CHAPTER 38! SECOND DAY
The trap hadn't closed when he grabbed her.
It had sprung the moment she kissed him.
Aryav didn't give her room to breathe, let alone regret. His mouth found hers with a dark, controlled hunger that tasted of rain and iron, tearing through every wall she had spent months building between them.
He kissed her hard enough to steal the apology she hadn't spoken, his thumb swiping across her jawline to force her to yield. When she tried to breathe, he swallowed that too.
Then, he stopped.
Just like that, he pulled back.
He hovered inches above her face, his chest rising and falling in heavy, uneven patterns against hers, his eyes black as the storm outside.
His fingers lingered at the nape of her neck for one warning heartbeat before he let go, rolling onto his side of the bed.
Silence reclaimed the room, thick and defensive. Aadhira lay frozen, her pulse hammering violently against her ribs, her lips still stinging from the phantom heat of him.
Aadhira chup chap leti reh aakh mat milna.
Kaash blanket sir pe daal ke gayab ho sakti.
She curled into the edge of the mattress, staring at the wall until the storm outside finally ran out of lightning.
The next morning, the front doors of the villa slammed shut, and the consequences of their little rain dance arrived with brutal, synchronized efficiency.
"Achoo!"
"Achoo!"
"ACHOO!"
The explosive sneezes echoed across the cavernous marble living room like rapid gunfire.
Ruhi was cocooned entirely in a heavy woolen blanket, looking like a miserable ghost.
Beside her, Myra had ruthlessly stolen a second blanket from the sofa, wrapping it tightly around her shoulders.
Vaani was buried face-first into Kashvi's lap, while Shaurya stood near the thermostat, looking mildly offended by the mere existence of cold weather.
Reyansh rubbed his nose, pointing a strictly accusing finger at the shivering line of women. "Congratulations. We survived kidnappers just to lose a war against rain."
Aadhira glanced up from where she was kneeling on the rug, gently towel-drying Ayaan's damp hair.
Shabash, Aadhira Isse acha to tu ghar par ruk jati.
She kept her eyes fixed on the towel.
"It's one rainy evening. We aren't dying," she countered softly.
Another violent sneeze escaped Tara from across the room.
"You'll live."
"That's easy for you to say," Reyansh shot back, crossing his arms.
"It was your idea first." He looked around, personally attacked when no one rose to defend him.
"Why is no one supporting me?"
"Statistics," vivaan answered smoothly.
Aryav didn't look up from his laptop, his fingers typing a precise, unhurried rhythm.
Aadhira stiffened, her hands pausing on Ayaan's hair for a fraction of a second before resuming.
The living room fell into a collective ripple of laughter, breaking the heavy tension.
Even shourya let out a rare, quiet smirk from the armchair.
Reyansh stared at Aryav in profound betrayal. "That was entirely unnecessary."
Later that night, after the family had finally retreated to their rooms, Aadhira stood in the center of the guest bedroom facing two incredibly stubborn children.
Anything was better than looking at the king-sized bed behind her.
Ayaan stood with his arms crossed tightly over his chest.
Beside him, Vaani copied his posture immediately.
"Mama No," Ayaan stated firmly.
"Yes," Aadhira replied, holding up two thick, quilted winter jackets.
"It's warm. Bas thodi der."
"It's uncomfortable," the boy complained, twisting away.
Aadhira didn't argue.
She knelt, forcing his arms through the sleeves.
Ayaan pointed a dramatic finger down at the oversized, puffed fabric.
"I look bad."
Aadhira met his gaze, her voice dropping into a soft reassurance.
"Bhukhar aa jayega meri jaan, bas aaj ki raat pehen lo."
Vaani nodded with profound wisdom from the side. "Warm."
Aadhira pulled the second jacket over the little girl's head. "It's cold in the mountains at night. Neither of you are removing these until morning. Understand?"
The two children exchanged a long, calculated look, letting out a heavy, theatrical sigh.
"Fine," Ayaan muttered.
"Fine," Vaani echoed.
Aadhira pressed a soft kiss to each of their foreheads, checking for fever. "Good. Now sleep."
A fools' reprieve. The soft, rhythmic breathing of the children filled the room, leaving her without a shield.
Aadhira slowly stood up, turning toward the king-sized bed. She spent an agonizingly long 15 minutes pretending to rearrange the bathroom towels.
She brushed her teeth for a second time, scrubbing away as if she could erase the phantom taste of iron and dark, controlled heat.
As she rinsed her mouth, her eyes drifted to the mirror.
Her thumb unconsciously traced her bottom lip.
Heat bloomed beneath her skin all over again.
When she finally emerged, Aryav was already in bed, leaning back against the headboard with a heavy hardcover book.
Aadhira kept her gaze glued strictly to the floorboards.
She walked toward her side of the bed, sliding beneath the heavy duvet, and immediately turned her back to him, facing the very edge of the mattress.
Aadhira aakhein neeche dhekhna mat bas.
Aryav didn't turn a page.
His eyes shifted from the text, tracking the rigid line of her shoulders.
"Running already," he said.
The low vibration of his voice sliced through the dark. Aadhira held her breath, remaining perfectly still.
"You started this," Aryav murmured, his voice dropping an octave, completely devoid of warmth. "Don't look at me like I'm the only one responsible."
Yeh kyu aise baat karte hai inko bilkul saram nahi aati kya.?
Aryav closed the book with a soft, definitive thud and placed it on the nightstand.
A heavy, suffocating silence settled over the mattress.
The next morning began with an official family meeting around the breakfast table.
Arjun pointed his fork strictly toward the group.
"Today. No one does anything reckless."
"Agreed," Aarush murmured over his coffee.
"No provoking local strangers," Arjun continued.
Everyone at the long wooden table slowly, deliberately turned their heads to stare at Reyansh.
Reyansh paused mid-chew, his fork hovering. He wasn't looking at Arjun; his eyes were darting entirely between Aryav and Aadhira.
Aryav was drinking his tea, his expression a mask of absolute composure, but there was a faint, sharp split on the edge of his bottom lip.
As Reyansh watched them, Aryav set his teacup down and absentmindedly brushed his thumb against the cut on his lip.
Aadhira caught the movement.
Her breath hitched, her fingers locking tightly around the edge of the table.
Aryav's dark eyes shifted, catching her looking. He didn't say a word, his expression unreadable.
Reyansh slowly leaned forward, a predatory grin spreading across his face. "Bhabhi."
Aadhira froze. "What?"
Ruhi suddenly coughed into her napkin. Myra choked on her water.
Vivaan closed his eyes briefly in silent exhaustion.
Aadhira's face flared into a sudden, burning flush.
Ek din ye pitega mujhse bhut bura.
Kutta.
Trying desperately to break the silence, she reached out toward the porcelain teapot at the exact moment Aryav's hand moved toward it.
His knuckles touched the back of her wrist.
Aadhira jerked her hand back so violently the ceramic rattled against the saucer, the hot liquid sloshing dangerously high.
Before a single drop could hit her skin, Aryav's hand seamlessly intercepted the base of the cup, steadying it with effortless precision.
He didn't look up.
He didn't pour the tea.
He simply kept his fingers less than a millimeter from hers.
Aadhira sat rigid, the fragile composure she'd been clinging to since yesterday shattering completely.
He took the pot, filled his own cup, and left the space open.
Before Reyansh could exploit the tension further, Aarush walked into the dining room.
He was wearing white linen shorts, a violently bright tropical neon floral shirt, a canvas cap, and dark sunglasses-despite the fact that they were inside.
An immediate, heavy silence followed him.
Tara blinked twice. "Girls will reject you without seeing your face."
"Nahi Aadhira rainbow ki ulti bhi iski shirt se acchi hogi." Myra added.
"Jealousy is an ugly trait," Aarush called out defensively, looking toward the head of the table for backup.
Aryav looked up from his cup. His eyes swept over the violently bright floral pattern once.
"Change."
"Aap bhi jealous ho ki main jada handsome lag raha hu."
Nobody else defended the shirt.
Aarush turned on his heel and walked back to his room.
Aryav checked his watch, the slight click drawing every eye back to him.
"We leave in fifteen minutes."
Against all statistical anomalies, the afternoon turned out to be a surprising success.
River rafting came first.
The mountain rapids were unforgiving, yielding a barrage of sharp screams and genuine panic.
Every time the raft drifted toward rough water, the instructor quietly adjusted course after looking once toward Aryav.
Aadhira noticed only when everyone else's side of the raft violently lurched against the white water while hers remained unexpectedly steady, the boat angling away from the worst of the swells before they could hit her.
"Dekha?" Reyansh whispered loudly to Tara under the roar of the current, keeping his eyes locked on Aadhira's rigid posture.
"Bhabhi left side se hi chal rahi hain. Bhai se teen feet ka safe distance maintain ho raha hai aaj."
Tara rolled her eyes. "Shut up."
Bungee jumping came next.
Aadhira hated heights.
She absolutely loathed them.
The moment her boots stepped near the edge of the wooden suspension platform, every survival instinct she possessed began to claw at the interior of her chest.
The valley stretched endlessly beneath her, a dizzying drop of green and jagged rock.
Abhi bhi vakt hai aadhira soch marne ke aur bhi bhut tarike hai ye karne ki jarurat nahi hai tujhe.