Part 4
Arnav turned to see Shyam with a revolting, smug grin on his face.
"I take it you failed in your mission, then? Or is Khushiji hiding somewhere?"
Arnav had handled enough - he was exhausted and, frankly, he was done fighting for one day.
"Listen, you'd better shut up or-"
"Or what, Arnav? You'll tell your sister the truth?"
"Yeah, I will. Give me one good reason why I shouldn't."
"I can't think of one." Shyam shook his head, pretending to be deep in thought. "In fact, I think you should go tell your vulnerable, pregnant Di the truth. You never know, you might just make my job a lot easier."
Arnav was seething. How dare this snake say such an atrocious thing? That too, about his sister. His sister, who meant more than the world to him. He turned and grabbed Shyam by the collar, pinning him against the wall, speaking in a low, threatening tone.
"Let me get one thing straight in that tiny, twisted mind of yours. The moment Di gives birth, I am going to tell her the truth - exactly what a sleazy son-of-a-b*tch you really are. I will grab you just like this and throw you out to the gutter, where you belong. And I will take great pleasure in doing so." He released Shyam, Shyam's head hitting the wall. Still, Shyam didn't stop.
"Oh well, at least I can still have Khushiji. I've heard she's fair game now."
That was the last straw. Arnav mustered all of his power and threw a punch at Shyam's face. He heard a crack, and blood began pouring out of his nose. Arnav couldn't hide his fury anymore.
"Get this into your thick skull - she never felt a thing for you! You ever speak about her like that again, and I will rip you apart with my bare hands. I never want her name to leave your disgusting mouth again. You will never say a word to her again, understood?!"
Shyam began to walk away, a hand massaging his nose. He turned back, a look of rage on his face.
"You made a bad move there, Arnav. You really did."
With that, he walked off. Arnav looked down at his previously-bleeding hand, only to see it covered in scabs and bruises. After all of the confrontation, he felt so numb that this pain was little more than a dull murmur compared to the searing pain within his heart. He slowly somehow managed to bandage his hand and fell asleep on the recliner; something that had become routine for him now, even though it was unnecessary.
Khufhi awoke from a dreamless sleep, trying to put the last 6 months out of her mind.
"That's it Khushi, you have cried too many tears for that rakshas. He never felt a thing for you, so you need to forget him. You're Khushi Kumari Gupta. You're here to brighten up people's lives, not become depressed! Think of Ammaji, Buaji, Babuji - how much it hurts them to see you like this. No, from today you're going to be your old Sanka Devi self again."
Khushi knew that this was just her optimism talking - she would never forget Arnav, her first love, the man who stole her heart and shattered it into tiny fragments rather than giving her his own. But she was good at suppressing her feelings; she had been successfully keeping up a pretence for the last 6 months. So she wouldn't give Arnav the satisfaction of seeing tears leave her eyes over him. As long as she never saw him again, she would be able to hide her feelings.
Khushi looked at her phone, which had been on silent all night. 49 missed calls from Arnav since this morning. He'll never tell his Di, she thought, so why should I give him another opportunity to speak to me and break my heart? He never reciprocated the feelings I had, I was fooling myself. Khushi switched off her phone, and went to get ready.
After showering, she dried and styled her hair. She stared at her reflection in the mirror, willing herself to put on her best smile. She looked around for her sindoor, before realising that she had no need for it anymore. Her neck felt exposed without her mangalsutra, but it was just something she would have to get accustomed to. She sighed.
Khushi suddenly heard Buaji's voice calling her from the living room.
"Khushi, we have a visitor!" Khushi groaned, she had had enough of 'visitors'.
There was an urgent rapid knock on her bedroom door. "Sanka Devi, hurry up!" Khushi rolled her eyes and opened the door.
"What is it Bua-" she stopped as she acknowledged the sight before her. Her childhood best friend Arjun, 3 years her senior, was stood in front of her. He had the same boyish smile, the same twinkle in his hazel eyes as when she had last seen him.
Khushi walked up to jim and gently shoved him.
"Khushi?" She playfully pouted.
"It's been 5 years, Arjun! Not a single letter or phone call. You left to study in England and didn't even give me a second thought?"
Arjun grabbed both of his ears.
"Sorry yaar, I was so busy... There was so much going on, so much work to do. But my studies are finished and I decided to come back. Now, are you going to make a grown man humiliate himself by doing uthak-bethak (squats) in order to gain your forgiveness?" Khushi pretended to consider this for a moment, then laughed at Arjun's scared expression.
"Of course not, I'm not that mean!"
Arjun laughed and pulled her into a warm hug.
"I've missed you, Khushi Kumari Gupta." Khushi felt tears form in her eyes. Arjun was back, her beat friend who would've gone to the ends of the Earth to protect her and make her happy. She had known him practically since birth, and she cared for him deeply. Whilst in his arms, she forgot the events of the past year, the pain she had felt. All she remembered were happy times with Arjun, and she longed to be that 13-year-old Khushi again; enjoying life before it got complicated.
"I've missed you too. So much."
Maybe there was light at the end of the tunnel, after all.
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