Part 3 - Chapter 14
A/N: so remember when I said Shilpa and Sid gave in their transfer applications? I’m going to change that to resignation. Sorry for the confusion xx
Enjoy reading ❤️
Flashback:
“Armaaaaan, Armaan yaar wake up! Please!” Shilpa whined. “Bas karo yaar Shilpa, sone do please” he replied a little cranky.“Armaan it’s 10am, please, it’s our only day off together in weeks!” She said as she sat cross legged on his back and tried to shake his shoulder to get him to wake up.” Armaan just replied with a “hmmmmm”. “Armaan you promised, we’d go out!” She tried waking him again. But he didn’t budge. “Fine then, guess you won’t mind sleeping in a wet bed” she said out aloud and went to grab the jug of water on his bedside table. This obviously grabbed his attention. He grabbed her wrist and pinned her down in the bed, making her laugh in the process. His lips twitched into a small smile as he was completely lost in her laugh. “Kya?” She asked with a confused face. “Hmmm.. “ he started as he made himself comfortable on top of her and rubbed her nose with his, “wouldn’t mind waking up to this face and this laugh every morning” he said ever so lovingly. Shilpa blushed. “Hayyee!” He exclaimed with a sigh and bent down to nestle his head in the nook of her neck. Her hands softly stroked the base on his neck and played with his hair. “Hmmmm” Armaan mumbled again, content. Shilpa kissed the top on his head and continued playing with his hair, “I guess there are things we could do indoors too” to which Armaan immediately leaned up on his elbows with a naughty grin on his face and pulled the bed covers over them. Shilpa’s laugh resounded in the entire house.
Shilpa’s laugh resounded in his ears, waking Armaan up with a new sense of determination. He didn’t know where this courage came from. Probably, the fact that sharing something as sacred as marriage with someone he didn’t love stirred up all this, he thought to himself.
He knew what he had to.He dressed up and got into his car. He took the straw of hay and clutched it in his hand and said a silent prayer. He did this every morning ever since he and Shilpa broke up. It was the same straw that he had removed from Shilpa’s hair the morning after the first time they made love. He had kept it in his cup holder and never threw it out. He then drove to Sanjeevni.
He went to the HR back room where they stored all personnel files, hoping it had some information about Shilpa. Maybe a forwarding address?! Or maybe a reference letter that Sanjeevni would have to write out for her new employer. He hoped. He finally found Shilpa’s file, read it. It didn’t say anything about her new address but he did find something else. He then walked straight to Dr. Shashank’s cabin.
He knocked and let himself in. “Arey, Armaan beta, tum yahaan?” Dr. Shashank greeted him. “Beta?!” Armaan thought to himself, “isse pehle toh meri shakal se bi nafrat thi”. However, he didn’t have time to get into all this and spoke, “Dr. Shashank, I’ve come to tell you that I can’t marry Riddhima.” Shashank seemed shocked, “what? Why Armaan? You have been in love with my daughter ever since you stepped foot in this place” he asked him. “If you must know Dr. Shashank, I fell out of love with your daughter the day she agreed to marry Sid the second time and broke my heart all over again. And I’m in love with your other daughter.” Armaan replied. “Other daughter?But Anjie and Atul are happy together” Shashank replied a little confused and chuckled at the ridiculousness. “Not Anjie, you know who I’m talking about Dr. Shashank” Armaan said as he handed Shilpa’s file to him “it’s very clear in her file. Her mother’s name is listed as Smriti Gupta and her permanent address is the same orphanage your sister in law runs. Same place you send us every year.” Shashank was shocked and speechless. “Please Dr. Shashank, spare me the horror. You knew all this while. You know why she was here, yet you treated her like a stranger. How could you? Your own daughter?” Armaan said feeling a little disgusted. Dr. Shashank still had no words.. after a pause Armaan asked him, “does Riddhima know?” Dr. Shashank looked a scared, “no Armaan, please she cannot know.” “I don’t care if she knows or not. Besides it was Shilpa’s wish that you all shouldn’t know. She didn’t want to disrupt your perfect family! You broke her heart. You’ll don’t deserve her” Armaan replied. “Armaan please, you don’t understand..” Dr. Shashank started to explain himself but Armaan raised his hand and stopped him. “Don’t bother Dr. Shashank. I’m heading straight to your house now to meet Riddhima, to tell her I can’t marry her. She will obviously try and blackmail me with suicide, but I’m done. She’s not my responsibility. She’s your responsibility.” Armaan said these words with finality and turned to leave. “She won’t do it Armaan” Shashank said as Armaan was about to pull open the door. “She won’t do it, she had this habit, as a child, when she wouldn’t get something, she’d throw tantrums and as she grew in a teenager those tantrums turned into threats. She had stopped this. But clearly seeing you with Shilpa, made her feel like her favourite toy has been snatched from her.” Shashank continued in a sad tone, “don’t worry about her Armaan, you are right. She isn’t your responsibility. You go and find your love. You both have my best wishes. It’s the least I could do.” Armaan turned around and nodded his acknowledgment to Shashank and left the hospital to find Riddhima.
Once at the Gupta house, he was let in by the maid, who informed him that Riddhima was in her room. Armaan walked up to her bedroom. The door was open so he walked right in. Riddhima was busy flicking through a magazine. She was surprised to see Armaan. “Armaan tum yahaan?what a pleasant surprise!” She said with happiness and she stood up and walked to go and hug him. But Armaan took a step back as she came closer, “what is it now, Armaan?” She asked a little annoyed. “I can’t marry you” he said to her plainly, “and I need my mother’s bangle back. It doesn’t belong to you.” “Armaan?what?you have this to me! And why don’t you want to marry me?” She asked him. “I gave it to you, when I thought you’d be my wife. But I was wrong. I didn’t know then. But I know now, you cannot be my wife Riddhima. I don’t love you.” “Armaan, saccha pyaar kiya hai tumne muhjse. I saw it in your eyes and in your deeds Armaan. How can you say that you don’t love me? That’s a lie. You’re lying to yourself.” “No Riddhima, I did love you, once. And I fell out of love. Then I fell in love again, I fell a lot harder just not with you.” “I swear I’ll die without you Armaan” Riddhima started crying and holding onto his shirt. Armaan gently pulled her hands away and removed the bangle from her hand, “i put this on your wrist and now I’m taking it back. I’m not sure if what we had was even love. It was too complicated to be love. The love I have with Shilpa, it’s easy and all consuming at the same time. It never gave me any pain or any heartache.” “But Armaan, I’ll die.. “ Riddhima tried to convince him in between sobs. “It’s a wonderful feeling Riddhima, to be in love, it’s never the reason for your tears and infact is your strength. I hope you find that someday for yourself.” He said to Riddhima and walked out of the room with his kangan in his hand. Riddhima sat on the bed trying to understand what had just happened. What is she going to do now?!
Armaan sat back in his car and out the kangan next to they straw of hay and a small smile appeared on his lips. “Where have you gone bracelet?!” He said out loud. He closed his eyes and thought of her.
Just then his phone rang, it was Sid.
“So did you do it?” Sid asked as soon as Armaan picked his call. Armaan smiled “yeah just outside Riddhima’s house. Now if only i can find Shilpa.” “Well....” “Sid? What are you not telling me?!” Armaan asked him. “She will kill me dude.” Sid said a little scared. “Would you rather us be happy together or not?” Armaan asked him, a little surprised that Sid knew all along. “Aur, You know how I’ve been hunting her all these months Sid!” “I know, I know I’m sorry. But I promised her. And you were with Riddhima and it was all so complicated..” Sid tried to explain to which Armaan replied.. “I wasn’t with Riddhima.” Sid sighed, “She’s going to kill me, but if anyone deserves to be happy it’s you two, so for the greater good, I’m going to tell you...” Armaan waited in anticipation for Sid to continue, but he didn’t say anything for the next few seconds “Sid?” “Sorry yaar, suspense create kar raha tha!” “Sid ke bachche, you know I’d kill you if you were here right?!” “I know isliye toh phone par hoon..” “Are you telling me???” Armaan asked finally frustrated and Sid told him.
For the first time in months, Armaan felt like he could breath. He knew where Shilpa was, and she was safe. He smiled to himself. Now all that he had to do, was go get her home. To their home.
To be continued...
The promo was a perfect prompt for me to write something in my ishtyle! ...
Amidst the tumultuous storm of a high-stakes trial, Anushka Raisinghani, a ...
Comments (6)
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Rash111 @Rash111
3 years ago
good that he got rid of her.And as always thx for the PM
KaSh821 @KaSh821
3 years ago
Yayy..armaan has finally shown riddhima her place...and now he will get his shilpa back...😀😍
chinudolly-Pms @chinudolly-Pms
3 years ago
Oh, I really loved the story... I usually read tr stories but always been a fan of Arsh! Update soon :)