(Vanishing acts, heartfelt letters, and an emotional reunion in the rain)
đŚď¸ Morning â An Empty Room
Rudra woke up to the soft sound of raindrops tapping the window.
He stretched his arm across the bed â but it was empty.
Ruhi was gone.
He sat up quickly. Her suitcase was still there, her journal on the nightstand. But she was nowhere in sight.
He checked the lobby.
The restaurant. The cafĂŠ downstairs. Nothing.
Then panic set in.
đą Missed Call â Simran
His phone buzzed. Simran was calling.
"Rudra, what happened?" she asked.
"She's gone," Rudra said, voice tight. "I woke up andâshe wasn't there."
"She's not answering my texts either," Simran said.
"I think she needed space," Rudra muttered.
There was a pause.
Simran lowered her voice. "She burned that letter for you, Rudra. And she's probably somewhere... where she can remember herself. You're not the only one with shadows."
đ Beyond the Buzzer â Page 109
"When love becomes too loud,the heart finds quiet placesto remember who it beats for."
đ Simran's Letter to Ruhi
Later that afternoon, Simran sent a voice note. But it wasn't her voice.
It was a letter she had written and asked Aarav to read aloud. Ruhi always said Aarav's voice sounded like old books.
"Dear Ruhi,
*You once told me love is not a poem â it's a revision.
Well, maybe this is your rewrite.
Distance is scary. So is doubt. And the boy you love is flawed â stubborn, scared, sometimes too proud. But he's still yours. And you are his compass, not his cage.
Don't vanish. Don't shrink. Don't let one shadow make you forget the sun you two became.
Come back. Or at least, let him find you.
Love,Simran."
đ§ď¸ Rudra's Search â One Clue
Rudra stared out of the hotel lobby window, lost in thought, when something clicked.
Ruhi always told him: "When I'm overwhelmed, I go where no one expects me. Where no one talks â only thoughts do."
He whispered to himself:"The art gallery."
đź At the Mumbai City Art Gallery
It was nearly closing time when Rudra arrived, drenched in rain, his shirt sticking to his skin, his hair dripping.
The gallery was quiet. Dimly lit.
And there â in front of a large canvas of a stormy sea â stood Ruhi.
Her back was to him. Her hair was damp. She clutched her diary tightly to her chest.
He didn't say her name.
He just stood behind her and whispered, "I'm sorry."
She didn't turn.
He stepped closer. "I let my fear speak. Again."
Still silence.
He came beside her and looked at the same painting. "This sea⌠that's what I felt inside when I saw that letter. Like I was drowning in something I couldn't control."
Ruhi finally spoke. "I was scared too. That maybe... words would always come between us."
"They won't," Rudra said softly. "Not anymore."
She looked at him â eyes soft, lips trembling.
"I'm here, Rudra," she whispered. "I never left. Just... needed to hear my own heart again."
He reached for her hand.
And she didn't pull away.
đ Beyond the Buzzer â Page 112
"He found me.Not where he wanted.But where I needed.
And that made all the difference."
đ Devika's Final Goodbye
The next day, Devika came to the hotel with a polite smile and a sealed envelope.
She handed it to Rudra. "I'm stepping away from the project."
He blinked. "Why?"
"Because I lost," she said simply. "Not the deal. You."
Ruhi stepped beside him.
Devika gave her a nod. "You're not the girl I expected."
"You're not the villain I feared," Ruhi replied gently.
They shook hands.
Enemies no more.
Just two women who once loved the same man â and walked away with different lessons.
𧥠Back in Delhi â Simran and Aarav's New Beginning
Simran received her official joining letter from the publishing house.
Aarav bought her a desk and stuck a post-it note on it:
"For stories you'll write â and stories we'll live."
She kissed him on the cheek.
And their new chapter officially began.
âď¸ Leaving Mumbai â Together
At the airport, Rudra and Ruhi sat side by side. No tension. No fears.
Just a shared headphone, a playlist of their moments, and a silent promise:
"No more leaving without telling.""No more doubts without dialogue.""And no more letters we don't read together."
đ§ End of Chapter 22