Page 225 - Till the Last Breath . . .

is it? Why do they have to suffer? Haven’t I suffered enough? What had I

done wrong? I had always been a good girl. Why me? Why my family?
Why should I die? Why can’t I get married? Spend another night with you?
I … am just going to die? Not be here any more?’

And then, she broke down into sobs; her tears rolled down and wet her
pillow. Arman bent over and kissed her forehead.

‘Everything will be okay,’ he said, knowing that his promise was empty.
He choked on his words.

‘It will not be,’ she said from behind the stifled sobs.
‘I have something for you,’ he said and reached into his pocket.

For a moment, Pihu stopped crying and looked straight at him. Had she
been able to get up and hug him, she would have. She would have hugged
her mom, her dad. She was leaving them behind and going to a world

unknown. And though she didn’t know what would happen to her after the
last shred of breath would leave her, wherever she would go, she would

miss them.
Arman took out what he had been carrying with him for weeks now. He

dangled it in front of her. It was a gold chain. The yellowness of the gold
had somewhat waned away, and hanging beneath it was a small diamond of

3 carats, and it was beyond beautiful.
‘This is for you,’ he said and gingerly took Pihu’s hand into his and
wrapped it thrice around her limp, senseless wrist. Pihu’s eyes sparkled as

she gazed at her newly acquired possession.
‘That is beautiful.’

‘It pales in comparison to you. You’re the most beautiful thing I have
ever considered my own. Before you came along, I was a loner, someone

who didn’t care about anything but himself, his work, his obsession. But
one fine day, you walked into my life, with the help of crutches, no less, and

turned it upside down. For the first time, I loved someone more than I have
loved myself,’ he said.
‘You make even dying beautiful,’ she purred. Her eyes roved around the

room and she saw her parents walk inside. Arman noticed their presence,
too, and it was his cue to leave.