Chapter 160 - 159 I am never going to forgive you if you break that promise.

"Oh, yea… wait for your punishment too… You are not getting away this easily after hiding something so major from everyone by the way!! Everyone is really pissed!! Especially Akash and Zack!! Me too… I am just letting it go for now because you seemed like a battered puppy…" Anand dropped the bomb before exiting the room.

Shreya fell back into the bed with a thud exasperated and tired. She did not know how she could feel tired after sleeping almost for the better part of her day!

Anand exited the room only to find Charan sitting there on the floor in the deserted corridor just beside the door. He was sitting there with his knees bunched in the front and a helpless face. Anand carefully closed the door fully and asked Charan, "Did you hear everything??"

Charan walked out of the room really out of it. But after storming through two corridors, he realized there was no one else to look after her. So he walked back to the room only to hear her talking to Anand. Because the door was not fully closed, he could clearly hear each and every word she uttered.

He was completely clueless as to how to deal with her. He felt absolutely helpless. He felt as if the only way for him to help her would be to actually leave her as she requested no matter how much it tore him to do it.

"I heard enough!!" Charan replied running both his hands over his face.

"Go, talk to her. I know she wouldn't be sleeping any time soon tonight!!" Anand said ruffling his head.

"What's the point of talking?? Do you think I have much of a choice after hearing everything she just said??" Charan asked with a frown.

"But walking away now without talking might do more damage than good!!" Anand said and left after giving him a sad smile.

Charan sat there for a second gathering his thoughts before getting up from the floor. He quietly opened the doors and peeked in. Shreya was lying on the bed staring at the ceiling. her eyes averted to the doors as soon as she heard the door click. And slowly sat up when she found Charan walk in. She looked at him with her eyes wide and teary. She looked broken to pieces somehow.

Charan couldn't stay mad after seeing her like this especially after listening to her talk to Anand. He approached her while she automatically wrapped her arms around him. Her hot tears drenched his neck and she apologized, "I'm sorry… I shouldn't have said that. You are not a passing affair Charan. I promise… I just… Hic… I was just… hic…"

She had hiccups while crying making it hard to talk.

"Shhh…" Charan shushed her lifting her off the bed and cradling her in his arms. Shreya wrapped her arms and legs around him tightly as she kept saying, "I… hic… didn't mean… hic… to… hurt you… sorry… hic…" She knew too well what she said was not fair to anybody around her but she couldn't dictate the way she felt or the way bad thoughts consumed her sometimes.

"Shh, sweetheart. It's okay. Stop talking now okay?? Shh…" Charan tried to calm her down while simultaneously patting on her back trying to get her hiccups under control. He sat on the bed with her in his laps and wiped away her tears as they fell.

But Shreya did not calm down no matter what he said. Tears just kept on piling while her mouth kept mumbling apologies between hiccups and wiping away tears.

Charan couldn't take it anymore. He crashed his lips against hers, at last, making her shut up. He could clearly taste her salty tears as he gently kissed her. His lips were so soft against hers as if he was coaxing her. And Shreya slowly drowned in his lips effortlessly.

He let go of her lips only when he felt her calm down in his arms. He pulled away to see her swollen and blotched eyes and slightly red lips.

Charan knew better than anyone how serious she was with this relationship. There was never a single second where she had been half-assed with him or Akira���. From the very first moment, she met them she gave them her everything without holding back. She never once fumbled with her words when she expressed her feelings for him. She never hid anything from him. She showed him everything about herself… her innocence and her darkness… so bravely. That too without him ever asking her anything. And he knew a person having a passing affair never does that.

But the reality was just being cruel at the moment for them… He did not want to stay away from her.

She was like a sea of elixir and he drowned in her so effortlessly… and even when it suffocated him… he did not have the heart to struggle. That's how much absolute was his feelings for her. But he couldn't deny her either. Not when she looked at him with those eyes pleading without words begging him to understand.

Shreya leaned over and wiped her tears and nose in his shirt.

"Go ahead and help yourself… It's not like there is a box of tissue just beside you…" Charan murmured sarcastically.

Shreya looked back at the table beside the bed and found a box of tissue lying around but then answered very innocently, "It's okay. I don't need it. I am done!!"

At last, a small smile crept into Charan's face uncontrollably. He raises his own sleeves and wiped away some of the spots she had missed and asked softly, "You okay now??"

Shreya bobbed her head still sniffling slightly. Charan gave her some water which she gulped down quietly.

Both of them stayed quiet after that. Shreya leaned over and nuzzled into his chest. She knows she was going to miss both of them so terribly that it's going to feel as if someone had punched all the air out of her lungs but she made up her mind. So she would do it whatever comes.

"I just need some time Charan. It's just going to be for a short while. I promise. I would stop everything if I could. But I am in too deep already. Leaving it as is going to become more complicated. Once I am done, I will come back to you, I promise…" Shreya said softly breaking the silence.

"You will keep yourself safe??" Charan asked doubtfully. Nothing else mattered. What she does or how she does… he did not care as long as she could come back to him safe and sound.

"Nothing will happen to me. I promise!!" She said solemnly.

"I am never going to forgive you if you break that promise!!" Charan said embracing her all over again. "I am going to miss you…" He said nuzzling against her neck.

"Me too… You don't tell anything to Akira. I will talk to her… I will explain it to her…" Shreya replied.

"Okay…" Charan agreed readily. After all, he was clueless about how to explain this situation to his parents and Bharath let alone Akira. Akira will eat him alive before he could even finish his explanation.

"I am sorry to put you guys through this!!"

"It's okay… When we get back together it won't matter…" Charan replied with a sad smile.

"Come on. I will let someone drop you home!!" Shreya said pulling away.

"What?? You are kicking me out now!!??" Charan complained.

"Charan…" Shreya called out exasperated.

"Just 5 minutes… please… just 5 minutes more…" Charan begged, hugging her closer desperately like a little kid throwing a tantrum to avoid going to school.

After another 10 minutes, Charan, at last, pulled away from her even though everything in him was begging him to stay with her. He gave her one last lingering kiss before walking out of the doors.

Shreya's eyes teared up all over again as she curled herself into a ball in the hospital bed!!

Shreya discharged herself overnight from the hospital once she calmed down slightly and reached her apartment. She did not like being in hospital… especially alone. But then her apartment was not any more inviting to her right at that moment.

She deposited two phones on the night side table and curled up into the bed. A slight warmth washed over her as she smelt his familiar scent on her bed. A lone tear escaped and fell on the bed as she fell asleep at last exhausted.