I'll Love You Longer Than Forever

Chapter One Hundred & One

"Sach bata… bilkul miss nahi karegi?" An emotional Rahul asked Muskaan as the two said their goodbyes at the airport. 

Armaan and Muskaan were the only ones who had managed to wrangle up permission from Dr. Keerti to report to duty a half an hour late so that they could see their partners off. She had very strictly forbidden the others from being late to work, and so the gang had said their goodbyes over breakfast hosted by the Guptas earlier in the morning. 

They all had a million different things to tell the duo, a thousand pieces of advice, and about a billion hugs to share. It felt as if Riddhima & Rahul were going away for 5 years and not 5 days. In any other situation, it would have been comical, but everyone knew how sensitive they all were about the distance, and how separation anxiety was a very real thing when it came to the gang, but especially Armaan & Riddhima. 

Armaan and Riddhima who had been through hell to be together, who had spent the worst months of their lives when they were apart, who didn't do well if they didn't see each other often. It might have been a little too codependent, but it was their life. And while no one said it out loud, they were worried about the couple. 

The same could also be said for Rahul & Muskaan who were having some trouble with the distance, being apart for the first time since they'd gotten together. Rahul going away had never ended well for the couple, and those old anxieties and fears had found their way back into Muskaan's head and heart, making it difficult for her to let him go. But she knew that she had to. 

"Bilkul nahi," she replied haughtily. "Tere andar miss karne jaisa hai hi kya."

Though both of them knew she was lying through her teeth, Rahul didn't say anything, letting her have this. Instead, he pulled her into a tight hug, breaking Muskaan's resolve. She started to cry, cursing herself for being so overly emotional over a five day separation. 

"Muskaan, it's okay," Rahul soothed. "Mujhe pata hai ki pichli har baar jab main gaya hoon toh cheezein kharab hi huyi hai, but I promise, iss baar kuch galat nahi hoga. I love you, Muskaan. Aur main tujhe chodke waapas kabhi nahi jaunga."

She smiled at his words, finding solace in them in the midst of her emotional upheaval, knowing that he meant them, and that he wouldn't leave her again. Ever. They'd done it and now they knew it sucked big time. Nothing was worth losing each other over. 

She nodded against his shoulder, hugging him tighter and Rahul could practically feel her lips fall into a smile at his words, which made him grin and drop a quick kiss to her curls. 

"Tu apna dhyaan rakhiyo, samjhi?" He instructed. "Zyada late tak movies dekhne ki zaroorat nahi hai. Time pe so jaana. Warna raat mein 4-4 baje tak picturein hi dekhti rahegi SRK wali."

"Woh toh tu kuch bol bhi mat! I can't believe RK ne Armaan aur Riddhima ko SRK se milwaya lekin mujhe nahi!" She thundered.

As expected, Armaan hadn't been able to control himself and had spilled the beans at breakfast earlier, laughing over how Riddhima had literally proposed to the man. But the joke had been on him when every single girl at the table, even Padma Mumma, had said they'd have done the same thing. Atul had agreed too, adding insult to the injury, and they'd all spent the rest of breakfast laughing over the fact that Armaan didn't think proposing to SRK the second you saw him was an acceptable way to acknowledge his presence. 

Rahul laughed at Muskaan's indignation and hugged her yet again, making all thoughts of SRK fly out of her brain in a jiffy. 

"I hate you," Armaan murmured into Riddhima's shoulder as he hugged her tight. "Hamesha mere saath aise hi karti ho."