Page 115 of The Rules of Playing with Fire

He paused to study me.

Yes, I did realize I’d just called him my love, but I chose to underplay it. He ignored it too.

“You’re good with words, Sona,” he said, but there was no bitterness in his tone.

I smiled. “Yes, I am. Are you going to listen to me or huff away again?

“Depends. Are you going to tattle on me to my mom?”

“Most definitely.”

He smiled. “Can you stay a bit longer?”

I blinked and nodded. “I’ll call Aai and let her know.”

While Mihir disappeared into the bathroom, I called my mother.

“I’ll take a taxi back,” I told Aai before I sent Sanjay home in case Aai needed to step out.

I had just ended that call when an unfamiliar number lit up my screen.

“Hello,” I said, half expecting it to be spam. My parents had warned me about the barrage of spam I’d receive, but I always answered in case it was someone I knew. Old habits.

“Sona?” a vaguely familiar voice said. “This is Malati. Sonavane.”

“Yes!” I said and looked around for Mihir. He was still in the bathroom.

“Look, I didn’t want to get your hopes up, especially that Mihir person’s, but when you mentioned notes, I couldn’t help myself. I pulled out the old trunk where we put my father’s things after he passed and found his notebooks. He used to be very protective of them when I was younger.”

“Yes?”

“It’s a list of sorts. Can you come over tomorrow around the same time? You can see if it’s useful to you.”

“I’ll be there. Thank you so much! Thank you,” I said. “You’ve really given him hope.”

I debated if I should go to Malati’s alone. If the lead was a dead-end, I could spare Mihir the angst and heartache. If it amounted to something, I could share the information with him.

“What are you thinking?” Mihir emerged dressed in a comfortable T-shirt and sweatpants.

“Nothing. How did you know I was thinking?”

“You have a slight frown on your forehead, and you nibble at your bottom lip when you think.” He lay down on the bed.

“How are you feeling?” I asked.

He nodded. “You can lie down if you like. It’s a big bed.”

I removed my shoes and climbed in with him. “You had no reason to push me away, Mihir. We could’ve figured it out together.”

“Yes, unfortunately, hindsight is a crisp twenty-twenty.” He held my hand as we lay on our backs, gazing at the ceiling. “Thank you for holding up the mirror to me, Sona. I was right—it is difficult to come to terms with the reality of one’s dire situation.”

“I’m sorry you had to go through this.” I sighed. “I really hope you find her, Mihir and I hope you go in with gratitude, not shame. Don’t give the moralistic world the power to define who you are.”

He rolled on his side to face me and put his hand in mine again. “You have no idea what these couple of days have meant to me. I have you to thank for it all.”

“You don’t need to thank me. You once restored my faith in love, and I’m reinstating yours in life. Cast away all doubt. Life is beautiful.”

“It was beautiful with you in it.”

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