"Healing doesn't mean forgetting.
It means carrying the scars like proof that love survived."
---
Two weeks had passed since Avni returned.
Since she knocked on Mohsin's door and told him —
"This heart still belongs to you… and now, so do I."
But things weren't the same as before.
There were no love confessions.
No promises.
Just… peace.
A quiet peace between two people still learning how to breathe around each other again.
---
Mohsin gave her space.
He made her tea.
He cooked sometimes.
He listened when she said nothing.
And every evening, he left a letter on her table.
Not because he needed her to respond —
But because some things were still stuck in his chest.
---
💌 One Rainy Evening
It rained gently that day.
Avni stood on the balcony, watching droplets race down the glass.
She saw another folded letter near her mug.
This one was titled:
> "The Truth I Never Had the Right to Tell"
Her hands froze.
She knew what was coming.
---
📜 The Letter: "In the Name of Rishi"
> Avni,
This is the letter I should've written 5 years ago.
I told you my name was Rishi.
That I was Hindu.
That I worshipped like you.
I told you that so you wouldn't run away.
I lied because I didn't want to lose the one girl who didn't even look at boys — but accidentally looked at me.
But here's the truth I never said loud:
I loved your faith.
I never wanted you to change for me.
I lied about my name, but I never lied about my heart.
That day, when you walked away…
I let you.
Because I didn't deserve a girl who loved honesty more than comfort.
Rohit gave you honesty.
He gave you safety.
But I gave you love… wrapped in fear.
> I'm not proud of that.
But I still hope —
One day you'll look at Mohsin, not Rishi…
And say, "Even through the lie, I saw the real you."
---
Avni closed the letter.
Hands trembling.
Tears dancing in her eyes.
She turned slowly — Mohsin was standing in the kitchen, pretending not to watch her read.
> "Was that the last letter?" she asked gently.
He nodded.
> "The last secret, yes."
---
She walked toward him, the letter still in her hand.
> "You lied to protect what we had.
And I left to protect what I believed.
But now I know…"
She placed the letter down.
> "Truth and love don't have to fight each other.
They just need to stop hiding."
---
He didn't speak.
He was scared to hope.
But Avni stepped closer, and this time, she took his hand.
> "I don't love Rishi anymore," she whispered.
"But Mohsin?
I think… I never stopped."
---
And for the first time since they'd reunited,
Mohsin smiled.
Not the careful smile he wore every day —
But the one she remembered from five years ago.
---
The past was no longer a wound.
It had finally become a scar — one they both could touch…
without pain.
---