Aarohi's POV
I didn't move for a long time after the call ended.
Just sat there, phone clutched in my hand, staring at the door like it might open on its own.
Like Aryan might walk in and fix this.
Fix me.
But deep down, I knew—this wasn't something he could fix.
I stood slowly, legs still weak, and made my way out of the building. The night air hit my face like a slap. Cold. Real.
And suddenly, everything felt too real.
The silence.
The blood on my shirt.
The weight of everything Reyza had done.
I started walking. No idea where to. Just… away. From that place. From the things I didn't remember but could feel.
Every step brought flashes.
A man screaming.
A gunshot.
Reyza laughing.
I clutched my head, trying to push it back. Trying not to see. Not to know.
But it was like being haunted by your own reflection. She was in me. Around me. Beneath my skin.
And the worst part?
Some part of me didn't hate her.
Some part of me envied her strength.
Her fearlessness.
Her freedom.
She didn't cry in the dark or flinch at raised voices. She didn't need to pretend or apologize or feel small.
She didn't need anyone.
I did.
And that made me hate myself a little more.
My legs kept moving until I reached the edge of a street I recognized. Aryan's place was two blocks away.
I stopped.
Staring down the road like it might swallow me.
If I went to him… what would he see?
Would he see the girl he held that night?
Or the monster who came after?
I pulled my sleeves over my hands and took a deep breath.
I didn't know which version of me he wanted.
I just knew I couldn't keep pretending they were separate.
Because Reyza wasn't just in me.
She was me.
And maybe the scariest part of all…?
Maybe I didn't want her to go.
The first thing I felt was cold.
Not the kind that creeps into your skin, but the kind that seeps into your bones. Into your soul.
I opened my eyes slowly.
Ceiling. Cracked. Water-stained.
Not my room.
My head throbbed—like someone had taken a hammer to my memories.
I sat up, body aching. My hands trembled as I looked down.
Blood.
Not mine.
The smell hit me next. Gunpowder. Smoke. Fear.
My breath caught. "Where…?"
Flashes hit me all at once.
Ropes.
A warehouse.
Aryan's voice.
And then—nothing.
Just… blank.
Like I had been deleted.
"No," I whispered, pressing my palms against my temples. "Not again."
I staggered to my feet, searching the room.
Abandoned office. Broken glass underfoot. A shattered mirror on the wall.
I walked to it, hesitated, and looked.
My reflection stared back.
And something about it made my skin crawl.
Because I couldn't tell if it was me looking back—or her.
"Reyza," I whispered.
And the word tasted like ash.
She had come out again. I knew it. Felt it in my bones. In the silence where my memories should've been.
"What did you do?" I asked the mirror.
But it didn't answer.
It never does.
My legs gave out and I sank to the floor, back against the wall. I wanted to cry, but the tears wouldn't come.
Because deep down, I knew this wasn't over.
She was getting stronger.
Staying longer.
And each time she returned me to myself, there was less of me left.
I pulled out my phone—miraculously still in my pocket.
Ten missed calls.
All from Aryan.
My thumb hovered over the dial.
But what would I even say?
"Sorry I disappeared. Again."
"Sorry I might have killed someone."
"Sorry that the girl you held isn't really me anymore."
I swallowed hard.
And called him anyway.
He picked up on the first ring. "Aarohi?"
My voice cracked. "Aryan… where are you?"
He didn't answer right away.
Then—softly—"Looking for you."
"I think…" I swallowed, glancing back at the mirror. "I think she did something. Something bad."
"I know," he said. "But I'm not giving up on you. Either of you."
The words broke something in me.
"I'm scared," I whispered.
"I know," he said again. "But I've seen her now. And I'm not running."
Neither was she.
And that's what terrified me most.