Around midnight,
Without a word, Saaniya dashed out of the room, and Ruhi followed her in silence, alarmed but not daring to ask questions. Saaniya went straight to Anamika’s room, and Ruhi followed close behind — but stopped at the door when she saw what was inside.
Anamika was on the floor, trembling and sobbing.
“Forgive me!! I won’t do it again!! Please… leave him alone!! He won’t come back! He’ll never come back to me!!”
Her voice was broken, scattered with gasps, but she kept begging — again and again.
Saaniya gently placed a hand on her shoulder, and Anamika slowly raised her tear-soaked face.
The moment she saw Saaniya, she clung to her neck and cried:
“I made her angry again! Saaniya… please tell her to leave him alone!! I’ll push him away myself! Please… save him from them!”
Saaniya’s eyes were blank, but her hands moved with care, stroking Anamika’s back as she whispered:
“Anu… she’s not here anymore. She’s gone from our lives. We’re free now…”
Before Anamika could respond, Saaniya injected the sedative into her arm, and Anamika slowly collapsed into her embrace, unconscious — finally at peace, if only briefly.
Ruhi stood frozen in place.
She had never imagined that the silent, introverted Anamika could be this broken, this deeply afraid, and so completely alone.
Saaniya held Anamika close for a few minutes, gently caressing her forehead, until she finally gestured for Ruhi to help her lift Anamika and tuck her back into bed.
Saaniya didn’t speak a word. She turned off the lights and stepped outside with the used injection to throw it away.
Ruhi followed her and finally asked, her voice shaking:
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
“What was that? What’s Anu so scared of?! Who… or what is haunting her like this?”
Saaniya turned to her, still emotionless, and replied:
“Anu’s afraid of a shadow. One she can’t forget, no matter how much she tries.
Our past still grips her tightly. I don’t know what triggered her tonight… but my heart says something did happen.
Ruhi… will you help me?”
Ruhi nodded instantly.
“Yes. Just tell me what to do!”
Saaniya leaned in and whispered something. Hearing it, Ruhi replied:
“But… why not just call him now? You can ask him to come.”
Saaniya shook her head.
“No… not yet. The night is still too heavy.
I want to see him in daylight… I want to look him in the eyes and hear the truth face to face.”
Ruhi understood and agreed with a nod.
The two girls then went their separate ways — Saaniya returned to Anamika’s room to stay by her side, while Ruhi went back to Saaniya’s room.
But neither of them could sleep.
Not until they saw Anamika smile again.
Morning came — finally.
At 8 AM
Meanwhile, Aditya had already arrived early, determined to finish checking reports and leave for the production unit before Anamika came in.
He still wanted to punish himself — for a mistake he never truly made.
He immersed himself in work… until about 30–40 minutes later, there was a knock on his cabin door.
“Come in,” Aditya said, glancing up.
It was Ruhi.
He smiled, surprised, “You’re early today.”
Ruhi walked in with a calm but serious tone, “I have a message for you.”
Aditya chuckled, “Oh? What kind of message, and from whom?”
But Ruhi didn’t smile. She stared directly at him and said:
“First, answer my question.
How much do you love Anamika?
And… would you ever think of hurting her?”
Aditya was taken aback. He stood up slowly, confused.
“Where’s this coming from? What happened?”
Ruhi stood firm. “Just answer me.”
Aditya finally spoke, smiling faintly as his thoughts drifted to Anamika:
“I love her more than my own life.
Touching her without her consent… would be a sin to me.
I never want to hurt her. Ever.”
Ruhi’s expression softened, and she asked:
“Then why aren’t you protecting her… from her past?
Why aren’t you there to catch her when she’s falling?”
Aditya looked away, giving a bitter smile.
“Because… she never gave me that right.
She only gave that right to Saaniya.”
Ruhi stepped forward, voice rising with emotion:
“You both are the same!
Since when does someone need permission to help someone they love?!”
She was clearly frustrated, and that made Aditya nervous.
He stared at her and asked seriously:
“Ruhi… what happened?! Tell me!”
Ruhi then told him everything that had happened the night before.
As soon as he heard it all, Aditya didn’t waste a second. He rushed past her and called out:
“I’m going to Anamika’s house. Handle everything here for me!”
Ruhi watched him run out, and whispered to herself:
“Aditya sir is coming…
I don’t know how much of Anamika’s past you know, Saaniya… and how much he does… But if you believe that with Aditya’s help, you can finally drive away the darkness in her heart… Then I’m with you.”
Meanwhile, Aditya drove with full speed, reaching Anamika’s house in record time.
He ran to the front door and was just about to ring the bell — when a voice behind stopped him.
He turned around.
It was Saaniya.
Her eyes were emotionless, but filled with questions.
She silently led him to the back door — directly into her room — because Anamika was still in the hall, sitting in front of the TV.
She was staring blankly at the cartoon playing on screen, as if pretending to be okay.
But she wasn’t.
Not really.
She was still afraid — of that shadow from her past.
A shadow that refuses to let her go.
