When Dark meets the Light

The Light shines in the darkness.. And the darkness has never put it off..

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A moment of despair starts taking control, when your mind fails terribly to fight the turbulence created by itself.

As hard as you try to come out of those conspicuous traps, the stronger their grip becomes on you.

.

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The shallow she thought the reality to be, the deeper the cut got, as her notions continued backfiring her.

Entering once again into that lush green huge garden, where nature dwelled at its purest form, she could see the beautiful orchids, and listen to the lively chirpings of the birds.

Her face lit up with a smile as her eyes treasured the heavenly beauty in front of her, wishing to frame this sight forever.

As her steps went ahead, the warmth and love surrounded her with its captivating essence. It seemed as if the welcoming air blanketed her with a tinge so warm and divine that she simply didn't want this moment to be over.

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Holding the frills of her purple dress, she plucked those beautiful violet roses with one hand.

Their fragrance, their purity, that divine feeling, made her heart swell with joy as

she turned around merrily and became hypnotized by the spell of those mystic, mesmerizing dark brown eyes, once again.

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Arnav..

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Dressed in that same tuxedo, as she had envisioned him a long time back in that unusual dream of dream of hers.

No, nightmare of hers.

But this time, why didn't she feel scared anymore?

.

Why wasn't she afraid of anything at all?

Why wasn't she afraid of him?

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As she found his footsteps approaching her, her heart beat lost its normal pace.

The world once again became evanescent as those irresistible dark brown eyes pulled her into a state of strange, peculiar conspiracy.

She held onto those violet roses in her hands tightly, as her breathing didn't agree to stay normal and her voice betrayed her.

.

What am I supposed to do?'

Stand still?'

Or run?'

She contemplated.

The bizarre thoughts never left her as her eyes saw his chiseled features, so prominent in front of her.

Standing just feet away from him, she tried to control her breathing as well as the sudden urges of her heart, which pounded heavily at the proximity they shared.

Words weren't needed, as she felt her mind already accustomed to all his thoughts and vice versa.

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"I hope you liked the violet roses."

He whispered against her ear, with that same intense husky voice of his and she could feel his warm breath fan her skin, giving her a tingling sensation all over.

For the first time, his voice appeared so clear to her.

So divine, without any prejudices like before, that she almost found herself lost in its melody.

It sent shivers to her being, as she could feel the reflecting thoughts playing in his mind.

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"I do."

She spoke softly looking into his eyes, trying hard not to drown in the pool of mystery they held.

Entwining his fingers with hers, she felt the world ceasing to exist as he brushed his cheek against hers and Khushi closed her eyes, as her cheeks burned in the raw and beautiful color that was scarlet.

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"..I-"

Her heart thudded as she anticipated his words, which had already echoed in the back of her mind, but her eyes opened in terror when she saw that same deadly fire, surrounding them once again.

A jolt of shock hit her as the euphoria once again took a new turn and a new picture of agony streamed up around them.

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The flames rising, turning every inch of that beauty to ashes, just like she had seen it the last time in her nightmare.

She felt his grip become tighter on her as they both saw the futility in front of them, leaving no scope for escapades.

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Clutching those violet roses in one hand, warm tears escaped her eyes as she watched every single thing burn, in the most gruesome way that was this apocalyptic scenario, the world ending right in front of their very own eyes.

There was no reason to pave a way for a second thought, as he held onto her free hand and they ran together, to evade the uneventful tragedy, the mysterious fury.

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A rhapsody of unknown feelings erupted inside her, as she felt him holding her closer to him, and the words of her heart rang in her head to not let go, no matter what.

The feeling of uncertainty tugged at her heart string, as she felt the world turn upside down in no time as they ran like it was their last chance. But that is when she suddenly felt the absence of his essence around her and the void pierced a hole inside her chest, as if draining her life out of her system, rendering her dead.

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The flames enveloping her with every passing second, her eyes continued searching for him, but there was no sign of him.

Not anymore.

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Her heart racing at the uncertain yet certain condition, she felt her soul being crushed as she cried out his name one last time, with all her remaining strength and might.

"ARNAV!!"

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Her eyes suddenly opened in shock as she realized the abrupt end to her nightmare.

Her dream.

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This was the nth time. She sighed.

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Not ready to blink, her eyes stared into the emptiness when slowly the realization dawned in her and she saw that familiar face in front of her.

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Her hands in his, he kept rubbing her palms against his, as if trying to resurrect life into her again, as if trying to restore her body temperature, since she was already feeling too cold.

Not even for once did he look at her, as he continued providing her with the

warmth of his hands.

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"Seems like you were having a bad dream.."

She heard him speak softly as he lifted his head up and looked directly into her eyes.

That husky voice of his, refreshed the unusual moments they spent together seconds ago, in that dicey dream of hers.

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Why did he do that every time?'

It was something he did on purpose, didn't he?'

She tried looking away from him as the vision of that scenario once again flashed in front of her eyes.

But was it a bad dream?

It was hard to tell.

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Trying to keep aside those strange thoughts, she looked around her, and realized they were in a strange place.

Somewhere in the woods.

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She jerked up at that realization and sat straight, trying hard to recall what happened and what exactly brought her here when a mild dizziness hit her and she instantly closed her eyes.

She felt him holding her hands tightly, as if helping her to not lose the balance and saving her from another fall.

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She felt the dizziness gradually go away as she slowly opened her eyes once again and her pupils adjusted with the change.

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"Are you cold?"

She could hear the genuine concern in the devil's voice, though her mind raised thousands of questions regarding what was happening.

She slightly nodded as she felt the cold, chilly winds collide with her pale white skin, making her shiver all the more.

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She managed to stand up with the support of his hands as one after another the incidents that led her here finally flashed in front of her eyes.

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Rebecca's A-line D&G dress.

Mason saying he was going to L.A. for some days.

The dance rehearsals

Those black stilettos.

The Devil was gone..

The guy with the strange dragon tattoo.

The run..

The woods.

Locusts..

The cliff.

His voice.

The jump.

The ocean.

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She felt her body turning into a cold stone as she recalled the series of events and a shiver ran down her spine.

She felt her voice choking and her body once again going limp, when suddenly strong hands draped a blazer around her and brought her out of her musings.

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"..Why?-"

She had merely begun and before she could even complete her sentence, he put a full stop to her words as he placed a finger on her lips, refraining her from speaking anything further.

Khushi was taken aback at his action, as she stared into his molten eyes, which spoke so much to her, despite him not uttering a single word in real.

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He removed his finger slowly and she couldn't help but look at him when her mind coaxed her to ask him the much needed question.

Swallowing the lump in her throat, she tried as she watched him and he turned back, indicating her to proceed with him, when she softly called out his name.

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"Arnav.."

She could see his senses becoming alarmed as she uttered his name and his gestures conveyed it to her that he eagerly awaited her words.

Trying to maintain the consistency in her voice, she took a step ahead and asked him what she felt was her right to know.

.

"How did we get here..?"

The silence continued to haunt her, as he stood there immobile and her baffled query met the contemptuous silence.

When she didn't get any response to her query, it infuriated her to the core, and she took quick steps so that now, she stood right in front of him.

His unreadable expressions added to her helplessness as she begged the Lord to provide her with the answers she deserved to know.

She looked at him questioningly, but his thoughts seemed to differ as he didn't seem in favor of the idea of bringing this topic up, telling her about the whole thing was a distant dream.

Telling her, the truth..

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"You will fall sick if you stay in the cold for so long, come on now."

It was more of a command, as he held her hand and took a step ahead, avoiding all her questions, sidelining the truth, that she so desperately wanted to know.

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The traits of innocence and calmness abandoned her, as she felt flames of anger erupt inside her at his ignorance, and she let go of his hand, rather roughly in an instant second.

Surprised at her action, he raised an eye brow, trying to read her expression, decode the meaning of this sudden unexplainable act of hers.

.

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"The Ocean.."

"You were the one, who saved me."

"..Isn't it?"

She spoke the three sentences, deliberately putting breaks in between to make it more impactful, as she noticed the change in his expressions and his gaze fixed on her.

He still didn't answer her, which only aggravated her anger with every passing second.

"Answer me, Damn it!"

She hissed, as she craved for the reality, but every time she was only offered with illusions.

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"Yes, I did. Now don't make me regret it. Get that?"

He replied curtly, shocking her to her wits.

Was this guy even for real?'

Khushi was dumbstruck!

She could feel the events trapping her in a world of emptiness, and she thought any minute she would suffer a nervous breakdown if this guy continued to give her a whiplash every now and then with his constant mood swings.

And here she thought girls were the only ones who behaved this way when they were PMSing! But here, this gentleman, err, mental-man, was always PMSing!

She was about to grit out another chain of words out of her most legit frustration when suddenly his voice stopped her.

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"And yes. You will get all your answers."

This time he said it with a smirk on his face.

Khushi felt it hard to distinguish, whether he was telling her the truth or he was just teasing her. She felt way too embarrassed at her own self, for letting this guy play with her present so readily.

.

"What amuses you so much?"

She asked, slightly irritated by his expressions, which now depicted a teasing smirk.

His unpredictable behavior always landed her into a planet of question marks and now was no different.

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"..Just the fact that you want to continue this conversation of Q and A, standing in the middle of the woods rather than wanting to go home!"

He spat.

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The smirk didn't leave his face, as she felt a weird sense of embarrassment take over her when she realized that perhaps he already knew how detached she felt from the entire world when he was present around her.

How distracted she got from every other thing, when she felt him near her.

The secret sharing within her mind continued when she suddenly heard him ask her something.

"By the way, care to tell me what the hell were you doing here?"

Khushi looked at him with confused eyes, as the smirk on his face faltered and a serious look replaced it. But her nose only flared, as she prepared to answer him.

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"You are the last person who should ask me that."

She bellowed.

Arnav looked at her, perplexed at her retort, but didn't question back.

After some seconds when he didn't ask her or answer her anything, she felt he stood there in the same position, only to hear her out.

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God, why couldn't this guy be a little verbally active?

She complained to the almighty, inwardly.

"You!"

"You were gone away from the rehearsals!"

"..And I came searching for you."

She spoke with anguish, not even knowing why she had to be the one giving him an explanation when it should be the other way around, and her mind failed to contemplate what impact her words were going to make, how logical or lame they sounded.

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His unchanged expression brought her to a conclusion that maybe he wasn't that surprised hearing her.

Or perhaps, he already knew everything.

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"..Here? In the woods?"

"Are you kidding me?"

His words actually gave her a reality check as suddenly she realized how stupid she would have actually sounded.

What the hell was I actually doing here?'

She wished she knew.

I was searching for him, but there was no possible reason for me to land here.'

Then how the hell could I blame him?'

Despite being the culprit, how does he always turn out to be a savior?'

What is this paradox which life is suddenly trapping me in?'

She wished, she had the answers.

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She could already foresee his mocking expressions, hearing her lame words but when she looked at him, only a feeling of surprise welcomed her.

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He kept looking at her with those mesmerizing eyes, as if trying to convey everything to her, yet managing to conceal everything at the same time.

That strange eye lock of theirs, left her completely flustered.

At a loss of words, she tried to gain back the strength in her and having nothing else to speak, she cleared her throat and averred,

"..That weird guy..with, with that weird dragon tattoo.. He told me that you left and insisted me to search for you."

As the words escaped her mouth, her insides only laughed at her as she continued putting her own self in all the embarrassing situations of the world.

But to her utter surprise, she felt something totally opposite happen, to what she thought.

His brows furrowed, she saw his hands clenching into fists and his nostrils flared, making her unwarrantedly take a step back, afraid of the fact that he could hurt her.

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She could see the rage returning to his eyes, which she had only witnessed the first time she met him in the visitors' room of her previous office. And that recollection made her heart skip a beat.

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Though deep down, she certainly knew that he wasn't going to hurt her, but his expressions made her question her inferences and she recalled her last spoken words, scanning them thoroughly, making sure whether she spoke something that was capable of making him angry.

As I scanned those words, she only felt relieved to conclude that they were only spoken out of levity.

But

But then, what made him change so suddenly?

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A minute passed by and she could feel the strength in her giving up completely after that endless run.

Her eyes begged to close and her body urged for a slumber because of the fatigue, when she suddenly saw him take quick steps towards her and realized he was only an inch away from her, his face displaying a strange concern.

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Shock reverberated from every cell of her body as her heart took a rapid pace at that sudden proximity between them.

Her dream from minutes ago once again became alive in her mind, as glimpses flashed in front of her eyes.

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His raging expression coaxed her mind to suggest her to run away, whereas her thudding heart only wanted her to stand still.

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Looking deeply into her eyes, he stood still, and she felt his hand taking something out of her jeans' pocket.

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Without breaking their eye-contact even for a second, he handed her something, making her come out of her reverie, as she looked into the thing, which he placed on her palm carefully.

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"My Bracelet"

Her eyes grew wide as she saw that familiar, precious ornament in her hand, which she had almost forgotten, thanks to the unusual turmoil she was trapped in, all this while.

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But how did he know where I kept it?'

It was futile to even ask him this question.

Especially when she didn't even have any answer to how did he find her in the woods and saved her.

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"Wear it."

He said softly, but it still felt like it was more of an order to her, something that wasn't spoken out of violent intentions, but her own benefit. She slowly lifted her gaze and looked at him.

"..And don't go on searching for me, no matter whoever asks you to and says whatever. You have a mind of your own Khushi Elise Vermount. It's high time you start using it!"

He blurted, as she tried hard to grasp the meaning beneath those words. But he hardly spared her another second to gather her thoughts.

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"Now come fast. I will drop you home."

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His words left her baffled, as she felt everything holding a different meaning, than the context they apparently seemed to belong to.

As she slid the bracelet into her right wrist, his penultimate words rang in her mind, and she felt some sort of warning dripping through them.

Her mind and heart at loggerheads, she felt it next to impossible to decipher the true value of those words.

So does that mean I should take them at its face value?'

Did he intend to say I shall stay away from that dragon tattooed guy?'

Nothing.

No sensible logic met her thinking, as she continued to walk after him through the woods.

As she continued taking steps, one after another, another question popped in her mind making her fall prey to the world of despair once again.

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Why isn't my leg hurting anymore?'

She recalled that bark of the tree, and her terrible suffering due to the excruciating pain in her leg, when she had fallen down badly during her run.

The dripping blood.

She stopped at a corner of a tall tree, confused and scared to even think of her prediction to be true.

Holding the lower branch of the tree with one hand for support, she lifted the bottom crease of her jeans, her heart skipping a beat, while her mind knew already what she was going to witness.

Her eyes though couldn't believe the sight, as she found that wound gone, not even a trace of any scar or mark visible on her pale skin.

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Did I even get hurt?'

Yes, I did.'

The blood..

The pain..

It was all real.

The battle continued in her mind, which once told her that things were real and the next minute suggested that she was captivated in a delusional world.

How did this happen?'

Did..?'

Did He?'

But how can he?'

The mild ache in her throat followed by the tears in her eyes, made her weaker as she held on to the branch of the tree, when suddenly she heard him call out her name.

"Khushi! Are you all right?"

That was technically the first time, he said her name out loud, that too with an urgent concern etched to it, and it instantly made her forget all the tragic events, all her struggles to survive in those cursed hours of running, and conundrums that never left her alone.

She quickly wiped off the tears from her cheeks and tried hard to enact as if everything was fine, but every time she tried, fresh batch of tears trickled down her face.

.

Blinded by those tears, she felt as if she would collapse any moment, not able to cope with all the uncanny things that life was putting her through, when suddenly she felt him scoop her into his arms and in no time, she was in his embrace, her one hand fisting a little portion of his shirt, to hold on tight.

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Though he left all her questions unanswered, his eyes conveyed thousands of emotions to her as he carried her through the woods, under the sunset etched horizon.

It felt as if every tear from her eyes, affected him a million times, though she was still unaware what his true intentions really were.

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Although her mind demanded each and every answer from him, her heart only wanted her to stay in his safe embrace forever.

As she snaked an arm around his neck to keep her balance, she could see it in his eyes, that remained fixed on her, conveying vaguely yet intensely, how sorry he was for every time he hurt her.

But was it enough?

Her mind once again raised a valid question to her, while her heart demanded no redemption from him.

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She felt so secure in his arms, so protected, as if nothing could hurt her, when he was near her, when he was with her, even though everything that did go wrong with her started only from the time she first met him.

How ironical it was!

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The question-answer session never coming to an end in her mind, she heard a sound and realized they reached his car and he opened the passenger door for her.

Placing her on the ground carefully, he helped her take her seat and tied her seat belt for her, his every move showing stringent discipline, and once he was done, he finally took the driver's seat.

For today she knew her destination, it was her home.

But still, I didn't know their destination.

But for once, she just wanted to be a part of this journey.

The journey, which seemed to have no ultimate destination, no logic, no truth, no reality.

Yet, the destiny wanted it to happen.

And just then he put the key into ignition and the engine roared into life.

A faint smile took over her face, as new feelings clouded those deadly encounters in the past and they drove away from that eerie place, heading towards home.

.

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Though her body needed sleep, her mind needed rest, her senses needed to relax, but her heart wanted to feel happy.

Lying on her back, her eyes fixed on the ceiling of her room, the silence made her revisit those deadly happenings of the day once again, but just one glimpse of the devil's face, brought her to peace somehow.

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Though her mind denied accepting what her heart had already made clear, she could already fathom what she wanted.

Her mind was in no condition or state to give a name to what her heart already felt, but she could not defy what she already knew.

.

But still, somewhere deep in her heart, she was afraid..

Afraid to confess the truth to her own self.

..

And how could she?

When she herself was unaware of the real truth? The one that kept haunting her, the one that felt watching over her, yet remained far, far away.

She felt helpless at that inference that seemed to have no fine ends at this hour, when suddenly her eyes fell on her precious bracelet.

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"Wear it."

His words echoed once again, as she felt it hard to understand whether it was a warning, an order or a request.

Despite being fond of language, it seemed so foolish to not understand the tendency with which a phrase was spoken. She thought.

.

Khushi chuckled at her antics as she opened her closet to take out her diary.

There were enormous thoughts running in her mind and the only way to get rid of them was to pen them down.

She quickly grabbed the diary from her closet when suddenly she saw the journal at the bottom shelf. Her grandma's journal.

She recalled how frustrated she was when she had dumped everything that night, on those revelations that she wished she had never come across.

With a deep sigh, she bent down and took the journal in her hands.

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She knew, it was again going to be a fruitless attempt as once again those sentences would come blurry to her vision and only frustration would cloud her mind. But that is what human mind is, right? It is incorrigibly stubborn at times.

Avoiding the last page, which contained that picture of her great grandmother, Meredith, who was her look alike, she flipped through all the pages, when a sudden realization awakened her senses, giving her goose bumps instantly.

.

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How..How is this possible?'

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She flipped through the pages again and again, keenly observing every minute detail, as she reassured herself, what was happening wasn't unreal. It was truly happening.

This was truly happening.

"How am I able to read everything?"

She spoke to herself, almost flabbergasted as she stared at every word, which now appeared crystal clear to her vision, as if a new power was bestowed upon her.

And that is when her gaze minutely shifted to the bracelet on her wrist.

She couldn't think clearly for the next two minutes, and when she finally tried to clear the haze in her mind, she bit her lower lip, looking at the ornament calculating her next move.

And without another thought, she quickly slid the bracelet out of her wrist, her breath still caught in her throat. On the count of three, she shifted her gaze to the current page of the journal that was open for her, and utter shock greeted her, as once again, those lines, those words, became blurry to her vision.

She felt a shiver run down her spine, as she put two and two together, and without a second thought, slid the bracelet back again into her wrist, a little too roughly this time in hurry, and as predicted, the words, the lines, were once again crystal clear to her.

Running to her bed with the journal still in her slightly shaky hands, she found a folded paper inside the journal.

The creases of the paper became so prominent due to the long time it stayed that way, but still it appeared so new.

Not believing the fact that she could actually read everything now, a victorious smile curved at the corner of her lips as she finally opened the piece of paper.

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A letter from Grandma.'

She realized, it was not just a mere piece of paper, but a letter written by her Grandmother, Amelia Vermount.

She took a deep breath and a part of her knew now, that starting from this very moment, everything was going to change.

The words that followed left her spellbound as she continued reading what was kept for her to read all this while, and her eyes refused to blink even for a fraction of second.

.

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"Now that you realized the power of the bracelet and you are ultimately able to read everything, henceforth, my child, my dearest Khushi.. There are many things that now you need to know, which are going to change everything forever..."

**