The Boy She Called Her Nightmare

27.Hell breaking loose

What happened next was still hazy in Rhea's head. Her parents busted upon her as soon as she reached their sight. Loud yelling resonated within the walls of the Pathak bungalow, accusations were thrown at her way but she stood impassive. She doesn't care. Not anymore.

She had always hated these weekly meetups. She never got along with her parents and neither with her sister. And right at that moment she despised them more than she ever did before.

"You're a stain on Pathak's name. What image will we have if this goes in the media ?"

"How long have you been doing this sin ?"

"My in-laws will break the alliance if they get even the slightest idea about this. This is unacceptable in our society, di."

Caring about others' opinions isn't something Rhea considers important. She didn't care even when her parents asked her to get married. But what brought her on her toes was when they threatened to evict her from the company.

She had poured her blood and sweat to get the CEO's position since her college days. And there's no way she would let her parents dominate her. But back that moment she couldn't think straight and stormed off.

Her hands continuously trembled as she drove aimlessly on the roads. The car echoed with her exasperated groans when Aarav refused to pick up the call even after the umpteenth time.

The scorch bubbling inside her was gnawing at her skin, making her chest constrict. She was a walking destruction and if something is going to devastate her then it would explode like an atomic bomb, destroying everything around it.
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Mishika had planned to spend her Friday night winding up on pending office work. None of her plans included putting up with a drunk Rhea who came knocking at her door uninvited.

Dishevelled hairs, red eyes and on staggery feet, Rhea was reeking of booze and cigarettes. Upon witnessing her condition, a baffled glance was swapped between Mishika and her parents before concern dawned in.

Earlier that evening, Kabir and Preeti visited uninformed to surprise their daughter and it had left Mishika thronged with merry as she had hugged them.

Her excitement, however, shrivelled soon as awkwardness and displeasure engulfed the ambiance. Preeti was subtle, but Kabir showed no effort to veil his discontentment about Aarav's presence in the same room. And soon after that Aarav left the apartment with an excuse.

It pinched her heart to see the zero effort he made to get along with her parents, though she pushed the feeling away as quickly as it arose in her. She, at that moment, had reminded herself that they weren't a normal married couple. And her parents or her sentiments would be the last thing he would care about.

"Where's he ?" Contrast to her soused state, Rhea's voice resonated firmly. "Bhai"

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"You aren't supposed to run away from her family." Mishti shakes her head, disappointment marrying her face. She didn't react when Aarav acted deaf to her dejection and took a large sip of his beer, his eyes fixed on the scenery before him.

Mishti has to travel frequently between London and India for her work and since Aarav had agreed to pick her up from the airport, she agreed to accompany him in a beer shot. And later Aarav groaned for even asking her as she convinced him for light alcoholic beer on the excuse of driving back.

Moments later, his shoulders shrug off and a sigh vent past his lips. "They don't like me."

"If you intend to be in the marriage then you'll have to get along with her parents. Emotional investment is the biggest key."