I
"You okay?" He looks at her while she rubs his back, his vision blurred, and his chest hurting with every breathe.
“Fuck off” He mutters trying to hold myself and open his eyes .
"Drinking never solved anything Shiv" her voice echoed in the washroom. Shiv looks at her , or actually, tries to look at her.
"What would you demand for leaving me alone?" He clenches his jaw, as his breath comes in ragged, desperate gasps as his body body refuses to stop producing saliva. His lips part involuntarily, and thick spit keeps pooling out of his mouth. He chokes slightly, his throat working as he tries to swallow, but it only makes him gag again and again.
"Leave you alone? Like this?" Her voice comes out concerned, and almost child-like who might be astonished about something.
"Tell you something?" Shiv manages to utter these words, as he rests a hand on the pot and the other held a cigarette; the smoke spread across the bathroom; it was pure luxury, with marble floors that gleamed under soft lighting. A freestanding stone tub sat beneath a large window, offering a peaceful view. The double vanity featured sleek marble countertops with gold accents, and plush towels were neatly arranged. But the place felt suffocating , and the air thick with the stench of alcohol and smoke.
"Hmm?" She says, grabbing the bottle of water she had gotten for Shiv while rushing to the washroom. She opens it and passes it to him.
"No one is coming for you, jo hai akele hai" Shiv managed to slur the words out , as his vision blurs with the passing second.
"Shi..." She says.
"Get out before i throw you myself" Shiv snaps in rage, his fist clenched and jaw tight. Without a word, she left the bathroom, the soft click of the door echoing in the silence. As the sound faded, Shiv was left alone, the weight of his nausea and dizziness crashing over him in waves.
Shiv lay on the cold bathroom floor, his head spinning and vision blurred. He reached for the sink, hands shaking, but it felt out of reach. With great effort, he tried to push himself up, but his legs wobbled beneath him, and nausea surged in his stomach. He gagged, struggling to keep his balance as his head throbbed painfully. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he gripped the sink tighter, swaying, determined not to collapse back onto the floor. The room spun around him, but he forced himself to stand, fighting the dizziness with every shaky breath.
"Ra..ha" Shiv mutters as he got up, and stumbled each step as he walked towards the door. Shiv quickly dialed a number;
No Response
He dialed again
No Response
A loud thud hurls around the room as he Shiv bangs his phone on the wall. He changes his decision, he picks the phone, and checks if it is okay.
"No No No..fuck" Shiv mutters in complete distress as he tries fixing his phone, and restarting the device.
Luckily, there was just a huge scratch on the phone. Shiv quickly opens his gallery, and looks for the video of him and her.
"Shiv? How can you sleep? Utho naa" Raha's voice echoed from the video. Shiv slumps heavily against the bed of the room, looking at that girl in the video who was once his entire life. Shiv mentally curses himself for sleeping in the video as every second with Raha was worth millions of years for Shiv.
Shiv watches the entire video , with Raha yapping about everything they did in their trip to Santorini, Greece, they were at the airport . Raha is wearing a huge black hoodie, even bigger than her, with tight pants and shoes and a bun.
Her lips were full, and her nose had a simple, natural shape. Her hair was long, black, and a bit wavy, usually. She had a natural, effortless beauty. Her eyes were almond-shaped and beautiful.
Tears trickle down Shiv's face, as he looks at her , not after long, he had seen this video just a day back, but he missed her touch, her soothing voice, her eyes, her smile, her lips.
His body felt heavy, each movement a struggle, but the pull of sleep was undeniable. He leaned against the bedframe, his head resting on the cool surface as he stared blankly at the phone still clutched loosely in his hand. The video of Raha’s Santorini trip continued to play softly, her laughter and descriptions filling the silence around him, but he couldn’t escape the tightness in his chest.
His eyes fluttered shut, and before he knew it, exhaustion took over. As he drifted off, tears continued to slip silently down his face, his body trembling ever so slightly as the weight of his emotions pressed in. He wasn’t sure if he was crying because of the alcohol or the ache of missing her, but it didn’t matter. The pain stayed with him as he finally succumbed to sleep, curled up near the bed, alone.
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"Sir, goodmorning" Digpaal , Shiv's driver from years, greets , as Shiv checks out of the hotel, and slides into the car, heading to the airport.
"Saab kal Khanna saab ka phone aya tha" Digpaal informs Shiv, as he drives, and Shiv sits quietly, with his shades on, and a scent of smoke and cologne over him.
"Hmm" Shiv hums
"Keh rahe the, memsaab apko yaad karti hai, apko bula rahi hai" Digpaal says.
"Ji main dekh lunga" Shiv says, as he hasn't been to his home, his parents since an year now.
Soon Digpaal drops Shiv at the airport. Shiv enters the airport through the V.I.P entrance, and puts his duffle bag on one of the waiting seats, and makes his way to the washroom.
"Sir you cannot smoke here, and this is ladies washroom" An old woman, maybe in her 50's utters as she peeps in one of the cubicles.
"Get the fuck away" Shiv says as he makes his way out.
As soon as Shiv gets out , his phone slips down involuntarily, he drops his lighter, and looks at his fallen stuff and then at whom he crashed at.
"I'm...I'm.." Shiv tries forcing out his words, but he is lost at his view. She looked effortlessly stunning. Her hair, dark and slightly messy, framed her face in loose waves, as if she had just stepped out of the wind. Her eyes were large and expressive, a deep shade that seemed to shimmer with a quiet intensity, like they held secrets only a few could understand. Her skin was soft and glowing, with a natural warmth to it that made her seem almost luminous. She had a certain delicate grace to her, even in her surprise, and when she looked at him, it felt like the world slowed down for a brief moment.
"Thought this was a girl's washroom?" She said with a smirk.
" Imagine this was 10,000 B.C , we just found a spot and got on with it " Shiv mutters.
"Excuse me?" She says confused as hell, looks at Shiv up and down, she notices his breath, like deranged animal, his rough hands, the smell of cologne and smoke mixed, his distressed face, but a muscular man, curly haired, with an animal like demeanor, his eyes blood-shot red, and his crusty but plump lips, tired eyes, and knitted brows.
