Chapter 14

[NOCOPY] 

*TRIGGER WARNING: Mature content, violence, mentions of physical abuse 

I would categorise the mature content as 16+, but still putting the tag. 

If any of these trigger you, let me know and I'd be happy to summarise it for you, excluding the triggering parts. 

Part 1 is Mature, Part 2 has violence. Both separated by '.....' 

Also, I'm in the process of visa applications and finals, along with new term and subjects, so please don't mind the delayed chapters! 

.... 

Chapter 14

Raavi threw away her books in a fit of anger, wondering who on earth invented this wretched subject and why she ever chose it. She stared at her Math textbook, with the intention of setting it on fire, but remembered that she still had to score a 90 for her scholarship to be valid.

"I. HATE. THIS." She pushed all the books around her aside, and grumbled something underneath her breath. Until she realised she lived with 3 engineering students.

She picked up all her books in a stack, and held all of them, nudging open Shiva's door with her feet.

"Shiva?" She peeked inside, to see him studying with his own textbooks, scribbling something into a notebook.

"Bol." He said, without looking up.

"Mujhe maths sikha de, please. Nahi samajh aa raha kuch bhi." She whined, and Shiva looked up to see her carrying a stack of books as tall as her upper body.

"Leke aa kitaab." Shiva said, and she walked in with her stack of books, "Sirf textbook aur notebook chipkali, sab nahi."

Raavi tossed her remaining books onto her mattress, and sat down next to Shiva, opening the chapters she couldn't understand for the life of her.

"Ek ye compound interest, probability, aur trigonometry." She said, flipping through her textbook.

"Okay. Easy peasy. We'll start with compound interest, theek hai?" He took her textbook, and she scooted closer to him on the bed.

Raavi looked at what he explained, very patiently, but it was hard. She wasn't able to understand the topic, he was explaining it very well, but she still didn't get it. She was trying very hard to understand it in the first go because she didn't want him to think she was dumb, but math wasn't her cup of tea.

"Toh ye step ke baad, which formula will you apply?" Shiva asked her, pointing at the sum in front of her. "Kaunsa formula lagega, Raavi?"

Raavi stared from the book, to Shiva and back at the book. "I don't know."

"Arre!" Shiva exclaimed exasperatedly, "Abhi toh bataya tujhe 2 minute pehle. Ye basic 8th standard maths hai, chipkali. Use your brains, na!"

"Dekh, tujhe nahi explain karna hai toh mat kar." Raavi closed her books, clearly very upset. "Taane mat maar mujhe jab mujhe already samajh nahi aata. Nahi hu mai dumb. Tu rehne de. Mai akele hi padh lungi."

Saying so, she grabbed her books with the intention of leaving, but Shiva tugged her hand back, making her sit down next to him again.

"Accha, I'm sorry." He rubbed her back to calm her down. "Tu upset mat ho. Mai 10 baar, 20 baar explain karunga, lekin muh kholke puch toh sahi mujhe, warna mujhe kaise pata chalega if you've understood or not. I thought tujhe samajh aa raha tha. Tu bindaas tok mujhe, okay?"

Raavi nodded, and sat back down to learn three chapters overnight, and when she started asking questions, he explained it to her by different methods accordingly, and the light bulb in her head went off as she finally understood the chapters her professors didn't bother explaining properly.

They sat down solving their own homework, Raavi occasionally asking doubts while Shiva completed his project beside her, like a study session. It was fun, and very very helpful.

"Okay then," Shiva closed his books and stacked it on his desk, sitting at the edge of his bed, legs over the edge and on the floor "Mera toh ho gaya padhke, you're welcome to stay here until you're done."

"Mera bhi ho gaya," Raavi sighed, cracking her knuckles, "but tu mujhe bhaga raha hai?"

"Nahi, I didn't mean it like that- oof" Shiva was tackled and taken by surprise when Raavi crawled across and settled herself in his lap, legs wrapped around his torso.

"That's not a nice thing to do. Apni girlfriend ko koi aise bhagata hai. Chee. Very bad, Shiva Pandya." She said, trailing her finger down his nose and lips.

"What are you going to do about it?" Shiva asked huskily, his arms encircling her waist.

"What I'm going to do, is first lock the damn door and then show you what happens when you piss your girlfriend off."

Raavi slid off him, and locked the door, and Shiva swore nothing looked better than her just swaying her way towards him from that doorstep.

"Now," Raavi placed herself back in his lap, her hands around his neck, "Kaha the hum?"

"Tu mujhe-"

He never finished his statement, feelings her lips on his, as he ran his fingers through her hair, opening the braid it was tucked into.

Raavi tugged on the curls at the base of his neck, deepening the kiss, chasing their pleasures.

Gently tugging on her hair, he peppered kisses along her throat, and was very pleased to hear her bite back a moan.

"Cheater." Raavi whispered pulling his head back up and kissing him again, trailing kisses along his jaw to the spot below his ear.

She let her hands trail down his front, feeling his body hidden by this god forbidden vest. Raavi let her hands travel to the rim, sneaking her hands under his vest and up his back, feeling the skin and ridges of his muscles, her fingertips feeling the curves of his body as the vest rose above, following her wrists.

"Is this okay, Shiva?" She raised her head to look at him, and when he nodded, she raised the vest up and over his head, tossing it to the farthest corner of the room.

Raavi looked at his bare front, staring at his form with wide eyes, and Shiva smirked.

"Aise kar rahi hai jaise mujhe kabhi dekha hi nahi hai." His voice dropped a few octaves, eyeing her lips.

"Itne paas se, aise toh nahi dekha na kabhi." Raavi smirked back, leaning in to kiss him, her palms looped under his shoulders, resting on his back.

Immediately, Shiva flipped them over so that she was lying under him on the bed, kissing her under her ear and ghosting his lips over the skin of her collarbone. Shifting the sleeve of her t-shirt slightly, he tugged the skin under it with his teeth, making her moan harder.

His hands gripped her waist, sliding under her t-shirt, and the touch of him on her sent jolts of current down her body.

He traced his hands up her body, the t-shirt following suit, placing soft yet firm kisses across her collarbone, and Raavi went stiff.

She shut her eyes tight, her hands on his shoulders gripping him harder, her stomach doing weird, nervous flips, heart beating erratically, as flashes of previous events appeared in front of her eyes.

Shiva felt her go rigid, and looked up to find her eyes squeezed shut, her hands pinching the skin on his shoulders now.

"Raavi?" Shiva raised his hand to pat her cheeks, and Raavi opened her eyes when he called her the second time. 

"Kya hua?" He asked, voice laced with concern, his hand resting on her cheek.

"Nothing." Raavi shook her head and gave him a small smile. "Kuch nahi." She kissed his nose. "Kuch bhi toh nahi."

Shiva got off of her, and pulled her up gently, onto his side, his arm around her shoulder. "Bol mujhe. You didn't like it, what I was doing?"

"No. I mean, I want you to. Par mai nervous ho gayi. I just needed a breather. Aur phir mai darr gayi, par then aisa nahi tha ki I didn't want you to-" Raavi rambled on and on, and Shiva didn't understand a word of what she said.

"Tu badbada rahi hai." He rubbed his hand up and down her arm, hoping she'd calm down.

Raavi held her face in her hands, covering her eyes as she spoke, "It's just.... The last time I said 'no' it didn't.... I didn't... Maine kuch nahi kiya tha phir bhi..."

"Hey, hey." Shiva said softly, pulling her closer to him and kissing her head. "Mai tujhe kabhi chot nahi pohochaunga, Raavi. Have I ever made you feel like that?"

"No, nahi. Tu bura nahi hai, maine kabhi aisa nahi socha, kabhi nahi. Mujhe aise nahi feel kabhi nahi karaya tune. I just....I didn't want you to feel like....ki maine ek step liya aur tujhe nahi karne-"

"Aye akal ki dushman," He placed his finger under her chin and tilted it upwards to face him. "Tu agar kuch nahi chahti, then just say no. N-O, no. Mai ruk jaaunga, gadhedi. Tu sachmein pagal hai, hazaar cheezein sochti hai. Just say no, okay?"

"Okay. I lo-." Raavi bit her lip, catching herself before she said too much. "Okay." She placed a soft kiss on his lips, pulling him into a hug, which he gladly accepted.

Shiva broke the hug and smiled at her, getting up to find his vest, when she pushed him back down, and straddled him again.

"Kya kar rahi hai? Dekh, maine abhi tujhe bola-"

"Aur maine bola tha ki mujhe breather chahiye tha. Breather over." Her fingertips grazed his stubble, "But you're not allowed to laugh, okay?"

Shiva chuckled, as she grabbed the ends of her t-shirt and raised her arms over her head, peeling the shirt off and tossing it to the ground.

Shiva stared at her, mesmerized, unable to stop the words that flowed out of his mouth, "You're so beautiful." He blurted out, causing Raavi to smirk.

"Kyu, pehle kabhi nahi dekha hai mujhe?"

"Iss sawaal ka jawaab 100% no hai." Shiva shook his head and kissed her, causing her to chuckle.

His arms tightened around her waist, as she grinded slightly over him, causing him to groan at the contact.

She kissed him down his neck, biting the skin over his shoulder slightly. 

"Touch me."

He slid his hands from her waist to her back, resting it there, fiddling with the straps of her bra.

"Properly, Shiva. Touch me properly."

Raavi reached for his hands around her waist, and placed it on her currently covered breast, and in pure instinct, he gave it a light squeeze, causing her to moan.

"We have to stop." Shiva caressed her neck with one hand, the other focusing on pleasuring her. "Warna saare bases aaj hi cover ho jaayenge."

"Laat khaayega if you stop."

Shiva looked up at her and burst out laughing, which in turn made her laugh, as she got off of him to sit next to him, grabbing her shirt and tossing his vest to him.

Two seconds, exactly two seconds ago they were hot and bothered, and now they were laughing like a bunch of 15 year olds.

"Mood ka 1 2 4 karna koi tujhse seekhe chipkali." Shiva said, still chuckling as he fixed his hair. 

"Chal. Abhi 10 minute pehle mere saath hi mood ban raha tha. Zyaada mat udd, okay? Mere sapne dekhna." Raavi patted his cheek and winked, grabbing her books and closing the door behind her, not before throwing him a flying kiss.

Well, he was going to get dreams, alright. Dreams where he had to help himself with the deed.

.......

"You know, maine ye dress aaj pehli baar pehni hai." Raavi twirled around in her floor length, peachy floral summer dress, which had a single side slit from thigh to floor. 

"Kyu, aaj kuch khaas hai kya?" Shiva pressed the buttons on the lift to close the door, adjusting his emerald green shirt.

"I mean, ho bhi sakta hai. Tune mera dimaag padhne ka theka laga rakha hai kya?" She huffed, her hand subconsciously going to her bag.

The lift doors opened with a 'ting' and as soon as they stepped out to walk towards his bike, Shiva stopped in his tracks. 

"Oh shit. Bike ki chaabi bhul gaya." He slapped his forehead and Raavi shook her head.

"Jaa leke aa. I'll wait here." She said, turning her back to the entrance and watching Shiva take the stairs back up. 

No less that 3 minutes later, her phone rang, and Shiva's panicked voice came from behind the phone.

"Raavi, bike ki chaabi nahi hai idhar."

"What do you mean, nahi hai? Dekh na theek se!"

"Arre key stand mein nahi hai, mai humesha yahi rakhta hu!"

"Kya married couple waali harkatein kara raha hai, Shiva. Apne bag mein check kar, ya phir kitchen mein dekh. Ya phir TV table ke drawer mein rakha hoga tune...."

"Okay bye."

"And lock the door properly, Shashank aur Gaurav dono nahi hai ghar pe."

"Haa theek hai bye."

Raavi disconnected the call and put it in her bag, turning to walk outside, when she bumped into someone.

"Oh I'm so sorr-" She began, but her voice got stuck in her throat, as she registered who was standing before her.

Arjun.

The wind was knocked out of her, as she looked into a pair of eyes she hadn't seen in many months. And here he was, standing in bone and flesh before her, with an expression that meant business.

"Oh, darling. Tumhe kitna dhundha maine." He said, his finger curling her loose strands of hair.

"Don't touch me!" Raavi slapped his arm away, and was immediately backed into the wall behind her, his hands tightly holding her wrists above her head, his face within centimetres of hers.

"That is EXACTLY why we are here." Arjun snarled, and she turned her face away, trying to wriggle her hands out of his hold. "Tum jaanti ho mai yaha kyu aaya hu. Take it back."

Raavi looked him the eye, her blood boiling to the point he'd regret it, and stamped his feet hard, with the heels she was wearing as he shrieked in pain.

"NO!" She yelled, and pushed him out of the way to reach for her bag that had fallen down, hoping Shiva would pick up her call, but she felt her hand being yanked back and twisted in place.

Arjun twisted her arm to her back, as she faced him, and twisted her arm tighter, as she struggled in his hold.

"I said..." He grabbed her hair and yanked her head back forcefully, "TAKE IT BACK!"

Raavi shrieked in pain, as she attempted to wiggle, kick or slap him enough to stun him and run away, but it was futile, as he held both her arms in one of his, his other yanking at her hair.

"Chodo mujhe, chodo!" She cried in pain, hoping someone would hear her, struggling to make him let go, "LEAVE ME! You're getting what you deserve, you ass, MUJHE CHODO!"

"Listen to me," Arjun's voice dropped to a low whisper, and she whimpered as he let her go slightly, "Take it back, and I'll let you go."

"I said NO!" Raavi spat, gritting her teeth, when suddenly she was pushed to the ground by a strong force.

"AYYYY!" He yelled, grabbing Arjun by the collar, "HOW DARE YOU?!" Raavi almost cried in relief.

Shiva.

"Teri ITNI himmat," Shiva shoved him back hard, "ki tune Raavi ko haath lagaya," he shoved him again, "usse chot pohochayi," he pushed him back, "uske saath zabardasti ki. ITNI HIMMAT!?" Shiva roared, grabbing Arjun's collar.

"No means no, Arjun. Padha likha gawar hai tu! Isse pehle ki mai tujhe koot du, dafa ho." Shiva spat, snapping his fingers.

All of a sudden, Shiva's ears rang, putting him in a daze, his cheeks felt like holes were poked in it, as he registered what had happened.

Arjun landed a punch on his face, and had grabbed him by the collar instead. "Ye mere, aur Raavi ke beech ki baat hai. TU dafa ho!"

Shiva shoved him back into the wall, his eyes red with anger, hands itching enough to strangle the wretched manin front of him, blood pounding into his head.

"Uss din tune mere haath se maar nahi khaaya, kyunki Raavi ne mujhe roka tha. Aaj nahi bachega."

Shiva landed a hard, square punch on Arjun's jaw, causing him to stagger and lose his balance, as Shiva punched him again, this time hearing a crack and shriek of pain.

Arjun backed him into the wall, raising his fist and punching him thrice in the gut, and Shiva doubled over in pain, falling to the ground as Arjun punched him in the face again, the third time getting stopped by Shiva's hand holding his fist.

"Jitna dard tune meri Raavi ko diya hai, usse kahi zyaada dard ab tujhe hoga."

Shiva raised his feet and kicked him, tossing him to the ground, punching him hard enough to break Arjun's nose, blood oozing out from his nostrils. He grabbed Arjun by the collar and landed hard punched across his face and jaw, getting off him and pulling him up, before tossing him to the ground again. 

Neither were relenting, as they threw punches and kicks, injuring each other to the point bruises and blood were involved.

The sight was a nightmare, as Raavi tried to get them to stop, fear gripping her heart at the violent fight in the lobby, but she was just pushed to the ground from the force of the fight.

She tossed her heels away and ran to get someone, her bag lost somewhere unimportant. Raavi found the building watchman, and explained the situation asking for his phone, nearly in tears as she dialed a number for help.

Finally, a few minutes later, she heard the sirens and a group of police officers walked up to her and she ran to the lobby, where Shiva was heavily bruised, but Arjun looked worse.

2 policemen reached out to grab Arjun and restrain him, while Raavi put Shiva's arm around her neck, helping him stand up as he leaned on her for support.

"Patil, isko bhi leke chal police station. Aur Gauri madam, aap inko leke aaiye, statement likhwana hai." The police pointed towards Raavi, and she stepped in front of Shiva.

"Nahi. Aap isko nahi le jaa sakte. Isne kuch nahi kiya." Raavi pleaded and the police stood their ground.

"Madam, aapke kehne se kya hoga. Inquiry ke baad pata lagega na." The officer, who Raavi assumed was Patil, stated.

"Mai keh rahi hu na isne kuch nahi kiya. Woh mujhe ched raha tha," Raavi pointed at Arjun, who was arguing with the two officers, "aur ye toh meri help kar raha tha. Shiva ne kuch nahi kiya."

"Toh aap isse jaanti hai?"

"Obviously jaanti hu, boyfriend hai mera. Aap important baat pe focus kijiye na." Raavi glanced at Arjun, worried he'd say something completely absurd and put Shiva in jail. She couldn't let that happen.

A crowd had gathered seeing the police enter the building, all whispering and wondering what had happened for them to come here.

The watchman whose phone Raavi had used, came in right after, "Nahi, sahab. Ye inhone kuch nahi kiya. Ye toh kisi pe bhi haath nahi uthaate. Inhone maara hai, toh iss ladke ne hi kuch kiya hoga, ye yaha nahi rehta." The watchman pointed at Shiva and then at Arjun.

An old lady from the neighbouring building walked up to the police, and backed up the watchman's statement, saying he'd always been a helping chap and would never be the kind to engage in physical fights.

The police took their statements and asked for the cctv footage of the lobby, cuffed Arjun and whisked him away, while Raavi placed her palm on Shiva's cheek, as he had his arm around her in support.

"Are you okay?" Raavi whispered, as the watchman handed her bag to her. "Ghar chalo."

Raavi helped him back home, her tears barely in check as she seated him down on the chair and grabbed the first aid kit.

"Utaar shirt." She furiously wiped at her tears, unbuttoning his shirt and gently removing it, her palm raising to stop the sobs that were escaping her lips, as she saw his bruises turn greenish-blue by the time they came home.

"Raavi, mujhe nahi karani first aid." Shiva roughly said, pushing her hand away as she dabbed some antiseptic on a cotton and held his closed fist in her hand.

"Mutthi khol."

"I don't need first aid, Raavi."

"Mutthi khol!" Raavi cried, wiping the blood off his open wounds of his raw knuckles, wiping her tears at the same time.

"MUJHE NAHI KARANI FIRST AID. EK BAAR MEIN SAMAJH NAHI AATA TUJHE?" Shiva yelled, and Raavi tossed the swab of cotton at his face.

"Bhaad mein jaa, Shiva!" She sobbed, and walked into his room, slamming the door shut behind her.

Shiva sighed, clenching and unclenching his fists to relieve himself of the pain, taking a new swab and cleaning his wounds, and immediately, he wished he hadn't yelled at her, because her hands were definitely more delicate than whatever torture he was inflicting upon himself.

He wrapped the bandage around his knuckles, throwing it away when it didn't stay properly, and sighed. When he had finally found the bike keys lying in the kitchen, exactly as Raavi had said, he thought today would be a great day. He just got those vibes, from how cheery his chipkali had been all week.

But that waste of space ruined everything. How dare he even touch Raavi when he was around, inflicting pain upon her was a whole different topic. He didn't care what happened next, but that jerk deserved every bit of broken bones, bleeding wounds and swollen bruises he got today and Shiva had no regrets hitting him.

But Raavi, she was upset. And he didn't like seeing her upset. So he got up and knocked the door, clicking the door open to see her lying down on her side, sniffling.

The moment she saw him, she turned her back towards him, facing the other side trying to ignore him and her cries.

Shiva walked to the other side and sat down beside her, his back resting on the bedpost behind his head, when she twisted her body again, and he sighed.

"Chipkali, sunn na." He called out softly, and she sniffled in response, ignoring him.

Thoda drama karna padega.

"Dekh na, chipkali, bohot dard ho raha hai mujhe. Please dawai laga de-"

Raavi got up and settled herself on top of him, throwing her arms around him and resting her head on his chest.

"I'm sorry." Raavi sobbed, as Shiva rubbed her back to calm her down, "I'm so sorry, ye sab meri wajah se hua hai. Mujhe maaf karde. I'm sorry."

"Shhhh. Kya bol rahi hai? Teri galti nahi hai isme. Chup ho jaa." He murmured in her ears, and she just cried harder.

"This is all my fault, tujhe itni chot lagi, itna dard hua, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Shiva." Raavi cried, and Shiva ran his fingers of his non-injured hand through her hair.

"Teri koi galti nahi hai." Shiva declared, his fingers gently massaging her scalp. "Usne chot pohochayi tujhe?"

Raavi whimpered when Shiva ran his fingers through her hair, gently applying pressure on her scalp as she relaxed in his arms.

"Shiva, bohot lagi hai na tujhe?" Raavi raised her head up and cupped his face, gently caressing the bruises on his cheek, making him hiss. "Sab meri wajah se."

"Ek baar bola toh samajh nahi aata kya chipkali? It's not your fault." Shiva clicked his tongue, and she nodded her head, looking down.

"No. It is. He came for me. Arjun came for me. Because...." She whispered, and Shiva tilted her head upwards.

"I filed a case against him."

Shiva looked at Raavi, whose hands were tightened around his neck, and placed his hands on her waist, prodding her to say more.

"Kuch aur bhi kiya usne?" Shiva asked her, and she bit her lip.

"Mai jab bhaag ke aayi, yaha," Raavi gulped nervously, her voice dropping, barely there. "that wasn't the first time he...."

Shiva's hands on her waist loosened, as he processed what she just told him. Arjun did this before? He hurt her?

Shiva had so many questions, but put a pause on them to let her speak. She needed to vent it out somewhere.

"Pehle everything was okay, but then har choti baat mein haath pakadna, baal pakadna, he used to hold my arm so hard, bruises aa jate the." Raavi wiped her tears, her hands going to rub her own arms subconsciously, Shiva's hands reaching up to rub her arms too.

"Uspe chillati thi, sorry bolta tha and then 2 weeks later same thing again. It was frustrating, aur mai bohot darne lagi. So when it happened the first time, I started clicking pictures of every bruise. Aur uss din jab.... I came here and didn't leave the house for 4 days, thinking what to do. Uss din se leke ab tak, maine woh har cheez ko to get him punished. Bas, uske farmhouse ka cctv footage nahi mil raha."

"Pata nahi why I didn't leave the first time-" Raavi broke into sobs and Shiva hugged her gently, her palms covering her face as she fell across his shoulder while all Shiva wanted was to take away her pain.

"Shhh. Point is tu waha se aa gayi. Bas. But court case? Tune mami ko bataya? How are you paying for the lawyer, sweetheart? Aur cctv?" Shiva asked back to back, tucking her hair behind her ears.

"I have a bank account my parents left for me. I legally have lone access to it." Raavi rubbed her swollen eyes, "I paid the lawyer using that. Maasi ko mat batana about the case. Cctv footage toh, uss idiot ke baap ko uspe bharosa nahi hai, rooms ke andar bhi cctv camera hai. I'm just waiting on those, before I file the case. Pata nahi usse kisne bataya..."

Shiva chuckled slightly at her language, she definitely was something. She was just.....something.

"Lawyer aunty ne kaha it's a single hearing case if I can get that cctv and witnesses. Upar se aaj ke lobby ka cctv footage will add to it. Cctv toh mai kaise bhi attain kar lungi, par witness...." Raavi looked up at him, with hopes clouding her eyes.

"Tum teeno mere laute hopes ho. Can I list you as the primary witness, Shiva?" She whispered, and he leaned forward to kiss her cheek.

"Ye bhi koi puchne ki baat hai. Of course, chipkali. Of course, we'd do that. Tujhe puchne ki zaroorat nahi hai." Shiva caressed her cheek with his thumb. "Par mami ko batana zaroori hai."

"No."

"Okay. Then, show me?" Shiva asked, and Raavi knew what he was asking for.

She reached over for her phone, and opened the secret folder of pictures handing the phone to Shiva, looking away.

With every swipe, the anger that had happened to cease within Shiva, rose again, with an intensity he didn't know he possessed. It did something to him, to know she had to go through that with that  monster.

"Usse zara aur maarke aata hu, uss kamine ki toh-" Shiva mumbled, trying to get off but Raavi placed her hands on his shoulders.

"SHIVA!" She panicked, and he settled back down. "Iss liye. Iss liye I wasn't telling you. Agar mai tujhe batati, toh aaj Arjun ki jagah, tu uske farmhouse pe gaya hota usse maarne aur TU JAIL MEIN HOTA!"

Raavi stifled a sob with the back of her hand, and Shiva's heart broke for her. Her tears never sat well with him, he hated to see her in pain. "Tu agar jail jaata toh mai Dhara Di, Gaumbi, Suman Kaki se kya kehti? Tujhe jail se chudwane ke liye paise kaha se laati? Maasi se puchti paise ke liye, toh kya bolti?!"

"Shiva," Raavi cried, resting her forehead on his, "dekh, mai tujhse bohot pyaar karti hu, tujhe jail jaate hue nahi dekh sakti. Nahi dekh paungi. Please, ye maar pitai mat kar waapas. Please."

Shiva closed his eyes, the moment being theirs, only theirs. Until a single word registered, ringing in his ears.

Pyaar.

He opened his eyes and looked at Raavi, who sighed in content, the anguish inside her reduced to a mere sizzle, and knew he hadn't heard that wrong.

"Phir se bol?"

"Ye maar pitaai chod de, Shiva. Mai-"

"Usse pehle kya bola?" Shiva knitted his eyebrows together, and Raavi opened her eyes in confusion.

"Kya bola maine? Kuch bhi toh nahi bola." She asked, clearly confused about what he was saying.

"Pyaar. Tu... pyaar karti hai mujhse?"

Raavi scrunched her nose, until her eyes went wide at the realisation of her slip up. In that moment, she didn't realise the words that tumbled out, mind fuzzy with emotions. But he had heard her, as clear as day. And there was no point denying it.

She loved him. God knows when and how she fell in love with him, but she knew she did, with all her heart and soul. Maybe it was fate, maybe it was destiny, but Bhoothnath and his Chipkali were bound to find their way back to each other, come what may. And this time, this time she wasn't going to let go what she deserved, what they deserved.

"I love you." Raavi smiled, pecking his lips once. "Pyaar karti hu tujhse."

Shiva looked up at her, not knowing what to say. He knew he loved being with her, around her, she was stuck to him ever since they were born. But did he love her yet?

He didn't know if his heart, more specifically brain, made that decision for him yet. But he knew one thing; she was his anchor and he wasn't going to let go. Not after all that they've been through together. 

"Par Raavi-"

"And it's okay if you're not there yet. 5 months together is not a very long time, I know. Bas, tujhe pyaar karne se mat rokna mujhe." She kissed his forehead, the smile dwindling for a split second, "We're probably on different chapters of the same book, so I'll wait. But..." Raavi fiddled with the nails on her fingers, "if you don't want me to wait, toh mujhe bata dena. Okay?"

Saying so she got off of him and left the room, and Shiva called out for her, but she had left by then, returning swiftly after washing her face with the first aid box and something else in her hand.

"Laga du dawai ab?" Raavi asked softly, and cleaned up his wounds and bruises as gently as she could, flinching at his open wounds every time he hissed in pain.

"Par, sweetheart," Shiva began, as she applied some medicine to his forehead, "Maine abhi tak tujhe jawab nahi diya, tu phir bhi ye sab-"

"Excuse me, mister," She pouted at him, and all he wanted to do was kiss that pout off her face, "Tere jawaab dene ya na dene se, teri care karna toh bandh nahi karungi na? Tu toh humesha mera bhoothnath hi rahega, right?"

Tears trickled at the corner of his eyes, and he cleared his throat to distract her and wipe them away, as she reached for a small pouch.

"I was going to tell you that I love you, today, when we went for dinner, ye bracelet bhi ussi ke liye nikala tha maine. Got it polished properly and all." She handed the chain-link bracelet to him, all shiny and new, the same one that she bought on their first date to the fair. "You don't have to wear it now or anything-"

"The only reason I have for not wearing this, is that mujhe chot lagi hai." Shiva took the bracelet from her hand, and kept it safely in his drawer, wincing as he reached out to place it. "Thank you. Bohot accha hai."

Raavi smiled and got up to leave, taking the first aid box with her, when Shiva held her wrist and stopped her.

"Kaha jaa rahi hai?"

"Ye mera room thodi na hai, Shiva. Bahar jaa rahi hu hall mein."

"Stay." He whispered. "With me. I need you."

Raavi gave him a soft smile, and settled down on the side next to him, as he took his side and drifted off to sleep almost immediately.

She pulled up the blanket to his chin and decreased the speed of the AC, he liked his room to be cold like an iceberg when he slept.

Raavi turned to her side and faced him, resting one hand under her cheek, schooling over the features she had already memorised, as sleep took over her and her eyes drifted shut slowly from the exhaustion.

When the sun shone the next morning, with Shiva cuddling her, an arm draped over her waist pulling her closer, his head resting on her chest as soft snores escaped his lips, and Raavi putting an arm around him, running her fingers through his hair, still confused about how a certain butterfly bracelet rested on her now adorned wrist, she knew one thing for sure;

Maybe sharing a room wasn't such a bad idea after all. 

.....