"Oh..." Sheetal felt disappointed and also jealous that Khushi knew something about Arnav that she didn't despite the fact that she knew Arnav for longer. And on top of that, Arnav was speaking on Khushi's side! Couldn't he have at least lied, that he liked kharela for her sake?

"It's ok Sheetal Di, at least you know now. Next time you won't make the same mistake," Khushi said, with a sweet smile.

Arnav just felt like kissing Khushi at that moment itself, seeing her possessiveness over him.

Oh how much he loved his angel...

*********************************************************

'Wait what? Love? Where did that come from?' thought Arnav.

'Oh come on, it's so obvious you're in love with her. There's no point in hiding it now,' his conscience replied.

'No no no! I can't be in love! I need to stay away from these emotions! They only cause pain!' thought Arnav.

'Can you stay away from Khushi then?' the other part asked. 'No right? Just because you've abstained from using the word love, it doesn't mean that you're not in love with her,' it said.

Arnav realised, what his other part was saying was right. All these days, he'd tried to stay away from the word 'love' – so much that he even stopped himself from thinking the word.

But when it came to Khushi, he could never keep himself away. His every resolve always shattered into pieces the minute Khushi appeared in front of him.

Every single time he decided to keep his distance, Khushi's one word, one move, even one expression could make those thoughts disappear into thin air.

But how could he allow himself to be in love with her? It would only cause her pain to be with a man like him, who was emotionally scarred in many ways.

'If you were so worried about her feelings, then you should never have taken advantage of her the way you did. How do you plan on leaving Khushi after all the things you both have done together? You've hugged her, you've kissed her – are you just going to throw her out of your life after using her for your needs?' his conscience asked mockingly.

'What??? No!!! I would never do that to any girl, let alone Khushi! She means the world to me!' Arnav thought.

'Exactly! She means the world to you – meaning she has already entered that heart of yours and made a place for herself in it. Whether you like it or not, you are in love with Khushi.'

For a few seconds, Arnav's mind shut down completely.

It was as if everything was darkness.

And then, all of a sudden, everything burst into colours and it all came rushing back with a force that almost shook Arnav – every moment, every word, every kiss...

And that was when he had the biggest epiphany of his life.

He was deeply, and irrevocably, in love with Khushi!

He was in love!!!

The second he admitted to himself that he was in love with Khushi, he felt a burden being lifted off his chest.

He felt so light all of a sudden – it was like the whole world had suddenly turned beautiful...

Everything seemed so much brighter...

The thing he didn't realise was that the world was still the same selfish world he had encountered many times – but it was the happiness in his heart that made it look otherwise.

For the first time in years, Arnav truly felt happiness bubbling through him.

And Khushi – he couldn't take his eyes off her. She looked so beautiful – like an angel. She'd always been beautiful to him, but today it was as if all his feelings and thoughts about her had intensified a million times.

It was as if he'd been in a dark cellar, with only a small window allowing light to come through – and suddenly all the walls were broken down, and now it's light everywhere he turns.

It was as though his heart was filled with nothing but love for this one girl, who had come into his life and filled it with the colours of life...

'Khushi' his heart called out.

Khushi, who had been busy, secretly revelling in her success at keeping Sheetal away from Arnav, turned to look at Arnav as though she'd heard him call out to her.

But when she faced Arnav, she was surprised by the look in his eyes.

The way he looked at her made her tingle all over – it made the woman in her feel pride, to know that her man admired her in ways which she had never imagined, but at the same time it made the inexperienced girl in her shy...

Arnav hadn't considered the idea that Khushi might not reciprocate his feelings towards her. It hadn't really occurred to him that she might not want him the way he wanted her.

But when he saw her reaction to his one gaze, he knew.

He knew that he'd never needed to consider that point anyways. He knew that she felt for him the same way he did for her.

Arnav couldn't bear to sit at the table amongst other people when all these revelations were hitting him all at once.

He just wanted to be alone with Khushi.

Of course ASR always gets what he wants, so he stood up abruptly, startling everyone.

"Khushi I need to talk to you," he said, surprising her with his stern tone.

Sheetal who had been upset that Arnav couldn't try her kharela became happy seeing his stern tone towards Khushi.

She had been so focused on her disappointment that she had missed that heated exchange between Arnav and Khushi.

'Maybe Arnav is going to scold Khushi for hurting me,' she thought gleefully.

"Ar-navji?" Khushi said, not sure what she had done wrong within two seconds... He had looked at her like that merely a few moments ago and now he suddenly seemed angry.

"We need to talk," he said roughly, before grabbing her hand and pulling her out of her chair.

"Excuse us," he said to Aman and Sheetal, before dragging Khushi upstairs into the guestroom so they could be alone.

As soon as he closed the door behind them, a confused Khushi asked, "Arnavji what's wron–"

But she couldn't complete her sentence because Arnav had slammed his lips against hers, engulfing her into his arms.

Although Khushi had been taken aback for a moment, it didn't take her long to respond just as eagerly.

And soon their hands were all over each other, desperately trying to get closer as their tongues and lips duelled in passion.

Arnav and Khushi were so lost in each other, that they both completely forgot that they had people waiting for them to return downstairs.

When they eventually pulled away, it took a few moments for them both to come out of the sensual haze that had surrounded them.

"What was that for?" Khushi asked, breathlessly.

"I love you," Arnav confessed, his breath caressing her lips.

Khushi froze on the spot.

She blinked several times, trying to process what he'd just told her.

"Huh?" It was as though Khushi's brain was rejecting those words for some reason.

Arnav cupped her face and gave her a smooch, before repeating against her lips, "I love you."

But that did not help at all – Khushi was still in a daze, not sure if she'd heard right. She just looked at Arnav's face questioningly, not knowing what else to do.

Arnav smiled seeing her state.

"I. Love. You." He punctuated each word with a kiss, before he started raining kisses all over her face and neck, repeating the magical words over and over.

Somewhere through the haze of passion, Khushi had a moment of revelation.

A moment that she wanted to reside in forever.

A moment that gave her the most beautiful feeling in the world.

A moment that gave her the most prized possession of her life.

It was in that moment that she realised that her Arnavji loved her!!!

And most importantly, he'd actually confessed it to her!!!

She'd already had a fair idea that Arnav loved her. His every action screamed that – but what she hadn't expected was for him to realise his feelings so soon and confess them too!

Yes she had told herself that she didn't need him to voice out his feelings for her – because she knew that he loved her. But when she heard him confess... Nothing could be more beautiful than that feeling...

People say actions speak louder than words – which they do most of the time. But sometimes the fewest of words can have the most greatest of impacts, and when meant truly, they can create the most beautiful weave of magic...

And right now, Khushi could feel that magic weaving its way around her heart, body and soul...

Arnav was still kissing wherever he could reach, when Khushi cupped his face gently and tilted it slightly so she could look into his eyes...

That second would probably be one of the most special moments of their lives...

Both of them had the purest and happiest of smiles on their faces, their eyes twinkling with unending joy.

In that moment, Khushi saw an Arnav that she had never seen in her entire life. She saw an Arnav who looked at peace for the first time. She saw an Arnav who had a full on smile lighting up his face. She saw an Arnav who looked well and truly happy.

And in that moment, Arnav saw a different Khushi too. She looked so radiant – almost glowing. And it wasn't the same joy that he saw when she got her favourite jalebis or salman khan movies. It was joy that came from deep within – a contentment from the heart of her soul... And nothing made him happier to know that he was the reason for her delight.

Slowly, Khushi leant up on her tiptoes to place a gentle kiss on Arnav's forehead... and then on both his eyelids... followed by the tip of his nose... then his lips... and then finally on his chest, just above where his heart lay, beating just for her...

She laid her head on his heart, just listening to his heartbeat, enjoying every moment of their togetherness.

On the other hand, Arnav tightened his arms around her, bringing her closer, never wanting this moment to end...

"I..." Khushi started, but then hesitated in shyness.

"Hmmm?" Arnav didn't want to push her, but he couldn't help the eagerness that seeped into his tone as he yearned to hear those three words from Khushi's mouth.

"I... I..." Khushi wrapped her arms around Arnav's torso and tightened her arms, trying to gain strength from their unity. "I... I lov –"

But she couldn't finish the sentence that she finally found strength to say, because just then Sheetal knocked on the door calling, "Khushi? Arnav? Are you both ok?"

Startled, Khushi was about to pull away but Arnav refused to loosen his iron grip, not wanting to let her go.

Khushi tilted her chin up and whispered, "Arnavji let go!!! Sheetal Di and Amanji must be waiting for us!"

Arnav didn't move nor let her move. "We're fine Sheetal, just give us a minute. We're sorting something out – we'll be down soon," Arnav called out.

"Okay," Sheetal replied, confused as to what was taking them so long. Why did it take Arnav this long to tell Khushi off for making her upset?

Nevertheless Sheetal went back downstairs, as she was sure that everything was happening in her favour behind those closed doors upstairs.

"What were you saying?" Arnav asked, his husky voice sending Khushi's heart racing.

"I... I... I..." The interruption really didn't do any good for Khushi's courage. She was back to square one now...

Arnav gently lifted up her chin to look into her eyes. "I...?" Arnav prompted huskily.

Khushi's breaths quickened seeing the amused but eager look in his molten caramel eyes.

"I... Voh..." Khushi shut her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself down.

When she opened her eyes again, she looked straight into Arnav's eyes and started, "I..." Arnav raised his eyebrows eagerly, signalling her to go on.

She hesitated for a fraction of a second and then pushed Arnav away with all the force she could muster, saying, "Sheetal Di is waiting for us downstairs!" She rushed out of the door laughing, leaving a staggered and annoyed Arnav behind.

Seeing Khushi run down the stairs laughing, all of Sheetal's hopes got dashed.

A few moments later, she saw Arnav coming down looking angry which only made her wonder, what the hell had taken place in that room? On one hand Khushi comes down laughing, while on the other, Arnav comes down hell angry – Sheetal was so confused.

Meanwhile, Khushi couldn't control the giggle that escaped her seeing the irritated expression on Arnav's face.

But after a few seconds she felt her amusement disappear when Arnav greeted Sheetal and asked if they should proceed with lunch.

To make things worse, Sheetal even got to sit next to Arnav on the dining table, while she ended up sitting next to Aman, and all through this, not once did Arnav even turn towards Khushi.

Khushi felt hurt.

How could he ignore her after what had just taken place upstairs? They'd confessed their love for each other for God's sake!

'No, HE confessed his love, not you. You're the one who ran away, remember?' her conscience mocked.

Khushi felt a pang of guilt at that thought.

She'd done it as a joke, but now she realised that with her silliness she'd ruined their moment...

'And how would he be feeling? He finally realised the depth of his feelings and decided to confess. And what did you do? You just ran away without giving him a single reply!' she berated herself inside. 'If you'd been the one who confessed and he didn't give you a reply, how would you feel? Imagine how angry and dejected he must be feeling!'

The more Khushi thought about it, the more she felt guilty about what she did; even though her intentions were not bad, they'd ended up angering Arnav anyways.

And to top things up Arnav wouldn't even look at her once. He was busy happily talking to that Sheetal, while she and Aman had their lunch silently.

All of this just made Khushi feel depressed, hurt and extremely upset.

Arnav on the other hand was just really irritated. He'd just confessed his feelings to the love of his life, and what does she do? Bloody run away! And the reason for all this is sitting right beside him, chatting away happily with him. And he, like an idiot was responding to it all too.

But then what else could he do? He wanted to make Khushi come back to him herself and confess. He'd taken the first step and she'd pushed him away. So now she can take the final step herself, he decided.

And of course he was going to punish her for making him wait – and what better way can there be than to make her jealous?

So here he was, chatting away 'happily' with Sheetal, not sparing a single glance towards Khushi. He was going to keep his distance until Khushi herself comes up to him and makes a move.

He knew Khushi loved him – there was no doubt about that in his heart. Somehow he just knew. But that didn't mean he wasn't going to punish for this wait – 'And so let the games begin,' he thought.

Just as they'd all finished lunch and cleared up, Sheetal's phone started ringing. She excused herself, saying that it was a call from her old college friend and went into the other room so she could talk properly.

Now it was just Aman, Arnav and Khushi in the living room. And with Arnav ignoring Khushi, and Aman not being much of the talkative type, Khushi was just sitting, staring down at the floor awkwardly.

Soon Arnav and Aman got talking about the case and any further details – and that's when Aman remembered the file that was to be handed to Arnav (the one with information about Shashi Gupta's background as well as Khushi's).

He'd only got the complete information this morning and with his tiredness he'd forgotten to hand it over to Arnav when he got home.

When Aman mentioned the file, Arnav told him not to bring it down yet and that he will take it on his way back home so he could analyse it carefully in his study.

When Sheetal was done with the call, she came up to Aman and asked, "Did you buy the vegetables I asked for in the morning Bhaiya?"

"Oh shoot!!! I completely forgot Sheetal, sorry!" Aman replied sheepishly.

"Bhaiya!! You do this every time! Now how am I supposed to make dinner?" she complained.

"Okay okay now don't start complaining," Aman said, raising his hands in surrender. "I'll go buy them now," he gave in.

With that he excused himself and soon left the house to go and buy the vegetables.

Sheetal also went into the kitchen to finish off something, so it was just Arnav and Khushi alone in the living room.

There was an awkward silence as Arnav pointedly ignored Khushi, while she fiddled with her fingers, not knowing how to approach him.

When she'd finally mustered up the courage and was just about to call out to him, Sheetal called, "Arnav! Could you please help me get this sugar jar on the top shelf of this cupboard? I can't reach it!"

"Coming," Arnav called back, and walked off into the kitchen, leaving Khushi sulking in the living room at her wasted attempt. Now she just had to wait for her next chance...

Arnav went into the kitchen and effortlessly picked out the sugar jar for Sheetal, and walked straight back out into the living room – he was running out of patience with all of Sheetal's not-so-innocent touches and brushes, but he needed to endure them until Khushi confessed her love for him. So instead of torturing himself by staying in the kitchen voluntarily, he decided to walk out before Sheetal could make any conversation.

Arnav walked back into the living room smirking, as he knew that Khushi would be really jealous right now with the attention he was giving Sheetal.

But when he went into the living room, his smirk was wiped off.

Khushi. Was. Gone.

The bangles he brought for her lay on the floor, broken with her blood stained on them...

"Khushi!!!"

Guys thank you so so so much for all your love, wishes and support – they mean a huge lot to me. Every wish and prayer of yours for my father is truly appreciated.

My dad was getting better little by little, but he's getting his old symptoms back and I'm worried for his condition because his heart is still not stable and the doctors are not making any further progress in treatment yet... Once again please please please pray for him...

Now coming to the update... How was it??? Two major things happened in this chapter and I really hope you liked it – I didn't have time to perfect this chapter as I'd wanted to due to my hectic life at the moment. But please do let me know what you thought of the chapter by voting/ commenting – your response is my motivation.

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