It was the calm after the storm. No, the weather was perfect, the storm in Avni's heart had finally ceased.
She looked at her brother, who was watching the film she had made 15 years ago. It was the only memory of Ayesha that Avni could give him. She kept her hand on his head and kissed his hair. But her attention was on her husband, who was busy on his phone.
When the policewomen were dragging Dayavanti Mehta, Aman hugged Avni and cried his heart in her arms, while all Neil did was held Avni's hand. She looked at him and he assured her through his eyes that it had all ended. She had looked into his eyes and smiled.
When Avni came to know that Neil wasn't an obstacle in her mission, but her savior, all she had done was hug him and cry her heart out. He had promised her that he would give her her identity back.
The day was here. They had rejoiced at Ali's caf, but none had seen the anxious Neil. He had spoken to them all, but only Avni had noticed that Neil was being monotonous. That's when she had realized, with everything ended, she had to leave his life, as promised.
It had been three days since Avni had shifted to her childhood house with Aman. Neil would visit her regularly, to make sure she and Aman both were comfortable. They both had awkward eyelocks when Aman had tried to convince them to stay together, or when Neela had tried to remind them of their marriage or when Shweta had almost begged infront of Avni to return back.
Avni had promised Neil his freedom, and she wouldn't back off, even if it meant hurting herself.
"Coffee? Avni asked him as he disconnected the call.
"Tum banaogi? he asked, suppressing his smile. One of the many things he had taught her was to make coffee.
She arched her eyebrows and went in the kitchen. He stared at his retreating figure. He went back to the day Dayavanti was jailed. He had imagined Juhi, again. After the mehendi ceremony, it was again that she had come back to him. She had tried her level best to convince him that Avni was the one who was made for him.
He went back to the day when Avni had declared that she would shift to another house, he had tried to reason with her, but since they had left their relation undefined, he couldn't force her to stay back.
"Di deserves love Jiju. "Chor-Police ka khel khelte-khelte, Avni tumhare dil mein ghar kar gayi. "Meri bahu ko waapas laa Tillu. "I have seen it, Neil, Avni loves you like crazy. "Main dost hoon uska, woh batayegi nahi, par woh tujhse beyhad pyaar karti hai. They had all tried, but none had succeeded. He closed his eyes to stop those voices from reminding him what Avni meant for him, but no! His heart was playing games this time.
Avni stared at the vapors as they disappeared into the air. Was she doing it right? Neil wouldn't express it, but she had seen it in his eyes. For once, she wanted to name it Love, but she was scared. She couldn't risk this friendship for anything.
Neil had slowly become this important for her, and even if she was ignoring this, she knew, this passion that they shared was beautiful. The world could see it, she could feel it, and she knew, even he could. But then, what if he still was unsure?
She had taken Aman to Ayesha's grave yesterday and mentally had asked Ayesha to help her solve this riddle. Like a miracle, Neil had visited the grave at that time, and this had convinced her. It was them! No Avni or Neil, but AvNeil!
She handed Aman a mug and then passed a mug to Neil, whose brushed against hers. She breathed sharply and Neil looked at her as if even his heart had skipped a bit.
"Di, main Rhea Di se milne jaa raha hoon, Aman said as he switched off the laptop. Both knew where he was heading off and why, but they didn't object. Aman needed time with his mother and they would let him be.
"What are we punishing each other for, Neil? Avni asked as she looked at the empty mugs of coffee after a long silence.
"Punishing? Matlab?
"We both know it, Neil! Let's name this for once and all! Avni said and went in the gallery, not wanting to look at Neil, or more precisely his eyes. She feared rejection, but she needed her answers. She would wait, wait for him.
Neil looked at her and kept his mug on the table. Without sparing her a glance, he walked out of the house. She stared at his retreating back sadly. A goodbye wouldn't have harmed, but iss chipkoo ko kuch samajh aaye, tab!
Neil stared at the wedding pictures that Shweta had hung on the wall. He traced Avni with his fingers softly.
"We both know it, Neil! Let's name this for once and all!
She was asking him to name something that he could never name. It was beautiful because it was undefined. He wasn't sure if Avni would call it Love, but he couldn't just name it love. Because whenever he laid his eyes on her, passion burnt inside him, his heart skipped a beat, he would grow possessive and protective of her. He felt a lot of emotions when he laid his eyes on her and he just couldn't name them.
He needed to let her know that he was crazy about her.
