Even stone knows how to protect the flame
Setting: Rooftop of Aarif's Home. Midnight.
The city breathes slowly beneath a starlit sky.
Aarif stands alone on the rooftop, hoodie clinging to his tall frame, a soft breeze tugging at his hair.
But his heart… it's loud. Restless.
His eyes stare far into nothing — but inside him, Aahi's face is everywhere.
> "I thought you were a nice girl…"
> "You're just like him…"
His own words echo in his mind like poisoned arrows.
> "Why did I say that?" he mutters, clenching the railing.
He rubs his face, his jaw tense, throat dry.
> "What if she never forgives me?"
Suddenly, something below catches his eye — a woman. Thin. Unmoving. Curled up near the sidewalk bench outside a closed flower shop.
Bare feet. Torn shawl. Her hand clutches her chest faintly.
Without thinking, he bolts down the stairs.
---
🛣️ Scene: Street Outside, 12:22 AM
Aarif kneels beside the woman.
She's unconscious but alive — skin pale, sweat on her brow, lips cracked.
She doesn't look older than her mid-thirties.
There's something... peaceful and strange about her face, even in pain.
> "Ma'am? Hey, can you hear me?"
"Please—just hold on, okay?"
No response.
He scoops her up in his arms — surprisingly light — and dashes to the nearest hospital, barely catching a rickshaw.
---
🏥 Scene: City General Hospital
Aarif slams money at the counter.
> "Emergency. She needs help now."
The nurses rush her in. He follows, heartbeat thundering.
---
🛏️ Hospital Room, 2:10 AM
Aarif sits beside the bed. The machines beep softly. The woman is sleeping now, stabilized.
He leans back in the chair, hands on his face.
> "You don't even know her, idiot. Why do you always end up like this?"
He chuckles softly, bitterly.
His phone vibrates.
A message from Shine:
"Red's still weird. You okay?"
He puts the phone away.
> Why do I feel… connected to her?
Then, her fingers twitch.
He looks up — startled.
Her eyes flutter open slowly.
Golden brown eyes… glowing faintly in the dark.
---
🌠 Scene: Awakening
Eela looks around. She sees Aarif.
Smiles.
Softly.
Mysteriously.
> "It's you…"
Aarif blinks.
> "Me?"
> "The boy with fire behind his guilt."
Aarif leans forward, confused.
> "Are you okay? Should I call the doctor—?"
> "You saved me," she whispers. "And yet… it is I who came to guide you."
> "What?"
Eela slowly lifts her hand, places it gently over his.
> "There are stars watching over your path. One of them burns brighter than the rest…"
She smiles faintly.
> "A girl with flames in her eyes."
Aarif's heart skips.
> "You mean…"
But before he can finish — her eyes flutter again. Her voice softens like smoke.
> "This… is not the first time we've met. Not truly."
> "Wait—what are you talking about?"
Aarif leans forward, confused, shaken.
She smiles.
> "A spirit only awakens when two fires are ready to merge."
Then…
She faints again — softly — falling into deep sleep.
---
💡 Scene: Outside Her Room — 3:00 AM
Aarif steps out, pacing slowly in the hospital corridor.
His fingers brush the back of his neck.
> "Who was she?"
> "What did she mean?"
He looks at his palm — he didn't notice it earlier, but there's a faint warm shimmer where her hand touched his.
A shape.
A symbol?
It fades quickly.
He stands frozen.
> "This isn't normal."
He walks to the window.
Looks at the stars.
One seems to glow slightly more golden than the others.
He whispers…
> "Aahi…"
Setting: Early morning. Hospital Room 305.
Aarif walks into the hospital room holding a cup of tea for the woman he saved.
But—
The bed is empty.
The sheets folded neatly.
IV line removed.
He freezes.
> "Nurse?"
The nurse walks past, barely glancing up.
> "Oh, the woman from the roadside? She left. Quietly. Said she didn't want to trouble anyone."
Aarif blinks, stunned.
> "She just… left?"
> "Didn't even wait to check out."
Aarif walks slowly into the room, eyes scanning for any sign.
And then… he sees it.
A small bracelet, lying on the side table.
Made of dark stone beads — smooth, round, some cracked with age, yet radiating a strange strength.
Wrapped around it — a torn scrap of parchment.
He picks it up and reads, silently.
---
> "To the boy who carries fire in silence…"
"I wish I had words to thank you. But I cannot."
"So I leave this instead — a small piece of something I once was."
"I made it myself. Or so I say."
"Keep it close. Even stone knows how to protect the flame."
— Eela.
---
Aarif stares at the note.
Then down at the bracelet.
His fingers close around it slowly.
The stones feel warm… though no sunlight touches them.
> "Even stone knows how to protect the flame…"
He turns toward the window.
The sky has begun to lighten.
But he doesn't feel lighter.
He feels… changed.
> "Who was she?"
"And what is this?"
Still, he gently slips the bracelet onto his wrist.
It fits perfectly.
And just for a second…
He swears he hears something faint:
> "…I see you, bearer of the rock…"
He jolts slightly.
Looks around.
No one's there.
---