~THE FAVOURITE PLACE~
We were all sitting in the hotel room, laughing, when Raffy suddenly came in. His face was burning with anger, his jaw tight, his eyes sharp like I'd never seen before. Without saying a word, he grabbed my arm firmly and pulled me to stand up.
Everyone froze. No one dared to speak. Even I couldn't. I hadn't seen him this angry in my whole hostel life. He didn't break eye contact with me—not even for a second. His gaze pierced through me. My chest tightened as I silently wore my shoes.
He pulled me out of the hotel. Behind us, the silence finally broke.
Ayan frowned. "What's going on?"
Zain shook his head calmly. "Don't worry. Everything must be okay… but it's something he can't say in front of us."
Maheen whispered, "But why in this anger?"
Zara exhaled, almost shaky. "I've known him since school life… but I swear I have never seen him this angry."
Zain added softly, "I said don't worry. He can't do anything to Wateen. He cares about her a lot."
But while they reassured themselves, my heart was screaming. *What's going on? Did I ruin it? Is it going to end? Why? What did I do? Do I even deserve him?*
---
**Raffy's POV**
*What am I doing? Why am I dragging her like this? What will I even say to her? I'll just end up upsetting her more. But my chest is burning… I can't stop myself. My anger isn't at her—it's at the world, at her pain, at myself for not being there for her.*
---
**Wateen's POV**
He dragged me under a tree and suddenly stopped. Without even waiting a millisecond, he turned toward me and hugged me—tightly, desperately.
*Is this our goodbye?* The thought hit me hard. Tears streamed down my cheeks, quietly, endlessly. But then… I felt his tears too. Hot, heavy drops falling onto my shoulder. My heart clenched. Raffy was crying.
We both cried—a lot. I didn't know why he was crying. Maybe he was broken because of our last time together? Or maybe… because he carried my pain too.
Suddenly, Raffy pulled back. His hands gripped my shoulders, his eyes red, his face trembling. He wiped my tears roughly, as if he couldn't bear them. I reached up and touched his face gently, but he caught my hand mid-air, held it tightly… and without a word, began dragging me again.
He made me sit in a car. I stayed silent, confused, my mind spinning. *A car… in Switzerland?*
After a twenty-minute ride, we stopped. The car halted outside an amusement park. Raffy immediately got out, his movements still stiff and restless. He disappeared inside the park. My eyes followed him until he vanished. Three minutes later, he returned and sat beside me again. I stared at him, utterly lost. He said nothing. His silence was louder than thunder.
And then… suddenly… people started walking out of the amusement park. Groups, families, couples—everyone was leaving. Within seconds, the entire place emptied. The park fell silent, snowflakes falling softly under the glowing yellow streetlights.
Raffy finally got out of the car and opened my door. He held my hand firmly, his palm warm against mine, and led me inside the deserted amusement park.
We stopped right in front of the roller coaster. He suddenly knelt down.
My heart skipped. *What? A proposal? No way…*
But then he lifted his face, his eyes soft yet desperate. "Will you ride the roller coaster with me? Look—I'm begging!"
I froze for a second—then burst into laughter. I laughed so loud, so free, that it echoed through the empty park. My voice bounced against the rides, the metal, the walls, swirling around in the snowy air. It was the loudest I had ever laughed in my life. My chest hurt from it, but in that moment, I felt alive.
Raffy stood there, smiling like a jerk, his anger melting away into something warmer.
---
**Raffy's POV**
*How can she still laugh… after everything? How can she still shine like this? Her laugh is echoing through this empty place like it belongs here. And yet, she's so pretty. Too pretty. Too strong. My Wateen.*
She agreed to ride with me. We got into the roller coaster. The entire park was ours, no strangers, no noise—just us, snowflakes kissing our skin, cold air rushing past.
I wasn't afraid. Not at all. But I wanted to feel the warmth of her hand. So I made an excuse. "I'm scared." I grabbed her hand tightly.
Her fingers didn't pull away. She just laughed harder, her hair flying wild in the air, her joy contagious.
The roller coaster soared. The world blurred. But in that moment, it wasn't the ride or the thrill that mattered—it was the warmth of her hand, the echo of her laugh, and the fact that in this giant, empty amusement park… it felt like it was just us against the world.
We didn't stop there—Raffy dragged me toward another ride, the giant swinging pirate ship. As it rose higher and higher, my screams mixed with my laughter, echoing into the snowy night sky. He wasn't even scared, but I could see the way he kept sneaking glances at me, like he was memorizing every second of my smile.
After that, we hopped on ride after ride, spinning, tumbling, laughing until our stomachs hurt. It felt like a dream, like the world outside didn't exist—just us, two people who forgot pain, forgot past, forgot everything but this moment.
Then, out of nowhere—**"Achoo!"** I sneezed. Raffy immediately stopped walking and stared at me, his brows furrowing.
"We should go now," he said firmly.
I shook my head like a stubborn kid. "Nooo! I can live here my entire life." My voice was half-teasing, half-serious.
He sighed, but I could see the worry in his eyes. "You'll get sick, idiot. Come on." He gently wrapped his jacket around my shoulders and pulled me toward the car. His jacket was warm, and it smelled like him—safe.
In the car, I quickly called Maheen, laughing into the phone.
"Everything's fine! Don't wait for us, okay? Sleep before we come."
When I hung up, Raffy gave me a curious look.
"Why did you tell them to sleep before we arrive?"
I squinted my face in a funny expression, mocking how nosy Maheen and Zara could be. "Becauseee otherwise they'll ask *what happened, where did we go, why are we late,* blah blah blahhh."
Raffy chuckled quietly, his eyes softening as he kept driving through the snow-lit streets.
While he was driving, I kept asking him questions, and not once did he ignore me.
"Why were you angry?" I asked.
He kept his eyes on the road, calm. "I wasn't. It was just a technique—to get you out of there, far away from them. You never spend time with me, and I was bored… so, yeah."
I tilted my head. "Soo, why did you hug me then?"
He hesitated, then muttered, "Because… I don't even know. It just happened."
I raised an eyebrow dramatically. "Hmm, how many girls have you done this with?"
He rolled his eyes. "No one. But you—because you're very special to me."
I clutched my heart and acted dramatically, pretending to faint. He chuckled at my nonsense. Then I asked, softer, "Why were you crying?"
His smile faded. Silence. Then he suddenly spoke, serious this time. "Because I was thinking… maybe I'll never get to hug you again. Your husband won't let me." He made a pouting face.
I froze, silent, staring out the window. The air grew heavy.
"Hey! Don't ignore me," he teased.
I smacked his arm.
"Ow, careful! I'll crash!" he laughed.
I smacked him again.
"Ohhh, I get it—you want to die with me!" he joked.
I replied quietly, "Not only die, but live."
He turned to stare at me, stunned. I chuckled to break the tension, and he laughed awkwardly too.
I quickly asked, "Wait… did you book the *whole* amusement park?"
He nodded casually. "Yeah. For you."
"Why?"
"Because I didn't want anybody else but you there. So I could be myself. And maybe… maybe I just wanted to enjoy some time alone with you. T-to en-enjoy…" His voice cracked, and I was stunned. Why is he acting like he actually cares?
"Still, don't you know how expensive that is? Save your money!" I scolded.
"Don't scold me like I'm a baby," he frowned. "I just wanted us to be happy together. And I know you're happiest in an amusement park."
I laughed. "You are a baby! And only to be clear, that's not my favorite place."
"What?!" He looked genuinely shocked, almost sad. "Then what is?"
I smirked. "I can't tell. It's a secret."
"Come on, tell me."
"No. My husband would be upset with me," I teased.
He rolled his eyes. "Unbelievable. I really thought this was your favorite place."
He pulled the car over in front of a restaurant and told me to wait.
"Nooo, no more full reservations!" I warned.
He saluted playfully and left. I laughed to myself, but when he was gone, my laughter melted into something else.
"This idiot doesn't know… my favorite place is his arms." My voice cracked sadly. "Which I visited only once—last night."
I forced out a laugh—"Ahahahaha!"—loud and fake, so I wouldn't cry. Right then, he came back, and I instantly became normal again.
We ate, then sneaked back into the hotel. Before entering his room, he looked at me. "Thanks… for making my day the best."
He went inside. I lay on the couch, he on the floor. I stared at the ceiling, replaying everything we had done today, blushing like an idiot—without knowing that he was lying there, staring at me too, smiling like a complete jerk.