Dedicated to SoniaMajmundar for all your love for Annie <3

♔ Aarav ♔ 

          Dad's eyes widen when I enter his cabin where Anjali is there as well discussing business. She inhales sharply getting out of her chair to reach me. "Aarav! What did you do?"

I don't answer her as I wrap my arms around her neck and embrace her tightly. Her tilted chin rests on my shoulder as she pats my back in confusion, "Shh, it's okay, baby." Even though I don't want to leave her, she fights against my hold to pull back and wipe the tears off the sides of my eyes that had slipped out the second I hugged her.

Softly, she nudges me to sit on the chair. "Let's get you cleaned up, hmm?"

I let her push me down on the chair before she takes the first aid kit from dad. He asks pulling a third chair into the circle, "What happened?"

I speak through clenched jaw, and it isn't because of the antiseptic Anjali uses to clean up the cut. "All I want to do is hunt down those responsible for hurting her, dad."

She reprimands, yet with love and concern in her voice. "So much anger isn't good for you, Aarav."

"How did you do it?" I ask looking at dad. How did he control himself seeing both Anjali and Khushi suffer through rape by the same person?

He answers gently, "You know this, Aarav. It was a long road of self-destruction. One that I wish I could take back even today. Don't do the same to yourself."

Every day, I try not to. All of them have went through a lot so I wouldn't have to. But, now with Jhanvi... I am forced to face all of it, all over again.

"How can I not?" I argue as Anjali finishes bandaging my palm. "This with Jhanvi and then he..."

Anjali squeezes my other hand, "Aarav, let us handle him. We have in the past and we will again. You just be there for Jhanvi and everything will slowly fall into place, okay? We won't let anything happen to you and you don't let anything happen to Jhanvi. Can you do that? Just focus on bringing her back to us?"

I start clearing my head. Jhanvi. My head nods on its own account. I can do that. Just focus on Jhanvi.

Dad reassures, "Good. By the time you'll be back from Milan, everything will be normal again."

"Yeah," I answer really praying that would be true. We might not be free of Dinesh and Hiten, but as long as the other problem is out of the way, I can handle the rest.

. . . ∞ . ∞ . ∞ . ∞. . .

          I pick up my phone and text Annie. It's been a while. Well, just a week since we talked last week over my birthday. It was rushed, but still. So much can happen in a week whereby it can feel as if life has taken a 360 degree turn and there is this desperate feeling of just wanting to talk to the one person I have known as long as I know myself.

Aarav: Hey stranger!

When she doesn't answer in two minutes, I give her a call. She answers in a frustrated voice, "I'm going to beat the shit out of you one day, junior. Always bothering me at inappropriate times."

"It's like what, 11 there in Australia? How is that an inappropriate time?"

"Because I'm out."

Her answer is quick but the words are enough for me to read between the lines. "I see. Fine, I'll let you get back to your date. Bye."

I hate that the last few interactions of ours have been like this.

The five minutes after I end the call, I spend them trying to get back to work but unable to focus. We've always had miles between us but she's still never felt as far as she has been lately.

So much is going on lately and I need Annie. God, I miss her and I know I won't feel better until I have told her everything and gotten things off my chest. I've always been close to her and she knows it. Ever since we first met in the shelter in Australia dad had opened for the abused children when he used to go to University there.

She's been the youngest during her time there and as I reached an age to understand what the shelter meant, I'd hated it – though I do have to be proud of dad for being way mature than others his age and finding this safe haven for abused children. Not everyone can go through a tough life and do something benevolent for others even as a mere teenager, not out of pity and sympathy but out of wanting to do some good in the world to counterbalance of the bad out there.

And Annie, even though she lived in Australia and I grew up mostly in India, we had ways to keep in touch – especially when sometimes she, along with others from the shelter, would come over to visit during holidays and other times, we'd visit them. She was always close to my father and he may be the only fatherly figure in her life.

I end up looking at the wallpaper on my phone's home screen. The photo taken after dinner. The two of us at her last birthday, the last time we'd met almost four months ago. I was in London setting up our new office there but for her birthday, had flown out to Australia.

It was a thing. She didn't let me spend my birthday without her. I wouldn't let her spend her birthday alone.

Well, until last week.

As much as I was trying to ignore that, I knew things were changing and I can't decide exactly how that makes me feel. Just, not good.

I need for things to be normal again. With her. With Jhanvi. With everything.

Inhaling, I open her chat thread again and send out a message.

Aarav: Sorry, Annie. I just wanted to ask when you'd be in Milan. I'll be there in two days... flying out early. Anyway, just text me later when you can.

. . . ∞ . ∞ . ∞ . ∞. . .

          "Aren't you curious?"

I turn my head sideways to look at Annie when she suddenly asks as we are watching a movie. It's Christmas eve and like any Christmas's before, I'm at the shelter with dad and Khushi to celebrate with everyone here. Though we were supposed to have gone to bed hours ago, we were still up defying the elders and watching marathons of Christmas movies.

I don't understand these Hallmark movies. So cheesy and sappy and cheerful. Not a realistic presentation at all, if you ask me.

I ask, "About what?"

She scolds nodding to the TV, "Pay attention, Aarav. Stop zoning out."

Well... it's hard not to zone out when it's almost 2 of night and these movies don't interest me. I'm just watching because Annie insisted she wanted to stay up the whole night and watch them.

I glance at the screen to see the two leads kissing. I understand what she's talking about and I shrug my shoulders. "No. Not really."

She sits up from her slouched position. "Really? How can you not be curious how it feels like?" She the squints her eyes, "Or wait, are you not curious because you've already...?"

I roll my eyes with a scoff, "No, Annie. Let's just watch the movie, okay?"

I may be only 14 years of age and she, 12, but I still remembered my childhood and how I am betrothed to marry Jhanvi once we grow up. So, I may not have kissed anyone. In my mind, I thought it would be wrong.

Annie continues to talk, however. "You're lying. What guy isn't curious or doesn't want to kiss a girl?"

I groan trying to silence her and her talks of kissing. "Why are we talking about this?"

"Because!" She turns to sit in front of me instead of beside me, "I get you're trying to be noble and all but really, I think you were born in the wrong century. You should have been born in the time of Kings and Queens. Seriously, are you going to now claim that you'll never kiss a girl or anything because of something you agreed to when you were 7? You were a child! But anyway, your choice, I guess. But I'm not you, you see. I'm not nob..."

Oh, for Heaven's sake. When she rambles, she rambles. I cut it off by a spur of the moment choice and my lips on hers.

She freezes with wide eyes and blinks three times before narrowing them. "What was that?"

I take the half full bucket of popcorn and place it over my lap to dig into it as I casually answer trying not to acknowledge what I just did, "Shutting you up. Really, you talk too much, Angel. Now that you're no longer curious, can we go back to watching this stupid movie?"

I look past her at the screen though she remains in my peripheral. Seconds later, she moves and I think she is going to return to her side of the bed. I carefully eye her when instead, she moves closer to me. "What are you doing?"

She takes the bucket of popcorn and puts it aside, raising one brow to challenge, "You call that a kiss? It was a peck, at most."

I lean away digging my head in the bed post behind me. "Annie, whatever you're thinking..."

I don't get around to stopping her because her soft fingers meet my cheek, her eyes darting back and forth from my eyes to my lips. We can't do this. And yet, I remain frozen as the breadth of a distance between our lips is breached and her lips brush mine in slight hesitation and nervousness.

My heart is pounding in my chest too all the way to my ears. I am nervous too. A peck was one thing but this... Am I cheating on Jhanvi?

She keeps testing with her small nips, a quite brave move for a 12-year girl. Her word flashed in my ears. Noble. Isn't it too much of a burden on a 14-year-old teenager?

I decide to be noble another day and finally lift my hand, placing my finger on her chin and moving my head to the other side, kissing her back. A proper kiss. My first kiss... no, hers too. Our first kiss.

Pulling back, I speak with our faces still close together, "Don't get curious again." With the light warning, I leave the bed and her room.

I don't know what to take of this. Should I feel guilty? Essentially, I had set the course of events. Annie was just talking mindlessly as she often does. I hadn't thought before I did what I did to shut her up. And now... I don't know how to face her again... or deal with this. I worry I risked our friendship and things won't be normal between us anymore.

. . . ∞ . ∞ . ∞ . ∞. . .

          Two days later, we are in Milan. Even though Jhanvi has been around me for most of it, we haven't had much of a conversation. It's usually just the basics like me asking her what she wants to eat for lunch, if she was forgetting to pack anything, and the other non-important things. I could catch on that she was mostly lost inside her head and I didn't want to bother her too much.

I had movers already shifting into a condo apartment I'd bought that I show her to as soon as we walk out of the airport and get in a car – again, already arranged and waiting for us. "I got the apartment next door for Eva."

"Where are you staying?"

"Here." I walk into the kitchen and grab a bottle of water from the fridge.

"Excuse me?" She follows behind demanding an answer. "When I said you could help as a friend, it did not mean you stay with me. I didn't give you that permission and neither do I remember you asking me."

After I've gulped down almost half of the water, I reply being casual. "That's because I didn't ask, and I don't need your permission."

I eye her movement when she closes her eyes and fists her palms in an attempt to calm her anger before she tries to make it clear. "Aarav, you are not staying here with me."

It's maybe only the second time she's said my name instead of calling me Raizada or Mr. Raizada. I love how my name sounds on her lips with her Australian accent. Reminds me of Annie. I force back my thoughts on her. She had replied back to the text message, but it had been vague - saying she hadn't booked her tickets yet but that she would be here for the shoot on time.

With a smile, I walk towards Jhanvi and hand her a bottle of water to drink and relax. "I am, Shona. Deal with it."

She exclaims with clenched teeth, "Ugh, you infuriating little prat!"

I arch a brow in amusement, "Is that the best insult you can come up with?" It's like my amusement flares up her anger further. I start to make my exit, "I'll leave you to get settled. I have a quick meeting to attend. I'll have a car pick you up at seven for dinner. If you need anything while I am not here, you ask Jose, the driver. His number is saved in here." I hand her a new phone with a local SIM whose number that cheap ex-fiancé of hers won't have. "You're not going anywhere by yourself, understood?"

She places her hands on her hips to make a point, "I'm not a kid. I'll go wherever I please at whatever time."

"I'm not saying you can't go anywhere. All I'm saying is you won't go alone. Take Jose with you since it'll take Eva another day to get here and once she is here, you can go anywhere you like with her. I will not stop you."

She looks slightly taken aback when I explain it to her and thankfully, she takes it to be a fair deal. "Okay."

"Okay," I repeat in relief and leave her to look around the apartment on her own.

. . . ∞ . ∞ . ∞ . ∞. . .

  ∞ authors note  ∞

So... was this chapter expected/unexpected? ;) I'm hoping most would have seen this coming, given the introduction. A couple of you have been conversing with me via inbox on this.. some might be happy, some might not be. Let me know your thoughts! All I'll say is I love Annie. I have since book 1 of Dare and thus the fun begins :D  

QOTC: #1 How do you feel about Aarav kissing Annie in the flashback? I personally loved how Annie called him out on being too noble. A brave 12 year young girl :P

#2 This he Aarav mentions in his talk with Anjali & Arnav.. guesses?

And now, my lovely readers, guess away at the plot! Is the picture getting clearer?