Arya's POV

After Avyansh left with Arush & Karan Bhai , everyone too left after them. leaving me and Diya alone in the house.

Diya stood up from the couch making me look at her as she said " I am going to the Mall to buy some groceries,so go to your room and takerest” I nodded at her words and went inside my room.

As I entered the room I closed the door and locked it. I sat on the bed and closed my eyes and all of sudden those flashbacks flashed in front of my eyes and unknowingly a tear slipped from my eyes. I kept both hands on my forehead.

“ Ahhhhh, I want to die. I can't take this pain anymore please..” I screamed and started to cry thinking about my darkest past which haunts me every day in the form of dreams.

August 15 is the darkest, most painful and the most terrible day in my life. In India, where people celebrate independence on August 15 for getting freedom from the British but there is no freedom for girls in this country.

Every day a new girl gets raped and murdered in her own town and surroundings, sometimes by strangers, sometimes by her own trusted people.

what about the people like me who are getting raped by their own trusted ones.I didn't get raped however they tried so hard to do it,but my friend saved me on right time.

or else Mai bhi un hazar ladkiyon ki tarah mar gayi hoti .

I still feel their hands on me, on my face and everywhere.

And to my luck, (note the sarcasm), it's August again and in some days it will be 15 again,and I have to endure the pain again for the Nth time, i have to suffer the pain again and again not physically but mentally.

It's been 4 years since the incident and i wasn't able to forget it, i couldn't move on from it. It's like it has been printed in my mind forever .

Jaha log Kushi se freedom mana rahe hai vaha Mai apni gum ki aasu baha raha hu .

From the last 4 years there is no freedom for me.

Every day i cried in front of God begging why me?

I was just 14 that time, neither I was wearing such inappropriate clothes nor I asked them , then why me?

I wasn't even able to tell my parents about what I have gone through.

Because I am the elder child of my family, I have a huge responsibility on my shoulders .

My parents,They have their problems, stress and responsibilities and i don't want to stress them more by sharing my problems with them, they have two more children to raise who needs parents care and attention too .

So i choose to stay quiet and hurt my self and broke myself instead of breaking them.

I used to get nightmares every night, I wasn't able to sleep, so I did the only thing I could do and that is study. I studied every time whenever I wasn't able to sleep because of the nightmares.

But one day it got worse and I wasn't able to control the pain in my heart and I went directly to my sister shiney Akka. She is my dad's friend's daughter but we have a sister-like bond , she knows every little secret of mine and now this one too . And then that day I poured my heart out to her. She was shocked, hurt and whatnot but she consoled me very well, knowing how emotionally weak I was.

Slowly My anxiety and nightmares stopped but the surroundings still gave me flashbacks of that night, so I decided to leave my own city and start something new and fresh. By god's grace I got selected in delhi. Away from the home town which once was my comfort place but now it is no less than a haunted house for me.

But I don't know why I am having those nightmares again after years.

After an hour I heard someone footsteps and I realized that Diya is back from the mall,

So i stopped crying even though my tears are not stopping but I have to control them because I don't want Diya to find out my darkest past.

She and Anirudh are the only ones who loved me with accepting my flaws, who became my comfort place in just some mere days and i don't want to lose them at any cost.

They came as a guiding light into my dark night making it beautiful and I don't want to lose them.

I stood up and went inside the washroom and looked at myself in the mirror. Puffed red eyes, red nose, red cheeks, dried tear marks on my cheeks and dried lips. Looking at myself the only question arises in my mind is

Do i deserve all this?

Do i deserve all the pain?

I didn't do anything wrong to anyone I even think before scolding my sister.

So, meri kya galti ki thi jo aaj mujhe ye sab sehana pad raha hai?

Turning the tap on I started to flash the water on my face once ,twice, thrice , I did it until I felt like their touch left my body. After I felt presentable and not devastated, I came out of the washroom and wiped my face with a towel and went outside.

I saw Diya was in the kitchen and was cutting vegetables and I went near her and sat on the counter.

She looked up at me and smiled and then frowned " why are your eyes red? Wait, even your face is red?" She asked coming closer to me, her voice filled with worry and concern.

I bit my inner cheeks searching for a good answer and I said" nothing, I was just missing my brother" she looked at me for a moment not convinced but still nodded as she said “okay, if you don't want to say it. It's ok, but please remember I am there for you, Anirudh is here for you and don't lie next time?” I closed my eyes as she caught me , opening my eyes i looked at her and said " it's something, i don't want to talk about it now but when the right time comes I will surely tell you about it" she nodded at my words and stared to do her work,

i looked at the vegetables and I wasn't able to understand what she was making,so I asked her "what are you making for lunch?"

"Vegetable fried rice " she answered while tossing the vegetables, i nodded and looked at the things she bought .

It's maida, chocolate chips, sugar, butter, cheese, choco powder, tomato sauce, soya sauce, chilli powder, and some other things.

Looking at them ,now I want to make cookies

" Diya?" I called her

" Ha?" She said still tossing the vegetables,

" I want to make cookies" as I said she looked at me and thinned her eyebrows " do you know how to bake?" She asked with a hint of mock, which offended me a little. " I do.and i make the best cookies, cakes, pastry, brownie and many more and they are best " I said proudly and she smiled and said

"ok, but after i complete cooking this" she said and i nodded my head at her. And a smile formed on my face looking at her smiling face.

✧

Diya and I started to make chocolate cookies.

I took the chocolate and melted it. Meanwhile Diya mixed all the dry ingredients as I instructed her.

“ Arya look !!!” I looked at the perfect batter she made and I made an amused face at her “ see , don't underestimate the power of Diya Sen” she said proudly making me shake my head. I took the bowl from her and tasted it and it's tasteless

“ Diya sugar nahi dali tumne?” i asked her and she also tasted the batter and clicked her tongue “ i forgot” Diya said while smiling widely.

I shook my head and added the powdered sugar along with the chocolate and stirred it evenly.

“ Now taste it.” I said and she tasted it. Her eyes sparkled as she said “ it's damn good 💯” I smiled sheepishly at her “ don't underestimate the power of Arya Roy” I said proudly and she rolled her eyes

“ whatever makes you sleep at night” saying that Diya left the kitchen as her phone rang.