"Uh, Niharika, your brother called you for dinner," bhabhi said, standing.
I wiped my tears and looked in her direction, still unable to meet her eyes. She had witnessed my humiliation by my own father. What image had I created in her eyes?
"N..o.o, y-y-you go, bh..a.abhi. I'm n..not fe..e.eling hu...ngry," I said, avoiding eye contact and looking down.
"Please come; he's waiting for you. He knew you would say no, that's why he said he will not eat without you," bhabhi urged.
"Bh...a..abhi, ple..e..ase te..l..ll th..e.em n..n.ot to w..wait f..f.for me. Th..hey don't ne..e.ed to w..wait; they've a...l..lready d..o..one too m..u.uch for m..e," I said.
"Niharika, please, for me. I will not have anything too if you didn't," she said, sitting down.
I looked the other way, avoiding contact.
"I'll feel bad, and he too has to sleep hungry with us," bhabhi continued. I looked towards her, not understanding, but she placed my hand on her stomach, and I understood what she meant by 'too.'
"Ar...r.e you pre...g..n..nant?" I asked.
She nodded.
I smiled at her, placing kicky on the side.
She nodded again.
"Yes, and you are the first one I'm telling. Don't you think,I take you as a loser. No, you are a pure soul, an inspiration for him," she said, pointing towards her belly. I removed my hand, feeling undeserving of being an inspiration for someone.
"M..me? An in...nspira..tion? Ne..ever," I said.
"Yes, you are!" she insisted, though I knew she was lying.
"Your brother told me everything. He was crying and worried after the day Mr. Prithvi called him for you. I don't judge you; I know you did nothing wrong," bhabhi said.
"Wh...a..at di..d.d th..e..ey ca..a.ll?" I asked in shock.
"Yes, he was worried about you like a mad person," bhabhi confirmed.
'Why did he call? He was really worried for me. I thought I was just making things myself,'-- I smiled inside.
Why? I didn't know.
They continued, "What your bhai told me, I can only say you are lucky; your husband cares for you a lot," she said.
"Now, please, will you join us?" she asked.
I smiled and hugged her.
"Let's go," bhabhi said, bringing me out of my thoughts, and I nodded.
***
"Yes, it's just about an hour away. We could make it through, right? Or how many days is the election campaign going for?" Prithvi asked Amar on a call while driving his car back to Bangalore airport to catch his private jet.
"About a week, then we'll be done," Amar's voice came from the phone, which was put on speaker.
Prithvi tapped his finger on the steering wheel while thinking deeply, letting out a sigh. "Okay, Amar, let's do it for a week. Then we will return to our original business, back to Delhi," he said while thinking.
He then looked at the seat beside him, where Niharika was sitting; her scent lingered there.
However, his eyes went wide as he muttered a curse to himself.
"What the hell," frustration was evident in his voice.
"Boss, what happened? Why did you stop the car? Is anything wrong?" Amar's voice hung in the air from the phone, and Prithvi sighed.
"How irresponsible," he commented.
"Boss, you are coming, right? I can't handle things on my own," Amar began speaking.
Prithvi, while scratching his forehead, said, "Yes, I heard you, Amar," and ended the call.
Deep in thought, he turned to look around and expressed another word in disbelief.
"Whoa, even the bags."
"What do I do now? Let it be. I need to go back. What's important is my presence in Rajasthan, there's no one to handle there." he muttered to himself, convincing himself, and started the car again, driving towards the airport.
His face seemed to say, 'I already have a lot on my plate; I can't handle more.'
***
BACK AT HER HOME, AT THE DINING TABLE,
Niharika arrived with her sister-in-law, Ekta and took a seat beside her with a smile.
Veer, trying to make her feel welcome, said, "Niharika, come and sit with us. Why were you locked in your room by yourself?" His wife subtly signaled him to speak warmly to her.
Niharika nodded and began to take her seat. Anamika, her sister, got up from her seat, catching Niharika's attention. Anu simply left without answering anyone, more composed than before, her hangover now done, and more in her senses.
"Uh, Niharika, take this," Veer said, distracting her.
As they all sat at the dining table, Jairaaj, their father, entered in anger and rage. He shouted, "What is she doing here, at the dining table? Who allowed her to come here?"
Niharika got up again, her face filled with terror, resembling her morning demeanor--scared, trembling, and timid.
"Didn't I tell you, you are no longer my daughter? How dare you sit with us? Do you have no shame, or is your skin like that of a pig, where nothing gets through your ears? You are not my daughter; you don't belong in this house," he shouted, making her cry and look down, clutching the dupatta she had been wearing since morning.
"Mr. Jairaaj Jamwal," a more dominant voice echoed.
Prithvi, who had just entered and witnessed the scene, his eyes now filled with anger, marched inside, holding her phone in one hand.
Niharika looked at him, surprised to see him here. His eyes showed intensified anger, something stirring inside him since he had previously mentioned seeing her tears.
He spoke, "Don't you dare talk to my wife that way. She is no longer your daughter. If you look down on her, that means you are looking down on me, and I think you can't afford that, right?" He uttered with one of his eyebrows lifting in question.
Now, Jairaaj, who was initially dominant, seemed a bit hesitant, as if he were thinking twice about how to represent his words in front of the angry young man standing before him.
"Mr. Prithvi," Veer began to speak.
But, ignoring everyone else, Prithvi only looked at Niharika. Without listening or replying to anyone else, he took a step towards her, stood in front of her, looked directly into her eyes, and said, "They don't deserve you as their daughter. It's good that I arrived on time and saw how they treat you. Otherwise, you would have had to tolerate everything for a week without me knowing."
He then took her hand and said, "Let's go," marching towards the main door.
She looked at him, noticing the worry and anger on his face, the opposite of the calm person he usually was.
She wondered, 'Why does it make him angry to see me treated like this? Why does it matter to him?'
When they almost reached the main gate, she stopped him, grabbing his blazer.
He understood and reacted the way it was needed, stopping and asking, "What now?"
She hesitated and then spoke, "Kicky!"
"C..c..can I ta..k.ke her to..o.o with m..e?" she asked, remembering her pet and how the dog felt alone and abandoned in this home.
Even though they provided food,but Kicky wanted Niharika, and Niharika wanted her.
"Kicky? Who's that?" he asked in frustration, wondering why she was bringing up such things when he was so angry.
"M..y.y dog, m..y pe..et," she explained.
He gave a silent nod.
"W..a..ait fo..o.r me; I'll t...take her wi..t.th me," she said with a smile, momentarily forgetting all her pains.
She ran towards her room like a carefree kid without any obligations.
Meanwhile, he followed her to her room, playing the role of her guardian, ignoring everyone present.
As she entered her room, he came to a halt, halted by Anamika. He closed his eyes, seeking some patience, and turned around. "Mr. Prithvi, what are you doing here? I thought you were smart, but you married her. Didn't you listen to me?" she said in frustration, gesturing toward Niharika's room. "Look at her. Why did you marry her? She is not compatible with you. She isn't meant for you. She is so weak, listen-"
Prithvi, finally fed up with the whole family situation, spoke up, "No, you listen to me! If she is weak, I can protect her. And if she is not of good character, that doesn't make her any less human or justify your family's mistreatment of her."
He then issued a warning, "Please stay away from my wife. She is my responsibility, and you did your part by telling the truth about her. Now it's up to me whether to accept her or again to accept her!"
"There's nothing more for you to bother about. Tell your father that if I start mixing feelings in business like he does, he will be the first one to go down because I hold a major stake in his company. Go and ask him," he added.
Without giving her a chance to respond, he cut her off whenever she tried to speak.
"And Watch out, miss---- miss! Right? We don't need to know more than that about each other." Ignoring Anamika, he entered Niharika's room.
Impatiently, he asked, "How much more time?"
Niharika replied, showing her hand, "5 mins, I'l..ll p..pack he..r.r thi..n.ngs." Her dog jumped around the room but became quiet when saw Prithvi, like obediently sitting in a corner.
Prithvi's expression changed as he noticed the surroundings of her room for the first time.
Unable to hold back, he asked, "Is this really your room? Is this where you live?" She nodded, focusing on her work.
He looked shocked, realizing, "How could someone live in a room like this? It's just white-painted walls, like a cell. Compared to the whole house, her room looks like an abandoned storage room with simple and basic furniture." His face turned into a sea of questions as he observed her, thinking, "How many things lie here that I don't even know about her? So many mysteries lie here."
***
OUTSIDE THE HOUSE,
"Sit," he said, but she didn't pay attention, her focus entirely on her pet.
He sighed wearily, coming to her side and opening the car door.
"Sit inside," she heard and complied, him following suit, sitting inside and starting the car.
After fastening his seatbelt, he called Amar, explaining that he couldn't make it and had to handle everything.
After ending the call, before starting to drive, he glanced in her direction.
She was looking down while her puppy in her lap wiggled with cute little movements. However, she wasn't paying attention to her pet; her thoughts seemed far away, lost.
He said, "Put your seatbelt on," but she didn't respond.
Frustrated, he leaned closer to her seat, trying to fasten her seatbelt himself.
"I said put your seatbelt on; we need to leave," he insisted, getting closer to her face.
She fluttered and looked at him in shock, her heart beating fast, and the puppy in her lap jumping.
Suddenly, she realized her disheveled appearance, and she looked down and out of the window, avoiding him looking at her face. But it was too late; he had already noticed and asked, "What happened to your face?"
Observing her swollen red face, torn lips from the corners, and bruises on her hand, which she tried to hide beneath her dupatta, which she might have received when her father tightly clutched her, guiding her out of his home.
She didn't reply, choosing to remain quiet. Her face showed nothing but sadness, but to him, her silence became another rising problem.
He continued, "In the morning, there was..."
"Who did this?" he asked.
She looked down, indicating she didn't want to tell him.
He waited patiently for her answer but then decided not to push further.
Maybe inside him, there was a tempest of emotions, wanting to turn the world upside down, but he respected her privacy.
If she chose not to tell him, it was her choice, and he couldn't go against her will. He chose not to ask any further questions and looked ahead, starting the car, saying, "Put on your seat belt."
She fastened her seat belt this time, and he drove away in silence.
There was no sound throughout the journey, silence dominating the atmosphere. He looked dangerously calm, only the sound of her pet, making noises and climbing up to the window, could be heard.
Once they reached the place, resembling a villa or private property, Prithvi parked and silently showed her the way to the room. Choosing not to utter a word, he gave her the silent treatment.
Prithvi went outside, and she finally looked up, taking in the room's surroundings. It appeared to be a guy's room, neat and clean, not frequently visited, with everything in its original position.
Then, the gates opened, and he stormed back in, impatience evident on his face.
She looked at him questioningly as he took a seat beside her, and she moved slightly, creating some space between them.
He let out a weary sigh and placed the first aid box on the table, which she keenly noticed.
He looked at her and said, "Let me apply first ice on it," pointing towards her face.
She shook her head in refusal, moving his hand away, saying, "I w..will a..apply it m..y..yself, ple..aase don't b...bother by me."
"I know you could, but let me apply," he said, making a request to her.
"N..no, I w..i..ill," she stubbornly replied.
He reached out to put his hand on her head, saying, "How stubborn you are. I said, Let me assist you."
She suddenly became scared and terrified, trying to cover her face in defense, as if he were going to hit her for not listening to him.
Prithvi looked at her in shock and terror as he noticed her reaction. Then, she realized he wasn't going to hit her, dropped her hand, and started speaking, "So.r.rr-"
Prithvi pulled her into a hug, embracing her as he realized there was something more hidden by her family, something they hadn't told him. He started to understand that she wasn't as they had portrayed her.
He rested his head on hers, gently patting her back and head to comfort her.
She cried, hiding in his arms, soaking his shirt with her salty tears.
He continued to reassure her, whispering comforting words, "No, don't get scared. No one will try to hurt you ever again. I'm here, always," silently convincing her.
She didn't let go of him, keep hugging, silently like making a plea to him: Please keep hugging me until I smell like warmth, like you, until the coldness returns to its original address from where it never returns to me. This coldness is wearing me out.
And like He heard her silent request and allowed her to smell like him. They stayed like that for some time until Niharika herself broke the hug.
Prithvi knelt down while she sat on the bed at her face level, and he started applying medicine to her bruises. As he moved his hand, tracing her face with his finger, he saw those cruel marks of no mercy.
He couldn't hold himself back anymore. Something stirred inside him, something he couldn't stop or control.
He clenched his fist and the cotton pad he was holding, a silent protest. "Wait for me. Don't leave; I'll come back," he said, not waiting for her reply, and left the house.
While driving his car at full speed in anger, he stopped in front of her house.
Getting outside the car, he stormed inside, unimpeded by the watchman.
But Could a watchman really stop the storms that were about to come out by blocking his way?
Standing in front of the Jamwal house, he looked around, then spotted a large stone placed in one corner.
Without giving it a second thought, he picked up the stone and threw it at Jairaaj's car. Yes, now he indeed resembled a local thug. Love had reshaped him, affecting his behavior and methods of handling things.
A rational person started behaving irrationally; that's what was happening to Prithvi. Was this a sign of him falling for her again?
Love had the power to make one possessive and cloud one's thinking. However, in his defense, love didn't make him stupid. That's why Prithvi aimed for his father-in-law's favorite car, the most expensive and limited edition one, destroying it in seconds. Again, he threw the same stone.
The entire family came out to witness the unfolding scene in front of their eyes at midnight.
Jairaaj looked at him, and Prithvi moved towards him, speaking sternly, "Don't you ever try to touch her in the future; otherwise, I will make sure you pay for your sins with your life."
Prithvi then composed himself for a moment to deliver an intellectual lesson.
Jairaaj observed him closely.
"Look, Mr. Jamwal, you don't have any right to touch her just because she is your daughter. In fact, you don't have any rights or claims over any woman just because she is weaker and unable to answer you back, and you see fear in her eyes," he stated.
Prithvi corrected the position of Jairaaj's kurta while continuing, "Now, as for her, she is my wife. As I said, she is no longer your daughter; she is the only son and the inherited king's wife. So, in position, she is higher than you now. I warn you, if your filthy fingers or your family even try to speak ill of her, then there is no wrath worse than mine."
He adjusted Jairaaj's kurta with a hint of psychopathy in his demeanor.
Prithvi then looked towards Veer, shouting, "Mr. Veer, tell him. If I come to my own conclusion, this entire house of yours-yes, this house where my wife has to be insulted and tormented every second-will be the first thing I will crumple down with my own hands."
"Mr. Veer, I guess you didn't inform your father about what happens when someone tries to mess with me and my family. If I keep calm, that means I was giving you a chance to correct your mistake, not to take me as a joke."
The whole family witnessed his cold, ruthless side and observed as he left, saying, "Oh, call my manager for your loss," pointing his finger towards jairaaj's broken car.
***
Back at the place, he's again calm, his usual self.
'See, that's what I mean when I was saying love is a quite weird thing. He's again calm & relaxed, as if not moments ago, he didn't want to go against the world, and the reason is his beloved one sleeping peacefully. She was hugging her newly appointed mate, her puppy. They both were sleeping soundly, cuddling each other. It was a typical happy family scene, like a typical wife waiting for her husband when he said he would return at night to his beloved lover.'
Prithvi moved towards her, first looking at her, then his eyes fell on the cute, clumsy note next to her stick on the table.
He picked it up, looking at her first, then started reading with interest:
"Me and Kicky were waiting for you. You didn't inform us. There was some food in stock in this house, so I made something. We had it without you. You can find the food on the kitchen countertop. In case we dozed off, I wasn't really going to sleep, I swear, but Kicky needed company. Have the food."
Then there were a lot of scribbled, hesitating words.
He read them with different interests:
"Sorry, bear with the mess in the kitchen,"
They said, and he looked up towards the kitchen, realizing the havoc she had caused.
"Damn, fuck, Abhi will not leave me after seeing this, condition of his house," he said in realization, already imagining how Abhi would react.
Then his eyes fell on the food covered with two plates on the counter top, and a smile crept on his lips.
Then, again, he looked towards her, taking out a long, weary breath after a very active and eventful day.
He must be thinking 'he has to go through each & every day, a very unique and big problem after her presence in his life.'
He moved towards her, first taking the puppy who curled up into herself in peaceful sleep. He placed her in the perfect spot for her to sleep and then covered her with a blanket. In return, the puppy gave a sleepy smile and folded into herself.
Then, Prithvi moved toward Niharika, once again lifting her, as she had chosen to sleep on the sofa.
When she could always sleep on the bed, I guess Prithvi should sign out for a gym membership, as lifting her is just becoming his daily life ritual, a workout for him.
He placed her on the bed, then switched off the light. She too curled up in bed in very familiar comfort.
***
NEXT MORNING
Niharika's POV:
I woke up lazily as sunlight fell on my face. Sitting up, I found myself questioning why I was again sleeping on the bed and how I got here. But this time, there was no disturbance.
It was silent, allowing me to think briefly.
Still, I couldn't remember much other than waiting for him last night on the sofa, as he had said.
I got up from bed and followed the routine, walking outside. I noticed Kicky sleeping peacefully in one corner, covered with a blanket.
Again, a question arose in my mind.'I didn't place her here, so how did she end up on the bed?'
My eyes then fell on the sofa, and there he was, sleeping.
The sofa was large enough, but not for him - his big form couldn't quite fit comfortably.
He was in a distressed position. I moved towards him, the first question that came to my mind was, 'Why is he sleeping on the couch and not the bed?' My brain automatically answered, 'Because you were sleeping on the bed.'
I ignored the question and sat back, attempting to place a pillow under his head, which was on the floor, without him knowing.
But it seemed I miserably failed. He woke up as he always did, grabbing my hand, and pulling me towards him.
Now, I was on top of him. I should tried to explain, like the other times. We couldn't have a misunderstanding, right? We had no intentions. 'Niharika, we were just putting his pillow back, like good human beings. So, say it, Niharika. We need to come up with something,' my inner self made numerous comments.
I started speaking when he got up, putting me back on one side of the sofa and sitting on the other.
We were still close, but his expression was different now.
He looked concerned.
Why? He put his hand on my head and blurted out, "You are heating up."
VOTE TARGET AS ALWAYS 600+
Finally chapter end guys I'm WRITING scripts and dialogues what will suggest the charcter most, and justify their feelings, that's why it's takes time, i do have already plots but i can't just write bland dialogues, and i ready every comment, i was fucking working my ass off to deliver, chapters on time, literally writing from 6pm to now finally uploading what else you want my soul, didn't have anything now going to have. If u didn't like I can't do anything I tried my best or doing, their's more , i gave 7000++ words in a day, no one's pay that much attention now lemme die in 🕊️🕊️ peace.