Ishqbaaaz FF: The Divorce (Last part updated 14/03/17 on *page 25*) - Page 8

Pinky Singh Oberoi could not sleep. She tossed and turned in her bed for a long time before she gave up on sleeping and came out to the corridor. She started walking towards the part of the house which housed the deities. She had always been a woman of faith, and right now her God was the only one who could give her some peace.

As she walked through the silent house, she found herself standing outside the guest room which had been occupied since the last few months but was now empty. Looking at the locked doors she felt a sense of emptiness overwhelm her, like a whirlpool it drew her in and choked her. This room had harboured all her hopes and aspirations for so long - a daughter in law who would be her best friend, a grandson who would be the forebearer of all she had ever dreamed of. She had fought for them tooth and nail yet fate had cruelly robbed her of everything she deserved to have, yet again. She felt angry at Tia, at Shivaay, and mostly at her God for doing this to her.

The darkness behind the closed doors - it had engulfed all she had. It only reminded her of her broken trust, her broken dreams and her broken self esteem.

She stifled a sob and quickened her pace, till she reached the mandir. She sat down before the idol and started crying her heart out. She sobbed and it was some time before a comforting set of arms found and held her. It was Jhanvi.

"Jethani ji, yeh sab kya hogaya?" She wailed into her sister-in-law's arms, who was also her best friend. "Sab kuch barbaad hogaya, ab kuch bhi nahi bacha," she cried hysterically. Jhanvi hugged her tight as the sobs rocked through her whole body. All she had ever wanted was to see her son happy, to see him have all that he deserved. Was that too much to ask?

"Chup ho jao Pinky," Jhanvi tried to calm her down. But she was inconsolable. "Kaise chup ho jau Jethani ji? Khud maa hoke apne bete ki zindagi barbaad karne chali thi main! Aaj kisi ke samne muh dikhane ke kaabil nahi rahi main!"

"No Pinky!" Jhanvi protested. "Koi tumhe galat nahi samajh raha hai. Tumne jo bhi kiya apne bete ke liye kiya. We all know that. Sab jaante hai tum Shivaay se kitna pyaar krti ho. Even Shivaay knows that." She said, rubbing away her tears. "Jo kuch bhi hua woh nahi hona chahiye tha Pinky. But socho agar Tia ki shaadi Shivaay se sach mein ho jaati aur fir humein yeh sab pata chalta toh?" She kept her hands on Pinky's. "Jo hota hai achhe ke liye hota hai."

"Main kabhi apne aap ko maaf nahi kar paungi Jethani Ji. Maine Tia ko baaton mein aakar apne Shivaay ko kya kuch nahi sunaya, uss bachhi ko kya kuch nahi kaha. Apni hi ankhon mein aaj gir gayi hu main," she said in a broken voice. Jhanvi soothed her. "Sab theek hojayega Pinky. Galti hum sabse huyi hai par Shivaay ne hamesha ki tarah iss bar bhi hamare pariwar ko uss Tia se bachaya hai. Aage bhi sambhal lega. Aur tum hi toh kehti ho na woh tumhara ghooroor hai?" Pinky nodded. Jhanvi continued in a firm voice "Toh uss pe bharosa rakho. Trust him, woh sab theek kar dega."

"Par uss ki khushi ka kya Jethani ji? Maine kitne sapne sajaye the uske liye, aur..." She trailed off as a fresh batch of tears threatened to overwhelm her. Jhanvi put on a stern face. "For God's sake! Open your eyes Pinky. Shivaay ki khushi uske paas hi hai, ab tum uss ko accept karti ho ya nahi that's your decision." Pinky was looking at her with a look of pain in her eyes.

She stood up. "It's been a long day. Bohot raat hogayi hai, you should sleep," she said as she left her sister-in-law to ponder on her words.

***...***...***...***...***...***...***...***...***

Shivaay Singh Oberoi was talking busily into his phone. "Yes Mishra! Yeah do oversee the arrangements yourself.. yeah..no! Hold that...hold that! Did you send the scripts to Tia?"

The man on the other end replied on the affirmative. "Good. Aaj kuch bhi galat nahi hona chahiye Mishra. It's a matter of the family reputation. Everything should go on as planned!" He spoke more to himself this time. It was the day of the press conference, and the much celebrated Oberoi couple were going to announce their divorce to the world. It was one of the most sensitive affairs of the year and Shivaay Singh Oberoi couldn't afford a single mistake today.

They started going over how the conference would proceed once again when Annika entered the room and Shivaay stopped short on his tracks. She carried a small duffle bag and a stack of her clothes on her hands. She threw him a glance as she walked around him and put her things on the bed and then started putting the clothes into the bag. He felt his throat tighten. "Annika," he whispered, which sounded more like a plea. She looked at him, waited a moment for him to go on and when he didn't, went back to doing her work once again.

He cleared his throat. "I'll be there in an hour," he spoke into the phone but his voice sounded hollow to himself. He hung up and went to the cupboard and brought out a blue file. He flipped through the pages once, then moved over to where she was standing and flung the file on top of the heap of her clothes. She looked up, startled.

"Ghar ke papers." He stated, fighting hard to keep the emotions he was feeling out of his voice.

She nodded, and picked them up. "Thank you," she muttered. He turned to leave, then turned back again.

"Tum conference mein nahi aa rahi ho?" He stated it more like a sentence rather than a question.

She shook her head and gulped, having a hard time keeping the tears out of her eyes. "Main aapke lautne se pehle hi yaha se chali jaana chahti hu Shivaay." She spoke, her voice breaking at the end. He blinked, and then nodded. "Oh. Okay." He said, feeling completely hollow on the inside. "Thik hain. Jaisa tum chaho," he added in the end which made her eyes go wide a little. He turned away. "Bye Annika," he said and left the room.

"Bye Shivaay," she whispered feebly after his retreating figure, tears starting to cloud her vision. For a minute she sat on the edge of the bed and let herself cry as she looked around the room. She was going to miss everything.

The bed where he had carried her to, everytime she was sick or hurt.

The cupboard where she had hid herself that one time when she had wanted to avoid him, and how his eyes had sparkled with shock and amusement seeing her sitting right there when he had been going about the whole house searching for her since the morning.

The sofa where he had tended to her wound that one time she had hurt herself while saving Tia from falling and how scared he had looked while cleaning that teeny wound. The great Shivaay Singh Oberoi had looked so worried and adorable that day that she couldn't help but laugh out loud at the irony.

The floor, the carpets, the walls - which she had grown used to looking at, every time she opened her eyes in the morning for the last 5 months.

This was her home now, everything was as much hers as it was his. And yet, nothing really belonged to her. They never did.

She sighed and rubbed away her tears. "Come on Anika. Unhone saaf shabdo mein kaha tha ki unke liye iss shaadi ka kya matlab hai. Abhi yeh sab sochke koi fayda nahi hai," she told herself. She went over to the cupboard and started pulling out her leftover things.

A small red velvet box fell at her feet. Her brows furrowed as she sat down to pick it up, and as she realised what the box contained, her heart picked up rhythm.

She flicked open the tiny latch. A pair of beautiful silver floral bangles rested on the red velvety cloth lining the box. Along with them there was a folded piece of yellow paper. It had been a very special gift from a friend. She had all but forgotten about these, it felt a lifetime ago when Mallika had come to stay with the Oberois. The two girls had grown very fond of each other and Annika had helped her reconcile with her fianc. While leaving, Mallika had left these bangles for her as a token of her gratitude.

She took out the contents and kept the box on the bed. She unfolded the piece of paper, which was infact a letter. With a sigh, she read aloud through the lines:

Her vision blurred as a drop of tear escaped her eyes and fell on the paper. She hadn't realised how badly she wanted all of it to be true. Her voice wavered and she read on unsteadily,

A wistful smile crept up her face. "Pyaar toh hogaya Mallika, bas ishqbaazi kabhi nahi ho payegi. She spoke to herself.Main kabhi unn ki takkar ki thi hi nahi, toh takkar ki ishqbaazi kaha se hogi?"

When she had first received the letter she had been a skeptic about Mallika's words on her pyaar and ishqbaazi and yet in a small corner of her heart she had wanted to believe that all these would come true one day. She had cherished the hope, nurtured it - until the day she actually realised that she was in love with Shivaay and now she wished she could erase that day from her mind forever.

"Kash main Shivaay se kabhi milti hi nahi, her voice broke as she closed her eyes tightly and fought the ache in her heart that came with the memories of the good times they had spent together. Kash ki main yeh sab bhool sakti. Tujhe yeh sab bhoolna hoga, Annika. Apni zindagi ek naye tarike se shuru karni hogi, she told herself. She took one last glance at the letter,

She clutched the letter and the bangles to her chest. She knew that day would never come in her life, ever. She knew no one would ever be madly in love with her; no one would ever reciprocate her feelings.

And after this experience with Shivaay, she knew shed never fall in love again.

What she did not know was that someone had been standing at the door since the last five minutes and observing her and listening to everything. Shivaay had forgotten his phone earlier when he left it on the dressing table while taking out the papers of the house. And he forgot it once again as he turned away and walked back the way he had come, lost in thought over what he had just heard.

***...***...***...***

"The Oberois are murderers!"

Tia's shrill voice echoed around the walls of the Oberoi Farmhouse where the press conference was taking place, as pin drop silence prevailed in the room. It seemed even the ever enthusiastic reporters had been shocked into silence.

"They killed the man I loved, they are bloody murderers!" Tia spoke again, tears streaming down her face as she pointed an accusing finger towards Shivaay. "This man, this man right here - he wanted to marry me so he could expand his business. But my heart already belonged to another man, he knew I'd never agree to it. So he forced me, tried to blackmail me at first and when I still didn't agree to marry him, he killed my boyfriend..." She started wailing, "My poor baby, what was his fault! They killed him, they can do anything for money. They are murderers," she blabbered hysterically.

Shivaay stood looking at her, his mouth slightly open in shock. He couldn't for the life of him understand what was happening. He had charted out every aspect of his plan in meticulous details, and Tia had been provided with scripted dialogues the night before.

"The Oberois have been very good to me. It is a time of my life that I'll never forget. Our divorce is purely a mutual one, because things are just not working out but we are still going to be good friends. We are still going to raise this baby together."

These were the lines she was supposed to say along with a pasty smile on her face but in a terrible turn of events his own plans had backfired on him and he knew the Kapoors had him trapped. He could almost see Mrs. Kapoor's gloating smile in the crowd that sat across from them. The fire that shot through his veins was infuriating and he finally found his voice. "What nonsense is all these!" He bellowed. "You're lying!"

Tia shot back. "You're the liars! You are murderers. I'll never forget this chapter of my life. You forced me to marry you and now you're forcing me to sign this divorce, just because you found out the baby isn't yours!" She looked at the crowd which was listening to her with rapt attention - even Shivaay was amazed at how she had twisted all his lines and was using them against him now. "When I became pregnant I thought I would end my life rather than raise my baby with a murderer. But then I came to know that the baby is not his. My Dushyant, my love. He will live on through this one," she touched her abdomen lovingly. "You killed him but I will not let you come near me or my baby again!" She drew back protectively with fire in her eyes. That is what the world would see. Shivaay however saw the unmistakable hint of a smile on her face, the glory of her winning.

The crowd erupted into a loud murmur as the initial shock passed, making way for the questions and Tia was more than eager to explain her tragedy. Shivaay ran his fingers through his hair, which was slick with sweat now. From the corner of his eyes he saw Omkara, who had accompanied him and was standing at the back of the room, receive a call and move out of the room, agitated. It was expected, the news would spread like wildfire now. Most of the reporters of leading media houses were present in this room and the ones who weren't would start calling up his family members one by one to know if what Tia had said was true. If the Oberois were blackmailers. If the Oberois were MURDERERS.

He could not begin to imagine the impact this press conference would have on the family reputation. He felt nauseated just thinking about it. The name Oberoi had been his pride and he had vowed to guard it with his life and yet there was nothing he could do about it today. The damage was done. He had never felt so helpless in his life. It made him sick, the way everyone in the room was looking at him. Even the waiters, who had been serving refreshments to the guests, had forgotten to do their jobs and stood looking at him, their eyes full of loathing for the man who had blood on his hands.

Beads of sweat appeared on his forehead and he felt the world was closing in on him. All he could see were eyes, eyes full of anger, loathing and derision. He felt extremely restless, he wanted to leave, to run back into the protective walls of the Oberoi mansion. He needed time to think, plot his next move.

"This is all bullshit! The Kapoors were behind me and my family for a long time. They are the ones who wanted our money and that is why Tia agreed to marry me. You all remember how happy she was!" he retaliated to the reporters' questions as best he could but he could understand very well that his defence was falling weak before Tia's powerful performance. And worst of all, he had no proof to show she was lying. "You forced me to act Shivaay, you all forced me," she started crying again. He felt disgusted, and ran a hand across his forehead to wipe away the drops of perspiration that had accumulated there and were starting to dribble down. Weren't the ACs working? It was too hot here, it was suffocating him. "I don't want to answer any further questions," he said finally and started walking out of the room. The reporters followed suit and for a moment he considered breaking into a sprint but he did not know where to go since they seemed to be coming from every direction. He couldn't escape them. He felt helpless, he badly wished he could disappear into thin air.

Tia and Mrs. Kapoor appeared at the front door and the swarm of reporters instantly ran back towards them, buzzing excitedly. Shivaay threw a furtive glance towards them and for a moment wondered where Om had gone to. Maybe he was hiding somewhere as well. The Oberois have to hide their faces now because he could not handle his affairs? Abashed as the thought hit him, he started walking towards his car, his shoulders drooping. As he was about to open the door of his car, a nasal voice called him from behind.

"Shivaay Singh Oberoi!" The shrill nasal voice of Mrs. Kapoor was quite identical to her daughter's. "Bhaag rahe ho?" She laughed. Far in the background, he could see Tia keeping the reporters busy. He looked at the older woman, hate apparent in every feature of his face.

"What do you want now?" He barked, irritated.

"Nothing. Just wanted to see how your ego was doing. The Oberoi reputation has touched new heights today," she snickered.

He opened the door of his car. "I don't have time for your nonsense."

"Oh I wouldn't argue with that! You do have a lot on your plate now." She flashed a condescending smile. He moved around her and started getting into the car. "You might want to find out where Omkara is though. You're not the only one whose life was turned upside down today." She added. He stopped short on his tracks. "Kya matlab hai aapka?"

She looked at him, enjoying the look of sheer panic on his face at the mention of his brother. "Wohi jo tum samajh rahe ho. Tia is out of the Oberoi Mansion now and there's no future for you two. So I have no use for you and your petty little secrets anymore, Shivaay Singh Oberoi."

Shivaay recalled how a worried Omkara had left the room after receiving a call. He had misunderstood the situation amidst all the chaos. It was not a call that he had received but a video clip.

Mrs. Kapoor smiled slyly as she saw the realisation dawn on him.

"How dare you do that to him?!" He shouted, losing all control. He groped furiously for his phone inside his pocket. It was empty. He had left it at his room this morning, he remembered with growing despair. He looked at Khanna and the other members of the Oberoi security team but they were busy dealing with the reporters. He could not risk going to them and be drawn into the crowd again. He had to find Om.

"You are the one who dared to hurt my daughter!" Mrs. Kapoor was speaking angrily. "Bohot udd rahe the na kal phone par? Tum Oberois apne aap ko samajhte kya ho? I have finally showed you your true place now," she said motioning towards the ground. "Oberois ka naam aj isi mitti mein mil kar reh gaya hai."

He started to say something but she put up her palm towards him. "Don't waste your time now, Shivaay, you're running late already." she sneered. Her eyes turned menacing. "Bas ek baat yaad rakhna, aaj ke baad kabhi mere ya meri beti ke aas paas bhi dikhe na, toh mujhse bura koi nahi hoga."

Mrs. Kapoor turned on her heels and started walking back towards her daughter. He looked at her retreating figure and felt a sense of dread wear him down. Where was Om? Was he okay? How was he handling things? He had to find out. He looked around once again but there was no sight of him. Perhaps he had gone home? With a sudden burst of activity he dashed into the car, shot one last glance at the crowd which was still focussed on Tia and her mother and sped away.

P.S: Please ignore typing mistakes, if any😳 Will post next update very soon!