FF- Sparkling Dreams (COMPLETED) epilogue pg 43 - Page 23

khushi confronted her feelings..!!!

arnav is shattered.. !!!

thanks for pm..!!

continue soon..!!

Sometimes our weakest moments help us renew our strength. Arnav rubbed his eyes as he slowly sipped his mug of coffee, he stared at his garden which had been so neglected during the previous weeks, observing the drying leaves and dull plants, he tiredly sighed.

Changing into fresh clothes after a shower, he stopped by his office to sign certain documents. Thoughts of Khushi lingered across his mind as he shut the laptop and entrusted Aman with a few instructions. Closing the door to his cabin, he headed out.

Walking into Khushi's ward, he could smell another batch of fresh flowers. He saw Garima and Shashi sitting by her bed, their eyes worried, tired and afraid. He understood by their expressions that they had spoken to the doctor; his heart flinched at the pain reflected in their eyes, he knew the love with which they had brought her up and had also witnessed the endless sacrifices they had made, he knew that this must be breaking them so much.

"Uncle, you go home and take rest for a while, take aunty with you too, I'll stay here with Khushi" Arnav said softly.

Garima vacantly stared at Khushi, her eyes not shifting or registering what Arnav had said until Shashi softly held her hand. She simply nodded, her eyes flooding with tears.

"Aunty, please. Khushi would hate to see you this tired and worn out, get some rest. You need to be strong, for her" Arnav gently urged as he observed the dark shadows beneath her eyes.

Shashi held Garima's shoulder and slowly guided her out as she wiped her tears and sadly looked at Khushi's still face before leaving the room. Shashi simply nodded gratefully at Arnav before heading out.

"Khushi, they have opened a new Sweet Shop near Jiya's office, when you wake up, you can pop in there during lunch and have as many Jalebi's as you like." Arnav said before lifting one of the books beside the table, his heart wishing that she would open her eyes and exclaim excitedly at such wonderful news.

"And its winter, its cold and there is no need for air conditioning, you would love it, being snuggled beneath so many blankets and watching one of your favourite chick-flicks, waking up in the mornings to watch the sky, holding a mug of coffee and watching your breath mingle like mist with the air...I wish you would wake up, all this would make you so happy" he said softly with a sad smile.

"Arnavvv, duffer, why weren't you in school today" Khushi exclaimed as she hurried up the stairs to his room, her bag slung around her shoulder and her messy uniform smeared with ink.

"Khushi beta, I'm so glad you are here. Your friend has food poisoning and he hasn't spoken a word or smiled at me, you talk some sense into this boy" Neetu said, ruffling her hair affectionately before leaving the room.

Khushi sat wide eyed beside Arnav, pulling at the corner of the duvet to grab his attention, her eyes looked worried as they fell upon his pale, ashen face. "Khushi, I'm very tired, don't annoy me now" he grumbled and shifted restlessly on the bed.

Her eyes looked hurt for a moment before a familiar glimmer shone within those hazel pools. "Oho...I know you are tired, I've had food poisoning plenty of times, you know I always eat what they sell on the roadside no matter how many times ma yells at me...anyway that is not the point...if you stay grumpy like this you're only going to make it worse" she said as she shifted on the bed, kicking her shoes away and sitting right beside him. Noticing that he wasn't replying or even looking at her, she watched his irritated eyes that were staring at the wall ahead.

Ignoring his bored face she continued, "By the way you did not miss anything much in school, maths was bad, if you were there you would have explained it to me but I was sitting next to Nisha who was as lost as me" she said and grinned. Not even earning a nod, she felt like throwing something at him but knowing very well how sick and tired he was, she knew this would be like tossing herself mindlessly before danger.

"Oh I forgot to tell you" Khushi said, slamming her palm against her forehead dramatically "You know during recess there was an arm wrestling match between Deepak and Ankit" this piece of information seemed to have earned Arnav's attention as he was now staring at Khushi's face, the bored expression replaced with curiosity. "Considering the way Ankit had cheated and won with you, I was hoping that Deepak would win, and he did but just at the end Dharun Sir had walked in to find everyone huddled near the stage, Ankit had been was sitting on the right side of stage, he accidentally messed up the entire wall behind him, which had been painted just this morning for Cultural Day tomorrow" "You should have seen how red Dharun Sir's face was, he pulled Ankit by the ear to the principal's office, and now that poor toad has to spend every break hour for the next three weeks in the staff room, helping Dharun Sir with chart work" Khushi said with loud laughter.

"Serves that cheating fool right" Arnav said softly, his face happier and his eyes now sparkling and listening attentively to his friend as she moved her arms around and narrated each event of the day while she sat beside him with wide eyes.

"Okay, I'll go home now or ma will be wondering where I disappeared off to, I'll give you my notes tomorrow and I'll help you complete them after school okay, stop looking so grumpy and give aunty some relief, learn to be strong like me" Khushi said in a very serious voice as she jumped off the bed.

"Strong like you?" he said mockingly. "Yes, strong like me dodo! Whenever I am sick I never grumble and I take all my medicines and I smile much more than you, amma tells me that I am the bravest and strongest child" she said and stuck her tongue out. "So learn from me and be there in school tomorrow, bye" she yelled as she hopped out of the room, leaving the sick little boy with a happy smile.

"Remember how you asked me to be strong when I was sick, Khush?" he said as his fingers brushed across the sheets. "I wish you could show me how now" he said softly. "You know when you weren't here, I had forgotten to smile, I didn't know if I would ever laugh again, Di used to be so worried and pained each time she saw my empty eyes, then you came back, without even trying to you brought me back, you dug me up from beneath all those layers I had created, no one else could for only you knew how". "You make me strong, Khushi, you show me the meaning of being happy, seeing you like this I don't know how to be strong anymore...I wish you could show me how" he said in a voice that pleaded, hoped and begged, so earnestly, so brokenly. "I'm sorry I did not tell you what you deserved to hear that night, I wasn't even sure of what I was feeling, I thought I would never be able to love anyone completely and you deserved everything, I was afraid of depriving you of what you deserved...but Khush...since you've been asleep, each breath I take feels painful and heavy, every moment seems clouded by the knowledge that you might not come back to me, you loved me so purely, selflessly and wholly, I may never be able to love so perfectly...but Khush, I know now that I would love you with everything within me, I would love you, cherish you with all that I am, I can't live without you Khushi, I would simply be a breathing corpse, you help me live, you help me laugh, you are everything and I'm so sorry I didn't tell you all this before, I didn't know myself, I know now because how can I not love someone who helps me breathe" he whispered as his eyes clouded with tears.

"The doctors say you may never wake up, they say the chances are minimal" he said hoarsely as he let his hands brush across her cheek. "Help me Khush...sometimes I feel like breaking down, I feel like the walls are closing in on me and everything is turning dark, help me be strong...you are the only one who knows how" he begged as a drop of tear slowly fell, soaking against the dull blue hospital sheets.

He held her cold hand to his lips, his tears falling over them unceasingly, resembling the quiet morning dew, "I'll wait for you, no matter what they say, because a tomorrow without you is not worth living in, I'll keep holding your hand, I'll keep watching your still face, I'll always be here because I know that if I could look into those deep hazel eyes just once more, all my prayers would be answered" he cried as his fingers felt her slow pulse at the wrist, her translucent skin, so delicate and pale underneath his calloused searching fingers.

"Whenever you choose to come back, I'll be right here, waiting for the only person who helps me hope for tomorrow" he said softly.

"I'll be right here, because I love you" he whispered against her damp skin.

Closed eyes blurred by tears rested across pale fingers, too tired, too broken to notice a soft whispering touch.

Feedback? I am not really sure about this chapter, don't know if the emotions have been put across properly...so please tell me what you think.

NJ,

Of course we are hoping for an all's well that ends well. And of course Khushi has to come back, hai na? Or what happens to the promise of hamesha. So devastated for Arnav, but perhaps he needed the jolt to learn just how much his heart cares, just how much he loves her. As for Khushi she is such a live wire. From the flashbacks it is obvious of it was not already, that theirs is a deep and timeless bond. All they ever need is each other to revive and rejuvenate their moods. Hope this happens this time around too. Waiting!

Best,