The time started ticking towards the end the moment Aditya decided to start this and now it's up to Maya to decide how to end this. By the end of the day, Maya was ready with a packed bag full of her clothes and necessities. In her hand was the ticket for the next flight to India. Yet she sits on her father's couch in their spacious living room with her eyes roaming around the interiors of the house that she calls home. It makes her feel weird about her future, about giving up on a career she has been working for since she was eleven years old. How far is she going to take this?
She leans on the couch and wonders what her mother would do in this situation. The silence that filled her head had answered her predicament. My mom wanted to be many things in her life but the one thing she wouldn't do is break a relationship.
The next morning, Abhir found a note under his bedside lamp. As he read out the contents, he couldn't help but smile. It read:
I am going to get your son back to you. In return, never forget that I am your favourite child. It will be a long time until I see you again, cause your son is way too stubborn for his own good. And if it's possible like that idiot said, I'll fix this family. Don't worry about your domineering mother. Meenakshi Rajvansh won't be able to handle Maya Rajvansh. Trust me and rest well. You'll miss me. (^-^)
Your favourite girl,
Maya. R
Abhir should be worried. He knows his mother too well to know that she'll find a way to control his kids but oddly enough, he trusts Maya to be strong. Maya has never been the one to show any weakness and she's a lot similar to his mother, Meenakshi. They will make good opponents. He knows that if history were to repeat itself, he wouldn't let anything happen to his children. Even if his mother manages to take control of their lives, she will have to face Abhir Rajvansh.
***
Amish waits at the Delhi airport for Maya as he worries over Aditya's disappearance. His heart feels heavy with emotion as he wonders how she looks and what she is like. Maya was 14 years old when Amish last saw her and that was before Maya found out about her surrogate mother and the story behind it. No one expected that Maya would find Kuhu Chachi's diary in which she wrote about her guilt towards our mother, Mishti. To this day, Amish does not understand why his Chachi had to write her thoughts down in a diary. If she hadn't, no one would've found out about the medicine replacement. But maybe the truth always finds its way out. After finding that diary, Maya did not return to India and her initial anger turned into hate. Despite her distaste towards the family, Maya never held back Abhir or Aditya from visiting Amish in India. Yet she never came back and Amish grew up to wonder about Maya, his sister whom he no longer recognises. All this waiting and curiosity only made him anticipate finally meeting her. It does disappoint Amish that the only reason that got her to come back is his younger brother and not himself.
"Amish bhayya?" Amish turns around to the voice of a young female. At first, he doesn't recognize her but how can he forget the voice of his sister? Her voice is engraved in his mind even though he only heard her on the phone. His almost always serious face breaks out into a smile at the sight of his sister. The more he looks at her the more he finds the resemblance of those cute chubby cheeks she used to carry around and those expressive eyes. The personality behind those features is visually different but she is still his sister, nonetheless. A wave of emotion hits him as he thoughtlessly moves towards her and hugs her. Maya is taken aback by the gesture as it feels so different yet familiar. Even though her mind tries to hold her back from investing in her feelings, her heart wins as she wraps her arms around her brother's midsection. It has been years since they saw each other.
While the sweet reunion of the Rajvansh siblings continues uninterrupted, on the other side of the airport, Ranav Birla gets out of his Jeep Wrangler to greet his biological father Abhimanyu Birla.
"What's up, Abhi?" Abhimanyu greets his son with a bright smile, which Ranav returns. Only the Birla family still calls him Abhir because obviously how can they call him by the nickname given by his mother and step-father, despite the fact that his step-father, Abhinav Sharma, is the one who brought him up? Ranav used to be really close with his biological father until he found out that his entire family once accused his mother of being a murderer. Even though he is not angry with them, he can't help but feel a little distant.
"Nothing new, Docman. How is your day going?"
"After seeing you, I think it's getting better."
"Same old jokes. Lame." Ranav smirks at his father and puts the car in gear. As they drive home, he continues, "I thought you were going to be there for a few more days for the surgery?"
"Are you saying you are not happy that your father is back, young man?"
"You know what I mean."
"Fine. The surgery was successful and I did not need to stay for the rehab. They can handle it, so I came back. I missed home."
"Sure you did." Ranav has always been in a great relationship with his dad but whenever the topic of his mother arises, Ranav can sense a shift in the atmosphere. It has been such a long time since everything has been resolved but Ranav's father still grows tense when he sees Akshara together with Abhinav. Ranav drives Abhimanyu to Birla's mansion and after great contemplation, he decides to go in.
As soon as he enters, he finds his, dadi, Manajari, sitting on the sofa talking away on her phone. He smiles as he approaches. Manjari looks up and jumps with excitement at seeing her son and grandson standing before her. After completing his studies, Ranav became a wanderer. Ranav is a hodophile through and through, which is something Manjari is very concerned about. On the other hand, Akshara believes that Ranav can and will do better for himself.
"Maa!" Abhimanyu throws down his bag and falls into an embrace with his mother and invites his son to join.
"Long time no see, Dadi." Ranav hugs Manjari.
"Beta, you're finally here. I was waiting for so long. Come, I made you both your favourite dishes."
"Yumm! I can smell it from here." Ranav and Abhimanyu take their seats at the dinner table and dig in.
***
Amish puts all of Maya's luggage in the trunk of the car and wonders where he should take her first. On the other side, Maya is still a little awkward from the hug earlier. Even though it was familiar, it has been so long since they met and now, everything feels different. She looks at Amish and notices how different he is now, dressed in a suit with a stern expression on his face and a premium-looking watch in one hand with an emerald ring on the finger of the other. He looks absolutely immaculate. Amish closes the trunk, walks over to the driving side and sits himself.
"Where do we go from here? How do you plan on finding him?" Amish asks with genuine curiosity.
"Rajkot. If what he implied is any clue, his only destination is Rajvansh's house." Amish looks at Maya with confusion and shock written on his face.
It's almost time. Maya thinks.