I switched my Q back on, to download a couple of things. There were hardly anything left, some pack of noodles, a few shoes that I wanted to wear in 2069, many packets of coffee luckily, and only 3 bars of dark chocolate and a few other things here and there.

'Never mind, I hardly have a few months more to go'.

And this voice of realization brought a wave of despair along with it.

How will I leave this world?

Maybe one day I'll go to sleep and next morning, they won't find me. Not even a trace of my existence and Neel will be left to wonder if all of it was just his imagination.

Maybe one day I will die in this world, and perish for good.

Maybe I'll suddenly wake up to realize all this was my imagination, and that I am still in that history lecture where they are teaching about King Neel. What if that's the case. What if this is actually my dream, an imagination, a hallucination.

I knew I was crying.

I was pulled out of my trail of thoughts by a loud knock on the door. I immediately shut my Q tab and hid it, and went ahead to open the door, for him.

He was standing tall, looking down at me in pure awe. He held my face as if I were fragile enough to break if he puts any more effort. As if I was the most precious thing he ever held.

"what's up?" I was blushing, my voice went weak, just like my knees did.

He knows I am crying?

"Nothing." He said quietly and offered the faintest smile possible.

"Oh wait, this is the first time you're entering my room isn't it?" I got the reference for his weird behavior. He nodded, without looking anywhere else.

"You want to come in?" I asked nervously. I don't know what he would interpret it as.

"Not now. Yug and Aarini are waiting downstairs. Shall we go?" he said.

"Yes!"

I started to walk, with him holding my hand and leading the dark pathway.

"oh wait" he abruptly stopped, making me stop in return and swiftly turned back to pull me close. He held me firmly against his broad chest.

It was a silent pathway. So silent that I am sure he could hear my heart thump attempting to jump out of my chest. This was so sudden, so unexpected, so beautiful.

He kissed the top of my head, inhaling the scent of my hair, and lingering his lips around for a while not wanting to pull off.

Not going to lie, it was the same for me. My hands, so tiny as compared to his huge back, still attempted to touch every inch possible, even through the thick royal fabric.

I closed my eyes, wanting to forever be there, just like that.

Was it too much to ask for?

"Let's go." He said quietly, pulling away himself, leaving me cold.

I still held on to the fabric, his sleeve, as we covered the rest of the path, controlling our hormones.

The table was occupied with chatters and guffaws and stories and magic and nevertheless, love. I wish I could store this, not just in my memory.

To be honest a part of me was even doubtful, what happens when I go back, will my memories remain intact in the first place?

Ahh I wish I knew any better, but I am thankful I don't. Knowing everything kind of spoils it for us.

---

More than a month passed by, just like that. I am losing days.

It was the most peaceful month in the central palace. I was living my best days. I was more than happy around Neel.

Shravya had gotten hint about us, maybe more than a hint, but she dared not say anything because no one else was saying anything either. The king's father, Yug, Aarini, all of them knew what has been cooking here, and they were really okay with it, if not happy.

Also Shravya learnt, or atleast pretended to, that she was okay with her daughter's choice of the groom. There was nothing she could do about it anyway.

---

I would spend evenings, either going on a walk with Neel, or just sitting in the royal palace, witnessing various artists coming from time to time to perform their dances, or sing a song, which was more like a prayer, and sometimes magic.

Although roaming in the market, witnessing regular lives of the humans here was still my favorite thing to do; going outside of palace to roam with Neel attracted of lot of attention and gave zero privacy whatsoever. He had to take his guards along, and therefore I had to behave well, which I wasn't very good at most of the times.

So I just skipped that part and roamed in secluded corners of the palace, sometimes the garden, sometimes his chambers, sometimes here and there, where we could just be present for each other. And trust me that was my favorite part of the day.

Concluding the day with him.

There were times I wanted to spend the night together with him too, and I am sure he would have guessed it, and perhaps wanted the same thing, given how reluctant we were to go back to our quarters after the sun had set. Nevertheless I never had the guts to even put forth this demand of mine.

I had secretly made him several packet of coffee or that syrup as he likes to call it. I made it one at a time so that he gets it, whenever he demands, atleast for as long as I am here.

We were intimate enough to share the same vessel of coffee, and that was one of the most exciting thing that we had started doing .

It was one day, when I had accidentally dropped my cup of coffee and going back to kitchen just to make another cup seemed like a long hassle. So I intended on skipping my coffee that day, when Neel, like a sweetheart as he is, offered me his cup.

"Here you go" he said, putting forth the warm cup ahead of me.

"nNo! it's okay, this is for you. I can make this any other time." I said back, politely denying the child like man trying his best to make me feel better.

"Take it"

"I said I am fine"

"Take it." He said firmly this time. "This is your man's order."

My heart skipped a beat, or maybe 2 or 3 beats, or maybe it stopped pumping altogether given how dizzy I suddenly felt, and the world around started moving .

I weakly held the cup and took a sip and that is when he leaned ahead, holding my hand to hold the cup in place, and then taking a sip from the other end.

He was breathing close, oh so close.

His lips were just inches away from mine, and it took me an eternity of courage to look past them. It took me all levels of discipline, to not just simply close the distance between us and taste the coffee, not in the cup, but between his lips.

It took it all from me, all of me.

After that, it had simply become a routine for us, to drink this syrup together, in one cup, but it wasn't like the first time. It never will.

A part of me regretted, I might never get that chance again.

---

It was another regular day in the Royal Court. I was sitting in one of the initial few seats, where the Queen Mother hates to see me sit, since those seats are meant for members of royal family only.

Not to mention, she was disappointed when Yug was offered one of those seats too.

"Aarini, I cannot possibly stop Yug, but you should stop entering the Royal court now." Shravya said when all of them were present at the court.

"Mother?" she was equally as confused as everyone else.

"Now that you have made up your mind to marry Yug, you should stop seeing him till you two are engaged. You know it is unlucky to see the groom before engagement."

"But isn't that around 2-3 weeks before engagement?" Yug defended immediately.

"Exactly." Shravya spoke bluntly.

It took everyone a while to understand what she is trying to put forth. There was a huge surge of excitement that followed this.

"Does that mean-" Aarini left her question mid way.

"Yes! After 21 suns, you Aarini, you will get engaged to Minister Yug." Shravya announced.

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