AbhiMaan: OS

2. Alag Tujhme Asar Kuch Hai (III)

Thank you so much for reading and all your lovely comments in this TS. I personally loved writing these so much. And I hope you had fun reading them too. As promised, here we go! The last part of the TS.
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PART III

2 days later,

It was the day of the wedding, and the house was bustling with energy as the haldi ceremony was about to begin.

Abhira watched from the sidelines as the family members took turns to apply haldi on Armaan. He smiled softly at his family's excitement, but the happiness didn't reach his eyes. Every few minutes, he'd look at Abhira, a piercing pain in his heart. They took the bowl of haldi paste and left to Ruhi's house for her ritual.

Abhira busied herself with other work and told herself to stay strong, to keep her distance, but when Armaan walked inside the kitchen still in his yellow kurta and haldi laden body, his gaze intense and searching, her heart faltered.

“Abhira,” he said softly, as if sensing the conflict within her.  

As Armaan carefully swiped his fingers into the yellow paste on his face, a strange tension filled the air between them. His touch was light but deliberate, his hands warm and sure as he began to apply the haldi to her cheeks. His fingers lingered a moment longer than necessary on her skin, tracing the curve of her jawline with an intimacy that made her breath catch.

She should have pulled away. she should have stopped him, but her body betrayed her. Her heart raced in her chest, and her mind grew hazy as Armaan continued, his touch gentle but possessive. He lowered his head, rubbing his other cheek on hers. She closed her eyes, her body growing warm under his hand. He leaned closer, his breath fanning over her face as his thumb traced the line of her lower lip.

"Do you feel that?" he asked, his voice low and heavy, the words like a whisper that only the two of them could hear amidst the noise of the ceremony.

Abhira swallowed, her throat dry, a lump forming in her chest. "What do you mean?" she managed to say, her voice trembling, betraying the turmoil she was trying to control.

"Do you feel this... connection?" he asked again, his gaze intense, locked onto hers. He was standing so close now that the heat from his body mingled with hers, and the space between them seemed to shrink with every passing second. "Because I feel it, Abhira. I feel everything, every time I’m near you. I'm about to get married in 5 hours and here I am, thinking about my fucking wedding planner and all the things I want to do to her."

Her eyes fluttered open, locking with his. She wanted to deny it, wanted to push away the truth, but the undeniable pull between them left her speechless. There was no hiding from it anymore, no pretending that this wasn’t real. He ran a frustrated hand through his hair and walked way.

Abhira watched him go, her heart breaking in a way she didn’t think was possible. She knew he had to go. He had to fulfill his duty. He was marrying Ruhi, not her.

She sank down onto the floor, wiping away her tears, feeling both the weight of the haldi on her skin and the weight of her heart, which seemed to be slowly breaking into pieces.

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Armaan sat in his room, all decked up in his sherwani, a tacky shade of orange which he had instantly hated but acquiesced due to Ruhi's insistence.

"Armaan, are you happy?" Vidya, who had noticed her son's sullen mood and sunken eyes ever since the day of the sangeet practice, finally spoke up. "Nobody is forcing you to marry Ruhi beta. If you aren't ready, we can still stop everything." She caressed his face.