Aayansh pov
I was in my room, staring at the ceiling, replaying everything again and again The file.
Ruhi’s shaken voice.
That unknown person who knew far too much.
I picked up my phone and texted her.
Me: Reached home. Are you okay?
A few seconds later, her reply came.
Ruhi: Yes, Just tired. Let's talk tomorrow.
I knew she was lying, at least not fully telling the truth. But I also knew pushing her right now would only make things worse.
Me: Good night. I’m here. Don’t forget that.
I dropped my phone on the bed and opened my laptop again.
I checked CCTV footage. Frame by frame. Different angles. Different timings.
Nothing.
The man who handed her the file had been careful, too careful. His face was always turned away. Cap pulled low. Hoodie zipped high.
I clenched my jaw.
Even the number she received the calls from every time was different. Disposable numbers. No digital trace.
Whoever this was… He knew exactly what he was doing.
I dialed Rishabh bhai.
He picked up instantly.
“I couldn’t find anything,” I told him. “CCTV, call logs, nothing. He’s wiping himself clean.”
“I figured,” Rishabh said quietly. “Dad and chachu are also shocked. They swear they checked everything back then. The commissioner is reopening the case.”
We were discussing our next steps when I heard a scream.
Sharp, Broken, Terrifying scream.
My heart stopped.
It came through the phone faint, distorted but I knew that voice.
“No…” I whispered. “Bhai… whose scream is that?”
There was a pause on the other end. Too long.
Then Rishabh said, his voice shaking,
“Ruhi.” Then the call cut.
I didn’t think I couldn't breathe the thoughts came to mind was terrifying
I just grabbed my keys and ran.
I didn’t think anything. Didn’t wait.
I don’t remember how fast I drove,I only remember the fear.
The moment Rishabh said her name
Ruhi
and the call cut, something inside me snapped.
By the time I reached the Raichand house, my hands were shaking so badly I had to clench them into fists just to shut the car door properly. The lights in the house were on too many of them. The kind that only turns on when something is wrong.
I ran upstairs to her room.
The moment I reached her room and saw everyone standing outside, pale, terrified, frozen
I knew.This wasn’t new.
This was something they had all seen before.And that realization terrified me more than anything else.
When I entered the room, my chest physically ached.
Ruhi was thrashing on the bed, sweat soaking her hair, her voice raw and broken. She wasn’t seeing us. She wasn’t here.
She was somewhere else,somewhere dark,somewhere she had survived alone.
I didn’t think,didn't hesitate,I went straight to her.
The first time she hit me, I didn’t stop her, The second time either.
Her hands were trembling, weak, terrified, nothing like the strong, composed Ruhi I knew, Every word she screamed tore through me.
“Stop… please… I won’t do anything… I want my dad…”
My heart broke in places I didn’t know existed.
This wasn’t just a nightmare,This was a memory.
When she tried to push me away, I grabbed her wrists not tight, never forcefully just enough so she couldn’t hurt herself.
“Ruhi,” I said softly, urgently,“Look at me.”
She didn’t.
Her eyes were wide, unfocused, drowning in something I couldn’t see but felt anyway.
“Ruhi,” I said again, my voice cracking. “It’s me.”
Still nothing.
So I did the only thing I could think of,I brought my forehead to hers.“ It's me Aayansh,” I whispered. “It’s Your Ansh.”
Her body froze.
Slowly so slowly it nearly killed me. Her eyes focused.
On me.
She lifted her hand, fingers shaking, and touched my face like she was afraid I might disappear.
“Ansh…?” she whispered.
I swallowed the lump in my throat. “I’m here.”
That’s when she broke.
Her body went limp against mine, and before I could react, she fainted in my arms.
I caught her instantly, holding her like she was made of glass.
No,Like she was made of survival.
Behind me, I heard sobs.
Riya bhabhi. Badi maa. Someone praying under their breath.
But all I could focus on was the weight of Ruhi in my arms and the terrifying truth settling deep inside me.
Whatever is happening now…
Whatever file she had received…
Whatever ghost had crawled back into her life
It wasn’t just about her father’s death.
It was about what she had lived through after it.
And whoever had started this again,they didn’t just want answers.
They wanted to break her.
My jaw tightened.
Not while I’m breathing.
I laid her down carefully, as gently as possible. I didn’t let go until the doctor arrived, until her breathing steadied, until the tremors eased.
Even then, I stayed.
Because tonight taught me one thing with terrifying clarity
The person who is behind all this knows what he is doing and knows how it will exactly affect Ruuh.
But
Whoever you are…
You wanted her attention,but you have mine now.
The doctor checked her carefully, his expression calm but serious.
“She’s under extreme stress,” he finally said. “It triggered her panic attacks again. Old trauma doesn’t disappear it sleeps. Stress wakes it up.”
Those words hit harder than anything else.
He prescribed medicines, gave a few instructions, and after reassuring everyone that she was stable for now, he left.
But no one moved.
The room stayed heavy, silent, like everyone was afraid that even breathing too loudly might break her again.
I hadn’t left her side for even a second.
I was sitting beside her on the bed, her hand wrapped tightly in mine, as if letting go would pull her back into that nightmare. Her face looked peaceful now, but I knew better.
This calm was fragile,too fragile.
Badi maa finally broke the silence.
“She was fine,” she said softly, confusion and fear tangled in her voice, “She had gotten better… It took us years to help her heal. Then why now? Why are those dreams coming back again?”
No one answered immediately.
But I could see it the terror in their eyes.
They had seen this before.
The nightmares.
The panic attacks.
The helplessness.
And now they were terrified that all of it was coming back.
Rishabh spoke then, his voice steady but strained as he told them everything that had happened over the last two days the calls, the messages, the file, the truth about Hiten uncle.
By the time he finished, the room felt colder.
“What?” Chachi whispered, stunned. “Hiten bhai… was murdered?”
The shock on everyone’s face said everything.
“He didn’t die in an accident,” Rishabh said quietly. “Someone planned it. And now… someone wants Ruhi to know.”
A heavy silence followed.
“She went through all of this alone,” Avni bhabhi said, her voice breaking. “We didn’t even know.”
Guilt filled the room.In everyone’s eyes.
Including mine.
My jaw tightened as anger burned through my veins.
I was right there, so close to her.
And still, I hadn’t seen how much she was hurting.
I clenched my free hand into a fist.
Whoever you are…
I swear—
I will make you suffer more than Ruhi ever has.
Rishabh finally asked everyone to go back to their rooms.
No one wanted to leave her.
But he insisted.
Reluctantly, one by one, they stepped out until only Rishabh and I remained.
He sat on the other side of the bed, gently brushing Ruhi’s hair away from her face. Then he looked at me like he was about to say something difficult.
Before he could, I spoke.
“Don’t even say it,” I said firmly. “I’m not leaving Ruhi.”
He sighed softly.
“I wasn’t going to tell you to go,” he said. “I need to check something from my office. I’ll dig into everything I can. You stay with her. If you need anything, just call me immediately.”
I nodded without hesitation.
The moment he left, the room fell quiet again.
I tightened my grip around Ruhi’s hand and leaned closer.
“I’m here,” I whispered, even though she couldn’t hear me. “I won’t let anyone hurt you again. Not in your dreams. Not in real life.”
Her fingers twitched slightly in mine.
And in that moment, I knew
This wasn’t just about finding the truth anymore.
This was about protecting her from the past that refused to stay buried.
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