She wore a jumpsuit tonight.
Though the color was the same, white, which not only made her look angelic but also almost pure. It had become a habit of his as it had become hers. She would come at 9:30 P.M. every other night and would drown herself in alcohol till 11:10 P.M. Just like the time, the place where she would sit remained same, the brands and types of alcohol did change on regular basis but none were enough to ease her pain.
Nobody noticed because she never looked like she was in pain because they only saw the gorgeous smile on her face but not the pain & unshed tears in her eyes. But he noticed. He noticed because he knew a person like her, someone who was really close to him, someone at whose reflection he stared at every time he would stare at a mirror. Someone called Ruhaan Singh Oberoi.
It started a week ago when she began coming to the bar. No one but he could see the pain that her eyes reflected. He didn't know what she was going through or what must have happened but he knew the pain, the pain that was the resultant of a heartbreak. She was like his kindred spirit and she was a woman so he felt like he should take care of her.
He would make sure that nobody crossed the one feet radius around her, he would follow her outside and wait till she gets into her car. He would follow her to her home and would until she was inside her apartment. He still didn't know her name though, didn't think that it was necessary. He did all that but he never ever talked to her.
Until now.
"Consumption of excessive alcohol can not only make you addicted but is also injurious for your health." said Ruhaan taking a seat beside her.
Mishti looked at him with dazed eyes, "Isn't this a kettle calling the pot black situation?" she smirked gesturing to the glass of whiskey.
Ruhaan chuckled but didn't speak any further. He was mentally berating himself for trying to initiate a conversation without prior planning. He sat there for 15 minutes thinking of what should he say next but nothing came in his mind.
Just when he was about to walk away, Mishti spoke up, "It still hurts." her voice was so low that for a second Ruhaan wasn't sure that she actually said something and that too to him.
He sat back on the bar stool and said, "Drinking never eases the pain but talking to someone can. Especially if that someone is a stranger because he doesn't know you so he won't judge. So," he paused for a few seconds before asking, "what did he do?"
Ruhaan's words made her laugh, "Why would you say so?"
"Well, unless you are not interested in men." he said making her chuckle, "These eyes reflect heartbreak." he stared into her beautiful hazel eyes. Those gorgeous shades of forest melted into one, so beautiful and so much lonely.
Mishti stared back into his chocolate brown eyes as she said, "Meri apni aurr uski aarzu mein farq yeh thha, mujhe bas woh lekin usse saara zamaana chahiye thha."
(The only difference between mine and his desire was that I only wanted him but he wanted the world.)
"My love just wasn't enough for him." Mishti added.
"Then he wasn't the one for you." Ruhaan spoke in a very matter-of-fact way making Mishti slightly furious, "Excuse me!"
"Who can't love you for what you are, for who you are, doesn't deserve to be loved by you. That's the difference between the right and the wrong one; the wrong person will give you less than what you are worth but the right one will give more than you can even ask for." his words did make sense to her.
"Don't waste your life for someone who doesn't even care." Ruhaan paid for Mishti as well and was about to leave but stopped when Mishti spoke up.
"Shouldn't you follow that advice as well?" Ruhaan turned to look at Mishti but she wasn't looking at him. Instead, her complete focus was on his still not empty glass of whiskey as she ran a finger over its rim.
"It's not that only you could see the pain. Do you know your eyes tell a story of their own?" that had Ruhaan smile genuinely.
"I don't have any comforting words to say because I never had someone to comfort me all my life but you can tell me about your problem. I am a good listener and someone did say that it's better to share your problems with a stranger because they won't judge you." Mishti looked up at him, her eyes urging him to tell their story.
Ruhaan closed his eyes and drank the contents of his glass in a go, "Humme unmein sukoon ki talaash thhi aurr unhe nafrat thhi hamarae shor se."
(I was looking for peace in her but she hated the noise of my life.)
"She called me a beast, a monster for the man I have become." Ruhaan said nothing more but Mishti could relate.
"She wasn't the one for you then." said Mishti repeating Ruhaan's words. "Or maybe she was into some Prince Charming shit!" that made Ruhaan chuckle.
"Don't you want a Prince Charming for you as well?" he couldn't help but ask.
The lighter mood suddenly turned into something intense as Mishti's lips curled upwards in that gorgeous smile of hers and her eyes shone with the passion that her words reflected, "I prefer a flawed Beast than a fluffy Prince Charming. I need a Beast to protect me from everything but him."
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