Achilles' Heels: An IPKKND FanFiction

Chapter Six: The Phantom of Iago

"Yes, Arnav Malik," Khushi repeated, "What is this all about, Arnav? Did you take a new name? Why?"

"It's not a new name, Khushi," Arnav replied in a flat tone as he moved away from the railing, pushing his body away from it with a jolt. The metal of the faux fence just before the shatter-proof glass window oscillated under the sheer force of his arms. He turned his back on Khushi and faced the French windows that opened into the lobby, "It's the name I was born with. Arnav Malik is my real name," he muttered as he stared into the elevator lobby, though he could capture her figure partially from the corner of his eyes. He noted her shoulder slump just a little bit at the revelation.

Khushi stared at his chiseled form, his half-turned stature accentuating his washboard abs and strong arms. "I - I'm not sure I get you," the words escaped her involuntarily, "I don't understand."

"I'm not surprised; I wouldn't expect you to know," he said as he walked in circles around the balcony absent-mindedly. A while later, he spoke, "I'll answer your next question too, Khushi, while I am at it. I am here because of one person. You know who that is. If you have come this far in search of me, you probably already have some idea about whom I am talking about."

"What are you talking about?" she asked, her voice an octave above normal.

Arnav smiled despite himself as he turned back to face Khushi; his eyes briefly flickered to the skyline past her before he focused on her face. The pleasant azure of the sky had vanished for long now. Someone had forcefully draped black velvet over it. Arnav stared at the flashy neon lights that lined most of the architecture of that beautiful city. The red and the green crept into the sky; their haphazardly smudged spikes masking the shimmery sparkles that spread across the empty, hollow space above them. His life was no different, he thought bitterly. They heard a car zoom on the road several floors below as the whoosh of the engine cut through the silence of the night. He breathed in the cold, salty air that lingered in around them, taking in the crude aura of the endless nature stretched itself, unrolling to some unknown vista.

"Shyam," he spat with disgust laced with his tone - as if he was not someone worth talking about. He stared at the faint luminescence produced by some distinct lamp far away, avoiding looking at her for some reason, "I'm here because of Shyam."

"Shyam ji?", Arnav heard her shriek, "But how? He left the same night as -"

"- the same night as me. I know," he completed the sentence for her for the second time that evening, "And there's a reason why."

"What is it?"

Arnav grimaced, "You are far too innocent for your good, do you know that? You shouldn't be."

"I am innocent," she snapped as she repeated his words back at him, her eye-brows raised into her forehead, "What kind of an explanation is that for not telling me anything?"

"Yes, I agree, it's not the explanation", Arnav shook his head, "And no, that's not the only reason."

"That is not even a reason!" she yelled, frustrated.

He smiled weakly as he turned his eyes to the ground, "I was never good at answering questions from others, Khushi. You know what's strange though - now I wish I was. I wish I had trained myself for handing out explanations."

You put your faith in the wrong people, Arnav...

Shyam's words rang in his ears as if he was hearing them fresh.

Well - leave her now. Or watch her die. It's your choice either way. Who am I to say anything against the great Arnav Singh Raizada? Khushi isn't ever going to be yours, Arnav. She loves me. You saw it yourself. You know it.