"It was around that time… you met Shrey. By the lake."
"Remember when you first met him? He was so annoyed, so irritable—God, you should've seen him," Pranay chuckled.
Prakhar smiled too. How could he forget that first meeting by the lake—Shrey's frustration, his cute little tantrums… it was in that very moment that Prakhar had unknowingly lost his heart to him.
"But slowly… he started liking you. Then he began insisting on visiting you. He was a stubborn kid, wouldn't listen easily. So Bhai and I would sneak him out and bring him to you, hiding it from Dad and Arnav."
Now Pranay's tone began to grow serious.
"Back then, things weren't going well at our home. Dad and Arnav used to fight constantly."
He took a deep breath.
"Arnav had a problem with me and Ajit Bhai. In his eyes, only Shrey was his son. But Dad would never abandon us."
Prakhar kept listening silently.
"Things got so tight—Dad had to work outside the house and still manage everything inside. And Arnav… honestly, he didn't care about any of us. Maybe not even about Shrey. All he wanted was a luxurious lifestyle, which Dad couldn't afford."
"Arnav forced Dad to get Shrey into an expensive private school, and out of fairness, Dad got all three of us admitted there. That made Arnav even more resentful. You studied there too, remember? Though you always pretended not to know us… Anyway."
"We were growing up. Our needs increased. School fees, daily essentials—and on top of that, Arnav's tantrums. Constantly threatening to leave the house…"
Pranay's face darkened.
"Dad was overworked but never gave up. Maybe because, in Arnav's absence, at least he was there to watch over us."
"But then… one day, he crossed the line." Pranay's voice began to sting with emotion."Arnav poured hot oil on Ajit Bhaiya. Pretended like it was an accident."
Prakhar's eyes widened in shock.
"But Dad—he was a true officer. He got Bhaiya to tell him everything. And it turned out… it wasn't the first time. Arnav used to beat us regularly. Dad had always known… maybe he just couldn't accept it until then."
Pranay's throat choked, but he continued —
"That day, Dad made a huge decision. He threw Arnav out of the house. Arnav cried, begged… but Dad didn't budge."
After a pause, he said,
"He should've done it long ago. But love is blind. Dad thought Arnav would change. He believed his love would fix him… But when it came down to our safety—he chose to be firm. We were his life. Even a scratch on us was unacceptable to him."
Pranay's face was now firm.
"Arnav tried to take Shrey with him. Maybe he thought Dad would come crawling back. But Dad didn't even let him have Shrey."
"And right after that… you disappeared."
"We three brothers were devastated. Especially Shrey…"
"He liked you a lot. He was just a kid—it wasn't 'love,' but he used to chant 'Champ' all day long. We couldn't handle him anymore. To be honest, it was our selfishness too—visiting you brought us peace. Your silly fights with Shrey… used to make everything else fade. Losing you… felt like losing a lot more."
Prakhar's eyes welled up.
"When Dad found out, he asked us everything. We told him all about you… he tried to find you. But you were gone."
Pranay smiled sadly.
"Meanwhile, Arnav kept finding new ways to harass us. Dad grew tired… and gave up. So we moved back to Kolkata. And that's where… we met Mom—my uncle's widow."
"Her husband had died of cancer. She had no children of her own. Society called her barren, ridiculed her…"
His eyes shimmered.
"Dad married her. And she became our mother."
"So your parents…"Prakhar's voice was barely audible now.
Pranay closed his eyes."A few years later, Arnav came to Kolkata. When he saw Mom and Dad together… he couldn't take it. And in a staged accident, he killed them both."
The room fell into a stunned, heavy silence.
Prakhar spoke slowly, not loudly but with weight —
"So that's why your brother…"
"Yes…" Pranay opened his eyes, now devoid of childishness—he looked like a grown man with scars too deep."To avenge our parents, Bhaiya joined the underworld. And he got Arnav killed. But he never… not once… let Shrey or me go near that world. He was just 20. Old enough to know right from wrong. And we… were just kids."
A pause, then Pranay added softly —
"After Dad died, we three moved to Mumbai. Bhaiya got us into a good hostel. He wanted to keep us away from his dark world—to give us the clean, safe life Dad had dreamed of. But… he lost everything in the process. He became a father to us… but in doing so, he emptied himself. No joy remained in his life."
Tears began falling from his eyes.
Prakhar placed a hand on his shoulder. Pranay leaned into him and whispered —
"And that's not all… what I'm about to say now—maybe you won't know how to react to it. But trust me, my brother wasn't wrong."
Prakhar bent down to look at his tear-streaked face. Pranay handed him a glass of water and said gently —
"If you're not comfortable…"
Pranay shook his head —
"I want to tell you. I know Shrey should've told you this himself. But he never will. And you need to know."
He took a deep breath and began —
"When Shrey and I were in 11th grade, he began realizing… that he was gay. He was attracted to boys. At first, he hated himself for it. But Bhaiya explained—there's nothing wrong with it. Eventually, he understood."
"A lot of girls liked him because of how cute he was. But he wasn't interested in them. There was a senior—Vihaan. He was bisexual. Interested in both guys and girls."
"He started liking Shrey. Slowly, he began hanging out with him more. I thought he was decent, so I didn't stop them. Bhaiya knew too. Then Vihaan began taking Shrey to parties. That's when Bhaiya and I started warning him. But Shrey felt comfortable with him. He even fought with us. And we gave in… he was our little prince."
Pranay's voice shook, but he steadied it and continued —
"Then one night… Shrey came home panicked. His hands were covered in blood. His clothes were stained."
Prakhar sat bolt upright, his breath quickened —"What? Was he hurt…?"
Pranay looked down —
"He wasn't hurt. Actually… he had murdered Vihaan."
Prakhar's eyes widened in shock.