[Kriya's POV]

The car ran smoothly for about ten minutes. I was humming along to the music while Rey was tapping the beats on the steering wheel. All of a sudden, the car staggered to a stop. I looked at him with questioning eyes. He replied back with uncertainty. "I'll check..."

He got out and opened the front engine. A rush of smoke burst out, making him cough. I got out of the car as well in time to see that. "Did you forget to get the car serviced again?" I asked with a stern face.

"NO! I had it done just a week ago." He replied and turned a few things here and there to locate the problem. I walked to the side, waiting for him to reach to a conclusion. When I did, I found the problem as well. I tapped him and made him see what I was seeing.

A trait of oil leak. "How can that..." Rey started asking and we knew without even having to wonder about it any further.

"SwaRon." We said at the same time.

We laughed and Rey pulled the bonnet back down. He jumped up on it while I leaned back using it as a support. "A lovely friend I have!" Rey commented.

I followed it with, "Add a lovely sister to it!"

"Can't blame them tough. The heights they go to-to bring us together." He said as he offered me his hand and pulled me up to sit next to him.

"Imagine what happens when they find out we were already together." I replied after getting next to him.

"You know, they should pay for this." Rey said deviously.

"Pay?" I asked.

"Yea! See, there's no petrol left in the car. Walking would take forever. This is a highway. No hotels or anything around. Practically, we're out in the middle of nowhere. We're going to have to camp out in this weather. They need a pay back." He concluded and I nodded. He told me his plan and when he did, I found myself grinning.

"They will so kill us once it's all over." I told him, but he shrugged.

"It'd be worth it."

Couldn't deny that.

***

"AHHH!" I screamed at the top of my lungs as I ran out of the woods into the clearing. We decided on camping out in the jungle. We had stepped down the road and walked a few miles inside to find a decent place to spend the night. I had left to search for something to eat while he stayed back to light the fire.

When I saw him, he had removed his shirt, sitting there only in his vest. He was about to say something, but before he could, I jumped down on his lap and hugged him tight, out of fear. He purposely embraced me and asked cheerfully, a glint of teasing, "Wah, and here I was thinking madam was shy."

I opened my eyes at his voice and the fear was gone. I was safe in his arms. I pulled back a little and realized I was on his lap. The next moment, I did look away, embarrassed. I tried pulling back and hit him lightly on the chest. That didn't do. He was obviously strong enough and wasn't going to let go of me.

"Rey..." I spoke up, warning him, but the voice soon drained away as I looked in his eyes and saw him intently gazing into my own set of eyes.

I stopped resisting and trying to get up. I relaxed and forgot the reason why I was running and just kept looking at him. As if on cue and with the temptation, I lay my head on his chest and closed my eyes, feeling the moment. We were spending time together. Alone. No one to disturb us. Was it quality time or romantic moments? Did it really matter when we were with the other? I say not. Few minutes passed by when I reopened my eyes.

I spoke softly, "There's a lion in the jungle." I spoke it with such ease. It was as if I was saying it was just a monkey or goat.

He replied with a, "Hmm..." not really registering what I had said. A second later, he popped open his eyes and freaked out. "What?!" He was up in no time. Due to which, I fell flat on my butt. My jaw dropped with horror that he would do that.

"Rey!!" I exclaimed.

His eyes went wide as well when he realized he'd dropped me. He helped me up. "I'm so sorry!" I was brushing the leaves away as he continued, "But, you know, it's your fault! Who says a thing like that with such ease? Like are you crazy?"

"Well my bad if I thought you needed to know!" I snapped at him and walked the other way, letting him know I was mad at him.

He followed me to apologize. "I said sorry na."

I ordered, "Find me something to eat."

It was evident that was the only way I'd forgive him. He was about to turn and leave when I stopped him. "Wait." He turned back and I added in a quiet voice, "Sit down. You're not going anywhere."

"But food..." He countered.

"Not eating one day is not going to kill me!" I pointed out. "How can you forget you are allergic to pollen and night bugs? I might be mad at you but I'm not going to force you into a death well myself." He smiled. Even through my anger, I cared for him. Why wouldn't I? He hadn't really remembered his allergies. If he got bit even once, it would mean a week of bed rest. I further scolded him. "And what is this? Just because you're a guy doesn't mean you keep flashing your six packs around."

He chuckled at my way of showing my concern. He made sure to make it silent. "I can hear that." She said as I came back with his shirt. Here." I demanded he put it on.

He did with a pleased face. How he loved to see my concern for him mixed with anger. If only I wasn't mad at him...

"Where are we going?" He asked, when I started walking out of the jungle after handing him his shirt.

"You are least concerned about yourself. But mister, I love you and I care about you. I'm not going to let you die in this jungle. We're going back to the car." I replied back, not stopping while walking around the tree roots that were heavily branched out as a result of its age.

"Careful." Rey immediately said as we continued walking. I had a slip up and the advantage of him right behind me was that he caught me from the back just in time. Balancing myself; we continued walking out holding hands and supporting each other in the dark, using the flashlight from our phones to light the way.

When in open air, he asked, "Are you sure? This might be a very uncomfortable place to spend the night."

"Better than you getting bitten to death." I joked. I saw he wasn't convinced. "Chillax, there's nothing I can't handle. You can make up for this later on." And then winked. Again, how happy he looked to have me and my old self back in his life. I couldn't stay mad at him longer for not caring after himself.

Rey pulled down the car's roof and we sat in with the front seats pulled back so we were in laying position. Just gazing at the stars in silence and him by my side was enough for me. He turned to look at me and slightly touched my hand. I didn't move my gaze, just simply entwined our fingers.

"I can't believe they would do this." He said in a gentle voice.

I turned to look at him then. Rubbing his hand, I replied. "I can't either. But if not for them, we wouldn't have this time alone today. Plus, knowing Sharon, I'm not surprised. I knew she was up to something since the day I told her."

"What'd you tell her?" He asked.

I paused, thinking if she should tell. Then, I decided he has a right to know. I sat up and braced myself to tell him. Noticing the seriousness, he sat up as well and squeezed my hand to let me know that he was there, no matter what it was that happened.

"It was after Shivam came back. She asked me why I won't let you back in my life knowing how much you loved me. She had asked me why I wasn't the same as before. I told her a story..." I recalled the story.

(Flash-Back)

"You will be the same as before?" Sharon asked, not able to grasp the thought. She looked at me, looking for something, maybe the pain in my eyes. But there was none. She only found me smiling back at her.

I stayed silent for a second. Then I picked up a stone close by. Playing with it, I asked, "See how calm the lake is?" Sharon was confused but nodded a yes to the question. "I was like that once. Calm...minding my own business, stretching out of my comfort to reach my dreams. I wanted to do something. I wanted to show my passion to the world." I threw the stone in the lake. "And what happens when I throw this is?" The stone bounced a couple times before settling at the bottom. As an effect, the water rippled in circles.

Sharon listened quietly till then and asked the second I paused, "If you wait long enough, the water will calm down."

I smiled and replied, "Yes... the water will calm down, but the stone is still in there. It doesn't belong there. Still. It's there. It wasn't needed. But it did come. From the surface, things calm down. The stone is still there though. It is forever embedded there. Neither I nor you or anybody can do anything to change that now. The lake's course has forever been changed. It's the same with me. I will never be the same again. The pain will never go away, just like the stone. It will move away, go to the bottom, but I can't stop it if it ever does come up again." I got up saying, "I'll see you at night."

I patted Sharon's shoulder before turning to leave.

(Flash-Back Ends)

"I had told her that just like the water in the lake will never be the same, I can never be the same either. Even if the trust comes back, which it has, I'll always be hurt. Past is past and there's no undoing it. I can't forget it. Though, I can forgive it."

Rey at first only gazed at me, while he grasped in what I said. "Thank you." He said, catching his voice back. "For telling me..."

I looked down at our hands. "Please..." I looked up. "Please don't break my trust again. I won't be able to handle it again."

"I never will." He said, cupping my face. A dried tear fells down my cheek as he caressed it, my hand on his. He wiped it away and embraced me. "These eyes will never cry again. I promise you that. Every minute of life I will only be searching for a way to make up for the time we lost... to give you all the happiness you deserved in the last years."

I didn't know what was to come next, and all I cared was that I believed his words. The competition would start and I wouldn't know when I could embrace him again this openly, without worrying about anything or anyone else.

"Rey..." I whispered, my voice a bit hoarse. By simply saying his name, he could figure out what I was thinking. He knew what was going on inside of me. The yearning. He had the same temptation in his eyes. If only he wasn't the judge. If only we wouldn't have to hide from the world. If only we could avoid this all. We just got back together. Neither of us was ready for another separation. If only they could break all the ties to reality...

Even with all these problems, we were at ease when with each other. All the tests of life were passed, all the tricks over, misunderstandings cleared; yet the pain of separation remained. There was no guilt of past deeds, no remorse. What was left behind was plain and simple happiness... happiness that might last just through the night before we got back to everyone. The pain just mended itself as we lay there silently, allowing the air around them to speak for us.

For the next couple of minutes, neither of us spoke. A second later, "Hey..." He said, to get me to open my eyes. I did and looked at him with questioning eyes. "You're freezing up." He stated the obvious. Until he said it, I hadn't even realize it. I was just carried away in him. I shivered as it dawned down. He handed me his jacket. "Here; there are no bugs here to bite me." He told me, making me smile.

"Can we take a walk?" I asked as I pressed his leather jacket close to my body. He nodded and we stepped down on the road.

This was yet another unforgettable night that I didn't want for it to end, but I knew it would pass by eventually, and so I wanted to make the best of it. No words would ever be enough for me to express what I feel right here, in this moment. There is a big havoc within me that I could never share. And as much as I don't want to feel like this again, I am content. I am content knowing he'll always be around in the shadows even when we cannot be together. For now, I am willing to accept this. I am willing to wait till everything will be over and we can move onto the next step in our life.

***

Author's Note:

I haven't really proof-read, so if you see something, let me know! Other than that, I hope you like this light update. I know it isn't as long... I will update again after my two exams on Wednesday. 

PS: I'm thinking... should I enter for NaNoWriMo? It's basically a contest thing where a writer writes a story and completes it in November itself, with 50,000+ words. Like I want to do it for experience, and it might even get me to start and complete atleast one of my works, but at the same time, I'm not sure if I will be able to keep up with updates because of university, work and family :/ 

Vote/Fan/Comment as always! <3