Broken Strings

Same

Jay POV

I lifted her from the floor and made my way into her bedroom. She had her eyes closed but her breathing is not even so I know that she is awake. I placed her gently on the bed and sat beside her, holding her hand.

"Don't leave."

"I wasn't planning to."

Her fingers tightened around my hold. I stroked my thumb rhythmically across the back of her hand just like I did for Maanav whenever he was hit with trauma. It helps he said. I watched her face as it slowly relaxed and her breathing started to get even.

"It hurts." She mumbled and her breathing evened out.

A strange wave of something hit my gut. It was familiar and yet so strange. It was tiny but significant enough, but I felt it. I wrapped my arms around her and nestled closer to her. Her head came under my chin and her hands came around me instantly.

"I know. I may not feel it......but I can understand."

And we dozed off.

.

The phone rang for a few seconds before he picked up.

"What happened? Is everything ok?" Maanav voice came in a frantic jumbled mess.

Maybe calling him was a bad idea.

"Relax. Nothing happened." yet I added in my mind.

"I don't know, something always is up whenever you call me. What is it now?"

"I just wanted to ask you whether you know anything about Swecha's family history?"

"Google didn't help you?"

"Not exactly. Is there anything about that family that no one knows off?"

I heard some shuffling on the other side and I knew he was moving to a place where no one can hear him.

"I am not gonna question you about anything, but if things get mixed up I am gonna burn you alive, Game of Thrones style."

"Noted."

"I don't know much about it too. But the word has it that Swecha was not actually adopted into that family. Her father actually had an affair way before his marriage to Mrs Agrawal and that the affair continued even after their marriage."

"So you are saying that Swecha could be their daughter?"

"Possibly. Swecha's grandfather, Raghul Agrawal, went livid after he heard about his affair and tried to kill them off. But I think something happened that night. The next thing we knew is Deepak Agrawal, Swecha's father introducing everyone Swecha that he adopted her from some far way orphanage."

"But isn't Swecha really close with her grand father? That is what she said and that they drifted apart after her mom's death."

"Like I said I don't know exactly what happened but no one is actually sure about Swecha's birth details. For all we know she might actually is adopted into that family. But what I am sure of is that her step mother, Ananya Agrawal went literally crazy after Swecha stepped into that household. She always had some psychological problems since she was a kid but Swecha coming to their house made it even worse. If what I heard was right she harassed Swecha quite a bit before she got paralysed and went into coma."

"Why did she suddenly get paralysed? I mean there has to be a reason right?"

The sound of shuffling came again and his voice went down a notch.

"Do you know why Swecha is living in Goa right now instead of New York? Her entire family is blaming that she did something to her step mom and that she died because of Swecha. Her brother Anirudh went as far as to report her to the court when her father stepped in and made her to shift here. It is pretty complicated you see. Her family and stuff is a one very big mess."

I sighed.

"It is complicated. But I still don't understand her grandfather part."

"I know. No one does. The only one who can give you answers is Swecha and her father and they both would never open up. Trust me. Why are you so interested either way. It is not like you. Did something happened to Swecha?"

"Nothing. She is fine. She is sleeping now."

"How do- Is she in our apartment now? What is she doing in our apartment?"

"She was drunk last night. So I let her stay over in the apartment."

"Are you sure that is the only reason?"

"Goodbye Maanav. Please do catch some food poisoning and die and never come back."

I hung up the phone.

I know I am maturity incarnation.

...

Swecha was awake and eating the breakfast I made when I returned back from my tutor classes. She smiled and waved up at me as I entered but the dark circles under her eyes are far more pronounced than before. She putting on a great act of being ok.

I sat opposite to her on the dinning table and started serving myself up.

"Did you talk to Maanav yet? How is he doing over there?"

"I haven't said anything to Maanav about last night. Relax."

I said eating up the toast I made. She scowled at me.

"I was genuinely asking about how he I. But thank you for the assurance." She said her tone irritated.

I continued eating and opened up my phone to read the news. Swecha kept starring at me. I ignored her.

She coughed.

I ignored.

She coughed.

I ignored.

She threw a series of fit of cough.

I ignored.

"Pi?! Aren't you gonna ask me anything?"

"Are you gonna answer my questions?"

"Of course not."

"Then why do I bother?"

She opened her mouth and closed again.

Open.

Close.

Open.

Close.

Finally she said-

"That's true." And smiled up at me showing all her white teeth. Her entire face lightened up with that smile,

I coughed and shook my head to get my bearings.

"How did you come up with such a great thought though?"

"I fend off people by being as emotionless as I can and I instill a fear of approach towards me in the people around me. That is my defence mechanism. You do the same by babbling and confusing the shit out of them and shower them with a bunch of mood swings that they brace themselves while approaching you. That is your mechanism. The method we use is different but at the end we make the same product."

I proudly proclaimed the theory I spent last night working on.

"You spent a night working on it didn't you?"

My expression must have gave me off because she said then-

"Like you said we are likely the same with different mechanisms. But we are same."

And she smiled.