Sunday, June 29, 2014

Kuch Mere Dil Ne Kaha PART 15

 In the last update Ram and Priya were lost in an embrace after Priya confessed her reason for running away from the hospital. Being there brought back the bitter taste associated with the memory of losing her parents. Ram understood with no further argument. In fact, he offered her the solitude of his embrace. 
Today's update starts with Priya in her room, having returned home the night before. So Ram did not force her to go back to the hospital. The purple ink is Priya's recollection of the events leading up to the morning after the bittersweet night. And as usual the blue is the present scene. Hope you like it!
*Brace yourself for a twist!*
                                                                                  Part 15

Yawning beneath a blanket of fluffy white clouds, the sun began it's rise without miss at the crack of dawn. Priya felt the gentle warmth from the freshly born sun rays splash teasingly along the side of her face, insisting she get out of bed. However, Priya hadn't slept a wink throughout the night. Her drenched Salwar, which had dried on its own overnight, was evidence that something was bouncing off the walls in her mind. Watching the dip and rise of Kush's tummy Priya categorically recalled the events of an otherwise productive night wondering where it all went wrong and whether she could have foreseen the betrayal. 
(flashback of the night) Ram had latched on to Priya’s body; his buff arms wrapped, loosely at first, around her petite frame, sheltering her from the raindrops that cannonballed around them into tiny puddles. The droplets sizzled as it hit the ground as if it were landing in a pot of hot oil, splattering in a similar pattern. Crackling at a distance, faint sparks of thunder surged in bunches through a bed of dark clouds, searching for an exit unsuccessfully yet undeterred. It was a beautiful concoction; mother nature’s very own prescription for the troubled soul. Drugged by the ambient sounds from their surroundings, Ram and Priya remained in a trance that would have otherwise never existed. Their embrace was a safe haven, an unspoken confession of their true emotions, which would fail the conscious test of reality at such a premature stage. It was as though time had been forced to forfeit its power to the unrelenting passion, which had built up between them in the dark of the night. Ram tightened his hold and Priya didn’t rob him of any closeness.
Dragging her feet against the creaky floor all the way to the bathroom Priya halted briefly in front of the wide panelled mirror of her dresser with a look of disgust on her face as she glanced up the length of her body. There was no visible injury to be found anywhere in flesh and the salwar suit, which had been drenched in the ordeal was intact to the very the last stitch. However, the dagger was in the truth that she had let a cunning man like Ram comfort her with his filthy touch and even worse was the fact that in her moment of weakness she had needed him so much. After last night it was a wonder whether Ram even had an organ in his body remotely similar to that of a heart. He was a chameleon, changing colours to blend in to normalcy. There was no sympathy or even an ounce of care within him. Although, he had so expertly lead her to believe that he had changed into an honest man, it was all a sham. Priya cringed, as pieces of the night flashed mockingly before her eyes. "And why wouldn't it?" An evil side of her ego sneered, "After all the joke is on you." It took one night, some seconds, a couple of words but once the sword was drawn with revenge engraved on the sides of the blade, a war was imminent. 
"Ram!" Priya called for the umpteenth time pounding the door with her fist. "My god this man takes longer than me to get dressed but yet he always claims that I'm the reason why he's always late." She muttered to herself and than shouted... "How much longer Ram? You have been in there for nearly an hour." Priya exaggerated 'slightly' hoping it would make a dent in the length of time he was planning on taking. "Oye hello..." Ram responded from inside the change room sounding flabbergasted...  "A proper 20 minutes hasn't even passed by since I came in here..."  Priya's lips puckered into a playful smile hearing the disbelief in his voice. "Acha... Theek hain..."  how much longer Ram?" She finally managed to say with a halfway straight face after taming her amusement. 
"Baas 5 minutes..."  Ram called back, realizing that the roles were reversed today.
"Okay fine... I am going to make myself a cup of tea... By the time I  come back you better be ready..." 
"Haan Haan! Jaye na..." Ram stated hurriedly. Behind the closed change room doors, Ram stood in his same shirtless attire. Indeed it had been 20 minutes since he entered the room and Ram was in no way confused as to what to wear but he had a surprise brewing in his mind, which required them to stay in his cozy home away from home for atleast two more hours. Stumped, he paced the length of the change room thinking about ways to kill the minutes leading up to the surprise he had planned for Priya but doing so in way that would not cause any alarm. Than it hit him like a gush of cool air after a heavy rainstorm on a hot, humid day. "That's it," Ram announced, literally snapping his fingers for added effect. "Ram tu na ekdum ghaada hain. It took you 20 minutes to stumble upon this solution that was laying at your feet all this time?" He shook his head, patting the side of thighs in search of his cellphone. "Shit!" He stilled and looked around the room remembering he had placed it on the night table in the bedroom. "Ab kya karoon mein?" He panicked at first before recalling that Priya had gone to make some tea. "Oh thank god..." Ram's eyes lit up sensing victory he opened the door a smidgen peaking out at first and than bolting towards the night table where his phone was placed. Punching his drivers number into the keypad with his finger Ram placed the phone to his left ear glancing behind his back every so often, checking for any sign of Priya.
"Hello?" Ram spoke finally getting through to his drivers cell number.
"Yes sir! Chintan speaking." The driver promptly responded.
"Are you downstairs? Priya M'aam called you right?" Ram hurried past formalities, cutting straight to the chase.
"Yes sir... I am downstairs."
"Okay great..." interrupted an overly anxious husband. "I need you to leave right now... Make some excuse if Priya M'aam asks but leave... Head back to the KM as soon as I hang up."
"Sir? Is there any work at the KM? Should I send for another driver for you and Priya M'aam."
Abhe nahi yaar... It's Saturday do one thing go home, spend time with your family... Your wife... your kids."
Blushingly the driver responded... "Sir mera shaadi abhi nahi hua... toh baache kahan se..."
Frustratingly Ram brought the flat of his palm to the center of his forehead. "Mera baap... Jaye na... Why are you suffocating the romance in my marriage yaar. I am giving you a day off.. Go enjoy yourself and let me enjoy myself too..." He paused and than added... "Aur suno... Don't tell Priya M'aam that I told you too leave... Tell her that you have a family emergency or something... I don't know yaar, make something up if she asks." Ram stressed his main and final point. "BUT LEAVE NOW!"
"Yes sir!"
Hanging up Ram muttered to himself... "Yeh Driver bhi na... Well mission accomplished... No driver equals no ride... Sorry Priya... But I will make it up to you, I promise."
Tossing his phone on the mattress Ram turned to head back to the change room with a grin on his face plastered from ear to ear, which disappeared the moment he caught a glimpse of Priya. "Shit was she standing behind me all this time." He gulped at the thought trying to decipher the exact emotion hidden behind her poker face.
"P-Priya," Ram stammered. "Woh kya hain na...I was actually out here waiting for you...Ummm...Woh..." He struggled to find the words to create the perfect excuse.
Folding her arms across her chest Priya raised her left eyebrow and with her words she began expertly weaving a trap. "You were waiting for me to pick out a shirt for you right?"
Ram’s mouth remained open in awe. "Looks like she didn't hear anything. Thank god. Warna yeh sherni would eat me whole."
"Chaliye!" Priya gestured to the change room with a subtle nod of her head.

(Flashback of the night) Priya was the first to draw back slightly from the embrace in which she was placed captive. The awkward taste from the realization of what just took place, cunningly laced the air around them so as not give any other option but to breathe it in. "Um." Ram stammered searching for Priya's averted gaze. "Let's get in the car it's raining so bad out here." Ram stated, pointing out the obvious and with nothing more than a gentle nod Priya followed. Noticing her shiver despite her best efforts not too, Ram reached over to the back seat and grabbed hold of his spare black coat, which he always carried with him in the car. With slight hesitancy, partly due to Priya's volatile nature, Ram placed the coat over her shoulder; a gesture that she accepted warmly with a meek smile. "Thank you!" Priya stuttered adjusting the coat more snuggly over her shoulders. In doing so her right hand brushed against the rough edge of a document that was folded in half and tucked away in the outer pocket of his coat. She pulled it out with the honest intention of handing it over to Ram but as she did, her gaze fell upon a section of the document that bore her signature in bold, black ink. "When did I sign this?" She asked fully informed of the contents on the legal documents, which authenticated a marriage she had no knowledge of consenting too. Ram snatched the document from her, not the least bit flabbergasted that she had seen it. Vikram had presented her with the same documents before her attack but she had no recollection of actually signing the papers. "Mr. Kapoor I am asking you something, dammit answer me." Priya roared into the arrogant face of his infuriating silence. She apparently no longer needed the coat, which she threw to the side of the road when she got out of the car. Ram calmly followed her after tucking the documents safely into the dashboard compartment. She observed him with a killer glare in her tear stained eyes as he picked his coat up off the ground laying it neatly on the glistening wet hood of his car. It had stopped raining at some point and so there was no magic in the air any longer just unanswered questions of deception. After a blood boiling pause Ram's blank expression shaped into a look of wicked amusement. He placed both his hands in his pockets observing Priya's pale face with utmost satisfaction. “Don’t you think that you should be asking yourself that question Priya? After all it’s your signature.” Ram spoke, his words coated in cockiness. With a conceited smile shaped on his thin lips Ram took confident strides encircling Priya. She could feel the warmth from his body kiss the skin on her back as he stationed himself behind her. “What’s the matter Mrs. Shar—.” He paused… “Oops, can’t use that name anymore… But to be honest that name was never yours to begin with…” By now her whole body was hot with anger and so when he shifted from behind her, she had not a clue that he had moved until he stood in front of her. Priya eyed him murderously, if only looks could kill. But to Ram it made no difference how she eyeballed him because having dug her grave there was no turning back until he put the nail in her coffin. “I am a business man and a damn fine one at that. Great businessmen don't leave anything to chance." After a brief pause he hammered home his main point. "By stepping toe to toe with me, you bit off far more than you can chew and now the time has come for you to choke on this truth.” Having heard enough, Priya flung her hand towards Ram’s face. However, Ram had anticipated that exact reaction. In fact, he had cleverly laid out a trap, which he had hidden beneath a layer of his handpicked words in order to invoke her to slap him. Just as she did he grabbed a hold of her arm simultaneously pulling her forward until she crashed into him. Dominance, she needed to understand who had the upper hand and in this case it was Ram, literally. “Leave me!!” She screamed at him, jerking like a fish out of water on a hook. “Shut up!” Ram screamed back and held her tighter. The subtle glare of fear in her eyes was satisfying and her abrupt silence meant that she got the message. “I have been waiting for this day Priya...” He spoke uncomfortably close to her face like he wanted his words to be absorbed in her pores in case her ears were to miss it. “ Ever since that day you raised your hands on me in the hotel I have been waiting for you to try that again.” He stated with so much rage in his each word that Priya could have sworn she saw anger seep through each syllable as he spoke. Priya grimaced, an unconscious reaction to the sudden pain that came from Ram's unrelenting grip on her arm. Ram immediately released her hand, taken slightly aback by her troubled expression. In that fraction of about half a second Priya felt as if Ram was simply acting tough being spurred on in the heat of the moment. But than he opened his mouth and carried on with the verbal assault putting an end to the glimpse of that short lived thought. “Thank your stars that you saved my brothers life that night, otherwise..."
"Otherwise what?" Priya pressed him for an answer building off of his empty threat. "What would you do if I hadn't saved him. Would you have slapped me too? Is that what this is all about? Tricking me into signing those papers, is that punishment for that day I slapped you and rightfully so?" Ram felt overwhelmed by a stifling aura conceived by her words; it was like an odourless poison that left him feeling cornered on an open road. Priya pounded on with an undying force driven by the pain with which he supplied her. "Why? Why did you play this sick game with my life?" She cried out loud while her heart bled clear up the passage of her tear ducts. "And if this was the way in which you wanted to get back at me for that day than why did you make it seem like I had a choice?"
Finally breaking his momentary vow of silence, Ram retorted, "Because I know your type. Before every step you take you ask Sudhir for permission. I wasn't going to let his refusal ruin my plan. I love my brother..."
"And I love my sister too... For her I would sign any paper that would guarantee her happiness and well being. If only you had asked... But alas you failed to understand me, Mr. Kapoor.  That's so typical of you... I should not have expected anything different. How dumb of me..." Priya stated with a dry chuckle that was by no means a sign of amusement but rather a display of disappointment, which was aimed directly at her own ego.  
"Well that makes two of us..." Ram snorted back reminding her on topic of the scene earlier in the day where his kind attempt for an apology was met by her tall brick wall of uncalled for rudeness.  
"No Mr. Kapoor, I was right on the money about you." Priya promptly inputed her valid defence. "You 'are' in fact the same heartless, arrogant, egotistic maniac in a business suit... A person like you could never comprehend such complex terms as love, respect, trust, personal boundaries..."
Ram's ego threw a tantrum, unable to bear it's insult. "Enough Priya! You're treading on thin ice. Besides I don't give a shit what you think of me. Your opinions don't matter to me and neither do you." Ram took one step towards her, his eyes reddened with rage. But looking into her eyes was like staring into a mirror, the hue was similar, the emotions firmly intact. "Moving forward with all this... I need you to understand one thing clearly." Ram lectured, his index finger waving in Priya's face like they had a point of their own to illustrate. "We are like these street lights."     Ram started; tracing an invisible circle in the air with his finger."  Although, we're working towards the same goal we will always be on opposite ends of the road." Priya glared at Ram with murderous intent, silent but dangerously so. "We are legally married and it's in your sisters best interest if you accept that truth. Now get in the car quietly, like a good wife." Ram sneered, unwisely taking advantage of his sudden surge of power. "I'll drop you home." Their gaze clashed in a brief toxic pause before Ram walked over to his car anticipating that Priya would follow as he commanded. Ram's car roared as it was ignited, mimicking his owners prowess having witnessed the spectacle. However, Priya had her mind set on not going back into the vehicle from the moment she first stepped out. Sticking to her original plan, Priya wiped her moistened cheeks and called out to an approaching rickshaw, an act that immediately slapped the smug smirk off Ram's face as he watched on. Instead of resisting, quite frankly because he knew she wouldn't listen, Ram simply tailed the rickshaw until it safely halted in front of the Sharma residence. 



Ram followed sheepishly, unsure if it was too early to celebrate. He watched as Priya slammed the wardrobe door shut after pulling out his favourite red Lacoste shirt. Ram hesitantly took the shirt from her as she handed it coldly over to him. "Maybe she heard me?." Ram panicked... "No, no, no Ram... If she had heard me she would not have been so calm." Ram thought to himself pulling the shirt over his shoulders. "C'mon Ram, if she knew do you think she would be so calm..." His muscles relaxed but stiffened back up in the same second. "This could just be the calm before the storm." 
"Are you ready Ram?" Priya asked fixing her hair up in a loose bun.
"Hmm..Hain... Yeah!" Ram spoke quickly, riding the chippy wave of luck that confronted him.
They began walking towards the door when Priya, slowing down slightly, fisted one of the sofa cushions. Unable to hold back any longer, Priya's anger burst through the wall of pretence she had constructed, hoping sheer guilt would lead him to a confession of his mistake. But alas that was far from the case and in Priya's mind her hurling the cushion at Ram, just as he turned around to check why she had slowed down, was perfectly justified. With cat like reflexes Ram caught the cushion mid-air right before it was about to softly crash and bounce off his bulky chest. There was no need for any background story, fore one glance in Priya's pink tinged eyes recited a tale, which he had written.
"Priya, look I can explain." Ram started in his defence, chucking the pillow on a nearby chair as he advanced towards her.
"Explain what? There is no need for an explanation everything is clear as water Ram. I heard it all to the last word." Priya took a couple steps back simultaneously pointing her index finger at Ram ordering, "Don't you dare you come any closer to me." Ram halted, taking her threat seriously in hopes to not agitate her any further.
"Okay fine Priya I won't come any closer but can you please atleast hear me out?"
"No! Go to hell!" She blurted out in the face of his genuine request.
"Oh c'mon Priya, don't you think that you are over-reacting?" He followed her to the wardrobe, keenly watching as she grabbed her silky magenta night gown, slamming the doors once more. He loosely grabbed her arm but she infuriatingly shrugged it off. "Don't touch me Ram." She chided him. "You know what Ram, I have had it with you and your controlling ways. Everything has to go according to your plans and god forbid if anyone has any desires that don't match that which is in your agenda. I don't know if I can put up with this much longer. All I wanted was to go on a romantic ride with my husband but no... My husband is a bore... A controlling bore... And I have had it..." Ranting, Priya made her way to the bathroom leaving Ram simply staring helplessly at her. Even the poor bathroom doors faced her wrath being slammed to a hard shut by her relentless hands. Ram jerked back into action hearing the impact. "Priya." He called out to her, clawing the bathroom door with a gentle scratch of his nails against it. "Priya atleast hear me out." No answer came from inside the bathroom and Ram didn't need a psychic to understand that Priya was ignoring him. Working with the cold silence he was handed, Ram decided to make the best of it. She was ignoring him but she could still hear him out. "Priya, I know you are angry and babe trust me it was not my intention to hurt you. All I want to do is see you smile but somehow my every attempt burns to ashes." Exhaling, Ram continued, "The reason I asked the driver to leave was..." And before he could say anything further, Priya opened the door, still angry as displayed in her eyes.
"I told you already Ram, I don't want to hear any explanation. Please just leave me alone. I don't want to talk to you or even look at you for that matter." With that last slur she brushed past him. She was so blinded in her rage that she failed to see the pain that her words had stirred up within him. In all honesty she meant not a word of what she said, but to Ram it felt as if someone had punched him in the guts repeatedly with an iron fist. Uncharacteristically, Ram gave up trying to get her to listen. Sometimes sparks are better left untouched to burn out at their own pace. Similarly, Priya was clearly not ready to be rationale and had Ram pushed her further that flicker of anger could just as easily morph into an untameable flame.
Having changed into her night dress, Ram watched from a distant as Priya curled into bed, creating a border of pillows along the length of her body, sending her message to Ram loud and clear, she wanted no part of him. 





(Flashback of the night) Knowing Ram's stubborn nature, like her own, Priya wasn't the least bit surprised when she saw him exiting his vehicle. Paying the driver, Priya jolted towards the elevator hoping to beat Ram to the punch. But it was as if Ram had bribed fate to sway in his favour. An old piece of paper dangled from the elevator door with the words "Out of Order" written boldly across it in bright red ink. "Dammit," Priya cursed and reversed her steps in an attempt to rush up the stairs. However, Priya's feet had tangled up, tripping her just as she turned. She shut her eyes tightly preparing for the painful kiss of the cold concrete against the side of her body. It all happened so fast and than it was over, just like that. But the impact was not nearly as bad as she had thought it would be. It was as if she had landed on a bed of pillows smothered in an overpowering yet seductive masculine scent. The fragrance settled within her, hurling forth a distasteful recollection. "Ram..." She thought at once, immediately opening her eyes to face the dreaded truth.
"Leave me you jerk." Priya snapped and wrestled free from his hold with ease, owing to the adrenaline, which was already actively coursing through her body.
"Excuse me? Mrs ungrateful...I just stopped you from falling and breaking your head." Ram replied in utter disbelief.
"Did I ask you too? Did I scream out for help? Why don't you just leave me alone and let me be?" Priya pestered him, evidently annoyed.
"I would love too..." Ram began, following Priya as she made her way up the stairs. "But until this whole Sheena thing is sorted out I need to watch you like a hawk."
"Oh please," Stopping on the steps momentarily, Priya added. "I am more than capable of taking care of myself and my family. So please, do me a favour and just leave..." 
"I saw just how well you took care of yourself today.Not only did you put your life in danger but if I hadn't reached there in time, Kush could have been hurt too.. " Ram replied, pausing briefly to catch his breath. "And I am going going upstairs to meet my brother...Do you have a problem with that?"
"Whatever!" Priya shook her head and kept walking up the stairs with Ram on her heels she could hear his laboured breathing.



Freshening up Priya made her way into the living room having packed the last of her belongings. The atmosphere was barren with the once vibrant walls appearing dull at a glance. Turning her gaze to the single seater sofa where her papa enjoyed his morning tea, Priya became even more concerned seeing it uncharacteristically unoccupied.  "Looks like Papa is still mad at me about last night." Priya thought out loud, making her way to Ayesha's room and when she got there her heart stilled for a moment in her chest out of anxiousness. Sudhir was seated at the edge of the bed staring aimlessly at Ayesha, mentally in another place. Hesitantly, Priya strode slowly towards him stopping mere inches behind him. "Papa.." spoke Priya, softly. The subtle perk of his ear made her aware that he was listening. "I know you are mad at me..." making her way wearily to face him, she continued. "But Papa I have to do this for Ayesha...and Kush...He deserves to be with his whole family. And moreover, how much longer will Sid hide out... Please forgive me Papa... I had to do this..." A wall of silence greeted her every word. She knelt down on the floor against the bed beside him, resting her head on the cradle of his lap. "Papa I am going to be leaving soon... Won't you talk to me before I go..." Holding back her tears she bit her lips to no avail. Sudhir grabbed her gently by her shoulders guiding her up on her feet... Priya sobbed, her head lowered, unable to face him. "Beta..." Priya glanced up at once, softly sighing in relief. "I know you can do no wrong."
"I am so sorry Papa...I know I should have asked you first..." stuttered an emotionally distraught daughter having hurt the man she cared about the most, unknowingly. If it were up to her, Priya would have consulted with Sudhir before entering any contract let alone one of marriage, albeit a mockery. But Ram left her with no option, she had signed the documents without any knowledge of actually doing so. However, for her sister and Kush she decided to simply go along with what had already been committed. Everything had happened so fast, yesterday she found out she was married and today she was leaving for the Kapoor Mansion. Every hour that past by last night, she cherished in her possession. And Priya knew that if she didn't agree to leave with Ram this morning, she might never muster up the courage too.
"Beta... I am not angry with you... I am mad at myself... I told your father that I would protect you...But look at me..." Turning his back to her, he completed. "I have failed to even keep that promise."
"Papa why are you saying that? You have given me everything and than some... You put me above everyone and everything in your life. How can you say that you have failed?"
"But beta...Ram is..."
"Papa please... Mr, Kapoor can not hurt me... He is just as helpless as I am. If he has me in his mansion, I have all his wealth in my name... And to lose that is a risk that he wouldn't chance on taking." She looked him in the eyes, hoping he saw the confidence that she had in her following statement. "I know I will be fine Papa... Because I have you... And as long as you're with me...No one can hurt me..."
Taking her in his fatherly embrace, Sudhir uttered three powerful words, which she thought she would never hear again after the turn of events last night. "I love you Beta..."
Priya looked up at him and repeated the same three words, "I love you too Papa..." just before the doorbell rang and Shipra hollered. "Priya...Ram and his mother are here..." 

   
Priya had no clue as to when she had drifted off to sleep and for how long. But she woke up abruptly being lifted off the bed as though she was still dreaming. The scent of his musky cologne tickled her nostrils waking her into a fully alert state. It all rushed back to her, the events leading up to her falling asleep and with it resurfaced her weakened yet persistent rage. "Ram where are you taking me." She squirmed in his arms trying to break free but  to no avail. Instead she thought it best she wrapped her arms around his neck just to keep from falling, although she knew he would never let that happen. "This is exactly what I was talking about Ram, you think you can just handle me any which way that you want." Priya complained.
"Sorry Priya." Ram apologized, looking straight ahead he continued walking with her in his arms. "You left me with no choice."
Priya fed off from the success of getting Ram to respond to her. "Let me down Ram... I mean it!" She demanded as he walked up the stairs quite clearly headed to the terrace. "Dammit Ram, I am not joking. I said leave me..." Paying her no mind, Ram nudged open the door leading to the terrace with his foot. Realizing that they were outside just as Ram had intended left Priya's blood boiling. And in that moment she found herself uttering three heart stabbing words, which held no meaning when it came to her feelings for him. "I hate you!"  Ram placed her on her feet having reached his goal. Pursing her lips, Priya opened her mouth to spew more venom through her rage but Ram didn't allow her the luxury of expression. "Look!" Ram spoke quickly, pointing towards the lake. That was the ultimate silencer. Priya stood mesmerized staring at what truly was a sight to behold. The ripples in the lake was like a staircase leading to heaven. It seemed as though the lake had opened up releasing the sun slowly but surely from the depths of it's chambers. The sun glowed, it's yellow hue streaked the bluish grey pastel sky. Highlighted were the subtle orange horizontal lines, which bled into groups of tiny scattered pockets along the breathtaking skyline.
"It's beautiful." Priya mouthed almost in a whisper.
"I knew you'd love it..." Ram stated with confidence. "Today is our last day here before we head back. And the future is to fickle to leave these beautiful moments to chance." With that thought, Priya's legs walked on their own until she was close to Ram with her arms wrapped comfortably around him. Her embrace was warmly welcomed, in fact it was needed. Ram held her by her waistline, his grip making promises of never letting go. Their bodies remained joined enjoying the sight in front of them, the closeness somehow made for a better view. Everything felt like it was in place, their embrace had that kind of power. But this time it was different, there was definitely something eating at Ram, Priya could tell by the rapid pace of his heart. 
"Ram what's wrong?" Priya asked snuggling in closer, his scent was a magnet to her senses. 
"What makes you think that something is bothering me? It's nothing..." Ram replied holding her tighter.
"Liar." She accused, nudging his chest softly with her fist. " I know how your hearts beats when I am close to you and today it's not as calm. Tell me Ram... Don't you trust me?" She heard him gulp nervously, an action that worried her but nonetheless she waited and finally he relieved his heart from unresolved anguish. "Of course, I trust you... More than myself..."
"So than tell me..." She circled her finger on the button of his shirt waiting keenly for him to express his tension.  Inhaling deeply Ram let it all out in one breathe. "Please don't ever leave me..."
"What?" Priya pulled away from him staring into his anxious eyes. "Why would I ever leave you?"
Licking his dry lips Ram stammered, "Y-you said you're tired of me… That you’ve had enough.”
Priya gasped quickly to deny that she ever said those words but than her earlier cold demeanour hit her hard like an iceberg. "I was just angry... I-I didn't mean any of it Ram..."
"Priya I don't care what you do or say to me when you are angry. Just don't ever talk about leaving me. I know. I know I am not perfect but you're perfect for me. The thought of you leaving, alone, suffocates me... I can't live without you... And I am not just saying that...I can prove it if you want me too" Leaning her body against his, Priya placed her hands on his cheeks, pulling his head down slightly and than gluing her lips to his… The passionate display of affection was breath-taking, literally, Ram struggled to calm his nerves. “I am so sorry Ram…” Priya whispered, pecking his numb lips that were too shocked to partake in the passion. “I was just so scared.” Ram spoke breathlessly when given the chance to catch his breath. “What can I do to make it up to you?” Ram was beyond excited, he had no idea as to how to react. Priya continued her repentance, stamping soft kisses along his neck waiting for his final verdict. But Ram remained silent, drugged on ecstasy he was rendered speechless. “Was this really happening?” He wondered as Priya recaptured his lips. “Or was this just a beautiful dream?”