Afterlife Of Ember And Rhea

Chapter 56: I Didn't Hurt You

Rhea reached home with a longing face and a bruised leg. She knew Neel hated her but she couldn't believe that he could actually hurt her. She was furious.

"Ah! Di! Whom did you fight with on the first day of school?" Noor said, eating a packet of Cheetos, which Rhea had kept under her bed, hidden and away from his sight.

"Arorhea! Oh my goodness! You shouldn't fight with your friends!" Her mom said.

Arorhea looked at her untied shoe lace and said, "I...fell down."

"Ah! Someone must have pushed you!"

"No...I stepped on a pebble and fell down." She said, avoiding eye contact.

"If it is so, then come to the kitchen and take the first aid box." Mrs Laghari went to kitchen to fetch the box.

Rhea noticed the packet of crisps in Noor's hand but she didn't react to it and followed her mother to the kitchen.

Later that afternoon when she was applying the antiseptic lotion, the door bell rang. It was Neel who rang the bell. He was welcomed by Noor and his mom. Neel got into Rhea's room to find her staring out of the balcony and his room's balcony was in view. She stared at his balcony while applying the medicine at the wrong part of the leg—just beside the wound. As if she was lost in some other world.

"...hey..." He spoke and she turned her head to see him.

"What are you doing here?!" She shouted.

"Just wanted to a-"

"Get lost!" She stood up and faced him. "Get out of my room!"

"At least listen to me first!" He insisted.

She knew he was not going to listen to her and leave at once. So she tried to push him out of the room. He turned her around, held her wrists with his hand and taped her mouth using his other hand. She tried to escape but couldn't. His grip was strong.

"Listen to me." He continued his words and she calmed down just a little bit. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to kick the rock at you that time. I was just approaching you guys. I wanted to go home with you. And I tripped over that rock." He explained himself and she stood calmly. He released her slowly and she faced him once again. "I'm sorry."

"I don't believe you." Rhea said and distanced herself from him. "You have hurted me." Neel put his right hand into the pocket of his sweatshirt and pulled out a rock.

"This is the rock that has hurted you. It wasn't me. I swear." Rhea wasn't ready to forgive him. He pulled his pants and started hitting his leg with the rock.

"W-W-WHAT ARE YOU DOING! Waittt!! Heyyyy!!!"

"Proving you that it's the fault of this rock." He said as he kept hitting herself. She tried to take that rock from him but failed.

"Okay! Okay! I believe you!" She said as soon as his leg started bleeding. He let go of the rock covered in blood and sat down on the floor. Rhea quickly fetched the first aid box from her bed and took out some medicine for him.

He sat there quietly, watching her put medicine on the injured area. He felt guilty for doing all this but there was something he had to prove to her.

"I'm sorry for troubling you..." He spoke.

"You are a trouble for me." She said without lifting up her face to look at his. She continued dabbing the cotton ball on his wound.

He chuckled. "I'll always keep troubling you. But my intentions are never to hurt you."

She smiled but her face was hidden because of her hair, coming in the way. He moved her hair aside, gently to look at her smiling. Then she got up and packed the box again.

He stood up as well. "Is your wound still bleeding?"

"It's a bruise. Nothing serious." She smiled.

"I'm sorry..."

"It's okay."

"Take care, okay?" He lifted up his eyebrows and said with great concern. She replied with a 'hmm' and he left her room after planting a kiss on her cheek.

-to be continued...

[Afterlife Of Ember And Rhea]