She stared at the mirror, her eyes taking in her reflection. Almost subconsciously, her hand rose and her fingers curled to hold her cheeks, a pink, mauled mass of flesh in a tanned face.
"Meera, stop it. You look just as beautiful as before, if not more. That isn't a disfigurement, it is a battle scar. It is the proof of your survival," Karan whispered in her ears, hugging her from behind.
She smiled softly, meeting his gaze in the mirror.
"Well, you did save my life. If anything, it reminds me of my knight in soot and charred clothes, my saviour with a hose." Her eyes crinkled at the corners as her smile widened, her charcoal eyes gleaming with adoration.
He laughed, a tinge of red suffusing into his complexion as he blushed faintly.
"It was just a 'right place, right time' thing. Anybody would have done it. All I could notice was the inferno in front of me and the bloodcurdling screams from the building. When I saw you at the window, banging on that glass, tears streaming down your face, I couldn't bear to see it, so I ran inside to help." He hugged her closer, remembering the time he almost lost her before he had her.
"All I know is that I almost died that day three weeks ago, and you saved me. You could have let me die, after the way I rejected you when you asked me out. But you almost died saving me." Tears sprang from her eyes as she relived the crippling fear, the smell of burning flesh and the feeling of her lungs sputtering for life.
He turned her around and crushed her into a protective hug, his eyes clenched shut.
"I will always love you, idiot. No matter what you say or do. You are mine and I am yours. Now stop going down memories and come join me for lunch. I brought biryani." He tugged her away from the mirror, heading towards the kitchen.
She had finished her plate when she heard a knock on the door. She almost rose from her seat when her insecurities hit her. The flash of horror as they notice the burn, the overwhelming sympathy, and the delicate shudder. She trembled in her chair.
Karan smiled understandingly, before getting up to get the door. The doorbell rang again, impatience apparent. Scowling mildly, he opened the door.
"Have some patien-," he cut himself off midway, staring at the men in uniform khakis.
"Mr Karan Malhotra, you are under arrest for arson." One man growled, handcuffing him deftly.
"Who is it? Karan, what is going on?" Bewildered, Meera walked to the door, her face covered by her veil.
"Madam, this man is under arrest for setting fire to the library three weeks ago. " The officer said, his voice lowering in sympathy as he noticed the scars.
"No, no. You are mistaken. He saved my life in that fire. Why would he set the fire? How could you say that?" She shook her head vehemently, her earrings jangling a ferocious tune.
She tried to protest as he was led away, tried to stop the policemen, but sympathetic hands held her back.
"Ma'am, we found his fingerprints on the lighter that was found outside the burnt building. We assumed he must have dropped it in his hurry to save the people inside the building, but then we got the remains of a CCTV feed from the library. It was damaged, but it was unmistakable." A kind-faced female officer explained patiently later, offering her a glass of tea.
Meera accepted the glass with shaking hands, heart aching in betrayal and horror.
"But... why? Why start a fire, only to save everyone in the building? That doesn't make sense. Nothing changed." She mumbled, staring at the frothy beverage.
"Well, we asked around. It turns out he had been stalking you for a few months. He had tried asking you out for tea, but you had shot him down, embarrassing him. You might think that nothing has changed, but for him, everything has," Another officer pitched in, eyes trained at hers, "he is now a hero in your eyes."
"No, I mean, he almost didn't save me. He almost didn't notice me stuck in the back of the library. I almost died. He wouldn't have planned it that way, he couldn't have." She denied it, refusing to accept it, but her mind conjured up images and scenarios.
"He intended for you to get burned. Your scar was his fail safe, a way to make sure you couldn't leave him for another man. Your mother said he supported you wholeheartedly when you declined plastic surgery." They explained gently.
For the second time in the month, the ground gave way beneath her, and her eyes burned. This time, she was the only one burning. This time, she was afraid nobody could save her.
*********
(01/06)