Page 159 of A King's Oath

“Bring me the old Ava any time and I’ll bring the old Samarth to play.”

“What was old Ava like?” She wondered aloud.

“A lot like this one. Only, she sassed a lot more, and yapped like there was no tomorrow.”

“I still yap a lot, don’t I?”

“Not as much as you used to. I still remember Ms. Veda’s words when she punished you to sit beside me — ‘If I let you, you’d talk to the walls, child. What will I do with you?’”

Avantika laughed with him, their bodies so in sync now that even their vibrations matched. And amplified.

“Today felt like we were back to school… even the Badri gang… oh, did you notice something?” She perked up, catching his hand and entwining her fingers with his.

“Harsh and Kirti didi.”

“Yes! They had caught a corner. Do you think…?”

“I don’t know. Ever since Harsh’s divorce, we don’t talk about that topic.”

“What topic?”

“His love life. He is in a weird phase right now. And he has let me rot in my weird phase for years. So I have to return the favour.”

“Hmmm…” she unlocked and locked her fingers with his. “FYI — Kresha hates you with a vengeance.”

“As she should.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll tell her about our plans soon and then make her like you again.”

“It’s alright, Ava. I get her. I get her loyalty to you. For all the taunts you hurl at each other, it is clear how much you both are concerned about each other. I didn’t understand this sibling bond in school — how you both could fight like cats and then team up like you both had come into the world joined at the hips. After Sharan, I understand.”

“You fight with him?”

“Not fight per se. Our age gap is much bigger than yours. But we banter, and disagree pretty violently.”

“Violently?”

“Not in a bloodshed way!” He clarified. “In the WWE on the bed way.”

“Vikram Dada used to give me the Undertaker choke slam and once Kaka Maharaj saw it. Vikram Dada was locked in his room for three whole days. He forgot how to give that choke slam then,” she laughed.

His hand came to her throat and he rubbed the place tenderly, his knuckles soothing something that hadn’t even hurt too bad then.

“You are coming to Paris next week? Confirmed?”

“Yes.”

“It’s becoming a little difficult to live without you now,” she confessed.

“Just a little?”

“Mmm…” her eyes began to fall shut.

“It’s becoming extremely difficult to live without you,” his heavy, solemn words fell into her ears. Her eyes popped open and she smirked. Her fingers trailed down his side and to his balls. Samarth cursed under his breath — “Leave them if you don’t plan to do anything about it.”

She let go and rolled off him, pushing herself under the duvet.

“You can’t sleep already!” His head bent into her neck. “What about our third chukker? You have yet to open your scoreboard.”

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