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“What do you think, Dev?” Aaryan asked. “Shall we grow together?”
“I’ll agree to do it if you take over as the Chairman. It is your father’s business, so a Rajpoot should be at the helm.”
Aaryan clapped his shoulder. “I expected you to say that.”
“You always knew me too well.”
Vihaan grinned. “Welcome back, brother. It’s taken us a long time, but we are all together again. One family.”
“One family,” Dev repeated. He looked at Avantika. A brilliant smile was painted on her face. Everything was finally as it ought to be. Only one thing remained to be done.
“There is one thing I’ve been wanting to talk to you all about,” Dev began. “You all have been here for a few days. Don’t you want to see your old family home?”
Avantika’s face fell, and Aaryan and Vihaan stiffened.
So far, none of the Rajpoot siblings had expressed a desire to see their old home. He supposed they were all a bit anxious to even consider returning to the place where they lost everything.
Sanjana linked her hand with Aaryan’s. “There’s no rush. We could return and do this another time.”
“No,” Aaryan breathed out. “We need to face our fears, all of them. We need to close that chapter of the past once and for all. Let’s do this now and get it over with.”
Dev nodded. This had to be done if they all needed closure. Returning to the place where it had all gone wrong was the final step in all their healing. Perhaps, after that, they all could move on. Together.
32
Avantika looked into the faces of her family. “Are you ready to do this?”
They each nodded, climbing into the waiting jeeps. She sat beside Dev, and he took off in the direction of her old home. Aaryan and Sanjana were with them, while Shaurya, Myra, Vihaan, and Tiya were in the car following them.
From the seat behind, she could hear Sanjana whisper some words of assurance to Aaryan. He answered only in monosyllables. He was on edge, just like she was. She knew Vihaan must be anxious too. How could they all not be? They all had been delaying this moment for the longest, and now they were going to face one of their biggest fears head-on. They were going to see their old house and deal with all the memories it would bring forth.
Dev took a turn ahead, and a painful fluttering began in her belly. In the next minute, her old home came into view. She gasped as she saw its blackened remains. Dev put his hand atop hers. She met his gaze, and he gave her a reassuring nod.
He parked the jeep, and Shaurya followed suit behind them. Everyone climbed out of the cars. Shaurya and Myra waited by the jeep while Aaryan and Vihaan came to stand by Avantika’s side. Her stomach fell as her eyes swept over the remains of what used to be their home at one time. A long time ago, this house had buzzed with laughter, but now, it lay in ruins, silent. Dead. Even the birds didn’t make a sound here. The wind, too, was still.
God! She wanted to cry.
“Hey, I’m with you…” Dev caught her hand, his tone quiet. “I get how you feel. It’s been hard for me to visit here, and I had to force myself to come whenever I felt helpless. Standing here reminded me of my vow to find all of you.”
She swallowed her tears, allowing his touch to calm her down. She faced forward, staring at the charred remnants of what once had been an impressive façade. Vihaan and Aaryan took a step ahead. She gulped, unable to lift a foot forward. Memories of her parents dying here stormed through her.
Her chest burned. In her dreams, she’d always imagined that the house would beckon her to breathe life into it once again. But now, she could only see death and suffering when she looked at it.
She couldn’t do this. She couldn’t walk inside and see the destruction of what once had been a loving home. She wanted to remember it as that only. She didn’t want to equate her memories to this ruination.
She waited back while her brothers surveyed the house. Dev stood patiently beside her, not saying anything as the twins wandered about, each of them lost in their own musings. Sanjana and Tiya were with them throughout, their expressions grim, concerned.
When they all returned, Vihaan addressed Dev, “We heard from Myra’s dad that you were in the process of rebuilding the house. But nothing seems to have been done here.”
Dev shrugged. “I spread that false piece of news deliberately so that it would reach your ears. I even made some digging machines create noise here for a few days. How else was I to gain your attention?”
“You truly did plan everything,” Vihaan said, his tone soft.
“The truth is that you would have hated me if I had started reconstructing your old home without your consent. This home is yours, and only you all get to decide the way forward. So, I left it untouched.”
Aaryan crossed his arms on his chest, staring at the façade of the two-storey house. He conferred with Sanjana for a few seconds before he stepped forward.
“I don’t want it.” Aaryan looked at Vihaan and Avantika. “This doesn’t feel like home anymore. I’d thought…I’d thought when I saw it again, I’ll feel connected to them…our parents. But now that I’m here, I realize that I don’t need the house to feel connected to them. They are with me, always.” He touched his chest. “They’re in my heart. This house only reminds me of what I lost. Dubai is my home now. The apartments we all live in, our villas, all that is home to me. They represent our successes.” He clasped Sanjana’s cheek. “Our happiness.”
