The piled-up files kept her hooked, not letting her stray eyes away as the commotion heightened outside, though she never cared about office chatter, gossip, or any news which traveled faster than any other grapevine communication.
She summarized the annual expense report for the charity ball which was held each year by the Chauhan and sighed. Rubbing her temple, she gulped a sip of water to hydrate herself due to the heat outside.
The summers were at their peak in Mumbai and it won't be a surprise if you find people passing out because of a lot of heat.
Her lips felt dry, and so as her throat. Pursing her lips, she gulped a few more sips until a knock distracted her.
"Ma'am, the event planners are here and waiting in the 5th Meeting room." The peon informed her.
"Thank you," She said and picked the required files, "Can you ask someone to get me a strong Nimbu Pani? Do not put a lot of salt, please. Only a pinch will do."
The peon nodded and she thanked him again, checking herself in the mirror quickly, she assessed her face and made her way out. She was managing these events for the last three years and has attended none.
The first year she was a junior associate who looked after every detail until the party started and left before the guests arrived. The second year, her husband was out of town and there was no way she was expected to visit alone.
And, lastly, the previous year she had seen the high society of Mumbai make her endure any more interactions which started with condescending smiles and ended with mocking her behind her back.
She wondered if anyone from the circle remembered her face anymore as Anirudh Chauhan's wife, not that she made any effort nor has she attended any event in the last year. Keeping herself in the office, orphanage, and the house she stayed for free in return for carrying the surname she didn't fit to.
Her chain of thoughts broke as the Elevator chimed and she passed a quick smile as a goodbye to her lift-mates and stepped out, only to be dashed into a woman who landed flat on the floor because of her high heels.
"Oh my god! Are you okay?" She quickly bends down to check the woman who looked utterly raged.
"Are you blind?" The woman screeched and earned a lot more attention than it was there. "Do your eyes work or they are for display purposes only?"
"Apologies, I was in a hurry." Dhwani slid the urge to refute but smiled apologetically and gestured to another girl to help the lady, as she abhorred her presence.
The girl she had seen join just last month helped the woman back on her feet who in return glared at her harshly.
"How dare you say that? Does being in a hurry give you a free pass to knock anyone on your way?" The woman fired questions at her and she sighed.
"Are you hurt? I will ask someone to call you a doctor. I am sorry this happened to you. Why don't you sit down for a moment?" She politely offered and gestured to the same girl to do the needful "Please take care of her."
Instructing the staff, she tried passing when she was yanked back forcefully.
"Where do you think you are going without apologizing to me?" The woman glared, her manicured nails dug into Dhwani's arm to which she frowned.
"I already did." Dhwani reminded her with a tight smile "I am getting late for my meeting, if you could excuse me."
She may have let people walk all over her before but now she had stopped being an easy target to insult or being a pushover.
"Who do you think you are to talk to me like that? Do you have any idea who I am? I can get you fired in a snap and you think you will show that attitude to me." The lady screeched again, her hold so tight that Dhwani worried it would leave a mark.
"I don't know who you are." She admitted trying to wiggle out of her hold "But I, definitely, would try if you let my arm go politely, if not, I may have to use a lawsuit against you to bruise me in my office and then me finding out about you won't be a difficult task. Please."
Dhwani earned some wide eyes but she didn't care, and pried the hand away holding onto the wrist.
"You are threatening me?" The woman was enraged by now.
"No, just giving a friendly narration of the future consequences. Take some rest and order anything from the canteen downstairs." She looked at the girl back "Charge all of it on my account. If you now may excuse me now."
She took hardly two steps when she was pulled back and slapped.
She blinked at the harsh sting which left her cheek red and her eyes widened, she touched her face and blinked to clear her vision.
The gasp made its way to her ears along with the buzz of murmurs and she felt her eyes burn.
"You dared to insult me, you low life!" The woman jerked her to look up and she gulped the urge to let out a wince. "You should have known the consequences of talking to me like that before even looking into my eyes. Now that your boss is here, I'll watch you being kicked out of here."
The word boss alerted her senses and she snapped to look in the direction her eyes fixed to.
She looked at Anirudh standing with his assistant and another man she had no business knowing.
Her eyes met his and the burning returned, did he watch her being slapped and did not react?
She quickly averted her eyes with disappointment and focused back on the woman who seemed to enjoy his presence a lot more.
"Anirudh, do you see this impudent employee of yours? She pushed me down and then insulted me. I did not expect to be treated like this when you offered us this deal. She complained and Dhwani glared at her "Look at the audacity, she is still looking at me as if I did something wrong."
He walked near them, eyes assessing the situation and resting on her a while longer. "Miss Bajaj, I regret the inconvenience caused."
Her eyes snapped to his as he uttered the words, they acted as another hit on her cheek and she took a step back.
"I am sure it all unfolded incorrectly. The intention wouldn't be to insult you, Ma'am." His assistant, Dishant Chaturvedi butted in, wanting to handle the situation. "I am sure an apology from Ms. Gandhi will..."
"Dishant" Anirudh cut him off with an underlying warning. "Ms. Bajaj, why don't we take this to my cabin?"
"There is nothing to discuss, Anirudh. I want her to be fired this instant." She demanded glaring daggers at Dhwani who stood mum. She was done defending herself.
"We can talk things out, Arushi." Anirudh proposed and the woman seem to melt as her name rolled out his tongue.
"Let's take this to my office" His eyes held Dhwani's, and he added for her ears "Please."
"No need, Sir." She passed him a small smile casting aspersions on herself and him, shaking her head. "I will wait for the mail from HR. Do let me know when I can collect my things."
"Wow, look at the attitude." Arushi Bajaj scowled as she turned to walk away.
"Dhwani" His voice made her halt.
"I am sorry, Ms. Bajaj. I did not mean to humiliate you." She turned and said the words which made her shake entirely, it wasn't humiliation but the feeling of being belonged nowhere. "If you excuse me now, it has been stretched a lot more than it should have."
Her words held a meaning that Anirudh seemed to catch as his jaw clenched.
"Dishant, reschedule the meeting for her." He ordered and his secretary jumped at the suddenness.
"But sir..."
"In my office, all of you, now!" The protest died with a quick glare as he thundered. "Back to work, everyone."
Arushi passed her a self-satisfactory smirk and passed her bumping into her shoulder, another man followed and Dishant scrambled to follow his boss's orders.
The crowd which stood witnessing the scene dispersed.
"Dhwani, in my office." He repeated but the calmness was slipping away.
"Ms. Gandhi." She corrected with a mirthless smile "I prefer that."
She turned and left towards the lift, leaving him standing with a clenched jaw and hardened eyes that had the power to freeze the world.
Just like it did to her heart.
■ ■ ■
Rakshit could feel a different buzz as he returned to his office in the afternoon, the eyes following did not bother him but the whispers did they did not hold his name, or Shreya's for that matter but his brother and his wife.
He took the private elevator to the executive floor and stepped out to find the atmosphere busy as always but today, it was more like hurried whispers, frowns, and quick glances at the far end where situated was her brother's office.
His brows furrowed and he took his seat in the cabin, the curiosity getting the best out of him as he called his secretary's assistant. The girl had her eyes and ears everywhere except work.
"May I come in, Sir?" The girl knocked and shyly walked inside which had him roll his eyes.
"Roshni" Her name rolled like a magic spell which had her nod fervently "Did something happen in my absence?"
The girl was all happy to share what she witnessed unfolding and the later events which had him straightening on his seat, eyes hardening as he heard the tale of Dhwani being a laughing stock as her husband supported their new partners rather than backing her after Arushi Bajaj slapped her.
It was woven more intricately after being passed to him in the third person, the details polished and modified to make it a lot better and more interesting.
He immediately stormed towards his brother's office where he didn't consider knocking, throwing the gate open he startled the meeting barging in.
"Bhai, we need to talk." He demanded and gestured the two men to run away much to Anirudh's disapproval.
"Hurry up, I don't have time." Anirudh declared and cocked a brow at Rakshit who stared at him skeptically.
"You let Arushi Bajaj humiliate her?" He asked
"It was all a big misunderstanding." He uttered gritting. "I have handled it all."
"You let her slap Bhabhi." Rakshit accused and Anirudh's composure faded as his eyes turned into fireballs as his palm fisted.
"I did not, I would have never allowed it." He defended himself, "It happened before I could interrupt."
"And yet, the entire office says that you let your wife be hit and insulted while you made her apologize for an accident." Rakshit shot another accusation and earned a scowl from him.
"She herself apologized, I never once asked her to." This time Anirudh was standing and leaning against his desk, palms holding his weight, exhaling to calm himself "I don't care what the office thinks, I have a far more important matter to handle than get their facts cleared."
"Wow, Bhai," Rakshit mumbled giving him a look of disbelief. "I thought you will at least say that you kicked Arushi Bajaj and her deal into a dumpster after she did this."
"What good would that do?" Anirudh asked nonchalantly, picking a file and going through it. "We will be dealing with her father entirely, she was just a replacement for today's meeting."
He nodded silently thinking back to whatever he said and sighed. "I hope you don't go home early today."
"Why?" Anirudh frowned.
"Because I wish you to be alive tomorrow for the business deal." Rakshit chuckled "You will face your wife and will have a super angry GM to handle."
Anirudh rolled his eyes "Leave."
He nodded taking steps back, watching him.
Holding the doorknob, he called for his attention again.
"I have admired you always, Bhai. Wanting to be like you every time but I promise, I won't be a husband like you." He watched the hurt cross Anirudh's face but left.
He knew why their grandmother had forced them back home, there were problems between Anirudh and Dhwani. An arranged marriage between two completely opposite people, both in personality and lifestyle did that often but he did not understand why his brother was this cold toward her
Dhwani was selfless and easy to please, she seemed to always be happy and polite even when she was being back bitched but there was always a breaking point. He understood it well enough and now was confident, that she had reached hers.
From here, it was only two ways things would move.
Either to the good or worst.
But after today, he had a feeling that it will be worst.
It wasn't an hour before he settled on his seat and worked somewhat when Shreya entered enraged.
"Did you hear what happened?" She questioned and Rakshit sighed, nodding "I swear, I will slap that bitch hard the moment she catches my sight."
"I am sure you would." He popped.
"And your brother? Has he lost his brain?" She demanded, "I can only imagine what Dhwani would be feeling but she needs to grow a spine herself"
"Shreya." He warned.
"Only I could have, I would smack some sense in him." She continued ignoring his words.
"We can try that," Rakshit smirked and earned a scoff.
"Shut up." Shreya cut him off "We cannot meddle in their relationship, leave it for Gayatri Dadi to handle."
Rakshit rolled his eyes. "What brings you here?"
"I am here to warn you." Shreya assessed him with an underlying threat in her tone "You try and pull a stunt like that on me and I will chop you in small pieces that even dogs will refuse to have you. I am not Dhwani who would stay silent. I will push you to your grave if you ever, ever did anything close to this. Understood?"
Rakshit cocked a brow in amusement "I am so scared."
"I mean it, Rakshit." Shreya pressed "Never side with someone who's against me or you will be 12 feet down the ground and I'll myself kick you into the pit."
"Got it, Meri Jaan." He raised his hands in mock surrender "I have never sided with anyone but you for the last 16 years. You are my best friend remember?"
"A best friend you manipulated into marrying you." She scowled "You haven't asked my hand formally and I can still release a statement saying that it was a hoax. I am the face of the PR team, remember?"
"My family is due at your place for lunch in two days." Rakshit pointed annoyed at her mention "And, you are marrying me anyhow, Shreya Thapar. Get it straight and start believing it."
"You think you can force me anymore?" She leaned against the desk challenging him.
"Force? No, jaan. You will willingly marry me if you wish to not pay the penalty amount for breaching our agreement. You signed to clean up my image and this is what the first step is." He stated leaning closer, their faces only inches apart.
"I was wrong" She scoffed "You can be worst than Anirudh Bhai."
"I am not him." Rakshit declared "Worst? Yes, but not him."
Shreya rolled her eyes and settled opposite him, "Let's get back to work."
She passed him the tab and they discussed the rumors surrounding their marriage news, some belonging to Uttara and Vidyut and others relating to the Annual ball which was scheduled in two weeks.
An event Dhwani has been planning and executing.
"It is weird that Dhwani or Bhai never make it into the news for their relationship, Bhai is well-known being a businessman but no one knows who Dhwani Chauhan is. It isn't fair, Rakshit." She confessed her thoughts.
"Bhabhi was always a private person, she hasn't attended any formal event for months. Sometimes it was because Bhai was out of town or other times, she said she wasn't feeling up to it." He shrugged.
"Do you think there is something going on that we do not know about?" She pried.
"Like?" He probed
"Dadi bringing the two back home. It is a norm in your family that children move out after being married. Anirudh bhai moved out the same way followed by Vidyut. But now, Dadi has brought them back and none of the two is happy being back." Shreya laid down her observations.
"I have no idea and I don't want to have one." He surrendered "It is their marriage and I have no role to intervene."
"You are right." She admitted pouting.
"I wonder what happens at home today." Rakshit exhaled, "GM would have already known and she won't let anyone off the hook. It will be one dramatic night."
"I signed my life away to this drama and stress, didn't I?" She asked distracted, watching him frown which later turned into a smirk.
"Your life was already mine, now it formally is."