And then, there are silences that scream.

It had been two days since Vivaan’s message.

Aarohi read it a hundred times.

She had wanted this for years… and now that it was here, it felt unreal.

Finally, one night — beneath her blanket, hands trembling — she dialed his number.

Tring… Tring…

Her heart raced with every ring.

And then — Click.

> “Hello?”

His voice.

Soft. A little deeper than she remembered.

But unmistakably Vivaan.

Aarohi forgot how to breathe.

> “Vivaan… it’s me.”

Silence.

Then, he laughed lightly.

> “I know.”

One second. Two seconds.

They didn’t know what to say.

> “You really called,” he whispered.

> “You really left,” she replied.

The silence between them was heavy — but this time, it wasn’t empty.

It was filled with all the years they’d lost, all the words they never said.

> “Aarohi…”

“I’m sorry,” he said. “For everything.”

> “Why now?” she asked. “Why come back into my life just when I was trying to forget?”

> “Because I never forgot,” he said. “And I couldn’t take it anymore.”

Her eyes welled up.

She had imagined this moment a thousand times.

It was nothing like that.

It was raw.

Real.

Messy.

Just like them.

> “Vivaan… I—”

Click.

The line went dead.

She pulled the phone away, confused.

No signal.

She tried calling back.

Switched off.

Again. And again.

Nothing.

And just like that…

He was gone.

Again.

---

End of Chapter 8