Nandini

"This is just too delicious, Nandini. It's good that you don't cook every day. Otherwise, I would have gotten fat already," Dad says, putting another dosa on his plate.

"You are right, Siddharth. Whenever Nandini cooks, I need to give an extra thirty minutes to the gym to burn the calories after eating so much," Mom adds before putting another morsel in her mouth.

I smile at them, glad they liked the masala dosa and coconut chutney I made for breakfast today.

Vikrant is also at the table, eating his second dosa, but as always, he doesn't say anything about liking or not liking the food.

Not that I care about his opinion, but he can at least give one word of appreciation to the person who made him breakfast.

Shaking my head at his attitude, I stand up, about to walk to the kitchen to wash my plate, when Vikrant stops me.

"Umm, the dosa was delicious. Thank you," he says, surprising me.

Are my ears ringing? Or did he really thank me?

My expression must have given away my thoughts because an amused smile curves his lips.

He steps closer to me. "You heard it right. I did thank you. And it was not only for today but for all the times you cooked in this house. Anything you make is always delectable."

I continue staring at him as he walks away.

"Nandini, aren't you getting late for the office?" Dad asks me, and I jolt out of my stunned stupor.

"Umm, yes. I'll go and wash this plate first," I reply and walk to the kitchen.

*****

"Good morning, Sir," I greet Samrat as he passes by me, about to enter Vikrant's cabin.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Nandini? You can call me Samrat inside the office, too. No need to be so formal with me." He winks at me, and I shake my head at him.

I have made two good friends in this office in the last three weeks. One is Riya, and the other is Samrat.

Both of them helped me understand how everything worked in the office.

For the first week, it was Riya, but when she got sick and had to take a few days off, Samrat helped me when he saw me scrambling to finish the work alone without Riya.

We also meet outside office hours. Sometimes, we go for coffee, and sometimes, Samrat takes me and Riya out for lunch.

I call him by his name outside the office, but I'm uncomfortable doing so inside. After all, he is my boss here.

"You know why—" I begin to reply, but he interrupts me.

"I know the reason, Nandini. But you don't need to feel uncomfortable. Even Riya calls me by my name," he says.

Just then, Vikrant exits his office. "What are you doing here?" he asks Samrat, and I frown at his harsh tone.

What's his problem?

"In case you have forgotten, this is my company too, Vikrant, and I come here daily," Samrat replies.

"Exactly my point. This is our company. You ought to be in your office, working there, not in front of my assistant's desk, wasting her and your time," Vikrant says to Samrat.

It's not his problem. It's his nature. Always rude and uptight. I realize, inwardly sighing.

"I'm not wasting my time. In fact, I was about to come to your office. I need to talk about some arrangements for our upcoming party. Only three weeks are left now, and we need to finalize some important details," Samrat tells Vikrant and turns to me.

"Speaking of the party, would you like to be my date for that evening, Nandini?" He asks, and I widen my eyes in shock.

"Your date?"

"Yes. You know it is a ball-themed party, right? So, you would need to bring a date. Since you are unmarried and don't have a boyfriend, I thought we could go together," Samrat explains.

"Umm, I knew about the party's theme, but I didn't know we needed to bring a date," I say, chewing on my lips.

I'm unsure about it, but since I can't say no to attending the party as the company has made it mandatory for all employees to attend it, I sigh and nod at Samrat. "Ok. Let's go together then."

Anyway, Samrat is a good person, and he is also my friend. Hopefully, we'll have a nice time at the party.

"Nandini won't go to the party with you, Samrat," Vikrant suddenly says.

"She just said she will." Samrat looks confused. "Why are you saying she won't?"

"Because I'm her boss, and I have decided to take her with me," Vikrant replies, and I fume, hearing him.

"Sir, it isn't your decision to make. I have every right to choose who to take as my date, and I have already chosen Samrat," I say, trying hard to curb the anger I can feel rising within me with each passing second.

Who is he to decide I would be going with him?

"I just remembered I need to send an important email. I will finish it first and talk with you later," Vikrant tells Samrat and looks at me. "Come to my office right now, Ms. Iyer."

"What's with him today?" Samrat asks me after Vikrant enters his office.

"This is his normal behavior," I reply, finding nothing out of the ordinary with Vikrant, and Samrat chuckles, hearing me.

"I'll return later to discuss the arrangements with Vikrant," he says and starts to leave. But he stops midway and turns back to face me. "Umm, are you going to be my date, then? Or Vikrant's?"

"I already said yes to you," I confirm, and smiling at me, Samrat nods before walking away.

*****

Vikrant

"You called me, Sir?" Nandini asks as she enters my office.

"How the hell can you say yes to going to the party with Samrat? You should be going with me," I tell her.

"And why should I be going with you?"

"You are my wife, dammit," I reply, and she glares at me.

"What did you say?" she asks. "Your wife? Weren't you the one who said our marriage means nothing to you? That too on our wedding night? That's why this meaningless marriage holds no significance to me, and I don't consider you my husband."

"Your saying that doesn't change the fact that I'm indeed your husband, Nandini."

"Weren't you the one who said—" she starts to say, but I interrupt her.

"I said many things before. You don't have to retort them to me every time," I tell her, feeling irked by how she seemed to remember every harsh thing I told her.

"But I need to, Vikrant because you seem to have forgotten them," she says. "I don't know what has happened to you that you suddenly want to claim your rights as my husband. So, I feel I need to be direct with you.

"After our marriage, you said many things that hurt me deeply. I agree there had been times when I was weak, and you supported me, but that doesn't whitewash your words and actions.

"You married me so I could be a pawn in your revenge game. And now, when it's over, you can't suddenly make me your wife and expect me to be okay with it.

"So, please just stop whatever you are trying to do here. We are still what we were since the beginning. I'm your unwanted wife, and this is an unwanted marriage," she finishes speaking and walks out, slamming the door shut behind her.

I feel something akin to hurt within my chest as I process Nandini's words. I have no idea what has suddenly happened to me.

Last week, when I asked Nandini about wanting to give our marriage a chance, it surprised me. But as I kept thinking about it, I found I really wanted to do it. I want to see where it goes if I give this marriage a chance.

Only my wanting to do it isn't enough. She also needs to want it.

Nandini's angry face from a few minutes back flashes in my mind, and I sigh deeply.

It's my fault that she is refusing to give me a chance. Blinded by my anger and revenge, I was a jerk to her in the beginning.

If only I could go back in time and stop myself from doing so.

"But I can't do that. What's done is done. Now I need to think about how to convince her to give our marriage a chance."

I walk to my chair and slump on it, thinking about how to do it.

"First, I need to do something so Nandini will go to the party with me instead of Samrat."

After thinking for a while, I smile as an idea pops into my mind about how exactly to make that happen.