"Unraveled Destinies"

Chapter 33

"Momm!" Kabir shouted angrily at his mom.

"What, Mom? Haa? Don't you know how unlucky she is? Just two years after she was born, her father lost all his business and got cheated by his own brother. And you still want to take her with you?" His mom spat out angrily, fueling Kabir's anger even more. His eyes turned red with rage as he burned with anger.

"Enough, Mom! Enough of-" Kabir shouted furiously at the top of his lungs, looking directly at his mother. But before he could say anything else, his father interrupted raoaring at his mother which never really happened oftenly , "Enough of you, Shivani! Mind your language while talking to my daughter-in-law. I used to stay quiet about your foolish behavior towards her earlier because she was your friend's daughter till then. But now, she isn't just your friend's daughter. She is the daughter-in-law of this family, and more importantly, she is like my own daughter. I won't tolerate any nonsense against my daughter. I hope I'm clear," his father said in his deep authoritative voice. He rarely spoke about family matters unless it was absolutely necessary, but when he did, his words were treated as everyone's order.

And in the midst of all this, Kabir held Aadhira's hand tightly, providing her with comfort and strength. But when she heard those words from her father-in-law, it stirred up such strong emotions within her. Her mind went blank, and her vision became blurry from the tears welling up in her eyes. It was the first time someone had taken a stand for her, especially from a father figure. Throughout her life, she had only fought for herself and sometimes for her mother, but she had never experienced this kind of support from her own father.

Feeling overwhelmed, Aadhira gently removed her hand from Kabir's grip and walked towards his father. Without saying a word, she tightly embraced him, feeling as though she had finally found a father's love in him. His gentle caress on her hair brought her a sense of comfort and warmth.

"And listen, Shivani, just so you and everyone here understands clearly, let me tell you something. It was only after Aadhira was born that her father's business started flourishing. If her uncle cheated her father, then why should she be blamed for it? I don't want any more discussions about this topic in our family. Aadhira is like the laxmi (goddess of wealth ) of our house, and she will be treated only like that , that's final," he said, gently patting her back as he instructed Kabir to take her to their room.

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They both sat on the bed in their room, as Kabir took Aadhira with him in their room following Kabir's father's instructions. After which everyone also retired to their own rooms one by one, Aadhira remained on the bed, hugging Kabir tightly and softly sobbing. Kabir gently rubbed her back, trying to calm her down.

"You know what, Kabir? No one has ever done this for me before. Thank you so much," her muffled voice came as she mumbled this , her face still buried in his chest.

"What?" he asked, a little confused.

"It's okay, Aadhira. You're my wife, why would I tolerate anyone saying anything against you?" Kabir shrugged, trying to reassure her.

Upon hearing his response, a smile formed on Aadhira's face, and she shook her head as she clarified, "Yes, you did take a stand for me, and I appreciate that, but I was actually referring to Uncle Prateek."

"Oh, really? I see how it is! So, I don't matter to you?" Kabir said, his face scowling in fake mock offense.

"Oh, come on, Kabir! Don't be so dramatic. You know what I mean," she said, playfully pouting, her sobs fading away before she even realized it.

"Alright, alright. But I know if Uncle Rajat was here, he would have done the same," he replied when Aadhira immediately shook her head in disagreement, and he raised his eyebrows, giving her a quizzical look but stopped the moment realising she can't tell him about her father now.