Chapter 6:- Unleash

When secrets slowly unleash

I’m sorry.

Sometimes I feel I can share my deepest secrets. Sometimes I hesitate to share the obvious. That doesn’t insinuate my wavering trust over you. It confirms the dwindling faith over myself. Fear dominates me. Fear of reality that persuades me to stay in the oblivion. Fear of betrayal, of guilt, of pain.

I can’t let you in that wrath, can’t let you enter my darkness no matter how much you beam with a ray of hope.

I can’t. 

I’m sorry. 

Naina sighed as a tear trickled down her uneven cheek. Hers weren’t ideally smooth, but slightly rough, with pimples and patches, reminding her of past incidents. Hers weren’t ones people gazed at with adoration, but ones people would commiserate with and pass on free advice on alternative treatments.

The words she spoke in apology seemed so perfect in her head, yet trembled to escape her lips. There lay Sameer Maheshwari, still deep in his slumber, while her heart and mind battled relentlessly. Adjusting herself next to him, scrupulously avoiding any contact that would alert him, Naina rested against the vibrant cushions, matching his snores with her own heart beat. Clutching the book tightly in her hands, she recalled their memories together. He still remembered after all these years. Madhuri Patel wasn’t an international bestseller, rather a small scale average author. Critic reviews of her books succumbed underneath other famous novels on every newspaper to the point that the font was barely visible. Honest opinions lay crumpled on one corner of reality as people ran after those who were in trend. And yet for some peculiar reason, here he had grabbed a copy of the novel that too from a local library. Could’ve been pure coincidence, her mind reasoned. Might’ve been his efforts, her heart defended, enlightening a familiar hope. 

After a stream of regurgitated thoughts, she decided to break his reverie. His even breaths suddenly added on to the silence, and his loose hand made her want to cross her fingers with his, the feeling of happiness inching across her heart. Brushing away such possibilities, her mind scolded her to remain focused. Heaving a breath, she tapped his shoulder once. Receiving no response, Naina rolled her eyes before tapping his shoulders a few more times, a little vigorously. 

His eyes darted open, a soft sigh escaping his lips while his orbs grunted at the disturbance. Adjusting to the light, his gaze scampered around until it reached a familar face. Scoffing, he spat, “What?!” 

“Good evening to you too.” 

Her words made him check his watch, 7:16 PM. He suddenly sat upright, “Oh my gosh, it’s 7 already!” 

“The stalker has a habit of afternoon--sorry, evening naps too.” She taunted with a smirk on her face. 

Sameer puckered his brows in annoyance before muttering, “As if you hadn’t dozed off.” 

“No I hadn’t.” Came an instant response to which he sniggered, “Oh so were busy gazing at me this whole time?”

“N-no.” She stuttered, looking away in embarrassment. The unfamiliar crimson daunted her cheeks while his familiar pair of orbs danced in glee.

“That explains why you have clutched my novel so possessively.” He began with a tilt of the head. 

“As well as the dried tears on your face.” He inched towards her with a softened gaze. Delicately cupping her cheeks, as if she were more fragile than a feather, he traced the path of her tears, all the while feeling tormented himself. 

She observed his anguish in astonishment, surprised at how he felt her emotional turmoil so well. Appalled at how he knew her so well. Despite a distance of three years, today she felt as if she were the young and naive Naina Agarwal, and she was the same school-going boy she loved to spend time with. 

“Sameer…” She whispered as his eyes met hers. 

Hers held a thousand emotions, all the negativity clouding the one emotion he longed to feel; the emotion of love. Her face felt like sand, providing a cool solace whenever he caressed her. She still felt conscious, he thought, of defects only she considered. They only intensified her beauty, he had always coerced, in awe. He would always point out that it was the inner beauty that mattered, not the outer appearance. And although she would relent, a frown would often retain.

He drew circles on her cheeks with his thumb, as if on habit, as she smiled a knowing one.

“Naina…” He whispered back.

“Were you crying?” His voice shone with concern. She knew it was a rhetorical one, knew he was fully aware of the answer.

When she refused to respond he whispered once more, “Why?” 

A long moment of silence prevailed. Her shudders began to inflict upon him.

When she defied his questions, he spoke again, “You know you can still share everything with me. Like we used to.”

Naina lifted her gaze to meet his, her face still in his admirable captivity. “Can you?” 

“Can you still share everything with me, Sameer?” She grimaced. 

“I--”

“No you cannot. Neither can I. Because we aren’t the same old Sameer-Naina we used to be. We share differences even the long silences cannot bridge.” She spoke meekly, eyes glistening with memories. 

He stared at her in absolute silence. Wondering how she had changed from the school girl he...liked. 

“I can.” He admitted, referring to her question she assumed had no answer. 

“I can, Naina. And I’m so sorry.” He touched his forehead to hers, his bent in guilt, a lone tear streaming down his face, inviting a thousand more.

It didn’t take her long to understand what he was apologizing for. The day was still fresh in her mind, the day that left her ostracized. 

Her shoulders slumped and a lump formed in her throat, “It doesn’t matter anymore.” 

“It does if you still remember it.” Sameer left her tongue-tied. 

She leaned back to meet his gaze, “It doesn’t if I don’t wish to forget.” 

“Don’t wish to forget or don’t wish to forgive?” He questioned once again, a sultry smile playing on his lips.

“Sameer, I--” Before she could continue, a staggering sound resonated through the hall, jolting them. Eyes widened at the deafening shriek; it was a bullet that had pierced through the front iron gate.

“Bullets?” Sameer attempted to clarify. 

“That’s what I thought too..” Naina confirmed, hands scampering near her waist. With a slight tug, he heard her sigh in relief. 

“What were you looking for?” He queried in suspicion. Sameer recalled her doing the same thing the other morning when they had interacted on the highway. Something was amiss, something she was trying to hide very artfully. 

She ignored his question with a gulp and remarked, “I’m surprised you aren’t.” 

Before he could pucker his brows in confusion, she suggested, “We need to charge.” 

“What?” His eyes widened which met orbs with no sign of fear. 

“We need to defend ourselves.” She clarified. 

“This was just one bullet, not like--” Another bullet fired his way, cutting Sameer’s reasonable justification. 

As he groaned in misery, she took a glance towards him, “Are you scared?” 

“Not at all.” He raised his chin in a boastful manner.

“Then let’s go.” She crouched, slowly inching her way towards the main door that had started to shake. She could now hear protests outside, and the smell of fire. They hadn’t started burning the place though, she could tell from the intensity of the odor. Quietly calculating her moves, her arm reached for the small of her back when a hand clasped around hers. 

Tersely turning around, she looked at him in panic, “What?” 

“We should contact someone, get some information before taking action.” He suggested succinctly, his face void of expression. 

“There is no time for all of this, Sameer. They’re planning on burning this place down. We need to defend. Right now.” She commanded with an austere urge in her voice. A voice he had never heard. A voice that intimidated him. 

Before she could turn back towards the door, still in her crouched position, he crouched to her level and questioned, “How do you know?”

Her automatic explanation remained midair as realization dawned upon her words. With a grim expression, she justified, as blatantly as possible, “Because I do.”

“Naina--”

“Sameer, this isn’t the time. Can we please get back to work?” 

All he could do was nod. She reached to the back of her hips and sprang out a revolver.

“You have a gun?!” He stood rooted to his spot at the new discovery.

“For safety purposes.” She spoke quickly amidst the constant hollers outside. Seeing the development, the main door demarcating Sameer and Naina from the intruders could only withstand another two shots. 

She took out bullets from her pocket and precisely loaded them in her gun, as if she had been trained to do so. He recalled their lesson on self-defence in school. Maybe she had attained further training out of interest, he presumed. 

“You sure about this?” He whispered. 

“About what?” She cast a glance towards him, the revolver in her left hand.

“About firing a gun? You sure you’ll be able to aim? Remember, in school?” He sniggered, letting out a short laugh.

Her nostrils flared in fury as she felt a surge of adrenaline coursing through her.

“I can only try. My aim’s pretty average though.” She smiled sarcastically, hysteria dripping from her voice. Folding her lips in a thin line, she peeped through a creak in the main door. From the small hole she could spot people of about ten, each carrying a wooden stick lighted with fire in their hands, voices screaming in protest against a particular opposition group.

Why had they cornered a local library? She questioned herself, receiving no answers.

“Stay behind me.” She ordered Sameer who feigned obedience, “Okay, ma’am.” 

Naina rolled her eyes in annoyance before scrupulously walking towards the main door. Hollers grew louder with each step she took, a trickle of sweat rolling off her forehead with each execution plan she made.

Taking a deep breath, she pivoted to one side and waited for the other two bullets, waited for the main door to break. Revolver right adjacent to her face, Naina adjusted her grip while her orbs remained fixed on the door.

Sameer’s fits of laughter died as soon as they came and he began to wonder in awe. She looked no less than a determined warrior, serving her country. Her attire coincidentally matched the situation, her army green pants and black tee giving a sense of tenacity and pride.

His gaze hadn’t inched away from hers if not another bullet that threatened the main door. The creaks could be heard, felt. The moment was here. The moment she had been waiting for. The moment he was eager to witness.

With a last bullet, the main door came crashing down, revealing the protesters to an isolated library hall. Naina waited on one side, focusing on their footsteps, counting the number of men she had to tackle. Ten had been an underestimation, she realized. The footsteps measured to about fifteen people, charged with weapons. She had one revolver, he could sense her tension. 

“Naina…” He began, but she had decided already.

Waiting for them to approach the threshold, she pulled the trigger, ready to attack. As soon as her ears alerted, her fingers automatically moved. Lifting her gun to a good 47.5 degrees, aiming low, probably the legs, she swiveled and fired as soon as a foot touched the worn out carpet that faintly greeted with ‘Welcome’. 

In an instant she was back to her former spot, her blindspot, as she heard a cry in agony. 

Another scurried towards him for assistance, she could tell by the racing footsteps that matched her heartbeats. Positioning to a perfect 88.7 degrees, she pivoted again, and fired at an arm. 

Her back crashed against the adjacent wall to the main door as Naina breathed once again.

She looked towards Sameer, raising her head in confirmation. He blinked, carefully peeping through the door frame from his position, “All clear. They’ve fled.” 

Incomprehensible mutters echoed within the boundaries of Central Library as people ran to distance at encountering an unplanned danger. 

“They thought this place to be isolated.” Sameer explained, straightening.

She raised her face to meet his gaze as he took strides towards her, “They can’t harm this place. Not with me around.” 

Her hair had become disheveled, strands of hair escaping her ponytail. He noticed the streams of sweat down her temples, reaching her cheeks. Reaching out, he wiped the odorless droplets, eyes simultaneously investigating for any wounds.

“Whatcha think of my aim?” She smirked with a raised eyebrow as his investigation came to a halt. 

With a lingering smile on his lips he met her gaze, “I’m stunned.” 

“Where’s the old Naina Agarwal I knew?” He spoke instinctively, ignoring the underlying meaning. Her smirk shortened to a straight face as she answered monosyllabically, “Dead.” 

His hand lingered on her cheek, eyes speaking volumes words couldn’t express. “I’m afraid not.” He regurgitated at the effect he had on her. 

She opened her eyes to face him while he tried to decipher her emotions. A swirl of emotions that ran past her faster than light. Yet perfect for him. He could see how she still clung onto past memories, yet how she still longed for new ones. He could notice her enthusiasm for adventure, yet her fear of losing her dear ones. He could feel her pain she tried to hide behind walls, yet also feel her need for love.

“C’mon.” He took her by the hand outside in order to inspect.

“We won’t find anything.” She stated immediately, looking at the pile of devastation. 

Pieces of ash covered the place, with some sticks still burning with fire. A few posters lay forgotten while some glass pieces reflected the reality they had just witnessed. This seemed no less than a beginning of a war, Sameer could hear his gut feeling indicate.

“This place just needs renovation.” Naina spoke grimly with regret as Sameer crouched to rummage between the debris. 

“What are you looking for?” She couldn’t contain her curiosity any longer. 

“A clue.” He responded succinctly. 

“For?” 

“There has to be a reason behind these protests. Someone. Could be a threat to the city.” He explained while shuffling through ash. 

Before she could rebut any further he got hold of a talisman. Scrutinizing his eyes, he traced the visual imprinted on the silver rectangular pendant, trying to recall where he had seen it before. A symbol of a burning fire glazed on the talisman, crossed over with a symbol of a sword.

He stood up in astonishment as he finally recalled where he had last seen a similar visual.

“Naina, do you have any idea who you’ve just attacked?” 

“I’ve just defended, Sameer.” 

“Whatever, do you have any idea who they were?” He berated in annoyance. 

When she shrugged in denial, he revealed, “They’re people from OtH.” 

“OtH?” She asked in confusion.  

“Over the Horizon.” He confirmed, as two souls gulped in newfound fear.