Time flew like a free bird wanting to explore as much of the sky before it could be caged once again. As soon as Nitya realised that it was already 7:30 in the evening, she knew Surbhi was going to kill her for forfeiting her promise of returning on time.
She stepped inside as silently as possible, but was surprised to see all the lights were off, 'wasn't Suro supposed to leave the next day?' She had never been afraid of the dark, but suddenly there was a loud peal of thunder and the sound of heavy downpour filled the environment.
A switch was flicked on and Mehul and Mukul both rushed towards their sister, only to find her trembling and crouching down by the couch. Mehul enveloped his sister in a warm hug; saying gently "It's okay kiddo, Bhaiya (Brother) is here, na? Relax, just take a deep breath!"
Nitya raised her head and whispered hoarsely, "Suro…" She had gathered her whole strength to remind her brothers that not only she but Surbhi was also an ombrophobe!
Mukul jumped at her words, realising how dumb he could be for leaving his girlfriend on the roof, preparing everything by herself! He rushed as fast he could, shouting "Bhaiya you take care of Niku, and let me check on Surbhi!"
As soon as he reached the roof, he ran up to the spot where he had left her, and looked around. He saw her sitting near the wall, teary eyed, not knowing that Nitya had returned!
Mukul slowly moved closer, hugging her tightly, as if he even so much as loosened his grip, a monster would snatch away his world from him! He mumbled, "I am sorry love, I am really sorry. As soon as I reached downstairs to retrieve the plates, me and bhaiya noticed Niku sneaking in. And then suddenly the thunder...and...rain-" He was unable to complete his sentence, feeling at a loss of words. He knew Suro had realised that he loved his sister a lot, but she had never complained about him prioritising her, nor would she ever put him in a position to choose between them. But this time he had crossed a line; he needed to be more mindful of treating them equally.
As he was deciding what all the things he needed to work on, he heard Surbhi shouting. "What! Nikki is here? Leave me, she must be scared! And what the hell are you doing here, leaving her alone over there, how can you forget she has ombrophobia!"
"So do you! What are you trying to say- stop portraying yourself like a rock, it's okay to admit that you are also scared of some things!"
"I am not trying to prove to you that I am strong. And yes, I know we all have fears and I am afraid of plenty of things- I will be handing you a list later, be rest assured. But how can a person be so dumb, when his sister is an actual genius? It's not the same: I have an aversion to rain and she is ombrophobic!"
"Huh! What do you mean? And if you are not afraid of rain, then why were you crying? And the first word that Niku mentioned was your name!"
"I think I need to reconsider dating you!" Surbhi chuckled at his cluelessness, then continued, "I was not crying, silly! My eyes were just teary, because I was overwhelmed that our plan was ruined by the rain, and how can you not know your own twin? She always thinks about others before herself, now let's go!"
"So do you," Mukul whispered softly and smiled to himself, but Surbhi had already walked out of earshot.
"Are you coming or not?" she called out after herself.
"Coming!" He replied as he rushed down the stairs.
After half an hour, when the rain had finally stopped, Mehul removed the earphones from her sister's ears and ventured. "Niku, I know you know this, but I am saying this again. There is no shame in reaching out for help, sweetie and you know that you are everyone's lifeline! How can be you so careless? I thought your ombrophobia is under control, then why did you react that way?"
Surbhi knew she needed to cover for her best friend, as she saw Nitya's face becoming pale out of the daunting task of explaining everything!
"Mehul Bhaiya, don't you worry! I will drag her to the doctor by her ears; just leave it to me."
"I don't know how you two cowards manage to live together," Mukul tried to lighten the mood, not knowing that he had just stepped on a landmine.
"What did you say?" Nitya and Surbhi screamed together.
"I can't understand how can the University topper in Architecture can tolerate to date someone as dumb as you!"
"And I don't understand how the Best Junior Ethnographer can be the twin of this birdbrained person!"
"Hey, stop it- the two of you! Niku- I am your twin brother who is also older than you; and Surbhi- I am your boyfriend for God's sake! So stop praising each other and say nice things about me instead!"
"As if!" The girls screamed again at the same time.
Mehul was laughing so hard over their bickering. All three of them were just like his children, but he allowed himself to admit that he certainly was biased when it came to Nitya. When she had to pursue her career in his field, there was no limit to his happiness! But now he needed to shift his focus into stopping this, otherwise it was going to last till eternity.
"Okay everyone stop! Niku, you are coming to live with me for 17 days, starting tomorrow : Mukul and Surbhi are going for their college trip."
"17 days!" Nitya turned towards her best friend with surprise, while she turned to her boyfriend, glowering at him. If she had the power of devouring somebody with her eyes alone, she would have already done it.
'This is how he had handled the situation! She really needed to ask herself why she was dating this dumb head?! Because she loved him, she turned after answering her own question with an awkward smile on her face- actually!'
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"Oh no, it's raining. We need to hurry home as fast as we can."
Kaoru and Ho-jin were making their way back in the car.
"Hyung , drive fast- you know he must be so scared!"
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