Third person's pov
Meera stared at Elijah blankly. And he stared right back. No one backing down. She should have known this would come to happen. Thankfully, it was now. Chuckling in irritation, she said,
"And what are they if may I know, Mr. Mancini?"
Keep staring, Elijah remained silent. It felt like they were trapped in a time with nobody uttering a word. The silence was all around them. A tense one. Meera shook her head saying,
"After accusing me, you have nothing to say. And here I thought you were always sure of yourself"
"I don't need to prove anything to you, doe"
replied Elijah coldly. All the warmth he held for her in his eyes vanished in thin air. Meera striding to him, spoke each word with every step, voice getting louder,
"You have to when you accuse me of the things I didn't do!"
Elijah just looked down at her, standing unaffected by her outburst. Meera waited for him expectantly but she got nothing in the end. Giggles filled the tense air of the lavish bedroom of the newly wedded couple. Chuckling with tears running down her face slowly, Meera told him,
"You are unbelievable. How I wish I never met you in my life"
Elijah remained stoic in his place. Anyone who saw him would think that he who had not even moved a muscle, already mastered a professional poker face. But, he was affected deep inside. Her crying, her words, the betrayal pierced through his blooming feelings that he wanted to unleash hell on her barely holding back from doing just that. He has observed her from the moment she confessed to liking him back. Her every action, like a hawk. He just can't wrap his head around the fact that his doe who hated him from her very core suddenly fancied him. He always tried to look for even a slight irritation or disguise of her showing feelings for him or if her actions were fake. Nonetheless, to say, he found none. Which brought him here to finally throw his last card to know her real intentions. He had this picture framed in his room since he came back from Goa. And it was a perfect shocker for her. A perfect way to know her real feelings. And to see her pale in horror confirmed all his doubts.
"Even if you faked liking me, don't think I will leave you. That's never gonna happen"
Elijah told her dominantly without a trace of warmth and eyes filled with cold promise. Meera frowned at him, uttering in confusion,
"Faked?"
"Don't act stupid now"
said Elijah with menace. He hates when people behave as if they know nothing about their wrong deeds. Clenching her jaw, eyes raging fire, Meera poked her finger at his chest, exclaiming,
"Fake you say!"
Elijah held her wrist in a tight grip stopping her movements. Emotionlessly staring at her back, Elijah stood mute. Meera glared, feeling her blood boil. She had had enough of him. Snatching her hand back from his grip, Meera told him one after the other,
"I wonder how a person fakes their feeling, hmm?"
She acted as if thinking deeply. Then, like a bulb flickering to light, she snapped her fingers like getting the idea,
"Ohh! They must drown in the swimming pool first to get the idea if the target cares about them or not, am I right, Eli?"
"Or is it that they made up a sea storm from nowhere just to drown to death to show the target that they are hurting because of their actions to take such a step?"
continued Meera glaring holes in the blank eyes of Elijah. Elijah internally grimaced recalling the fateful dreaded moments. He surely wants to forget them. They bring bitterness in him. His doe has twice faced death all because of him and almost died both times. He saw the rage in her eyes but other than that he saw something else that he doesn't want to believe because that will prove him and his assumptions wrong.
"You know why it hurt me always whenever you tell me about the things you made me go through"
starts Meera with pain and hurt so prominent in her eyes and voice which shook terribly in an attempt to keep the sobs at bay.
"Can you guess, Eli?"
she asked his rigid figure who showed no emotions at all. But he can clearly see the difference in the sound of his name she said two times. This time it was filled with adoration and admiration, not with menace and anger like before. He was now starting to doubt his actions which he never did. Looking into her teary eyes staring back at him with pain which he so badly avoided, he said nothing.
"None at all?"
asked Meera like approaching a kid who was trying to figure out what to choose. Smiling through her pain, she announced,
"Because I liked you"
Elijah stared at her as if he didn't believe a single word coming out of her mouth. Still smiling with tears falling from her eyes, she spoke up in a shaky voice with a distant look like she is remembering something,
"When I saw you on the beach for the first time, I found you otherworldly handsome. I felt an instant attraction toward you"
Elijah absorbed what she said. It felt foreign to him that she could like him. He knew after the things he had done to her, she or anyone else can never love him let alone like him, so it was hard to believe it.
Meera saw the shift of doubt swirl in his eyes. Ruefully smiling, she asked him,
"Hard to believe, ehh?"
Elijah just kept mum. Nodding her head like she found it justifying she continued,
"I myself didn't know that back then, you know. But imagine my surprise when I saw you again as my boss in New York. My heart was beating so hard looking at you, 'the handsome god from the beach' "
She laughed remembering what she used to call him in her head when she knew nothing about him. She voiced out,
"I called you that in my head 'the handsome god with beautiful green eyes'. Your eyes, which I came to love so much. They were so unique and gorgeous that it was the thing I liked most in you"
She stared at him like confessing a secret that he shouldn't know. But it was out in the open now. And she doesn't regret it a bit. He must know it all now. Keeping his gaze, she continued,
"I was a blushing mess before you and I never behaved like that before. Timidly nodding and doing whatever you asked. I was happy that I met you and you were my boss, to be honest. And that's when I realized that I have feelings for you"
Elijah felt his heart soar with happiness despite the present condition and situation. She liked him before, the feelings were mutual. But did they really were mutual? No, he at that time just wanted her as a possession without any romantic feelings and he knew that while doing the hellish things, both of them will not love the other. And now it was in question. Specifically, all the things he thought. Glancing at his doe all tensed and crying, Elijah felt his inside churn in discomfort. He was now questioning his actions of ever doubting her. Her confession rang sincere in his ears.
"And that's also when you showed your true colors"
Meera stated with a faraway look in her eyes. As if reliving the moments when he forcefully kissed her and announced that she was brought to him purposely.
"To say I was shocked and hurt would be an understatement. I questioned my feelings for you. How can I love an evil person who made me and my parents suffer, who never respected me, and who blackmailed me into marrying him? I wanted to remove the feelings and hate you"
told Meera in a trembling voice. The sobs were threatening to escape but she refused to cry in front of him although the tears showed otherwise. Realizing that tears stained her cheeks, she wiped them alternately. Sniffling, she confessed,
"However hard I tried to hate you, despise you, I just couldn't. In frustration and heat of the moment, I said I hated you but never meant it. And when I saw concern and worry in your eyes for me the feelings which I buried deep inside resurfaced. Your confession made me accept my feelings and give us a chance. I thought we can work out and fix our relationship. I even went as far as ignoring the things you did because I truly liked you and my feelings were strong, so strong"
Her voice lowered in the end which contained pain. Elijah can clearly hear it in her voice, the pain which he again inflicted with his reckless action. He has just hurt her then and now again and again. His heart started to ache in regret and hurt, both emotions so foreign to him. He slowly realized the depth of his action right now. Confession of his doe proved everything wrong, the accusations proved to be wrong assumptions in his self-righteousness. He deeply regrets it now. Sighing in guilt, Elijah heard a sob. Blinking, he looked at his doe. His face contorted in a pained frown seeing her sobbing. He saw how she until now suppressed the sobs but now failed. It was all his fault, an unfortunate mistake. He took a step towards his doe with regret shining in his eyes to comfort her. But Meera raised her palm halting him when she saw him through her blur vision moving towards her. Gulping a sob, she took a step back then other. Then another and another whole while Elijah's eyes followed her with bated breath. Meera said in a small voice when she felt the opened door of the room behind her,
"It hurts me so badly when you accused me of faking, Elijah, so deeply that you questioned my feelings"
"Doe--"
Elijah starts but before he can utter another word Meera ran out of the room crying, away from him who she left as a mess of mixed emotions. The most prominent was regret.