Arnav went to his room and had a nice shower. He wanted to feel relaxed before he go and talk to Khushi. Khushi's anger is justifiable. She did the hardest part of exposing Shyam and ended up getting sidelined.

If Arnav was in her place, he would have acted the same or maybe worse. But ever since he saw Shyam inside Javed's office he knew Shyam is not a simple cheater or a manipulator. He was a hardcore criminal. If Arnav knew about this before, he would have never let Khushi execute that plan. He would have locked her in if he had to.

Arnav opened the sliding door to the poolside hoping to go and talk to Khushi but saw her already sitting at their usual spot. Suddenly he realized how long it has been since they sat there and had a conversation.

"Mind if I sit here?"

"Why ask me. Do what you feel like doing"

"Khushi, I am not here to fight. I came to talk to you"

"As I said, it's your life, Arnav. You can do what you want to do. You don't have to ask me"

"I know you are angry"

Said Arnav sitting next to her.

"Good"

"Khushi please, give me a chance to explain"

"There is nothing to explain Arnav. We finally achieved what we wanted. End of the story"

"It was only one story that ended Khushi, not the whole book"

"Arnav, what do you want to say? That you are sorry, you didn't mean to keep me out like that, you had no other choice and all?"

"I am sorry, but not for the reasons you mentioned. I am sorry that I did not tell you about this plan. But I am not sorry for keeping you out of it and it was my choice to do that"

"As I said, the end of the story"

"No, it's not. And I would do the same if I had to again. Your safety is more important to me than tolerating your tantrums"

"I am not throwing any tantrums, Arnav. I am not even saying anything"

"That's what a tantrum is Khushi. Tantrums are not always vocal. It can be from actions as well. I am only trying to tell you that I did what I did for your own good. I was not ready to feed you to the wolf again"

"What do you mean?"

"Khushi, when we executed the plan previously all we knew was Shyam is a cheater and a master manipulator"

"I know Arnav"

"But when I saw him that day at Javed's office and heard how on point his plans were, I realized he was a hardcore criminal. He wouldn't think twice to kill someone. So unknowingly I pushed you to a starving wolf and to make it worst, I left you alone"

"Arnav, we have already talked about this"

"Yes, we did. But now we know how dangerous he is Khushi. I could have lost you forever because of that stupid plan. That's the only reason I wanted you out of this last plan"

"So you think I am weak?"

"Khushi, you are one of the strongest people I know. The things you tolerated are beyond my imagination. That's why my respect for you is higher than my love for you. But that does not mean I am ready to risk your life"

"At least you could have told me about the plan. You didn't need to include me in the execution, but keeping me in the circle would have helped"

"Khushi, as I said, you are stronger than anyone I know. But sometimes your emotions come in the way. I am not saying it's a bad thing. It's actually a good thing to show your emotions. That shows how pure you are. But that same point could have gone against you when it comes to Shyam"

Khushi took a few minutes to think about what Arnav said. He has a point. When she heard about the phone call from Anjali, her first reaction was to give Shyam money and save Arnav. She didn't think from her brain, she thought from her heart. There are some decisions in life you have to take using your brain. The heart doesn't have answers to all your questions.

"Khushi, he would have used you and Di the way he used Payal. He knew about you and me, so by using my name, he would have made you do things you wouldn't even think of doing. I didn't want to put you in that position. But I understand, I should have at least informed you about the plan"

"Arnav, I am not sad but I feel angry and hurt. I know this looks like an overreaction. I grew up in a family where no one listened to me or gave me a choice, then I got married and my life got even messier. But I was not this hurt because I thought that is my life and I can't do anything about it. So I embraced it the way it was"

Arnav felt her pain. He saw the pain in her eyes.

"Then out of nowhere, you came into my life. You made me question everything about my life, you gave meaning to it. For the first time I had control over my life, I got to choose what I want to do and what I don't. You made me feel important and showed me that I mattered. Then suddenly, you cut me off. So that hurt me more than what I had gone through before"

Arnav turned toward Khushi and took her hands. He held them as if they were the most precious things in this world.

"Khushi, when I said I love you, I not only gave my heart to you, I gave my whole life to you. What I am trying to say is, if you feel angry, bash me. If you feel hurt, shout at me, tell me. If you feel neglected, drag me back. All in all, if you feel like hitting me, hit me. But don't give the silent treatment"

Khushi felt emotional. She felt the anger and the feeling of hurt she had slowly melted down.

"You have the right over me, Khushi. So don't back down from showing it. Only you have that right. When you give this silent treatment I feel like you are not mine anymore. So please, never stay quiet"

"Arnav, don't say things like that. I am sorry if I made you feel like that. I am yours and that is something no one can change. Yet alone one Shyam, even a million Shyams can't take you away from me"

Arnav turned Khushi toward him from her shoulders and then hugged her. He put his whole life into that hug. Khushi felt the aura in that hug and she knew she can no longer control her feelings. Therefore, without wasting any time she hugged him back as if her life depended on that.

Khushi heard the rumbling noise from Arnav's tummy and broke the hug.

"Oh my god, didn't you have dinner?"

"It's fine Khushi, I'll have a coffee before I sleep"

"No no, let me make you something"

"No"

"Arnav?"

"I mean, please I don't want you to take trouble for me. I should be good after a coffee"

"Don't worry, I am not going to do any experiment on you. I was going to heat something from the kitchen"

"In that case, let's go. I'll give you company"

Both Arnav and Khushi went to the kitchen and Khushi saw there was food already on the kitchen counter.

"Looks like Di had the same idea. She must have taken the dishes out and heated them"

"Looks like it"

Saying that Arnav took two plates out and started serving.

"Two plates?"

"I know you also skipped dinner so let's eat and no arguments"

Both of them sat at the dining table with their plates.

"When do you have to go back to uni?"

"Semester break is almost over. This is the last week of my break. I am going back next week"

"How long to till your graduation?"

"I am combining two semesters this time. I don't want to drag this out any longer. Since our main distraction is out of our lives, I will enroll in six papers instead of three"

"So you are trying to finish a semester early?"

"Yes, rather than going for 6 months, I will finish the course in 3 months"

"Isn't it too much work and pressure for you Khushi?"

"I know, that's why I need extra concentration this semester. I can't afford to fail any paper. I have to finish this semester in one go"

"Actually, yes. You should finish your course this semester. Even I don't want to wait any longer"

"I can understand why I want to finish this early so that I can focus on my career, but why do you bother Arnav? How does it matter to you?"

"Matter to me? Are you serious?"

Khushi looked at Arnav with a confused face.

"I would love my wife to be a graduate. Also, it wouldn't be much fun if my wife keep hugging textbooks on our honeymoon than hugging her husband"

Khushi choked on her food. If someone asked her to define extraordinary, she would point out Arnav. This might be the most unorthodox marriage proposal of all time.

"I am sorry, your what?"

"My wife. Simple. I would love to see my girlfriend graduate before she becomes my wife. Because I want her all to myself, I hate sharing. Is it too much to ask Khushi?"

Khushi didn't know how to answer that question. Is he asking her to marry him? or is he pulling her leg? This is not the kind of proposal anyone expects. They were just having dinner for god sake.

"Khushi?"

"Ummm...."

"Is it too much to ask?"

"I...I..."

"Khushi?"

"Yes..."

"Are you going to answer me now or do you need me on one knee with a ring?"

"What now?"

"Now I am actually worried if you can finish the semester or not. You are not the brightest aren't you?"

"I...this... I don't know what you are asking"

"Miss. Khushi Kumari Gupta, are you going to answer my question now or do you want me to be on one knee for you?"

"What question?"

Khushi was lost. She no longer remembered the question or what their discussion was.

"I better go with the traditional way. Wait right here"

Saying that Arnav stood up and walked toward his room. Khushi finally swallowed the food she was trying to swallow for a while now. Arnav caught her off guard with his unexpected question. The question is so twisted that Khushi had trouble drafting an answer.

Arnav came to the dining area and stood in front of Khushi.

"Damn, I never thought this day will ever come"

Khushi looked at him with questionable eyes. What day? What is he talking about? But before she could word those questions, he got down on one knee, took her left hand, and looked straight into her eyes.

"Khushi, every time I see you, I fall for you. I have never dreamt of having such a special person in my life. You are everything to me. I made the best decision in life by finding you. I will never leave you alone ever again. Having you by my side is what completes me and I can't think of my life without you. Would you complete my life by becoming my life? Khushi Kumari Gupta, will you marry me?"

Khushi had tears in her eyes. She never thought she will ever get to experience this. She never thought she will ever find someone who will love her this much and she definitely didn't expect to find the love of her life in the same place where she lost everything.

She gathered all her remaining energy and in between the tears she uttered,

"Arnav, I don't know how to describe my feelings for you. But all I know is that I want to hold your hands forever. So yes, Arnav Singh Raizada, I will marry you and I promise, you will have a wife who is a graduate"

Arnav didn't waste any second before taking out the ring he had purchased from New York before he left and slid that into Khushi's ring finger.

He bought this ring as soon as he was clear about his feelings back in New York. But their lives turned upside down ever since he was back. Therefore he was holding on to this ring until the right time. But if he learned anything from the recent events is that there is no such thing called the right time. You only need that one right person by you and when you have that person with you, every second means the right time.

Arnav looked at her hand. There was a time he wanted to kick his girl out of his house and his life. But today, she is wearing his ring. Today she has become his whole life. Life is something no one can predict. When he came to India to attend Advay's funeral, he never thought his life would turn this way. He never thought this small girl will hugely impact his life.

Arnav looked at Khushi's eyes and saw the happiness in them. He saw something he has never seen in her eyes before. It's a mixture of love, affection, togetherness, and respect. He looked at her one last time before capturing her lips.

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