After Ankur’s confession, the entire world seemed to pause for a second. Lata stared at him, shocked, overwhelmed, a storm of emotions swirling inside her. Did she hear it right? Was this real?
Ankur took a step closer.
His eyes held a deep, soft expression, as if he could read every emotion in her heart. He had waited for this moment for so long, imagined it a thousand times, but today, today, Lata was finally standing right in front of him, closer to his heart than ever before.
Hesitant at first, he slowly took both of Lata’s hands in his.
“You never realized, did you?”
Lata didn’t say a word. Her breath had grown heavier.
“You’ve always been my best friend, my closest one. But you know what? I never saw you only as a friend.”
Lata lowered her gaze.
All these years, she had assumed she wasn’t Ankur’s type. That he only saw her as a friend. But how wrong she had been!
“Remember our school days?” Ankur chuckled. “You always picked fights, got into trouble, and instead of saving me, you used to drag me into your mess! But you know what? I was always right there by your side.”
Lata tried to recall those moments. Every little memory flashed before her eyes, she had never realized it before, but all this time, this boy had been protecting her in his own way.
“You may not have noticed, but I was always looking out for you. If anyone ever tried to hurt you, I stepped in before you even knew. Because…”
Ankur took a deep breath.
“Because I love you, Lata. I always have.”
Lata felt a lump in her throat. Those simple words shattered all the walls she had built inside her heart.
And then, suddenly, Ankur placed his hands gently on her shoulders and slowly pulled her closer.
Lata was stunned for a moment. But in the next second, it felt… right. This was meant to happen.
She closed her eyes and allowed herself to feel the warmth of his embrace, as if, after waiting for so long, she had finally found her safest place.
With her face buried in Ankur’s chest, all the storms, all the doubts, all the heartache melted away into that one deep, warm hug.
Outside, a soft wind was blowing, and the colors of the sky were shifting slowly.
But for them, time had stopped.
They both knew, after today, nothing would ever change again. Because they had found their forever in each other’s hearts.
To be continued…
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