Endgame | ✓

11. The Aftermath Of The Kiss.

11. The Aftermath Of The Kiss.

IN CONTRAST TO my expectations, Anushka did respond to my kiss.

I kissed her like her lips were my aphrodisiac - consuming like the most intoxicating drug, like drowning in the oldest of the wines. As my tongue swept past her lips, delving into her mouth, I found her getting more lost in it, meeting the kisses with equal fervor. The fact that she was fighting against me for me, fighting the kiss with a kiss made me growl as I yanked her against me.

I brought my hands up to her face, angling her head so I could deepen the kiss. Her hands constantly sift through my hair, lips faltering to maintain the friction as the contact broke due to lack of oxygen.

Anushka and I stared at each other, the kiss replaying in my mind like it had entered into an infinite loop. When I looked at Anushka, I realized she was like a labyrinth, where each twisted turn took you to a new path. Some paths were brightly lit, where the two of us could walk easily without any banking required on the slope, while some paths were simply dimmed in shadows of mysteries. Even if I knew a fair share of Anushka's past for which I still felt grateful because she cared to share it with me, some part of me always couldn't help but yearn to know what was going in her mind. In present that is, like right now.

Her eyes darted towards the other direction- she was clearly trying to avoid my gaze so I asked her directly this time, "Did that mean something to you, like it meant to me?" I was barely a step away from her.

So close.

Anushka's face was ashen. "What?"

I inhaled sharply, unable to keep myself steady, as Anushka's face hardened with every passing moment. "The kiss. Did it mean something to you?"

There was a prolonged silence after that, almost static and unbearably painful. And then Anushka's features etched downwards into a frown. "Virat," her voice was soft as if she was going to say something which was going to break my heart. I shut my eyes to escape the pain which they might cause. "It meant nothing. Absolutely nothing."

"Right," I sounded so scornful and almost angry, shredding her sentence to bits of lies in a moment. "You cannot kiss someone like that and not have feelings for them, Anushka. So. Just. Stop. Lying." I said through gritted teeth, thoroughly exasperated.

"I'm not lying, Virat. Even it meant something to me, I cannot do anything about it. My endgame is fixed, and I shouldn't- cannot have feelings for you."

"What do you mean by your endgame is fixed?" I asked when I noticed a fleeting shadow of guilt passing over her face. "For God's sake, please answer-"

"- I'm engaged, Virat. That's what I meant, we cannot be anything because I'm already everything to someone else."

"Why would you kiss me then?" Her eyes riveted mine in utter shock; I had already expected that she expected me to ask about her fiance but he was the least of my worries. At least, for now.

"Because newsflash; remember when I told you- you make me feel vulnerable and I don't want to feel fucking weak or vulnerable. It was a moment of weakness, and I'm going to make sure that it would never happen again."

"And how is that going to happen?" I asked her in a challenging voice, sauntering closer towards her. My thumb grazed against her lips softly, letting them feel the softness of it which my lips had already witnessed. "How are you going to act like nothing happened, with me around?"