FF : Dil Ibaadat

Chapter - 99 | Pride and Prejudice

Slowly, what had happened that evening started to play in front of her awake eyes.

The way he came to her rescue, the gentle hold of his hand, his softened stare during the unplanned melody of "Mere haath mein tera haath ho," and him willingly caring for her wounds—everything—every detail replayed in her mind.

As her eyes hesitantly fell on her burnt hand, a shy and puzzled sensation washed over her entire being.

It was a feeling she couldn't quite comprehend, leaving her stupefied and bewildered.

It was as if a butterfly had taken off, its delicate wings creating a flutter across her heart.

She was taken aback by the unexpected rush of emotions, unsure what had triggered them or why she was feeling this way.

As the remembrance of the moment continued to wrap its tendrils around her, she felt an inner struggle, a desire to push away the overwhelming feelings.

"Main..."

"Main kya soch rhi hoon..." she said, shaking her head in disbelief.

She couldn't shake off the feeling that had just taken hold of her.

The shy confusion in her eyes reflected her vulnerability as she struggled to make sense of her own emotions.

As she began to recap the tube, she couldn't help but wander back to her previous thoughts. About him, obviously.

Her hand still in pain, tingled from the warmth of reminiscence about his tender touch.

She was tempted to push back all these thoughts to the extreme end of her brain, while at the same time wanting to permit herself to think about it a little longer.

"Main bhi na..." she uttered, finding herself inexplicably caught up in a seemingly inconsequential detail.

"Pta nhi kabhi-kabhi kya ho jaata hai mujhe..." she muttered to herself, self-reproaching for getting lost in his thoughts without rhyme or reason.

Lately, it seemed to happen quite frequently.

Whether in the hallowed halls of her college, the homeliness of her PG, or anywhere else, she gets completely immersed in thinking about him, almost as if the rest of the world fades away.

Her precious time seems to slip away in the puzzling realm of his thoughts.

She couldn't fathom the reason behind this, nor could she untangle the thread of emotions she had recently experienced.

Despite the lingering traces of the strange sensation, she gradually regained her composure, the shyness and puzzlement fading away like whisps of smoke.

The memory of the moment still danced on the edges of her consciousness, but she adopted the idea of leaving it unexplored for now.

Some mysteries were best left unsolved for the time being, she thought.

As she was thinking about all of this, thought of a person associated to him surfaced.

"Aastha Mam..." she gasped.

It was now that she realized she hadn't talked to her since the fest day and that she needed to do it.

Anokhi replaced the tube and proceeded to wash her hands in the washbasin. After drying her hands, she picked up her mobile.

She set the call for her Mam. The call was picked up after a while.

"Anokhi..." came the happy-tinted voice from the other side.