Episode 105: The Breach Between Us
The air was still. Too still.
Aria sat on the hospital bed, Raian's coat draped around her like armor. Her eyes refused to blink, locked on the far wall, yet her mind traced back to that split second when Raian had stood between her and death. The memory of the bullet slicing through air before piercing his flesh made her stomach knot all over again.
He had taken that shot. For her.
The door opened softly. It was Ayan, his eyes shadowed with fatigue, followed by Lina, who clutched a paper bag of food but looked too anxious to speak.
"He's out of danger," Ayan said, his voice calm but hollow. "The bullet missed vital organs. He's in post-op now, but he's stable."
A sob tore from Aria's throat, sharp and unrestrained. Her fingers curled into fists over Raian's coat. "Why would he do that?" she asked no one in particular. "He was supposed to protect me, yes. But not… not like that. Not by putting himself in the line of fire."
Lina placed the food on the side table and gently touched Aria's shoulder. "Because he loves you."
Aria turned, eyes wide and wet. "But he never said it."
Lina smiled faintly. "He doesn't have to."
Silence stretched between them. Aria finally whispered, "I just… I didn't want him to prove it by bleeding for me."
Meanwhile, down the corridor, Raian was still unconscious, but his fingers had begun to twitch. Machines beeped steadily beside him, and Ishaan monitored every reading carefully. "Vitals are improving," he muttered under his breath.
Saira stood beside him, flipping through the chart. "When did you last sleep?" she asked, not looking up.
"Two days ago," Ishaan replied.
"That explains the zombie look," she mumbled. "But you won't collapse on me, will you?"
Ishaan exhaled sharply. "Not until he's up and giving orders again."
Saira glanced at Raian, whose face had softened in sleep, the usual edge of his sharp features dulled by exhaustion and blood loss. "It's strange," she said. "This man could command an army without flinching, yet he'd bleed out willingly for someone he loves."
"Raian was never afraid to die," Ishaan said. "Only afraid to lose."
In the waiting lounge, Ayan sat next to Aria now, the silence stretching between them like a wound. He broke it first. "Do you know why I came back?" he asked softly.
Aria turned to him.
"I didn't come back because I missed the job or the chaos. I came back because I realized Lina was slipping away from me. And this family… this crazy broken family we built... it matters. You matter. Raian matters. Even if we all keep screwing things up."
Aria sniffled, a weak smile creeping through her tear-streaked face. "Is that your way of saying sorry for leaving?"
"No," Ayan said. "That's my way of saying I'm done running."
Lina, who had been quietly observing, leaned against the wall and crossed her arms. "Then prove it."
He blinked. "What?"
"Prove that you're not just here for the heroic comeback. We're tired of disappearing acts."
Ayan stood and walked over to her, brushing her hair behind her ear. "I'll prove it every day. Even when you're annoyed, even when I fail. I'm staying. For good."
For once, Lina didn't roll her eyes. Instead, she nodded. "Then let's start over."
Back in Raian's room, the monitors showed steady progress. Saira touched his wrist gently. "You scared her, you idiot," she whispered. "She loves you like oxygen. And now she's breaking in your place."
As if hearing her, Raian's eyes fluttered open. His vision was blurred, pain radiating through his abdomen, but the first word he managed to mumble was, "Aria…"
Ishaan leaned in. "She's safe. You're safe. You took a bullet again, moron."
Raian blinked slowly, his voice hoarse. "Where... is she?"
"Recovering from watching you nearly die," Saira replied dryly.
Raian tried to sit up, but pain shot through him. Ishaan pushed him gently down. "You're not moving yet. If you bleed again, Aria will probably kill us all."
Raian's gaze searched the room, but the only thing that calmed him was that scent lingering in the air—Aria's. She had been there. She had cried here. He could feel her warmth even in her absence.
Hours later, Aria walked into his room slowly, her hands trembling. The moment Raian saw her, he smiled faintly despite the pain. "I guess I'm bad at protecting you without getting shot."
She didn't laugh. She walked straight to him, sat by the edge of the bed, and touched his face gently. "You nearly died," she whispered.
"But I didn't," he whispered back. "I promised I'd survive for you."
Her tears fell again, one by one, landing softly on his chest. "Stop making me cry, please."
"I can't," he rasped. "Because I keep loving you more each day. And it's not easy for people like me to love without bleeding."
Aria leaned down and kissed his forehead. "Then don't love me like a soldier. Love me like a man who wants to live."
He closed his eyes. "I'm learning. But you'll have to teach me how."
From outside, Lina watched the scene and quietly tugged Ayan's hand. "See that?" she whispered. "That's what fighting for love looks like."
Ayan pulled her close. "Then let's fight too. For us."
In the shadows of a world that had taken so much from them all, these six people—Raian, Aria, Ayan, Lina, Ishaan, and Saira—stood at the edges of their own healing. Not perfect. Not finished. But together.
And sometimes, together was the only place worth bleeding for.
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