Chapter 68

68 The Warm Hug

Kyung-Soo was not ready for such a heavy story. She kept crying, sobbing, smiling at different parts of the story but Kyung-Soo just kept staring at her and listening to her heart-wrenching story. She was right, he had no idea what heartbreak was. Even though his break-up exerted a toll on him but not like hers exerted a toll on her.

Kyung-Soo closed the distance between him and Nivritti and placed his hands around her shoulder. Her tears were continuously streaming down her face. The moment he touched her, she melted. She contorted her face and immediately covered her face with her palm. She could not control herself and started sobbing loudly.

He moved even closer and enclosed her in his arms. She rested her forehead on his chest and kept sobbing. The warm, soft shirt of his was comforting her just like his warm hug. Since the day she arrived in Korea, she has been crying in his arms, on his cashmere shirt.

For hours, Kyung-Soo held her, letting her cry on his chest. He didn’t say a single word. He didn’t try to provide her with words of comfort as he had no idea what to say. He had no idea what one would say after hearing all the hardships she had to endure.

The words that came out of her mouth were like daggers to his heart. He wanted to search for that man and kill him for hurting her. He could not even endure seeing tears in her eyes but was looking at her sobbing her eyes out because of a moron.

He was angry at him as he kept harassing her even after he was married. What kind of person he was? Why can’t he leave her alone? Didn’t he punish her enough just for loving him? Even if his parents didn’t approve of her, why didn’t he have the audacity to come and talk to her?

He was disgusted by Ritvik as he was the first who approached her, he was the first who showed interest in her and after she gave everything to him, he just discarded her from his life as if she meant nothing to him. It was a hard concept for Kyung-Soo to grasp how could someone treat her the way he treated her.

Here, in Korea, everyone fell in love with her, with her brain, with her cuteness, with her intelligence, with her kindness. This kind of person does not deserve the things she saw yet life was a nightmare just a few months ago. What kind of monster was Ritvik?

Wait! She said that she didn’t change her number after coming to Korea and she would regret it. But he distinctly remembered that she said that she was having a problem with her Indian sim when Korain asked for her number. What was the problem? Or she lied? Did he call her again? Was that the regret?

.....

“Ritti?” he interrupted. He could no longer see her cry. He had to divert her mind. But Nivritti said nothing, she just kept her head hidden in his chest, leaning on the soft fabric of the shirt.

“You changed your number because he called you here, right?” he asked softly. Nivritti shook her head in yes and slowly raised her head to look at him.

Her eyes and nose were blood red. Her swollen eyes were hot to the touch. He wiped her tears from her hot cheeks.

“I am sorry that you had to endure all that. You are very brave, very courageous,” praised Kyung-Soo.

“Huh...” scoffed Nivritti. “So courageous that I had to seek therapy.”

“Acknowledging that you need help, is the highest from of bravery. Not everyone can do that. You realised that you needed help, and you went to your parents, even though they were not talking to you, that is bravery,” explained Kyung-Soo sweetly.

Nivritti closed her eyes and tears fell from her eyes.

“Hey! Stop crying. You are free of everything now. This is your new start. A new start that you started with a scold,” teased Kyung-Soo. Nivritti chuckled at his tease. Kyung-Soo sighed with relief after hearing her chuckle.

“Ritti?”

“Yes,” she replied.

“Are you safe? Do you need to hire someone to keep you safe?” asked Kyung-Soo, worried.

“What? Like a bodyguard,” sniffled Nivritti. She was done crying but her throat and her nose were still runny and choked.

“Something like that,” said Kyung-Soo.

“Let’s go inside. I am feeling cold,” Nivritti changed the topic. She stood up and went inside her living room. Kyung-Soo followed her after closing the balcony door. She sat on the long couch and he chose to sit in front of her in one of the chairs.

“Are you okay now? Do you need a blanket or a shawl?” he inquired.

“I am fine, thank you,” she smiled sadly at him.

“You didn’t answer my question,” he pressured her.

“NK! I don’t need a bodyguard,” she replied.

“You have been successful in avoiding him till now, what if he approaches you and you won’t be able to dodge him?” he questioned.

“No one knows where I am, not even my family. I have changed my number and I don’t have any presence on social media. I don’t think this time he will be able to find me,” she replied with determination.

“Do you want my help to find a therapist?” he asked.

“No, I am fine,” she replied.

“Ritti!” he stared at her with raised eyebrows.

“I wanted to find one the day TK scolded me. But I had work to do, so I threw myself into work. And after that day I have been busy, and you know what happened today. I just didn’t get the time to search for a therapist,” she answered.

“No, no, no, that is not an acceptable excuse. You need to take care of your mental health,” he scolded her.

“Well, I almost searched for a therapist one day,” she said remembering the day she dreamed of both Kyung-Soo and Ritvik but was not ready to tell him that she had dreams about him.

“Why? What happened?” he asked, concerned.

She realised that she dug her own grave. What was she going to tell him? She decided to tell him the half-truth. “One night I dreamed about Ritvik visiting me and I almost had a heart attack.”

“I am sorry that you had no one to talk to about all this but now I am here, whenever you want you can call me. And also, thank you for sharing everything with me,” he expressed his gratitude.

“You forced me to tell you, you idiot! You practically twisted my arm in telling you. You sat there in protest,” she mocked him and pointed at the floor where he sat while protesting.

“I needed to know,” said Kyung-Soo. His eyes were full of guilt.

“Well, now you know,” replied Nivritti, casually.

“So, you think that because he was younger than you, all that happened to you?” asked Kyung-Soo.

“Of course, because he was younger, he thought life was all about having fun and living life without any responsibility. If he would have been mature, he would not have sulked about my promotion, he would not treat me as his possession. Jealousy is one thing but trying to control someone’s life is another. Reacting the way, he reacted after the news of the pregnancy was the ultimate sign of chauvinism and immaturity. Well, I too was an idiot for cheating on him...” said Nivritti.

But Kyung-Soo shouted and interrupted her, “okay that’s enough.”

Nivritti was taken aback. She thought he grew bored of her constant crying and sob story but what he said next made her gasp and warmed even the coldest core of her heart.

“First of all, stop feeling bad for your one-night stand. There is nothing wrong with sex or having multiple sex partners. Second, you didn’t cheat on him. The night you went out he broke up with you. His parents said no to your relationship, and he called you to end everything. You know what he was going to tell you on the phone, he was going to tell you that he was getting married.

“For the whole month that you waited for him, he was going on blind dates with girls that his parents were setting for him and finally he said yes to one and called you to tell that. He abandoned you after your abortion, the saddest day of your life and your promotion, the happiest day of life, to go and find a wife for him.

“But that idiot was not even satisfied after marriage, he still wanted to make your life miserable. He could not ever see you happy. He wants to own you again, just like you said, for him, you were just a possession whom he tried to woe on the very first day of his college. Finally, he got you and then he took you for granted. When he lost you, he wanted to possess you again.

“That asshole is not thinking about his wife, his family, her family, you, or your life, he is just thinking about things that he could have but doesn’t have, and he wants it on any condition. You are the one that got away and he hates that.

“I am with your parents on this one. You should file a complaint against him. If he is not thinking about his wife, then why should you? You are too kind, you need to get a little cunning.

“Ohh, now I am getting mad at you. When it was about saving another girl, you were ready to take those men down. You used your sharp wit and brought down so many people today, you even fought with your whole department, but when it comes to you all you know is how to cry and run away. What are you, an idiot?” slowly Kyung-Soo was getting angry at her.