Chapter 7

𝑯𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 💗

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❦ When Maahir returned from the temple that morning, he expected peace or maybe a cup of tea and a normal start to the day.

Instead the moment he stepped inside the house, he heard shouting a loud crash followed by coughing and more shouting.

For one terrifying second, he thought they had been compromised his hand instinctively moved toward where his weapon would normally be.

Then he heard a familiar voice.

"Arjun! Kya kar rahe ho!"

Maahir closed his eyes Offo Shaurya nobody was attacking them the only threat present was Shaurya himself maahir walked toward the kitchen.

The closer he got, the worse it became. something smelled burnt and sweet when he entered, he immediately regretted it.

The kitchen looked like a crime scene

flour and sugar everywhere oil splattered across half the room.

Arjun was standing in one corner looking emotionally exhausted Syra sat on a chair with crossed arms, watching the disaster unfold and in the center of it all stood Shaurya covered in flour looking proud for absolutely no reason.

Maahir blinked.

"What happened here?"

Arjun pointed at Shaurya "Apne bestfriend se hi puch"

"I was making jalebi."

Maahir looked around the room and then at Shaurya.

"Where?"

"Very funny"

"It was a genuine question."

Syra snorted meanwhile shaurya looked offended.

"Nobody appreciates talent."

Maahir walked toward the counter there was a plate there on it rested several objects.

Circularish , orangeish potentially edible maybe.

"What are these?"

"Jalebi."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

Maan picked one up carefully.

Like it might explode.

"These look like mathematical errors."

Syra laughed and Shaurya immediately forgot his suffering and misery

"You laughed"

Syra instantly stopped huge mistake Syra kapoor coz now he was smiling again like an idiot.

Maahir looked between them then suddenly understood everything.

The aunties and the sweet thing ughhh again new disaster

He slowly lowered the jalebi.

"You made these for Syra?"shaurya coughed.

"Maybe"

Arjun groaned now

"Maybe? He woke up at six."

"Shut up"

"He spent an hour asking Pihu what sweets Syra likes."

"ARJUN."

"He burned three batches."

"ARJUN"

"He nearly started a fire."

"ARJUN, I'M WARNING YOU."

Maahir folded his arms a smile threatening to appear.

"Oh."now it made sense syra's ears turned pink very slightly but enough for Maahir to notice unfortunately, so did Shaurya qnd now the fool looked even happier which should have been physically impossible.

"I was just being nice."nobody believed him.

Maan took another look at the so called jalebis.

"This isn't love."

Shaurya looked confused.

"What?"

"This is obsession."

Syra immediately looked away to hide her smile arjun started laughing qnd for the next five minutes, the entire house echoed with Shaurya's complaints about how nobody respected artists anymore.

Meanwhile, sitting quietly in the middle of the chaos, Maahir found himself smiling because for all his years of training, discipline, and military service he had never seen a man risk third degree burns for a plate of jalebi.

Love, apparently, was a terrifying thing and Shaurya was its first victim of this book

• The Sharma haveli was beautiful during the day but at night?at night, it became something else entirely.

The noise and relatives disappeared even the endless wedding discussions seemed to fade into the darkness.

That was why Sarah came here every night the terrace her favorite place in the entire haveli.

It was enormous, stretching across multiple wings of the old estate. From here, she could see almost everything.

The sleeping village, distant lights and beyond them the river moonlight danced across its surface, turning the water silver.

Sarah leaned against the railing and sighed this was her escape just her and the night.

For a while, she simply stood there watching the river and listening to the wind thinking about absolutely nothing.

Which, surprisingly, lasted less than two minutes because naturally her thoughts drifted back to him the stranger.

"Enough Sara Sharma!"

The wind offered no support she looked toward the river then toward the sky she noticed a movement.

Her eyes narrowed someone was standing on a distant terrace not inside the haveli a little further away.

The house where the new people had recently shifted at first she could only make out a silhouette tall and looking toward the river.

Sarah immediately crouched.

"Why am I hiding?"

Good question Ms Sharma but she had no answer yet there she was hidden behind a pillar like a criminal.

Slowly, carefully, she peeked again the figure was still there looking in her direction now.

Sarah's heart skipped had he seen her?

Probably not it was too dark then a voice drifted through the night.

"Who's there?"Sarah froze.

That voice her stomach dropped not again please mata rani that stranger but to her fortune it was him.

Immediately she ducked back down.

"Oh God."

This was becoming ridiculous three meetings.

Who met the same person this many times the universe needed new hobbies meanwhile, on the opposite terrace, Maahir frowned.

For a second, he could've sworn he'd seen someonenlike a shadow anf movement but now there was nothing only darkness still something felt familiar.

Back on the haveli terrace, Sarah carefully shifted to peek again qnd immediately regretted it.

Her foot caught against the edge of a loose stone the next second she slipped a startled gasp escaped her the world tilted and before she could react she fell.

not off the terrace thankfully.

But onto the lower section of the old rooftop a small connecting roof between two wings of the haveli.

"Ow."Sarah winced her ankle protested immediately.

She had survived wedding relatives only to be defeated by architecture for a moment she remained where she was embarrassed and annoyed in pain.

Then she heard footsteps her eyes widened footsteps approaching.

Maahir had seen the movement the fall.

not clearly just enough to know someone was there.

By the time he reached the boundary separating the properties, darkness had swallowed everything again.

"Are you okay?"the voice came from somewhere nearby.

Sarah's heart immediately forgot how to function this was not happening please god

She remained silent "Hello?"

The voice came closer now the night concealed their faces neither could properly see the other.

only shadows and outlines sarah tried standing bad idea pain shot through her ankle.

She lost balance again a small sound escaped her maahir heard it instantly without thinking, he stepped forward

and then his hand found something not a wall but a foot small and cold from the night air.

Sarah froze completely maahir immediately pulled his hand back as shocked as she was.

For a second neither spoke the silence that followed felt absurdly loud.

"I'm sorry."his voice was calm bht genuine.

Sarah stared into the darkness unable to see him and to understand why her heartbeat had suddenly become so loud.

"It's okay."The words left her mouth before she could stop them.

For a moment neither moved and the river flowed quietly in the distance.

The night breeze drifted between them somewhere above, the moon watched in silent amusement because despite meeting multiple times,despite fate trying far too hard neither of them could properly see the other's face and the strange feeling that somehow this wasn't their last meeting as always

Now Sarah quickly stood up despite the pain in her ankle.

"Thank you," she muttered softly before he could say anything else, she turned and began walking away or at least attempted to.

The ankle protested immediately she slowed down then sped up again wait she again slowed down.

A truly inspiring escape attempt maahir watched the silhouette disappear into the darkness something about her felt familiar but before he could place it, she had already moved further away.

Suddenly temple bell rang somewhere nearby the sound echoed softly through the night at almost the same moment, an old priest emerged from a side passage carrying a lantern.

The warm light danced across the rooftop sarah instinctively turned at the sound and Maahir looked up.

For a second everything stopped.

The lantern light faded.

The night breeze disappeared.

Even the distant river seemed to fall silent.

Moonlight slipped through the clouds and landed directly on her face.

Suddenly he knew she is the same girl from the ghat and from the rickshaw.

The owner of the diary he read waking up at 3 - Sarah Sharma

His breath caught not because she was beautiful though she was also because fate had brought them together again though it had but because after hundreds of pages after countless thoughts, fears, dreams, and insecurities

The person standing before him was no longer a stranger.

He knew her favorite color.

He knew she hated public speaking.

He knew she overthought everything.

He knew she pretended not to care when she cared too much.

He knew the parts of her she never showed the world.

Now for the first time he was looking at her , Sarah froze.

The moonlight finally revealed his face too hazel eyes and the same person who had somehow become a recurring chapter in her life.

Their eyes met qnd neither looked away.

sometimes souls don't recognize faces first sometimes they recognize familiarity.

A strange sense of having arrived somewhere they have never been before.

For one suspended moment, it felt as though the universe had gone quiet just to watch qs though every missed encounter had been leading here.

Not to any confession or a beginning just to a glance a glance that somehow said more than words could.

Sarah didn't understand why her heartbeat had suddenly become so loud again

Maahir didn't understand why seeing her felt like finding the last page of a book he'd been searching for.

They simply looked at each other two strangers and yet somehow not strangers at all then reality returned.

The wind blew again ,river continued flowing and the moment broke.

Sarah was the first to lower her gaze almost startled by the intensity of it without another word, she turned around and walked toward the staircase.

This time she didn't look back Maahir watched until she disappeared from sight then he finally exhaled slowly.

Because after all the coincidences all the almost meetingsand unfinished moments he finally knew it was her.

❦ 𝑴𝒂𝒂𝒉𝒊𝒓'𝒔 𝑷𝒐𝒗

The night was unusually peaceful today no mission updates, reports or chaos just peaceful silence.

Maahir stood on the terrace, hands resting against the railing as he looked at the river flowing beneath the moonlight.

The village slept peacefully and a cool breeze drifted through the air.

For the first time in days, his mind wasn't occupied by the mission it was occupied by something far more dangerous.

A certain diary owner he shook his head with a small smile you are becoming ridiculous mr malhotra

A few weeks ago he didn't even know she existed now somehow her thoughts appeared everywhere.

In tea, sunsets, random conversations and in silence especially in silence.

His gaze wandered toward the massive haveli standing not too far away yhe old structure looked beautiful at night almost magical he saw a silhouette of girl.

Standing near the edge of the terrace Maahir frowned who was wandering around a rooftop at this hour?

The figure moved paused peeked from behind a pillar then immediately disappeared again.

A laugh almost escaped him.

"What is she doing?"

The behavior was strangely familiar almost as if someone was hiding then suddenly the silhouette slipped.

Maahi'rs smile vanished before he could think, he was already moving quickly crossing the connecting pathway between the rooftops.

The old stone stairs connecting the lower sections were barely visible in the darkness by the time he reached there, he heard a soft sound a wince.

Someone had definitely fallen.

"Are you okay?"

A very reluctant voice -

"Yes."

Definitely not okay miss Maahir stepped closer the darkness made it difficult to see only outlines and shadows.

She quickly stood up her and started walking away probably wishing the ground would swallow her alive.

Maahir watched her go and then clouds shifted.

Moonlight spilled across the terrace the silver glow reached her face and she turned.

The world did not stop the wind did not disappear the river continued flowing yet for one suspended moment...

Everything felt quieter her features softened beneath the moonlight and her hair moved gently with the breeze.

Her eyes?Those eyes the same girl from ghat and the rickshaw.

The owner of diary Sarah.

Maahir forgot to breathe not because she looked perfect but because she looked real.

The girl whose fears he had read.

The girl whose dreams he knew.

The girl who filled two hundred pages without ever realizing someone was reading them qnd now she stood right in front of him.

Smiling slightly despite her embarrassment completely unaware of the storm she had caused

Then the moment passed sarah lowered her gaze turned around and walked away.

This time she didn't look back not once.

soon her figure disappeared down the staircase leaving behind only silence and Maahir still standing there and staring at the place where she had been moments ago.

Then something caught his eye a faint glimmer near the edge of the terrace.

He bent down picked it up a silver payal small and delicate.

Maahir stared at it for a second before laughing softly.

The diary dupatta and now this.

"What exactly are you planning, Sarah Sharma?"he slipped the payal carefully into his pocket.

A smile lingering on his face the night breeze returned the river shimmered beneath the moonlight Maahir didn't leave immediately even after Sarah disappeared down the staircase, he remained standing on the terrace.

The night had become quieter somehow or perhaps it was just him.

His hand slipped into his pocket, fingers brushing against the silver payal resting there at this point, it almost felt like Sarah had a habit of leaving pieces of herself behind.

The thought made him laugh softly far away, the village slept peacefully yet Maahir found himself staring at the staircase where she had disappeared qs if she might suddenly come back if she might realize she'd forgotten something

Bht no she wasn't coming back not tonight.

Still, he couldn't look away his mind replayed every moment.

The ghat, rickshaw,crowded road and the diary and now this rooftop.

Every encounter felt incomplete q sentence that ended before the final word ,a chapter that stopped halfway through yet somehow they kept meeting again and again.

Maahir leaned back against the railing and looked up at the sky the moon hung quietly above him bright and beautiful.

The kind of sight poets wrote about and the kind of thing people compared their beloveds to.

Tonight, however, he found himself disagreeing for the first time in his life,a laugh escaped him now

"You know"

He looked directly at the moon.

"I think you've been overrated."

The moon, naturally, offered no defense Maahir shook his head.

"People spend centuries writing poems about you."

The breeze moved gently around him.

"They compare beautiful women to you."

another pause then he smiled a genuine one.

"But they've never seen her."

His eyes drifted back toward the staircase toward the place where Sarah had vanished moments ago.

The moonlight had touched her face for only a second and somehow that had been enough enough to make every description he'd ever heard feel inadequate and every comparison seem unfair because Sarah wasn't beautiful in the way people usually meant.

She was beautiful in the way sunrise was beautiful after a difficult night in the way laughter appeared unexpectedly and in the way two hundred pages of thoughts could make a stranger feel familiar.

Maahir looked at the moon again.

"You lose."

The smile never left his face.

"Badly and she won"

For a moment, he imagined telling Shaurya this and he would never let him live peacefully after this Maahir slipped the payal deeper into his pocket.

His gaze softened and he didn't know what tomorrow would bring but maahir found himself genuinely looking forward to tomorrow

"Definitely a good night."still smiling, he turned around and walked away.

- 𝐓𝐨 𝐁𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐞𝐝 -

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