*Mridula Pov*

"Mridula! Stop doing all that and come here." I heard Dad's voice and turned to see him standing near the door along with Mom looking at me frowning.

"I am just helping." I mumbled stepping outside the kitchen near to them.

"You can help me as much as you want, but you need to take a rest too." Mom said with a worried look.

"I am just bored." I again mumbled and started walking away from them.

"Don't go outside and start cleaning there, Mridula. I know you are angry at us and just say anything you want." Mom asked in a pleading tone.

"Yes! I am angry, but at the same time I can understand the situation, Mom. I am really bored with this little work." I said, lying a little about my restlessness missing so many people and mainly him.

"We both know about all the work you have to do at your house. Premila madam said so much about how you handle everything and how proud she is. We always felt proud hearing her words." dad said smiling at me.

"I will take a small walk." I said, turning around and walked outside the house in a rush.

If she talked so highly about me near them, then why did she always scold me or never said any words like this until the marriage proposal.

I shook my head and hugged myself before walking towards the lake and sat down, ignoring the darkness taking away the light.

After some time, I looked around to see it is getting more late and knowing well regarding the worry they both showed for the past one week, I stood up to leave.

However, before I could take a step to turn around I felt my leg slipping and fell down into the water. I gasped for air before pushing myself up and tried to reach near the steps, but it felt so difficult with the saree weighing more soaking in the water.

"Mridula!" I heard a whisper before I could shout for help and felt arms around me and then a moment on the steps.

I coughed and before I could say or see anything, I felt arms engulfing me tightly and heard some babbling.

"Did I hurt you that much that you were trying to do suicide?" this question made me come out of my daze and moved back a little before staring at Tajwar's face.

"I was not..." before I could finish it, he hugged me again tightly.

"Now, what will mom say if she knows about it and how because of her lateness you could have died. If she gave me the address yesterday evening itself, then you wouldn't have taken this step right?" he continued to talk and I suddenly pushed him away.

"It was an accident." I mumbled before falling into his hold with a thought that all of this is a dream, and I actually died.

After a few minutes, I heard my parent's shouting, making me open my eyes and saw them rushing near to me. So, he was not here, and I was dreaming.

I shook my head and moved to stand up, but immediately felt a hand circling my waist and another holding my hand.

"She is fine now." I heard the voice but didn't look up and just stared at my parents whose expressions changed from worry to confusion to understanding.

"Let's get her inside." he added before they nodded to show him the way, and he stopped at the car for a minute in the meantime the driver rushed near us before taking the car keys from Tajwar.

"I will bring the bags, sir." He said to which Tajwar nodded before taking me inside the house.

"I will go and bring some tea." Mom said, leaving the room after giving me a towel covering me up with it.

"I will go and tell our neighbors that we found her." Dad too left while Tajwar searching the cupboards after making me sit on the bed.

"You need to change." He said before bringing me some dress.

"Ok!" I said and stared at him waiting for him to leave.

"You may faint again." He said like I need to understand everything with it.

"Have some tea." We suddenly heard Mom's voice and turned to see her entering the room.

"It will take some time for your father to return. We kind of asked each house on the way to the lake. And they will even start questioning now. I will go and prepare dinner." Mom added before leaving the room and closed the door behind her.

"I will turn around." Tajwar said, turning around locking the door.

I slowly stood up only to give a small cry before falling back on the bed. Hearing which he turned around and rushed near to me.

"What happened?" he asked frowning.

"My leg!" I replied and held the ankle where it is hurting too much.

"It must have sprained. We will see about it, but before change so that you will not catch cold." He said again moved to turn around, but frowned.

"Call my Mom." I said in a whisper.

"It is not correct right now to let her know about the leg. She is already panicking, and we will tell her after she calmed down a little." He mumbled and moved his hands near to my saree but I didn't say anything expecting sitting still.

"Close your eyes." He said making me frown at him.

"You should be the one who should close their eyes." I said frowning at him.

"You are the one that is feeling uncomfortable. So, you can close your eyes if you want." He explained before removing the pin and moved me to remove the saree.

"What are you doing here?" I asked when he removed it completely.

"I thought we were married, and I am your husband." He replied and squeezed my waist to lift me up at the same time.

"And?" I asked him feeling his breath over my face and my fast breathing with, the way he held me to him, but not for a second stopped removing my clothes and stared only into my eyes.

"Shouldn't wife and husband stay near each other?" he asked and started making me wear the clothes which he pulled out of my small cupboard.

"But..." I started saying and at the same time he pulled me to him completely to tighten the strings.

"And I generally don't follow what my mom says every time like you. So, I can actually come here." he added moving me back and slowly made me sit back on the bed before walking away.

"How do you know the address?" I asked him when he walked near to me holding the tea cup.

"My mom told me." His reply made the cup rattle in my hands, seeing which he took it back before placing it near my mouth.

"I can drink." I mumbled, looking at him.

"Then do it." He said, pressing it more to my mouth.

What happened to him? I thought, frowning before drinking the tea with his help. I thought he would be happy that I left, and I never get to see him again after, I hurt him, but now he is standing before me and doing all this.

"Now that you have finished, I will go and tell your parents about your leg." He said walking out before I could stop him and within a few minutes, Mom and Dad rushed inside.

"We will not send you outside again. What would have happened if he was not there?" Mom said and gasped to herself.

"Mom! This is a village and if I gave a small shout then, many would have come to my rescue." I said fidgeting with my hands.

"We didn't know that you are coming, Tajwar." Mom said, ignoring my words, and I frowned, thinking how did they know it is him near the lake.

"How do you know him?" I asked her.

"We saw your wedding photos. Now, how was your journey? I hope you got to the house without much worry. We thought you may not be able to visit." Mom replied to me and asked him again.

"Yeah! She said you were busy." Dad mumbled.

"She lied to both of you." He suddenly said and I stared at him with wide eyes, feeling the terror of them knowing everything when I hid so that they won't get hurt.

"She was the one that asked me not to come here so that she can spend some alone time with you both. Now that one week has passed, I thought of visiting you both by myself." He added, and I sighed in relief.

"We didn't know that you can lie, Mridula." Mom said smiling at me.

"You don't know many talents of her." He mumbled in a whisper which they didn't hear.

"I will bring the dinner here." Mom said leaving the room.

"I will go and bring it." Tajwar said following Mom and Dad.

"Isn't it feeling different? Before, you used to do it for me every day without saying a word, and here I am doing it even for a few days." He said after we finished the dinner in silence.

"You never talked this much before." I mumbled when he returned after returning the dishes.

"Before, we didn't live apart like this too." he commented before opening the bags and started changing his dress before me, and I immediately closed my eyes.

"I can't bath with cold water and at the same time, stress your parents to heat some water." he mumbled before sitting beside me.

"What did Aunty say?" I asked, opening my eyes.

"Yesterday evening I asked for your address and even shouted, but didn't get it and then today morning, I begged her after hearing so many useful things. Then when I started thinking what should I do, she started keeping conditions." He started explaining.

"What conditions?" I asked him frowning.

"First condition is from Amrin and Nipuna that you will have to call them tomorrow and even send this phone when mom didn't allow them to visit you." he replied giving me a phone.

"The next ones are from Mom, in which one was not to make you feel uncomfortable at all. I mean, if you shout at me to leave, then I have to leave from the house. And the last one is you have to return to our home only when you wish with your whole heart." He added smiling at me.

"You need not tell me all this." I mumbled and moved to get down.

"Where are you going?" he asked, holding my hand.

"You sleep here and I will sleep down." I replied and moved to get down again.

"No need for that. I will sleep down." He said after staring at my small bed.

"This was my favorite when I was twelve, so they bought it." I said frowning at him.

"All of these?" he asked, looking around and I nodded after which he moved towards the mat near the cupboard and spread it on the floor before lying on it.

"What should I call them?" he suddenly asked and I frowned at his question.

"They are your Aunt and Uncle before our marriage, and you can call them with that if you accept them like that." I replied, and he sighed nodding.

"What are you really doing here?" I asked lying on the bed and closed my eyes.

"I have something to tell you, but with your pain, I don't think right now I can say. However, I think whenever there is a chance for me to say, something like this just happens making it postpone." he continued to reply and I slowly drifted off into sleep.

What am I doing near the lake again? I thought and looked down only to fall inside it. However, this time I couldn't reach up and take in some air.

"Aahh..." I gasped, sitting up when I felt the air completely rushing out of my body and saw him holding my shoulders shaking me.

"It is ok, Mridula. You are fine now." He said, rubbing my back after holding me.

"I am fine!" I mumbled moving back and he again moved to the floor after a few minutes while I sat on the bed fearing it may come back.

When I continued to stare at him, he sighed before mumbling "We can't fit on that bed, and I don't know if you can lay on the floor with an injured leg."

He finally stood up before reaching near me and lifted me into his arms before walking near to mat and slowly placed me on it while I frowned at him.

Then he sat beside me and pushed me back to lay on it and he too laid back before pulling me into his arms.

"I thought of showing that I can sacrifice by sleeping on the floor while you sleep on a bed. However, seems like we both have to sacrifice your bed." he mumbled and I slowly smiled hearing his words with my face pressed to his throat.

"You are so honest! I wish I was too." I whispered, holding him tight feeling guilty for lying to him and then saying those things.

"I wish I saw what my words were doing to you." he whispered back and hugged me even tighter.

"I still can't believe you are really here." I mumbled sighing.

"Why is that?" he asked, brushing my hair.

"You never wanted me to be part of your life by your wish and now when I moved away completely, I thought you would be relieved." I replied.

"How can I be relieved when my love was here?" he asked and I immediately looked up.

"What?" I asked him thinking this is definitely some dream or a nightmare.

"I love you and only you, Mridula." He said the words, but they seemed to be taking a long time to actually sink in.

Seeing my still expression, He moved me back into his hold whispering "Go to sleep. I am not going anywhere, and you need some rest."

And I did drift off into sleep holding him tightly, wishing this with my entire life that this is true and definitely not a dream.

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many of you requested for a double update and here it is... however, i need another request from you guys for it ;) ... the story is going to end so i need your thoughts about this chap and then later to give some proper ending... so dont forget to give your views i mean not mainly regarding how was it but the view completely...

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