"Some goodbyes don't end with words...
They end with silence, and lifelong echoes."
---
The next 24 hours passed in a blur.
The hotel.
The police.
The questions.
The blood.
But all Avni remembered was Rohit's face…
His last words…
His final breath in her arms.
---
🖤 The Funeral
The day of the funeral, Avni wore a white saree — but her eyes were already empty.
Mohsin stood in the distance.
Not as a lover.
Not as a man hoping for forgiveness.
But as the only person who truly understood what she'd lost.
---
People kept whispering:
> "Woh uska pati tha na?"
"Bachane gaya aur mar gaya…"
"Us ladke ka kya connection hai?"
But Avni didn't answer.
She sat silently by the pyre.
Her hands trembling.
Her soul screaming inside.
---
As the fire lit, Mohsin saw her break.
And in that moment, he wanted to go to her…
But he knew —
> "This is her pain.
Not my place. Not yet."
---
🌧️ After the Ceremony
Hours later, outside the cremation ground, Mohsin finally approached her.
She didn't look up.
He spoke softly.
> "Main chala jaaun?"
"Ya ruk jaaun…?"
She didn't reply for a long time.
Then, her voice cracked.
> "Tumhe lagta hai main tumse pyaar karti hoon?"
"Tumhe lagta hai tum waapas aake sab theek kar sakte ho?"
"Mohsin… main toot gayi hoon. Mujhe thoda waqt chahiye… bina tumhare. Bina kisi ke."
"Let me grieve in peace…"
He nodded.
> "Main rukta nahi…
Bas door se dekh leta hoon ki tum thik ho."
And without asking for love,
Without expecting forgiveness…
He walked away.
---
But not too far.
Just far enough to let her breathe…
and close enough to be there when she calls.
---