"I can't believe you're leaving."

"You are going to come back right?"

"She wouldn't. It's best for her there. Much safer back home."

I looked at the boys, making myself comfortable on the sofa with them. I've already decided to leave, no matter how stupid or dumb my decision was, it was mine to make.

Omkara and I would have never worked out either way. It was too dangerous for the both of us to be together.

I had to stop trying. I had to stop him from taking all those risks and putting his life in danger for me.

Not to mention, everyone around him as well. I don't want them to get dragged down into this because of me.

"I'm sorry. I just don't want you guys to be in danger because of me, not anymore. You've already done enough for me." I looked at everyone and then at Shivaay , who turned away, obviously still upset about the whole idea of me leaving.

"The car is here." My breath hitched when I heard Ishana's cheerful voice echo through the room.

She was pleased about this. Too pleased.

I got up and looked at the boys as they got up. I hugged everyone and gave Shivaay an apologetic look before turning to look at Ishana, who gave me the sweetest smile ever.

"Gauri, see me for a minute." I froze when I heard Omkara's voice. I turned to watch him nod at me near the stairs and hesitantly walked over to him, fighting back the tears I fought so hard to keep in.

Why did he want to see me at the last minute?

I am trying so hard not to break down and if I see him alone like this, I'd probably not even be able to hold it in for another second.

We didn't say anything until we reached up to his room.

I followed him in and watched him turn around.

My jaws dropped open when I noticed that his whole room were now covered in string lights, the table and bed decorated beautifully with candles and red roses.

I gulped softly and looked at Omkara , who gave me a small smile.

"Om-Omkara , it's beautiful."

"I wanted to spend the last minutes with you like this," He took a step forward, running a hand through his hair nervously, messing it up in the process

"I know this is going to sound cheesy as fuck, but," He chuckled but they held no emotion.

You could easily see how broken he was. And it broke me too. To see him try so hard to the very end. If only it was easier than this.

"Can I have one last dance?" He walked up to a huge speaker at the very corner of the bed and I hadn't even noticed it was there till until now.

A familiar song started and I held back the tears as it started playing.

Omkara appeared in front of me and took my arms, already wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling my body closer to his.

I breathed in his cologne and we started slow dancing to the song, my heart dropping as we continued moving to the music.

I'm not a perfect person
There's many thing I wish I didn't do But I continue learning
I never meant to do those things to you And so I have to say before I go
That I just want you to know
I've found a reason for me
To change who I used to be
A reason to start over new
And the reason is you

A single drop of tear rolled down my cheeks as Omkara's grip around my waist tightened and I quickly buried my face in his chest as I followed his movements, fighting back my trembling knees.

I'm sorry that I hurt you
It's something I must live with everyday And all the pain I put you through
I wish that I could take it all away
And be the one who catches all your tears

Omkara pulled back and swirled me around before pulling me back in his arms again, causing my heart to race faster than ever.

I've found a reason to show A side of me you didn't know A reason for all that I do
And the reason is you.

We stopped when the song ended and I was about to open my mouth to say something when he pressed a finger on it, shaking his head slightly.

"I have something for you." He said slowly and I looked at him in confusion before he took my shoulders, turning my back to face him.

My body stiffened when his breath hit against my neck before a necklace was carefully wrapped around my neck.

I looked down at it awe and touched it, my eyes carefully studying the beautiful design and carvings on it.

"It's beautiful." I finally said, turning around and his eyes briefly met the floor before meeting my own again.

"It's a vervain necklace. It'll protect you for as long as you wear it." He explained and I nodded with a small smile.

"Thank you, Omkara ." He nodded and opened his mouth to say something else when someone knocked on the door.

"Her parents are here, hurry up."

My heart started pounding loudly against my chest and I looked at Omkara one more time before he nodded hesitantly.

I turned to leave, ready to open the door when a hand grabbed my shoulder, spinning me around hastily.

Omkara's lips covered mine within seconds and I kissed him back passionately and slowly, savouring our last moments together.

He pulled away first and gently pressed his forehead against mine, his fingers on my cheeks now brushing against them in a comforting manner.

"I wish you'd stay." He fixated his eyes on mine and I saw the slight hint of hope flickering inside of them before I lowered my eyelashes on the ground.

"I'm sorry, Omkara ." I finally let the tears roll down my cheeks but Omkara quickly brushed them away, shaking his head slowly.

"You'll be okay " He said softly, lifting my face to meet his eyes again and I nodded.

"Good bye Omkara ."

xxx

And just like that, a month passed by after I moved back home with my parents and let's be honest.

I felt so broken and empty for the past few weeks. It felt like a part of was incomplete, lost without him.

I would recall everything Omkara said to me for days and had sleepless nights for weeks but I could never turn back and change everything again.

I didn't have the courage to do it. And as badly as I wanted Omkara to come back for me, he didn't.

He kept his word and I never saw him after that, not even once. I'd hear rumors about him from my people but other than that, nothing.

And the worst part is, ever since I returned, people in my town has been giving me nasty looks and throwing me scowls in disgust every chance they get.

They were obviously not pleased with the fact that I didn't use the chance to turn into one of them. But that was my choice. And I had every right to make my own choice.

Plus, with my parents supporting my decisions now, nothing was holding me back.

"Gauri, come on already! You have got to stop being depressed 24/7 and get out already. You've been like this for weeks!" Bhavya was now starting to pull my hair and I groaned in annoyance before slapping her hand away.

"Leave me alone to die." I grumbled, burying my face harder inside my pillow.

"No. Your parents are worried about you, babe. You have got to stop acting like this. I thought you wanted this." She pinched my arm and I sat up with a squeal.

"Well, it is what I wanted. But that's because I had no choice. I can't put Omkara or the rest of the Oberoi brothers in danger because of me."

"Bla bla bla, omg, you should just write a book about it already. Going on and on about how they're having trouble protecting you and looking out for you. News flash babe, if they found protecting you as a threat or burden to them, they would have gotten rid of you a long time ago. You left on your own." Bhavya frowned at me and I let out another groan before motioning her to shut up.

"What's done is done. I can't do anything about it anymore. And-" I slapped a hand over Bhavya's mouth before she could speak. "I'll go to the movies if it means you'll drop the subject."

Bhavya's eyes lit up and she instantly nodded in victory.

xxx

"How did we end up in a restaurant again?" I took a seat with Bhavya at the table before a waiter walked up to us, handing us the menu.

"I am starving. It's my treat so count yourself lucky tonight." Bhavya brushed her blond hair away before going through the menu.

"I'll just order a sandwich and apple sparkling ." I closed the menu and Bhavya chose her food before we gave our orders.

"So tell me more stories about them." Bhavya leaned forward and I let out a playful groan.

"I've already told you a million stories," I laughed as she shook her head.

"How am I supposed to remember every detail of everything's that happened in that mansion?"

"You are supposed to remember, honey." Bhavya stopped when the waiter arrived with our food.

"How come?"

"Oh don't pretend Gauri. Being chosen was a big deal. You literally changed history by returning back home like this. I can't believe he would actually let you go." I looked at Bhavya as she sipped her coffee.

"Yeah..." I mumbled softly, not really wanting to talk about Omkara or remember him. It would kill my mood and make me feel gloomy all over again.

"Not exactly a good decision for some people though." I glanced at the people near our table as they whispered to each other, sending me small frowns and scowls before turning away.

"Oh don't bother. They're just jealous that you got to tame the wild beast."

"Bhavya ! He's not a beast!." I corrected Bhavya with a harsh tone and she raised a brow before shrugging.

"I'm sorry. I just-"

"It's cool, I get it." Her lips played into a wry smile and I slapped her hand before chuckling.

"Stop, it's not like that." I argued and Bhavya started cooing and making weird noises, causing me to flush in embarrassment.

We finished eating and both of us decided to go back to my place to watch a movie.

After paying, we started leaving and I stiffened a little when I felt eyes behind me, burning holes through my back now. I glanced back to face no one in particular, except random people who were enjoying their food at the tables.

Brushing off the uncomfortable feeling of being watched, I followed Bhavya back home, not exactly wanting to stress over nothing.

It was nothing, right?

That night, Bhavya and I stayed up late, watching horror movies, and I think it's safe to say that we were scared shitless the whole time. Squealing and screaming every now and then hugging each other for "protection". I suddenly stiffened when I felt a shadow passed through our window swiftly, making my head snap towards it. Nobody.

I looked at Bhavya and noticed her eyeing the window as well and I gulped softly, realizing that I wasn't the only one who felt another presence with us now.

"Hey, you said Mr and Mrs Sharma are working late tonight right? Does that mean we're both alone..." Bhavya's voice trailed off when all the lights turned off from the house, causing us both to gasp softly.

My heart was now beating loudly against my chest and I grabbed Bhavya's hand, my blood freezing at the thought of someone attempting to break into our house.

"Bhav-I-I think someone's in the hou-"

"No, bitch fuck you, don't say it, don't you dare scare the shit out of-" the sound of our backdoor slamming shut through the kitchen made her cut off and both of us jumped up with a gasp, my whole body starting to tremble now.

"He-hello? Maa, is that you?" I called out weakly, standing up, my mind suddenly dreading over the thought that it could be Veer breaking in. But there is no way. It's been more than a month since he's been onto me. If he wanted to take me away, he could have easily done so all these days.

"Maa?" I started calling louder when Bhavya slapped my hand.

"Are you insane?! Are you begging to get killed? Why don't you just call the killer out, hunh? That'll make his job easier, don't you think?" She spat, both of us trying to adjust to the darkness now.

"Oh, and what do you suppose we do then, smart ass? Wait here to greet him?"

"That's exactly what we are supposed to do!"

"Bhavya , shut up! Us being sarcastic right now is gonna be the death of us and we can't-" Both Bhavya and I screamed when we heard something fall from the kitchen, causing us both to whimper in fear before we started backing away.

"Who's there?! Whoever you are, you better stay where you are, or we're calling the police!" I don't know where I got the sudden burst of courage from but the moment my dumbass-sorry-excuse-of-a-best-friend spoke, my confidence crumbled back into pieces.

"But Gauri , our phones in our bags and we don't have-"

"Bhavya , I swear to god, I will kill you myself if you don't shut up-" I stiffened when I heard footsteps approaching behind us, making my knees tremble in fear.

We both slowly turned around and my breath instantly caught in between my throat when my eyes landed on the guys in hoodie.

There were at least four or five of them now, all of their faces covered in black masks as they took another step towards us, the darkness covering half of their figures now.

"Wh-who are you people? I'm warning you, if you are going to-" I stopped to scream when one of them took a few steps towards us and before I could even think straight, I grabbed the nearest object I could grab from the sofa and threw it towards the guy.

I watched his face hurl to a side before he hissed in pain and the guys started bolting towards us, causing a blood curdling scream to escape through my lips, which was soon mixed by Bhavya's .

I grabbed Bhavya's hand and started running towards the stairs when someone grabbed my shoulders and ripped me away, sending me hurling back before I bumped against something hard.

"Don't fucking touch me, get your hands off of me!" I screamed and elbowed the man right in the stomach, causing him to take a step back. I used this chance to jerk myself away and turn around to punch him with everything I got.

As soon as my fists collided on his face, he grabbed my wrist and I squealed when he lost his balance and fell, causing me to fall on top of him.

In a swift motion, I sat up, wrapping my legs around his torso and balled my hands into a fist, ready to punch him again and make a run for it when the lights turned back on, causing my body to stiffen.

Laughter erupted through the room within seconds and I froze to look at the man under me as he slipped off his mask, causing my eyes to widen in disbelief.

"Ajay?! Wh-what the hell!" I gawked at him, my jaws dropping open in shock before I looked up to face the Oberoi brothers, who were now hurling back and laughing their asses off, some of them clutching their stomachs and gasping for air now.

"I will kill you, I swear! You're such a dick!" I heard Bhavya growl and I looked to my right to notice her already on top of Rudra, hitting him with her "weapon" which by the way, was the sofa cushion. I glared at the boys who were still laughing and chuckling, trying to keep a straight face as I sent them a million daggers.

"I can't believe you guys!" I got up and finally grinned as they walked up to us.

"Why're you here?" I tried to hide my idiotic smile as they chuckled again. It felt so good to see them, I didn't even realized just how much I actually missed them until they were standing right in front of me now.

"We missed you, so just came to catch up." Rudra cleared his throat before sending a wink towards Bhavya , who scoffed in annoyance before tightening her arms around her chest, obviously trying to hide her face from blushing now.

"You guys could've knocked and just-"

"Now what's the fun in that, hm?" Abhay grinned before waking up to me, giving me a quick hug. I hugged him back and then gave some quick hugs to Rudra , Ajay, Arjun, and Rithesh.

"Where's everyone else?" I asked and watched the boys explore my house curiously.

"They're kinda busy so we decided to drop by first." Rudra replied, taking off his hoodie.

"Must you guys wear hoodies? Do you guys have any idea how scared we were? We thought-"

"But that's the whole point bhavi-"

"Bhavya ." Bhavya corrected Edward through gritted teeth I couldn't help but chuckle at their little fight.

"Yeah whatever babe," He waved her off and I watched Bhavya pretend to strangle him from behind with her hands.

"We saw you guys watching a movie and decided to grab some hoodies and begin the fun." Rithesh grinned and my jaws dropped open in disbelief.

"You mean, you guys planned this? The lights and-" my lips formed into a smile as the boys grinned at us with a nod.

"Assholes, we are so getting you guys back for this." Bhavya chuckled and I nodded.

"Give it your best short, darling. Can it be one of those hilarious pranks where you accidentally slip and fall on my dick-" before Rudra could finish, Bhavya grabbed the cushion from the ground and hurled it towards him.

Rudra caught it with ease before chuckling and I watched them both quarrel some more before Ajay walked up to me.

"So, how about we do something fun tonight? Maybe play a game or let us watch the movie with you guys?" He cocked an eyebrow playfully and I couldn't help but nod in excitement.

Rudra suddenly stepped forward to envelope me into a hug and I froze in position, breathing in his scent.

"It's so good to see you, Kulfi ." He said in a gentle, sweet voice and I smiled before hugging him back.

"It's good to see you too."

That whole night, we played truth or dare and watched some more horror movies with the guys.

It was wild and hilarious to play games with them. They would come up with such childish and embarrassing dares for us and Bhavya and I were exhausted by the time we were finished.

"We'll see you next week again or something, okay?" Rudra hugged me as we all stepped outside and I nodded with a smile.

"Was it you guys who were spying on us back at the restaurant too?" I playfully hit him on the shoulder and watched his eyebrows furrow in confusion.

"No? We only checked up on you tonight.

Why? Did you see someone following you? When was it and what time did you see him-"

"Ajay, stop, it was probably nothing then. I just thought I saw you guys or something." I brushed him off, not wanting them to get worried.

"Something could happen. We'll keep an eye on you and-"

"No. I mean, it's sweet you guys but no, you are not going to follow me around just because of my paranoia," I interrupted Abhay.

"Promise me you guys won't do anything stupid, like following me or-"

"Geez babe, relax, we don't plan to. This might come off to you as a surprise, but we got better things to do than babysit you two." Rudra hissed at me and Bhavya and I rolled my eyes before nodding.

We said our goodbyes and after they left, Bhavya and I went straight to bed, feeling exhausted.

Actually, "exhausted" was an understatement. I felt like dropping right there on the floor and sleeping wherever my head lands on first.

"Night babe." I cuddled inside my bed next to her, closing my eyes as she mumbled me a "goodnight" as well.

xxx

"But Maa , I hate staying alone."

"Well darling, you have no choice. You can bring over Bhavya . You know how important this project is for me." My mom placed my food on the table and I looked at Dad for support but his eyes never left his newspaper.

He was the same as ever.

"Why do you both have to go?"

"Because sweetie, your father has some business there too so we decided to leave for two weeks or so. We're going to Canada, Gauri . It's not so far away." It's at times like these when my mom was horrible at convincing people to get what she wants.

"Right, so what country do you consider far away then?" I got up from the table and walked over to the fridge in my kitchen, opening it and grabbing a soda.

"Well, honey, this is our job. And I asked you to come with us but you refused to, remember?" I heard my mom shout out, her tone getting impatient and irritated.

"Well, what am I supposed to do in Canada mom?" I shot back, coming back to the sitting room.

"Anyways, never mind, you guys can go. But don't let Pinky Aunty to babysit me. You know how she hates me now." I grumbled under my breath and heard my father sigh in annoyance.

"She doesn't hate you-"

"She visited us last week and kept asking why I left the mansion the whole night, remember? And she still throws me those nasty looks." I made a face.

My pinky Aunty was another vampire worshipper in our family, probably the biggest one at that, so imagine how delighted she would be when she heard the news about me returning back.

"Our flight is in 2 hours Gauri , we barely had enough sleep last night even. I'm sorry that we have to leave so suddenly okay, but can you please bear with us? It's not exactly easy for us to leave you either." My mom finally walked up to me and I let out a sigh in defeat.

"Alright," I shrugged and she kissed me on the cheeks, her eyes flickering in satisfaction.

"Good. Now finish your breakfast, sweetheart."

*******

"Bhavya , please take care of her alright? If anything happens, call me right away. I told Pinky Aunty to help you if you need anything and I left my credit card on the fridge," the moment those words left my mother's mouth, me and Bhavya exchanged mischievous glances.

"You girls better not go on a shopping spree with that money." She eyed us both carefully and we nodded oh- so-innocently. The taxi arrived shortly and I watched my parents leave before I let out a sigh in relief.

Bhavya and I went back inside and I grinned as I took the credit card from the fridge, my eyes praising the beautiful masterpiece in my hands.

"Shopping?"

"Oh you know it. Bhavya grinned back and we both rushed out, not even bothering to change our causal outfits, which were only shorts with plain white tank tops.

xxx

Bhavya and I hit one of the biggest shopping malls in town, but since we're short on cash, we only got one dress for each of us.

After taking a taxi, we arrived back home and I was about to step out, when I noticed a familiar figure passing by the car from behind.

My eyes swiftly turned and narrowed at the road before I grabbed Bhavya's hand.

"I could've sworn I just saw Abhay."

"Abhay? You mean the Oberoi brother?" Bhavya's eyes roamed around the area before my eyes narrowed at the street again. And then it hit me.

"I think I have an idea of what's going on," I almost groaned in annoyance before getting out of the car.

"Follow my lead." I added softly to Bhavya , who looked at me in confusion before nodding.
"I think somethings wrong today.

I keep seeing things." I said out loud and Bhavya gave me a look as we entered the house.

"What's going on-"

"I'll do the talking. They can hear your voice but not mine, thanks to this." I held out the vervain necklace and Bhavya continued to give me the crazy look as I let out a painful groan, very loudly, might I add.

"I feel like dying." I let out another painful moan before motioning Bhavya to step towards the door as slowly as possible.

Without warning, I grabbed the doorknob, swiftly opening the door and sure enough, the Oberoi brothers stumbled inside, some of them already lying on my floor as Bhavya and I stepped aside.

"Need anything, guys?" My words dripped in sarcasm as I folded my hands across my chest, putting my weight on my right foot.

"About that-" "No, we're good."

They all started clearing their throats and picking themselves up and I looked at Bhavya , whose mouth was still slightly open in disbelief.

"You guys promised not to follow around." I almost whined and Arjun stepped forward, pressing his hands together and bringing them closer to his lips, as if he was about to come up with the stupidest excuse ever.

"I got nothing, you guys handle it." He stepped back when I glared at him and I looked at the guys.

I noticed that Shivaay , Omkara , Jai, Parth, Raj and Rithesh were missing now, making me feel slightly disappointed.

I wanted to see Omkara so badly.

"We wanted to make sure you were safe and, uh, invite you to the party at our place." Rudra spoke carefully and I narrowed my eyes at him before shrugging, not really wanting to miss the opportunity to see Omkara .

Wait, what? No, I shouldn't go, it would make things worse between us.

"Um, thank you but-"

"We insist. Show up around 8, we'll wait for you outside the mansion." Rudra stepped forward and I looked at Bhavya , who was now beaming in excitement. I guess one of us is going for sure then.

"Alright, we'll be there."

xxx

That night, Bhavya and I wore the new dresses we got only today. I was wearing a skin tight off shoulder scarlet red dress with matching black and red lace up heels.

My hair was tied up with a light touch of make up, thanks to Bhavya. She, on the other hand, wore a gorgeous blue dress, that effortlessly reached all the way down to the floor, showing off all her curves and long legs.

We both admired each other for what seemed like forever before I looked at the time, and my mind went completely blank again.

It was almost 8pm. The thought of seeing Omkara made me feel nervous and my hands immediately started to sweat and tremble but I quickly clutched them together, shaking my head. I was going to go.

And I'd be lying if I said that I didn't want to "accidentally" bump into him tonight. I just missed him so much and felt so desperate to at least see him once tonight.

Bhavya took my hand and we stepped out of the house and took the first taxi. We arrived at the mansion shortly and by now, my heart was pounding so loudly against my chest, I'm sure Bhavya can hear it too now.

"Hey!" I heard someone shout and looked to my right to notice the Oberoi brothers. They all apologized to the girls and people around them and I gulped when they brushed through the crowd to walk up to us.

"Hey, long time." Jai hugged me first, someone I haven't even seen for ages. I hugged them all, except Raj, who simply gave me a nod with a smile, which was very new by the way.

He was the most arrogant one of them all but I guess he has softened up a bit now.

Shivaay and Omkara were still nowhere to be seen and I bit my bottom lip as they guided us inside.

As expected, the place was beautiful, with people already making their way to the ballroom. I inhaled deeply, feeling the nostalgic sensation rushing through my veins.

Oh, how I missed this place.

"Gauri ?" A familiar voice called and I froze before turning to face Shivaay , his eyes slightly widening in surprise. His hair was well gelled up and the suit he wore made him look so good. But then again, this wasn't the first time I've seen him like this.

"Hey, how-" I gasped when he pulled me into a hug and I could feel some people staring at us but I ignore them and hugged him back.

"I've missed you so much. I was planning to drop by but I've been so busy trying to-" He paused when the boys cleared their throats and I frowned in suspicion.

"Anyways, it's so good to see you, really." He took a step forward and I noticed the Oberoi brothers walking past us, towards another bunch of people.

"It's good to see you too," I pulled back and tucked a strand of my hair behind my ears.

"I thought you would still be upset."

"Oh I am," his voice turned serious and I immediately looked up at him in guilt.

"But I missed you so much so I can't really take it out on you right now." He smiled a little, pinching my cheeks slightly and I brushed them away before grinning.

"I missed you too." I smiled again and he was about to say something when Arjun started calling him.

"I'll be back. Don't wander about." I nodded as he walked off and let out a sigh.

"Oh my god, it's him!"

"Omkara is here, let's go!"

"Hey, don't push me!"
A herd of girls started squealing and whispering, causing my breathe to hitch. I turned around and instantly, my stomach hardened when I saw him walking into the ballroom.

Seeing Omkara in a suit made my hormones jump up and down but then again, I shouldn't have these kinds of thoughts towards him now.

His dark hair was disheveled, making his eyes stand out, the ocean blue eyes making my knees feel weak to the ground.

I gulped slowly and froze when his eyes met mine briefly, a void of emotions filling inside of them before he tore our gaze, causing my heart to drop.

He continued talking to more people, a smile playing on his lips as he nodded his head and made his way to the other side of the room.

Did he see me? Of course he did. I know I asked Omkara to let me go, but seeing him giving me the cold shoulder made me feel worse than I thought.

My throat tightened and I suddenly felt sick. I don't know what was going on with me but it made me feel worse with each passing second.

I quickly scurried my way through the crowd and jogged outside before practically running upstairs to my room.

At least, the room I used to stay in this mansion.

I bolted inside and ran to the bathroom, quickly washing my face. Tears were now threatening to spill and I realized just what a bad idea coming here was.

I was making it harder for the both of us. Or just me, seeing that Omkara seems to be doing fine now.

I wiped my face and quickly slipped out of the room, dragging myself through the hallway and froze when I saw Omkara walking through the hallway as well.

My movements froze for a moment and I noticed that he was now staring at the floor as he kept walking, his thumb brushing against the corner of his lips before he looked up to notice me.

I saw something flash in his eyes but he continued with his fast pace, walking right past me.

My heart broke at how distant we felt now. If I knew it would be like this, I would have never left. I didn't want to become a stranger to Omkara .

I couldn't handle it.

"Omkara ?" I called out before I could even stop myself and gulped, turning my body around to face his back.

He came to a sudden halt and I noticed his body tense up a little before he casually slipped his hands into his pockets, turning around to meet my gaze, a stone hard emotionless look taking over his face now.

"Um, I wanted to know how you were doing." I said slowly, walking up to him and watched his eyebrow shoot up.

"You should worry about yourself." He said shortly and started leaving when I grabbed his hand.

I felt his body tense under my touch before he took my hand, slowly ripping it away from his.

"Don't do that." He said darkly and my mouth slightly hung open at his cold words.

"Sorry..." I apologized and before I could say anything more, Omkara brushed past me and back downstairs.

My insides started to churn and I found myself running downstairs, quickly walking out of the mansion.

I met Bhavya outside and quickly grabbed her hand, ready to leave when she spoke.

"Gauri , I have to stay with my parents tonight. My mom's fever is acting up again and I am so sorry to leave you alone in the house and-"

"It's alright, I understand." I cut her off quickly, realizing that Rudra was standing right next to her now.

"Alone?" His eyes narrowed at me and I gave her a warning look as she nodded.

"Alone, as-as in without a friend," Bhavya stuttered and I watched Rudra raise a brow at me in suspicion.

"Without me." Bhavya added and Rudra hissed at her, his eyes briefly closing before looking down to meet Bhavya's innocent look.

"If you keep lying with that pretty face, I'll kiss you and shut you up." He said in a monotone voice but it still made Bhavya blush furiously before she pressed her lips together into a thin line.

Before they could say anything more, I waved her off and took the first taxi, getting inside. I could see Rudra calling me but I ignored and gave him an apologetic look as the driver took off.

After I came home, I immediately took a shower, stripping off my tight clothes and slipping on a tank top with comfortable black shorts.

My heart was still racing after meeting Omkara and I started to feel sick again. I hated feeling like this.

I hated having this sick feeling in my stomach. Shaking away any thoughts about Omkara , I quickly got into bed, burying my face into the pillow.

You're going to be fine, Gauri. It's fine. Everything's fine. I kept repeating those words in my head, swallowing the lump in my throat. You're not fine...

I finally broke into tears, but for some reason, I was afraid to cry.

Afraid that Omkara could hear me right now and realize my feelings towards him. But he wasn't even here. And it was okay for me to cry. I shouldn't keep it in and feel so trapped and suffocated. It was okay to cry.

To feel helpless and heartbroken at times. More tears spilled down my cheeks as I sobbed harder, closing my eyes shut. Just go to sleep.

Hours passed by before I finally drifted off into a deep sleep.

xxx
The next morning, I woke up with a terrible headache, my eyes stinging due to all the crying from last night.

After washing my face, I went downstairs to my sitting room, grabbing the milk carton and groaned when the bell started ringing.

God, why did Bhavya have to show up so early. Not even bothering to do my hair, I started walking towards the door, the constant sound of bell ringing making me growl in irritation.

"I am coming!" I snapped, taking a huge sip out of the carton and opening the door. Before I could gulp down the milk, my eyes widened at the familiar figure, causing me to spit out whatever was in my mouth in shock.

I stared, horrified, as the milk splattered all over Omkara's face and clothes, his eyes now completely shut before his eyebrows furrowed together in both disgust and frustration.

"Really, Gauri ?" He muttered, wiping some of it from his cheeks before stepping inside, while I still stood there, baffled.

"Wh-what-are-are you doing here?" Oh wow, at least I managed to spit that sentence out without dying.

"Heard your parents are gone for a few weeks. So I thought I'd live here for a couple of days until they return." He explained casually, walking up to the sitting room sofa.

"Wh-what do you mean? why?" I asked in confusion. Now don't get me wrong. I wanted Omkara to stay. But I needed explanations first.

"It's still not safe for you to be alone, Gauri ." I watched him walk up to the kitchen and followed him inside. He walked towards the sink and started washing his face, making me blush slightly.

He was worried about me. As if reading my mind, he turned around and walked up to me, his eyes boring into mine with no emotion.

"Don't misunderstand though. I only came here because of Veer. He might still be onto you and until I take care of him, I can't let you get hurt. I don't want you to get hurt because of me." He explained and my stomach hardened at his words.

"Oh." I lowered my eyelashes on the ground, feeling embarrassed to have hoped for something more.

Of course he would have moved on.

I left him.

It was natural of him to move on from someone who left him like I did.

"You've been crying." He grabbed a tissue to wipe his face and I went silent, my eyes slightly widening at his words before I shook my head.

"I didn't." I said in a firm tone and watched him finish drying up before looking down at his wet grey shirt and then at me again.

"Yes you did." He said in the same, emotionless tone.

"No, I haven't-"

"Yes, you have." He emphasised and I didn't have the strength to argue back, so I simply landed my gaze back on the ground.

"You can't lie to me even if you wanted to, Gauri ." He walked right past me and I gulped softly, my heart aching at his cold attitude.

"I'll crash at your parents bedroom, is that okay with you?" He asked, picking up his bag that he had thrown off on the kitchen floor and I looked up at him hesitantly.

Should I? It's better to have him here than to be alone, right? Or did I just want him around for my own reasons? I shook away those thoughts and met Omkara's eyes again as he raised a brow at me impatiently.

"It's a simple question, Gauri , yes or no?"

"Yeah, you can."