Chapter 1
If a little over two weeks ago, someone had told Kunal Rajvansh that he would be supporting Mishti, Kunal wouldn't have even given it a second thought. His mother had then, in simple words, explained that between Mehul and Mishti, the prior was a greater threat. And so, Kunal had let Mishti in on an inner circle of trust.
Except, Mishti wasn't very keen on losing that position easily. When he had stopped seeing her as the immediate threat, Kunal hardly could find any wrong. She was tiny, harmless and most importantly, she made his elder brother so happy. In two weeks, Kunal had gone from tolerating Mishti just so Abir wouldn't leave to almost liking her.
He could imagine her as his sister-in-law. As family. He began noticing the small things his oh-so-in-love brother did. Humming romantic numbers, just meaninglessly staring into space, eyes lightening as soon as he heard her name. He also noticed the absolute respect, the trust Abir had for her. The love he had for her.
So when, in front of both the families, his brother went off on Mishti, Kunal couldn't even digest the fact. Wasn't this the same brother who had refused to choose between Mishti and Kunal himself? Which meant, his brother loved her just as much as he loved Kunal.
Kunal knew for a fact that Abir would never want to hurt him and would always protect him. So, logically, that should be the same case with Mishti. It was even proven, his brother refused to stop trusting Mishti all these months, even after his and his mother's attempts to just get him to stop. Not even once did Abir entertain the idea of not loving or respecting Mishti.
When Abir had hugged him at the temple, Kunal had felt good. That despite the outrageous things he had done, he was still his Bhai's Nanko. That his brother still wanted him to be a part of his happiness. That was the final deal. He took Abir home, to wrap him in a box and give him to Mishti. Simply because, even if it hurt Kunal's ego to accept it, she really made his brother happy.
So, when his brother did do all those things that he would never allow anyone to do to Mishti, Kunal chose to observe everyone else. The first person he noticed was Parul Maasi. She looked more sad than shocked. Which meant, she knew. Of course, there was only one person who would divulge Parul into all her plans. His mother. Kunal turned, watching his mother. She looked stoic but Kunal knew her well enough to see the victory dancing in her eyes.
He turned to Mishti, to see her begging Abir to at least listen to her once. As his brother pulled away from her, he saw how pained he was. Like he was pushing away all parts of himself. He gulped the sudden lump in his throat to see Mishti break-down.
This woman had not gone down on her knees even once. She had too much of pride for that. Kunal had even begun respecting that. Now, seeing her crumble, he wondered why his family was hurting her.
He turned to look to Kuhu, who mirrored Mishti. Kunal winced as he realised he put her through the same pain. That he had gotten her hopes high and then let them come crashing down. Ruthlessly. He looked at the rest of his family, and the Maheshwaris, faces laced with shock and confusion alike. This was not the Abir they knew. They had all indulged in great plans for this wedding. Now, they all looked ashamed.
All Kunal could think was, what had made his brother break the heart of the woman he so desperately loved?
---
It had been a week now. Abir hadn't left the house but he hadn't left his room either. He was always locked up in there, not listening to anyone. The entire family had tried except Meenakshi and Kunal himself.
He was still trying to understand, to come to terms. Finally, when a week later he had nothing, he knocked on Abir's door.
“Jugnu, how many times do I tell you I want nothing?” Abir roared from inside. Kunal flinched. His brother never shouted at Jugnu.
“Bhai, it's me. I really need you.” Kunal felt guilty of using those words but he knew nothing else would make Abir crawl out of this little hell-hole he had created.
He heard the shuffling of footsteps, Abir stumbling around the room. He switched on the light, Kunal could make that out from the translucent windows on the door.
He saw his brother looming behind the door for a few more seconds, running a hand on his face before finally unlocking the door.
“Haan Nanko?”
Kunal took no time and simply crashed into his brother. Kunal might have needed the hug, he really was teeming with confusion and questions but Abir obviously was the one more relieved. His body loosened, as he wrapped his arms around Kunal.
“Chal andar aa ja.”
Kunal didn't fail to notice how Abir immediately locked the door behind them.
“I have decided to divorce Kuhu.”
Abir looked at him with shock and confusion. Kunal remembered how much his brother had loved the idea of Kuhu and Kunal together. How he believed Kuhu would bring happiness to Kunal.
“Actually, Kuhu asked for it. She signed the papers. She said, seeing Mishti she realised she had to let go.”
Kunal didn't miss the raw pain that reflected in Abir's face.
“I really hurt her, didn't I?” Abir whispered inaudibly. “She trusted me so much and I broke it so easily.”
Kunal looked around the room, unable to look at Abir without tearing up. The room was a mess, he wondered how his brother was even living in there. The place really needed some fresh air. Kunal could almost, smell the sadness.
“Anyways," Abir wiped his face again and tried to smile, “I am glad you and Kuhu have come to a decision. I don't want to force you into it. You should do what you think is best. I am with you.” there was a flicker of a genuine smile.
Kunal smiled and took Abir in another hug. “I love you, Bhai.”
“I love you too, Nanko. More than you can imagine.”
And for the first time in his life, Kunal felt like Abir saying these words held much more meaning that Kunal could see. That somehow, loving Kunal was painful. Kunal hated it, but he knew, there was something wrong.
---
If the morning's incident had left Kunal baffled, what happened at breakfast table did the same to everyone else. They were all silently eating dinner, Nidhi Mami making attempts to make everyone at least smile a little. Ketaki was trying to shush her, to no avail.
So when, she fell silent all of a sudden, Kunal looked up from his plate to find her looking behind him in shock. Turning to find the source of her state, he saw Abir skipping down the stairs, rolling his sleeves, whistling a rather happy tune to himself.
As Abir reached the dining table, he greeted everyone with a beautiful smile. “Good morning, everyone!” Kunal noted how his eyes met everyone one the table with the same glint, except when they landed on Meenakshi. There, Abir simply let go of the smile. As if, only Meenakshi knew the pain Abir was going through. As if, she was the only one privy to the torment.
And Kunal hated this.
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Sooo? What do y'all think? Any suggestions? Waiting for your views :)
Edited by ingenuity - 4 years ago
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