Izzy led me towards the main table that had been brought out. People started to gather around for the cake cutting ceremony. Uncle EJ and Ammi Jaan came and stood on either side of us as I grabbed the knife. The navy blue ribbon swiveled in my hands as I waited for the clock to strike 12. Izzy placed his hand on mine and gave me a wide smile. Our happiness echoed around the room. The atmosphere was filled with euphoric vibes.

The black chocolate cake was a two-tiered cake with hints of gold lines on the surface. The names Izzy and Eli were placed on a separate stand in italics. A single large candle burned in the darkness. The pictures were going to turn out great. People shifted, talking amongst themselves as they waited for midnight.

"... 10,9,8" Rania began looking at her phone. I looked around the room. Family and friends all gathered under one roof. All of us safe, happy and together.
"6,5..." Hania joined in and the crowd started to chant with her. Salaar edged closer to get a better look. I giggled and looked up at my partner in crime.
"...3,2" Izzy muttered in my ear.
"1," I said my eyes meeting Zaroon's. He smiled as the clock struck 12. The loud gong echoed in the air and cheers erupted from the people around us. More streamers and confetti fell around us but my eyes were on him, just like his eyes were on me.

"Happy Birthday!" Izzy and I cut the cake together amidst love and cheers. With the background of applause, both Uncle EJ and Ammi Jaan fed us a slice of cake.

"You outdid yourself Rania... thank you!" I said giving her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "The party was amazing" She smiled her eyes tired but happy.
"Did you have fun?"
"Oh so much" I answered looking at her finding that I really was going to miss her.
"What?" She said giving me a strange look.
"Nothing... just, I love you" she groaned and stepped away as I tried to muss up her hair.
"Sappy you is worse than angry you" I laughed at her declaration.

We stood outside, saying goodbye to the remaining guests. It wasn't extremely late, just around two, but I could not forget that Ferozeuddin would be arriving at noon. I needed to get to bed. We all did, I amended as I looked at Izzy, Hania and Uncle EJ. Ammi Jaan had excused herself after the cake cutting and was now sound asleep. At least one of us would be well-rested.

"So... how was the dance with the Major?" Hania said coming to stand beside me. I blushed and tried to keep my voice steady.
"He's a good dancer," I said.
"Oh we saw," she said her voice full of mirth. Apparently she was over whatever had been bothering her before. I decided not to ask. Rania saved me by excusing herself.
"Thank you for helping Rania... it means a lot"
"It was my husbands birthday too... so" the unexpected bite in her tone threw me off. "But it wasn't a problem," she said her voice returning to her usual tone.
"Ready?" Izzy asked. I nodded.
"Ready for what?" Hania muttered her eyes on him.
"These two have a ritual, they also celebrate their birthday together, away from everyone else," Uncle EJ said placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Ever since he came here," I said, shivering. Izzy smiled and shrugged off his coat to place it on my shoulders.
"Let's go," he said. "Bye," he called to Hania giving her a brief hug. She gave him a weak smile.
"Goodnight... see you in the morning," I said to Uncle EJ. "I loved the horse, I'm naming her Duchess" he laughed.
"That's quite a name," he said as we moved away.

"Hurry up!"
"Well, it's hard to do so considering I'm wearing a gown" I hissed. Izzy rolled his eyes and reached forward to pull me up.

We were on our spot on one of main columns that overlooked the city. It glittered underneath us, the lights glinting in the darkness. Thank God it was a nook so the wind wouldn't freeze us to death. We already had our supplies stashed there, blankets, hand warmers, jackets and socks. Over the years we had smuggled in a cupboard to keep all the stuff in. Since it was nook, covered from 3 sides, the climate hadn't affected the place.

The old structure of the castle had a set of stairs that the servants used to move around without being seen. They were well maintained but not in use. We had discovered this place by accident on one of our adventures. It had been our secret hideout since then.

Izzy grabbed the basket he had brought and started fishing out snacks.
"So spill... what's up with you and Hania?" This was our ritual. We could ask each other whatever question we deemed appropriate and the other person had to answer honestly. Neither of us could dodge or weasel our way out.

Izzy sighed. "Hania thinks that I spend way too much time here and I should leave the two of you to your own devices"
"Oh" well, that stung. "I mean, you are always here" he gave me a dark look.
"This is my home Eli... I'm not going to leave it because someone wants more attention"
"She deserves that attention Izz... she's your wife. You haven't even been on a honeymoon yet"
"We will go... things haven't exactly been the best here"
"Things will never be the best here, you know that. It's her right to demand time from her husband. To want her own home. Do you expect her to stay here forever?" He let out a frustrated sigh.
"I told her to just wait. Wait till things had calmed down. Wait till you were comfortable..."
"Let me guess, is that why she's a bit tense around me?" He shrugged. "Is that why you've been playing the big brother role a bit too much?"
"Guilty. All these men in your life, I'm used to being the only one" ah. Wait, men?
"You are who you are. No one could take your place"
"And no one could take yours..." he said popping a biscuit into his mouth.
"But we'll have to adjust," I said dejectedly.
"We will, others won't. Anyways, a week or two more and things will be normal" he said. Silence descended around us and I munched on a box of Pringle's.

"Why did you leave?" his question caught me off guard.

Dread threatened to claw up my throat. I should have seen this coming.
"I..."
"We'll stay here the whole night," he said. I sighed and gave up. He had to know at some point.

"That asshole" I shushed him. "I'll kill him... I'll bury him into the ground"
"You will do no such thing"
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"For this reason... and it was just so raw. I felt like I'd done something wrong, that somehow it was my fault like I wasn't enough" I said, tears clogging my throat.

Izzy rammed his fist on the blanket.
"And you decided to hide? Trust me Eli, it wasn't you. Have you seen you? How could someone not want you? How can you not be enough? That jerk wasn't good enough and you should be glad to be rid of him. Eli... you should have told me. I would have helped, I would have..."
"I know. I just didn't want to be judged? Being rejected was a first for me" I said bitterly as a single tear escaped my eye. When would I stop crying over this?
"We needed you Eli and you needed us. That's what families are for. No matter what you do, we're there for each other, judgment or no judgment"  more silence. "You're very brave to do it on your own though. I couldn't have..." a couple more tears slipped out. "Aww don't cry... I didn't want that. What about today, how will you face him? Will you be okay?"

I placed my head on his shoulder. "I have you and Rania. Uncle EJ will be there and..."
"And Zaroon?" My brother was on a roll tonight.
"I'm regretting ever having this ritual" he shrugged, his face fighting a grin.
"I'm having to scare two men at once, at least tell me which one you prefer so I can focus my energy on one" I let out a laugh. Salaar or Zaroon, ha this was a no brainer.
"... Zaroon? Maybe? I don't know what it is or where it's going but for the first time I want to give it a chance"
"Huh... Salaar is a good guy too you know"
" No doubt. But he flirts with every woman in sight and honestly, has different priorities"
"Aaah... now that might not change. Ever." We laughed. "Why Zaroon?" 
"Because he challenges me. Fights with him make me want to understand him. He tells me what he thinks. He's... not from our circle but he knows it" the answer surprised me. "He makes me want to do better, be better"

Izzy let out a low whistle. "Oooh... things are serious now"
"I mean, I don't know. It's a recent development"
"Yes, two weeks ago he was Mr.Sensible" I covered my face with my hands and he laughed. "And now he can't keep his eyes off you"
"You think?" He laughed at my eagerness.
"Are you blind? Anyone can see it. I could also see how nervous he was around you. He used to reply in terse sentences... it was really funny" I stared at him.
"Wait, what?"
"Oh yeah, you had no clue. Rania and I had a laugh about it. You were constantly fighting with him, it was very enjoyable by the way. That guy has been into you since day one and you didn't know" my mouth dropped open in surprise.
"I thought he had hated me..." Izzy laughed again, louder this time. "By the way, where's my present?"
"Thought you'd never ask," he said reaching for a small package hidden behind his back. He handed it to me as I reached behind me to hand him his, anticipation curling in my stomach.

The small box was covered with gold wrapping paper. I ghosted my hand over the surface.
"Together?" I asked.
"Together" he answered.

We ripped open the packaging and gasped. "Where did you get this? How?" his eyes shined with unshed tears.
"This...Izzy, wow" the gift in my hand had to be priceless.

The diadem was delicately built from white gold, that had been twisted into delicate ropes. The three ropes twisted into each other, weaving in and out to form a small arch. They were decorated with tiny clear diamonds alternatively placed on the ropes so that they winked in the night. It was a simple diadem that I could wear without feeling like I was impersonating someone.
"You first" Izzy demanded.
"Friend of a friend. The case had been closed. So I asked for the watch and they gave it to me"
"You don't know how much this means to me... I, I can't tell you what I'm feeling right now"  I smiled and placed my hand on his.
"Here let me help" I took the watch out of his hands and placed it on his wrist. "Back where it belonged" he placed his hand over mine and bumped my forehead to his.
"Thank you." I squeezed his fingers to know that I understood.

"Now... this is exquisite," I said gesturing towards the diadem.
"I thought every queen deserved her own crown... rather than cleaning up one from the vaults, why not add one?" I stared at him in wonder. "You're stronger than you think. Trust yourself. You know what's right. Most of all... you're beloved by a whole bunch of people who believe you're worth it"

My bottom lip trembled as he gently placed the diadem on my head. "Perfect"