K_luv: I know what you mean....when I'm writing I can imagine them both in my head acting it out....a little weird but w.ever lols😆
Hey everyone!
Chapter III
Her heart hammered in her throat as she pressed her back to the door, whether to keep the devil out or to stop her from falling, she wasn't sure. She had actually hit him! Other than the twinge in her knuckles, she was sure that this time, she had been the one to do the hurting. As the pounding in her ears finally calmed, she became aware of the harsh thumping against the door.
Vrinda hurriedly wiped her sweaty palms against her t-shirt and opened the door a crack to see him gingerly rubbing the side of his jaw and wincing at the rapidly swelling lump.
Guilt hit her but she straightened her shoulders and addressed him with an icy glare.
"Last time I checked you weren't Rajbheer."
"Last time I checked you were still a sweet looking village girl. Where did you learn to throw a punch like that?"
She smiled at him sweetly.
"I've met a lot of dirt bags in my life."
"Ouch."
He adopted a hurt expression and flattened a hand across his heart. Vrinda rolled her eyes and opened the door wide enough to let him in, conscious of the fact that any minute now, one of her nosy neighbours would be opening their own doors to investigate.
He entered cautiously, as if expecting her to throw another kick but the anger had abated and all she wanted to do was glumly nurse her hand, which was really starting to hurt.
She turned to find him still massaging his jaw. Baby.
"Got any ice?"
Annoyed, she stalked towards the kitchen and retrieved a frozen pack of peas before smacking them not so delicately against his face.
"Careful Vrinda; if your reception gets any warmer I just might think you're happy to see me."
Ignoring his sarky tones, she planted hands on hips and craned her neck to give him a pointed look.
"Yug, why are you here?"
The peas slid down an inch as he regarded her with a weary glance.
"Your phone call came out of the blue and the news threw me a little. I thought… I guess I thought you could use some company."
Her face softened but three years of hurt and betrayal refused to abate the scorn in her tone.
"I only rang you because I didn't have Rajbheer's number. I need a lawyer more than a few comforting words."
"Vrinda, you were crying halfway through the conversation."
She bristled at his accusatory tone and stuck out her chin.
"Was not!"
"Was too"
The childishness of their conversation struck Vrinda but, ignoring the smile tugging gently at her mouth, she crossed her arms and gave him a defiant look.
"Just tell me when Rajbheer will get here and you can leave."
"Like hell I will. There is no way I'm leaving you in this…"
He glanced around her tiny apartment with distaste. The living room was a little more than a shabby square of space in which Vrinda had managed to squeeze in two sofas, a coffee table and a dingy TV. The rest was just as miserably promising. The tiny kitchen was only two steps away and a single bedroom had been squashed in the back with a mini bathroom comfortable enough for someone who didn't believe in luxurious hours soaking in the tub.
"You live here?"
He sounded incredulous and Vrinda was hurt. Her living space wasn't much, but she prided in the fact that everything had been paid for with her hard earned money. Besides, she thought the multicoloured cushions scattered across the sofas added some sort of cheer to the room. Yug, however, was of different opinion and he glared at them as if they had offended him personally.
"I thought you were living with Sharad bhaiyya and your Di?"
Vrinda ducked her head as a barrage of guilt hit her squarely in the gut. Maybe she should have given in to their insistence to stay as opposed to moving out to the other side of Mumbai where her visits were limited to once a fortnight at best. Her independence had meant that she had hardly seen her sister and brother-in-law in the past six months.
Half a year that could have been spent with two people who had become her adopted parents in a way.
Yug seemed to have picked up on her sudden change of mood and it was with almost gentle hands that he held her and cupped her chin upwards.
"Hey. It wasn't your fault."
She scowled, remembering his uncanny knack to know exactly what she was thinking, and quickly rubbed the moisture brimming over her eyes. She wasn't crying. Yug was just bad for her hay fever.
"How did it happen?"
The question should have been tactless, but he delivered it with such softness that Vrinda found it easier to overcome the lump in her throat and answer; after all he had a right to know.
"Sharad jiju wanted to take Di for a holiday, he joked it was going to be a second honeymoon."
Her lips twisted in to a sad smile, the only sort she had been sporting for the past two weeks.
"I was supposed to drop them of at the airport but work called me in at the last minute so they came here instead, to meet me. They were heading back home when the accident happened – the other driver walked away without a scratch. Jiju and Di; not so lucky. So I guess it was my fault."
Yug tightened the grip on her arms and jerked her forwards.
"It wasn't your fault!"
He said it with such certainty that Vrinda half believed him. The other half was alarmed to find Yug only an inch away, all 6"2 looming over her but his face close enough that she could see the muscle ticking in his jaw. The poor light threw his features in the shadows; sharpening the edges of his aristocrat nose and making and pronouncing the edge of his jaw. There were purple bruises under his eyes and she could tell he was tired; but it was still Yug, watching her with his steadfast gaze; his eyes the colour of rich honey that seemed like a swirl of brown, gold and yellow all mixed in to one.
It wasn't hard to imagine why he had been so popular with everyone she had seen him come in contact with; charming them until he had even her family eating out of his hand.
Vrinda swallowed nervously and looked away, allowing the loose locks of her hair to come free and form a protective curtain between them. Memories of the family she had once loves were really not good.
"I'll get you something to eat. In the meantime, find the bathroom and use it – you stink of alcohol."
She shot him a reproachful look for driving after drinking - though she was pretty sure that the news of his dead [Vrinda winced at the thought] brother was enough to sober him – and moved towards the tiny kitchen where she started rummaging for something to make. Now that she was safely tucked away from him, Vrinda remembered how hungry she really was. Not to mention so God Damned angry that she could happily go punch Yug again. And again.
The knife clattered loudly again the worktop and the onions followed with enough force that a part of her was surprised that they were still intact. But after that they really didn't stand a chance. She furiously cut through the vegetables, ignoring the tears that were making themselves known. Her traitorous mind however was happy enough to dredge up old memories and it was only a few seconds later that she slumped against the cooker in defeat.
This was why she had avoided any contact with him. Because, Kishan-ji save her, she loved Yug as much as she had three years ago. Even though he had trampled all over her heart and taken back the ring.
Omg, I'm addicted to writing this FF!😆
Short part. Vrinda from Yug's eyes.
Chapter IV
Yug eased himself in to the kitchen, grimacing as he realised that the goddamn apartment really was to small for a normal person to live in. Not that Vrinda had ever been normal. He grinned at that thought which soon gave way to a weary sigh as he ran his fingers through his dishevelled hair and cursed his brother. Sharad. The man who, Yug had just learnt this afternoon, had died two weeks ago.
A wave of remorse washed over him. Of course, his elder brother had been dead for the family the second he had turned his back on them and left the house in favour of a Singh. Vrinda's sister.
Another sigh, only this one caught Vrinda's attention and she turned slightly, eyeing him with a mixture of curiosity and confusion. As if she had momentarily forgotten she wasn't alone. Yug struggled to keep his face expressionless, to prevent the frown that should have marred his forehead.
Vrinda stood in the dimly lit kitchen, a small window bathing her in moonlight but at the same time outlining her pitifully thin body. His gaze caressed her face, taking in the gaunt cheeks and tired eyes. Even her hair, a wild mass of russet curls that always added a few inches to her height, had seemed to give up. Instead, gently twisted strands escaped from her haphazard bun and fell loosely at the nape of her neck.
Enticing salwar suits in hues of pink had been replaced with drab sweats. Her thin wrists looked bare without the hordes of bangles that used to accompany her everywhere, their heavy tinkling only a faint memory. The knife poised in her hand looked to heavy for her frail body, and so he moved forward, gently relieving her of it placing it aside before he pushed away the loose strands of hair that fell across her cheek.
Yug cupped her face and watched her eyes widen as he leaned forward until the tip of his nose gently brushed hers.
"Vrinda…"
A loud wail startled both of them and Vrinda hastily skirted round him to rush to the bedroom opposite. Puzzled, Yug followed but stopped short at the sight of Vrinda lifting a small girl out of a crib. The toddler quietened immediately, her cries subsiding to sniffles as she snuggled in to Vrinda's shoulder.
Wiry russet curls and honey coloured eyes.
Yug cursed.
[A/N: Anybody worked it out?]
Binky, Zeta, purplepal - hope part IV's to your liking.
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