"Oh, can't you see you belong to me

How my poor heart aches with every step you take

Every move you make and every vow you break

Every smile you fake, every claim you stake, I'll be watching you

Every move you make, every step you take, I'll be watching you" - The Police

✿ Day 6

The sky was wearing a fluttering cloak of black. In the garden of jasmines, where a full moon was blooming in the sky, two warm bodies were dancing under the canopy of loose leafy vines. To call the last four hours a date would be a shame. It had been one of the most special four hours of Mira's life. It was a time which put everything into perspective, a shift of frame. The silver beading of his life was now one of gold, like his heart.

Yudishter, the man whose arms rested on her waist, causally swayed to the beat of the music playing on his phone. It's was a beautiful melody, half of the words were jumbled in Mira's head. Tear-eyed, Mira watched him, not having the voice to speak.

Her mind had lost all words, her heart had found new meanings. Her hand rests on his shoulder, his strong shoulders which were harboring the happiness of many people.

"You know what is beautiful?" He whispered, his voice pained yet joyful at the same time.

She shook her head.

"You."

The rivers, oceans, the skies, everything blue and sombre was melting into one. Mira couldn't hold it in any longer. She hugged him, closing the formal distance between them. Her hands firmly clenched the back of his coat, the satin slipping between her fingers.

"Ho-How do you do this?"

"I've done nothing."

His hand rested on her bare shoulder, barely touching it. "Mira. Are you okay?"

She moved away, wiping the stray tears with the back of her hand.

"People spend their lives worrying about themselves, chasing after small pieces of happiness but you..." She gestured towards the hospital glittering in the background. The tall structure jutting out the dark skyline of New York, the city that never slept. They were in the hospital lounge, a small garden where few couples and families were laughing with each other.

Mira and Yuv stood under a shed, barely illuminated by the lantern shaped lamps. The orange light flickered off Yuv's sharp features, his light brown eyes, which almost seemed like honey filled vessels, glowed with undecipherable emotion.

He had brought Mira to a charity hospital where every underprivileged person was treated for free. The staff here worked for free. It was their part time job which didn't keep the stove running but kept the heart nice and toasty. Yuv had showed her the correction surgery ward. She had met many beautiful, over-joyed people whose lives had been changed by a simple stroke of his hands. Something about the way they looked at Yuv, like he was a superstar. Sparkling in the stars of heaven, every smile he returned was genuine and filled with so much sincerity.

Mira held both his hands, turning them over. They heavily contrasted with hers, his hands were stiff, smooth, the knuckles merging out the skin. The index finger was smudged with ink. He had nibble fingers, thin and deft like that of an artist. Her own hands were small, almost knobble like from the years of working on the computer.

"I didn't bring you here so you would think highly of me." He watched, his lips in a neutral line, his eyes lost observing her, memorizing every slope of her face. A strange fear in his eyes, as though he was afraid that she would disappear, into the starless night, if he blinked, or breathed, or said something unforgivable.

"I want you to understand why I became a plastic surgeon. This profession, I hate what it has become. Many of my colleagues may treat it like a business, to gain money from the insecurities of others. But it is everything but that. It's about making someone feel complete. To make that seventeen year old breast cancer survivor feel happy and confident. About giving that firefighter who scarred his face saving a life, a small token of gratitude- a new face to live the world with, so every passerby wouldn't stare at him... Mira,"

Yuv pressed his palm against her cheek. She felt like warmth, of an early summer sun, glowing afternoon sky. Her cheeks were flushed with the colors of a distant evening. This was the closet they had ever been, where only a thin piece of air separated their faces, their eyes which were the windows to their souls.

"It's a deadly cycle. You can never be happy with unless you decide to be. I've seen people, beautiful women loose themselves in the cycle of change. Honestly, you don't need to change. You've never had. Maybe the person you're trying to impress needs to get a new pair of eyes."

The brief moment that held them together in a romantic air was shattered. His hand slipped from her cheek as he stepped back.

He knew. Had he known all along?

"Wha-what do you mean?"

"Only a fool would miss the way you looked at Atul." Yuv's voice conveyed nothing. No hurt, no emotion. He was stating the words as though they were plain facts from a medical terminology book.

She averted her eyes, the wooden planked floors seemed intricately pieced together. "I'm sorry."

"It isn't your fault. I've been there, done that." He smiled. It didn't seem genuine, almost forced. "By the way, I think he feels the same way."

Her eyes widened. All colors fled her face to the point she looked ghastly pale. "He's engaged to my best-friend."

"Is his heart?"

"I-I shouldn't even be considering this. It's wrong. I can't hurt my best-friend."

"But you are, aren't you?" His smile turned into a sly smirk. He was a magician at concealing what he truly felt, he was veering her emotions but kept his own hidden. "You imagined yourself in her place just now, didn't you?"

The words were frozen on the tip of her tongue. She indeed had. She had just imagined herself as the one lifted off the ground by Atul and his lips firmly planted against hers.

She never felt angrier.

Eliana had reasons for not telling Mira about their relationship, Atul didn't want everyone in the office to think Eliana was getting extra attention because of their relation. It was Atul's last month at Silicon Heights. He had been hired as the directing head by the competing company, Wellington.

After that, Mira might not get to see him as often. Eliana would see him every day but Mira would only see him when their clashing hours would allow it.

Elian had reasons for everything she had done so far. What reason did Mira have for her current conflicting feelings? If their only was a way, a way to make her heart understand that.

When Mira didn't reply, Yuv's smirk grew wider. "Come on. Let's get you home, humdard."

Mira almost didn't hear him say humdard. It meant someone who has shares your pain. He was her humdard, he was the one who was sharing her pain and understanding it- not the other way around.

✿✿✿✿

It was two in the morning. She felt bad. Mira sat in Yuv's heated car. They were currently parked in-front of her apartment complex. A strained silences seeped between the empty spaces. She was never the kind of girl who would lead on a guy only to hurt him. When Yuv had asked her out on a date, she didn't know what his motives were. Originally, she thought he liked her, maybe he was attracted to her. But it was everything but such.

People like Yuv thought about others before themselves. He was concerned for her and wanted her to make sure that she thought over her decision for the surgery. That was the goal of the hospital visit.

It wasn't a date. Had it ever been? Or had he changed his mind?

Because the way he was dressed, it seemed like they were going to go to some fancy establishment, not a hospital.

"Thank you for the mirror. I've never seen anything like it. It literally stole my breath."

Yuv briefly stared at her. He was waiting for her to leave. She wasn't going to leave until she made sure he was alright.

"I made it myself."

Flabbergasted, Mira pressed a hand on the dashboard and leaned towards him. "You did?"

He nodded. "I learned to do it back when I was an undergrad. Modern Art was minor."

"You're amazing you know that."

He grinned. "Quite well."

"Thank you. For everything. For today." She licked her lips nervously. "As a thank you, I would like to take you out somewhere tomorrow."

"A date?"

"Sort of. So can I pick you up from the clinic?"

He pressed his lips together tightly. This was leading to a place which was doomed. She liked someone else. He liked her too. It was a matter before they crashed and burned. He gazed into her eyes. Pain was all he could see. She was trying to forget him. She was trying to make sure her heart wouldn't make a mistake.

"Sure."

"Thank you for being my humdard." She swiftly pressed her lips against his cheeks. He forget to breathe in the seconds when their skins touched. It reminded him of a fleeting monsoon chill, the few hours of cold the rain brought - a relief from the blistering sun which would be stolen the instant the rain stopped.

She was the rain. She would end soon.

Even so, Yuv welcomed her in.

✿✿✿

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.Note: I really wonder what Yuv had planned to do. I am really reluctant to post the upcoming chapters (Btw I hate love triangles so you can count that out). A hint about the next chapter, it's the reason why I started writing this story. It was one of those scenes that first came into my mind when I thought about Mira. I think I need to explain why Mira is so nice to Eliana when Eliana doesn't really deserve her friendship (in the next few chapter it will be explained).

I have a feeling you will be hating me (if you aren't already) or maybe not.

Sorry for the delay on this chapter though. I've been tired.