The night was quiet, but Keilan's mind wasn't. He sat on the edge of his bed, elbows resting on his knees, staring at the faint glow of the moonlight spilling through the curtains. His fingers absently raked through his hair, but it did little to calm the storm inside him.
"Why do I feel this way? She's my cousin… my family. And yet, every time when she's near me, I forget all the lines that should keep me in place."
He let out a frustrated sigh, leaning back against the headboard. The ceiling above felt unbearably heavy, like it was pressing down with the weight of questions he couldn't answer.
"Elvric… she still carries him in her heart. I see it in her eyes, in the way she drifts into silence whenever his name is even hinted at. But what about me? Does she notice? Even once? The way I look at her… the way my heart skips when she laughs?"
He closed his eyes, shaking his head as though that would erase the thought.
"This is madness. I shouldn't… I can't. And yet, the more I try to ignore it, the stronger it pulls me in. She's hurting, and I just want to be the one who takes that pain away. But would that be selfish? To want her for myself, when her heart belongs to someone else?"
The night deepened, the silence broken only by the sound of his own uneven breaths. He shifted on the bed, staring at the dim outline of the chair by the window where her shadow had lingered in his thoughts earlier.
"Tomorrow will be the same… she'll avoid me, pretend I'm just another face in this house. Maybe that's better. Maybe it's what I deserve. But if she ever lets me in… even a little… I don't think I'd be able to stop myself."
His chest tightened at the confession he would never dare speak aloud. He pressed the heel of his palm against his eyes, exhausted from the weight of emotions he couldn't share.
Slowly, his body gave in to fatigue. His thoughts blurred, his heart still restless, but his breathing softened as sleep finally pulled him under. The night carried his silence, holding all the words he couldn't say.
---
At sharma mansion everyone woke up, everyone is gathering to dining hall one by one
"Hey mom, good morning" Arav said
"Where is your wife?" Anjali raised her eyebrow from her sit.
"Mom your daughter in law is getting shrav ready" Arav said while playing with her daughter
"Dada....dad.....don't play Ella's hairs...little four year Ella said to arav
Arav takes her on his lap and ruffle her hairs, Arav chuckled and said "oh my baby girl, dad just love to tease his little princess" Arav kissed on her cheek
"Why are you always tease her arav" sharvari said while coming down from stairs with shrav in her arms
"wifey if I don't tease her then who will tease my little devil" Arav tickled Ella
"hey everyone good morning" liora said grabbing one chair of dinning table
"good morning" Anjali smile politely
"So here is the guest list, I'll send it to all just make sure to call everyone" Raghav sharma said and it is a more like an order.
"yes boss! aay aay captain! we got it" dariel, neil and jack said saluting to raghav sharma.
"Neil, daniel! you shouldn't behave like small childerns now, your uncle is serious!" Vicky said instructing them about the situation.
"Vicky youngers are always naughty, when you were used to younger you were also like them, let them enjoyed what they want" Raghav assured his brother
"Nick, sit straight to your place" Diana wave finger toward her six year old son.
"Zara eat properly!" Diana instruct her five years old daughter who is playing with her spoon.
Tara and nisha enter in dining hall and join the sharma family for lunch
"Good morning Tara and nisha" jack smile politely.
"Good morning everybody" Tara and nisha said cheerfully making morning lighten up more.
"Well where is our arrangement manager?" Liora asked one eyebrow raised
"Oh, by the way she looks dangerous when she start to give orders?" Daniel said and dining hall filled with laughters
"but the person you're talking about where is she?" Anjali asked taking the bite of her food.
"Aunt i think that sleepy head is still sleeping!" Tara said
"why would she will? "Anjali raised her one eyebrow.
"Diana go check on viara, where is that girl? bring her down" anjali order Diana
"okay mom! "Diana nods and went to upstairs, when she approached to front of viara bedroom door, she knocked on her bedroom door but no one answers from inside so she once again knock on the door but once again no one answers, Diana grab on bedroom door knob and enters to bedroom but she saw no one and then her eyes fall on a hairs which are coming out from duvet, she went toward bed and saw viara asleep figure
"Viara everyone is calling you down, wake up now" Diana touch her arms and feel the temperature of viara body is High
"Oh my god viara! your trembling with fever" Diana get shocked.
"Mom!, Jack! hurry up come to viara's Room! " Diana scream from upstairs.
Everyone gets up from there sit and headed to her room and they saw Diana is sitting beside viara who is trembling beneath her duvet. anjali went to viara and puts her hand on viara's head.
"jack immediately call to doctor! she has high fever!" anjali gives order to jack with concern on her face.
jack immediately make a calls to doctor while he was busy with the call, Diana immediately bring the bowl of cold water, cloth and put that soaked cloth on viara's head.
"Aunt.....I...I.....Aunt... I am.....o.....okay.....i am fine....."viara said stuttering in fever
"Yeah! I can see that, how much you're fine or not" Anjali said with concern.
"Doctor is on the way he'll come in few minutes" jack said to anjali.
everyone was eagerly waiting for the doctor and then a door bell ring, jack came down and opened the door.
"please come doctor" jack showed them a way toward viara's bedroom but in the way keilan stops jack.
"Hey what's going on? why the family doctor is here?" keilan ask in curiosity
"well doctor is here for viara she has a high fever! " jack told keilan and leave him behind. keilan immediately run upstairs and went to her bedroom concern on his face are visible but no one noticed that and he saw the lying figure of viara who was trembling in fever and trying to assure her aunt that she is fine!
"aunt....I...am.....fine" viara said stuttering
"You are not! and now just behave like a good girl and let doctor check you "anjali scold viara
"Okay....fine....!"viara said
"what happened doctor? she has a high fever!" Anjali ask concern visible on her face.
"Did you take something so much cold?"doctor asked viara
Viara only nod and said "I took shower at night"
doctor stand up from her bed and told everyone
"she takes a stress of something and because she takes an cold shower at night in that condition, that's why she got hight fever, she just need some rest and make sure she don't get so much stress"doctor told the reason behind her fever and leaves from there after doctor leaved everyone scold viara for taking cold shower and taking stress
"Oh dear, why did you take this much stress of decorations and who told you to take a cold shower" Diana ask both arms crossed.
"Why you're so smart?" Liora ask her one eyebrow raised
"Can't you take care of yourself? who did you think of yourself?" keilan scold her but his words make viara looked at him for a bit.
"You are right keilan! viara whom did you think of yourself and what will I'll tell your mother, that you came here for wedding but I gave her task and because of that she take stress and got high fever" anjali asked,
concern and anger because of Care were visible on her face but then her phone ring, she Received the call.
"Hey mrs.tyagi, what your doing? yeah you have to come for wedding" anjali said on the call and excuse herself from everyone but before leaving the bedroom she told everyone to leave from the bedroom and let viara take a rest.
"Everyone go outside and do your work, let viara take a rest" anjali said and leave with her call
"keilan aren't you coming?" Diana asked when she saw keilan is standing there watching viara sleeping figure
"I will come sister in law but let me stay here for while, what if she will need something!" keilan said while standing near her bed and looking to viara's sleeping face.
"okay then, call me if she needs something" Diana said and leaves from there. keilan sat near viara and looks at her sleeping figure carefully, he saw that one hair is on viara's face so he tuck that hair behind her ear and said to her sleeping figure.
"Why you're always so stubborn? did I hurt you this much? why don't you care of yourself viara? it hurts seeing you like this" keilan said to viara sleeping figure.
viara moves a little bit but didn't waked up instead she put her one hand on keilan's waist and hug him from side like she always sleeps hugging the pillow beside her, keilan gets stunned because of her move but he also know that she is sleeping deep because of medicine. he checks the temperature of viara but it didn't reduces a little so he start to put that cold cloth on viara head and gave her a massage while she's sleeping but while massaging her head her hairs get stuked on his ring and because of that she get wakes up and their eyes meet.
They looks at each other and then viara tries to move away from him but because her hair got stucks in his ring she didn't move, then keilan slowly removes her hair from his ring and moves a little bit
"Hey you waked up, are you feeling better now? " should I call Diana?" or should I call Tara and nisha?" keilan ask
"Water...just give me the glass of water" viara said trying to sit properly but while trying to sit properly she stumbles and keilan catch her from her side and made her sit to bed.
"You shouldn't take so much stress" keilan looks at her with concern
"Why do you care?" whom I want to take care of me is not here! and here you are the idiot who is falling for a girl with whom you have a boundries you can't cross!" viara said
"I don't care! And you shouldn't think this now" keilan said searching for viara's eyes
"viara you should just take care of yourself for now, just tell me if you need something" keilan put his hand on her cheek.
"I just need some rest, can you just give me head massage" viara said exhaustedly and she laid down on her bed, like she don't want to say anything right now, keilan also went silent and start to massage her head, for sometime viara looked at him and he gave a what happened look but viara just shake her head in nothing and close her eyes after that she drifted to sleep.
"You shouldn't take so much stress, I can't see you like this, I just want to see you happy, if that happiness will need my distance from you then I am ready for that too, if you want to stay away from me then I will and I promise I'll never hurt you" keilan brush her hair back with his hand after that he place a small peck on her forehead and leaves her bedroom.
-----------
The soft evening light spilled through the curtains as Viara slowly opened her eyes.
Her head still throbbed faintly, the remnants of fever making her body heavy. She rubbed her temples and sighed.
Just then, the sound of footsteps broke the silence. The door creaked open.
Keilan entered quietly, holding a tray — a bowl of vegetable soup, a glass of warm turmeric milk, and a small bowl of fruit.
He looked calm, dressed simply in a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up.
Without saying a word, he placed the tray on her bedside table.
Viara blinked, surprised.
"Why did you come here?" she asked softly, her voice still weak. "I thought… you were angry. didn't i hurt you earlier with my words?
Keilan paused for a second, then smiled that genuine smile Which always melted her guard.
"Everyone's busy downstairs," he said casually. "I was just scrolling through my phone, so Aunt Anjali told me to bring this to you. She said you shouldn't come down yet."
Viara's brows furrowed. "What time is it?"
"It's already 7 in the evening," Keilan replied with a teasing smirk. "You've been sleeping the whole day, sleepyhead."
Her eyes widened. "What?! Seven? Oh no, I wasted the whole day! I didn't even help with anything—"
She tried to sit up quickly, panicking.
Keilan laughed quietly and pressed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Hey, calm down. You don't have to do everything in one day. You can join tomorrow."
Viara puffed her cheeks and crossed her arms. "You always tease me."
"That's because you make it too easy," he said with a grin.
"Keilan!" she scolded, hitting him lightly on the chest.
He chuckled, but when she tried to hit him again, he caught her hand mid-air his fingers wrapping around hers.
Their laughter faded.
For a moment, the world went quiet.
Their faces were only inches apart her breath brushing against his skin, his heartbeat echoing in the still air.
Keilan's voice dropped to a whisper.
"We're closer than we should be," he murmured.
Her eyes met his wide, uncertain, trembling between confusion and something unspoken.
He leaned in, slowly, hesitating, as if asking permission without words.
The distance between them melted only a breath apart and everything else in the world disappeared.
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