Forever Yours, Vrinda

Daksh stopped Vivaan from moving towards Vrinda's room.

"Vivaan, can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Anytime, Bhai. Why do you even ask? Is everything all right?" asked Vivaan, concern lacing his tone as his eyes narrowed.

"I had found something in the storeroom yesterday when I was trying to find things which could trigger Vrinda's childhood memories. I don't know how this came to be, Vivaan, but I think Vrinda's subconsciousness had a premonition regarding this unfortunate situation and this came to be as a result," said Daksh, forwarding a leather-bound book with elegant artwork sprawling across its cover.

"What is this? I never saw this before. Does this belong to Vrinda?" asked Vivaan, taking the book in his hands as he flipped through the pages to find the book more than half filled with beautiful handwritten words. The cursive handwriting with the extravagant 'S' and 'L' was the signature of Vrinda, and Vivaan had no trouble identifying it to be her handwriting.

"Yes, and she left a message for you. Do read it before you meet her today," said Daksh, patting on his shoulder, knowing how difficult it could be for his brother to experience her love once again after everything that had eventuated.

Vivaan's breath hitched as he learned of her message, hidden from him over the years. The sole key for him to experience her love in a way other than his memories. He had been so sure at a point of time that memories are eternal and they had argued about that like many other things, little had he known that fate would prove him wrong.

He opened the book, as Daksh staged a walkout, and traced her beautiful handwriting, reminiscing the many notes she used to leave him - to tease or to mock or to compensate for his poor memory. How would she have known that it was in his poor memory that their love-story would stand upon?

"Dearest Vivaan..."

Tears rolled down his warm cheeks as he read the line and a smile stretched upon itself on his trembling lips.

"You would not know, but I had real trouble writing the last line, you know why? Because it confused me about how to address you. Should it be 'to the one who stole my heart and owns my soul' or should it be 'to the one who never leaves a chance to argue with me and tease me'? Should it be 'to the prankster who loves to flirt' or should it be 'to the philosopher who loves to love'?" it read, making him chuckle at her descriptions of him.

"Then, I thought, I should just use the name which I love. You must wonder why have I written this and why did you not know about this, probably for years? Well, I thought I should have a special gift to give you for our wedding."

The mention of their wedding made his chest constrict with pain. He had always known that he had broken her heart by refusing to marry her, but he did not know that he had broken so many dreams of hers. He knew he did was essential, but could there have been a way to prevent the heartbreak and fulfill his duty at the same time?

"You always say that memories are eternal, but I feel, sometimes, memories flicker and betray us. In the moments of anger and fear, the best memories don't strike. In fact, the worst resurfaces. I also know that you believe love is above all the seven sins, but you know I believe that love is the lord of sins, don't you? So, while I do hope that such moments don't come, I am also writing this for us to reminisce about those beautiful memories of our journey. And trust me, if you dislike any part of this, it is because of your weird flirting style, understood?" she mock-threatened through the letter, making the salty brine embrace the saccharine smile in a heartrending mix.

He had always told her that love held no place for any of the sins as it transcends above them and remains pure, but he had felt how wrong he was ever since he found her in the condition she was.

Fear had enveloped him since he had left her, anger had throbbed in his heart vehemently at the destiny of bestowing such a cruel fate and his love for forgetting him. Greed for her had menaced him while attachment was churning his insides with pain as she bore no signs of recognizing him. He felt jealous repeatedly, wondering if her lack of memories would make her develop feelings for someone else while fleeting yet burning touches of hers made lust burn him over. And he had the audacity to tell her that love was above all the sins?

He felt destiny and his Vrinda mocking at him as his life came around in a circle. He was ready to lose thousand times over if he could gain his love back, but alas, destiny was not that merciful.

Gulping his emotions down, he continued to read the message left by her.

"Years down the lane, with so many crises and the troubles which life would throw at us, our memory might leave our side. Then, I want this to remind us of every obstacle we have crossed together and bring a smile to our faces. Who knows, this can make 'How I Met Your Father' in the future? Anyway, if you are reading this after our marriage, I want to rub in your face that I kept a secret, but if you found this before our marriage, I'll just say that you have opened this like every secret of mine. Hope you will relive every memory through this and like the idea." it read as he felt choking in his throat at the underlying emotions in every word she had written.

"Forever Yours, Vrinda."

The last line made him desperate to read more, drink in more of her essence. She had been in front of him for weeks, but she was as much of Vrinda as she was not. She was the same woman he had loved and befriended, but not the one he had known. They lost the one he had known in the pages of that book he was holding and his bitter-sweet memories.

He knew that handing over the book to Vrinda would mean that she would realize that she had loved Vivaan and whatever that was growing between him as Vihaan and her would drown in the ocean of love she had harbored for Vivaan. The irony made his lips twist into a sardonic smile. But he would take the risk because he knew that only reading her own words might reach to the Vrinda lying dormant in her subconsciousness and he trusted that in the end, their love would win.

But would it win?