Challenging Destinies: AvNeil TS (Current Track) - Finished

After Neil's decision to not tell Avni about the engagement, Mitali gets annoyed and starts feeling insecure about her position in Neil's life.. She decides to visit Sukoon Ghar herself and tell Avni all about the marriage news..

The kids are all playing games and Avni is busy admiring Mowgli and the manner in which he has accepted her role as his mother, while still calling her Jaan Didi for the rest of the kids.

Avni talks to Sunehri and tells her, "Mowgli has lightened my burden... Now I can hug and be with my son, without being scared of his reaction... I am still scared that what if Mowgli comes to know his Superhero is his father, but I know Mowgli loves me a lot... I just need to make sure Neil doesn't find out about him..." Sunheri again reminds Avni to think about Neil and Mowgli and understand that like she craved for her father, she is repeating that with Mowgli, just because she is forgetting that Neil would never break her...

Just then Mitali enters Sukoon Ghar:

Mitali: "Hi Avni! Hi Sunheri! I wanted to talk to you Avni", looking around, "Alone".

Avni: "Hi! Okay! Sunheri, please take everyone inside"

Sunheri takes the kids inside and Avni asks Mitali to sit.

Mitali: "No no, I just wanted to tell you something. I know Neil didn't want to include you in this, but I felt you should know from us.. You remember you asked me to be with Neil, help him move on from you and live a future? We are getting married! Neil proposed to me, and since he wants to get married as soon as possible, we are getting engaged on Sunday!"

As Mitali continues talking, Avni cannot hear anything over the sound of her heartbreak. Her ears are ringing and she is seeing spots in front of her eyes. All the romantic promises Neil and Avni made, all the stolen moments they shared, are playing on a repeat in head. Sunheri, who has heard everything, comes to Avni's defence and tries to pull Avni out of her shock.

With red eyes and tears threatening to spill, Avni congratulates Mitali and thanks her for letting her know, "Thanks Mitali! For coming in Neil's life and giving him the support I could never give him. I know you love him a lot, and he will be very happy with you." Mitali beams at Avni's words and doesn't pay heed to her eyes. She hugs Avni happily and goes, saying she needs to shop for her engagement.

As soon as Mitali leaves, Avni breaks down and falls on the floor, weeping badly, while Sunheri tries to pacify Avni, "Avni, there is still time, tell Neil the truth". Avni is now more adamant to not reveal the truth, " I asked him to move on and he did, it took him less than a day to forget everything, he didn't even feel the need to let me know, in fact he doesn't even feel I have any right to know about his marriage.. He hates me, he'll take away my Mowgli from me.. I'll die if I lose him also Sunheri, he is all I have of Avni Ayesha, of who I was". Sunheri takes Avni to her room and tries to help her calm down..

Unknown to Avni and Sunheri, Mowgli had come out for water and heard Avni's last line of dying if she loses Mowgli because someone who hates her will take him away. Mowgli gets scared of losing his mother, especially this soon after finding her and decides to call his superhero for help.

Avni keeps crying and Sunheri gets scared of Avni's health as she refuses to eat or drink anything. She cries herself to sleep and Sunheri is wandering the gardens outside when Mowgli uses the landline to call Neil, crying as he says, "Superman, I need your help.. Jaan didi is badly crying, in fact Sunheri didi kept trying to calm her down but she said the man hates her and she would die, she is very scared and that is scaring me. Please come, I need you.". Neil gets scared listening to the panic in Mowgli's voice and informs him that he is coming right now. Mowgli asks Neil to come and ask Sunheri didi to let him take Mowgli for ice cream, that ways he can tell him the story without Sunheri didi getting angry.

Neil drives frantically to Sukoon Ghar at 11PM at night, scared for Avni and who would want to kill her, and for Mowgli and why he was so scared on the phone. He reaches the home and sees Sunheri strolling the garden, as he goes near her, he hears her speaking to herself, "Avni would die if she continues with this, why is she not understanding she isn't doing right? Does she really believe he would break her like that? What to do! Avni is being so unreasonable! I better go check on her, it has been a while since she slept off."

Neil: "Sunheri!"

Sunheri, turns around scared: "Neil! What are you doing her so late at night? When did you get here?"

Neil, choosing to ignore Sunheri's rant to talk to Mowgli: "Couldn't sleep, so I thought I'll come here, take out Mowgli for an ice cream. I had promised him yesterday after his disappearance but couldn't come due to some work."

Sunheri, a little angry: "Ya, that work was a matter of life and death for you after all, so ice cream is not an important thing in front of it. Mowgli is sleeping, I think you should also go."

Neil, confused at Sunehri's anger: "What are you..."

Mowgli arrives there at the same time, screaming for his Superman and runs to hug him before Neil can complete his question. Neil is relieved to see Mowgli fine and turns to Sunheri to let her know that he would be back soon with Mowgli. Sunheri, knowing Avni's fears and the present situation is scared to let Mowgli go but knows that there wasn't a way to explain to Neil so just warned him to come back soon as Mowgli has school tomorrow.

Neil drives Mowgli to a ice cream stall a little away from Sukoon Ghar and makes him sit on the front part of his car, "Now Tiger, tell me what happened and why did you make me lie to Sunheri didi? Is everything Ok with you and your.., with you?"

Mowgli, with tears running down his eyes, "First promise me Superman, you will save me from that man. You won't let him take me away, I don't wanna go anywhere". Neil gets more confused but calms down Mowgli with his promise, "Nobody would ever take you from your Jaan didi, I will make sure of it, my promise. Now tell me what's wrong? Who is threatening you?"

Mowgli: "That cop aunty had come home today. She wanted to talk to Jaan didi alone. I don't know what she told her, but Jaan didi started crying very badly after she left. She refused to eat or drink also. She just kept repeating that she lost him and if he finds out about me, she will lose me also, he will take me away as he hates her, she will die if I go away from her. Please save us Superman."

Neil, more and more confused: "Mitali had come to Sukoon Ghar? But how does her coming and you being taken away come in the same picture Tiger? I am not understanding anything. I never understand your Jaan didi and her reactions but this is very confusing. Tell me everything calmly. Stop crying first."

Mowgli: "Mumma said I am all she has of her old life and if she loses me also, she will die. I just got her in my life Superman, I don't want to ever leave her. Please ask cop aunty what did she say to Mumma and why is she so scared!" Mowgli doesn't realise he called Avni his mother.

Neil: "Mowgli what will have Mitali told your Mumma that..." Neil stops when he realises what Mowgli called Avni. "Wait! What did you say? Mumma? Mowgli we are talking about your Jaan didi here right, where did Mumma come from?"

Mowgli, a little happy that he can share the news with someone: "Ohho! So Jaan didi is only my Mumma na! I just found out yesterday, that is why I had run away because I was upset she didn't tell me before. But then she explained that the rest of the kids would have gotten upset remembering their parents so she hid it from me that she is my real Mumma! Don't tell anyone though. You know my papa is a superhero, just like you.. Mumma told me he saves everyone!" Mowgli continues his stories about his papa and everything Avni has told him about it, unaware of the turmoil in Neil's head.

"Mowgli is Avni's son? Which means Mowgli is my.. My son!" Neil cries tears of joys as he hugs Mowgli and cups his face, putting tiny kisses on his forehead and caressing his hair! "My son! My pillu! Avni and my son! The proof of our love! The evidence of our love! Avni and my son! " But Neil's happy thoughts come to pause when he realises that Avni hid this truth also from him. He starts getting more and more angry as he realises he never got to meet his son in 10 years, that his son lived the life of an orphan while he was alive, only due to Avni! He is bought out of his thoughts by Mowgli's voice, "Please save us from the man who hates Mumma! He will take me away and I don't want to leave Mumma, she will die Superman and I can't lose her. Please!". Neil cannot say no to the first request his son makes and promises to save him and his mother. Neil drives Mowgli back to Sukoon Ghar, "Avni, how can you do this to me? How can you hide such a huge reality from me? My son?" His thoughts turn to the conversation he had with Mowgli, "If Mitali had come, she must have told Avni about our marriage, but why did she break down when she only broke every relation with me? And does she really think I would do this to her? I would take away Mowgli from her in my hatred and anger? Does she not know me at all? Am I that bad according to her?" He looks towards Mowgli, sleeping in the passenger seat, "Or have I failed to make her see my love somewhere? How can she even think I can hurt her this ways? I would rather die than ever hurt her, I am moving on because she wants me to, my family wants me to. But can I really move on? Mowgli is my son! Our son! How can I just leave him?"

Amidst these thoughts, Neil reaches Sukoon Ghar but is shocked to see all lights on in the house and DD's police van parked outside the house. He rushes inside, puts Mowgli on the bed and closing the door, goes to a panicked Sunheri and DD, "What happened? DD, what are you doing here at this hour?" DD stares at Sunheri and then turns to Neil, "Sir! Sunheri called me to tell me that Bhabhi is missing from Sukoon Ghar. When Sunheri went to check on her, she wasn't in her room and isn't there anywhere in the house. She hasn't had anything to eat or drink since morning so if she went out, it isn't safe for her." Neil is so shocked at the developments, that he even forgets to correct DD for calling Avni his bhabhi. He just turns to Sunheri and while rushing out to his car shouts to her, "Mowgli won't lose his mother! Not again. I will get her back!". Sunheri and DD stare shocked at Neil's retreating back, too numb to say anything after his confession of knowing the truth. Sunheri tells DD the whole truth and they retreat to Mowgli's room to keep an eye on him, in case he wakes up.

Neil drives around searching for Avni before coming to a screeching halt. He slams his hand down on the steering wheel in frustration and runs his hand through his hair, "Dammit Avni! Where are you? I am the one who is angry, I am the one with questions and you are the one who is running around, that too in this condition!" It suddenly starts raining and it reminds him of his earlier conversation with Avni, about how he always knew she could be found at Ayesha Ma's grave. He mentally curses himself and turns the car towards the area.

Avni woke up to see herself alone, clutching the only picture of her and Neil she had. She looks in the mirror, shocked to see Neilanjaana staring back at her, with no trace of Avni or Ananya. She turns around and leaves via the back door to go to Ayesha Ma. In a trace like situation, drinking alcohol from the bottle she took from Neil's room to stop him from drinking, she somehow reaches Ayesha Ma's grave and breaks down there, putting her head on the grave. "Ma, you lost your love because he wasn't strong, and I lost mine because I can't fight anymore. Ma, I know today what you must have felt when Neela ma and papa were getting married, but ma, you had me as your support then, I can't even tell Mowgli who his father is. Ma, if Neil finds out Mowgli is his son, he will take him away from me. He hates me ma, now I am sure of his hatred, more than I have ever been sure of his love. He moved on ma, it took him one day, and he moved on from me. Am I that easy to forget ma? Or we just never had love in our destinies? After seeing you and Neela ma, I never wanted to fall in love, but then Neil came in my life and I couldn't stop myself. He was everything, my friend, my support, my guide, my compass and then he was my love. I could do anything for him ma, and I did also, because Neela ma was right, Neil was the one for me, who could turn my hatred to love. I know, Sunheri is right, I should tell him everything, Vidyut is dead now, but what if he gave the proof to someone else for safe keeping ma? Nobody knows where Ballu or Ragini Pandit is.. If I go back to Neil then, no, no I can't do this to my perfect family. They would be perfect if I am not with them."

Neil stands behind listening to all of this, getting more confused. He can't decide between being angry at her for hiding stuff, or being relieved that she is fine or being sad seeing her condition. He goes to Avni and puts his hand on her shoulders. Avni turns around and looks at Neil, and Neil is shocked to see Avni in a bad condition with bags under her eyes from constantly crying and blotches on her perfect cheeks from the tears. Avni holds his hand and looks at him with a small smile on her face, "Neil! You came? You know, I was sure you would come, you always come when I need support, after all, you are my pillar right? My Neil! Not the Neil who hates me now, but Avni's Neil". This is when Neil realises another important thing, Avni, in her weakened and drunk state, assumes he is a hallucination.

Neil sits down with Avni and tries to wipe her tears. He might be angry at her but he can't see her cry or break, "Avni! Why are you here so late at night? What would happen if something happened to you? Have you thought about it?".

Avni: "I wanted to sleep in Ma's lap like before, but then I realised I lost both my Ma, Ayesha Ma because of Dayawanti Mehta and Neela Ma because of Vidyut! He took away everything Neil, he took you away from me. If I would have died today, you know the new Neil would have rejoiced and would have taken my Mowgli away!" She exclaims in a matter-of-fact manner.

Neil, with tears in his eyes: "Do you really think your Neil can ever live without you or hurt you like this? Take away your son, OUR son in his anger?"

Avni: "My Neil! Sounds so nice na? But you know, he isn't my Neil. You are my Neil! You won't have proposed to Mitali ever or told her that I had no right to know about your marriage! Would you have?" Avni questioned, holding Neil's collar. "No, I know you won't have. I trust you, I know you. But this Neil, you know he hates me! He can do anything!" Avni whispers, almost scared that the Neil would listen and do exactly that. She whimpers a little as tears again role down her eyes.

Neil decides to take a shot and ask her, "Avni, why did you leave your Neil then? Why did you even ask him to move on? Break the mangalsutra? You are scared that the new Neil will take away Mowgli to hurt you, but why?"

Avni bites her lower lip and says to her hallucination, "Promise me you won't tell this to new Neil? You are my Neil, I can tell you! I trust you" she repeated. "I promise! This won't go to the new Neil or his family", came the prompt reply of the man dying to know the truth.

Avni: "Then listen! I had to leave my Neil or our perfect family would have been destroyed. You remember how scared you were that your bullet killed Neela ma? It wasn't your bullet Neil, it was Vidyut's bullet, but someone from our family had to fire it". Neil gets shocked hearing the confession from Avni, "What? Vidyut's bullet, our family, Neela ma". Avni whispered her response after looking around, "Yes! Vidyut drugged papaji to shoot you! But Neela ma jumped in between to save your life. Vidyut had a video Neil!" Neil gets up from his position in shock, realising what happened 10 years ago, Avni's silence, her insistence there was no other way, her lies, her breaking the mangalsutra, it all made sense. He was angry at Avni for hiding such a big thing from her and thus he ends up screaming on the fallen Avni, "What the hell Avni! Why did you not tell me? I would have done something! Dad! He is my dad Avni!". Avni struggles to get up and once she does, she again falls on Neil, holding his collar, she replies to him, "Because your duty won't have allowed you to let papaji go! I had no proofs, but he had the video. And papaji would have died a million deaths knowing he caused me pain! I couldn't lose my father again Neil, not even for you! I love him, I love you".

By this time, all of Avni's emotional distress and weakened state has taken a toll on Avni and she faints in Neil's arms, while he looks at her confession, unsure of what to do or say. He brushes aside the hair from Avni's face and takes her to Sukoon Ghar. As he assures Sunheri and DD of Avni's safety and lays her down on her bed besides Mowgli, he looks at Mowgli again turn towards Avni and hug her in his sleep.

He knows everything is far from over. He knows that nothing was fixed. Avni had still lied to him and left him, and he still wasn't sure he could ever forgive her for it, but knowing the whole truth, he knew one thing for sure, he couldn't marry Mitali. Not because he had a responsibility towards Avni and Mowgli now, but because he had to think about everything that happened in the last 2 hours. He remembered his fear of shooting Neela ma, and he also remembered how his entire family tried to send Avni away to save their relationship. He could draw the parallels. And thinking back, he couldn't help but feel guilty. Neilanjaana wasn't his Avni, true, but even he hadn't been Avni's Neil ever since she came back. He never tried to investigate himself what happened, never let her explain. Maybe he couldn't forgive Avni, but could Avni also never forgive him? The pain on Avni's sleeping face was adding to Neil's turmoil and he knew he had to leave from there and talk to the one man who would be most hurt from these revelations, but also the one man who has always been his guide, whether with his wife or his life, his dad. Neil gave Avni one last look and promised to return with answers soon, before leaving for the night.

*--- THE END ---*

All comments are welcome! I just want Avni's reality to come out in this sort of manner, where Neil knows the whole truth, not just snips of it, and knows that they both need to travel the path of forgiving each other.

Loved It!!

Very Emotional. .. I'm about to cry 😭