Chapter 30 – When the Past Comes Knocking
Some ghosts don't wear sheets.
They wear smiles.
And walk in like they never left.
—
It started with a message request.
Mehar was painting in her studio when her phone pinged. She picked it up absentmindedly, brushing hair away from her face, still streaked with Holi's leftover colors.
"Hey Mehar. It's been a while. Mind if we catch up?"
— Kiaan
Her heart skipped.
Kiaan. Her first love. Her almost-something. Her what-if.
—
She didn't reply immediately.
Not because she was unsure.
But because she was… unsettled.
It had taken her years to outgrow what Kiaan left behind.
The hurt. The self-doubt. The way he left without closure.
And now here he was. Casual. Confident. Like no time had passed.
—
Later that evening, she told Aarav.
"I got a message," she said, her tone neutral.
He was lying on the couch, reading. He looked up.
"From?"
"Kiaan."
A beat passed. "What did he say?"
"He wants to meet. Just to talk. Catch up."
Silence stretched.
"Do you want to?" Aarav asked finally.
Mehar hesitated. "I don't know. Maybe... for closure?"
Aarav nodded slowly. "Okay."
That's all he said.
No arguments. No accusations.
Just trust.
And that made her love him even more.
—
The next afternoon, Mehar met Kiaan at a café near her old college.
He looked the same—older, perhaps, a little more put together. But the same spark in his eyes. The same easy charm.
"I heard about your Goa exhibition," he said. "You were always meant for bigger things."
"Thank you," she said, polite but guarded.
"I was an idiot," Kiaan said suddenly. "Back then. Walking away from you like that. I didn't know what I wanted. I just... wasn't ready."
Mehar sipped her coffee. "You could've said that instead of disappearing."
He sighed. "I didn't have the courage. But I've thought about you. A lot."
She met his eyes. "I haven't."
—
Later that night, she told Aarav everything.
From the way Kiaan looked regretful, to how she felt absolutely nothing—no old pull, no lingering questions.
"Meeting him was like walking through a museum of memories," she said. "Beautiful once, but I didn't want to stay."
Aarav smiled faintly. "So it's over? For good?"
"It was over a long time ago. Today just proved it."
He leaned in, brushing his lips against her temple. "Thank you for telling me."
"Thank you for trusting me."
—
Not every chapter from the past needs to be reopened.
Some are best left sealed.
And some—
Are meant to remind you just how far you've come.
—