CHAPTER 44（MAHI）
The first thing I felt was confusion.
My head felt heavy.
My eyes slowly opened, but everything around me was blurry at first.
I blinked a few times.
The room.
The walls.
The memories.
Everything started coming back.
Raj.
Kavya.
The cabin.
My heart immediately started beating faster.
Then I heard voices.
A familiar one.
Aryan.
My eyes widened.
Aryan.
He was here.
For one second, relief filled my chest.
He found me.
But that relief disappeared the moment I looked properly.
My heart dropped.
He wasn't okay.
He was there in front of me, facing them, still fighting even when he shouldn't have been in that position.
"Aryan..."
I tried to say his name.
But no sound came out the way I wanted.
Panic rushed through me.
I tried again.
Nothing.
My eyes moved quickly, trying to understand what was happening.
I wanted to warn him.
I wanted to tell him to be careful.
I wanted to tell him I was okay.
But I couldn't.
My eyes filled with frustration.
Not because of myself.
Because of him.
Because even after everything...
His first thought was still me.
I watched him carefully.
And even now, even when things were against him, he looked at Raj like he wasn't afraid.
That was Aryan.
Stubborn.
Impossible.
The person who made me feel like I didn't have to carry everything alone.
My eyes moved toward Raj.
Then back to Aryan.
A silent fear settled inside me.
I knew Raj.
I knew how unpredictable he could be.
And I knew Aryan.
I knew he would push until he won.
But this time...
I didn't want him to fight alone.
I tried to move.
Tried to get his attention.
Anything.
Aryan's eyes shifted slightly.
For one second...
I wondered if he noticed.
If he knew I was awake.
His eyes met mine.
And everything stopped.
The anger in his face changed instantly.
Not gone.
Just softer.
Relief.
My eyes burned.
Because in that one look, I understood.
He had been searching for me.
For two days.
And now that he finally found me...
He still wasn't thinking about himself.
Only me.
I wanted to tell him I was okay.
I wanted to tell him not to worry.
But I couldn't.
So I just looked at him.
And hoped he understood.
Because if anyone could understand my silence...
It was him.
Raj didn't notice.
He didn't notice that my eyes were open.
He didn't notice that I was watching.
He was too lost in his own anger.
Too focused on Aryan.
"You still think you can win?" Raj said, his voice no longer calm.
The person standing in front of me didn't look like the same man who walked in smiling.
Something had changed.
And that scared me.
Because anger made people careless.
Aryan didn't look away from him.
Not even once.
"Raj," Aryan said calmly.
That calmness only made him worse.
"You always do that," Raj snapped.
A bitter laugh escaped him.
"You stand there like you're better than everyone."
Aryan's eyes stayed cold.
"No. I just know the difference between love and control."
The room went silent.
I saw it.
The way Raj's expression changed.
Like those words hit somewhere deep.
Wrong place.
Wrong time.
His hands tightened.
And suddenly, all the confidence he had before started cracking.
"You don't know anything about me."
His voice was louder now.
Aryan didn't answer.
He didn't need to.
Because Raj was already proving his point.
I tried to move again.
I wanted Aryan to know.
That he wasn't alone.
But I couldn't make a sound.
My eyes stayed locked on him.
Please...
Be careful.
Raj stepped closer to Aryan.
"You think she chose you because you're special?"
My heart tightened at his words.
Aryan's expression changed slightly.
Not because he believed him.
Because he knew exactly what Raj was trying to do.
"You're trying to convince yourself," Aryan said quietly.
A pause.
"That she chose me by mistake."
The silence after that was heavy.
Raj froze.
And I saw it.
Aryan had found the one thing that affected him.
The truth.
Raj's breathing changed.
His anger was no longer controlled.
It was spilling everywhere.
And Aryan knew it.
But even then...
His eyes flicked toward me for half a second.
Checking.
Making sure I was there.
Making sure I was okay.
And that small moment was enough.
Because I realized something.
Even trapped.
Even hurt.
Even surrounded by people trying to break him...
Aryan was still fighting.
Not for himself.
For me.
And I knew then...
I had to find a way to help him.
For a moment...
Everything went silent.
Raj was breathing heavily.
Aryan was still looking at him with that same calm expression.
And then—
Everything changed.
I saw the movement ,a black metal in view.
My eyes widened instantly.
No, A gun.
My heart dropped.
" Aryan..."
I tried to say his name.
But my voice still wouldn't come.
Panic rushed through me.
I tried harder to move.
Tried to make some sound.
Anything.
But nothing worked.
Aryan noticed the change in my expression.
His eyes flicked toward me.
And the second he saw my face...
He understood.
Something was wrong.
But he didn't look scared.
That was the thing about him.
Even in the worst moments...
He tried to make everyone else feel safe.
Raj's voice was shaking now.
"You still think you can win?"
Aryan didn't answer immediately.
He just looked at him.
Then slowly said,
"This isn't winning, Raj."
A pause.
"This is you losing control."
Those words made Raj's expression change again.
Like Aryan had exposed something he didn't want anyone to see.
I watched Aryan carefully.
My heart was racing.
Not because I doubted him.
Because I knew him.
I knew he would push until the end.
But I also knew...
He was doing it because of me.
Aryan's eyes met mine for a second.
And in that one look, I saw everything.
Don't be scared.
I'm here.
I'm not leaving.
My eyes burned.
Because even now...
Even when he was the one trapped...
He was trying to comfort me.
Raj noticed our silence.
His expression hardened.
"You two still think you can defeat me?"
Aryan looked back at him.
And somehow...
He smiled slightly.
Not because the situation was funny.
Because he knew something Raj didn't.
"You made one mistake," Aryan said.
Raj stared at him.
"What?"
Aryan's voice became quieter.
"You thought taking her away would make me weak."
A pause.
"But you forgot something."
His eyes moved toward me.
"She's the reason I don't give up."
The room went completely still.
And for the first time...
I saw uncertainty cross Raj's face.
Because no matter what he did...
He couldn't understand one thing.
He thought fear would break us.
But he didn't know Aryan.
And he didn't know me.
For a second...
Nobody moved.
And then—
Raj's expression changed.
The last bit of control disappeared from his face.
My heart stopped.
"Aryan..."
I tried again.
I needed him to move.
I needed him to understand.
But everything happened too fast.
A loud sound filled the room A GUN SHOT.
My entire body froze.
My eyes went straight to Aryan.
No.
No, no, no.
My mind stopped working.
All I could see was him.
The person who spent two days searching for me.
The person who came here knowing it could be a trap.
Because of me.
Fear took over my entire body.
I tried to move.
Tried to scream.
Tried to reach him.
But I couldn't.
And then—
A sudden crash echoed through the room.
The wall behind us shook.
Everything turned into chaos.
People rushed in.
Voices.
Footsteps.
Confusion.
I couldn't understand anything.
My eyes stayed on only one person.
Aryan.
"Sir!" someone shouted.
I saw unfamiliar people moving toward Raj and Kavya.
They were finally stopping them.
Finally.
But I didn't care.
Not right now.
I only cared about Aryan.
Someone came toward me.
"Mahi, we need to get you out of here."
I barely heard him.
My eyes never left Aryan.
Ekansh.
It was Ekansh.
He tried to pull me away.
"Mahi, come on."
But the second I realized they were taking me away from Aryan...
I broke free.
I didn't think.
I just moved.
Ran.
Straight toward him.
"Aryan..."
The name stayed trapped inside me, but my heart was screaming it.
I reached him and dropped down beside him.
My hands shook.
Not because of fear for myself.
Because of him.
Because he was here.
Because he found me.
Because he came for me.
For a second...
The whole world stopped.
The sound disappeared.
The voices disappeared.
Everything disappeared except him.
Aryan.
I don't remember how I moved.
One second I was standing there frozen...
The next second I was beside him.
"Aryan..."
My voice broke.
I reached toward him with shaking hands.
No.
No, please.
Not him.
Not after everything.
Not after he came for me.
My fingers touched his hand.
Cold fear ran through me.
"Aryan, open your eyes..."
Nothing.
My breathing became uneven.
I didn't care about anything else anymore.
Not Raj.
Not Kavya.
Not the chaos around us.
Only him.
I leaned closer, trying to see if he was responding.
My hands were shaking so badly.
"Please..."
My voice cracked.
"Please don't do this."
I hated how scared I felt.
Because I had survived so much.
I had stayed strong when I was alone.
But seeing him like this...
It broke every wall I had built.
"Mahi!"
I heard Ekansh's voice behind me.
He rushed toward us, his face changing the second he saw Aryan.
For the first time...
I saw fear on Ekansh's face too.
He immediately pulled out his phone.
"Call emergency services," he said to someone nearby.
His voice was controlled.
But I could hear the panic underneath.
I didn't move.
I couldn't.
My eyes stayed on Aryan.
Tears blurred my vision.
"You came for me..."
I whispered.
"You actually came for me..."
My voice trembled.
"You idiot..."
A sob escaped before I could stop it.
"You promised me you would be careful."
I held onto his hand tighter.
Like somehow that would keep him here.
Like somehow he would hear me.
Ekansh crouched beside me.
"Mahi..."
I looked at him.
My eyes filled with fear.
"Is he going to be okay?"
For a moment, he didn't answer.
And that silence scared me more than anything.
Then he said softly,
"He will."
But I could hear the worry in his voice.
I looked back at Aryan.
The same Aryan who always acted strong.
The same Aryan who stood between me and every storm.
Now I was the one sitting beside him.
Waiting.
Praying.
And for the first time in days...
I wasn't scared of Raj.
I wasn't scared of being trapped.
I was scared of losing the person who came to find me.