Chapter 47
The room was finally quiet after an entire day filled with fear, questions, and tension, and for the first time since morning, Aariv felt exhausted enough to stop pretending he was okay, because his body was tired, his mind was tired, and even breathing felt heavy now.
He sat beside Veeransh on the bed silently for a few moments before finally leaning closer and resting his head against his shoulder.
"Veer..." he whispered softly.
"Hm?" Veeransh responded immediately, his fingers already moving into Aariv's hair, slowly caressing them in the calm, comforting way that always made Aariv feel safe.
Aariv closed his eyes for a second.
"I am tired of all these things..." he admitted quietly, his voice carrying a softness that hurt more than tears, "ye darr... ye sab... mujhe bas ek peaceful life chahiye..."
Veeransh's hand paused briefly before continuing again, gentler this time.
"With you," Aariv added after a moment, lifting his eyes toward him, "with our family..."
Something changed in Veeransh's expression at those words, something softer, deeper, because beneath all the fear and chaos, that was what he wanted too.
He touched Aariv's cheek lightly.
"I promise," he said quietly, his voice steady and certain, "main tumhe sab dunga... peace... love... faith... sab kuch..."
His thumb brushed softly against Aariv's skin.
"Bas thoda waqt lagega."
Aariv kept looking at him silently for a few seconds, as if searching his face for reassurance, and then suddenly, before Veeransh could understand what he was doing, Aariv pushed him lightly backward onto the bed and climbed onto his lap, straddling him carefully.
Veeransh looked at him with slight surprise, one brow lifting instinctively, though his hands immediately settled on Aariv's waist to steady him.
"What is my baby up to?" he asked softly, a faint smile finally appearing on his face after such a long day.
Aariv leaned closer slowly until their faces were only inches apart, his fingers lightly gripping Veeransh's shoulders as his voice dropped into a quiet whisper.
"I want you..."
Veeransh blinked once, clearly caught off guard.
"What?" he asked softly, almost unsure if he heard correctly.
Aariv lowered his gaze for a second before looking back at him again, and this time there was no hesitation in his eyes, only emotion, vulnerability, and something deeper than desire.
"I want us," he whispered, "for once... without fear... without all this darkness between us..."
Veeransh's expression softened instantly. His hands tightened gently around Aariv's waist as he looked at him quietly for a moment, and then he leaned forward and pressed a slow kiss against Aariv's forehead.
"You already have me," he murmured softly.
Aariv slowly started leaning toward him, his heartbeat becoming louder with every inch of distance disappearing between them, while Veeransh simply stayed still beneath him, his hands resting warmly on Aariv's waist as he closed his eyes, silently letting him do whatever he wanted without rushing him even once.
Aariv's breath trembled softly as he came closer. Until their lips were almost touching. But at the last second, reality seemed to hit him, and his courage broke instantly as shyness rushed through him all at once, making his entire face turn red.
He stopped abruptly and tried to pull back.
Veeransh opened his eyes immediately, frowning slightly in confusion before realizing what had happened, and the moment he saw Aariv's flushed face and nervous expression, a soft chuckle escaped him.
"Baby..." he murmured quietly.
Before Aariv could escape properly, Veeransh slid one hand behind his head gently and turned his face back toward himself and then he kissed him.
Aariv froze in his place instantly, his breath catching in his throat as Veeransh's lips moved against his slowly, patiently, like he was trying to teach him rather than overwhelm him.
The warmth of the kiss spread through Aariv's entire body so quickly that his fingers instinctively tightened around Veeransh's shoulders before slowly moving upward and wrapping around his neck.
Veeransh deepened the kiss little by little, not rushing, just holding him close while capturing his lips completely, and within moments Aariv's breathing became uneven, soft breaths escaping him helplessly between kisses.
Veeransh could feel him trembling slightly in his arms. Could feel how overwhelmed he was becoming and only when he realized Aariv was struggling to breathe properly did he finally pull away slowly, leaving his lips with a soft sound.
Both of them were breathing hard.
Aariv immediately dropped against Veeransh's chest with a soft thud, hiding his burning face there while trying to steady his breathing.
Veeransh smiled faintly and wrapped both arms tightly around him, pulling him even closer.
"Looks like my baby can't handle it, huh?
" he teased softly near his ear.
Aariv only pushed himself further into his chest in embarrassment, refusing to look at him at all, which only made Veeransh chuckle again before pressing another gentle kiss into his hair and holding him quietly, as if for those few moments, the darkness outside their room no longer existed.
After sometime Aariv slept like that and veeransh placed him comfortably on the bed and slept hugging him...
............
Next day
Aariv stood near the counter, trying to focus on making tea even though he could still feel Veeransh's presence behind him without even looking, because the man had barely left his side from yesterday.
"Aap baith jaiye na..." Aariv murmured softly while stirring the tea, already knowing Veeransh was standing far too close.
"Hm," Veeransh responded lazily, but made absolutely no attempt to move away.
Instead, he stepped even closer.
Aariv immediately felt his warmth against his back and his ears turned slightly red.
"Veer..." he whispered shyly.
Veeransh only smiled faintly before lowering his head and pressing a soft kiss near Aariv's temple.
Aariv instantly looked around nervously. "Koi aa jayega..."
"Let them," Veeransh replied calmly.
Before Aariv could say anything else, Veeransh turned him around gently by his waist and leaned down again, placing another quick peck on his lips.
Aariv's eyes widened slightly.
"Veer!" he whispered in embarrassment, pushing lightly against his chest.
But Veeransh looked completely unbothered. In fact, that shy reaction only seemed to encourage him more.
He leaned closer again and stole another kiss.
Soft pecks that barely lasted a second each, yet still managed to leave Aariv completely flustered.
"S.... stop it..." Aariv murmured weakly, though there was no real strength in his protest anymore.
Veeransh smiled against his lips. "Why?"
Aariv lowered his gaze immediately, his face warm as he tried to move away, but Veeransh's hands tightened around his waist and pulled him back.
"You were the one who said you wanted me," Veeransh reminded him quietly.
Aariv looked even more embarrassed after hearing his own words repeated back to him.
"I didn't mean like this..." he muttered softly.
Veeransh chuckled under his breath and tilted Aariv's chin upward gently before kissing him properly this time, slower than before, making Aariv freeze for a moment before his fingers slowly curled into Veeransh's shirt.
When Veeransh finally pulled away, Aariv immediately hid his face against his chest.
"My shy baby..." Veeransh murmured teasingly while kissing the top of his head.
Aariv only shook his head in embarrassment and held onto him tighter.
Their soft moment shattered suddenly when the cup placed near the counter cracked loudly on its own before breaking completely, the sharp sound echoing through the kitchen and making Aariv flinch violently.
Veeransh reacted instantly.
He pulled Aariv back against himself protectively, one arm wrapping tightly around his waist while his eyes immediately scanned the kitchen sharply.
Aariv's breathing became uneven at once. His fingers clutched the back of Veeransh's shirt tightly.
"Ye... ye apne aap kaise toot gaya...?" he whispered fearfully.
Veeransh looked toward the broken pieces scattered across the floor, his expression turning serious for a moment, but when he looked back at Aariv and saw genuine fear in his eyes, his expression softened immediately.
"It's nothing, baby," he said quietly, caressing Aariv's hair once, "let me see."
But the moment Veeransh tried to move forward, Aariv held him even tighter.
"Nahi..." he said quickly, shaking his head, "aap mat jaiye please..."
The fear in his voice was too obvious now almost childlike. Veeransh stopped immediately and turned back toward him fully.
"Trust me, bub," he murmured softly while holding his face gently, "kuchh nahi hoga mujhe."
Aariv still looked unconvinced.
His fingers loosened slowly from Veeransh's shirt, but his eyes never left him as Veeransh carefully walked toward the broken cup pieces.
And just as he bent slightly, about to touch the shattered glass....
"Kya kar rahe hain aap log?"
Both of them looked back instantly.
Yug stood near the kitchen entrance, looking at them with slight confusion.
Aariv immediately spoke, still shaken.
"Yuggie... ye cup apne aap toot gaya..."
Yug looked toward the floor before shrugging lightly.
"Arre koi chuha wagera hoga," he said casually, "don't worry."
Aariv shook his head quickly.
"Nahi, I swear... apne aap toota hai..."
Yug gave a small smile, calm and normal.
"Aree kuchh nahi hai," he said while walking inside, "jiju, aap Aaru ko bahar le jao... main saaf kar deta hoon."
Veeransh looked at him for a moment silently. Then nodded slightly. But Aariv immediately looked at Yug nervously.
"Nahi, Yuggie... tu mat chhoo... tujhe kuchh ho gaya to..."
Yug chuckled softly, almost amused by the concern, and bent down casually before picking up one of the broken glass pieces with his bare hand.
"Dekha?" he said lightly while showing it to Aariv, "mujhe kuchh nahi hua."
Then he smiled again.
"Ab jao dono... main clean kar deta hoon."
Veeransh finally guided Aariv out of the kitchen, though Aariv kept looking back nervously the entire time.
The moment they disappeared from sight .
The silence inside the kitchen changed. Yug slowly straightened.
The soft smile on his face faded.
Then It returned again but differently this time.
His eyes lowered toward the broken glass in his hand.
And without blinking he tightened his grip around it.
The sharp piece dug into his skin instantly.
Blood slowly slid down his fingers.
But Yug did not react. He did not even seem to feel the pain. He simply stood there silently while the smile on his face deepened slightly.
.