"Dev." She said his name the moment he entered the room, just as he was heading straight to the washroom without looking at her. He stopped in the middle and looked at her. She took a deep breath and said, "I…I am ready." She tried to sound firm. But failed drastically at it, and she knew it. He looked at her for a few seconds. He already knew what she meant but still asked, "For what?" She bit her lip. Why is he doing this now? But the words wouldn't leave her. He said simply, "It's late. So jao." And took a step toward the washroom. "Dev, please…" He turned and looked at her. He already knew why she was saying this. He noticed how stiff her body had already gone. She wasn't looking at him. Her lashes were lowered. Fists tightened. He took slow, deliberate steps toward her — and with each one, he noticed her growing more stiffened, more frightened, yet still trying to hide it. Two steps away, she closed her eyes. Too tightly. Her breathing turned slow. He took another step and could literally hear her heartbeat — fast, shallow, loud in the silence between them. He feared if he took one more step she would push him away. So he stood at his place — not moving, not closing the distance — only watching her. She didn't move. Didn't open her eyes. He asked quietly, "Do you still want it?" She gathered her courage and said in a low, almost whispered voice, "Yes…" He raised his hand to cup her face. Just that. Nothing more. But her reaction to just that bare touch made his heart bleed in raw pain. Something tore open inside him. Not cleanly. Not the sharp, merciful kind of pain. The raw kind — the kind that bleeds slow, that settles into the bones and stays there, that does not announce itself but simply exists, heavy and permanent and aching. He looked at her face — eyes still shut, jaw tight, a breath held prisoner in her chest — and understood, with a clarity that left no room for comfort, that this was not a battle of nights or weeks or wrong moments. This was a wound. And it had a depth he was only just beginning to see. #love #trauma #past #depression #marriage #arrangemarriage #caring #loving #protective #family #india #indian #hindi #abuse #dark #ceo #cold #slowburn #healing