The room was bathed in the dim, gray light of early morning when Haseena opened her eyes. The space between them felt vast, heavy with unspoken words. On the far side of the chamber, Anubhav was asleep on the couch, his frame awkwardly bent to fit the narrow cushions.
She stared at him for a long, blank moment, her expression completely unreadable, before quietly stepping out of bed. She got ready in silence and descended the grand staircase, leaving the quiet solitude of his room behind.
For Anubhav, the day dissolved into a blur of demanding legal affairs and royal obligations. By the time he returned to his private chambers late that night, the weight of the palace felt heavier than usual.
He pushed the heavy wooden doors open of his chamber walked in, only to find the room hollow and empty once more.
Closing his eyes, he let out a low sigh, despair tugging at the edges of his calm composure. "Ab pata nahi aap mehel ke kis kone me hongi..." he muttered under his breath, wondering where in the sprawling palace she had wandered off to this time.
Just like the night before, she wasn't where she was supposed to be. Stepping over to the security console, he pulled up the CCTV footage.
The tension in his shoulders instantly melted, and a faint, genuine smile touched his lips. There she was on the screen, picking her way toward the palace library. He caught the exact moment a passing helper bowed to her, causing her to jump slightly in surprise.
Anubhav let out a quiet chuckle.
Unbuttoning his legal kurta's first few buttons, he tossed his heavy shawl onto the armchair and headed straight for the library.
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When he reached the grand arched entrance, he paused. He rarely stepped foot in this part of the estate, the library belonged to his father, Surya, a man whose shadow irked his life and with whom his relationship had been complicated, to say the least.
Anubhav initially intended to wait outside in the hallway.
Then, the silence of the corridor was broken by a soft, rhythmic chime.
The delicate, metallic music of her anklets a sound that had somehow become his favorite melody drifted through the cracked doorway, accompanied by the gentle clinking of her glass bangles.
The pull was magnetic. Setting aside his hesitation, he pushed the door open and stepped into the shadowy, high-ceilinged room.
He tracked the soft chime of her footsteps, weaving through the labyrinth of floor-to-ceiling wooden shelves.
On the far side of the room, Haseena was standing on her tiptoes, reaching desperately for a leather-bound book high above her head. She gave a small hop, her fingers barely scraping the spine.
"Kambakht thode se aur lambe ho jaate toh pata nahi kya hi jaata," she muttered to herself under her breath, huffing in frustration.
She glanced to her right and her eyes caught the heavy wooden rolling ladder attached to the shelf track, standing right there, completely unused.
