CHAPTER 55
AARAV
I’m getting married in twelve hours.
Twelve hours.
And I’m in a hoodie, sneaking into my bride’s house in the middle of the night like I’m nineteen and she’s just the girl I can’t stop thinking about.
Okay—technically, she is the girl I can’t stop thinking about. But she’s also my girl. My almost wife (according to our mothers, I don’t count that divorce).
And I need to see her.
It’s not about tradition or superstition or whatever rules say I shouldn’t.
I don’t care. I just can’t sleep. Not when her words are still replaying in my head that she is fine.
Not after that message. I’m not someone who gets scared easily.
I’ve never really known fear like that. But the thought of losing her?
Of anyone trying to harm her? That thought wrecks me. Like something claws at my chest every time it crosses my mind.
If my mother finds out I’m doing this, she’ll probably throw her chappal at me with the aim of a trained sniper.
And Anika’s mom—despite her soft corner for me, despite the guilt I know still lingers behind her eyes—would absolutely join in.
But nothing. No force on this damn planet can stop me from seeing Anika tonight.
The driver stops the car a little before the house. I didn’t want to risk being seen. One almost-wedding scandal is enough, thank you.
I slip out, careful, hoodie up, and quietly make my way to the side of the building where I know the pipe is. I have found climbing a pipe is a very easy and convenient way to meet your bride, definitely recommended.
Gripping the metal, I start climbing, slow and quiet, praying it doesn't creak. My palms sting a little, but whatever. I’d climb a thousand floors barefoot if it meant holding her for five minutes.
I reach her window and tap twice. And just like that—there she is.
Hair in a loose braid, face bare, mehendi still dark on her palms. Her eyes widen when she sees me, like the last time, and she pushes the window open immediately.
“What is wrong with you?” She hisses, voice frantic but soft. “Do you know Mumma just went to her room like two minutes ago?! We have a wedding tomorrow, Aarav!”
I shrug, still half out the window. “Anika, I don’t care.”
She blinks. “What?”
“I wanted to see you. So I’m here.” I swing a leg in and slide into the room. “And you know no one can stop me from doing that.”
She crosses her arms, trying to look stern, but I catch the way her lips twitch. “ I can stop you,” she says, a little too proudly. True. She can make me do anything. That’s the power she has over me, and I am glad she knows.
I chuckle, stepping closer. “Yes. You can. But no one else.”
I stop right in front of her, close enough to smell the faint smell of her perfume.
She looks up at me, brows softening. “You really came all the way just to see me?”
“Do you not want to see me?”
She sighs like I’m the most exhausting part of her day and then suddenly pulls me into a hug. Arms tight around my waist, face buried in my chest.
“I can never not want that, Aarav,” she mumbles against me. “I always want to see you.”
I wrap my arms around her, closing my eyes, letting myself breathe for the first time today. Then she looks up and narrows her eyes. “Except when you annoy me. Or flirt with me in front of elders.”
I laugh under my breath, forehead against hers. “Noted. But no promises.”
“Of course not,” she mutters.
“Are you okay?” I ask, pulling back slightly to look at her face. That’s what I am here for.
“Yeah,” she says quickly. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
I pause. “That message. You’re not overthinking, right?”
Her eyes search mine, and then she gives me this small smile. Steady and Certain. “Nope. I have nothing to overthink. I know my husband will protect me at all costs.”
My chest tightens. God, I love this woman.
“I will,” I whisper. “You really trust me that much?” I question quietly.
She inhales, fingers brushing my shirt. “Yes, Aaru. I do. I trust you with my life.” Then even softer, like it costs her something to say it— “And with my heart, too. Now.”
Something about those words. Her voice. The way she’s looking at me—it knocks the air from my lungs.
I hold her face gently. I wanted to make a special moment for this; we both deserved it, and this feels so right. “I love you, Anu,” I whisper, looking at her intently, not wanting to miss her reaction, even if it’s a negative one. “I’ve always loved you. I will always love you.”
She doesn’t look away. She doesn’t flinch. I will take that as a positive sign.
She just smiles. “I know.” And then her hand comes up to touch mine on her cheek, her fingers warm. “I realized it much later, but… Your actions always showed it, Aarav. You’ve always been there. Always. I’m sorry I didn’t say it earlier.”
I shake my head, already breathless. “But I love you too,” she continues. “I love you the most in this world.”
Something breaks open in my chest. A knot that had lived there for years . “You have no idea how long I’ve waited to hear those words from you, Anu.”
She tilts her head, smiling gently. “You and me both, Aaru.”
And then she leans in. And I kiss her. It’s slow, unhurried. No desperation. Just everything I feel poured into the way my lips meet hers. Like our first kiss and our last and everything in between.
When we pull apart, her eyes are a little glassy. My thumb brushes under her eye gently, and she just shakes her head, trying not to cry. “You’re going to ruin your wedding face,” I tease softly.
“You’re the one ruining it,” she counters, sniffing.
I grin. “You ruined me first.”
She laughs into my chest. And in that small, quiet room, hours before we become husband and wife, with a window still half open to the world—we stand in each other’s arms. No fear. No doubts. Just this moment. And us. And destiny, because wow, I need to give the credits to it for our love story.