17

When I opened my eyes, my head was clouded, and I noticed that his eyes were fixed on my lips, which were extremely close to his. I had to pause for a moment to collect my thoughts. His hand slipped from my nape and dropped to his sides as I moved away from him.

I rubbed my neck, already missing the warmth of his touch. I turned my head to the side, slowly stepping back from him. I felt like slapping myself for being distracted. When he gets close, it affects me.

My senses are beginning to fail me. This is not how I should be feeling. I turned to face Rudra, who was looking at me with heated eyes, and he kept clenching and unclenching his hands by his side. I felt hot under his gaze.

"I think we should go back to your family," I said, and I immediately walked past him.

When I met Muktha and Aunty, they had everything in order. The dresses would be ready in two days. We waited for Rudra to return, but when he did, his hands were clenched and his eyes were bloodshot. The way he walked towards me in long strides suggested that he was mad about something.

I moved forward to ask what had happened, but he grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the store. His mother and sister yelled at him from behind, asking him to leave me and explain what had happened.

"What happened? You were fine a few moments ago," I said quickly, literally running beside him to keep up with his pace.

We arrived at his car, and as he opened the door, he pushed me inside. He walked around the car, sat inside, and began driving.

"What happe-" He cut me off in the middle of my sentence.

"Shut up, just shut up," he yelled, making me flinch.

"Don't shout at me! You dragged me like a toy; don't do it again! You DUMBASS!" I yelled back, raising my voice to match his and pointing my finger at him.

He stared at me with red eyes, his grip on the steering wheel tightening and turning his knuckle white. He returned his gaze to the road and continued driving without saying anything.

"Put your fucking seatbelt on," he said, keeping his eyes on the road.

"At least, you are concerned about my safety!"

I buckled my seatbelt and huffed as I folded my hand on my chest and turned my face towards the window. My thoughts were on the events of the morning and on everything that happened in the store.

What is happening? I was more worried seeing him troubled and in the store too-that I idiotically walked up to him. I should smack myself to knock some sense into me.

and I don't know, what's all with these hyper sensations whenever he is close to me? It is wrong, but it does not feel wrong, and I can't seem to stop myself.

As my forehead began to ache, I rubbed it.

We arrived at his office, and as he got out of the car, he came to my side and grabbed my arm, pulling me out. I jerked his hand and looked up into his eyes, which were once again cold and empty. I moved inside the building, taking the elevator, and he followed me.

When I got to his floor, I walked towards his cabin and saw Rahul, and I smiled politely at him and entered his cabin. I took his seat, and he came in with his hands in his pockets. His face was hard, with a locked jaw and brows drawn together.

"Can you now tell me what happened?" I am trying to be as gentle as possible with my tone of voice.

Because from the inside, I am terrified of his anger. He stepped forward, thudded his phone on the desk, and motioned for me to look.

When I picked up his phone, my heart stopped beating. I took a deep breath, and his phone slipped from my grasp and fell to the floor. My hands shook violently as I struggled to keep them under control, and I looked up at Rudra, who stood confused.

My chest tightened into a knot and suffocated me. My lungs constricted as if someone was squeezing them, and I struggled to breathe properly. My vision became blurry, and all I could see in front of me were black dots.

I was drowning yet again.

I stood there confused, watching her as she dropped my phone, and her hands were trembling badly. Her eyes were moist when she looked up at me. I rushed to her side with a racing heart; she was sweating profusely, gasping for air, and putting her hands on her chest as if choking.

She is having a panic attack.

I kneeled in front of her, grabbed her hand in mine, and began calling her name. Her head was on the back of my chair, and she was not responding to anything. I tried lightly shaking her, but she did not move.

"Chandini, darling, it is all right. You are fine." Her grip tightened.

"Baby, please try to listen to me," I said slowly, a dreadful knot forming in my stomach as I watched her suffer.

When I told her to breathe with me, she started following after a second or two. Taking deep breaths over and over. After a while, she eventually calmed down and opened her eyes.

Her lovely dark eyes were tired, and her long, thick lashes were wet from tears and dried mascara stains on her face. I picked her up and placed her on the couch, then sat on my knees next to her.

"Hey, you okay?" I whispered, smoothing her hair.

She nodded her head, a sleepy smile on her face, and I tried to return the smile but could not due to her state just moments before. I called Rahul inside and told him to hurry up and bring some make-up wipes as well as a phone call to the doctor.

She closed her eyes, her breathing becoming more regular. Rahul went out and got me some wipes. I gently removed her mascara and lipstick from her face.

After some time had passed, the doctor arrived and examined her. He assured me that there was nothing wrong with her and that she was fine. She had a panic attack and advised to avoid the causes of her panic. He told me to let her sleep for a while, and I nodded while listening to him, but my gaze never left her.

After the doctor had left, I sat next to her and gently stroked her hair. She is sleeping soundly now, her eyelashes resting on her cheeks after that terrifying moment.

Her face was flushed from exhaustion, but she was still stunning. In her mind, she was in a lot of pain. But why did she suffer an attack after seeing the picture?

What happened to her?

I lowered my gaze to Chandini and decided to ask her what had happened when she woke up. Rahul entered the cabin quietly and stood next to me, concernedly looking at Chandini.

"What happened?" he mumbled.

"Panic attack," I said.

"But what caused the attack?" he questioned confusingly.

"I do not know; I just showed her a picture, and the next thing I knew, she was hyperventilating." I clenched my jaw and ran my hand through my hair.

"Can I see the picture?" he asked hesitantly.

"My phone is on the floor next to the desk; she dropped it," I said, nodding.

He went to pick it up and looked at me, shocked, when he saw the image. His face hardened, and his lips thinned.

"he is---"

"I know, I know. I need to find out what happened," I said, cutting him off.

He nodded his head, stepped forward, and placed his hand on my shoulder, telling me to be careful. He then walked out, leaving us alone.

I leaned back on the couch and closed my eyes. After a while, Chandini stirred, and I quickly stood up and moved away from her. Instead, I took a seat in my chair.

She slowly opened her eyes and looked around, confused. Sitting up, she looked at me and smiled hazily. Why is she smiling? But she suddenly gripped her head tightly and groaned.

"My head hurts a lot," she groaned as she leaned back on the couch.

I stood up, picked up the painkiller from earlier, and handed it to her along with a glass of water. She took both from my hand and popped the pill with the water.

I am standing in front of her, my hands in my pockets. I waited for her to say something, but she didn't, instead keeping her gaze down. I took a step forward, and she raised her head to look me in the eyes. She tried to smile at me but stopped seeing my hardened face in anger. To stay calm, I fisted my hands in my pockets.

"Who is he to you?" I asked her angrily, my jaw clenched.

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Who is he??
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