This chapter is quite heavy. But I hope this gives you some insight on Annika. I really hope you like this one!

"Why aren't you eating?" Annika asked as she munched in her Pasta Alfredo. Shivaay looked at her in disbelief.

"You ate my portion too? Annika, I was away for five minutes!"

Annika grinned at him sheepishly. There was a valid reason no one trusted her around food. She passed her plate to him, which he didn't take of course.

"I'll order something else! You eat." He smiled at her and she was sure she wasn't going to survive that one. Well, contrary to the popular belief, stomach isn't the path to the heart only for men. Girls undoubtedly preferred men who wouldn't take from their plates, to say the least.

"How was the meeting?" Shivaay asked as he gulped in some water. His stomach was growling in hunger, but he had decided he would wait, thus he would.

That one question was enough to send Annika on one of her infamous rants. She rambled on until it was time for them to go. She realized he probably by now, knew every single detail of her life in college for the past two and half years. But the two of them were quite satisfied. They rode back home fighting over what songs to play until Annika switched it off completely. The two of them secretly enjoyed the banter and were slowly getting comfortable around each other.

Shivaay dropped her off and left to the office. He was quite stressed about handling office in the absence of Tej and Shakti, but his lunch with Annika was definitely his break from the news. He was a little relaxed when he got back. His temper was slowly emerging to be a problem at office, within his few weeks, Shivaay realized he was the 'Tej' amongst the brothers. He was all new to work and his newly married status (even though they've been married for eight months) were all too much for him. But he was glad he had enough strength to keep his Zen. He'd probably need a strong resilience, because things weren't getting better for him any time soon...

*

Annika entered the empty house. She was in one after a while. She knew everyone around her made sure she was never alone, at least the ones who knew the mess that she was. She went inside their room, it was quite dark. She welcomed the darkness as it resembled how she felt. Every time she saw colours, she wanted it black. Just like her world. Also, the dark was the place she could let her mask down. Annika sat down and her thoughts wandered off to what her life once was. She remembered that very specific day. That was the day her world crumbled and fell into an eternal pit. Her parents... Her little brother... She blinked a few times, no sign of a single tear. She hugged her knees like one would hug someone. They were probably right. Annika was born to destruct others' lives. She was the curse that was bestowed in this world to gnaw away everyone's happiness. She realized she made a grave mistake marrying Shivaay, she shouldn't have made an impulsive decision. She was going to ruin everyone's lives. People should be taught to stay away from her...

Shivaay was surprised to see the house dim, without any light. He got a takeout as he knew he wouldn't have time to cook after going home. He placed the food on the table and marched upstairs. He switched on the lights and was quite startled to see Annika sitting lifelessly. He slowly approached her and placed his hands on her shoulder, "Annika?"She looked up to him and Shivaay wondered who this person was. She looked tired and way older.

She inhaled deeply and let her woes out. The sinking feeling in her stomach deepened when she saw his face. He was immediately added to her guilt list. He looked very concern and she cringed. She didn't want anybody's concern; she didn't want anybody's affection; she didn't want anything that was temporary. She jumped up from the couch, "I'm hungry!"

Shivaay knew why Gauri told him that Annika never smiled from her heart. Because everything was a facade, which he had failed to see through. Everything suddenly made sense to him, his family's behavior around her wasn't just out of love, but was also of protectiveness. They didn't want her to feel low at all. That was the reason Annika had no personal space at his home. That was why his mother was least bothered about his arrival and never left Annika. They wanted to give the girl a family, which she didn't seem to accept. From what he knew, she never spoke about her family to anyone. He knew he was missing out one important puzzle piece, which he couldn't put a finger at. He was lost in thoughts when he heard her voice call him out. He simply shook his head and took her to the dining table.

Annika awkwardly looked up again. He was just looking at her intently. Just like that. Without a single word. She quietly ate and got up and Shivaay tugged her hands.

"Let's watch a movie."

"Horror?" She asked playfully. He gave her a sharp look,

"Not for another lifetime!"

*

"The Lion King is the best movie ever!" Shivaay protested.

"I never said anything!" Annika exclaimed. What was even wrong with him! But one thing was for sure, maybe she was judgmental, but who would think that the favorite movie of an alpha male like Shivaay would be a Disney one!

"I can see it on your face!" Shivaay chided and looked again at the screen. It was the scene between Mufasa and Scar. He watched the movie intently, not caring about the occasional glances Annika would throw at him. His eyes did well up, like they always did. She tapped his hand a little to soothe him down. When the scene with Simba came up, he felt her hand laying above his go stiff. Her face looked emotionless, just like it was a while ago. He kept his eyes on her with his peripheral vision. "Simba shouldn't have run away!"

Annika cleared her throat, "You wouldn't know how bearing that guilt feels like. It was his father!" The last sentence came out as a whisper. She simply stood up and left without a word. Shivaay didn't follow her, something told him she would come back. And, she did. She sat a little closer to him this time and somehow, Shivaay felt she did that to draw some strength. He might be wrong, but that's how he felt.

When the movie ended, Shivaay didn't let Annika say a word and put on another movie. He knew what he was doing was terribly wrong, but he wanted to see how she'd react to such movies. Because, while watching 'The Lion King', he reflected on how Annika never mentioned the death of her parents once to him, and he doubted, to anyone. Gauri had told him that Annika hadn't cried for a long time. He had noticed how she'd look longingly at his family just for a minute before concealing her expression. She would look around to see if anyone noticed, or dodge in the conversation. Well, one could say Shivaay had his eyes only on her, or just call him observant like he would prefer. But all that lead him to this, and the way he had found Annika in their room only urged him more. He put on the most heart wrenching and beautiful french movie, 'Ponette'. It was based on the childhood of a motherless 4 year old girl named Ponette. That movie could even make a stone cry. But not Annika. While Shivaay was a pool of tears, Annika sat watching the film with a grave expression. It seemed to take every ounce of energy left in her, that Shivaay had to switch it off.

"I shouldn't have put this on." Shivaay wiped his tears while Annika sat there blankly.

"No one is really ready to accept their loved ones death. It's just a movie, but imagine the hell Ponette would be in!" Annika felt Shivaay's hand on hers. "I felt everything tumble down until I felt nothing at all. It all happened in an hour!" Her voice a tad coarse, she shook his hands away. She reverted her gaze from him, that man was dangerous. How the hell did he manage to put her in a situation where she ran away from! She blamed the movies for stirring something in her. On the other hand, Shivaay was glad that she was close to telling him something. One baby step was better than nothing.

Annika did not sleep that night. Her mind dwelled on all the dark places that was there in her. She looked at Shivaay, who slept soundly beside her. She gently pushed him away from her. She needed to keep him at a certain distance before anything happened. What exactly was on her head when she got into this marriage? She was not ready to accept relationships...

I highly recommend you people to watch 'Ponette'. Hands down one of the best films ever.

Love,

silver_dustXX aka Kripa