A Promise Forever

Chapter 2

Mini

I sat chewing my fingernails in front of my laptop, desperately waiting for the exam results which will be out any second now. So far, I hadn't cracked through even a single one of them but none of it bothered me as it should have. To be honest, I hadn't attempted many of the questions even after knowing the answers well because I didn't want to get through them even by luck.

However, today's one did give my heart a race because this is the only one where I put my whole heart into, the Armed Forced Medical Examination, the one which would take me closer to Ela, Srinagar to be exact.

I had cleared all levels of this exam with more than a decent score. Against my parents' liking, I also convinced them to let me attend the personal interview and fitness test.

Not only my parents would lose their minds if I got selected but they would also bring hell to the ground to stop me from moving to a place that is mostly handled by the paramilitary forces to safeguard it from the militants.

I refreshed the portal like the thousand times I did since this morning but this time though my eyes popped out of their sockets when the final scorecard appeared on the screen with the word 'Selected' in bold green letters.

"Oh my god!!" My hands flew up to cover the screech threatening to spill from my mouth. My energy skipped, overwhelmed with achievement and pride in myself. "I did it! Oh my God! I can't believe this.."

Taking the phone from my desk, I called Navira to give her the good news.

"Hey!!" She drawled sleepily and why not, it was only seven in the morning.

"Guess what.."

"What?" She asked sounding totally uninterested.

"I got through the AFMC exam.." I squealed not able to contain my happiness anymore.

"What!? Oh my god! Really?" I was sure she shot up from her bed on hearing the news, "That's amazing, Mini.."

"Yeah, it really is.." I nodded eagerly.

"Have you told your parents?"

"Not yet, you are the first one to know about it.."

"They are going to lose it.." She remarked, pouring thick fear into my system. Whatever hard work I had done so far was nothing compared to what was to come. I had no idea how I was going to convince them to let me go without implanting the seed of doubt as to why I had to go to a place exactly where Ela is. However, I could also use it to my advantage, convincing them that he would take of me in case I am in danger.

"I am so happy for you, Mini.." Navira made a quick pause before adding, "..but at the same time, I am sad that you will be leaving soon. I will miss you so much, di.."

"I can't tell you how much I am going to miss you, Navi.." Tears blinded my eyes to think that I won't be able to see my best friend as often as now.

"Don't lie to me di, you will be enjoying the time away with your Ela. I will not even cross your mind.."

Her pouty opinion made me laugh, "I will be staying on the college campus, idiot. There is a fair chance that I might not even be able to see him at all.."

"What? Then why do you want to go so far? I thought you wanted to stay close to him.."

"I do but that's as close as I can be with him. At least we both will be living in the same city.." I told her with a soft smile stretching on my lips.

The silence on the other end told me that she'd be baffled by what I just confessed, "I didn't know love can short circuit a person's brain so much.."

After a short silence we both burst out giggling but she was right, my brain was truly short-circuited whenever it came to doing anything with Ela. Not just now, but also my six-year-old brain was crazy enough for having proposed to him in front of my whole family and friends, then my fifteen-year-old, hormonal brain also was crazy to literally have lured me into kissing him.

God, I didn't even want to think about that night but not even a single day passed without me reminiscing the best and worst night of my life. The memory is engraved in my mind even to this day after three years.

I had just had my first period a few weeks back then and I no longer understood myself anymore. I was always this fussy, moody teenager who was in need of something I myself wasn't aware of. Aadhi was staying in a hostel studying engineering and mom and day had a marriage to attend the next day in Pondicherry.

I was left alone with Ela who was working in an MNC at that time. I couldn't level my joy to think I would be spending a night and the following day with him all alone. I spent the previous day planning what to do, what to eat and what to watch. I swear I had no wicked thoughts at that time, it all happened in the spur of the moment.

I wanted to order food from outside but Ela offered to cook dinner. I have to admit, the food he cooked for me was the best I had ever had, or maybe it was because of the fact that he himself cooked it for me with so much love and affection.

After dinner, he took the farthest corner of the couch, creating a huge gap between us like he'd been doing lately. I didn't understand why he did that and I had no intention to acknowledge it. I crawled closer and curled up against his side on the couch like I did all the time we had a movie night with our family. However, when I did he went stiff instantly.

Ignoring his discomfort, I decided we watch an eighties Tamil comedy movie which we both loved. A few minutes into it Ela gradually relaxed and unintentionally or in a brotherly way threw an arm over my shoulders. Even though my eyes were fixed on the TV screen, my mind strangely was fastened to Ela and the natural musk emanating from him. He was laughing at a funny scene from the movie and that throaty laugh of his was my downfall, I would say.

He was so engrossed in the movie and I was so captivated by his toe-curling and enrapturing laughs that I didn't know what I was being sucked into. Without having a second thought about it, I placed my palm on his cheek and leaned in to kiss him.

It was not the first time I had kissed him. I have kissed him before many times like a child would kiss its mother, or like a sister would kiss her brother, or like friends are kissed but this.. this was entirely different as I aimed for his lips, not his cheek. Lips that were too soft, pink and plump for a man like him.

I was wrong if I thought he stiffened when I curled to his side before because this was where he actually stiffened, froze, and almost stopped breathing. Although he felt like an iceberg under my touch, for a teeny tiny fraction of a second, I thought his lips moved against mine but it could be my stupid, stupid hazed brain playing tricks on me, I didn't know for sure.

And in that jiffy of a second that his lips flicked on mine, a fireball ignited in the deepest pit of my tummy. I felt things I had never felt before. That kiss with Ela ruined me for any future men in my life.

However, the next second I knew, he pushed me away harshly with his nostrils flaring and eyes throwing daggers at me.

"What the hell do you think you are doing, Mini?" He got up from the couch and scampered to the remote corner of the living room.

Panic surged through my veins as I tried to close the distance between us, "Ela, I'm.."

"Don't.. Just stay away.." He hissed, making my heart shatter into sharp shards. He had never spoken to me in that tone before and to have experienced it for the first time, killed me, destroyed me utterly.

I understand I should have felt remorseful for breaking my parents' trust in us. The only logical explanation to why they might have left us alone was because they regarded us as brother and sister. They did not have a problem leaving me with Ela, just like they wouldn't have had a problem leaving me with Aadhi. But I let them down and not just that, I also involved Ela in my sin.

And before you can all judge me, Ela and Aadhi are not the same to me. Even if the world sees us as siblings, I never saw him as my brother. I never called him my brother even before I had such intense feelings for him. I remember my mom pressing me to call him 'anna' when I was a baby but I never did. To think of it now, it feels like some divine power warned me not to call him that.

After everything I'd done, I should have felt awful, guilty, or the need to apologize to him but I didn't. It just felt right when I covered his lips with mine. I felt electrocuted by the simple touch and my skin tingled to think about it even now. If I was daring, I would say I wanted more of it but I had to lie to make him calm down.

So I fake apologized to him, "Ela, I'm sorry, da. I didn't know what I was doing.."

I tried to go near him once again, not for any vile reasons this time but to just touch him and calm him down but he put his large hands in front of his. "Go away, Mini before I slap you or do something worse that I will regret for the rest of my life.."

Slap?

Something worse? Like what exactly? Hurt me?

My eyes welled to think that I had pushed him to the point to turn so violent against me.

Great! I just managed to bring the worst out of the kindest, gentlest man I have ever known.

"Ela, let me explain. Please.." I begged.

"Go. To. Your. Damn. Room, Mini.." He growled dangerously making me stumble back on my feet, and without glancing another look at him, I scurried to my room, not to come out for the next twenty-four hours until my parents came back.

I expected him to tell my parents what their precious daughter did in their absence but Ela remained as normal as possible, answering their questions, smiling politely at something my father told him, chuckling at my mom's silly jokes but whenever our eyes met, he turned icily cold making me gulp nervously.

After days of not letting me anywhere close to him and shutting me off, he threw the greatest shock bomb of my life by announcing at one dinner that he wished to join the army. I had absolutely no doubts that he was trying to run away as far away from me as possible.

But why the army? I asked myself a million times. He could have shifted to another city or even another country but no. He decided to put himself in a place where danger and death would always hang above his head and in a way, he was successful in punishing me too.

"Hey, you there.." Navira's voice against my ear planted me back in the present.

Blinking my eyes, I nodded my head foolishly. See this is what I meant when I said my brain synapsis zaps when it concerns Ela.

"Mini.."

"Yeah, yeah, sorry. What were you saying?"

She heaved a long sigh, "That we should make the best of the few weeks left before you go.."

"Absolutely but before that, I need to reveal this to my parents and for that, I need you with me, Navi.."

***

Over breakfast, I had told my parents that I got selected into the Armed force of Medical college in Srinagar and as expected they blinded refused it. Luckily they did not suspect anything else.

"I let one child go to that dangerous place, I am not letting another one too.." That was what my mom said. It was nice and all that she regarded Ela as her child but I didn't want her to. If I want to be married to him in the future, he definitely wasn't her son but I will be damned if I voiced my disagreement.

I didn't argue and kept waiting patiently for the one person who had the power to make my dad bend backward if she wanted to. I heard the sound of the tires coming to a halt, pulling a relieving smile on my face.

"Nilay.." My aunt's voice boomed in the eerie silence of the house.

"Nithi.." Dad made a beeline to the main door with mom trailing behind him. "Thank god, you guys came. Listen for yourself what your crazy niece is suggesting.."

"Hi, athai.." I hugged her and looked at uncle Kavin, who even out of all his busy schedules would always make time for the family whenever needed, "How are you, mama?"

He gave me a warm fatherly smile as Navira came to stand next to me like the pillar that she is, "Mini, I'm good dear. So, what is the reason your father has summoned us here?" He smirked throwing a glance at my dad who looked so pissed at the world around him.

"I got selected for the armed force medical college.." I answered fighting a saucy grin before quickly adding, "The one in Srinagar.."

"Oh boy.." He groaned.

"Tell her how dangerous Srinagar is for commoners, Kavin. And not to mention she has never seen anything outside Chennai, her safe haven.." Dad gritted while attempting hard to suppress his anger towards me.

"Mini, you appa is right. Srinagar can be dangerous.." Uncle Kavin added to my dismay but I had no doubts that he would always choose my dad's side, no matter what. Mom had told me once he and my dad hated each other so much that they were ready to kill each other at the first sight but now they were the best of friends.

"But not always, mama. Tourists always go to Srinagar and come back safe. It's a beautiful and absolutely safe place.." I interjected politely.

"What do you know about the world, Mini. Keep quiet while the elder talk.." My mom reprimanded me.

"Why don't you choose a college somewhere near us, Minmini? Why go so many miles away when you have so many world-renowned medical colleges in Chennai?" My aunt was one of the few people who called me by my full name. She dragged me to the couch probably to try brainwashing me.

"I didn't get through any of the other entrance exams I attempted.." I tried to look innocent and not the conniving girl who had been deliberately plotting it all along. Looking up, my eyes met with Navira's who smirked and glowered at me with a 'really' look. Biting back the smile she was causing me, I gazed down at my fists.

"Hmm.." My aunt nodded, then turned to my dad, "Nilay, if she goes there she will be staying within the campus premises which I have heard is actually as safe as any other place in the country. It's heavily guarded by the military but outside it could be dangerous at times. However, she has no reason to be out of the campus at any time, isn't it Minmini?"

The look that she gave me told me she was suspicious about something but I didn't let her linger on it too much as I nodded to her promisingly, "Yes athai.. I promise I wouldn't leave the campus, no matter what.."

I doubt that I would ever be able to keep that promise though. If I had a chance to meet Ela, I would blindly jump over a wall of that damn campus to see him but they didn't have to know that.

"We can still wait for the results of other exams she's attempted to be released. If we are lucky, there is still a possibility that she gets selected in any one of them.." Uncle Kavin highlighted gaining a nod from my dad.

"This was the last of all those exams, mama and this is my only chance of becoming a doctor like Athai.." I said causing his huge frame to deflate like a balloon.

"So, that leaves us with only two options, either to restrict her or let her chase her dreams. It's your call, Nilay and Roja. She's your daughter after all.." He said.

I took the same moment to get up and perch next to my dad. "Please appa. Let me go. I promise you to be safe all the time.. Please.."

Each second, I could see his resolve slipping away slowly and finally he sighed in defeat, "Fine.."

The moment the word escaped his mouth, I lunged myself at him, "Thank you, appa. Thank you so much.."

"It's a blessing that her brother is posted in Srinagar. He can straighten her, in case she needs to be.." My spine became a stick when my mom brought him up and I had to resist the urge to scream at her to stop calling him my brother.

"Yes, I will talk to him about this when he comes here next week, so he can be her local guardian in case of any emergency.."

Navira winked at me when nobody paid attention to her and that managed to ease the suffocation in my lung.

For the next hour or so they kept discussing the pros and cons of sending me to Srinagar but finally, it was decided that I was going to Srinagar to pursue my dreams.

A/N:

Translation:

di/da - Dear

Anna- Elder brother

Athai- Aunt

Mama- uncle

Appa- dad

Dear Readers,

Here is another update for you guys. Please please leave your comments and feedback. Okay, for your information, AFMC is not in Srinagar. It's actually located in Pune but this is my story, so my rules. Haha just kidding. I changed some facts, I hope you don't mind.

Also, I have posted the pictures of Elamaran and Minmini. If you haven't visited my author page yet, please do it. This is the link to my author page.

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063723828666

Love,

SwaRam