Lag Jaa Galey

The ghost of What could have been

**Chapter Twenty Nine: The Ghost of What Could Have Been**

Riya's heart raced as she hurried through the crowded streets, desperate to leave the city that held too many memories, too much pain. The encounter at the funfair had shattered her, and she had no intention of crossing paths with Kabir again. She had spent too many years waiting for him, only to see him happy with someone else. She couldn't bear the thought of staying any longer, watching from afar as he built a life without her.

But fate had a different plan.

As she turned a corner, lost in her thoughts, she collided hard into someone’s chest. Her feet tangled, and she felt herself falling backward. Before she could hit the ground, strong arms caught her, pulling her close to prevent her from tumbling to the pavement. For a brief moment, she was enveloped in warmth, in a familiar scent that made her heart stop.

She looked up, and there he was.

Kabir.

Her breath hitched, and her eyes filled with tears. She tried to step back, but his grip on her waist tightened, as if he couldn’t bear to let her go.

“Please stop,” Kabir whispered, his voice thick with emotion. “Don’t go.”

Riya blinked, her heart hammering in her chest. “Why?” Her voice cracked. “What’s left now, Kabir? What could possibly be left?”

Kabir’s eyes bore into hers, filled with a desperation she hadn’t seen before. “Because I love you, i***t,” he said softly, his words tumbling out in a rush. “I always have.”

Riya froze, her world spinning. “What? I… I can’t believe what you just said.” She shook her head, trying to comprehend the weight of his words. “I’ve been waiting for ages to hear that, and… and to say it back. I love you too, stupid.”

Kabir’s face softened, his grip on her waist loosening as relief washed over him. “Seema isn’t my girlfriend,” he said, his voice trembling. “She’s just a friend. She was there for me after… everything, but I never loved her. I waited for you, Riya. All this time, I waited for you.”

Riya let out a soft sob, overwhelmed by everything she had been carrying for so long. “I’ve waited too. Kabir, I thought… I thought you were happy with her. That I was too late.”

Kabir shook his head, his thumb brushing away the tears that spilled down her cheeks. “No. I’ve only ever been waiting for you.”

Riya took a shaky breath, forcing herself to speak the truth she had been holding back for years. “Shekhar isn’t my husband. He’s my brother. And that little boy you saw with me? He’s my nephew. I’m not married. I never wanted to be with anyone else.”

Kabir stared at her, his jaw clenching as he realized how much time they had lost because of their assumptions. “It doesn’t matter anymore,” he whispered. “Let’s just be together now. No more waiting.”

Riya smiled through her tears, a bittersweet mix of relief and sadness washing over her. “Yes. I love you, Kabir.”

“And I love you too.”

They stood there, locked in each other’s arms, letting years of pain and longing melt away. In that moment, nothing else mattered but the love they had finally confessed to each other. The world around them faded, and for the first time in years, they felt complete.

**But that was only a dream. A wish. A 'K-A-A-S-H.'**

That was the ending they both desired. The perfect fantasy, the moment of reunion that would have righted all the wrongs, erased all the misunderstandings, and given them the happy ending they deserved.

But reality was crueler than fantasies.

In truth, Riya and Kabir never collided on that street. They never got the chance to say the things they had kept inside for so long. They both walked separate paths, too afraid to reach out, too afraid to risk breaking the fragile happiness they thought the other had found.

Kabir convinced himself that Riya was happily married with a family, while Riya convinced herself that Kabir had moved on with Seema. Neither of them had the courage to speak up, to ask the questions that would have revealed the truth. They let the silence between them fester, and their misunderstandings became insurmountable walls that neither of them could break down.

Riya left the city, heartbroken and resigned to the fact that Kabir was no longer hers to love. She continued her life, always carrying the weight of the love she never got to fully express, and the happiness she thought she could never reclaim.

Kabir, too, went on with his life, but the void left by Riya never truly healed. Seema remained a loyal friend, but Kabir’s heart was never hers. It was always with Riya, the girl he had loved since school, the girl he thought he could never have again.

Years passed, and though their lives moved forward, the ghost of their love lingered, haunting them both in quiet moments. Neither found the closure they sought, because deep down, they had never stopped loving each other. Misunderstanding had stolen their chance at happiness, and they allowed it to.

Their love remained alive, hidden beneath layers of what-ifs and missed chances. They loved each other fiercely, but in the end, they let fear and assumption guide their choices.

And so, the happy ending they had once dreamed of remained just that—a dream.

Riya and Kabir’s story was not one of fairy-tale endings or perfect reunions. It was a story of love lost to time, to silence, and to misunderstanding. A story of what could have been, but never was.

Because sometimes, love isn’t enough to overcome the distance we create with our own fears.