You're My Home | Complete ✔

Chapter 21

The unforgiving and merciless nature of fire was intimidating to all. Inhaling smoke always posed an extreme danger to health, but at times, when it exceeded a good few minutes, it could also prove to be fatal.

The smoke was intensifying by the minute and it was becoming almost impossible to see anything. Her eyes were watering and it was getting difficult to breathe. Despite her everybody's best efforts, they couldn't stop her from going inside. How could she stop? It was Armaan in danger, and her usual pragmatic self could not think straight.

Inside the building, huge teams of the New York City fire department were trying douse the fire and search for the people who still could not be found. Samara tried seeking help from them but in vain. They reassured her that they will look for him but asked her to go outside. Regardless of the resistance and danger she faced, her heart would not be at peace until she found Armaan. Her limbs were shaking from weakness but her lips wouldn't tire from reciting prayers for his safety.

"Ya Allah please don't let anything happen to him."

*******

A stinging pain shot up his arm as it hit the glass door. His vision was obstructed by the dark black smoke so he couldn't even see that he was walking into a door. He had no idea where he was or where he was going, and it didn't matter anymore. All that mattered to him was whether she was safe or not, and no one had any idea.

He wanted to meet her once before he left for Karachi. There was no way he could go without seeing her, but now there was a possibility he might never see her again, and just the mere thought of that made him sick. When Aminah told him that Samara had a surgery in the OR where the fire had had broken out, all of sudden it seemed like as if the world turned upside down. A havoc surged in his heart knowing she was possibly in grave danger. Without even thinking for a bit, he ran inside, unaware whether fate would let them meet again, even if for one last time.

*******

Till now there was only smoke, but Samara had reached to the point where she could see the actual fire. It was enormous. Although tempted, she knew she couldn't go any further without the risk of burning herself. What if he had gone inside to look for her? No, his judgement was better than that. But her heart just couldn't agree to stop looking for him.

Without warning, all of a sudden everything was starting to go out of sight. She couldn't see anything but splotches of darkness, and her knees were giving up. After a few arduous moments of trying to stand up, she lost her balance and started tumbling backwards, fearing that she would open her eyes in a hospital bed, but she was wrong. Before she could hit the ground, a pair of arms stretched out and caught her just in time. Her eyelids were drooping with fatigue so she couldn't make out the face. There was a soothing sensation taking over her body as she rested her head on his chest. The next few minutes were an amalgam of smoke, confusion and haze, before she closed her eyes and lost consciousness.

*******

At first, everything seemed to be a blur, but as the haze was being lifted, things started to come in focus. By the looks of it, she could figure she was on the bed of a stand-by ambulance, with an oxygen mask partially covering her face. Samara opened her eyes wider. Her peripheral vision caught a glimpse of somebody, sitting beside her bed. She turned towards her right, to find the person she wanted to find. He was still holding her hand with a firm grip.

"Hey."

She put her hand on the mask and slowly pulled it off. Armaan offered his support to help her sit up. Their eyes collided for a moment and neither could say anything. A storm of emotion were brewing in the hearts that beat for each other.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Are you?"

He nodded his head. Samara wiped away the tears that started flowing across her warm cheeks. The pain in his arms was nothing compared to the one he felt when he saw her cry. Her tears has always been his biggest weakness.

"Samara-"

"Don't. Please don't. You have no bloody idea what I've been through, wha-what absurd thoughts were going on in my mind. What kind of an idiot jumps into a burning building?"

"You."

She rolled her eyes.

"Samara, we've both been through the same hell. When Aminah told me you were in that OR I-" He stopped abruptly, not being able to say anything further. He didn't need to.

"I want to go home. Please."

"Sure. I'll drop you."

*******

The sound of thunder and petrichor was one of her favorite combination. She stood in the balcony, looking up at the dark sky lurking over her head. As drop of rain come splashing down on her forehead, she closed her eyes, waiting for the rain to wash away her tears.  

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