Arnav was left alone on the road as Payal hops in the taxi and goes away, without bothering to his calls. He was furious and that would be an understatement. He clenches his fist in anger, not able to get any information on Khushi. Khushi, the girl who was his Salvation. The first time he met her and she became his Saviour. And before he could even gather enough confidence to thank her, she disappeared from his life as if she was his fantasy. The fantasy he wanted to be real in some corner of his heart.

He sighs, walks away to his car, and zooms out of the area, towards his home. He hoped his family wouldn't create drama in the home.

As he was lost in his thoughts, he reaches Shantivan which was supposed to be his home — a place where one feels peace. But all he gets is everything but peace in his Mansion named Shativan.

As if it has ever been a Shantivan to him.

He parks his car. He has to pack his clothes and gets ready for his journey soon. As he enters the hall after the door was opened by Hari Prakash, he saw his Di sitting on the sofa reading a Magazine. Shyam was sitting beside her, reading a newspaper as well. Manorama and Manohar along with Akash were nowhere to be seen. He assumed they must be in their own room and Devyani must be resting in her room.

Anjali looks up when she saw her brother enter and stops him when he is about to pass her, "Chotte, I need to talk with you!"

Arnav releases a breath, loosening up his tie, knowing what his sister would talk to him about, "Di, if it's about what happened in the Morning, then forget it! I'm not interested."

But Anjali wasn't the one to budge easily and she had to disciple her brother too who's becoming reckless these days.

"It was wrong of you to talk with our Nani like that, Chotte. When will you understand this?" she reprimands him, reminding him of the incident in the morning. She didn't like how he back-talked with Devyani, no one should talk to elders like that. Right or wrong doesn't matter. Her thoughts don't suit her educated self. She looked orthodox more than traditional!

"And when will you understand me, Di?" he snaps off, tired of getting questioned always. If his Nani is behind him and he walks off her, his Di will be the next one coming to him, trying to push the so-called right thoughts in his mind. Not even trying to understand his feelings or bothering to know his opinion. He always tried to understand her, taking her feelings into consideration when she wasn't worth it. If anything is keeping him away from distancing himself from his Di and his toxic family, it is only because he has promised his mother to take care of her, and mostly he needs to show them mirror and give someone their deserved rights in the home.

Until then, he needs to tolerate the toxicity!

But at the cost of his own happiness? He wasn't sure. He needed guidance and nobody was there to give him that except the 24-year-old girl's face — who suddenly popped into his mind and he didn't want to go there now. He puts her in the corner of his mind and

"Chotte?" she had tears in her eyes at her brother's harsh words. Whenever her brother gets angry at her, she gets tears in her eyes. Why doesn't her brother understand her? When she didn't try to understand him?

Shyam took the chance to barge into the conversation as he stood up saying, "Sale Saheb, you shouldn't talk to your Di like that. Whatever she's saying is good for you only."

He tries to defend his wife's action and make his brother-in-law understand his wife's concern.

"Don't come in between us, Jeeja-ji!" he grits his teeth. This man always gets on his nerves no matter what he does. He hated Aravind Mallik, true! If he hated his own father, he hated Shyam Manohar Jha more than his father or anyone in the whole world.

Don't go there, Arnav! Negative thoughts aren't good for you! He reminds himself not wanting to indulge himself in remembering a negative moment and have nightmares again. He's too tired of that.

Does his family even know he gets nightmares or about his other problems? He know the answer was no. They never really bothered to know his mental health.

A 14-year-old Arnav was afraid of darkness, adding to it the unwanted memories and moments playing in his mind hurting him to the core of his heart, and hence thought to come to his sister's room and when he was just about to enter he heard his sister, "I'll check on Chotte, Nani and Dadi!"

His sister was no more crying, her voice was sore. Subadra and Devyani consoled her on her broken marriage and her parent's dual suicide it seems.

"No need to check on him, Anjali Bitiya. He's a man! A man is strong enough and they don't need others to console them. They don't even cry like us, Bitiya. You should think more about yourself. Chotte will be fine!" Arnav heard his Nani's words and his heart broke more than already it did. He isn't supposed to cry? Then why the hell wasn't he able to control his tears in his room, sobbing alone in the corner of his room?

"So, a man doesn't cry, Nani?" Anjali asked curiously.

He went back to his room without waiting for a moment more and lay on the bed, trying hard not to cry and sleep without tears in his eyes. He almost forced himself to sleep and was successful somewhat only to have a nightmare in the middle of the night and his heart palpitated in sleep, his body sweating from the first-ever anxiety attack he had. Nobody bothered to notice him or ask him about his mental health.

If he was physically fine, he was mentally fine too!

"Yes, bitiya! We women are weak and need a man for shouldering our worries. But men, they are strong, not like us — women, they don't cry as we do." Devyani's words were etched on Anjali's mind and that's how she grew up, as a weakling, with thoughts so absurd about men and women, always depending on men for support.

If it was her brother before marriage, it was her husband after her marriage.

"Chotte, how dare you to talk like that with your Jeeja-ji? Apologize now," she raises her voice, angry about using that tone with her husband. A husband who is a god to her and can never be wrong.

The husbands should be worshiped, although it was right, there is a limit — not at the cost of self-respect which she didn't know the meaning of in the first place.

"Apologize my foot! Never," he was never going to apologize to Shyam.

"Chotte!" she mutters angrily, raging mad at his disrespectful words, and continues, "You're becoming arrogant day by day, learn to respect elders."

"I respect people who deserve my respect, di and clearly, this man isn't getting it," he chuckles pointing his fingers at Shyam, still angry.

"Don't point at him, Chotte! He wasn't at fault," she defends her husband and pushes her brother's hands away. She isn't going to listen and accept any crap about her husband.

"Yeah, right! Who better than me knows that!" He was sarcastic. He didn't know what Shyam is, not exactly, but whatever he know, he know that man should be never trusted.

For, he was the reason his brother left his home, Dhruv, the little brother for him but he was always there with him silently.

"You still don't trust him. Do you?" Anjali asked, disbelief written all over her face. Her brother still had doubts about her husband. She know her brother didn't interact with his brother-in-law after that incident but she thought he'd come to terms soon.

She should have understood when his brother was all formal with her husband but she was too busy thinking her brother is at least talking to her husband.

"Never! A broken trust is a broken trust, di. No matter what you do," he stated the fact. His trust was broken once — into pieces and that's not a paper to get it to paste back. He can never forget his brother-in-law is the reason for Dhruv's exit, he was also the reason for one woman's humiliation.

"Salesaheb, you still don't believe me?" Shyam faked sadness in his tone. Getting his brother-in-law into the trap was difficult and he never could completely win his heart, he knows yet tries his best to act innocent.

"No. I never will. No offense," he shrugs his shoulders, looking into Shyam's eye straight. His gaze was as sharp as a knife and it cuts Shyam as he looks away, squirming in his place. Knowing the sleeping lion in him would wake up if he acted more.

"Chotte, you-" Anjali was about to reprimand again when she was cut off by her brother.

"I'm fed up with this bullshit. I need to travel tonight. If you'll excuse me, I need to go," Arnav excuses himself not wanting to hear another hour of a lecture from his sister.

"You're traveling, Chotte? And you didn't tell me?" Anjali was shocked. Her brother is getting distanced from her for a few months now, or after the incident that happened had taken him away from her.

"I forgot, di. But I'm doing it now, ain't I?" he wasn't in a mood to explain when he genuinely forgot to inform his family.

"Still, Chotte!" she protests, like a kid, stomping her foot on the floor and narrowing her gaze at him.

"Di, I'm not going to waste my already wasted time with the nonsense," he walks away, sighing and releasing a deep breath through his mouth, rolling his eyes at his sister's drama, leaving an annoyed Anjali and expressionless Shyam behind.

"He still doesn't trust me, Rani Sahiba." Shyam moved towards his wife, complaining to her about her brother.

The more he tries to distance the brother and sister duo, the earlier he'd get his share in the property.

"Don't worry, Shyam-ji. He'll regret it one day. I and everyone from our family know that was that bitch Myra's fault." Anjali cups her husband's cheeks, smiling at him a little, comforting him, knowing it was her husband's fault. It was all that middle-class woman — Myra's fault who tried to trap her husband and her brother in her charms. She lost one of her brothers, she wouldn't lose her husband, not because of any reason.

"Your trust means so much to me, Rani Saheba," he cups her cheek in return, looking into her eyes and smiling. Such a fool she is, he internally smirked. He knows Anjali was perfect for him — a woman weakling as her is always an advantage to him.

"I'll always trust you, Shyam-ji!" she hugs him in return, and a little later they both walk towards their room to spend some quality time together.

....

Arnav's Room,

Arnav was done with his packing and was searching for his medicines in the drawer, that was the last thing to pack before he started to the airport. He better wait in the airport VIP lounge than breathe in the toxicity of Shantivan.

"Finally!" he muttered under his breath, getting the medicines from the last drawer. If Aryan knows he forgot them, he would eat him alive. Well, Nikhil is the only human in the world who get to scold him, and although that doesn't affect him, still Nikhil wouldn't care.

Before he could think more, his phone rang and he picked up looking at the caller's name. It was his business partner, Rohit. They both started the company together — AR and are partners.

"Hey, Arnav!" he heard Rohit and hoped he wasn't getting to listen to anything that could raise his anger more.

"Yeah, Rohit?" he responds.

"You need to take Lavanya with you as well!" Aah! There! His anger was slowly raising and he might burst soon.

"And who told you that?" he gritted his teeth. There must be another condition laid by Lavanya's father, he thought of not bowing down this time.

"Her father just called us and said he is going to take his investment back if his daughter is not involved in the Fashion Gala," Rohit explained having received a call from the main investor in their business without whom they wouldn't have been able to start a business.

"Let him take it back but I'm not going to take her unless she was really needed," he says what is in his mind. Devnag Kashyap can not always take their helplessness to his advantage for her daughter.

He can somewhat understand why Lavanya is doing what she is doing. She was obsessed with him and he know that. Instead of making her understand, her father had taken it his aim to increase her illness. Just once his company is recognized over the other countries, he'd never need to obey Devnag's conditions.

"Arnav, you know our company will lose deals if he takes his investment bank, we need to grow internationally and Devnag Kashyap's business and political support are needed for us. It's just been three years since we kept our company, Arnav. We need the support until we grow more. It will affect our company negatively if he takes it back, you know Devnag, don't you?" Rohit explained to him. And he was true, Arnav know the consequences if Devnag took a back step, he'd just make sure AR won't ever get any investors. His political background is too big, nationally and internationally.

"Alright, fine! But let me warn you, if she crosses her limits, I'm not going to think about right or wrong," he warns laying out his condition as well, cursing the circumstances he was put in.

"I'll explain to Lavanya," Rohit assures, he's a good friend to Lavanya since she was also his to-be sister-in-law.

Arnav cuts the call not wanting to reply anything and mutters, shocking his medicines in one of the medicine boxes that was put in one of the sections of his bag, "I just hope, with the help of this Fashion Gala, our brand gets internationally recognized. I won't be needing that Devnag Kashyap's support anymore."

...

London,

Khushi and Ziya were relaxing at their regular hangout place, drinking juice and playing chess, when Ziya remembers something and mutters, "Babe, the next time we go to the pub, we should make sure to dance to this song!"

"Which song?" Khushi asks, not taking away her concentration on the game. Ziya immediately takes her phone and makes her listens to a new DJ song.

"Nice one. New?" Khushi who had heard, dancing in her place listening to the beats, still thinking of her next move, asks.

"Yup!" Ziya too nods her head, moving a little to the beats and before they could forget they were supposed to play and dance away, they heard Sanjay Bhatt.

"Hey, K, I heard you were going to get married?" Khushi stops her dance moves and the game. Ziya stops the song on the phone listening to Sanjay in shock.

"Oh, really? Did you get the invitation?" Khushi was cool, a while later as she again continued playing the game, even playing the part of Ziya who is still shocked.

"What? No, I heard from Ruby," Sanjay mutters. Ruby was a big gossipper and he heard it from her. So, thought to ask her, in case the gossip was true. It wasn't like Khushi is going to eat him alive if he'd ask her.

She's a cool woman — well, sometimes not! It depends!

"Well, unless you get an invitation, don't ask me!" she was nonchalant. Ziya smirks, taking over her part and playing again and Sanjay narrows his gaze at her.

"You can be nice, you know! I can't believe you're a doctor," he mutters, ordering a juice for himself as well.

"I can't believe you're a Lawyer too!" Khushi made a final move and Ziya pouts in sadness.

"Alright. I lost!" Sanjay understood she was mocking him. If he was a lawyer, why would he give a nose to rumors? Aah, she caught him there!

"And I won!" Khushi moves her shoulders, dancing a little, chuckling in her seat. She had won the chess game again as always. Ziya had a pout on her face still, as she dumped the chess board in a corner losing to her bestie again.

"How are Myra and Dhruv?" Sanjay asks and this stops Khushi from smiling.

"Doing good! They're expecting a baby soon," she shrugs. Dhruv and Myra are like her siblings. Well, they are. Arjen's sister and sister's husband were nothing less to her.

"Wow, that was such awesome news," Sanjay was excited and happy for them as he heard them.

Khushi smiles a little. Arjen informed her that her sister is pregnant and she later talked with Myra too. The couple stayed in Sweden!

"So Dhruv's or Myra's parents know?" he asked the next question. Myra's family except for Arjen didn't accept Dhruv after they got to know what his family did with her. Myra wasn't ready to leave Dhruv and they settled in a different city.

"You know Dhruv isn't in touch with his family and coming to Myra, only her brother and father know." She sighed stating the fact. She needs to visit the couple soon too once she gets free and will have to stay for two or three days with them.

"Her Mother is still angry?" he wondered, he was unknown of the latest updates. Well, they were too busy worrying about Khushi to concentrate on other things. Now that Khushi is back and fit, they're getting back to their lives too.

"Yeah! But don't worry, Arjen will take care of it!" Khushi know Arjen would take care of her mother. He's a peacemaker in the house. Arjen's mother has always hated people with less status, adding to it, Dhruv's family was cruel to Myra to even think about accepting Dhruv.

"As always!" he mutters under his breath. Arjen although looks naughty is responsible like hell.

Ziya sighed, not getting attention from her fiance, and thought to remind him she was there too "Sanjay, do you remember your finance is sitting straight in front of you?"

"I know, babe. How can I ever forget you, my sweetheart?" he walked towards Ziya and sat beside her, kissing her cheeks, and circling her shoulders.

"Alright, lovebirds. I need to go! Bye." Khushi gets up, collects her handbag, and walks out giving the couple their privacy. It was evening on Sunday and she walks off to her car, wanting to go home and maybe have some wine with her father if he was free, talking about everything and anything.

They always do this, sharing their worries, opinions, thoughts, and fears over a glass of red wine.

Alas! As she reached her home, she got to know her father is busy with Fashion Gala. Arjen is busy too, and James had an emergency shoot. Stella was on leave from that afternoon and since there was nobody to talk to and spend her time with, she switches on the TV to watch movies.

....

Arnav's flight was at 9:30 PM in India and he boarded the flight along with Lavanya, thanks to the last-minute reservation, Lavanya had to sit in one of the other seats far away from him. They landed 9 hours later and it was 2 AM in London when Arnav and Lavanya reached the hotel Aman had reserved for them. Aman wasn't coming.

They go their way into their rooms and slept too tired and jetlagged, even though Lavanya tried to cling to him, he successfully dodged her way, being his rude self. He needed to be in order to maintain distance between himself and people of the opposite gender.

The next morning Arnav woke up early, concentrating on the yoga practice he was suggested by his doctor, and indulged himself in work, ordering breakfast, not bothering to bother about Lavanya's calls.

"She can never understand!" he mutters, typing away on his laptop.

It was Monday and everyone was busy with their own jobs as the sun was about dawn and evening came. Arnav decides to take a stroll in the garden area of the hotel. Lavanya was finally off his back, going on a shopping spree and he was too glad to complain about her unprofessionalism. It wasn't like she was unprofessional every time, she is good at her work except for her obsession and it was his helplessness to bear her tantrums.

This Fashion Gala had to be a turning point for his company and there should be no looking back — not to Devnag Kashyap!

He was breathing in the fresh air, looking at the sky, lost in his thoughts when he bumps into a woman. He reflexes back in the habit, not helping the stumbling woman who had twisted her ankle with the sudden bump. That was until he saw her face.

"Khushi.." he whispers, taking her hand in his, not letting her fall.

It was Khushi!

Khushi heard an unknown yet distant voice that seemed familiar to her and she looks up from her ankle, where she felt a little pain only to be left surprised.

"Arnav?" she whispers straightening herself, and removing her heels, it should lessen her pain.

Arnav was happy at least now she recognized him while back in India she denied to recognize him and always ran away misunderstanding his intentions.

"Khushi.." he could only whisper her name. When he didn't know about her whereabouts, he was hell eager to talk to her, conversing a lot of times with her in his mind had replayed but now when he met her, he have no other words than her name to roll on his tongue.

"After a long time, Arnav! How are you?" she asked smiling at him, gesturing for him to walk with her towards the little bench in the garden. She wasn't limping and that was a good sign, an ointment would take away the pain soon in a few days. She thought activating the doctor in her while Arnav helped her in walking although that wasn't needed.

She sits on the bench and Arnav too sits beside her and they were calm as always and this time Arnav broke the silence, "You didn't tell me when you left all those years ago!"

Khushi was surprised at his complaint, she didn't know her not informing him about her absence will affect him, "It was an emergency, Arnav. I had to go and anyway I had always thought it wouldn't make any difference."

She was true to her thoughts. Arnav was too much of a closed person and with her maturity, she successfully brought a smile to his face all those years ago. She was just being herself with everyone and so was with Arnav. It wasn't special yet was special in some way.

"It did," he whisper sadly, lost in his thoughts.

Before she could ask him for more, she heard Ziya calling for her, and she know she had to go.

"Arnav, I need to go. See you later, and yeah, this is my number, call me!" She takes out her visiting card from the clutch and writes her personal number on the back of it, handing it over to him in hurry, she walks away leaving a speechless Arnav who was gathering his thoughts and before he could, she left him, again!

But this time he was sure, she wasn't his fantasy, after all. He still didn't get to know why didn't she recognize him in Delhi, was that her Amnesia as he assumed, or was she acting just like she did once before?

He shrugged his thought, now he was sure — interacting with her wasn't his fantasy or dream all those years ago when he was just 18 years old and too vulnerable, all alone, with nobody to really care for him. He had some way to contact her — her phone number and get her presence in his life.

It was real and that was enough for now!

To be continued..,

Let me know what you think about the update!

Arnav and Khushi know each other before! How do you think they know each other? Any guesses are welcome! 

Opinions on, 

Anjali?

Shyam?

Arnav?

Khushi?

Devyani?

Subadra?

Regards,

polymath_land

26/12/2022