NOTE : It's a sequel to "Lost" and cannot be read as a standalone.
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"Are there any stars?" She inquires and he doesn't understand what she meant.
There were no stars.
"Can you see the moon up there?"...
Inaaya let's out a dry laugh at that statement. "Is that the reason why it took you two years and eight months?" She mocks making him look at her with bewilderment. "Were you busy planning for a back-up story and building up a sob story to tell me and convince that your feelings, which you never expressed," she adds animatedly, "were true?" She raises her eyebrows.
Ayansh tries to look for a hint that could tell him that she didn't mean whatever she said. Maybe she did think that and he, himself had given her reasons to think so but her accusations were nothing less than bullets piercing hole in his heart and it was goddamn painful. "Do you really think that?" He asks her instead and she hates how uneasy the question makes her feel.
Emotions should come with a switch on and off button because how could she feel disgusted and in love with the same person at the same time? She hated how he managed to cause an eruption of conflicting feelings within her which ended in making her feel more weak than ever, questioning her words and actions, fears and beliefs. She hated how he looked at her with so much anguish that she felt as if someone was trying to remove a dagger pierced in her chest when she wished they could leave the wound as it is because the more they tried to help her, the more she suffered.
A low whimper spills out of her lips and she looks up, swallowing back her tears. Ayansh never felt this helpless ever as he watched her breaking down and he couldn't even reach her. It felt history was repeating and even after pledging that he wouldn't let it happen, he couldn't help but simply watch them falling prey to the games of fate.
"Inaaya, please," he murmurs, gazing at her with a fervent need to engulf her in his arms. "I'm sorry."
"No, Ayansh!" She whisper yells as tears stream down her face incessantly. "You don't get it, do you?" She couldn't help but let out her frustrations at him. She was exhausted, tired of her life, tired of him, tired of her own self. "I don't trust you. And you've no right to question me for it. You can't just barge into my life when I was doing just fine and make everything about yourself! You can't act as if I'm the one who betrayed you and who keeps hurting you. You can't just reside in my thoughts the whole time and you can't become the centre of my universe." She sobs and mumbles dejectedly, "not again."
Ayansh lowers his head, pressing the back of his palm over his mouth and sniffs. He hated it. He hated to see her cry, he hated it even more that the reason behind her sobs were him. "I know I don't deserve you." He swallows, looking far away into the abyss of darkness that was spread out over them. "I'm not here to make my way back into your life. You.... you deserve better," he breathes out, feeling suffocated in his own skin. "but please, trust me for once. I'm not lying. I just want to apologise to you, clear the misunderstandings and gain your forgiveness. Nothing else."
Inaaya wipes the tears and took a deep breath, composing yourself. She looked up. "Do you see the sky?" She asks him.
Ayansh looks down at her, bemused and turns his head up again.
"Are there any stars?" She inquires and he doesn't understand what she meant.
There were no stars.
"Can you see the moon up there?" She continues.
There was no moon.
"It's dark." Ayansh replies when he sees her waiting for his response.
Inaaya turns her gaze to him, a peculiar look swimming in her eyes. "Exactly."
Ayansh looks back at her, more confusion getting painted over his face.
"It's dark. No stars, no moon, nothing." Inaaya adds solemnly. "That's how we're and that's how things between us stand. I trusted you and you broke it and that's the end. There's no hope or light here. All there ever will be around is despair."
Ayansh listens to her and after a moment, carefully, takes a step ahead and a slight relief washes over him when she doesn't flinch. "Look up again." He whispers and after a little reluctance, she follows.
"Surely it's dark," he says as she watches the sky ardently. "But it doesn't promise to be dark forever," he murmurs lowly and her heart thuds against her ribcage at the determination his voice held. "It's dark today but tomorrow? Maybe tomorrow, there will be stars and the moon too. Maybe tomorrow, you can see the light and the hope too. Maybe tomorrow, the despair would fade away."
Inaaya whips her head back at him and her breath hitches when she finds him already staring at her, an intense conviction looped with a delicate softness.
She steps away from him, pulling at the sleeves of her sweater. Without another word, she starts to walk away.
"Inaaya, wait." Ayansh rushes, putting a hand before her and she halts. "I'll drop you." He looks at her pleadingly.
She glowers at him from the corner of her eyes. "I can go by my own."
Ayansh walks besides her. "Fine, I'll walk with you."
Inaaya stops abruptly, partially annoyed and partially overwhelmed emotionally. "I can't deal with more." It takes enormous amount of strength to say without letting her voice crack.
"You're not walking home." He says firmly, still gazing at her the same way. "I don't care right now if you trust me or not but you'll fall ill if you're just going to let yourself freeze in this cold. And I- I can't let you go alone at this time."
She rolls her eyes at his so called concern. "Fine, I'll call the cab." She gives in and he thanks internally.
They stand in silence as they wait for the cab on the pavement, a little distance from the trailer house.
Inaaya feels irritated and aggravated by his presence but she controls herself from unleashing her fury on him. She feared if she could blast him off again without breaking down herself. Ayansh simply stands, an adequate distance between them, stealing glances, concerned about her.
When the cab arrives, Inaaya gets in without sparing another look at Ayansh and he watches as the vehicle takes the curve and disappears from his sight.
Later, he called Maya whose number he had acquired through her bakery and made sure if Inaaya reached home or not.
***
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Happens rarely but I actually wrote this chapter in one stretch. I've my semester exams from Wednesday so updates will be irregular. Sorry :(
Also, can y'all kindly vote and if possible, drop in a comment? I mean, it actually doesn't take much to appreciate if you're liking the story. Will be really grateful if you could share the story with your friends too. Much love ❤️
