The next evening the oberoi mansion was cramped with every influential person that ever breathed in Mumbai and a huge crowd of reporters from every single big media house.

All the members of oberoi family were gathered in hall, the men folk in black suits and women folk in black combined with pastel colour sarees. Anika was the center of the attention though, beautifully draped in designer cloths and expensive jewellery. But she was constantly twisting the ends of her saree between her finger and impatiently glancing at the door.

"What happened Anika? Are you ok?" Her husband who couldn't help but notice her nervousness asked.

"Shivay, I am tensed for Gauri. I haven't seen her since the morning. She was suppose to be with me at this moment but I don't even have any clue where she even is," Anika said worriedly.

"You tried calling her?"

"Her phone is unreachable,"

"Don't worry Anika. Even Om is missing. She must be with him. He would have taken her out to tour her around that's all," Shivay tried to reassure his wife.

"But Shivay, she never disappears like this without informing me,"

Anika could already feel her bones filling and heart thumping. A clear an cut indication of something horrible to be happen in the near future. She could just wish it would not include her younger sister.

"Don't worry Anika. Om is with her. He will take good care of her," Shivay assured Anika who nodded heals heartedly to him.

"Hello everyone. As you all know we all have gathered here to welcome the newest member of the oberoi family. The wife of oldest Oberoi hire and our gem Shivay, lovely and beautiful Mrs Anika Oberoi," Jhanvi announced, followed by huge round of applause by everyone present in the hall.

Anika stepped out, with her hand firmly in Shivay's and smiled at the cameras.

"You can ask all the questions that you have to the newest addition of our family but before that I have one more announcement to make." Jhanvi said, gleaming with joy and proud as she winked at the direction of her youngest son grinning shyly at her.

"Celebrations doesn't just end here, infact they have just started. I am feeling proud to announce that my son has also decided to get married to another doll of sharma family and I would like him to come on the stage with his fianc so can we can officially announce their engagement," Jhanvi turned to her left swiftly and moved her hand forward at the direction of Rudra to welcome him. And then the most unexpected thing happens.

Rudra inhaled deeply and with a glowing smile took his first step to walk up to his mother when his path was crossed by Omkara. A smile of his own on his face, his long hair cascading down, in black shirt and black pants and a garland in his hands. And behind in was Gauri, in red lengha, heavy jewellery, wet cheeks and swollen dead eyes.

"Thank you so much mom."
No matter what, his manners were never at the back seat.

Jhanvi looked at her son as if she was watching him for the first time. Her slacked jaw hanging in the air and eyes almost popping out from shock.

what was her eldest son up too?

"Omkara, what are you doing?" She whispered to him in a stern voice, already very mad.

"Mom I know it's a little rushed and I am sorry for that. But we will talk about that later..right now, let me introduce you to my spark, my wife- Mrs Gauri Omkara Singh Oberoi," Omkara said as he snaked his right hand around his bride's waist and pulled her to his side with a proud smile.

Jhanvi was losing it.

"Wife!? What hell are you talking about?"

"Mom, what's wrong? Isn't this what you wanted?"

Jhanvi looked at her son as if she was watching him for the first time.

"Yes I wanted that! But when I came to you with the proposal you said nothing Om! Now what the hell is all this?" She exploded like a volcano.

The cameras were furiously clicking pictures, millions of them, capturing every single second. After all who would not want to read about trouble in paradise at Oberoi mansion?

"Khanna! Throw every damn reporter out of the house right now!" Jhanvi roared.

"No! Not so soon," Om growled.

He strode to the stage, dragging Gauri with him. All the eyes were won the second oldest hire of the oberoi family.

"I want to announce that the wedding of the second hire of the Oberoi empire, that is me, Omkara singh Oberoi has been made official-"

"-Omkara stop it this instant. You are gonna destroy everything!"

"So here I present you my beautiful wife and the love of my life-"

"-Omkara, please,"

"-Mrs Gauri Oberoi," Omkara announced on the mike pulling Gauri a little forward as he bent down up to her height and gently kisses on her cheek, earning a huge round of applause. He smiled against her cheek for that.

Though Gauri wanted nothing more than to push him away with all the power in her body there was no way in the world she could deny the firework exploding in every cell of her cheek that came in contact with his surprisingly soft lips. She cringed at herself for that.

Media roared with millions of questions thrown at once at the new oberoi couple, they were swept away almost instantly after Khanna received a deadly glare from Jhanvi.

Soon the mansion was left with just- Om, Gauri, Anika, Shivay, Jhanvi and Dadi.

"Om what is all this? And why did you marry Gauri all of sudden?" Shivay asked.

"Why is everyone repeating the same bloody thing!? I married her alright! So what?"

"So what? Omkara if you wanted to marry Gauri then you could have told us. We would have got you two married in a proper manner. Don't forget Om that you are the grandson of the Oberoi family! Do you have any idea how much this action of yours have disgraced our family?" Dadi asked in a disappointed voice.

Omkara let out a homourless chuckle.

"As if I care about the name of this so called family."

"Om! Is this the way of talking to the elders?" Jhanvi berated.

"Oh mom please cut the crap alright? I get it. I get it that you can't bear my happiness."

"Om what are you saying? It's not-"

"No mom please. You really don't need to pretend like you care about your unwanted son. I and Gauri will leave as soon as I all the arrangements are done. You really don't have to bear my presence anymore mom." Omkara had a grin plastered over his face. But his mom, Jhanvi knew it better how much pain he was hiding behind it. So much that it was almost hurting her.

She was about to go to his some and make him understand that he wast at all unwanted and she loved him very much and Rudra decided he had enough.

He stormed to the newly married couple. He grabbed Gauri's hand began to drag her with him.

"C'mon Gauri let's leave,"

But Gauri remained intact in her position. Omkara was firmly holding another of her hand.

"Rudra leave her," Om warned.

"No I won't and I am taking her away," Rudra replied venomously

Omkara had had it enough. With a sudden jerk he pulled Gauri to him realising Rudra's lose hold on her and pushed her behind himself.

"She will not go anywhere with you,"

"Like hell she won't!"

Rudra moved forward to grab Gauri again but this time Om stopped him by taking hold of his collar.

"She is my wife now Rudra, get over with it,"
Omkara's eyes were blood red with anger, just same as Rudra. The anger was the only thing common between them beside their last names.

"Now you get how it feels Rudra?" Om whispered menacingly into Rudra ear taking him by surprise.

"Om let go of your brother! Now!" Jhanvi yelled!

"Oh dear lord! What's happening to my family?" Dadi cried.

"Om, you aren't doing the right thing, you'll pay for it brother. Soon enough," Rudra said in a threatening voice and gave Om a nice powerful push to release him out of his hold.

He gave one last look to Gauri, his dark angry eyes softening for a second at the mere glance at her, whilst her guilty self couldn't even make herself look into his eyes and left the mansion not before kicking the which was in the middle of the hall making its glass shatter on the floor with a loud noise.
***

"All the stuff that you might need is already here. But still if you need anything you can tell me or Mo- any of the servants," Omkara spoke after they entered his room.

Gauri cringed at the mere though of the room being hers now too. Not only because it was hardly up to her taste- painted only in the shades of white and grey, boring furniture and antiques, cramped with colours in bottle and painted brushed scattered at the one side of the room.
She cringed because she wasn't sure if she could bear his presence around her for even a single second without getting nauseated.

"Gauri-"

"Om if you have ever actually cared about me then please leave me alone now," she spoke calmly, even to her own surprise.

She dropped the only small bag she was carrying on the floor before dragging her feet towards the recliner, badly wanting to slump down.

But Om abruptly held her hand preventing her to move away from him, stopping her on her track.

"You think I don't care about you? Gauri do you having any, any idea how I feel about you Gauri? No! Because all you see is your pain! Your misery! You are not even trying to see anything else! The truth is Gauri that you are selfish!" Omkara voice intensified with his word that left his mouth as his eye bored into hers.

"Selfish? You are calling me selfish!? You blackmailed me to marry you and I am the one who is selfish? You destroy my life and I am the selfish one? ...You know I was actually planning my future with Rudra! A happy one but you stamped all over it, shattering it into pieces! But still I am the one who is selfish?" Gauri let out a painful chuckle at the last, blinking the eyes several times to keep the tears from coming out.

Big girls don't cry...

"I hate you Om..more than a person could hate," she muttered as a lone tear dropped and fell on his arm holding hers.

Omkara stood there for a while as calm as the silence before the storm.

Gauri gulped. His silence was a lot more scary than his furious words.

He sighed and then chuckled lightly.

"Rudra, Rudra, Rudra. It's always him isn't it Gauri? Everyone's favourite. Everyone loves him. Mom, Shivay, dadi and now, even you Gauri," there was a sudden change in him. His face dropped, limbs seemed weakened and gaze..defeated and directed to the floor.

Gauri want even sure if he was the same Omkara who was yelling at him moments ago, accusing him of being selfish. Because this Omkara seemed so vulnerable. So much that for a moment Gauri almost believed that it wasn't her but him, the victim.

"And why won't they? After all he is everything that I am not. Charming, sweet, loveable. And I? Just a headache for everyone. All I know is how to give pain and I did the same to you Gauri." He muttered, his voice cranking and his eyes harbouring the tears to let them lose any time.

Gauri's jaw slacked.

was he really apologising? After all this? Was he really guilty?

"I-I am a bad person Gauri! And I know that I-I don't deserve you..I really d-don't..I know I shouldn't have forced you into this marriage. I am sorry Gauri. But what could I have done? I was helpless..I though you'll go away from me just like everyone else. I just didn't want you to leave me Gauri..please understand..My intentions were never bad..I-I just didn't want you to leave," his eyes were puffy, red and wet and his voice stuttering and if his throat was being choked.

"Since the beginning- everyone have loved me just for their own selfish reasons..no one actually cared about me..no one. And I accepted that-that maybe I am unlovable. Maybe this is how things are suppose to be with me..b-but then you happened..the greatest thing in my life. When I first met you I tried my best to push you away..I didn't want to get close to anyone and then get my heart broken again..b-but you fought you way in Gauri and I am glad that you did. I really am! Because with you I found the happiness that I though I would never receive...y-you are the greatest thing that happened to me Gauri..you are my miracle," he cried, his face red and stained with tears.

Gauri's whose own heart was clenching didn't  know how to react.

She was the one was beginning to feel like a bad person now...

She didn't even realise when he left her hand because now both his hands were joined before her in praying position.

"I beg you Gauri..please forgive me. I am sorry Gauri. Slap me, beat me but just don't say you hate me. I won't be able to live with it Gauri, please. Please don't say you hate me,"

He fell on his his knees surprising Gauri as she gasped stuttering back a little but he immediately wrapped his hand around her waist, clinging tight to her. Gauri couldn't almost feel the feel he was feeling. But she couldn't decipher his actions.

"Gauri can you promise me you will never leave me like everyone else? Please promise me Gauri..please," he hugged her waist tighter burying his face into her stomach.

Gauri stood numb.

She wanted to push him away but instead of doing that she found her fingers subconsciously running through his hair.

"Why Om, why? W-Why are you doing this? Why are you doing this to me?"

Tears slipped freely down her cheek landing on his forehead.

"Because I love you Gauri.."

"No you don't Om.." she thought but couldn't make herself say.

Collecting all the little amour of energy that was left in her tiny body she pushed him away.

"Om, I really need to rest now. So please leave."

Hi stood up. This time his face again back to his expressionless monotonous self. Impossible to read. He rubbed his his with the back to his back and made himself steady.

"Ok. I'll be going to my studio. I might be late. See you in the morning,"

That was all he said before turning on his heels and walking right out of the room.

🖋🖋🖋🖋
Sorry for the late update, I was kinda busy 😅
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