Chapter 14: When Silence Hurts Louder

Days passed. The air in the penthouse had changed — colder, heavier. Veeresh had started distancing himself again. No more shared coffee. No more smiles. No more casual touches.

Poornima felt it all — every inch of the distance he created. Every moment he avoided her gaze. Every time he looked like he wanted to speak but walked away instead.

She finally broke one evening, standing at the door of his study as he poured himself another glass of whisky.

> “How long?” she asked, her voice trembling. “How long do you want me to keep proving myself, Veeresh?”

He didn’t answer. Just stared at the amber liquid swirling in his glass.

> “You say you need me. You hold me close at night. You kiss me like I’m your home. And then you vanish into silence like I never existed,” her voice cracked. “What is it this time? What is it that I’ve done again?”

Veeresh didn’t even look at her. He just drank. One sip. Then another. The pain in his eyes too raw, too buried.

Poornima turned away, her heart breaking, tears threatening to spill. She walked to the bedroom, the place that once brought her warmth… now felt colder than winter.

She sat on the edge of the bed and cried.

Softly.

Silently.

As if she were apologizing for something she didn’t even do.

Inside the study, Veeresh clutched the glass so tightly it shattered. But he didn’t feel the blood this time. Only the ache inside his chest.

And then… he walked into the bedroom. Staggering slightly from the alcohol. But his eyes were locked on her.

She didn’t look up.

Without saying a single word, he pulled her toward him. Tight. Desperate. A kind of need that words could never explain.

And then — he kissed her.

Deep. Raw.

Like a man searching for redemption in the one person he knew he didn’t deserve.

Poornima froze at first. But then… she let him.

Because she could taste the sorrow in him.

The kiss turned slower, quieter. He buried his face into her neck, his breath uneven.

> “Nothing,” he finally whispered, voice hoarse. “There’s nothing wrong. I just… don’t know how to handle this. You. Us. Me.”

Tears formed in her eyes again as he hugged her tight and collapsed onto the bed beside her, holding her like a lifeline.

She didn’t push him away.

Because she felt his tears falling on her shoulder — silent, broken tears he didn’t want her to see.

> And still, she let him cry there.

He eventually drifted to sleep, his arms still locked around her.

Poornima stayed awake, staring at the ceiling.

> “What am I supposed to do with this kind of love?” she whispered into the dark.

And yet… she held him tighter.

Because sometimes love isn’t pretty.

Sometimes it bleeds and aches and cries.

But she was still there.

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