Diamond Ash ( Completed )

Blast From The Past...

Due to correct navigation... We were out of the jungle in just a few minutes.... And back on the highway....

Stefan was driving at a moderate speed... And i was looking out of the window... Appreciating the beauty of nature in this beautiful hilly area...

And first time since i met him...the silence between us... was not annoying.... It was comforting.... Oddly comforting...

Until he spoke.... And the comfort was gone... Replaced by the shivers in my spine and the constant thumping of my heart..

"So?? " he inquired...

"So what?? " i replied with a confused look on my face..

Did i miss something he said??

"Do you still want to know my story??"...he continued

"Yes... "

"What do you want to know?? "

"Who are you??The real you??The human you?? "

"I am what you see....a kidnapper... A thief... A murderer... A gangster" his voice was filled with a weight... A weight of sorrow... Regret... Redemption... But why?

"The human part is long gone.... Lost in the dust of the dark past"

"What past?? " my voice was almost a whisper.....

"I was a thief since i can remember...unable to control myself whenever i saw money... I wanted to become rich... Quick and fast... "

"My dad... On the other hand was an honest person.. Employed in a 9 to 5 job... Wanting to see his son.. Studying and working hard...."

"Life was great!! Inspite of my habits.. I loved my family.. My mom.. Dad.. And little sister... Sienna.. "

"One day...i saw my dad placing some diamonds secretly in his cupboard... Without thinking anything about where they came from...or why dad had them... I stole them..."

I gaped at him with my mouth opened... He had tears in his eyes!!! But refused them to flow... The way he was talking... It made my heart melt like ice... He glanced at me for just a second and then again concentrated on the road... Or atleast tried to...

"Yes!! I stole from my own dad"

"It turned out that the diamonds were entrusted upon him by an influential person due to his honesty... But when the diamonds went missing...that person took dad away... "

Now the tears were out of his control... They were flowing wildly...he stopped the car aside of the highway... tried to wipe the tears... And correct his blurred vision... He was furious now... Angry at himself for being unable to stop the tears... He tried concentrating on the steering wheel to stop the tears... But failed..

I wanted to console him... To tell him to stop crying.. That everything will be alright... But the only thing i could do was to look at him..

"Next day....we found his body... "

"The person was never found guilty... Due to his high contacts... When mom found out that i was the one who stole the diamonds.. She blamed me for everything... She broke down... I could not handle it anymore... So i left my house.. Left my humanity...left any shred of goodness that i had... And became what i am today... "

"Because this is what i deserve... And pretending not to have a heart is sometimes the best solution to avoid being hurt and not hurting others"

He had a lava inside him.... Boiling up from a long time...finally it was broken loose.. I could not bring myself to stop himm... Because maybe it was the first time he ever got a chance to explain himself... To say out loud what he felt...

By the time he was finished and started to wipe the unstoppable tears... I was in tears too...

We both looked at each other.... Glass eyed... No words needed for the conversation we were having at that point.. No "it's okay" or "it will get better" because we both knew that it was not okay!!... And things like that never get better... The hole in your heart never gets filled!!!

Without breaking the eye contact... He untied my hands... And i...i hugged him....desperately...pleadingly... He hugged me back... With a pressure that was crushing my bones...destroying me... Yet building me into something new at the same time..

What was i doing??? Why?? I didnt knew?? The only thing i knew was that i wanted this... I wanted him to feel my presence... I wanted him to know that i will listen... Whatever he has to say... Because sometimes u need people only to really listen to what you have to say... Without judging you... Without consoling you... Just letting you pour yourself out...

You know this well because you had no one to listen to you!! You know this pain very well!!

When we broke apart... None of us was crying anymore... Stefan stretched his shoulders... Probably tired of driving... And then got back on the road...no matter how desperately i wanted to stay...we had to reach vermont as quickly as possible..

For about 10 minutes which felt like hours... None of us blurted a single word..then i decided to ask something..

"How long has it been?? " my voice was unsteady... I was afraid that he will break again...

"3 years" his voice was deep and hard but certain and steady...

My hand moved towards his and squeezed it tightly... His hand twitched under mine at first...but then clasped it firmly??

"What did you do after leaving home?? "

"At first i watched my whole world fall apart... The only thing i could do was to stare at it blanky... Then i was hell bent on getting revenge.... I killed the person..who shot my dad... In attempt to sooth myself... But deep down inside i knew... That i was actually the true killer... Just tried to avoid it... After killing him.. The doors of the crime world opened for me... And i let it take me.. Take anything good that was still left"

"Do you know...where your family is now??have you ever contacted them?? "

In reply only silence greeted me..