Published January 2017 | Edited April 13th, 2018

Dedicated to moonbeautie. So my sister agreed to read Dare as my birthday gift :P I told her she'd have to read it regardless as she's obligated to but still. So, this one's for you sis & thank you for allowing me to drag you to different sites over the last 5 so years & making you create accounts.

| . . . C H AP T E R . . . 1.1 1 . 1 : F I V E - P E O P L E . . . |

Arnav ended up taking a nap on the living room couch after he had taken a shower and had breakfast. He did ask multiple times before deciding to nap if I wanted to go somewhere or do something if I was bored. I kept denying and assured that the novel I had bought the other day on Kindle would be good company atleast till afternoon.

It was raining outside so it made for a humid weather and I couldn't sit outside on the back porch.

Two hours later when I was halfway through the novel, he woke up receiving a phone call.

He sneaked through one eye to check the caller ID before closing them again and putting the phone between the pillow and his ear so he wouldn't have to hold it. "Morning di."

I could only hear the one-sided conversation.

"Yeah...Mhmm, she's still sleeping. Went to sleep around 5." After her response, he chuckled. "I did tell you to join us."

I recall his sister is still in Australia. I imagine she's bored with both he and Kripa here for the weekend. I had no idea how much older she was in age compared to them. I just knew she was the oldest sibling.

The smile left his face and his eyes opened as worry registered over his face. "Lavanya? Is she okay? What happened?"

I stole glances his way trying not to make it obvious. His sudden worry caused me some concern too. And Lavanya, there was that name again.

He sat up running his fingers through his already tousled hair as he listened to his sister for a while. Then he announced, "I'm coming back." He started to stand up but stopped with an argument, "But di..." Again, he was cut off and after listening, he frowned and sat back down. She must have ordered him to not go back. "Fine. Even if she tells you not to tell me, if anything else happens, you better call me... I won't do anything as long as he leaves her alone... yeah, okay. Bye, love you."

At the end of the phone call, he pressed a few buttons before typing with a furious speed. Perhaps, a text message. After it was send, he glanced up and seemed to realize I was in the room in the same place I had been sitting at when he had taken a nap as his eyes slightly widen.

I expected him to say something but instead, he stood up and walked into his room. I don't fail to notice that it was right next to the one I had slept it. The more important fact, he had slipped back into his quiet mode.

I was usually the one between the two of us to walk away into a room and avoid the others' presence.

The reversing role was concerning.

I thought he'd only show this type of worry for his siblings, Anjali and Kripa. Whoever this Lavanya was though, he was quite worried about her and whatever had happened.

. . . ∞ . ∞ . ∞ . ∞. . .

I asked Arnav for his car keys because I wanted to go into town. Why? No reason. I was bored of staying indoors. It had stopped raining. I figured I could explore the town. Instead of giving them to me, he said he would take me. I figured he didn't trust me to drive his car and bring it back in one piece.

I may not have too much experience driving a car... but I did take a course. I hadn't gotten an Australian license given I didn't have a car here and I didn't find it necessary to invest in a car at this moment. So, I suppose it was for the better - not drive illegally.

Then, we ran out of gas halfway.

I blinked away from the flashing light on the dashboard monitor and glared at him, "How do you run out of gas? Did you not check before we left?"

He admitted absent-mindedly, "I was distracted."

Some of the quick temper dissipated at his honest response. I get a feeling he was still worried over that phone call. He had kept checking his phone every few seconds even though there was no obvious beep to signal a new, unread message.

He parked the car to the side of the road. "Stay in the car. The nearest gas station is about five miles out."

I unbuckled, "Oh, no. I refuse to stay here in the middle of nowhere by myself."

"It could start raining anytime again."

"And?"

"I only keep one umbrella in the car, sweet pea."

That name again. Eventually, we came back to it. "Your point?"

He continued to stare at me, waiting for it to click. But... for what to click? All I knew was that I refused to stay in the car and wait for him to return. In the middle of a deserted road was not my idea of comfort or safety.

Eventually he gave in. "Let's go." As we were walking, he asked. "What do you need to buy anyway?"

"Oh, nothing."

The look he gave was beyond hilarious. It was as if someone just told him Santa wasn't real. "What do you mean nothing?!"

"I mean, nothing." I casually said and continued walking.

"Khushi..." came his deadly warning.

I cracked at once and exclaimed, "I was bored!" He returned a look of tell me you are joking and I went on to point out, "Everyone was asleep and you had locked yourself in your room. If I had wanted to spend the weekend by myself, I'd have stayed on campus. And, it's not like I had asked you to come along. If you recall, I did ask for your car keys."

"Look where your boredom got us." He said as if there was a need for that. I glanced up towards the sky when a drop fell on my forehead. A second later, he follows my actions for he felt it too. "Just fucking perfect."

I instructed rolling my eyes, "You've got an umbrella. Make use of it instead of whining like a baby."

He opened it but placed it over my head just as it began pouring. When I glanced at him questioningly, he offered, "Unlike popular belief, I do know how to be a gentleman."

It took only seconds for his shirt to be drenched and for it stick to his skin. I said looking away to stare ahead instead. "I've got a jacket, Arnav. You are wearing a thin shirt. You need it more if you don't want to get sick."

It seems he choose to ignore my words for the umbrella remained over my head. Sighing, I started to shrug off my jacket. Well, it was Armaan's jacket. I'd wear it in the rainy weather more than he did so I had brought it with me here. I doubt he even knew it was missing.

I forwarded it to him, "Here." He questioned through his eyes. "It's Armaan's. Big enough to fit you. So just put it on." I took the umbrella he was holding so he could wear the jacket and zip it up.

Only, the wind didn't want to cooperate. It was impossible to hold the item steady over my head and it ended up drenching my backside the way rain wanted to fall slanted. Why could the wind not pick its course and stick with it?

"Who's Armaan?"

The question caused me to stop fretting over the weather. "Hmm? Armaan? My brother. Why?"

"Oh." He gave the smart reply that had me smile for a second. I didn't realize he cared that much to be bothered by who Armaan was.

"Who's Lavanya?" I surprised myself by asking for I had decided earlier to not intrude.

"And why do you want to know?"

I felt the urge to roll my eyes. I hadn't asked him any questions when he asked who Armaan was. I gave a straight answer. Why couldn't he return the favor and simply answer? "That phone call obviously bothered you. So, you can say I am curious to learn there are more than two people in this world you get worried for."

"FYI, there are a total of five people in the world I would do anything for - not including the girls at the shelter, ofcourse."

I nodded along, "Good to know for future but that wasn't my original question."

He stuffed his hands in his pockets and continued walking. I almost gave up on hoping for an answer when he surprised me, "She's my best friend."

I raised a brow. Can you blame me? It's hard to imagine. "A girl, who is nothing more than a friend to you?"

He had to have heard the disbelief in my tone and yet the smile he gave seemed sincere. "As hard as it might be to believe, yes. She is just my best friend. Don't let Kripa tell you anything else about her. Other than Kripa and Anjali, she is the only girl I have allowed in my life who knows everything there is to know about me."

"Including the shelter?"

Why is there this unsettling feeling that is starting to overshadow my heart?

He nodded with a hum, "She's never been there but yes," and that was the final straw I needed to believe him.

At the shelter, I had heard how he never brought anyone with him there so I had imagined it was something he kept hidden about himself from everyone. I was wrong.

Whatever this feeling is, I forced a smile to cover it up and said to lighten it, "Well then, what do you know? There just is hope for you, Raizada."

He smiled back, "Are you not going to ask who the other people are?"

He was talking about the five people he mentioned. Kripa, Anjali and Lavanya are the three, I deduced that much. "Nope," I answered and because he didn't look away, I added. "None of my business, is it?"

If he wanted me to know, he wouldn't ask me to ask him. He would just tell it. And I had learnt already, he hardly gave answers. I wasn't going to embarrass myself by asking only for him to not answer.

I could live without knowing.

Besides, it was safe to conclude: he's a private person. In a way, he knew a bunch of people at university and could strike up a conversation with just about any passing by stranger and yet, none of the people who could otherwise claim to know him really knew anything about his life. They just know the type of person he is - and even that, it is the person Arnav shows them - not his real self. He makes them see what he wants them to see, not what is beneath the surface. His friends don't know any personal details, any fond memories he may have growing up that he'd have shared, the kind of things he thinks about just moments before going to bed, his true thoughts, etc.

It made him mysterious. I had no intention of breaking that aura either. They old-me would have done everything in her power to get it out of him, break him vulnerable and learn every smallest bit of information regarding him.

The person I am today? No.

I very well understood the reason people kept secrets and yearned for privacy.

. . . ∞ . ∞ . ∞ . ∞. . .

| . . . C H A P T E R . . .  1.1 1 . 2 : I F - I T - L O O K S - L I K E - A - B R O W N I E . . . |

Rain did not stop entirely even when we reached the gas station. It did slow down and so, I had closed off the umbrella. A little bit of rain wasn't going to make me ill. Though, walking ten miles - the last hour and half - was going to come bite me in the ass later. I hadn't even had my medicines today. It was not going to work in my favor at all.

As he went inside the store to buy a gallon of gas that we could carry back to fill up the tank, he handed me my jacket. "Hold this."

Remembering what I had kept in the pockets before leaving, I remove the zip lock bag. It hadn't gone bad because of the weather.

After paying, he turned to face me and froze seeing what I was eating. "Where'd you get that?"

I offered, "Want one?"

He held out his palm and ordered, "Hand it over."

"No," I refused because of his tone and went on to take another bite of the brownie. He snatched it out of my hand and discarded it in the nearby trash bin. I gasped, not because his fingers brushed mine., but because of his actions. "What's wrong you with, Raizada? Throwing away a perfectly yummy piece of brownie!"

"Shut up," he snapped and grabbed a bottle of water from the isle. "Drink." He demanded, "and where did you get that?" He walked to the counter again to pay for it.

As I followed, I grumbled. "Why are you getting so... so angry?"

"Because that was not a brownie."

My eyes narrowed before I burst out laughing. "Ofcourse it's a brownie, you dum-dum."

Dum-dum? What is wrong with me? Did I just say that instead of dumbo?

He sighed as he nodded for me to leave the store, "No, it's not."

My hands went to my hips as I choose to point out first and open the door later. "If it looks like a brownie and tastes like a brownie, it's a freaking brownie, Arnav."

He walked around me and pushed the door open, stepping out and going off in a very colorful language and calling me names along the lines of stupid, idiot, slow, etc.

I frowned, "That's not very nice."

He raised his voice, "Do you honestly think I care about that right now, Khushi?"

I winced and asked meekly, afraid of him in the moment. "Why are you yelling at me?" I take the second brownie I had stuffed back in the jacket for later as I knew it was yet another long walk back to the car.

I was about to put it in my mouth when he turned. I froze thinking he was going to snatch it and throw it away again. I was ready to defend the harmless brownie from his glare when his eyes darted past my shoulder and he thought over his actions.

I turned to check out what made him stop.

A police officer. He asked, walking towards us with his hands on his hips, "Everything alright over here?"

I smiled at him, "Yes, officer. He's just mad I didn't offer him a brownie before eating it myself."

Arnav came to stand next to me and snapped, "Shut up, Khushi."

I soothed his anger, "It's okay, Raizada. It's nothing to be embarrassed about." I turned back to the officer, "See, just to make up for not offering you any, I'll offer him the last one."

When I forward my hand, Arnav grabbed it before it would reach the officer.

I gaped, "Honestly, Raizada. What is wrong with you? I was offering the kind officer a brownie! Stop stealing what does not belong to you."

He gritted standing in front of me to block my view of the officer. "For God's sake, keep your mouth shut! You stay silent all the freaking time and the one time you need to shut up..."

I ignored his rant and walked around him to the officer to complain as if he were the headmaster in school and two of us were little children, "Okay, see officer? He is being mean to me for no reason. Can you please ask him to stop raising his voice? My head hurts."

Arnav's eyes drew together in concern as he asked in a normal octave, "Why is your head hurting?"

I scoffed, "Because you are yelling. I just said that!"

I froze when a cold item touched my skin. It was a hand cuff over my wrist. "What?" I glanced at the officer raising my arm, "Why are you arresting me? I wasn't the one yelling."

The cop answered, "You are the one eating a brownie."

I asked in between laughs, "Since when is eating a brownie illegal?" Why am I laughing? Being arrested is not a matter to laugh about!

This is just so ridiculous! I was just eating a brownie.

The officer beckoned Arnav, "Come here, son."

Arnav shook his head at me to express disappointment as he followed the instructions. This cop cuffed his wrist with the other handcuff, essentially cuffing us together.

I whispered at him, "Why aren't you saying anything?"

He whispered back aggressively, "I could have if you'd kept your mouth shut when I asked you to!"

From my peripheral, I saw the cop about to put his hand on my shoulder to turn me around and walk towards where the police car was. I took two steps away tugging at Arnav's wrist in the process and causing him to stumble back as well. "Hey. Arrest me if you want but don't touch me."

Arnav's soothing voice requested, "Khushi, please. Stop. He's a cop. He's not going to hurt you."

I searched his eyes for seconds before I let the worry I see in them for me convince me. He was next to me. Even if the cop was there and we were in the process of getting arrested, I felt safe. He wouldn't let anything happen to me.

I feel my head bob up and down on their own accord, "Okay." I whispered in response.

Choosing to grab Arnav's arm this time, he made us walk to his car before opening the back door. I slid in first followed by Arnav. Given we were cuffed together, his arm accidently nudged mine when he leaned in to get in.

The back of a cop's car is crammed. Sure, common sense. But, I wouldn't know given I had never been in one before today.

"Sorry," he said turning his head to make sure I was okay.

I shifted a bit so he had enough space to sit and our sides weren't touching. "Why did he arrest us again?"

The officer sat in the drivers' seat and pulled out of there. Arnav shook his head, refusing to answer.

. . . ∞ . ∞ . ∞ . ∞. . .

| . . . A U T H O R - N O T E . . . |

So remember back in chapter 3 or 4 I said total words for this new version was roughly 89K? Yeah, I lied. Lol. While editing typos, I caught a few more loopholes & places where things could be included. There's about 1-2 more scenes I want to add but now, the word count is about 95K (:

Make me smile with your votes & comments ;) <3

Happy Friday the 13th!