Narrowing her eyebrows, Ira glared at Ehan, who was now leaning on the wall, hiding his face in his arms; just the way Ira do every time things didn't go in her accord.

"Ehan, are you going to look at me or not?" She pressed on every single word, throwing daggers at him. The result was just the same; he didn't even budge.

She grit her teeth and wrapped her arms around his waist, pulling him away from the wall.

"What are you doing?" He yelled, looking up, which gave her access to easily pull him away.

"Your tantrums are not going to work here, Ehan" she spoke with difficulty, trying her level best to drag him out.

"Ira, leave me. You'll hurt yourself" he tried to free himself but she wasn't ready to let go. She has somehow managed to pull him by three to four steps.

When he finally understood that she was not gonna spare him, he said, "Okay. Okay. Fine. I'll come on my own. Leave me".

She let out a huge sigh of relief, letting him go. She leaned on the wall, panting. It wasn't easy dragging him to the door.

"Let's go" she stepped out of the door, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and he followed her.

"Wait. Lemme grab me wallet" he said, releasing his pockets were empty.

"Ok. But don't act smart. You can't escape today" she warned, giving her best scary look.

He couldn't help the small smile from spreading across his face and nodded. He went inside and checked the night stand. There was no wallet. Hitting his forehead with his palm, he helplessly looked here and there. How was he going to find it there when he didn't brought it with him to the cottage at the first place.

"How stupid of me. I forgot it at my room" He rubbed his forehead, scolding himself.

"I'm waiting..." Ira yelled from the door and he palmed his face.

She was tapping her foot on the ground, when he walked out, taking slow steps.

"Come, be quick" she said, holding the door wide open for him.

"We can't go" he said, making her frown.

"Why?"

"I... I don't have money. My pockets are empty" he pulled out his empty pockets, showing her that he have nothing.

"How? It's just the beginning of the month" she questioned, making him think.

"Errr... I didn't got my pocket money yet" he made an excuse, mentally preparing another one for her next question.

"No problem. Ms Belly paid me for this month too. I have enough money. Come" she so excitedly said that it sounded like she was talking about partying instead of visiting a doctor.

She tugged him, making him cling to the door again.

"Ira, please try to understand. There's no need to spend your money. I'm completely fine now"

"Not again, Ehan" she pulled his hand so angrily this time that he almost fell out of the door.

She didn't even wait for him to stand properly and pulled the door close and locked it. She turned to him, who was giving her a defeated look. She proudly flipped her hair from her shoulder, smirking.

---

Ehan rubbed his hands together, gulping. They were sitting in a clinic, waiting for Ehan's name to be called to meet the doctor. Ira got the appointment as soon as they reached there.

He looked at her, who was comfortably sitting beside him, curiously staring at a bald guy's back, who was sitting infront of them.

"Ehan" she called him in a whisper, still looking at the bald guy.

"Hmm?" he slightly bent towards her.

"What do you think he's gonna do with that comb, when he has zero hair on his head?" She asked in a whisper, pointing at the guy's back pocket, from which a tiny comb was peeking.

Ehan gave her a 'are you serious?' kind of look, making her answer her own question, "May be he got it for someone else"

He looked down, rubbing his hands again. She kept a hand on his shoulder, "Are you thinking of injection? Don't worry. We'll request the doctor to give you only one. And yeah! Take it on your bum. I have heard that it hurts the least" he wished she continued speaking in whispers but no, she had to say those things loud enough for others to hear. Few gave them a strange look whilst some giggled, making Ehan embarrassed. He glared at her, who wasn't even looking at him; busy reading the health chart pasted on the wall.

"I'm not thinking about that" he confessed, grabbing her attention.

"Then?" She calmly asked, turning herself to sit facing him completely.

"I don't know how to explain you this but... I... I was just thinking, what if it turned out to be something deadly?" For the first time in his life, he voiced out his fear.

The thought of consulting the doctor regarding his allergy occurred him many times. But the thing which kept him from doing that was the thought that it may turn out serious and he'll die soon. He didn't realise when that thought started scaring him and he became afraid of death. And now that he has a newly found reason live; Ira. The fear just doubled, making him flinch thinking of the outcome.

"Don't be silly, Ehan. It's just an allergy. Be positive" she held his hand, only for him to gently pull it back. She made a face and faced the other side, huffing.

A little girl came out of doctor's cabin, crying. Both Ehan and Ira looked at her with a little bit of nervousness.

"I think she was given an injection" she whispered and he hummed.

"Are you scared of injections too?" She asked and he shook his head in negative, though he don't remember when was the last time he took one.

"Very good. But remember to take it..." He shushed her before she could speak further.

Ehan's name was called next and he nervously stood up. Ira gave him a small assuring smile, holding his arm. They made their way in.

---

"And it literally feels like burning" Ehan explained as the old doctor; Dr David asked him questions related to his allergy, whereas Ira sat next to him, curiously listening everything.

"It's not suppose to be this severe" Dr David touched his spectacles as he commented, giving rise Ehan's fears. He looked at Ira, who was already looking at him, somewhat scared.

"Do you by chance take any medicine to cure or reduce it?" Dr asked, inspecting Ehan's hand.

"Yeah! I used a lotion last time" Ehan named the lotion he used.

Dr David shook his head in negative, "No. That's not anything dangerous. Do you by chance used anything else? Like something of high dosage?" Ehan gulped visibly at the question. The only medicine he takes for every problem was his sleeping pills, which is definitely of high dosage. He looked at Ira from the corner of his eyes, uncomfortably. He didn't wish to let her know about that. It didn't go unnoticed by the doctor.

"Answer him, Ehan" Ira urged in a smooth voice. He avoided meeting her eyes and fiddled with his fingers.

"Dear, would you mind letting us know about the food he had and did not suffered the allergy later? It'll make my work easier in finding out what exactly he's allergic to" Dr David addressed Ira and asked.

"Sure" she was quick to answer. He gestured the nurse standing by the table to take Ira with her and she did the same. Ehan looked at Ira as she followed the nurse and comfortably sit on a chair, taking a notepad and pencil to list out the food.

He turned and looked at Dr David. Sighing, he confessed, "I'm an insomniac. So... I often take sleeping pills" he kept his voice low, being cautious of Ira listening him by chance.

"Could you tell me the name? If you know...?" Ehan nodded and hesitantly said the name of the pills he takes.

The look on Dr David's face upon hearing the name of the medicine made Ehan nervous.

"Who prescribed you this?" He asked, increasing Ehan's nervousness. He looked down, rubbing his fingers together uneasily. He had no answer for the question.

The old doctor understood. He was experienced enough to understand such cases.

"My boy, you should consult a doctor before taking any kind of medication. You might hurt yourself if you go on with the internet knowledge" Ehan kept his eyes lowered, glancing at Ira every now and then, who seem very much engrossed in thinking, tapping the pencil on her chin.

"Do you know how strong these dosage are? It definitely is not for a young child like you" Dr David said calmly, sensing Ehan's uneasiness.

"Looks like these pills have an adverse effects on you, which is creating a violent reaction whenever you consume the food you're already allergic to, increasing it's effect ten times" Ehan kept his hand on his forehead, letting out a shaky breathe. He had no idea that the pills he was consuming to reduce his misery was actually the reason behind it.

"You should stop those pills immediately. For your problem of being insomniac, I'll prescribe you something with mild effects. I prefer you to take it only when you're strictly in need of it" he nodded, finally looking up at the doctor.

Ira came back, handing a paper to the doctor. "Looks like you've a great memory" Dr David commented, going through the list of food she has penned down. Ira smiled, taking a seat beside Ehan. Her hand brushed over his in the process. He pulled his hand away, making Ira roll her eyes.

"Dr David, is this allergy contagious?" Ehan quickly asked.

"No, my boy. Definitely not" Ira gave Ehan an 'I told you already' look.

"I told him already. But he was being so cautious that he didn't even let me touch him last night" she complained to the doctor, pointing at Ehan. Ehan flinched at the way she was using hey words.

"You were absolutely right, dear. It's nothing contagious. You can even kiss him. Not a problem at all" Dr David stated.

For the first since Ehan met Ira, he witnessed her face flush. Her milky white cheeks turned darker shades of pink and she shifted uncomfortably in her chair. She glanced at Ehan, who quickly averted his eyes from her face. Opening her mouth, she tried to say something but no words came out and she had to shut it, glancing at Ehan again.

"We'll have to run a few tests to know what exactly you're allergic to" Dr David scribbled something on a paper and handed that to his nurse.

Ehan glanced at Ira, who still looked flushed, not meeting his eyes. He silently followed the nurse, who guided him to a small room inside the cabin, where his blood and other specimens were collected and an injection was given to him since he was still a bit feverish.

Ira was patiently waiting for him outside the other exit of doctor's cabin, after paying the bills for tests. As soon as Ehan he came out, pulling his sleeves down after talking the injection. she quickly stood straight and asked, "Is your bum hurting?" Which was loud enough for the people to hear, waiting on the lobby.

Mentally palming his face, he pleadingly looked at her, asking her to stop embarrassing him. She shrugged, taking a seat. They were asked to wait for an hour or more to get the results.

---

"Peanuts. You're severely allergic to peanuts, peanut oil, peanut butter... Everything related to it. I'll never buy that chocolate bar again; filled with peanuts" Ira said, entering into Ehan's house followed by him.

He fell in sofa, resting his head on the headrest. He was feeling relieved to know that it was nothing fatal, as he presumed.

Placing the medicines on the coffee table, Ira sat on the floor telling which one to use when as per doctor's advice. Ehan got down and sat across her, resting his head on the sofa. His one leg streched and another folded. He was quietly staring at her, amused.

"You should take these two pills after lunch and dinner. You can apply this lotion now, if you're still feeling itchy. And this..." She took up a tiny bottle containing pale yellow liquid and said, "this is for the burning sensation you said you feel. You need to mix a few drops of it in water and rinse your body with it, just in case you mistakenly consume peanuts, ever"

She looked at him, who was staring at her absentmindedly, a tiny smile tugging his lips.

"Are you listening?" she rised her eyebrows at him, breaking his trance.

"Yeah!" He nodded, finally averting his gaze.

"Where are you lost? Is your bum still hurting?" He faced the other side, shaking his head.

She gave him a curious look all of the sudden and asked, "wait! Don't tell me you were at home at the time of my basketball team selection and your allergy is the reason you didn't appeared infront of me"

He looked down, pressing his lips together.

"Why didn't you tell me just then? We would have visited the doctor much earlier"

"It wasn't easy for me, Ira. I would have never gathered the courage to show you my ugly face if you wouldn't have caught me yesterday. Infact, I wonder how you didn't ran away when you saw me last night? Did you not feel disgusted?" His question made her frown and she didn't waste a single second in reaching him and sat facing him.

"You're so silly. Why would I feel disgusted and run away?"

"Because I was looking scary"

"I don't know why you think so but you were not at all scary. Infact, you were looking like a new born baby, all pink and plumpy" he couldn't help but chuckled at her words, making her smile. She went on telling him how she felt when she noticed his allergy, it was anything but the feel of disgust or scary for her.

The hollowness in his heart was slowly filling by her presence, her talks, her care and her attention; which was soothing his uneasy heart and making it smile satisfactorily. He was losing the control over himself, not knowing that she was becoming his addiction, which may even make him go crazy, if he lose her someday.

---

Assalamualaikum everyone,

How was the chapter?

'Injection, new born baby' - do you guys remember anything related to it?

So Ehan is allergic to peanuts. The only one who guessed it right was Dotaty. Hence, the chapter is dedicated to her.

What do you guys think should happen next? Do tell me, because I haven't planned anything further 😛

Kidding! I surely have planned but don't know how to execute it. It'll be helpful if you guys could lemme know what you're expecting.