“Finally!” Rubina’s voice sliced through the moment like a sudden breeze cutting through the hush of a sacred chapel, jolting me and Kaiden out of our embrace.
I turned toward her, heartbeat still thudding in my chest. Even though I knew now that she and Kaiden weren’t actually together, a part of me still braced to see her wearing a fake smile, maybe masking hurt with grace.
But there she stood–grinning, genuine and easy, like sunlight warming cold skin.
“Ru,” I breathed out, gently pushing Kaiden aside and stepping toward her, my boots scuffing softly against the floor. “I love you, And…” I said, threading my arm through hers and clinging tightly. “Thank you for not being the villain of my story.” My throat tightened as I squeezed her closer.
“I was this close, trust me,” she teased, her voice light as air while she hugged me back, radiating comfort like a campfire on a cold night.
And then-
“What the hell is happening?” Sheela’s voice cracked the moment wide open like a firework detonating in a midnight sky, scattering the warmth of my hug with Rubina in an instant.
We both turned to her as she stepped forward, eyes wide, scanning the three of us like we were puzzle pieces that didn’t quite fit. Her confusion was almost artistic–eyebrows arched, mouth slightly ajar, her hands suspended mid–gesture.
“I’m sorry, but… did I just see something wrong, or is this a glitch in the matrix?” she asked, squinting like she was trying to unsee the truth. “Because there is no way Ru would catch one of her best friends hugging her boyfriend,” she added, dramatically air–quoting the word boyfriend, “and instead of exploding into full Bollywood melodrama, she’s hugging her back like a weighted blanket on a chilly night. I mean–what?”
“Kaiden and I were not dating, Sheela,” Rubina said, tucking her hair behind her ear with a soft laugh. “It was just a charade we played to make Lucy jealous and rethink her choices.”
“Oh, my god. OH MY GOD!” Sheela yelped, practically skipping forward as she placed herself right between us. Her eyes were round as saucers, hands flying up to cover her mouth before falling to a dramatic prayer pose. “Oh my lovely god. It was all a lie. Drama. Charade, right? Oh, thank god!” she gasped, clasping her palms like she was bowing to some unseen deity of chaos. “You have no idea how scared I was to grind between you both. No sane person would tolerate her best friend dating her ex–boyfriend right two weeks after their breakup. I was just praying all this time that Lucy won’t lose her cool. Because if she will, I had to choose between my two dearest friends.”
Then she looked at me, her eyes glistening, a smile stretching wide and warm across her face.
“And Lucy,” she said, her voice softening, “I’m so glad you and Kaiden got back together.” She gave me a knowing look, hands folding under her chin. “Although I totally shipped the Ru–Kaiden saga for a while, I can’t lie–you two? You guys are my new fav. You’re made for each other. If only your mom hadn’t married his dad, your love story would’ve been so smooth. Like whipped cream on hot cocoa.”
“Sheela,” Rubina muttered under her breath, nudging Sheela with a sharp elbow to the ribs..
The smile I had been wearing–the one that felt like it had bloomed after a long, cold winter–withered all at once. Her mention of my mother snapped me out of that warmth like a slap of ice water. It felt like someone had reached into my chest and flipped a switch, plunging my heart back into the dark.
“If you don’t do as I say, Ross will make sure Kaiden never sees another day alive.”
Mom’s warning began to ring in my mind again. The nightmares–where I saw Ross harming Kaiden–came flooding back, as vivid as lightning striking in a storm. The mixture of Mom’s threat and my nightmares was nothing less than the fear of the apocalypse itself. Why wouldn’t it be? Kaiden is my whole world. I love him so much that I can even sacrifice this whole world for him. I can even sacrifice my feelings for him. I can even restrict myself from being closer to him.
1/2
378%
12:34 Fri, 18 Apr
Chapter 92
50
Yeah, I should restrict myself from being closer to him. I can’t let my mom have even a pinch of misunderstanding about us. The forbidden game was fun before, but now it’s not a game but a love and it’s not fun anymore.
“I… I… I need to leave,” I said, my voice crackling as my breath caught halfway, the words trembling on the edge of panic.
“Lu, I am sor-” Sheela was trying to apologize, her hand halfway reaching out to me, but I didn’t wait to hear her. If I waited, then I might again lose my control and act recklessly like I did before. Kaiden shouldn’t be with me. I shouldn’t be with him either.
“Introvert,” Kaiden called out, starting to follow me with hurried steps, the sound of his sneakers scuffing the ground behind me. But I ignored his calls, pretending not to hear, like my ears had sealed themselves shut.
“Intro–Lucy!” He grabbed my hand, fingers wrapping around my wrist with urgency, like he was trying to anchor me in place.
But I yanked his hand away, my chest heaving.
“Kaiden,” I snapped, louder than I intended, my voice sharp like a splinter under skin. “Don’t.” I shook my head, eyes glassy, throat tightening. “Just please, don’t.”
And then–before anyone could say anything—I just ran away from the scene. I didn’t care where I was going; I just ran and ran, my feet pounding against the earth, each step trying to erase the ache in my heart. I was unaware of direction, unaware of surroundings. All I knew was–I was fighting with everything I had to distance myself from Kaiden. Physically and emotionally. Both.
To be continued…
2/2
