He stopped the sooty but not before my house but in front of ‘Rush Lake’. It was one of the tourist site in our city. A place that was mostly pack during the day but it was more beautiful at night. A beautiful lake rewarding to my eyes. “Come,” Faizal mumbled as he gestured me to follow him.

“You had often praised about this place,” Faizal kept talking as we walked into the area. Few people were sitting on the benches arranged around. Sitting on it we could graze at the lake, those ships flowing around and those sparkling city-lights were  reflecting in the cold-silent water.

I admired this place as it brought peace with it. Just sitting over here one could forget about the world surrounding them. “You came here when you wanted to forget about the world,” Faizal muttered yet avoiding to glance at my face. He grabbed a seat on one of the benches and I followed his lead. “Maybe today I want to forget the world around me as well.”

“What’s the matter, Faizal?” I inquired after a minute of silence. He sighed as he turned to glance at me. Our orbs meeting for the first time in the evening.

“Life gets tough,” he shrugged his shoulder. He averted his gaze, glancing back at the lake before him. “Do you remember once you have asked why my family dislike you so much?” He paused for a moment as if he was preparing himself for the coming conversation. “And I had addressed about some past incidents but never described the real events.”

“It was related about your cousin,” I mumbled.

“Yes, and you’re aware about the half story which Zain conveyed.” Faizal sighed, “I was very mad at him for not knowing the truth yet narrating as if he did.” I could feel his frustration in his tone. “Afisa di, loved a Hindu guy. She wanted to marry him and she was serious about him but that guy wasn’t!” He sighed; he clenched his fist as if was attempting to hold back his anger. I felt an inner urge to wrap my palms around his knuckles.

I heard him grunt as he passed a glance at me. “Keeping their pride aside they did walk into their house. Bade Abu,” he was gritting his teeth tightly, “went against his entire family, those rules just for his daughter but that moron denied to make her as his wife. He confessed in front of his parents that he could never show interest in some Muslim girl,” he paused. “He humiliated them and Afisa di,” I had never seen Faizal so vulnerable as he was while confessing the truth. “Bade Abu knew Afisa di, she wouldn’t be able to bear the news so…” he sighed, keeping it incomplete.

“So…” I sighed as I realized. “They took the blame on themselves? They allowed her to hate them?”

“They thought, it would keep her alive. Maybe she will move on from him.” He was stammering as he was attempting hard to keep his tears on check. “They never in their wildest-dream imagined that she will attempt to take her life.” He finally allowed those tears to roll-down his cheeks. I wrapped my arms around him, holding him close to me, allowing him to shed tears over his loss.

“You know what was the most heartbreaking news?” he looked into my orbs. “During that time, we were kids not understanding things happening around us but much later in life I discovered that the guy she wanted to marry did killed himself as well, just few days later Afisa di committed suicide. Sometimes my mind does wonder what if he did love her to? And he did that because he wasn’t strong enough to go against his family?” Silence prevailed around us. I wasn’t sure what I could say that could lessen his pain. Was any word ever invented that you console a broken heart or a soul that had lost someone? Maybe only time and love carried the magic to console such hearts!

“Does respecting your family and not wanting to fight with them, makes you coward?” Faizal questioned, I stared at his broken-exhausted orbs. What was troubling him? Why all of sudden, he decided to confess it to me? “Is choosing your family a wrong decision?” He was staring at me with those black-dark orbs as if he was lost and needed my suggestion to find his way back home.

I cupped his face as I pressed a kiss on his forehead. “Choosing your family can never be a wrong decision,” I passed a smile at him. “They are the one who were there with you when none where, they are the one that love you the most. Choosing your parents can never be wrong!”

“What if they are asking you something which you can’t give it to them?” He seemed so dishearten, so broken. I wish, I could just wrap him in my arms and keep him safe, protected. “If you give it to them…” he shook his head as he nuzzled his face in my chest as if he wanted to avoid even imagining it. “I will die…”

“Shh!” I tighten my hold over him. “Nothing like that happens,” I pressed another kiss on his forehead. “No parents will ask for their children’s happiness,” I mumbled. “They love you so much to ever allow pain in your life. If they are asking you for something, it just due to their fear that you might end into disaster with your choice just make them believe that your choice might not be the best but it’s not the worst as well.”

“It never can be worse,” he confessed.

He withdrew his head from my chest only to place it on my lap. I didn’t object any of his moves. He was acting different! He was attempting to deal with something, he doesn’t want to talk about. I stared at the lake in front of us while my hands were busy caressing his messy-black hairs. It was the first time I was touching it. Yet I had often fantasized of us being like this! Every moment spent with him wasn’t less than a dream for me. That was the reason I was scared to hope because things I was getting wasn’t less than miracle. What if one sudden day I wake up and realize it was just a dream, beautiful, amazing but mere dream?

He was staring up in sky as if counting the stars in them. I knew, clock was ticking up and it wasn't safe to stay out for so long yet I couldn’t must the courage to ask him to leave. Or maybe I didn’t want to leave. I wish, we could stay like this, forgetting the world around us, just us! No worries about the world surrounding us, no tension about expectation that were burdening our heart.

“Now, are you going to confess what is it that is troubling you?” I inquired avoiding to glance at him though my fingers were playing with his soft curls. I had never imagined it to be so soft, his black curly hairs. Those hairs that I had admired from far!

“Ammi’s health is getting worse,” Faizal mumbled. “She is getting stressed up about me being away.” He paused as I passed a glance at him. “I have decided to leave within few days.” I attempted to pass a reassuring smile but it was hard to mask a smile.

He was leaving within few days! “Few days…” I trailed off, avoiding to glance at him. “I guess, your decision isn’t wrong she needs you. She was getting worried with things shaping in our city. She is getting concerned and its normal…” I mumbled, attempting hard to convince my upset heart.

His hands grabbed my hands that was playing with his hairs. “I am going to miss you…” He confessed and our orbs locked with each other.

“I will, as well…” I mumbled, hiding back the tears forming in my orbs.

•••

“What took you so long?” Shruti inquired as she opened the door for me. “And why you weren’t receiving the calls? I had to lie to mom that you informed me about getting late. Do you have any idea, how worried I was?”

“Sorry, for troubling you.” I apologized as I got inside. “I forgot about it,” I confessed the truth as I made my way towards the room.

“Aren’t you going to have the dinner?”

“I don’t have the appendices,” I confessed as I made my way towards the room.

I forced myself to change from the work-clothes as I laid on the bed. I finally allowed those tears to roll-down my cheek as I wrapped myself in the blanket. He was going to leave within few days. I had got habitual to his presence in my life. I was aware that he would leave but never expected that it would be so soon. He would walk back to his world, his life. Once again turning into my online friend. I would carve to glance at his face, listen to his beautiful voice. I would have to wait to hear his laugh. I won’t even be able to hug him nor caress his soft-curly hairs. He would be there yet so far away from me but I couldn’t act selfish.

His black orbs screamed that he wanted me to understand him, to not label him as coward if he wanted to choose his family. His Ammi needed him and he should be beside her. And I should be proud of his decision. Unlike males of this generation, he knew to act responsible.

•••

I attempted to sound as happy as I possibly could, “Faizal is leaving and for that he wanted to talk.” I had informed Ashwariya after her frequent curious question.

It was as if the world around me was turning expert in reading me. Those suspicious orbs by my parents made me more conscious. Mom even invited him for dinner a day before his departure.

Those few days ran in its fullest swing. “At least, I got you both sharing a same screen.” Siddhi joked as I had video-call her. She had asked me to call her when Faizal would be leaving, though she said she wanted to say bye to him but I knew, she wanted to act as emotional supporter towards me.

My parents hadn’t accompanied me. Faizal was against me accompany him as well but I was adamant not to listen to him. “You should go now,” he muttered as the speaker started announcing arrival of his train.

“Why is it arriving early?” I wasn’t able to stop my immature version from complaining. Why wasn’t I allowed few more minutes with him? I wasn’t even sure if I would be able to meet him again!

Faizal chuckled as his arms got wrapped around my waist, pulling me towards him. “Stop acting mature,” he mumbled softly in my ears. “When I informed you about those incidents, I didn’t mean to scare you.” His black orbs were staring at me in concern.

“You didn’t scare me off,” I mumbled as I lowered my head in embarrassment. “I just don’t want to burden you more with my tantrums. You already have so much on your plate.”

He shook his head as his finger raised my chin so I could glance into those beautiful set of orbs. “You never burden me with your tantrums. Your blabbering, your complain acts as a super-power that erase those stresses of my life.” He passed a smile as he peeped at the phone in my hand. “Can you provide me with some time with my best friend?” He raised a brow in a questioning manner.

“I am not disturbing you both…” before she could even complete, Faizal ended the call.

“Faiz…” I widen my orbs in horror. “That was rude,” I was going to dial her again but Faizal took the phone from me.

“I should be allowed with few moments with my favorite,” he muttered sending a wink in my direction. I was attempting hard to hide my blush. I wasn’t good with this, especially when someone I adored was flirting with me.

“Your favorite?” I lowered my head in shyness. What was he doing?

“You always wanted to know who was my favorite in the group.” He mumbled into my ears. He was so close, I felt as if I was going to faint. My heart was on the verge of jumping out of my ribs. “In our online group,” he whispered. “Maybe my favorite is standing before my orbs in my arms. With a shy smile playing on her lips and looking damn beautiful.”

“Stop…” I whispered. “I can’t…”

“It was always you,” he paused for a moment. “I am not sure, when, how, why?” his warm hands reached my cold cheeks. “But this heart started holding feelings for you, started feeling some unexplainable attraction towards you. It didn’t mind if it had to fight with the world if it was for you,” I felt a kiss on my cheek. “I am in love with you, Nivi.” He sighed, “it was never one-sided.” He confessed; I raised my head. A drop of tear descended my cheek. I had waited so long to hear this! I had dreamt so much about this day and often called myself delusional. I couldn’t still believe that I wasn’t dreaming, it was real!

“Aahana?” I pouted as I asked about her.

“She is someone whom my parents wanted me to marry with,” he passed a smile as he pressed another kiss on my forehead.

“And that girl, you…”

“I was talking about you,” he sighed. “I was waiting so long to confess it. To tell you but I was so scared, so stressed…” he shook his head. “I didn’t want to raise your hope high. I was so clueless about our future. I didn’t want to show you dream and then break your heart but before I could even prepare myself you confessed and even planned my rejection. The way you walked out of the station into the train, I felt as if I was losing you. I couldn’t lose you; I was afraid of losing you. I was left with only option to confess my feeling. I came here with a mission, to see if I could be part of your world.” I was staring at him with admiration, he wasn’t much vocal about things, his feeling. But when he was, it was the most beautiful thing to witness. “Why are you staring at me like that?” He inquired getting conscious. At such moments, I wondered maybe me were more alike than we accepted. Maybe we were like that puzzle that fitted perfectly with each other.

“Do you have any idea; how adorable you look when you express yourself?” I inquired while he shook his head.

“After all my confession, I get to hear is that I look adorable?” He raised his brow in a questioning manner and later shook his head as he chuckled at my confused look.