, it reads: I’m your boomer.

Ahana blinked, then burst into laughter.
“What is this?”

“I had this stuck on my shirt all day,” he said, completely straight-faced.

She laughed harder, clutching her stomach.
“This is so stupid! So stupid, it’s actually annoying!”

Her laughter rang out into the night, mixing with the soft breeze—exactly the sound Abhimaan had been missing...

Other side,

Advika went out through the back door of the restaurant, holding a garbage bag. She set it down, put her hands on her hips, and looked up at the night sky with a little pout.

Advika (muttering): “I wish I could do this with my dude...”

“Right...” a voice came from behind.