Chapter 13

A/N: With lots of love, I dedicate thischapter to one of my ardent readers here. Someone whose comments for the story areno less than a verdict for me.

So here this chapter is dedicated to AnjuRish.

Thank you dear, for reading the story with so much ofemotions and putting forward your reality-laden comments.

Chapter 13 : Facing the Situation

Arnav Singh Raizada walked back to his room heartbroken and defeated.

Defeated by something that he never believed in. Fate.

He had always believed himself to be ruling his life. But today his belief was blown. The brutal realization that nothing was in his hands was sinking in.

He realized how easily he had played into the hands of Shyam Manohar Jha. He did everything that Shyam expected him to do. He doubted Khushi, he doubted his heart and believed in Shyam.

He knew that he deserved the suffering he was going through.

He also knew how selfish it was of him to expect Khushi's forgiveness yet he expected it.

Because, he knew he could not stay away from her. He cannot let her go from his life. Even if he has to live with her hate, he would do so. Anything was acceptable to him but being away from her. Khushi had lived with him while he pretended to hate her. He can do it too. He can bear the hate in her eyes, in her words, but letting her leave is something he wouldn't be able to do.

Her presence around him gave a meaning to his life. She was the light in his otherwise bleak life. He cannot part with the only source of light and warmth in his life.

As his eyes ran around his room, he felt that warmth gone. She had carried it away with herself. This room that he once found welcoming and comfortable now felt dark and cold to him.

No. He wouldn't live like this. He will bring Khushi back. No matter what he has to do, he will bring her back in his room, in his life.

With that thought, he lay down on the recliner. The bed was not an option. Without Khushi on it, he didn't want to sleep on it. The empty space next to him would haunt him too much.

As he adjusted himself on the recliner, his eyes began to flutter close. The lack of proper food and sleep since the past two days was already taking its toll on his diabetic body.

His fatigued muscles strained but it was his heart that gave him the most pain. Emotionally he felt drained, empty.

"Kabhi hua ye bhi, khaali raahon pe bhi

Tu tha mere saath

Kabhi tujhe milke, lauta mera dil ye

khaali khaali haath"

~~***~~

At some point of time, Khushi stood up from the floor where she had sat crying and walked up to the bed.

She lied down flat on her stomach and hid her face in the pillows.

She wanted to cry but the tear glands seemed non-functional now. In fact, everything around her seemed non-functional now.

Her heart had stopped expecting things, stopped feeling the pain.

Arnavji had stopped hating her.

The last thought finally helped her tear glands.

There was a time when he had stopped loving her or so she thought.

There was a time when he had stopped caring about her tears, pleas, requests, and most importantly her feelings.

Nothing she had done had been able to get through to him. That had been the hardest time of her life. He hated her and insulted her and she didn't know why. She couldn't fathom how and why his warm smiles had turned so cold. Why his loving looks had become so hateful. It hurt her every time. His words burned her every time. And just when she decided to stop caring about his hatred, his sharp words and cold looks, he decided to stop hating her?

Why? Why now?

What was she supposed to do now?

How can she go back to what they were before this contract marriage? How can she erase all the painful memories he had created for her in these months? And most of all, how can she know that he wouldn't go back to doing it all over again? Isn't that what he always did? Every time she thought he cared, he would do something to prove otherwise.

This time she was not going to fall for his words. This time she will hold her ground.

He expects her to forgive him for everything he did. What about her own expectations?

She was ten years old when she had started dreaming about her prince charming who would come riding on a white horse and take her along. She had also expected him to take along her Jeeji with them so that all of them could live together. Happily ever after!

Dreams of an innocent heart!

Once she had reached Delhi, she had forgotten all about her prince charming because she had a 'Rakshaas' to deal with. Her laad governor.

She didn't know when exactly her heart had fallen for the split personality of this Rakshaas.

"Haste hue aap bilkul bhi laad governor nahi lagte"

She recalled when he had laughed for the first time. That was the best thing she had seen since her arrival in Delhi. A laughing Arnav was a sight to behold.

So she had fallen for the Arnav in him. The man behind the mask of ruthless and heartless ASR.

But she had never imagined that there would come a day when the ASR in him would overpower her Arnavji.

It happened and that ruined her dreams and expectations. Yet she couldn't stop loving him. She loved him then and she loved him now.

But the pain of not being trusted enough by her husband had overshadowed her love.

Khushi knew what she had to do. She cannot remove him from her heart. But, she can remove herself from his life.

~~***~~

"Hello Hi Bye Bye" Maamiji said, entering the hall, back from her day-long visit to the spa.

Mahendra Singh Raizada, her husband, was already back from the office along with her son, Akash Singh Raizada and the family was sitting together after having tea.

Khushi sat with them too after Payal had incessantly forced her to come out of the room. She had almost finished her tea when Arnav had joined them.

He still held his black coffee in one hand, watching her discreetly. He watched as Khushi chatted with everyone like nothing was wrong. She even smiled and laughed at something Akash said.

But, she hadn't looked his way even once. He didn't exist for her and that was like a knife being twisted in his body.

"I see that no one cares about my absence in the house" Maamiji was saying.

"Is anyone even going to ask where had I been?" Maamiji said, flaunting her manicured hands and the polished nails.

"There is only one place which can make you look human Manorama and that is your spa and beauty parlour" Mamaji said, chuckling alone. Akash shook his head at his father and mother's antics.

"What are you looking at, Khoon bhari Taang. Serve me more tea"Maamiji said to Payal, deciding to ignore the comment for her own good.

"Ji Maaji" Payal replied and started pouring another cup of tea for her mother-in-law.

She was mid-way filling the cup when Khushi dropped her own empty cup on the floor which broke into pieces with a clattering noise.

Everyone's attention converged to Khushi, who was looking in a certain direction with a hinge of scare in her eyes, the latter part noticed by Arnav alone.

Every gaze in the room followed her gaze and found a smiling Shyam standing in the doorway.

"Damadji?" Manorama squealed out like she had just been gifted a set of imported make-up kit.

Seeing the man, Arnav's features hardened with a coating of anger upon them and he stood up.

But seemed like the surprise wasn't over yet.

Within ten seconds, emerged Anjali and Naniji in the doorway.

It didn't take much time for Arnav to put two and two together and guess Anjali had brought him here. Seemed like the bas**d had anyhow managed to call Anjali and inform her about his condition.

"Aap yahan kyon khade hain? Andar chaliye na" said Anjali, holding Shyam by the arm and walking in with him.

Khushi was still looking at Shyam. She had noticed him walking in with a smirk on his face and when he had noticed her, the smirk had turned into a sickly sweet smile. One that told her what he was thinking about.

Khushi's body shivered as she recalled how he had pinned her under himself and his dirty hands had roamed on her body. How his lips had.. She felt she was going to throw up, her body feeling violated all over again.

Arnav who was watching Shyam turned his eyes to Khushi and noticed how ill she looked. He could see she was scared and also looked traumatized. It took him a second to realize what she was thinking. He instantly reached beside her and held her limp hand in his. Feeling his touch, she looked up at him and her eyes welled when she noticed the assurance in his eyes. She could see he was trying to make her feel safe, to tell her that he was here for her. That Shyam would not touch her again.

He softly pressed her hand and Khushi felt better. She looked at him in gratification and Arnav's own eyes misted. He knew it didn't mean much and Khushi was just scared but the fact that she didn't push his hand away made his heart surge with love for her. At least she trusted him a little. He recalled when she had compared him with Shyam. That had been devastating for him to hear. But, in this moment, he could see that she hadn't meant it. It brought a small bit of relief to his heart.

In the meanwhile, Anjali and Naniji walked inside the hall and after making Shyam sit comfortably on the couch, Anjali focused her attention to Arnav.

Arnav realized his sister was walking towards him and this was going to be the moment for him to say something.

But he didn't have to say anything as Anjali flung herself at him and started crying on his shoulder.

Arnav's one hand that still held Khushi's hand, he felt it tugging. He looked sideways to see Khushi pulling her hand away. He didn't want to but he let it go and then he hugged his sister back, not sure what to say.

"Chote, see what they did to him! Why didn't you tell me he was in prison, Chote? You should have informed me. You should have tried to get him out sooner" Anjali sobbed and complained and Arnav realized that Shyam hadn't told Anjali who was responsible for his stay behind the bars.

What was Shyam's play? He wondered. Anjali, on the other hand, expected her brother to console her but Arnav stood still, saying nothing.

He still hadn't thought how he would break the news to his sister. He had been too caught up with what had been happening between Khushi and him.

And now Shyam was back sooner than Arnav had planned and Anjali was sobbing on his shoulder.

Arnav looked at Khushi and he could see that she was aware of his dilemma. And she also waited for him to say something.

Arnav then looked at Shyam who was sitting on the couch and looking his way. There was a crooked smile on his bruised face.

"Chote? Why don't you say anything" Anjali finally pulled away from him and demanded.

"He was in trouble. Those policemen tortured him for days and you were sitting here idle, having coffee? How can you do that, Chote? Why didn't you take some action? Why didn't you try for a bail? Forget all that, you didn't even inform me about this? How could you do this, Chote? If he wouldn't have called me by bribing that constable, I wouldn't have even come to know of this" Anjali said and waited for him to speak.

Arnav made a mental note of getting the constable fired. For now, he has to deal with this situation.

"Di, I tried for the bail but this was a no-bail warrant and I was already in talks with the magistrate to get him out in a day or two. I didn't inform you about this because I didn't want to worry you, Di, especially in such a condition" Arnav said, trying to cover up and looked at Anjali with apologetic eyes. He felt anything but apologetic.

"Whatever it is, Chote. I am his wife and I had all the right to know what's going on with him. You have no right to hide things from me when it comes to my husband" Anjali said in an authoritative voice and Arnav really felt guilty for a second. He was hiding things from his sister. Things that he knew will change her life forever.

"But, I can understand why you didn't tell me. Just don't do it ever again. For now, he is back and as long as he's with me, I am happy. Now would you please call a doctor for him? He needs to be looked at" Anjali said, still with a tinge of anger in his voice.

"I am calling the doctor, Di" Akash said getting up from the couch and dialed a number.

"Chaliye, let's move to our room.You need rest" Anjali said, helping her husband to get up and looked expectantly at Arnav to come and help. But Arnav stood still at his place. Rolling her eyes at his brother, Anjali turned to Mamaji who helped Shyam move.

While Shyam and Anjali left, Arnav focused his attention back to Khushi who looked lost.

She noticed him looking at her and turned away. She knew he was following after her as she began walking towards the guest-room.

"Khushi" Arnav called after her but she didn't stop.

She stopped when he caught up with her and came to stand right before her.

"I need to talk to you" He said softly, expectantly.

"There is nothing to talk about, Arnavji" She replied and started walking away again.

"Please, Khushi" She stopped in her tracks when she felt him catching her hand again.

He walked up to her again and Khushi stared where he held her hand. He let go when he noticed her gaze.

"You should not stay alone in the guest-room, Khushi. With Shyam back, it is not safe. Please come back to the room. Stay with me until I have talked to Di about him. I will make sure he gets punished for all that he has done. But, until then, please don't leave.. don't stay here in this room. I cannot feel at peace knowing you are alone in that room. I want to protec.."

"Protect me? Where were these words when I needed them, Arnavji? When you returned from Scotland and he was trying to force himself on me, why didn't you protect me, Arnavji? He was rapin.."

"No! Don't say that word, Khushi" Arnav placed his hand on her mouth, blocking out the word that destroyed him every time he heard it. He desperately wished he had a time-turner so that he could go back in time and save Khushi from that horrible moment.

"Don't touch me, Arnavji. It hurts" Khushi said as she jerked away from his touch. Tears filling in her eyes.

"And you don't have to worry about me. I will learn to keep myself safe. I have to. After the contract is over and I leave this house, I will be all by myself. So, it is better that I learn to keep myself safe now, don't you think, Arnavji?" She said, looking at Arnav whose eyes shone with hurt.

"You can't leave me, Khushi" He said, gulping the painful lump in his throat.

"Is that a challenge, Arnavji?"She asked, knowing too well it wasn't.

"It's a request" He replied painfully.

"And I choose to ignore your request, Arnavji. Like you ignored mine, several times. Each time I begged you to tell me what I had done, each time I asked you to believe me, you ignored all of it. Repeatedly" Khushi replied, successfully fighting back the tears which were forming in her eyes.

"Khushi.." Arnav tried to speak but she had already stepped in the room and shut the door on his face.

He turned back with slumped shoulders and found Payal looking at him with sympathy in her eyes.

But he didn't want her sympathy. He didn't want anything but Khushi.

Ignoring Payal's presence he walked back to his room, alone.

~~***~~

It was dinner time in Raizada mansion and everyone was present in the dining hall.

Everyone except Shyam and Anjali. Anjali had asked HP to get her and Shyam's food in their room.

So it was the rest of the Raizada family.

Khushi had initially refused the food but like always Payal had forced her to come out and join everyone.

Everyone was eating in silence as the latest events in the house had distracted everyone's mind.

Naniji, Maamiji and Mamaji were tensed about their beloved Damadji while Akash was worried about Payal's strange behaviour ever since he had returned from the office. She seemed very tensed and lost in her own thoughts.

On the other side, Arnav had a lot on his mind to think of.

He was already broken with Khushi's decision of staying in a separate room and now Shyam was back. He still had to decide how to talk to Anjali about Shyam. His reasons were still the same. Back when he had learnt about Shyam and Khushi, he hadn't been able to tell Anjali. Nothing had changed since then.

Anjali was pregnant and in blind love with her husband. Arnav didn't know how the news would impact her. What if Anjali decides to do something rash? Arnav has to think and think fast. He has to handle the situation efficiently without hurting Anjali too much in the process. But, how can he do that when his own life was falling apart? He felt like he would break down every time he looked at Khushi's uncaring face, her blank eyes.

He needs her back in his life. If she is with him, he can deal with his worst nightmares.

So, for now, he was going to focus on Khushi. And she needed him as much he needed her. He believed that.

With Shyam back in the picture, he knew he has to look out for her. He was not going to let Shyam get back to his vile ways. He will not let Shyam hurt Khushi or his sister.

Arnav knew that it was going to take a few days for Shyam to recover from all the injuries he had been bestowed with during his stay in the prison.

So, Arnav had at least some time in hand.

He watched as Khushi finished her dinner and got up to leave. She didn't look at him again.

He watched as she began moving towards the guest-room. Anjali who was descending down the stairs noticed it too.

"Khushiji? Why are you going to the guest house?" Anjali asked, making Khushi stop and Arnav stood up too from his chair.

Everyone else looked at Khushi too.

"Di, I have shifted to this room" Khushi replied, noticing everyone's attention was on her.

"What? But why, Khushi bitiya?" Naniji stood up too and walked to Khushi. Akash and Payal followed closely behind.

"Because I can't live with Arnavji in his room" Khushi replied, looking at Arnav whose heart pricked at her words. He couldn't stop looking at her face.

"Did you two have a fight? Arnav Bitwa?" Naniji asked, now turning to Arnav who looked at Nani.

Silence prevailed in the hall for a long minute and all the eyes were now fixed upon Arnav, including Khushi's.

"Why aren't you speaking anything, Chote?" Anjali asked pointedly.

"Khushi bitiya, you tell us. What's wrong?" Naniji asked Khushi again, her voice concerned.

"I don't think I am the right person to answer this, Naniji. He would tell you all. I am sorry" Khushi replied and without waiting to hear another question, she walked into the guest-room.

Overcoming the surprise of Khushi's abrupt departure, Anjali and Naniji turned their attention back to Arnav who was at a loss of words.

____________________________________

Hello people, I hope the chapter wasn't too bad. I had no urge to write it since I have my last and elective exam on Sunday. Yeah you read it right, on Sunday because my college administration is freaking crazy.

Because it's freaks who would incorporate 'Quantitative Aptitude' as an Elective subject for biology-oriented students. I am getting crazy trying to mug up those once abandoned formulae. So please bear this not so good chapter.

Would be updating the next part on Monday.

P.S. New readers please DO NOT send me buddy requests until you have dropped a comment on any of my stories. It's a request.

-Kiran

Pearl_Oyster2019-03-30 05:59:05