❝The only kind of love I want is one where even if it is just for a short moment, it feels like I have lived a lifetime in that moment with that person. ❞ - Jhanvi Raichand.
**You CANNOT read this as standalone. Read Dare to Be before reading this...
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2.54 ...And Back
I yelp on hearing Aarush's voice in my room when I otherwise thought I was alone, "Come with me."
"Aarush! Knock please." I scold him pulling my top down. I had just woken up and gotten dressed for the day. It was too early to be getting scares.
"It's just you and me, Jaan." He says as if it's okay to walk in unannounced because there was no one else around. "Now, come with me." Reaching for my hand, he starts to pull me along, out of the room.
"Where are we going?" He doesn't answer and I tug at his hand, but he doesn't slow his pace either. "Aarush! What is the rush? And Inaaya is still asleep in the room. I should get someone to watch over her first."
"I've asked Randeep." He informs as we walk down the staircase. Exhaling, I make the assumption that he isn't going to stop for anything. He seems to have woken up with his mind set and nothing is steering him away from it.
Reaching the front steps of the palace, he gets the keys to a car from one of the drivers and opens for the passenger door for me with a clear indication. Quietly, I get inside. Soon enough, we drive away and leave the palace far behind.
Half-way through the ride, he speaks words to the point. "I want you to meet someone."
"Okay?" I wait for him to tell me who it is he wants me to meet. No answer.
Ten minutes later, he stops the car at the side of the road in front of a house. A quick glance out the window gives the impression that it hasn't been lived in for some time. After unbuckling the seat belts and we step out, he opens the gates to the house and pushes it in. At the creak, I stand beside him.
I have a feeling I know exactly whose house this is. I don't even bother insulting him by asking to confirm.
Similar to how he had frozen at the steps to the Udaipur palace the first day we had arrived from Jaipur, his feet are rooted to the ground by the doorway. As with that day, I slide my hand in his palm, silently urging him forward. He glances down at our entwined hands before meeting my eyes. I blink at him in understanding and comfort.
The worst is behind us. Walking inside her home did not have to mean that he would have to leave his past behind in order to move on.
One foot in front of the other, we reach the front door. His hand pulls out of mine with a tremble as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a key. Getting a hold over his shaking hand, he forwards the key and inserts it in the lock, unlocking the door to his past.
Pushing the double door inwards, he turns back to look at me. Then, he forwards his hand for me to take. Sliding my hand in his palm, feeling the lines of our destinies mix, I step forward to stand next to him. I allow a moment of silence to let the surroundings seep in. The house is as ordinary as any - other than the fact that no one lives here anymore and that cobwebs were everywhere, settled on a thick layer of dust.
