Every Flame

13 | confusions and no solutions

Because that was his problem.

But then that incident happened. And I was guilty.

And Kabir Raizada hated me more than ever.

He was making me go insane.

A knock on the door got me out of my thoughts and I noticed Arya leaning on the doorframe, holding two cans of beer.

"Care for a drink?" She walked in while I crossed my legs and made space for her to sit on the bed.

She sat, facing me and kept the cans in between us. She held out one can for me and I shook my head, I don't think I was in the mood to drink.

"You're refusing beer?" She raised a brow and I smiled at her little act of being surprised. I never refuse a drink.

"I don't feel like it," I told her and she nodded, understanding the meaning hidden under my words.

"It's in a few days," she says quietly, the air suddenly felt tense between us.

I hummed.

"How are you holding up?" I sighed when she asked me that question.

"Is there anything to hold up? Everything has fallen apart," I painfully smiled at her and suddenly, all of that pain, that suffering of five years felt real again. As if it was never gone.

"You know," I moved back and rested my back against the headboard, "on the day of his death, he told me something— forever is a myth. Instead, he made a promise of till death do us apart," More than his I love you, this had stayed more on my mind.

Every time I thought about him, his promise always surfaced in my mind. It felt as if he knew something was about to happen. And the idea of it always unsettled me.

"You think something happened to him?" Arya asked. I looked at her silently and then slowly shook my head.

"No, I had checked. There was nothing of that sort. It was Abhi's fault actually," My voice shook as I recalled the CCTV footage I saw at the police station five years ago. "He was riding the bike on the wrong side." Even though it was a recording, I had seen it. I had seen my love taking his last breath. I wished, I really wished that I had gotten a chance to scold him for being too adventurous. He wanted to give me something and he wanted to give me that gift the day itself.

One wrong decision just ruined everything.

"Your brother proposed to me," Arya choked on her drink. I went over to pat her back as she started coughing violently. "I thought you guys are not on good terms?" she croaked while patting her chest.

I shrugged. I was never going to tell her about my ongoing feud with her brother. Some things were better left untold.

"You don't like him," she narrowed her eyes at me, "but it looks like you are kind of considering it."

"Bingo!"

"What is it? Like an arranged setup?" she chuckled and I pressed my lips to hide my smile. "But honestly, I think you guys would make a good couple."

The smile on my face faded as I looked at her in surprise. "What are you saying?"

"You want my honest opinion?"

I nodded.

Arya took a good long pause before she put her views in front of me.

"I think it will be a great match," she heavily emphasised on great and I couldn't help but look at her in displeasure. From where did it look like we would be great together?