Kabir was watching quietly from a distance.
There was something about the way Ananya spoke to the kids. She bent down to their level, listening to every little story they had to tell about their gifts as if it was the most important thing in the world.
One little boy ran toward her holding a bright green water gun.
“Didi! Look what I got!” he shouted excitedly.
Ananya gasped dramatically. “Wow! That is the coolest pichkari I have ever seen.”
The boy grinned proudly.
Kabir couldn’t help but smile slightly. He had seen people donate things before… but he had rarely seen someone celebrate the joy of the children the way she did.
At that moment one mischievous girl suddenly sprayed colored water from her pichkari.
The splash landed directly on Ananya’s kurti.
For a second everyone froze.
Then Ananya burst into laughter.
“Oh! So this is how it is going to be?” she said playfully.
The kids started laughing and running around the yard.
Kabir shook his head softly, amused.
Just then one kid pointed at him.
“Bhaiya! You also have to play!”
Before Kabir could respond, two kids ran toward him with water guns.
Within seconds a splash of colored water hit his shirt.
Kabir looked down at the bright pink stain on his sleeve… then at the group of giggling kids.
And then his eyes met Ananya’s.
She looked a little embarrassed.
“I think… they just declared war,” she said with a small smile.
Kabir raised an eyebrow slightly.
“Is that so?”
He slowly picked up one of the extra pichkaris from the box.
The kids gasped in excitement.
Ananya stepped back a little.
“Wait… Kabir, you wouldn’t—”
Before she could finish, a splash of colored water landed near her feet.
The children cheered.
And for the first time that day, Kabir laughed out loud.
The courtyard slowly settled after the chaos of colors and laughter.
The kids were now busy chasing each other around with their new water guns, their bright giggles echoing through the orphanage yard.
Kabir stood near the steps, wiping a streak of pink color from his sleeve.
His eyes drifted back to Ananya.
She was sitting on the ground now, surrounded by children. One little girl was carefully applying a tiny streak of gulaal on Ananya’s cheek while another was braiding a few strands of her hair.
Ananya sat there patiently, smiling at every child like they were the most precious people in the world.
Kabir had seen many people come to places like this.
Some came to donate money.
Some came for pictures.
Some came for sympathy.
But Ananya…
She came with her whole heart.
One little boy suddenly tugged at her sleeve.
“Didi, will you come again tomorrow?”
Ananya looked at him gently and brushed some color off his forehead.
“Of course,” she said softly. “But only if you promise to study today.”
The boy nodded seriously.
Kabir watched the entire moment without realizing how intensely he was staring.
Something strange stirred inside him.
A feeling he wasn’t used to.
Something quiet… but powerful.
He had always believed emotions made people weak. His life had taught him that attachments only complicated things.
Yet here he was.
Standing still.
Watching a girl laugh with children.
And somehow…
That laugh felt warmer than the afternoon sun.
One of the kids suddenly ran toward Kabir again.
“Bhaiya!”
Kabir blinked, pulled out of his thoughts.
“What happened?”
The little boy pointed toward Ananya.
“Didi said thank you for the gifts.”
Kabir looked up.
Ananya was standing now, brushing color off her kurti. When she noticed Kabir looking at her, she smiled — soft and genuine.
“Thank you,” she said.
Kabir nodded slightly.
“It was nothing.”
But it wasn’t the gifts he was thinking about anymore.
It was the way she cared.
The way she laughed.
The way she made a place full of broken childhoods feel… alive.
Kabir looked away for a moment, exhaling slowly.
And for the first time in a long time, a thought crossed his mind that he couldn’t ignore.
When did she start mattering this much?
The evening sun was slowly fading behind the orphanage building.
The laughter of the children had quieted as they went inside, leaving the courtyard calm again.
Kabir stood near his car, watching the building silently.
Ananya noticed the way his gaze lingered on the place, almost like he was remembering something.
She walked closer.
“You seem very familiar with this place,” she said gently.
Kabir didn’t immediately respond.
After a moment he spoke.
“My mother volunteers here.”
Ananya looked surprised.
“Really?”
Kabir nodded slightly.
“She has been coming here for years.”
He looked toward the windows of the orphanage.
“My father is a politician… so most of his charity work happens in front of cameras.”
There was a faint hint of sarcasm in his voice.
“But my mother hates that.”
Ananya smiled a little.
“She sounds like a good person.”
Kabir’s expression softened.
“She is.”
He paused before continuing.
“When I was younger, she used to bring me here every weekend. While my father attended political meetings… she would sit with the kids, help them study, play games with them.”
Kabir looked down for a moment.
“I hated coming here at first.”
Ananya raised an eyebrow.
“Why?”
Kabir gave a quiet chuckle.
“Because she never treated me like a politician’s son here.”
Ananya tilted her head slightly.
“What do you mean?”
Kabir looked back at the building.
“She made me sit with the kids. Study with them. Play with them. Help clean the rooms sometimes.”
He shook his head lightly, remembering.
“I complained about it all the time.”
“But now…” he added quietly, “I think those were the only normal days of my life.”
Ananya felt a small warmth in her chest hearing that.
Kabir continued,
“My father always wanted me to grow up strong… powerful… untouchable.”
His voice became slightly serious.
“But my mother wanted something else.”
“What?” Ananya asked softly.
Kabir looked at the orphanage one more time.
“She wanted me to grow up human.”
For a moment silence settled between them.
Then Kabir glanced at Ananya.
“And when I saw you playing with those kids today…”
He paused.
“You reminded me of her.”
Ananya blinked in surprise.
Kabir looked away quickly, as if he had said too much.
But something had already changed.
Because for the first time, Kabir realized something quietly unsettling—
The way Ananya cared about people felt… familiar.
Comforting.
Dangerously close to his heart.
to be continued....
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