Published on:- 15/2/25 [Saturday]
...

It was a beautiful sunny morning and Sunaina stood by the window as the golden morning light casting a soft glow on her face.

Nilay approached her from behind as his arms slipped around her waist as he pulled her against his chest.

"You are glowing", he murmured as his lips were brushing against her ear.

She turned in his arms and her hands were resting on his bare chest.

"And whose fault is that?", she teased while her eyes were dancing with mischief.

Nilay smirked, tilting her chin up. "Let me take responsibility then".

His lips captured hers in a slow, lingering kiss. It was filled with tenderness and something deeper, something unspoken.

Sunaina sighed into his mouth while her fingers tightened in his hair as he deepened the kiss.

His hands traced down her back, molding her against him, as if he couldn't bear even a breath of space between them. Her body melted into his, surrendering to the intoxicating warmth of his embrace.

She bit his lower lip playfully, and he growled softly, pulling her closer, his kiss turning urgent, desperate, like a man starving for her.

Sunaina pulled back slightly, breathless, her forehead resting against his.

"You kiss me like you are afraid I will disappear", She said.

Nilay's thumb brushed over her lips, his eyes dark with emotion.

"Because losing you is my only fear", Nilay replied.

Her heart clenched at his words. She cupped his face, pressing a soft, lingering kiss on his lips.

"You will never lose me, Nilay. I am yours", She said and his grip tightened as his lips crashed against hers again, sealing her words with a kiss so deep, so possessive, it left her breathless.

And in that moment, the world outside ceased to exist only with them, their love, and the promise sealed between their lips.

Suddenly, his dream shattered and he slapped himself hard as tears were streaming down his face.

He closed his eyes and the storm outside mirrored the chaos inside Nilay. His mind was full of her thoughts, their passionate moments that were slashing his heart.

After coming back from the Empire Hotel, Nilay locked himself in his bedroom. He didn’t want to see anyone. He didn’t want to hear anything.

He was drowning in the pain that he got from his wife.

His chest tightened with emotions he couldn’t control. His hands trembled as he pulled his hair in frustration.

He felt suffocated, suffocated by anger, by betrayal, by the weight of everything he had given to Sunaina, only to be left with nothing but lies.

His heart pounded against his ribs, his mind replaying her words over and over.

"I love you, Nilay".

A bitter laugh escaped his lips. Love? She never loved him because She had a choice. She always had a choice to tell him the truth but she never chose him.

His jaw clenched as frustration boiled over. He grabbed the first thing to reach a glass from the bedside table and hurled it against the wall.

The sound of shattering glass echoed through the room, but it did nothing to quiet the storm inside him.

He ran a hand through his hair, his fingers tightening at the roots as he let out a shaky breath. His throat ached, his eyes burned, but he refused to give in to the pain.

He had been a fool. He had trusted her, defended her, even loved her with everything he had.

And she? She had never been his to begin with.

Nilay sank onto the edge of the bed, his head falling into his hands.

No matter how much he tried to ignore it, one truth refused to leave him.

"It hurts. It hurt more than anything I ever had"

Nilay's voice broke through the silence of the room which was raw and filled with agony.

"Why? Why did you betray me?", His hands clenched into fists, his knuckles turning white.

"Why do you always choose to lie to me? Why did you hide the truth about yourself?"

His breathing was uneven and his chest was rising and falling as he struggled to contain the storm within him. He stared at the shattered glass on the floor, but all he could see was Sunaina’s face which was calm, as if his pain meant nothing.

"Was I never worth the truth?" His voice cracked as he whispered the words to no one but himself.

The storm outside raged on, but nothing could match the storm inside Nilay’s heart.

A loud knock echoed through the room, Nilay’s head snapped toward the door as his expression shifted again.

He didn’t want to see anyone, not his parents, not his family.

He just wanted to be alone.

But then, a familiar voice came from the other side.

"Nilay! Open the door".

Thick tears ran down on his cheeks.

It was Chase.

Nilay exhaled sharply while running a frustrated hand through his hair.

Of all people, Chase was the last person he wanted to face right now. His brother-in-law would see right through him, and would see the cracks he was desperately trying to hide.

The knocking continued, more insistent this time. "Open the door".

Nilay clenched his jaw, staring at the door, torn between shutting the world out and letting Chase in.

At the end, Nilay unlocked the door and pulled it open, but he didn’t look at Chase. His gaze remained fixed on the floor and his expression was broken and hurt.

Chase stepped inside as his sharp eyes were scanning Nilay’s face, the tension in his posture, and the shattered glass on the floor.

"You look like hell", Chase muttered while closing the door behind him.

Nilay let out a hollow chuckle, shaking his head. "I feel worse".

Chase sighed weakly while crossing his arms. "Talk to me".

But Nilay didn’t respond. He just turned away, walking toward the window where the storm raged outside, just as violently as the emotions inside him.

"I don’t have anything to say," Nilay muttered as his voice was hollow.

Chase exhaled sharply, stepping closer. "Really? Because from where I am standing, it looks like you have too much to say but don’t know where to start."

Nilay let out a bitter laugh, shaking his head. "What’s the point, brother? Everything is ended now".

Chase studied his brother-in-law for a moment before saying quietly, "Nothing is ended and no one can end it as well".

Nilay’s hands curled into fists as he turned slightly, his voice raw with pain.

"What do you want me to say, Brother? That I am a loser? That the woman I love betrayed me? That I gave everything for her, went against my own family, trusted her with my whole damn heart, only to find out she was lying to me all along?", Nilay said and Chase's expression turned darker now.

"I don't think like this", Chase said.

Suddenly Nilay laughed and his laugh was bitter and empty.

Nilay shook his head while running a frustrated hand through his hair.

"She has a brother, a family. She is a billionaire, heiress of the Empire Group.... I was blind. A fool. And the worst part? Even now, after everything, it still hurts."

Nilay said, finally looked at Chase and his eyes were filled with an emotion he could no longer hide. He was broken.

Chase stared at him for a few minutes and then said, "Nilay, I don't think that Sunaina did anything wrong here".

Nilay stood frozen as his breath hitched as Chase’s words hit him like a punch to the gut.

"What?", Nilay’s voice was barely above a whisper as disbelief flickered in his eyes.

Chase exhaled sharply.

"Yes, Sunaina is right in her own way. I admit she lied, and her lies broke your heart. But Nilay..... You disappointed me today as well", Chase said as his disappointment was evident.

"What are you talking about?", Nilay asked confusedly.

Chase took a step closer as his voice was calm yet piercing, "Liar or fake, good or bad, orphan or not, she is your wife. And you left her behind".

The words slammed into Nilay’s chest and knocked the air out of his lungs. His fingers twitched at his sides, his mind was racing.

"You are broken because of her lies and she must be broken because you left her there", Chase said.

The weight of Chase’s words settled over him like a crushing burden. His breath came slower, heavier.

"What?", Nilay was blank at this moment.

He had left her.

Chase's voice caught his attention again.

"I can feel your pain. I can understand your point as well." Chase took a step closer and his eyes were searching Nilay’s.

"But just go back in the past, a few years ago... Try to remember how your darling sister lied to me, how she played with my emotions, and most of all, how your devil father tormented me", Chase finished speaking and Nilay’s fingers twitched as old memories rushed back.

Chase’s next words were steady, final. "Even if Sunaina is wrong here, I don’t find her wrong at all."

Nilay was speechless at Chase's words.

"So stop crying over spilled milk. Activate your devil mode and bring back your wife now", Chase’s words cut through Nilay’s turmoil like a blade as it was sharp and merciless.

Nilay’s breath hitched.

"It’s still not too late", Chase continued and his gaze burned into Nilay’s.

"Don’t ruin your relationship over small matters. If you are hurt, then show her your hurt. If you are angry, let her see your anger. But don't push her away because she is the owner of your heart and also the reason of your tears", Chase said and Nilay’s pulse was pounded in his ears.

His devilish mind screamed at him to hold onto his pride, to cling to the betrayal that had shattered him.

But another angelic part of him, the part that had always belonged to Sunaina, was already burning with the need to see her.

To make her feel everything she had made him feel.

His storm wasn’t over.

It was just about to begin.

'Naina'.

His heart whispered her name. It was the name of his soulmate. His wife.

Her name was carrying the weight of his pain, his longing, his fury.

Nilay closed his eyes, but that only made it worse. Because all he could see was her, Sunaina who was standing there, watching him walk away.

Her eyes were red, her face was unreadable, but he knew. He knew she felt his pain just as deeply.

The storm outside roared, but it was nothing compared to the one inside him.

His hands trembled, not with weakness but with the need to do something. To see her. To make her understand.

His love was never gentle. It was fire, it was chaos, it was him.

And Sunaina, his Devil Princess had always known how to dance in the flames.

....

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ShineeSunshine ♥️