I wrapped my arms around him as gently as I could, holding him as if he were the most precious thing in the world. The pain of the jungle, the fear of the crash, and the distance of the last few months melted away in that one, agonizing hug.
He was alive. He was mine. And this time, I was never letting him go.
The silence of the hut was broken only by the sound of our breathing. Saurav held onto me for a long time, his grip tightening every time I tried to pull back to check his bandages. It was as if he was afraid that if he let go, I would turn back into the mist of the Assam mountains.
"You’re hurting yourself," I whispered into his hair, my heart aching as I felt him wince. "Saurav, please. Lie back down."
He finally pulled away just enough to look at my face. His eyes were red, searching mine with an intensity that made me feel exposed. "How did you find me? I told you to wait. I didn't want you to see me like this."
"You should know by now that I don't listen very well," I said, a small, watery smile breaking through my tears. I reached out and brushed a stray hair from his forehead. "And I don't care how you look. I only care that you're here."
I helped him settle back onto the wooden cot. Every movement was a struggle for him. He told me more about the crash, the terrifying moment the engines died, the smell of smoke, and the sudden, violent impact. He spoke about the villagers who had carried him on a makeshift stretcher for miles through the rain to get him to this hut.
"They saved my life, Kavya," he said, his voice soft with gratitude. "But the whole time I was drifting in and out of that coma, I only heard one thing. I heard you calling my name."
I took his hand, lacing my fingers through his. His skin was rough and scarred, but his touch was still the only thing that made me feel grounded. I told him about the agony of the last few weeks, the flight from Switzerland, the grim briefing at the Air Force station, and the broken watch they had given me.
"They think you're gone. There’s going to be a memorial."
A shadow crossed his face. "Let them wait a little longer. I’m not ready to be an officer now. I just want to be your husband for a while. No ranks, no missions, no secrets."
I nodded, understanding exactly what he meant. For two years, our lives had been a whirlwind of expectations and hidden feelings. Here, in this village at the edge of the world, there were no cameras, no Chauhan family legacy, and no academy pressure. There was just us.
Over the next few days, I became his nurse. I worked with the Village Head to learn which herbs to boil for his pain and how to change his dressings without tearing his skin. I fed him warm broth, and slowly, the color began to return to his face.
One evening, as the sun dipped behind the peaks, painting the sky in shades of violet and gold, Saurav looked at me and asked the question I had been dreading.
"Why did you go to Switzerland, Kavya? Truly?"
I looked down at our joined hands. The time for lies was over. "I was scared, Saurav. I thought that if I stayed, I would lose you, too. I thought I was cursed for you too. But when I heard your jet had gone down, I just couldn't..." I shook away tears.
Saurav pulled my hand to his lips and kissed my knuckles. "We have a lot to fix when we go back," he murmured. "But for now, this is enough."
I leaned my head against his shoulder, watching the first star appear over the valley. We were miles away from civilization, surrounded by jungle and mystery, but after a long time, I felt like I was exactly where I belonged.
_________
Chapter 48
SAURAV
The last thirty days felt like a lifetime and a heartbeat all at once. In the cockpit of my jet, time was measured in seconds and Mach speeds, blink, and you’ve missed a kilometer. But here, in this quiet valley in Assam, time was measured by the slow crawl of the sunrise over the jagged mountains and the gentle, rhythmic touch of Kavya’s hand on my forehead.
I watched her now, sitting by the small fire outside the hut. She was stirring a pot of local stew, talking to a group of village children. She didn’t know their language, and they didn’t know hers, but it didn't matter. It was a conversation of smiles, exaggerated gestures, and shared laughter.
She looked different. The polished, guarded woman I had known in the city, the one who wore her elegance like a shield had softened. Her hair was tied back in a messy braid, and her face was flushed from the heat of the fire. There was a strength in her shoulders that I hadn't noticed before. Or perhaps, I had been too blind to see it.
As I sat on the porch, testing the weight on my healed leg, a sharp pang of regret hit me. It wasn't the physical pain of my mending ribs; that was a dull ache I could handle. It was the realization of everything I had put her through.
I remembered the nights I had stayed late at the base, choosing the thrill of the sky over her company. I thought about the lonelymonths she spent worrying while I was flying high above the world, untouched by the ground-level reality of her life and her grief. She had crossed rivers and jungles to find me when the rest of the world had written me off as a casualty. I had let her feel like air, while she had treated me like the very earth she stood upon.
"You’re thinking too hard again," Kavya said. She had noticed my staring. She walked over, handing me a wooden bowl of stew. Instead of going back to the fire, she sat at my feet, resting her head against my knee.
"I’m thinking about how lucky I am," I whispered, trailing my fingers through her hair. It felt coarser now, dusted with the mountain air, but it was the most beautiful thing I’d ever touched. "And how much of a fool I’ve been."
"Saurav, we said no more regrets," she reminded me softly, closing her eyes as I continued to stroke her hair. "The mountains don't care about the past. Why should we?"
"I know. But I want to make sure the next chapter is different. I don't want to just fly over your life anymore, Kavya. I want to be in it."