ArHi FF: Fragmented Colors [COMPLETED] *Replies posted - Page 9

Chapter 8: Oblivion

"Beta, come have breakfast! And don't say no this time!"

The unmissable concern in his mother's voice brings a smile to his face as he walks down the stairs and enters the kitchen.

"Good morning, Ma,"

He watches his mother place a piping hot omelette on his plate, mumbling a 'good morning' in return before facing him.

"Arnav! These... bandages? What happened?! I didn't even know when you came home late last night and these cuts-" Her eyebrows furrow in confusion as she touches her son's face frantically.

"I just tripped and fell, nothing else," He holds her hand in reassurance, a tinge of guilt pinching him for having to lie to his mother. He decides he would rather do so however, than knowingly give her a reason to worry.

"This just proves that you're still that same Chote, just as clumsy as you were when you were little," She laughs nostalgically, stroking his hair lovingly.

"Ma, I told you not to call me that," Arnav rolls his eyes, slightly annoyed.

"Accha baba, okay. Eat now,"

He quietly starts eating, relishing each bite.

Whoever said it, said right. Food made by your mother's hands is truly the best.

"Why don't you dorm beta? It must be difficult for you to drive everyday to college..." She wonders, sitting next to him by the dining table.

"If I dorm, who will be home to bug you?" He grins, earning a soft slap from his mother.

"Paagal," Comes the mutter of a reply.

"There's only a month left of senior year anyway," He continues, before swallowing the last bite.

"Alright, now go. You'll be late for your classes,"

"Okay meri pyaari Ma, I'll leave you in peace," He stands up and places a kiss on her forehead, grabbing his backpack and car keys from the cabinet nearby.

"Bye beta." She waves and watches him close the door behind him, sighing.

Her eyes move to a lone frame sat on the top of the cherry wood cabinet, the picture fixated inside glinting in the faded daylight of the room. Her hand reaches up and brushes across the glass in a movement so instinctive, it surprises her.

This is how she had welcomed her every morning for the past four years.

The 9am class ended exactly 50 minutes later, and Arnav was greeted by an all too familiar voice.

"HEY BROTHER!"

"Geez NK," He mumbles, after jumping in surprise.

"Did I scare you?" NK laughs, holding his shoulders.

"Never mind that, how do you always know where I am?"

"What can I say man, it's a bhai to bhai connection!"

Arnav smirks at his reply, suddenly feeling thankful for having him as a friend for as long as he can remember.

The two walk to the courtyard, a place that has become a regular hangout spot over the past few weeks. The area is occupied by numerous groups of friends, some standing, some sat on the crisp, freshly trimmed grass while the mighty Coast Oaks sway with the spring breeze, providing a gentle shade. As they spot Lavanya and Khushi sat by a tree a few feet away, a smile spreads across both of their faces.

Arnav's smile, however, fades when Khushi looks away, her features devoid of expression. His lips part in bafflement, wondering the reasons behind her aloofness.

NK sits next to Lavanya after pecking her on her cheek, adding to Arnav's utter confusion. He stands there, dumbfounded for a good five seconds, his gaze switching back and forth from them to Khushi.

"You guys are together?!" He questions, disbelief unhidden in his tone.

"ASR, you are so late. We've been together for a while now," Lavanya replies.

"Why am I always the last one to know these things? And how did this happen?"

"That's a story for another time. For now, we gotta go." NK holds Lavanya by her hand, leading her away.

"Yeah, we'll be back!"

Arnav watches the two walk away hand in hand, and sits next to Khushi, who had been uncharacteristically silent all this time.

"They definitely won't be back anytime soon," He chuckles, glancing at her.

When she remains silent, his heart sinks a little.

"Why didn't you answer my calls?" Her abrupt question startles him.

"Huh?"

"Why didn't you answer my calls?" She repeated, facing him. "I called and even texted you last night to see if you reached home okay. Why didn't you answer?"

"I must have fallen asleep... I didn't check-"

"Why didn't you? Do you know how worried I was? After last night... I just- I just needed to know you were okay," Her gaze drops to the ground, taken aback by the spur of her own feelings.

"Khushi. Look at me," He tilts her chin up, his thumb grazing her skin gently.

"If anything, I should have called you. I fell asleep like an idiot, I'm sorry..."

"No, it's okay," She touches the wound her own hands had bandaged less than 14 hours ago. "Does it hurt?"

He savors the feel of her hand against his face, her touch erasing the memory of what pain is in itself.

"Not anymore," The answer is a whisper.

She ignores the hammering of her helpless heart and reaches up to kiss him for the third time, her breath suspended as if it were the first. He responds in equal ardor, momentarily forgetting that they are still sat in the middle of campus, in broad daylight. They come apart reluctantly, gathering their belongings before walking towards the hallways, away from the public eye.

She opens the door to the darkness of her room, the closed curtains keeping the rays from passing through. She turns around to face him after shutting the door close, breathless from the way his umber gaze bore through her, eliciting an unnamed craze without even having to touch her aching body.

He doesn't know what drives him to take her in his arms, the way her eyes spoke volumes or the way her lips trembled in yearning, the way her hair fell over the brilliance of hazel in temptation or the way her chest rose and sunk erratically.

His hands travel around her waist as his lips dive deeper yet never deep enough, constantly longing for more. Her fingers wrap themselves within the waves of his hair, aware of his hands making their way up the curve of her back, leaving a trail of fire in its wake.

They stumble as he leads them towards her desk, her back hitting the edge. Her eyelids flutter open at the loss of his warmth, only to find him kneeling down. Her head falls back in a daze as his hands slide across the expanse of her thighs, closing in to lift her up on the desk. She grabs hold of his shirt, bunching up the material in desperation while his lips drop to the side of her neck, marking her with endless kisses of uncontrollable passion. She bites her lip when his hands find their way underneath her top, stroking the curve of her waist.

"Tell me to stop, Khushi,"

The plead is hoarse and throaty, uttered in between a state of frenzied haze. The reply is a raspy moan that leaves her mouth as his tongue brushes her lips. Hearing her moan that way knocks him into sense, and he forces himself to pull away after kissing her a last time. As much as he craves this, as much as he desires her, he knows there is a needed restraint.

"You have no idea what you do to me,"

"I think I have some idea..." She smiles, a devilish glint in her eyes.

"Hello? Lavanya?"

"What's up? You wanted to talk?"

"Yeah, have you heard from Arnav? It's been two whole days and I haven't heard from him at all,"

"Same here. We haven't seen him around either,"

Khushi sighs in exasperation.

"Alright. Well, if you do let me know,"

"Of course. Take care."

She cuts the call, before dialing his number for the millionth time.

"Come on, pick up Arnav, pick up..."

Memories of the last time she saw him comes flooding back, filling her senses with the way he made her feel. She wonders what could have possibly happened for him to vanish this way all of a sudden, scared to think of the possibilities.

The ringing on the line sounds painfully infinite with no sort of response.

Just when she cuts the call to dial again, a knock sounds on her door.

A/N: Sorry this update is a day late guys! Been a busy bee.

For some reason I had great difficulty writing this chapter - perhaps it was because the story is now steering towards a different direction. I hope you guys are enjoying, though.

Needed a glass of water after writing a certain portion of this chapter, if you know what I mean... *ahem ahem* ☺️

A cliffhanger once again, couldn't help it 😆

Let me know your thoughts!

-Rain

Translations for anyone wondering:

Paagal: Crazy

Meri pyaari Ma: My lovely mother

Bhai to bhai: Brother to brother

Chapter 9: Serenity

A hand ascends, heavy and unsteady, gripping the rust walls in a movement laden with fatigue. His lips purse as his head hangs low, eyes shutting in an unavailing effort to somehow forget, to accept, to stand strong. At a time like this, the solitude in the surroundings would become an invitation for a whirlwind of a drive through the vacuum of a highway, aimless and devoid of a destination. He would drive for hours as memories flashed before his path, memories that broke a smile through his tears with its warmth, memories that mangled him with its agony.

And yet, tonight is different.

He is now staring scrutinizingly at a closed door, as if it can provide him with answers he had long asked. He imagines himself turning and walking far away, but his body acts on the opposite, standing still where he is. He wonders what had led him here, soon realizing his conscience most likely already knows. Before he can change his mind his right hand raises and knocks on the wood, once, then twice.

The door swings open in one swift motion moments later, and for a reason unknown, his eyes cannot reach up to meet the muddled gaze of the one person that has come to mean so much to him in the past few months.

So much, it frightens him.

"Arnav...?" His name is a question leaving her lips, an admission of concern at the tears that spill relentlessly from his closed eyes.

The pumping of his heart seems to stop for a second, before he speaks aloud the words he has never spoken to anyone, nor to himself.

"My dad died four years ago today and it's all my fault,"

Khushi's features drain of color at the statement, a constriction forming at the back of her throat. He looks up at her to reveal red and tears escape her eyes, a result of disparate emotions coursing through. Not seeing him, not knowing where he is, not being able to ask if he is fine, and now staring at his defeated form before her, his aching gaze, his broken words all thought flies out of her mind. Her hand reaches up to rest right where his beating heart lay, her arms going around to hold him close. She feels him give in, his head bowing down, tears wetting the cotton of her shirt.

They come apart after moments of silent grief. Khushi chooses not to say anything, wanting him to speak only when he wishes to, only when he feels comforted enough to. They sit on her bed, his gaze rooted on the ground while her eyes never leave him.

"Every year on this day my mom leaves to stay at my uncle and aunt's house, and they perform a puja in his remembrance. Each year she asks me to go with her, but I can never bring myself to say yes. I stay at home alone for the two days,"

Khushi wipes away a tear as she listens to him speak, a distant look on his face, as if recollecting the past.

"My dad had come home from work that day, and I needed supplies for college. He said he can go and get it for me but I denied, knowing he was tired. But he insisted... and I didn't stop him. He was returning home that night with my supplies when another car broke the signal and collided with his car. My father died on the spot,"

She takes in a sharp breath at that, unable to fathom the pain that strikes when a loved one is taken away in the blink of an eye. Her mouth opens and closes multiple times, trying to find the adequate words.

"It's not your fault Arnav. You... you didn't know," Her voice shakes.

"But I didn't stop him Khushi. I didn't stop him. If I did, maybe he would still be here. Maybe- maybe Ma would be happy," His eyes shut close as he says this, looking away.

Tears flow unabashedly as she takes his hand in hers.

"Your Ma is happy because you have kept her happy, Arnav. You're a wonderful son. Your Dad is looking down at you every step of the way and he is proud of you, Arnav. He is proud of you,"

He gazes at her in wonderment, feeling substantially better after conveying the thoughts that were trapped in the confines of his mind before this moment. A part of him wants to thank her and yet he cannot, because the other adamant part of him does not deem himself worthy of being the cause of his parent's pride. He swallows, composing himself before speaking again in a much smoother tone.

"It's very late. You probably have classes tomorrow-"

"I don't have any classes tomorrow," She cut him, hoping it is enough to keep him from leaving.

"Stay," The word leaves from her lips in a plea. He looks at her moist eyes of hazel when a thought runs through his head, loud and clear.

I love you.

The words, despite ringing in the shadows of his own mind, takes him aback. He refrains from blurting them aloud, irresolute of the consequences. But then his mind wanders and he realizes how much he needs to say those words to her, in spite of what may happen, in spite of how she may respond.

Because the truth is simple - he loves her. In a way that makes him mad at the thought of losing her. In a way that he sees the purity of her heart and the beauty of her soul. In a way he had never imagined he would, he loves her.

He stays silent for now, moving close to her warmth. She gently lies him down on her bed, closing the lights before going over to join him. He gazes at her, umber coated in a sheen of tears. She runs a hand through the waves of his hair and his eyes close at her velvet touch, releasing a deep breath as sleep finally pervades him.

For the first time since she had met him, Khushi really looks at him. She takes the opportunity to study the face of the man who has changed the course of her life with his ways, with his smile, with his pain. The week old stubble is a stark contrast to the innocence of his pouted lips, his chest rising and falling to a pattern she could love getting used to. Linking her arm in his she scoots closer to him, a strange sensation flooding her heart and mind.

They lay there, falling into the rhythm of sleep as the moon shone in its splendor.

A/N: An important chapter, and also one I enjoyed writing. Would love to hear your thoughts.

-Rain