Continued...
Aayan and Ananya's room..
2:30 am..
Aayan's sleep was disturbed due to the movements beside him, he turned to the other side first, and after few minutes opens his eyes..
The room was dimly lit, and he turns back to face Ananya, who slept before he came to the room, to find her side empty
He immediately got up and turned on the night lamp, to see if she slept on the couch or anywhere else, she was not in the room
He sighed, Of course she won't share the room with me, but where did she go ?
He puts his slippers on and walked out of the room, he walked around the hall, to check where was she, careful enough to not to make any noise...
He slowly opened the guest room and looked around, it was empty, he then walked towards Amayraa's room, and she wasn't there too, confused he scratched his head and tried to figure out where she can be...
Maybe she's at the terrace he thought and ran upstairs
He walked around to find that place empty as well, he walked around to find her but she couldn't..
Confused he walked downstairs, towards the kitchen where she heard her muffled voice..
'Where are you...? I've been waiting for like 20 minutes...' He hears her saying and his heartbeats increase
Who is she talking to at this time ?
He slowly follows the voice and peeks from the door to find her standing at the back entrance gate, talking to someone on the phone
'Please come fast, I can't wait any longer, why are you doing this to me...' She whines and Aayan fists his arms
For what she can't wait ? And then it struck him...
No... She can't have a affair...
Get a hold of yourself Aayan...
'Dude, come soon... And make sure not to make any noise...' Ananya says and Aayan gasps
'See everyone is sleeping, I can't speak loudly, so don't make your bike's sound when you come, and tell me where are you...?' she says and Aayan's hands and legs turn cold
Oh My God... My wife is having an affair...
No... This can't be...
Ananya slowly opens the metal gate and walks out of the house, and Aayan took a deep breath and followed her
He could see her jogging towards a man who was in a motorcycle, and they started talking
Aayan slowly tiptoed towards them, from inside the house, hiding behind the boundary wall, which was shorter than his height, so he had to crawl..
He crawled towards them, so he could hear what they were talking about...
Ananya was saying something about cash payment, and the man said he didn't have a change, so she can Paytm him
Paytm him for what...?
A garden lizard just ran past Aayan, seeing which he panicked and stood up, and both of them looked at him
Aayan looked at the man, he was a lanky guy, who could barely support the weight of the bike he was sitting on, he was carrying a Pizza box, and Ananya stood opposite to him, carrying her phone and money, the guy wore a orange t shirt, and a cap which indicated he was a delivery man from Swiggy
Aayan sighed in relief, but then composed his expression as they were staring at him with confused expression
'What are you doing here...?' Ananya asks
'Uh.. I...was... was searching for my... My ring.. I lost my ring...' he stammers
'Okay...' She says and turns to the guy
'I'll paytm the amount Bhaiyya, give me your number...' Ananya says to the delivery guy
'Yes Ma'am its...' they guy began
'How much do you need...?' Aayan asks the guy, taking out the money from his pocket
'The bill is of 455 rupees sir...' the delivery man replied
Aayan pulled out a 500 rupee note, and gave it to him
'I don't have change sir, that's why I asked Ma'am to Paytm me..'
'That's okay buddy, you came all the way from the Pizza place to here at this time, you keep the change...' Aayan smiles and gives him the money
'Thank you Sir...' The delivery guy smiled
'Here's your Pizza Ma'am, sorry to keep you waiting, and sorry if I woke you up sir...' The guy says handing the box to Ananya
'That's fine Bhaiyya, actually we were hungry, that's why I was asking you to hurry...Thank you...' Ananya smiles and the guy starts his bike and leaves
Ananya stares at Aayan raising her brows and he smiled sheepishly
'Is it Chicken...?' Aayan asks pointing at the box
Ananya glares at him and walks inside the gate, walking straight inside the house, Aayan quickly latches the metal gate and follows her
'I am hungry too...' Aayan lied sitting of the chair opposite to her in the dining room
'It's Paneer (Cottage cheese)...' Ananya says forwarding the box at his direction, not looking at him
Aayan hated Paneer, but this was his chance to break the ice...
'I'll have it...' he says and picks up a piece
Ananya did not say anything, she was enjoying her mid night snack
'You didn't have Dinner...?' Aayan asks after taking a bite, which he liked very much
'I did... After you guys went for a walk...' She replies
Ananya did not want to bring past things on the table now, when she is having her favorite food, so she decided to keep answering his questions like nothing happened
'So your appetite has increased...' he comments
'Are you calling me fat...?' Ananya looks at him threateningly
Aayan panics at this, he cannot afford to elevate her anger, and no she did not gain weight at all..
'No no... I didn't mean that, Increase in the appetite is a good sign of metabolism, healthy body, beautiful skin and that awesome figure you have...' he blurted out and she looked at him raising his brows
Awesome figure...? She'll kill you for sure...
He immediately shut his mouth, and cursed himself, Ananya was angry, but she won't show it
'You've become more creepy in America...' she says casually
'You mean I was a creep before leaving...?' Aayan raised his brows, expecting her to take her words back
'Yes, A creep and A psycho, now the creepiness factor has increased...' Ananya replied as if it was nothing and Aayan stares at her shocked
'I wasn't expecting that much honesty' he states, pouring water for himself
'Well, that is what you get...'
'I appreciate that...' Aayan smiles
'So, why were you crawling in the garden...?' she raises her brows, Aayan takes a deep breath and looks at her
'Uh.. I was looking for you... And then I heard you talking on the phone, so I got curious and didn't want to startle you so...' He scratched his head, she took a deep breath, preventing herself to shout at him
'Okay... Don't worry, I don't support Extra Marital Affair, And this family has a real bad history with it, so No...' Ananya says eating her Pizza
'I know you won't...' Aayan agrees
'Can you pass me the oregano ?' she points at the packet
'Yeah sure...' he gives the packet to her
None of them spoke anything and continued to eat, and Aayan was debating whether to say anything further or not, because this behavior of hers was confusing, he was not understanding what was going in her mind
He looked at her, she seemed to enjoy her meal, and he liked seeing her like that...
'Do you order Pizzas in the night very often ?' He asks
'No, only when I am craving for it...' She says eating her slice
Aayan stares at her confused, and just blurted out
'Cravings ? But you are not Pregnant, Are you...?' he blabbered and now Ananya got angry
All this time she was controlling herself not to snap at him, but now his stupid question made her lose patience...
'How can I get pregnant by myself...!' she snaps
Uh oh..
'I am sorry, I wasn't thinking before asking that stupid question, it just came out...' he tried to cover
'Oh ! How typical of you Aayan Verma, you always do things without thinking, and I have to bear it's consequences...' she lost her calm now, she wanted to shout, but didn't want to wake Jai and Amayraa up
'No Ananya... I....' he tries to calm her down, but too late, she was already triggered
'I've been paying for your stupidity since times immemorial ! First you in your stupid rage get married to me and instead of getting a loving husband, I get a broken man, with trust issues... Fine ! I adjust with it.... Then we get impulsive and I end up getting pregnant... Fine ! I prepare myself to raise the child, knowing it very well I wasn't ready to be a mom ! But unfortunately, to save your adopted daughter, I lose my baby.... Okay... Shit happens, then suddenly you get temper issues, and you leave me, I lose my child and My husband at a same time ! You left me when I needed you the most ! How is it fair Aayan...' she lashes out, tears rolling down her eyes
Aayan was shocked, he gets up and tries to calm her down
'Listen Ananya, your anger is justified, but let me explain...' he began
'What will you explain ? Huh ? How will you justify your cowardly act ! You've been breaking my heart since a long time Aayan and you must realise that I am human too, even I have my limitations, it's better that you stab me and finish my story right here, than killing me slowly with a new wound everytime....' she breaks down and sits on the floor, covering her face with her palms and sobbing badly
Seeing her cry, broke Aayan's heart, he knew he was responsible for it, and wanted to compensate for everything he did, he swiftly walks towards her and engulfs her in his embrace tightly
'Don't say this Ananya, if anything happens to you, I'll die too... And I know I have been hurting you since times immemorial, and trust me I regret every part of it, but please, please give me one last chance to prove myself...' He begs
'No ! You won't get any chance...' Ananya angrily gets out from his hold and stands up, he follows her too
'Ananya please....'
'I've given you enough chances Aayan, and now I am done with you...!' she exclaims angrily
'What do you mean...?'
'Aayan.. I want a divorce...' she declares and Aayan is stunned
He stares at her shocked, his breathing hitched, he wanted to shout 'No' but he couldn't find his voice, he wanted to hold her tightly abd beg for forgiveness, but his body was paralyzed, his world came crashing down and he helplessly stared at her
Somebody shook him, to bring him out of his semi paralysis, he didn't respond, and the shaking became violent
'Aayan...! Aayan...! Where are you lost...?' he hears Ananya's voice
What ?
'God damn it Aayan... Did you faint with open eyes...!' he hears her panicked voice and turns to his left to see Ananya sitting on the chair beside him, her hands on his shoulders
He was shocked, and then stared at the place where she stood and declared that she wanted a divorce and the place was empty
I was imagining all that ? Damn it !
He took a deep breath and looked at Ananya and then back at the place, he repeated this action 2-3 times to make sure whether this was real or not
'What happened to you...? I am calling you from last 5 minutes, you seem to lost in some deep thought, and few seconds back, your breathing became abnormal...! Are you okay...?' Ananya asks him and he just stared at her
Oh Thank god, I was imagining all that... She didn't ask for divorce in real, oh thank you god...
'Aayan...! Should I call a doctor ?' She shook him again, breaking his reverie
'How long was I zoned out...?' he asks and she sighs in relief
'Oh thank god, I thought you had some panic attack or something...' she sighs and then looks at him, who was still looking at her for the answer
'Since you passed me the oregano...'
Thank god, I didn't say anything stupid to her in real...
'Aayan...?' he hears her concerned voice
'Are you on some drugs...?' she asks and he starts coughing
She pours some water in the glass, and passes it to him, he drinks it in one go and takes a deep breath
'No... I am not taking any drugs, I was just zoned out...' he says in his normal tone
'Okay... You can have the last piece.... I'll go.. Good night...' Ananya says getting up
'Good night...' he replies and she goes upstairs to their room
He sighs and leans against the chair, massaging his temples
'I am glad that it was all in my head...' he mutters
'What was in your head...?' he hears a male voice and literally jumps from his seat
'God Damn it...' he mutters seeing Jai standing behind him, he places his hands on his chest, and could literally feel his heart pounding
'Dad ! You scared me...' he says trying to calm himself down
'Well my presence had to be noticed, or else you would've eaten the last slice of Pizza...' Jai shrugs his shoulders and picks up the last piece
Aayan didn't say anything, just took his seat, poured himself a glass of water and started drinking it
'Well if you don't do anything soon, she'll divorce you for real...' Jai says and Aayan spits the water he was drinking and began coughing
Jai pats his back, and Aayan calms himself down
'How do you know...?' He asks
'Your face is very expressive, just like mine, the way you zoned out, I could pretty much tell what were you thinking...' Jai said, eating the last slice of Pizza
'I was horrified...' Aayan breathed massaging his temples
'You better hurry, or else I'll search for another groom for my daughter in law...'
'Were you serious...?' Aayan raised his brows
'Ooo you bet I was... Now go and sleep, and next time when you order Pizza, wake me up too...' Jai says wiping his hands with table cloth
'You can't eat oily foods...' Aayan rolled his eyes
'What do you know old man...' Jai grumbled and Aayan chuckled at this
'Good night Son...' Jai caresses Aayan's hair
'Good night Dad...' He smiles
I really need to do something..
Next day...
Ananya's Office
Ananya walked inside the building and the receptionist rushed towards her
'Ma'am Tripathi sir wants to talk to you... He has asked you to see him as soon as you come...' she informs
That coward complained about me to his father in law, how typical...
Of course it's about me shouting at his son in law...
Wow I'll be fired today
'Okay, I'll see him...' Ananya says and walks towards her cabin
She keeps her bag on the table and took out a box from the cabinet, and started keeping her things inside it
There was a soft knock on her door
'Come in...' she says
Her boss Mr. Tripathi walked in and looked at her confused
'Are you going somewhere...?' he asks
She stiffens and turns around
'Sir, Good morning, I was about to come to your cabin, was just packing my stuff in advance...' She
'Why...?'
'Because you are going to fire me, for yelling at Abhishek Sir...' she states matter o factly
'Don't be silly Ananya, I am not going to fire you because you defended yourself, infact I am here to apologise for Abhishek and Dhurv's behavior...'
Ananya looked at her boss shocked
'What ?'
'Yeah... I came to know about what Dhruv did and Abhishek's comments on that, and honestly, this is not how you behave with a woman.. So I transferred Abhishek to my Hyderabad branch and Dhruv is fired...' Her boss informs
Ananya couldn't believe what just happened
'Sir, I am confused, you transferred your son in law, because of your employee... I mean.. This is ...' she was short of words
'It doesn't matter to me if he is my son in law, no one disrespects my women staff here, and you are about to become senior partner here, if I can't ensure your safety, what kind of a lawyer am I...!' her boss says
Ananya was touched by this gesture...
'Thank you sir... This means a lot...' she smiles
'If someone did that to my daughter, I would've done the same, Men need to get rid of their age old mindset that Women are just objects to play with... And to be honest, I am ashamed that my son in law has that mentality...'
Ananya was short of words now, how did he come to know what happened ?
'Now keep your things back on their place and brief me about your latest case, we'll discuss on the possibilities and improvisation before the court hearing...' he says in a firm tone
'Yes sir...' Ananya replies
'Come to my Cabin in 15 minutes...' Mr. Tripathi says and leaves her cabin
Ananya sits on her chair, trying to process what just happened, she massaged her temples, to come to a conclusion
How can her boss, who always defended his SIL, has taken this step ?
Did anyone threaten him ? Then something hit her thoughts...
Why do I feel you have something to do with this Aayan ?
Evening...
Varma's house..
'Paa... What are you doing ?' Amayraa asks sitting on the high stool near the kitchen counter
'I am making the dinner for us baby...' Aayan says chopping the vegetables
'You think Annie will be impressed by this Maggi...?' she picks up her the packet
'Baby, this Maggi has done wonders...' he smirks not looking at her
'I know my mom more than you Paa, Annie is very particular about taste and if she comes to know that you made dinner, she won't eat at all....' Amayraa shrugs her shoulders and he frowns
'What do you suggest then ?'
'Let's say we ordered it from outside...' she suggests
'Out of everything, we order Maggi from the Restaurant...?' he raises his brows and Amayraa frowns
'Maybe you are not that smart...' Aayan teases her
'Stop judging me, I am six...' she huffs and he laughs pulling her cheeks
'But you are right, she won't eat anything made by me...' he sighed
'Don't worry baba, I'll say that I made this' Mrs. Kumar pats his shoulders
'Pappy you are my hero...' he hugs her and Amayraa - Mrs. Kumar laugh at this
'Make sure you don't add much salt, Ananya has hypertension, she can faint if her bp elevates...' Mrs. Kumar warns
Aayan was shocked to hear this
'But she is just 30...'
'Her stress level is more than any 30 year old Baba...' she says and Aayan sighs, realising he is responsible for that as well
'We'll help you fix everything...' Mrs. Kumar assures him and they start with their preparations
1 hour later
Ananya walks inside the house and walks straight towards the kitchen smelling something delicious
'Pappy ! What are you making...?' she calls while reaching the kitchen
Aayan and Mrs. Kumar panic and he quickly hides himself in the space between the fridge and the wall, while Mrs. Kumar covers him quickly
'It's a surprise...' Mrs. Kumar smiles
'I smell Maggi, did Amayraa ask you to make it...?' Ananya asks
'Yeah...' Mrs. Kumar lied
'Pappy, why do you give in to her unhealthy demands, you know too much of junk is not good for her...' Ananya whines
'Annie, I have added lot of vegetables in it, so it's nutritious as well...'
'That's good then, do add capsicum and carrots pappy, they are good for eyes and digestion, and please boil warm water in advance, Amayraa and Aayan can't digest spicy food...' Ananya says and Mrs. Kumar smiles at her, while Aayan's heart skipped a beat
She remembers..
'What will Papa eat ?' Ananya asks immediately, before pappy could say anything
'I made porridge for him...'
'Okay, that's good and Uh.. What about uh...' she stops and then looks everywhere but Mrs. Kumar
'Aayan Baba...?' Mrs. Kumar completes her sentence
'Yeah.. I mean he won't just eat Maggi right... He'll need more...' Ananya says trying to keep it formal
Aayan smiled and leaned his head against the refrigerator
'Okay... I'll make something for him and you as well, if you want...' Mrs. Kumar smiles and Ananya nods
'Okay.... I'll freshen up and come to help you...'
'No need Annie, see everything is done, you go get changed, I'll serve the dinner...' Mrs. Kumar smiles
'Uh.. Is he in my room...?' Ananya asks
'Who Aayan Baba...? No ! He went out with Ved Baba... He'll be back though...' Mrs. Kumar lies
'Okay... Good...' Ananya sighs
'See you Pappy...' she hugs her and leaves the kitchen
Aayan did not come out of his hiding place, he just closed his eyes in peace and smiled...
'Did you faint out of happiness Baba...?' Mrs. Kumar calls and Aayan comes out
'I am so happy Pappy...' he hugs her
'I am happy for you too, but this battle is not even half won, you have a long way to go... Gear up...' Mrs. Kumar warns
'Yes Ma'am...' he mock salutes and continues the cooking
At the dinner table...
Everyone sat at the dinner table, while Aayan walks downstairs after changing, and joined them
'Wow the smell is good, what did you make Pappy...' he says
Jai, Amayraa and Mrs. Kumar look at him and smirk, while Ananya was busy in serving the food
Aayan clears his throat and looks away from them
'We made Maggi...' Amayraa says looking at her father and grinning, while he gives her a warning look
'Maggi ? That's so unhealthy Baby, Pappy, why did you make it..?' Aayan fakes anger and Amayraa glares at him
'Hadd hoti hai overacting ki.. (There's a limit for overracting...)' Jai mutters, and Aayan heard it
'Nothing happens if you eat junk food one day....And....' Amayraa protests, her mother cuts her off in between
'Don't talk to your father like that, he is right...' she says
'Now you two will team up against me...! Daadu.. You become my Parent, I don't want these sadu's...' Amayraa huffs
Ananya and Aayan glare at her, and Jai laughs
'Yeah baby... The population of Sadu's in this house is increasing now... Let's shift somewhere else...' Jai hi fies Amayraa
'I am not a sadu...' Aayan protests
Before anyone could say anything Ananya spoke up
'Look who's talking....' She mutters, but everyone heard it, Aayan didn't comment, because she was right
'Uh huh ? Look who's talking here...' Jai says to Ananya and she tries not to smiles
'Don't worry Baba, I made porridge for everyone, even Amayraa...' Mrs. Kumar says looking at her and she frowns
'But I...' Amayraa began
'You will finish it...' Ananya orders and Amayraa sighs
'Can I have ice cream after that...?' she looks at Ananya, giving her the best puppy dog face she could
'Okay....' Ananya smiles and Amayraa cheered
'See... Best mom ever....' Amayraa grins
'What about me...?' Aayan asks
Amayraa looks at him and then sticks her tongue out to tease him
'Nah... Annie is still better...' She comments and starts eating her food
Ananya chuckled and then dug into her food too, after taking a bite, she frowned
Aayan and Mrs. Kumar panic looking at her face, and looked at each other
Ananya looked up and stared straight at Aayan's direction, who was already looking at her
'Did you make this pappy...?' Ananya asks Mrs. Kumar, but her eyes at Aayan
'Uh... Yeah...' Mrs. Kumar lied
Ananya raised her brows and Aayan tried to keep it cool, by not panicking
'Okay...' she says and continues eating her food
Aayan and Mrs. Kumar sighed in relief, while Jai and Amayraa controlled their laughs looking at Aayan's panicked expression
The dinner went in silence, with Ananya passing questioning glares to Mrs Kumar and Aayan, while they trying their best not to react
'Okay...I'll leave...' Mrs. Kumar stood up and literally ran towards the kitchen
Aayan too got up to leave, when Ananya's voice stopped him
'Try adding lesser chillies next time Aayan, I can't eat them...' she says not looking at him
Jai and Amayraa stared at her shocked and Aayan nods
'Okay...' he says and he too runs inside the kitchen
Ananya takes a deep breath and finishes her dinner, and then looked at Amayraa who was still shocked
'Mother knows everything, Baby...' She smirks and gets up
Jai and Amayraa stared at each other
'Indeed...'
1 hour later...
Ananya was standing at her favourite spot on the terrace, staring nowhere, holding her green tea cup
Aayan slowly walked towards her, and stood beside her, not saying anything...
He knew that she was like a dormant volcano inside, her not reacting to anything holds a secret message, which he was trying to decode
He just stood there, not saying anything, even Ananya noticed his arrival, but did not say anything
They stood there in comfortable silence
'Your cooking skills are improved...' she comments
'Thanks, I had to cook by myself there... So got the basic idea of it...' he replied
'Hmm...'
'I came to know that you have BP issues...' he said
'Yeah... If I don't control the salt in my diet, I might get a stroke...' she said sipping her green tea, like it was nothing
Aayan looks at her bewildered
'You shouldn't eat those mid night snacks then, they aren't good for you....'
'You are talking like my mother now...' she rolls her eyes
'You can't take this lightly, stroke is not a joke...' he raised his voice
'Who wants to live anyway....' Ananya comments casually
Aayan got angry at this, he catches her arms and makes her turn towards him, she gasped and the hot cup of green tea, spilled on their hands
'Don't act selfish Ananya and you dare to take your life as a joke, you have no idea how many people are dependent on it...' he glares at her
Ananya looks at him, maintaining her calm demeanor, she stared straight into his eyes
'I am well aware of it Aayan, that is what I have been doing all my life, Living for others, first for my parents, then you, then your daughter and now your family... Did it ever struck anyone that I never ever lived for myself...' she said calmly, Aayan's grip loosens on her
'You married me out of revenge, I did not say anything, You tried your best to make my life living hell, I tolerated that, You madly fell in love with me, I was happy with it, I lost my baby, I did not say anything, You left me, I did not say anything... Where did I act selfish Aayan....?' she asks calmly, but tears filled her eyes
Aayan was speechless, he couldn't look at her now, he left her and took a step back
'You think by making dinner, talking to my boss, and helping me with household chores, you can compensate for those 3 years ?' she asks, but Aayan had no answer to it
'You know, the day you left even after me begging you not to, I decided I will never ask for anything to anyone, because my love wasn't strong enough to make you stop, you did what you wanted to... So I will do what I want to...' she says challengingly and He looked at her bewildered
'You think my life is void without you ? I have learned to live alone Aayan and I don't care if you stay with me or not... So try all you want, if you think that will work, great...' she says and turns to leave
'You lost nothing Aayan, you still have your wife and family with you, real loss was mine, I lost myself... So instead of wasting time to impress me and trying to reincarnate your dead marriage... I would be grateful, if you let me find my inner peace, because I have had enough Aayan... I cannot take more drama... I am tired...' she joins her palms in front of him and he couldn't do anything
'But Ananya, I love you...' he managed to say
'I know that... '
'Don't you...?' he asked hopefully
'It doesn't matter whether I love you or not, the main concern here is do you love yourself ? Do you trust yourself enough ? You keep on running away, because you don't have faith in you...! First learn to love yourself Aayan, then I will tell you whether, I love you or not...' she said and left
I love myself or not ?
What does she mean by that ?
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