A/N: A small gift for The Sparkling Aurora. Hope you'll like it. :)

:: No Matter The Distance ::

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Senior inspector Abhijeet is a man of few words, she has known it too well all these years. His eyes, however, exude eloquence like nothing else when it comes to emoting his deepest thoughts. Love. Pain. Anger.

Disappointment.

Therefore, when he walked into the lab, coming straight to her desk and instead of the usual casual and mischievous demeanour, today the hurt in his eyes was evident to her. "We need to talk," was all he said. For her, it was enough to comprehend his dismay.

Amidst the awkward silence that governs the car, the sharp shooter is behind the wheel, his brows slightly creased with a distant look. At his side, his girlfriend nervously fidgets with her fingers, stealing occasional glances at him. She has hurt him unknowingly quite a few times, but to let him down is something Tarika cannot bear.

It's one of those times when she doesn't dare utter a single word to him. Not when he waits near his car for her, not during the entire journey to his place… and not when he steps out of the car and enters his house without looking back at her once, but commands her wordlessly to follow him. And she's obliged.

He needs his time to mellow down, she knows. And she grants him. Like always.

Once they're inside, Abhijeet stands in the centre of the living room, his hands on his hips. Still refusing to look at her.

Post a few seconds, his girlfriend finally musters the courage. "Are you upset with me, Abhijeet?," she asks, her voice unusually meek and for once, he turns to her, his eyes still brimming with distress. Tarika instantly averts her eyes, unable to look at his pain any longer.

"Why shouldn't I be upset?," asks Abhijeet in a clearly disheartened tone.

"Listen to me once," the forensic doctor speaks in a persuasive tone, taking a few steps closer to him. This time, he doesn't object as he faces her completely.

"Listen to what, Tarika? That you didn't feel it necessary to tell me such an significant thing? Or that you didn't find it important to discuss this with me before taking a decision?," says the sharp shooter as he looks away, not before eyeing her again with a thoroughly crestfallen look as he adds, "…or that you don't consider me important enough to know about the offer?" His voice, she feels, resonates with the pain in his heart and she instantly steps closer to him covering the distance between them.

"Come on, Abhijeet! You know it's not true!," she says, placing her hands on his arms and eyes him with an earnest look. Her boyfriend, however, is still undeceived.

They do indulge in random silly fights once in a while, but nothing overpowers the love and trust they garner for each other. Nothing overpowers the belief of what they are to each other. But this is something neither of them can take lightly and forget like just another argument.

To say that she's upset him would be another thing, but with what he said, she knows she's somewhere insulted his value in her life. And that's something she cannot endure.

When she learned about the offer to head the forensic department in Bangalore, it did raise a range of emotions in her mind. Of gratitude for her senior who trusted her and believed she is capable of moving ahead from under his supervision and starting to work independently, and of compassion for everyone in her team for supporting and encouraging her.

But for him, especially, she carried a rollercoaster of feelings she didn't know dwelled in her until this point. Of undying love, of countless unspoken words that carried more weightage than any verbal talk, and of all the good and bad memories they've made. And suddenly, after everything they've shared so far, it did escalate her urge to leave her ambitions behind and stay back with him. After all these years, he has that supreme significance in her life.

When he refuses to speak anything or even look at her, she continues in a rather downcast voice, "I was going to tell you."

This time when he speaks, his eyes pierce into hers and it shatters her heart to see the dejection still residing in them. "When, Tarika? After rejecting such an important opportunity and making me feel guilty about it? If Shreya hadn't accidentally let it slip, I never would have known!," says the sharp shooter in a mild accusatory tone before turning away from her yet again.

Giving a pained sigh, Tarika walks over to face him, and once again, holds him by the elbows. "Listen, I.. I'm sorry! I know I should have told you about this. But I… I don't know what I'm supposed to do! This just came all of a sudden, and I couldn't… I couldn't think straight," she says, her voice feeble and genuinely apologetic. "I don't know if I should accept the offer, Abhijeet. I really don't know," she adds after a pause, her tone quivering and that causes Abhijeet to soften a bit.

He places his hands on her shoulders as he speaks, his voice considerably warmer than before but still carrying a tinge of concern. "Tarika, you… you know what you're talking about, right? Nobody has done a favour on you! You have earned this opportunity! Because of your hard work, your determination and your achievements. Someone has that faith in you that you are capable of heading the forensic department, only because you deserve it. They haven't selected anyone randomly," he says and Tarika merely looks down solemnly.

Sighing audibly, he cups her face in his palms before continuing in a serious tone, "I've seen you put everything into your work over all these years. I've seen you work day and night, tirelessly, without any complaints or any grudges. And today, if you're getting the rightful reward for your efforts and you're going to let everything go down the drain only because of me, do you realize how that would make me feel?"

Somewhere at the back of his mind, he does thank his stars for blessing him with such a selfless soul who's ready to put her career behind her just for his sake. But in return, he cannot be so selfish to let her do it.

For everything he's putting to convince her what's beneficial to her, Tarika stares at him for a few seconds. How did she get so lucky to have this man in her life, is all she can think.

"But my intention was never to make you feel bad!," she says, her lips trembling and eyes that threaten to spill the tears. Of regret. Of guilt.

"Then why aren't you accepting it? Give me a valid reason," he demands in a subdued tone.

The forensic doctor takes a few seconds to drown herself in his eyes before stepping closer to him than they already are and asks in a shivering undertone. "What about us, Abhijeet?"

As a reflex, the senior inspector takes a step back before answering. This is the question, the whole purpose of the dilemma she's facing. The whole purpose of them being compelled to have this conversation.

What about them? Not that he hasn't thought about this ever since the moment he learned about her job, but somehow he hasn't had the courage yet to form a concrete answer for it.

Taking a deep breath, he takes her hands in his. "What is scaring you? That I'll find someone else while you're away?," he asks, attempting to take one step at a time toward the key to this situation.

She shakes her head violently as she speaks, her voice quavering with an overwhelming emotion. "No! That we'll stop caring for each other eventually. Abhijeet, we work together, stay so close… but still we hardly get to spend time with each other. Now we'll be in different cities, we'll not see each other… initially we'll put our efforts in talking and meeting, but slowly we'll get busy with our work," she says, taking a brief pause as the tears in her eyes now flow down uninterrupted.

"… and then one day, we'll stop trying. And the affection will vanish gradually. It will kill me if that happens, Abhijeet, to face you one day and realize I don't feel anything for you," she sobs looking at him, her teary eyes blurring her vision.

For Abhijeet, that's all it takes for his heart to smash into tiny pieces. To see her break down before him and to listen to her voice her deepest fear about their relationship, is something much beyond the otherwise headstrong man's forbearing capabilities. He closes his eyes momentarily to shake off the unwanted images from his mind.

At the moment, he knows he must gather himself for her. Brushing her fingers against her tears, he holds her face up to his.

"Tarika, you know how they say 'Absence makes the heart grow fonder'? I believe in it. It's true we don't spend much time together because of our hectic schedules. But at least I have that assurance that I'm able to see you every day during work. Somewhere it's my fault that I might not be putting efforts in spending quality time with you, but that's because your presence is still around me.. and knowingly or unknowingly just seeing you in the lab gives me the strength I need," he says, giving her a rueful yet caring smile.

His girlfriend tilts her head to a side as she gives him an imploring look. "You still want me to go away?," she asks.

"I'm not done yet," replies Abhijeet in a firm tone and Tarika apologizes silently, letting him continue.

"Now that you'll no longer be around, I will consciously put those efforts to meet you, my heart will crave to spend time with you. It's not that I didn't look forward to our dates till now, but now I'll look forward to them even more," says the sharp shooter, his eyes revealing nothing but pure love for her and she gives a subtle smile.

Pausing to take a deep breath, the senior inspector ploughs on with the same amount of love and compassion in his tone. "Tarika, you've always understood my job and the fact that it doesn't allow me to give you the time that you deserve… and you've always supported me in it, never once complaining. And now that you've gotten a chance to get ahead in your career, I don't want to be the reason behind stopping you from achieving your ambitions!," he says gently stroking her palms with his fingers.

Tarika sighs with an air of distrust. Her shoulders slump in despair as she says, "It's not just you, Abhijeet! I've… I've gotten so attached to everyone here! The lab, our team… it's like my home, my family! And it's not like I'm missing something in my career now. I'm… I'm happy being Salunkhe sir's assistant. I… I don't even know if I'll be able to adjust in Bangalore!"

For a moment, Abhijeet cannot stop himself from admiring the sheer gravity of attachment and regard she possesses for everyone around her. Something that makes him fall for her every time.

Once again, he cups her face between his palms and looks into her eyes lovingly. "Listen to me. Sweetheart, nobody likes to move away from something that gives them comfort, from someone who they can call their own. But sometimes they have to, because life demands it from them. You just have to trust that there's something better waiting for you somewhere. And Tarika, you'll never know if you like something or not unless you try it," he says, putting every word carefully so as to dispel all of her doubts.

"Yeah!," she says finally seeing sense of what he's trying to convince.

Abhijeet smiles at his girlfriend in response. "So go there, see how it suits you, and if you don't like it there, you can always come back," he says before adding in a reassuring tone, "I'll be here, you know that."

For the first time this evening, the forensic doctor smiles radiantly, as the emotion reaches up to her eyes, making Abhijeet's heart skip a beat momentarily. "You're always there, Abhijeet. I'd never doubt you on that," says Tarika, placing one hand over his cheek and he returns her a warm smile.

"Tarika, if our relationship means at least something to you, if Dr. Salunkhe's faith in you means something to you, you will accept that offer tomorrow," he says, entwining their fingers and eyes her with an intense look.

Tarika gives a repentant sigh as she pouts, "It means everything to me, Abhijeet! That's why I don't want to go away."

The senior inspector keeps looking at her for a few seconds, trying to relate to her words. For someone whose entire life, heart and soul resides with the CID team, going away from them is something Abhijeet cannot imagine even in the worst of his nightmares. Therefore, when she voices her reluctance, he can feel it himself.

But eventually, it's for her own good and he knows she shouldn't leave a golden chance like this. Plus, she truly deserves every bit of what's being offered to her. And if that requires him to make a small compromise, he's willing to do so. After all, she's made compromises for him much more than he can keep track of, in the entire duration of their courtship. Something for which he's forever indebted to her.

He eyes her with a resolute yet gentle look as he speaks. "I don't know how we'll manage a long distance relationship, honestly. But we'll figure something out, Tarika. We will! You have to trust me on this!," he says, squeezing her hands a bit to convey his feeling.

The forensic doctor gives him an affectionate grin. "I do! More than my life!," she says and he wraps his arms around her in a strong embrace. Tarika hugs him back tightly, the effect of their argument and her predicament getting crushed beneath the warmth of his arms.

"I'm going to miss you so much!," she says, slightly sulking and looking at him with all the adoration that she can possibly gather from within her.

Abhijeet touches her forehead with his own as he murmurs against her lips. "Like I'm not going to miss my Tarika ji? It's going to be a torture not seeing you in the lab, to not have you lying in my arms and to not spend hours playing with these curls," he says, lacing his fingers in the said curls and proceeds to pull her lips in a quick, languid kiss.

Before she can protest any further or their romantic talks can invoke any undesired change in her heart, he speaks in an authoritative voice. "But you're going! There's a better future waiting for you and you're going to accept it with open arms. Promise me!," he says and she nods in assurance.

Pushing a few stray curls behind her ear, Abhijeet looks in her eyes with all the love he can gather. "I want to watch you climb great heights of success and achieve all your dreams… with or without me. You'll do this for me, right? No matter what the future holds for us, you'll never forget yourself… your identity. Promise?," he asks in the most delicate tone she has ever heard, and for a moment, she's lost in the depth of his eyes.

"I promise!," she nods smiling from ear to ear before looping her hands around his neck and hugging him with all she has, as he settles his chin on her shoulder, his arms going around her waist.

"Tarika?," says Abhijeet, his voice muffled by her curls. "Hmm?," she mumbles.

"There's something you should know… something I've never told you before," he murmurs in the softest voice she knows.

"What?," she asks. He makes her look at him before speaking, "I'll never give up on us!" His voice is barely above a whisper, but for Tarika, it penetrates through the deepest corners of her heart in a soothing, mellifluous flow. Indeed, for a man who's extremely shy in expressing his feelings, this is something he's never said before. But, this is all she needs to hear.

"I believe you!," she whispers back, her eyes filling with tears of love, as he pulls her back in a tight embrace.

They stay in their position for a while, before Abhijeet gently moves to let go. His girlfriend however seems in no such mood as she strengthens the hug and he chuckles at her antics.

"I can never get enough of this!," says Tarika coyly, gesturing to the comfort and safety of his arms.

The senior inspector rubs his girlfriend's back affectionately before planting a soft kiss on her forehead. "Me neither, but can we get back to this in some time? I've started to feel hungry," he says pressing his lips together and the forensic doctor rolls her eyes at him.

"I'll make something," she says as they pull apart.

Abhijeet's reply is almost instant. "Yeah I was going to say that," he speaks in a single breath but gulps fearfully as he sees her raising an eyebrow. "No… I mean, I… I'll help you," he covers up hastily and Tarika simply laughs, shaking her head at him as she takes his hand and leads him to the kitchen.

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:: The End ::

A/N: I wasn't comfortable portraying Tarika the way I did here; she was so against my image of her. But somehow it was necessary to show her confused and scared of going away from Abhijeet. Mainly because she's put everything she has into their relationship, prioritising it whenever needed and hence, is hesitating to take any step that will jeopardize it.

But again, their love and understanding will conquer the distance between them and like Abhijeet said, they will never give up on each other. :)

PS. This isn't the best of my works, with a couple of things amiss and a lot of words being repeated here and there. So those who read, please bear with it.