Do You Love Me? — Episode 2: The Forgotten Promise
Aarohi couldn't sleep that night.
The old photograph was still on her study table.
She kept staring at the little boy standing beside her in the picture.
Dev.
How could she have forgotten someone who seemed to know so much about her?
The next morning, Aarohi reached college earlier than usual. She wanted answers.
As she entered the classroom, she noticed Dev standing near the window.
He turned when he heard her footsteps.
“Aarohi…”
She walked straight towards him.
“Tell me the truth.”
Dev remained silent.
“Who were you to me ten years ago?”
His expression changed.
“You found the photograph?”
Aarohi's eyes widened.
“So you knew about it!”
Dev looked away.
“I knew you would eventually find it.”
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“Because you weren't ready.”
Aarohi became frustrated.
“Ready for what?”
Before Dev could answer, Maya entered the classroom.
“Aarohi! The professor is coming.”
Dev immediately stepped back.
“After college. Meet me near the old library.”
“Why?”
“You'll get your answers there.”
Then he walked away.
---
The entire lecture passed without Aarohi understanding a single word.
Her mind kept returning to the same question.
What happened ten years ago?
After college, she went towards the old library.
Dev was already waiting.
He held an old envelope in his hand.
“This belongs to you.”
Aarohi took it.
Her name was written on the front.
Aarohi.
Inside was a small handwritten letter.
She read the first few lines.
It was written by her childhood self.
She couldn't believe it.
“I promise I'll never forget you, Dev.”
Aarohi looked up.
“I wrote this?”
Dev nodded.
“You did.”
“But why don't I remember?”
Dev took a deep breath.
“Because after that summer, your family moved away. You were too young. And something happened that changed everything.”
“What happened?”
Dev looked at the old library door.
“I waited for you to come back.”
Aarohi's eyes filled with questions.
“But why did you come back now?”
Dev looked directly at her.
“Because I wanted to know whether that promise still meant something to you.”
Aarohi didn't know what to say.
Then her phone suddenly rang.
It was an unknown number.
She answered.
Nobody spoke.
Then a voice quietly said:
“Stay away from Dev.”
The call ended.
Aarohi looked at Dev.
He had heard everything.
His face became serious.
“Who was that?” she asked.
Dev didn't answer.
Instead, he took the old letter from her hand.
“Someone doesn't want you to remember the past.”
“Who?”
Dev looked at her.
“I don't know.”
But his expression said otherwise.
---
That evening, Aarohi returned home and opened the old family album again.
This time she noticed something she had never seen before.
Behind the photograph of her and Dev was another picture.
It showed both families standing together.
And in the background was a house she recognized.
Her grandmother's old house.
Aarohi suddenly remembered a small flash from her childhood.
A rainy evening.
A broken window.
Dev holding her hand.
And someone shouting—
“Don't let them know the truth!”
The memory disappeared as quickly as it had come.
Aarohi closed the album.
She finally understood one thing.
Her childhood wasn't as simple as she had believed.
And Dev wasn't just a new student in her college.
He was a part of a past she had forgotten.
Meanwhile, Dev stood outside his house, looking at the same old photograph.
His phone received another message.
“You promised you would never tell her.”
Dev stared at the screen.
After a long silence, he replied:
“I kept my promise for ten years. Not anymore.”
He put the phone away.
The truth was coming back.
And this time, neither Dev nor Aarohi could stop it.
**To be continued…**
