Tia and Ranveer FF: Broken|NOTE plz see-pg3

"Dr. Nikita, there's a patient that would like an appointment for tomorrow." The Nurse announced, entering the cabin.

Nikita Malhotra looked up from the file she was reading. "Haven't I told you to knock before you enter?" she asked sharply.

"I, er...," the nurse stuttered, not knowing quite what to say. "I'm sorry, ma'am."

"You were saying?" Nikita asked, not really bothering to respond to the apology.

"Yes, there was this patient that wanted an appointment for tomorrow."

"The whole week's full." Nikita said simply.

"Er, the patient said it was really urgent." The nurse said, flustered. "Could you fit in an extra..,"

"I'm not going to fit in an extra appointment." Nikita snapped.

"I, okay, I'll tell him to fix an appointment for next week." The nurse said, and hurried out of the cabin.

Nikita sighed and rubbed her temple gently. There were the beginnings of a headache coming, and that wasn't helping her with the numerous work she had.

She simply closed the file shut and picked up a silver photo frame sitting on her desk. She stared at it.

It had been almost ten years, and even today, she felt a little sting within her as she thought about her father. It had been ten years since she'd made that promise to herself. Not once had she looked back. True to her word, she had left her old life behind. Tia Ahuja, the immature eighteen- year-old, had been trapped within the new formed person, Nikita Malhotra.

She had let go of everything she had once been. That had also meant shedding off who she was, and creating a whole new identity for her. Nikita Malhotra, that was what she had wanted everyone to know her as. Not Tia Ahuja, but Dr. Nikita Malhotra.

And she had succeeded. There was not a person who knew of her old life. Everyone took Nikita Malhotra seriously, and respected her. Maybe the girl within her was still around somewhere, but the woman she had become had almost always suppressed it. This is who she was. This was her life.

Ranveer had always known he would return some day. He knew he had to. It had been ten years and almost every day during those ten years he reminded himself that he had to go back some day. He leaned against the seat of the car he was now sitting in, and closed his eyes. He had finally returned, and he knew just where he had to begin.

As the driver drove the car, Ranveer gazed out the window. Mumbai was just like it always had been. Ten years hadn't changed a thing about it. He smiled as he reminisced about his days in Mumbai. He had come for revenge on the person responsible for his father's death, but he had instead ended up falling in love with his daughter. Tia; she had been different. She was childlike, immature, and absolutely innocent. Ranveer had always tried his best to try and hate her, but each time he did, he just felt his love growing stronger for her.

Ranveer frowned slightly. It had been ten years, and he'd left her without saying a word. Would she even forgive him? He had no idea, but he knew he had to try. And he knew that if she loved him, she would eventually forgive him. He believed in their love. He knew it could last.

He knew he needed to visit his friends. But right now, it was only her on his mind. He had to visit her, he had to tell her the reason he left without telling her. She would be mad at him, he knew that. He would bear it. These ten years had taught him tolerance. Ever the short-tempered person that he was, loving Tia, and also staying away from her for ten whole years, he had learnt to be tolerant. It was a quality he welcomed.

Ranveer smiled slightly to himself as the car rounded a street, the route he was all too familiar with. He had often visited Tia's house. Initially, when he had sworn revenge and thought he hated her, he visited her father just to spite her. It was amusing, watching her scowl at her father for trusting him more than her. But those were different days. Things had changed considerably. He had been wrong about Sumeet Ahuja, and he had regretted the terrible things he'd ever done to his daughter. Now, though, he knew things were different. He could hardly wait to see Tia again.

Tia--now Nikita--walked along the footpath, inhaling the fresh air. She had almost always shut herself up indoors. In the past ten years, she had barely gotten much of freshness. She looked around. The streets were buzzing with activity. She allowed herself a small smile. Mumbai was always so alive; it was hard not to get carried away with the bustle sometimes.

She wasn't very sure which way she was headed, but she walked anyway. Who needed a destination, anyway? She had reached her destination years back. And it felt nice sometimes, contemplating how her Life had become. She had always made it a point not to dwell on the life that she had. She had compartmentalized her emotions. Tia Ahuja was now just a small part of her, trapped inside, but not strong enough to come out. She had almost forgotten her real identity; Almost.

She turned left around the street, now walking past the many houses that lined her path. Her feet seemed to be guiding her down that path. She looked around, vaguely registering her surroundings. The houses felt familiar, but then again, a lot of Mumbai looked alike. She suddenly came to a halt when she saw a car pull up a few blocks across the other side of the street. It had stopped opposite a house, a surprisingly familiar house. She inched a step or two closer, trying to figure out why it all felt so familiar.

Slowly, she saw the door open, and a figure step out. He had his back turned to her. His profile looked so familiar. She mentally kicked herself for getting paranoid about every little thing, and then turned around to head back the way she came. She didn't know how long she had walked, but now that she stood still, she could feel her feet ache. She looked around once more, and she suddenly froze.

She knew why this place felt so familiar. It finally hit her. This used to be her home. This was where she had spent her childhood, most of her life. This was where she had stayed with her papa. He had been breathing, laughing, and so real. She felt something deep within her break. She barely registered the figure turning around to look at her. She was looking, but not really registering what she was seeing. Her mind was too preoccupied for her to bother about a stranger staring at her.

She shook her head, and broke into a run. She ran from there, as fast as her feet could manage. She struggled to keep the tears from falling, but to no avail. They fell just as freely as she ran. She closed her eyes tightly, willing the pain to ease.

And somewhere deep within her she wondered why suddenly in the ten years had she ended up in this spot? She had never once ended up here, and it was just strange that she should now.

Fate, somehow, was playing a cruel game with her.

But maybe, it just wasn't her, but also the man who now stared at the receding figure of the girl, running as though her life depended on it.

"Bhaiyya, yaha rukhana." Ranveer said to the driver.

The car pulled up in front of a house. Ranveer stared at it through the window. He was here, finally. In maybe about just another minute, he would finally be seeing Tia. Ten years. He was nervous, now that he was here. The self-assurance he had had just a moment ago seemed to waver. He was going to see her after what seemed like ages. Was he prepared to do this?

Tentatively, he opened the door and stepped out. He wasn't sure he wanted to do this. He did want to see her, but he wasn't sure he was ready yet. It had been a long time. Things would be awkward to say the least. And it wasn't as if she would welcome him with open arms. A part of him admitted that that was what he was hoping for their reunion to be like. But why should she? He did leave without explaining. He didn't make an attempt to tell her why he had to leave. He had just left, leaving her to deal with it herself. He had been awfully selfish. She did have every right to hate him.

But that was it, wasn't it? He didn't want her to hate him. He just wanted to go in there, hug her close to him and kiss her like he'd never before. Wishful thinking, he thought bitterly.

He stared at the house. It gave off an entirely different aura. It had always been so lively. It looked gloomy now. He took a step ahead. And then a thought struck him. Did she even live here anymore? Maybe, she had moved out of Mumbai with her father. It was a possibility. Feeling rather foolish, Ranveer took another step forward.

It was stupid, because it had been ten years. Was he expecting her to still hold on to him?

Another step forward.

Would she want to take him back, even if she did forgive him?

Another step.

It was quite possible that she had found someone else, wasn't it?

Before he realized it, he was just a few inches away from her doorstep. He slowly lifted his finger to ring the doorbell when he felt someone standing at a distance from him. He barely caught a glimpse of her, before she turned around and ran away from there.

It was barely a glimpse, but it was enough for him to realize who he had just seen. And he felt uneasy. She did see him, didn't she? And despite that, she didn't look at him, nor did she approach him. She acted as though she completely disregarded him. And then she turned around and ran.

He didn't completely know what to make of it. Initially he thought his mind was playing tricks on him. Maybe he was just seeing what he wanted to see. Maybe he was overanalysing. Or maybe he was over reacting. It could have meant anything. But he was positive it was her. He'd know that face anywhere. It was etched into his mind entirely. He shook his head in confusion. It really had been her, hadn't it? And without even realizing, he whispered softly to himself.