MishBir: Someone You Love(d)

20|| Lake Side

P.s: This chapter is a result of a sleepless night and a few of Abir's shayaris. It's more like a filler chapter, with apparently a little happier Mishbir - together. And a little of Kunal and Ketki too. There are so many people, and so many perspectives, I always feel like I am loosing on something. But anyway, this is it. Happy reading.

Kunal couldn't remember the last time he had actually fallen asleep. It all seemed like it had been going on in for centuries, while it's been what? Hardly Three days?

Three days ago he found out he wasn't Meenakshi Rajvansh's son, and everything fell apart. Yet, it hadn't hurt him as much that morning as it hurt him right now to see his elder brother writhing in pain,but in absolute silence. Kunal was yet to wrap his head around what Abir had revealed hours ago.

Mishti had tried to harm herself.

Kunal sucked in a deep breath as the realization dawned on him that if by chance anything would have happened to her, there wasn't any way Abir would see the light of another day. It had taken Kunal this breakup and the last two months to grasp that what Abir shared with Mishti wasn't just love. It was almost a sacred devotion that those two had for each other - they really were the light of each other's lives. You do them apart and neither was gonna survive. He rubbed his forehead, trying to relieve the headache a bit when he heard the washroom door and Abir finally opened it after five hours. Kunal breathed in sheer relief to see his brother standing on his own feet by the door, but that relief was extremely short lived because he realized Abir was slightly swaying in air.

"Bhai", he acted on impulse and held his brother by his shoulders, helping him to the bed.

"Time? What's the time?", Abir mumbled in a whisper, finding it hard to keep his eyes open.

"It's four in the morning", Kunal answered, and the something striked him, "When was the last time you ate something Bhai? Have you had anything today?"

Abir frowned at the question, trying to remember if he had. He remembered having breakfast with Kunal and Mishti  yesterday at the resort. Then they had all returned back, and the showdown had happened. He had skipped lunch and eventually dinner yesterday. Today he had woken up late and immediately left the house - every second here had felt like a heavy weight on his chest. Mishti had found him in the temple, they hadn't had lunch and returned to her home in the evening. And then, with whatever he had got to know, dinner was a long forgotten business.

His lack of answer was an answer enough for Kunal. He felt tears stinging the back of his eyes looking at his brother.

"I will bring you something to eat", Kunal spoke and was about to leave when Abir stopped him.

"I have to meet Mishti at six, I can't keep her waiting", Abir was restless as he looked at the watch. Kunal nodded, promising him, "You won't, I promise". Abir looked at Kunal for a long moment before tearing his eyes away and resting his head on the pillow. In another minute, the exhaustion has lured him to sleep, but a burning pain in his right wrist kept him aware of his surroundings even through the dreamless sleep.

Kunal stood in the kitchen and dabbed his plams over his eyes to hold his tears. His heart was hurting so bad, but he couldn't scream it out. Earlier, even through the minute moments of grief he would latch on to his brother and let his warmth mend everything in his world, but this time Abir was destroyed for worse, and Kunal could not possibly keep his selfish need to be held over his brother. But did that selflessness made him feel any better? It certainly didn't.

It still continued to hurt just as much.

Pulling himself from his funk, Kunal tried to breathe deep and concentrate on what he could possibly feed Abir at this hour of the day. If the roles were reversed, Abir would probably make him his famous noodles, like always. It was their thing - Abir's way to sometimes manofy Kunal and sometimes comfort him. But Kunal knew nothing about the Kitchen. He wasn't certain if he could lit up the gas even.