Abhir winced as Armaan’s fist struck his jaw, a harsh punishment for refusing to accept Armaan’s wife as his sister after everything that had happened. The tense atmosphere crackled like static, thick with anger and unspoken pain.
“You hurt Abhira, Abhir!” Armaan’s voice thundered, his words laced with fury. “Neither you nor Ruhi deserve her!”
But Abhir didn’t react. He barely registered the words, his mind still reeling from the bombshell that his mother, whom he had foolishly believed to be dead, had been alive all these years, raising her second child and leaving him behind as if he were nothing.
Armaan’s rage boiled over as he raised his fist to hit Abhir again who just stood there, rooted, too consumed by his turmoil to care about the blow that was about to land. But it never came.
Instead, a sharp cry of pain filled the air, followed by the heavy thud of a body hitting the ground. Startled, Abhir blinked and looked up and saw Armaan lying unconscious on the grassy ground.
Abhir’s shock deepened when he saw Ruhi standing just a step behind where Armaan had stood moments ago. She had a thick, wooden stick clutched in her trembling hands, her disheveled hair and wild, tear-filled eyes painting a picture of raw, unrestrained fury.
“Did you -” Abhir’s voice faltered as he tried to process what he was seeing, “Did you just hit him?”
Ruhi dropped the stick like it had burned her, the clatter echoing in the silence. She took a shaky step forward, her lips quivering as tears spilled freely down her cheeks.
“Abhir,” she whispered his name like a sacred prayer, tears streaming down her cheeks. Her trembling hands reached for his face, cradling it gently, “Mera bhai.”
That was all it took.
A strangled sob tore from Abhir’s throat as the dam of his emotions broke. Years of pain, betrayal, and longing flooded out, leaving him defenseless against the wave of grief and love that overwhelmed him. Tears blurred his vision as he finally let himself feel the weight of everything he had suppressed for so long.
Ruhi pulled him into her arms, holding him as if she’d never let go. Her cries mingled with his as she clung to him, whispering his name like a sacred chant, calling him by that endearment he had longed to hear, “My Billa Boy,” she sobbed. “Abhir.”
Abhir slowly wrapped his arms around her, his grip tightening as the enormity of the moment sank in. For 23 years, he had lived without this bond, this familial love. And now, it was as if the shattered pieces of his soul were being put back together.
The two siblings stood there, crying in each other’s embrace, oblivious to the world around them and the unconscious man lying at their feet. For now, all that mattered was that they had found their way back to each other.
"You idiot!" her voice cracked as she hit Abhir's arm with her fist while still hugging him, "You are back. You are finally back!"
Abhir let her hit him without any complaints, "How could you?! Why didn't you come back? Do you even have an idea about how much I missed you?"
"I missed you too, Ruhi Chuhi." Abhir admitted, "I just didn't think that you would want me back after what happened before mumma and I left with Dadda."
"You said you hated me -" Ruhi did not let him finish the sentence. She pulled back from the embrace and slapped Abhir hard on his shoulder, "Tu pagal hai?"
Abhir pouted slightly while Ruhi wiped her tears furiously before continuing, "I won't deny that I hated Akshu maasi and I still do but I do not hate you, Abhir. How could you even believe that I would ever hate you?!"
"But -" Abhir tried to argue but could not as Ruhi added, "You had nothing to do with what happened with my parents, you were just taking your mother's side. There's nothing wrong in that." she placed her hand on his cheek, "Tu bhai hai mera and that too my favorite one. I could never hate you. Never, ever."
"Sacchi?" asked Abhir, feeling like a kid again in front of his sister.
Ruhi glared at him, "Ek thappad marungi toh bharosa hoga?" she raised her hand as if to slap him but Abhir caught it in mid and chuckled through his tears, "Nahi! There's no need for that. I believe you."
He looked a little afraid and Ruhi couldn't help bursting into peals of laughter, "Billa boy tu kitna prakop hai!" she exclaimed pulling at his curly hair.
Rolling his eyes fondly, Abhir corrected her like he used to when they were kids, "Prakop nahi Ru, darpok."
"Wahi, wahi!" Ruhi giggled making Abhir laugh as well.
"You still haven't changed, have you?" Abhir hit Ruhi lightly on the head but regretted his words when he saw the light in her eyes dim, "I -" he did not know what to say.
Ruhi shook her head, "Some things haven't change but some have. We have a lot to talk about and you have to answer all the questions that I am going to ask. But first -" her tone softened briefly as she gently caressed his bruised cheek. Then, without a warning, she turned sharply on her heel and delivered a brutal kick to the ribs of the still-unconscious Armaan.
"Ruhi!" Abhir shrieked, his eyes widening in alarm as she marched over to Armaan’s side and dropped to the ground beside him.
Before he could stop her, Ruhi unleashed her fury. A slap. A punch. Another kick. Her strikes landed with such force and relentless precision that Abhir could only watch in horrified disbelief.
"Ruhi, stop it!" he cried, his voice trembling with both panic and concern.
But Ruhi was beyond reason, "This ghatiya aadmi!" she spat, punctuating her words with another hard slap, "Iski itni himmat ki mere bhai ko maare!" her wild, tear-streaked face bore a mixture of fury and heartbreak as she hit him again and again, "How dare he hit my Billa Boy!"
"Iski toh!" Ruhi continued attacking Armaan causing Abhir's eyes to widen in horror.
“Ruhi, enough!” Abhir yelped, rushing forward as Ruhi delivered another sharp kick to Armaan’s ribs.
“No, Abhir!” Ruhi snapped, brushing his hands off as she glared at the unconscious man sprawled on the ground, “He hit you! You! My brother! How dare he?”
Her voice rose with each word, and before Abhir could intervene, Ruhi leaned down and slapped Armaan again, muttering under her breath, “I will teach him a lesson today so that he wouldn't dare to hit you again.”
Abhir gawked at her and tried to pull her away from Armaan, “Ruhi, he’s unconscious! Bas kar yaar! This is bordering on a crime scene now!”
Ruhi pushed him away lightly and shot him a withering glare, “Good! Maybe when he wakes up, he will think twice before raising his hand against my brother!” she punctuated her words with another slap, followed by a swift kick to Armaan’s shin.
“Oye Ruhi Chuhi!” Abhir shouted, genuinely panicking now, “Tu pagal ho gayi hai kya? Mar jayega bechara if you continued hitting him and I ain't bailing you out of jail for this!”
“Jail?” Ruhi scoffed, tossing her hair over her shoulder, “If anyone should go to jail, it’s him! Hitting you like that. Isn't that an offence?” she raised her hand again, and Abhir lunged forward, grabbing her wrist mid-swing.
“Stop it, Ruhi Chuhi!” he begged, his voice a mix of exasperation and alarm, “He can’t even defend himself right now! And it was just a punch, you stopped him before he could hit me again. It is enough.” he tried to reason with her.
“Ha! He’s lucky I didn’t bring a cricket bat, or this would’ve ended much worse for him!” Ruhi huffed and finally pulled away from Armaan.
"Woh toh pata hai mujhe." Abhir shook his head, unable to suppress the smile tugging at his lips.
He glanced nervously at Armaan, whose breathing was now audible but unnervingly wheezy, “I think you broke a rib or two.” he muttered feeling proud, happy, and nervous at the same time.
Abhir was ecstatic about having someone defend him and fight for him like that but he was also nervous considering the fact that the unconscious and beaten up man was a lawyer with too much money on his hand and could hurt Ruhi back.
But Ruhi did not look worried. Instead, she shrugged, brushing nonexistent dust off her hands. “Good.” and she was about to kick him for one last time but her brother stopped her before she could.
“No, Ruhi, not good!” Abhir cried, stepping between her and Armaan. “You have made your point, okay? I’m fine. Let’s leave it at that before he ends up needing CPR or something.”
Ruhi’s jaw tightened, and for a moment, Abhir feared she would ignore him entirely. But then she let out a long, frustrated sigh, throwing her hands in the air, “Fine!”
Abhir relaxed slightly, only to tense up again when Ruhi added, “But if he so much as looks at you wrong again, I swear, I’ll—”
“Ruhi!”
“Okay, okay! I’m done!” she relented, stepping back with a loud huff.
Abhir sighed in relief, turning to check on Armaan. But as he crouched down to assess the damage, Ruhi mumbled, “Actually -” and before he could react, she nudged Armaan's side with her foot one last time, muttering, “That’s for good measure.”
“Ruhi!”
“Alright, now I’m done,” she said innocently, batting her eyelashes.
Abhir shook his head, torn between exasperation and disbelief, “You are a menace!” he muttered unable to hold in the chuckle that escaped his lips, "Pagal hai tu!" he exclaimed laughing as he hauled her away from the scene.
Ruhi smirked, her chin held high, “I am a protective sister. There's a big difference.”
As Abhir dragged her further away, he couldn’t help but glance back at Armaan, who lay sprawled on the grass, battered and bruised, “If he ever remembers this, he’s going to sue us.” Abhir muttered under his breath, "You will go to jail for attempted murder and I will be charged as your accomplice."
Ruhi simply grinned, unfazed, “He won't." she giggled, "His wife won't let him."
Abhir rolled his eyes again as both of them packed up his tent and belongings, "Have you been living in a tent all these years?" Ruhi questioned feeling upset for her brother who spent so many years alone, "Kitni kushmilon mein jiya hoga mera billa boy." she muttered to herself, her eyes getting misty.
Abhir looked at her with a wide smile on his face, "Kushmilon nahi hota Ru! Mushkilon mein hota hai."
"Wahi, wahi." commented Ruhi earning a delighted and fond chuckle from Abhir, "Kushmilein toh thhi." he teased, "But I managed. I have my place, it's just I love staying in a tent." he added zipping up his bags.
"Then let's go to your place. You promised you will answer all my questions." Ruhi reminded. In response, Abhir nodded and said, "Haan meri maa! I will tell you everything. Ab chalein?"
"Chal." Ruhi grabbed a bag from his hand as the two of them walked away not caring about the battered, bruised, and unconscious man.
I loved wohi wohi scenes
Ruhi acting protective sister is such a good plot. I hope makers add that in their story too
Jhanak
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