Chapter 3: An Arcade of Surprises

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A/N: Hey there everyone! :D :D Here is the next update! :D :D

Happy Reading! :D :D

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"I hope it's not our last this time."

Ishaani stared at Ranveer in silence for some time before sitting up, fidgeting with her fingers in silence. She couldn't bear the thought of looking at Ranveer anymore, afraid that her heart might betray her as images from her ghastly nightmare flashed before her eyes in a jeer. Ranveer sat up straight as he realized what he'd just let slip, suddenly feeling guilty about it.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean t-"

"It's alright, really. I guess this is the price you have to pay when you act like a coward," replied Ishaani quietly, and Ranveer pulled her in his direction so that they now sat face to face. 

Ishaani couldn't help but notice how his expression had hardened upon what she'd just said.

"You should stop seeing yourself in the light of a coward and let that word affect you the way it does. Because what you've lived through and achieved is something even the bravest and most courageous men would succumb too," spoke Ranveer finally, the pride in his voice making Ishaani's heart melt.

He was still capable of feeling that pride for her, she realized as her heart pounded a little harder. And she could still build her entire world upon that same pride, she realized with a sudden gush of something that she hadn't felt in years - happiness.

"Does the word servant ever affect you still?" she asked him suddenly as both of them stared at the moon that was suddenly ambushed by the clouds. Ranveer flinched at the word as though someone had mortally wounded him, before shaking his head like a puppy trying to rid its ears of the water. She smiled in spite of herself at the innocent reflex.

"It never affected me even before, unless it came from you or Mota Babuji," replied Ranveer grudgingly and Ishaani could sense the pain and resentment in his voice. There was no forgiveness for what she'd done that night, neither any justification because it wasn't good enough. It would never be.

"All I wanted to do was wish you happy anniversary upon the terrace that night," she whispered to herself in wonderment, but she was loud enough for Ranveer to hear her as well. 

He laughed at her bitterly.

"And we got nowhere near that one point," he added, his eyes going black once again.

Ishaani propped her legs up so that she could hug her knees close to herself for solace, her chin bobbing upon it as she chose to say nothing. Ranveer twiddled with the ring upon his finger for some time before he decided to speak again.

"I'm sorry about Falguni Maa, by the way. I wanted to attend the funeral, but by the time I was informed about it, she'd already been cremated," he justified and Ishaani gave him a tearful nod. 

She missed her mother terribly at times.

"Yeah, she really missed you. She didn't know what happened between us that night, but she really cared for you till the end," she replied as she felt her head fall to her side despondently. 

But it didn't fall into thin air like it'd fall upon always - it fell upon the crevice of Ranveer's shoulder as he let her nestle her head into the crux of his neck, putting his arm around her shoulder in a consoling embrace. She didn't realize when he'd come ahead to break her fall, but the shoulder was more than welcome.

"She was an extraordinary woman not unlike yourself. How's Disha?" asked Ranveer suddenly and Ishaani gave him a soft smile.

"She's alright. In Cambridge right now. Comes twice in a year to meet me. We've grown closer after Maa and Papa passed away and the family broke off. We keep in touch through Skype once in a month so I know what's happening with her," she added and Ranveer gave her a stupefied look. It was strange how calamity and tragedy had brought the two estranged sisters closer.

"It seems like such a miracle, no?"

"We make our own miracles, Ranveer," she corrected and neither of them missed the implied meaning of her statement. 

But Ranveer felt emotionally tired as he seemed to be surviving on barely eight hours' worth of sleep in almost fifty hours and it was beginning to leave him exhausted enough to not want to delve back into the same dark waters that he once seemed to love.

"And all of your cousins-"

"Happy and settled abroad," replied Ishaani simply, and Ranveer couldn't help but feel his blood boil in spite of himself. Whatever may have been his original impression of them, he believed them to be better than a bunch of opportunists, especially after the kind of childhood they'd all had together.

"I can't believe they didn't-"

"That's life, Ranveer. When money and ego come in between, even blood falls short in front of it. And it's something I've accepted with time, and I think you should, too," she added sternly and the retort died away upon Ranveer's lips as he shut his mouth angrily, trying to calm himself.

"And Baa?"

"That's a surprise for you," replied Ishaani, unable to control her urge to laugh at the mortified look upon his face.

"I hope she's not-"

"Oh, no. She's alive still," she hastened to clarify and Ranveer heaved a sigh of relief. Ishaani continued. 

"How about Amba Kaki and Kailash Kaka?"

"They're doing well. Baba brokers my agents in Surat and he runs a departmental store as well. Maa runs a boutique for tradition Gujrati-wear clothes," replied Ranveer, the pride in his voice evident about the one true happiness his heart felt at giving his parents the lifestyle they deserved for all their hardships and miseries.

"Wow, that's brilliant!" exclaimed Ishaani with glee, and Ranveer's features softened at the genuine happiness upon her face. Ishaani hesitated for a few minutes before she finally decided to let Ranveer know about it. 

"I don't know whether you know this, but I did meet-"

"Yeah, Baba told me. They remember you a lot."

"Not in good light, I assume?" shot back Ishaani immediately, suddenly feeling a lurch of guilt as she thought about all the trust his parents had put into her all those years back, especially his father. She'd let them down too.

"In much better light that you'd believe. I had difficulty believing it myself," he added and Ishaani chuckled in spite of herself. Everything felt so amusing suddenly, as though they had to hold on to tiny, precious things like these to remind themselves that the impossible could always happen. 

How despondent had their life turned into?

"It's good to know that. Atleast there's one spot of redemption left then," said Ishaani and Ranveer felt the smile licked away from upon his face. 

Redemption... Revenge... Chirag.

"And then there's Chirag. I can't believe he's the same guy who-"

"Nearly killed you all those years back? Yeah," she added, a little more forcefully than intended as she and Ranveer gave each other a look of repulsion. 

Both of them emembered those early days when he'd come back from school with mysterious bruises on a different part of his body every day until one night, she found him nearly dead in his closet. That was another past he wasn't over upon in all these years, and now that he'd learnt how the two sections of his past were related, it only seemed to leave him more chagrined.

"And he'd been living with a thirteen year long revenge? Just for that slap?" asked Ranveer aloud to the night as he realized how incredulous it sounded. He wouldn't have even believed that something like this could happen had it not destroyed his life into smithereens.

"Mentally unstable, I tell you," replied Ishaani darkly, and Ranveer noticed how her hands had clenched into fists, a disgusted look upon her face. 

Ishaani tried to drown away the thoughts of their parting conversation that made her want to throw up every time it crossed her mind, the touch of his rough lips upon her only making her gag in sheer hatred at the thought of him even touching her that way.

"For someone that mentally ill, he seemed to have an excellent command over that facade, and that too for so long," commented Ranveer as he let his fingers slip through the gap that was forming in her fists. As though shocked, Ishaani snapped out from her trance in an instant.

"You saw through it, anyway. I was just too stupid to see it," she argued, relieved that Ranveer had silently rescued her from a world that she dearly wanted to forget.

But she knew that it was something she could never forget and move on from, no matter what. Not only was she was made to suffer for something that didn't even make sense, but Ranveer was made to suffer just because he stepped in between to be her shield. It was never his fight and yet he'd paid the most for it. But it was no longer his fight anymore - it was hers and she'd make sure to see it through the end.

"Don't go there, Ishaani," warned Ranveer as his grip upon her hand grew stronger, hoping to give her the strength to halt her feet from walking right back into the arms of a thorny past that would only make her bleed again. 

Not just her, but him as well.

And especially at a time when he wanted to forget the past so dearly, he suddenly found it even more clearly before his eyes, preventing him from even trying to attempt to forget about it and let it go. Not only was Ishaani was made to suffer for something that didn't even really make sense to him, but he was made to suffer just because he'd embraced the wrath of her share as he stood in between. And that's why it was no longer her fight anymore - because it had become his own ever since he'd stepped in between all those years ago. The fight was now his and he would make sure to see it through the end.

"Why? You were right all along - the art of manipulation was the simplest yet most complex way of destruction. And it destroyed our lives forever," whispered Ishaani, the resentment bleeding from her voice and staining his heart red in the painful truth of what she was saying. 

After years and years of warning, she'd fallen right into it. And after years and years of being prepared for it, he fell right into its pit as well. But that was in the past.

"And you've been making him pay for it one by one," replied Ranveer, giving her a lopsided smile as their eyes blazed in the triumph of the moment, the victory a welcome sweetness after the constant taste of bitterness and sourness from the past.

"And I have only you to thank for the Mehta and Sons takeover since it was your brainchild," she commended. Ranveer smiled modestly.

"I'm just happy that I could help you out, if not in person then like this," he replied and Ishaani gave him an appreciative nod, deciding that now was the right time to talk about what she'd spoken to Finch about earlier.

"Your Singhania takeover was brilliant. People obviously think that you've showcased some extraordinary skills after getting that evil spawn to let you acquire it, but then again they don't know the real story."

"And you do?" asked Ranveer shrewdly, his question more of a statement than genuine curiosity.

"Revenge is a dish best served cold. He made you make coffee on your interview and treated you like a servant; you ground him up in that same coffee machine and let his ashes become the dirt upon your shoes," she replied and the relish in her voice only made him smile in glee. 

She was right.

There was a taste about a revenge done correctly that left one feeling fulfilled and satisfied.

"You've gotten too smart," he admitted in spite of himself and Ishaani couldn't help but let out a humourless laugh.

"When reality slaps you like the way it slapped me, you tend to lose the word naivety from your dictionary. The victim tends to become the manipulator eventually, not out of birth, but out of experience. And so tell me - why have you come here, Ranveer?" she asked suddenly, taking him off-guard as he gave her a puzzled look

"What do you mean?"

"You don't think that I'm going to believe that you just came here because Finch pulled a pair of puppy dog eyes on you and fixed an appointment on your behalf and you did not even as much as get to go 'achoo' upon him?" she asked, her eyebrow cocked at him in skeptism. 

Ranveer's expression remained unchanged even though she could see the cogwheels of his brain running at full throttle now.

"Mota Babuji's legacy-"

"-is only one reason. What's the other one?" she asked stiffly, the Miss Parekh in her suddenly snapping back to life. Ranveer let out an irritated huff as he tried his best to dodge her question until he realized that it wasn't possible anymore.

So he decided to bring along RV as an accomplice.

"I'd decided to talk to you upon it once the consignment to London was done, but since you've opened the topic, now is as good a time as any. I'm assuming that you know then? My reason for coming along?" he asked and Ishaani nodded her head.

"I didn't originally when I came to know that you'd finally agreed for a meeting. The day you took over the Singhania's, the real reason for your coming along was evident to me. You weren't here to meet me on my request. You were here because you wanted to personally valuate the financial standing of the Parekh Empire so that you could take over and buy it outright. Every person who'd undermined you had to face your wrath. The Singhania firm did, especially, and all the other petty brokerage and financing solution firms are now in your pocket with their allegiances to you after seeing what you did with Singhania. All the same firms who'd once rejected you for your social standing after the interviews."

"Go on," urged Ranveer calmly, a dispassionate smile upon his face.

"So it was only time that you showed your worth to me for calling you a servant. It was never a hidden fact to you that I was currently running the Parekh Empire. You just wanted to bide your time until you were financially able enough to buy major stakes in the firm to take it over. This wasn't your revenge upon me though - you just wanted to show me that you were good enough for me finally. Am I right or am I right?" asked Ishaani as she came to an end of her explanation, slightly breathless. 

Ranveer remained silent for two minutes before giving her an impressed nod.

"You've done your homework well," was all he chose to reply with. But Ishaani didn't stop there.

"You are not too financially able right now to buy me over. I went over a couple of your financial statements for the second quarter. It's still going to take you a couple of years down the line till you get to that point."

"And yet, we're discussing this right now," piped in Ranveer, now looking intrigued. If Miss Parekh chose to let him know about it, there definitely had to be something more than what met his keen eye.

"I've got a small gift for you. Here," she added as she conjured a file out of nowhere, Ranveer looking surprised as he accepted it without any word. It had a legal binding upon it.

"What's this?"

"The official document stating that you lawfully own 51% of the stakes at the Parekh Empire, making you its official owner as well," she replied simply. 

The silence the rent the air was taut was disbelief as Ranveer looked at her with his jaw dropped, his eyes bulging in shock.

"What the-? How'd you-?"

"Not me. Papa. It was in his will that he'd altered just days before you came to Mumbai. He wanted you to take over the Parekh Empire after he retired on his 65th birthday that was in May this year. He believed that you had in you the vision and foresight to take the empire to another level altogether and if anyone was worthy of running the empire after himself, it was you," she explained as Ranveer felt his hand shiver for the first time in his eight years' worth of professional experience. 

It couldn't be. It was too easy.

And yet as he opened the file and let his eyes scan through the documents in question, the words blared out to him with all the technical jargons. It was real. He did own 51% of the stakes at the Parekh Empire, across the diamond company, the construction firm and even the brokerage one as well. It was an unbelievable dream. An unachievable dream. And yet it was here on paper with his mentor's signature impressioned firmly upon the assigned spots in his usual scribble.

"So what about-" began Ranveer absentmindedly as he let his finger trail across his mentor's handwriting in nostalgia, something he was seeing for the first time in eight years. The tears were bound to sting his eyes as RV fell cold and limp, the partial purpose of his existence achieved.

"I have a 49% stake now," replied Ishaani as she eyed him with keen interest, his reaction even more precious than she'd assumed it to be. 

She couldn't help but notice the modesty which his head remained bent with.

"I can't believe this," he said in a hollow whisper at long last, everything that had happened ever since he'd stepped back into Mumbai too much for him to take as he finally felt himself begin to crack under the pressure. 

Ishaani sighed in return, expecting him to say something like this.

"The document is right before your eyes. Get Finch to verify it as well. It's authentic. It's why I've been chasing your company since six months for an appointment. To let you know about this and hand you over what's rightfully yours. Unfortunately, you were too busy being an ass to respond until Finch took the initiative. The consignment just fell into my lap alongside, so it all worked out well."

"Is that why you let me have 50% of the profits for the consignment due to London? Because I was partly the owner of the firm as well?" asked Ranveer in a sharp tone, and Ishaani suddenly took relish in dropping the next revelation as a bomb upon him.

"No, that I let you have because it was my small playback to you. For mixing up your professional and personal strands only once in your entire career. And you saw what that cost you," she added and Ranveer gave her a bewildered look. 

But this time, it wasn't genuine. He knew what she was talking about and his eyes betrayed him away.

"What're you-"

"Your foothold in London. You sacrificed a foothold in London with major stakes just so that the Parekh Empire wouldn't shut down and would get the necessary push to get the ball rolling. I'd banned you from keeping any tabs on me and my personal life. You were smart enough - you kept tabs on the working of the Parekh Empire, even more so once you came to know that I was running it."

Ranveer remained silent for an indefinite amount of time, trying to wage a battle of logic about whether or not to accept his involvement with the Parekh Empire being where it was today just because of one life-changing decision and sacrifice. When his heart showed an evident disinterest, absolutely fed up of getting into any more tussles for the day, his mind took the call in resignation that was evident in his voice as well.

"When did you come to know about it?" 

Ishaani smiled and continued, happy that for once he made it easy for both of them. Maybe he was just tired of all the mystery and suspense. Maybe for once he just wanted everything to be black and white, not the infinite shades of grey that lay in between.

"A couple of days before we signed the deal. Four years ago, the Parekh Empire would have shut down had we not won the consignment contract to London. There was another anonymous company bidding for it from Sydney that was comparatively newer in the markets. Everyone were sure that the anonymous firm would win the contract since they looked so strong. And they almost did too, until that firm withdrew its name at the last minute and I got the contract. Everything's been history since."

"What sealed your theory?" asked Ranveer, intrigued by the extent of her knowledge.

"It was when you said that if we got down to counting whose scales were heavier, I'd have to turn the deal into a 70-30 in your favour. A little bit of digging around gave me my answer," she replied and Ranveer nodded his head, exhausted. 

Now that the cat was out from the bag, he didn't mind going into a little more detail.

"It was Mota Babuji's child, this firm. I couldn't let it go to ashes, not after seeing it at its glory just four years ago. I knew that you'd not accept my help if I offered it to you. But not just that, it'd be a breach of the oath I gave you as well. So I had to do what I thought was right in that moment. I took a backseat. It was always going to be Mota Babuji before myself because he was the one who gave me everything so that I could reach where I have today. It was the least I could do."

"And you never got a foothold in London after that," reasoned Ishaani, giving him a fascinated look. 

She'd still never met anyone like him even till this date who could sacrifice his entire being for the people he loved and would die to prove his loyalty to.

"Until now," corrected Ranveer and Ishaani nodded. "God sees everything, and there's always a right time for everything. Maybe back then was not the right time. Now is," he added and Ishaani gave him a knowing look. 

He retracted his gaze away from her own when he realized that she was understood, afraid that she might have understood a little more than necessary. He did not want to lead her on with wrong signs when it was the opposite that he wanted to clarify.

"It's strange really that being the two huge firms we are, our paths have never crossed all these years," mused Ishaani suddenly, and it was Ranveer's turn to give her a flustered smile this time.

"I made sure that they didn't. Ishaani Parekh, the Queen of Dalal Street I could keep tabs upon for all her professional achievements but her personal life was sadly as existent as RV's. So..." he trailed off as Ishaani understood the rest of the story. 

RV was an active trader in the European and American markets. Ishaani Parekh was a trader primarily in the Asian markets with a reasonable dip in the European ones at times. It all made sense now.

"You're crazy, I swear," she stated at long last with an affirmative nod, as though sealing any kind of argument away by certifying him crazy. 

He was about to retort when she beat him to it, changing the topic entirely.

"I have another surprise for you." 

Ranveer shut his mouth abruptly, suddenly frowning at her in a mixture of curiosity and anxiety. He didn't know whether he was even capable of bearing any more surprises. He'd had enough in five days to last him for several years.

"Seriously, what on Earth are you up to with the surprises?" he asked, but she disregarded his question.

She got up and walked towards where one of the two mysterious packet were kept that had long since caught Ranveer's attention. She pulled out its content - a huge bottle of honey-coloured liquor and brought it back to him, looking like a child who'd just solved a very difficult Math problem.

"This," replied Ishaani as she thrust the bottle in his hand and he looked at it in awe.

"Desi tharra!" he exclaimed not unlike a child in glee as he caressed the bottle, the cheap, country liquor always a welcome surprise to him as he cradled the bottle in his arms. 

Ishaani rolled her eyes at his over-dramatic reaction. The little nuances that they'd once flick away so casually as children were something they now held on to for cherishing an innocence that was as non-existent as the snow in summer.

"Yep, your favourite kind of country liquor," agreed Ishaani as Ranveer opened the bottle and let the liquid flow through his lips, smacking them with appreciation. 

The spirit infused a new rush of adrenaline alongside the one he usually associated with the kick of being at the trading floor back in Sydney. But before he could go back for a second sip, Ishaani snatched the bottle out from his grasp. Ranveer looked confused until he understood what she was going to do.

"Have you even had desi tharra before?" he asked and Ishaani shook her head.

"No, but I've had normal alcohol. How different is it going to be, really?"

"It's thrice as strong as the normal ones," advised Ranveer even though Ishaani disregarded his warning, letting the liquid seep through her lips and down her throat as she felt it burn against her throat strongly.

She had to admit that Ranveer was right - it was the strongest kind of alcohol she'd had till date, in its undiluted form, no less. Both of them took turns in sipping at the country liquor while they stared at the stars in silence, enjoying the beauty as the night sky grew only more beautiful gradually, more stars popping out from the sparkling canvas of the indigo sky.

"It feels so strange, doesn't it? Under the skies and the moon, drinking together?" spoke aloud Ishaani after some time, and Ranveer couldn't help but smile cheekily in spite of himself. 

The liquor seemed to have been working its effect upon them as it took away the edge from their carefully threaded conversations.

"I told you that this day would come," boasted aloud Ranveer just as Ishaani took another swig from the bottle and chuckled rather inappropriately.

"You were bluffing back then."

"I was only just being hopeful," he replied back truthfully, trying to burn the memory of this night into his heart as a talisman against the future. 

It was an extraordinary start to his birthday, he had to admit. And somehow, it was much easier to admit this in a slight more intoxicated stupor than he would have liked to admit it in his complete senses. How could it not be extraordinary, when the moment felt just like his dreams.

Too good to be true?

"Like Sarah... She was hopeful, ever since Ben entered her life," whispered Ishaani as she looked at Ranveer with a newfound interest. 

Ranveer gasped as she dropped yet another bomb upon him, wondering how many more were exactly coming his way tonight.

"When were you planning on telling me about this accomplishment, Mr. Parish?" she asked again as Ranveer looked at her, bamboozled by her array of information. 

And just like that, he realized that the alcohol was beginning to loosen her up as she didn't consciously think of what she was talking anymore. She was reverting back to her original self - spontaneous.

"You- How did you-" stuttered Ranveer, his words getting entangled, but Ishaani didn't wait for him to finish either.

"Figured it out a couple of days ago when I was going through all the novels I had with me. Something just clicked suddenly," she added and she blushed rather mysteriously in Ranveer's opinion. 

Ishaani, on the other hand, had just remembered her dream about kissing Ranveer amidst the essence of the enticing vanilla and roses. She's kissed him twice in three days and it had been - painfully passionate. And yet it had been simply extraordinary, like her mind made sure to add on in its spree of slight intoxication.

Ranveer stole away a quiet glance at her before speaking.

"I was planning on making you the first person to read this when I came back in March that year. I was planning to gift this to you along with the fair copy of the other book while I proposed to you on the terrace before leaving for Surat. I was even planning on taking you along with me to tell Maa and Baba about it if things had worked out well..." he replied, while Ishaani listened on in silence. 

The truth of what he said cut right through the bliss of intoxication for both of them as they got back a little control.

"You're right... This is pretty strong. Sings right through your throat..." observed Ishaani as she twirled the bottle in her hand idly, Ranveer snatching it out from her grip before she could take another sip. 

He knew that it was more than enough for her for tonight.

"Oh, it's the best. Three glasses down and you won't even know what hit you. Unfortunately, I have become resilient to even these to rely much upon them for sleep, but it used to work like a charm once upon a time," he added, slightly resentful.

Ishaani let her head fall back upon the pillow again, feeling tired.

"That was always your only ever vice," she breathed aloud as Ranveer turned towards her and shrugged his shoulder, looking at the bottle with a mixture of affection and fright. 

He always had an over-dependence upon all of his vices.

"It's been a loving companion since more than a decade now. I don't think I'd have even survived half of what I've lived through without this in the first place," he remarked, pointing at the bottle. 

Ishaani suddenly looked pensive.

"That same vice brought your downfall all those years ago because of one accidental slip of tongue," she suddenly added and Ranveer gave her an astonished look. 

She didn't sound so inebriated all of a sudden.

"We were both so f**ked up that night..." he said in self-reproach as he drained the last bits of alcohol from it. He discarding the bottle aside and let his head fall upon the pillow with a thud.

"I see that someone's finally learnt the art of cussing," commented Ishaani out of the blue. 

Ranveer grinned shamelessly.

"Well, when you're a stock broker hollering at the top of your voice to get profit-booking done at the peak hours of the market, language is definitely one of the many things you don't really give two hoots about. And then again, Finch's always been there to expand my vocabulary," he added and both of them laughed openheartedly, feeling the laughter enter their heart for the first time in what felt like eons.

"He's a nice fellow, that friend of yours. You were right about him, after all," admitted Ishaani once they sobered down, her throat beginning to itch with all the laughing as it left her slightly breathless.

"He's the best. Thank you for tonight," added Ranveer further as he turned to his side, never letting his eyes waver upon from Ishaani as the laughter between them now faded away completely, leaving in its wake the reality of their situation dawning upon them once again.

"You're always welcome," she replied in the same breathless voice that allured him more. 

She turned to her side as well so that they were now face to face once again.

"And you've got to stop catching me off-guard like that," added Ranveer as an afterthought that left Ishaani pondering for a minute before she realized what he was referring to. 

Their kisses. Say whatever they might, there was something about the way their lips connected that felt... homely. And there was a warmth in spite of the coldness that led them into a fairy tale where were was only sunshine and happiness in the embrace of the other while they shared each other's emotions, just like old times. 

Until they parted, and they were back to square one.

"You're a really good kisser, though, I must admit," she added suddenly as she bit her lip, wondering why she was even telling him something as stupid as this. 

She couldn't help but feel like a silly teenager high on hormones, the same kind that she'd once scorn when she was of that age. Somehow, it didn't feel so silly anymore though. Nothing did, when it came to Ranveer. But contrary to her worry, Ranveer only seemed to look extremely flattered and amused by her statement as he furiously blushed for a few minutes.

"You're a box of magic yourself," he replied in a throaty whisper that made goosebumps erupt upon her skin. Both of them looked at each with a blazing look in their eyes before Ranveer snapped out of it first, suddenly feeling guilty. 

He was egging her on to a false hope again.

"But don't think this changes anything, Ishaani. It doesn't," he exclaimed suddenly, knowing that he had to clarify everything and keep it out in the open for her to know. 

Ishaani gave him a rueful smile as the mischief of the moment displaced, the night still far away from drawing into the early morning.

"So you won't even try, then?" she asked, the smile still upon her face. She wasn't surprised because she knew him well enough to know that he wasn't going to give in so easily.

She knew him too well.

"I'm too afraid to try. The last time my heart broke, I barely survived. I won't be able to pull through it a second time if anything goes wrong again," he confided and Ishaani nodded her head, feeling the same fear bubble in her heart that she could hear in his voice.

"You still don't believe in second chances, then? But you gave Sarah one..." insisted Ishaani even though she somehow understood why Ranveer was so unwilling to give her a second chance in the first place.

He'd never given anyone a second chance before, and yet she could see how he ached to give her one, to give them one. But it was the fear of facing the same pain again that held him behind. A love like his always had to meet this fate, she knew, for a love like his had to be accompanied by the sick, twisted, wallowing pain of heartbreak.

"That was not a second chance, that was an open ending for the readers to interpret it the way they wanted to," argued Ranveer as he felt his eyes droop, the night finally caressing the gentle hand of sleep upon him, yearning to escape into the oblivious darkness once again. 

The light was beginning to blind him after all those years of solitude.

"It was hope, Ranveer. The same hope that's kept you alive for all these years. The same hope that's kept me alive all these years. The hope that you still have a heart enough to love me, if not forgive," she confessed quietly as her fingers trailed across his cheek, rubbing soft circles upon his skin. 

Ranveer caught her wrists gently as he pulled her closer, letting her head lie upon his chest. It didn't make any of it easier, but the weight of her head numbed away the pain.

"I cannot love you like the way I used to, Ishaani. I simply can't. But I cannot hate you either, no matter how hard I try..." he whispered slowly as Ishaani felt his tears fall upon the crown of her head. 

She looked up at him and saw his lips quiver as he shut his eyes in woe.

"Oh, I've tried so hard... so hard to hate you. But it's only made it harder for me to live day after day. And I hate you for it..." he whispered to himself, the pain choking away half of his words. 

And yet Ishaani didn't need to know what was choking him for she could see it in his eyes. She could feel it writhe in her soul when she delved into the depths of his eyes and tried to rescue his soul. And it certainly wasn't hate.

"You don't hate me, Ranveer. You hate yourself for your inability to hate me in spite of whatever happened," she corrected, feeling Ranveer's breath hitch in his chest as his eyes snapped open. 

He stared at her, suddenly feeling vulnerable as Ishaani smiled at him bitterly, wondering why it was that he even loved her so much after all these years, or rather, how.

"I'm too lifeless to love you anymore, Ishaani. I may not hate you, but I don't think I can love you the same way either. And I'm sorry," he whispered suddenly as Ishaani let her thumb linger upon his lips, yearning to bridge the gap and take away all of his pain. 

He pulled her hand away from upon his face slowly, his face now becoming a blank slate. The inebriation had lifted from upon both of them.

"So you're telling me that there's no hope?" said Ishaani in a small voice as she separated herself away from him, even though their eyes remained glued upon each other. 

It only seemed harder and harder for both of them to not drown into the endless depths of the other's gaze in the search of love and life.

"No, I'm telling you that no matter how much we try, it's never going to be the same ever again. Because neither of us can let go and it's eventually going to kill one of us if we try to heal the other. There's no way we walk out of this unscathed," he added.

 Ishaani nodded her head, knowing what he said was true. 

And even as she let her head drag upon her pillow, she felt his words knock the breath out of her lungs. Literally. Ishaani waited for a few minutes before she finally spoke again, capturing Ranveer's attention once again.

"Is there any reason for me to remain alive then, today? These five years, I survived in the hope that somewhere in some part of the world, you perhaps still loved me a little even though I knew that it was folly to think so because I didn't deserve it. But I knew that when I'd made day and night to finally become your equal, it was time to meet you again after and try to make amends. Not only because I wanted to prove something but because I wanted to be able to meet eyes with you when we met again. And somewhere down the line, I'd given birth to a hope in my heart that maybe... just maybe things would get sorted between us. Fantasy brewed even stronger when I came to know about your wife's demise and that dedication in Caffeinated Love. But you're right. It was too good to be true. It was only ever a fairy tale. And not all fairy tales have a happy ending."

Ranveer stared at her in silence as he saw the same flame consume her eyes, leaving behind a look that he did not like at all.

"Ishaani, promise me that you'll never touch the scalpel again," he whispered fearfully as his eyes bore into her own, his voice shaking as he felt the powerful waves of her complex emotions hit his soul with a sudden anxiety he couldn't place.

"I won't need to, really. Not after what you told me," was all she said as she entwined their fingers and pulled them upon her stomach once again, never once letting her eyes waver from upon his face. 

They chose to embrace the quiet of the wee hours of the morning at long last, their minds reliving their entire conversation from the night as their eyes shut finally, drifting into a world of peaceful darkness. But only the stars of the Universe could summarize their conversation in a single sentence.

That which is never felt but said; that which is never said but only felt. Both of which can destroy.

-x-

Swimming through the bouts of troubled sleep, Ranveer felt something squirm in his dreams, moaning in restlessness and coughing occasionally, leaving him ill at ease. And suddenly he felt something twist his fingers violently as his eyes snapped open, looking around the place in panic. His head shot up from his pillow, falling back almost immediately when stars began to pop in his vision. It was still dark as the night sky remained the way it was - undiluted and inky. Ranveer heaved in a few breaths deeply as he tried to keep the dizziness at bay, wondering what it was that had broken his already fitful sleep.

Another violent twist of his fingers forced his eyes open again as he turned around to look beside him, wondering what kept hurting his fingers like that until his eyes fell upon Ishaani. At a first glance, she appeared asleep, until his illusion shattered as he paid closer attention to her. He noticed that she was heaving for breath as though her lungs couldn't draw in enough, her eyes suddenly opening a little as her other hand blindly tried to catch hold of something.

Her hand found the collar of his shirt that she tugged at, pulling him closer. Ranveer felt his breath cease when he noticed her eyes had rolling back into her head, her breathing only getting more and more shallow while her skin burned against his own. He noticed that her hands and face had begun to sport light rashes upon them that he was certain didn't exist until a couple of hours ago.

"Ishaani? What's happening to you?" he asked worriedly as he begun tapping her face. Ishaani continued to try drawing in air that now came in sharp rasps, her eyes now meeting his own faintly.

"I... can't... bre- breathe..." was all she managed to gasp as her hands fell weakly to her side. 

Ranveer felt the panic rise in his chest as she tried to raise her head, but it fell back upon the pillow crudely, her ice-cold palms now trying to catch hold of his face.

"No... No..." whispered Ranveer, aghast at what was happening as she began tossing her head around, unable to focus any longer as she couldn't draw in sufficient air. 

Ranveer patted her cheeks harder as he tried to rack his brains behind what could be the cause of her sudden ailment while rubbed her palms furiously, trying to bring some warmth to them.

"Ra- Ranveer... I can't-" cried Ishaani hoarsely as she struggled to breathe, her sharp intakes of breath only sending Ranveer's mind into a new level of panic as he continued to rap her cheeks, trying everything to keep her awake.

"Take deep breaths, Ishaani! Look- look at me! I need you to stay awake, alright? Look at me!" he yelled but Ishaani hardly seemed to be listening. 

Ranveer felt his heart go cold as the intensity of her rasps lessened, her chest heaving in small breaths after longer and longer gaps while her eyes began to droop in earnest.

"But I..." began Ishaani, feeling her will to speak crash as she felt herself suffocating in all earnest, unable to draw in any kind of air through her nose or mouth.

She didn't know what kind of suffering this was, but the inching darkness only seemed to tempt her more, pulling her closer and closer as she found herself willingly aching to succumb to it rather than struggle for a breath she knew she'd be sapped of very soon. The only thing that kept tethering her to open her eyes grudgingly was Ranveer's voice that echoed in her ears in disconnected phrases.

"No, no, no! Look at me, damn it! Take deep breaths, Ishaani! Deep breaths! You need to stay awake! Don't fall asleep, please! NO! Ishaani!" he yelled as he shook her head, his paranoia crossing bay as he begged and begged of her to remain awake. 

His emotions spiralled out of hand as he felt a despair crack into his heart like a whip that only seemed to send him into a new world of torment.

"Let me go... Please..." she begged of him in barely an audible whisper as she shut her eyes, letting few droplets of pain cascade down the side of her face while her other hand fell out from his grasp as well.

"NO! You've got to stay awake! You have to! For me! Looknat me! I'm your Ranveer! Your best friend! Your only friend! I'll never leave you ever again, Ishaani! I promise! I'm with you to the end of the line! Please, don't do this to me! No, wake up! NO! ISHAANI!" he yelled futilely as Ishaani shut her eyes, no longer responding to anything he said.

Ranveer felt his heart nearly cease to beat in trepidation as he noticed that as her chest barely rose anymore, not even a slight twitch upon her now still features. Ranveer felt his mind fly into another blurry realm of panic as he looked around the place, wondering how he was to keep her breathing until his eyes fell upon his blazer that lay abandoned. He wasn't entirely sure whether what he suspected was correct but the symptoms were all there.

Quickly extracting the epi-pen out from the inner lining of his coat pocket (something he'd made a habit of carrying upon him after his incident all those years ago), he pulled out the cap of the injector and plunged it headfirst into her thigh just as she let out a semi-conscious moan of pain. Her head fell towards her side as her eyes opened just for a minute, meeting Ranveer's. 

He felt his heart thump through his ears in fear.

"Shh, it's alright, okay? Keep taking deep breaths... I'm getting you to a hospital right now," urged Ranveer as he rubbed her palms and cupped her face simultaneously. 

But all she managed to do was stare at him, letting her eyes speak what she clearly couldn't. Ranveer saw Ishaani's lips part, as though trying to let words spill out even though she neither had the energy to string alphabets into words nor could she find her voice as her world began to darken once again.

Seeing no other alternative as the epi-pen seemed to hardly be doing her any good, Ranveer quickly pulled her jaw down and pinched her nose as he blew into her mouth, hoping that it would somehow resuscitate her and keep her breathing till they reached the hospital. Ranveer felt her body heave ever so slightly against his own before it fell still, consciously aware about what had just happened.

But he couldn't think about it. He had to make her breathe again anyhow! Ranveer repeated the same procedure twice more but in vain before he pulled himself away from her. Tears now burned in his eyes and fell cold upon his cheeks simultaneously as he stared at her now-pale face, aghast.

Her lips still remained parted, albeit this time with no breath

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Constructive criticism will be more than welcome and sorry for any typos. :D :D

LadyMeringue2016-12-12 08:35:25