His Unwanted Bride

Morning fire

"He wants her body, not her heart. She wants to silence the world.

5:30 A.M. - Rathore Residence

Arjun Rathore groaned as the first rays of the sun pierced through his curtains. Another day, another battle with the one thing he couldn't escape: his parents' obsession with his marriage.

"Arjun beta! When will you settle down?" his mother chirped, standing at the door with a steaming cup of chai, eyes sparkling with hope.

"Not today, Ma," he muttered, rubbing his temples.

"Not tomorrow, not next week... when, Arjun? You can't be single forever! You are thirty-four! People will start talking!" his father added, his tone a mix of worry and mild frustration.

Arjun slammed his palm on the table, making the cup tremble. "I'm not getting married! Not now, not ever! Can we talk about something else for once?"

His parents sighed, exchanging glances that said, He'll learn one day.

Arjun ran a hand through his hair, pacing. Duty, discipline, law, order that's all he needed. But marriage? It was a cage he had no intention of entering. And yet, the tension in his chest wasn't just frustration. Sometimes, when he thought about intimacy, about desire... he could feel the fire burning hotter than he wanted to admit. It was controlled, mostly but certain mornings, after arguments like this one, the heat lingered, unrelenting.

He shook his head, trying to focus on his schedule: gym, run, breakfast, and then straight to work. His uniform would hide the tension in his body, the restless energy, the raw hunger that no one could name.

7:00 A.M. - Meher Sharma's Apartment

Meanwhile, across the city, Meher Sharma groaned as she rolled out of bed. PCOD had already made her morning unbearable: bloating, cramps, and a constant reminder that her body didn't always obey her. She clenched her jaw, glaring at the ceiling.

Another day of lectures, student questions, and people judging her because she was unmarried at twenty-six. "As if my worth depends on a ring," she muttered, tugging at her pajama pants. She tossed her hair over her shoulder and opened her laptop, scanning emails for urgent notices.

Her phone buzzed another message from her aunt, asking why she hadn't "found someone yet." She gritted her teeth and typed back a curt reply. Independence was her armor, and she wore it like a crown, even if the world whispered otherwise.

She sighed, moving toward the mirror. Her reflection reminded her she was strong, confident, and unapologetic-but also human. And right now, human meant a little tired, a little frustrated, and a little longing for something she couldn't yet name.

Her hand lingered over her stomach as the cramps flared again. She pressed a palm to it, leaning against the counter. Life hadn't been fair work, expectations, biology, society but she refused to let it break her.

Even as she dressed, she muttered sarcastically to herself, "If only life were as simple as signing a contract... or maybe, someone should just hand me a solution." She laughed softly, but the sound didn't reach the dark corner of her mind that wondered... maybe someone could actually understand me.

Two Lives, Same City, Different Battles

He lashed out at expectations he wasn't ready for. She fought battles she hadn't asked for.

Both frustrated. Both longing. Both unaware that the universe was quietly stitching their worlds together.

Somewhere, someday, paths would cross and neither would leave unscathed.

Until then, the city pulsed with its usual chaos, the sun rose higher, and life continued-unforgiving, impatient, and full of heat that neither of them could yet name.