(Guys, this chapter is going to be a long one. So please bear with me!)

Once the rituals were over, everyone proceeded towards the feast that was arranged. Dance and music added to the glory of the day.

Shanu and Sahil were busy chatting when Abir, Sahil's cousin came up to them and said,

Abir: Sahil Bhaiya, voh pandit ji ne Masi aur apko bulane ko kaha hai. Koi last ritual baki hai, uske liye.

Sahil: Mom shayad aapne room mein hai. Wait I'll go get her.

Shanu: Sahil, ek kaam karo, tum Abir ke sath jao. Mai Nandini aunty ko bula lati hu, okay?

Sahil: Okay, thanks.

Saying that, he planted a kiss on her cheek and left with Abir. Shanu blushed and looked down.

She made her way back to the penthouse suite which was occupied by Sahil's parents. She clicked the 13th floor button on the elevator and patiently waited. Once on the floor, she stepped out of the elevator and looked around.

The living room was empty. She made her way to Sahil's mom's room which was at the end of the corridor. She was about to knock when she realised that the door was unlocked. She entered and was about to call out her name when she found Nandini, her back faced to her, on the edge of the bed.

She could hear silent sobs. Shanu worriedly made her way to her and glanced over her shoulder.

Nandini was holding the same photo that Shanu had found yesterday, and crying. Shanu hesitatingly put a hand on her shoulder.

Nandini quickly turned around and hid the photo behind her. Shanu worriedly looked at her.

Nandini: Shanu? When did you come here?

Shanu: Aunty, I..... pandit ji is calling you..... for a ritual.

Nandini: Oh.

Shanu looked down.

Nandini: Uh.... I'll be there.

Shanu nodded, getting the hint that Nandini wanted to be alone and slowly walked back to the living room.

After a minute or two, Nandini came out. Her hair was in a chaos and her face still showed the tear stains. Nandini walked past her without a word and pressed the elevator button.

Shanu , without being able to control herself anymore, asked her,

Shanu: That's Sahil's real Dad, isn't it?

Nandini froze in her spot. She gulped and turned to Shanu and asked,

Nandini: What are you talking about?

Shanu: The guy in the photo. He's actually Sahil's Dad, isn't he?

Nandini's breathing became heavy. She fidgeted with her fingers.

Shanu: I just wanna know the truth, Aunty. Please.......

Nandini: Sahil's Dad is Rudra! No one else!

Shanu shuddered at the sudden outbreak. She was afraid she had crossed the limit. Still gathering enough courage, she asked,

Shanu: Then why were you crying watching that photo?

Nandini looked at her, as if contemplating whether to tell her the truth or not.

After a long pause, Nandini said in a soft voice,

Nandini: The....guy.....in.....the.... photo...is....Mahir........my......

Shanu slowly made her way to Nandini, afraid she might break down any time. She held her hands and said,

Shanu: You loved him?

Nandini broke into silent sobs. Shanu made her sit on a nearby couch. Nandini's eyes filled with tears. Even Shanu's.

Shanu: When did you fall for him?

Nandini: I used to run a small wedding management buisness when I got married to Rudra. He never approved of it but none the less, he never stopped me from doing it. Then I had Jai. So I thought of taking a break from work to give all my attention to him. Once he was five years old, I thought of starting the buisness again. And........he was.......my.... first client.

Shanu looked at her, still trying to understand the whole situation.

Nandini: Mahir Agarwal. He was a professor at St.Marcus. And that meant that my husband knew him...very well.

Shanu let out a silent sigh. She could only imagine how awkward and painful the whole thing was for Nandini.

Nandini: I didn't tell Rudra that I was his wedding planner. I thought maybe things would get awkward. And that's probably the biggest mistake I ever made.

Shanu curiously asked,

Shanu: Why?

Nandini spoke after a pause,

Nandini: While planning his wedding, I don't know.....what.... happened to me. He used to casually flirt with me sometimes. I used to shrug it off thinking of it as a joke. But..... slowly....and gradually...... I started..... falling for him.....his smile......his antics.......him.

Shanu frowned.

Nandini: I knew...... I knew that it was wrong......... I had a husband and a kid. He was about to get married. The whole thing between us was wrong. But we were swayed by......our emotions......we didn't think of the consequences.....we just cared about us.

Shanu comfortingly rubbed her palm.

Nandini: I swear......Shanu......I tried to stop him......to stop myself....... from committing the biggest mistake of our lives. But...... I..... couldn't.

Nandini choked on her sobs and buried her face in her hands. Shanu looked at her with concern.

Nandini: I regret......I regret....it.....everyday, Shanu. I should have never........ I'm so sorry.....so sorry.....

Shanu: No , aunty. I understand......that you made a mistake....... but what would make it more wrong would be not telling Sahil.

Nandini lifted her head and looked at Shanu and said,

Nandini: No! Shanu, no! Sahil can never know that he's not.........I love him......no matter what. He's my child.....I don't regret having Sahil..... I regret the fact that...... I let myself sway away by my emotions....... I regret that I cheated on my husband.....

Nandini again started sobbing uncontrollably. Shanu tried hard to calm her down.

Shanu: How.....did...... Uncle....react...... after knowing that....

Nandini: He was angry. He didn't want to do anything with Sahil. But I fought.....a lot for my baby....... saying that......if Sahil were to go..... I would go with him. There was no way that I was going to give my baby away. He is mine. And always will be.

Shanu: So he agreed to give him his name?

Nandini: He did...... hesitantly...... but he left no chance to.....make.....my son feel like he wasn't wanted. He tortured Sahil throughout his life.......and I could do nothing but.......watch it happen. If I asked him to go easy on Sahil, he would threaten me that he would tell Sahil the truth.

Shanu frowned in disappointment and anger. She felt anger burn inside her as she remembered all the times when he had treated Sahil pathetically.

Nandini: My son didn't deserve what he went through Shanu. And I blame myself.... for it..... everyday.

Shanu: What about Mahir? Why didn't you......

Nandini: When Rudra got to know about our affair , he threw Mahir out of St. Marcus. His family disowned him after he broke off the alliance with the girl that he was about marry. Mahir had no one else to turn to. And so........he.......

Shanu cupped her mouth and shut her eyes knowing what she was about to say next.

Nandini: The police found his body floating on the river's edge two days later.

Nandini eyes drained all the tears that were left in her. She kept quiet and looking at her lap.

It pained Shanu to see how much Nandini had to go through. And despite all of that, she still loved Sahil immensely.

After a long uncomfortable silence, Shanu said,

Shanu: I really think you should tell Sahil the truth.

Nandini: I can't.....

Shanu: Yes , you can. Aunty, Sahil deserves to know the truth after all that he's been through.

Nandini kept quiet and cried silent tears.

Shanu: Sahil should know about his real dad. He deserves to know that the guy whom he looked up to and loved without receiving anything in return isn't his real father.

Nandini was about to say something when her eyes stopped at the figure standing by the elevator. She gasped and stumbled back.

Shanu seeing her behaviour, turned around and froze.

Just beside the elevator, stood Sahil, with reddened eyes and tears streaming down his face. He looked at both of them in disbelief. His whole world had crumpled down in a matter of a few minutes.

Shanu slowly took a step towards him, as if afraid he might do something if she moved fast. Sahil looked at her with hurt in his eyes. Shanu let out a silent sob, sensing the hurt and pain that he was going through.

Shanu: Sahil.....

Sahil: Don't.

Shanu stopped in her spot , afraid to say anything.

Sahil breathed heavily and said,

Sahil: I trusted you.....

Shanu's eyes brimmed with tears as she said,

Shanu: No..... Sahil please... listen to...me....

Sahil: There's nothing to listen to!

Shanu shuddered at his voice.

Sahil: I trusted you! I let you in! I loved you!

Shanu:(sobbed) You still do....

Sahil: No! How can I still love you after this?!

Shanu: Sahil...

Sahil: Don't, Shayantani....... don't!

Shanu's heart skipped a beat at that. He never called her by her full name. The fact that he did just added to her guilt.

Sahil: (hissed) How long have you known?

Shanu: What?

Shanu:(loudly) I SAID HOW LONG HAVE YOU KNOWN?!

Shanu shivered at his loud voice. She somehow managed to blurt out,

Shanu: Kavya told me during the fest.

Both Sahil and Nandini looked at her in shock. Nandini was unaware of how Kavya knew about the whole thing.

Sahil: 6 months?! You've known for six months and you never told me?!

Shanu guiltily looked down.

Sahil threw his hands in the air in anger. It felt like someone had stabbed him a couple of times and then took out the knives one by one.

Nandini: Sahil....beta....

Sahil raised a hand signalling her to stop talking.

Sahil: How could you do this to me , Mom?! You saw! how that monster tortured me...... everyday for the past 21 years! And you didn't say a word! I hate you!....... I hate you so ......much!

Nandini cried and said,

Nandini: I wanted to..... protect.... you...

Shanu: No........ you..... wanted to protect yourself.

There was an uncomfortable silence following that. Breaking it, Sahil turned to Shanu and said,

Sahil: Don't ever show me your face again, Shayantani. Or I swear to God...... you won't like the consequences.

Suddenly, the elevator door opened. It was empty. Sahil glanced at the duo one last time before stepping in. The elevator door closed before Shanu could run to him.

Nandini cried out loud and slumped down on the floor.

Shanu leaned against the elevator door and slumped down , sobbing loudly.

Broken.
Do you know what it feels like?
Piercing explosions,
Burning afflictions,
Hollers of agonizing cries
She had nothing left inside.

Eyes closed,
Heartbeat stopped,
Barely alive.

              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ruhaan stood near the elevator, impatiently waiting for it to come down. He wanted to get back to his room and call Tapasya as soon as possible. The whole suspense was just adding to his anxiety.

Just then the elevator door opened and Sahil came out of it. Ruhaan looked at him and noticed his reddened eyes and tears. He asked,

Ruhaan: Hey, Sahil. What's going on? Is everything alright?

Sahil just looked at him with his bloodshot eyes without saying a word. He jerked Ruhaan's hand off his and stormed away from him. Ruhaan looked back at the retreating figure with confusion in his eyes.

His thoughts were interrupted by a sudden tap on his shoulder. He turned and found Daksh looking at him questioningly.

Daksh: What's going on?

Ruhaan: I don't know....... I just saw Sahil. He was in a..... frenzied state......his eyes......they were red..... probably because he cried or something.......and he just jerked off my hand and stormed away.

Daksh furrowed his brows.

Daksh: Why would he cry?

Ruhaan: I don't know.

Daksh paused for a moment and asked,

Daksh: Hey, have you seen Shanu?

Ruhaan: Not for a while, no. Why?

Daksh: Well if something's off, then she'll probably know about it, wouldn't she?

Ruhaan: I think so. Should we go check if she's in her room?

Daksh: Yeah, probably.

Saying that, they were just about to go when a voice said,

Anu: Hey, guys......um...... what's going on?

Daksh faced her but immediately looked away. After what happened last night, there was no way that he could face her. Ananya looked at him with sad eyes.

Ruhaan: I think something's off. I just saw Sahil storm out of the hotel and he was in a pretty bad state.

Anu: Have you checked with Shanu?

Ruhaan: No, we were just about to do so before you came.

Anu: Oh.

Ruhaan: Yeah, she's probably in your room. Let's go find her.

Anu: Um..... listen....why don't you guys go after Sahil. If what you are saying is true, it means that Sahil is not in a state of being left alone. I think you guys should go after him. Princi probably did something to piss him off. What if he does something..... foolish?

Ruhaan: Whoa, you assumed all of that by what I told you?

Anu: Ruhaan, it's not like it's the first time he's been like this. He has tried to harm himself in the past when princi pissed him off. I'm just saying that.....what if he tries....it again?

Daksh looked at Ruhaan anxiously. For the few days that he had known Sahil, he had become like a brother for him. He shivered slightly at the thought of losing him.

Ruhaan nodded and said,

Ruhaan: Yeah..... you're probably right. We'll go after him.

Daksh: But what about Shanu?

Ananya looked at him with conflicting emotions in her eyes.

Anu: Uh.... I'll go check on her.

Daksh looked at her questioningly. From what Mitali had told him, she had broken all ties with Shanu the day before yesterday. Then why was she so bothered all of a sudden?

Ruhaan: Yeah that's probably a good idea.

Anu nodded. The boys turned and walked away from her, leaving her in confusion.

She made her way to her room. Finding it totally empty, she closed the door behind her and was about to go back when a sudden thought struck her. She made her way to Mitali's room and knocked on the door.

Mitali answered the door after 3 knocks. She looked tired and her face was in a mess. Her mascara had smeared all over her face, probably due to crying.

What's up with all these people crying altogether?

Ananya asked her with concern,

Anu: Mitali.....are you okay?

Mitali's eyes fluttered and she blinked twice.

Mitali: What is it, Anu? Why are you here?

Anu: That doesn't answer my question.

Mitali: Anu, I'm not in a mood..... just tell me why you're here.

Ananya stopped for a second to look at Mitali. She had never seen her snap like this. Ananya figured something was wrong. But she decided against probing further. She didn't want to upset her more than she already was.

Anu: We need to find Shanu.

Mitali: Why?

Anu: Ruhaan saw Sahil leave the hotel in a frenzied state. He said that Sahil was crying and that something probably is off. So he asked me to look for Shanu, ask her if she knew something.

Mitali paused for a moment and analysed the situation. After a brief moment she spoke,

Mitali: Where is Ruhaan?

Anu: He and Daksh went after Sahil.

Mitali sighed and said,

Mitali: Where is Shanu?

Anu: I don't know. She's not in the room. I came to you because I thought it would be easier if we both look for her.

Mitali closed her eyes and let out a breath.

Mitali: Okay, let's go.

Saying that, she grabbed the room keys and strode past Ananya to lock the door.

Anu: Mitali..

Mitali: What?

Anu: Uh...... you have a bit of.......mascara running down your cheeks.

Mitali touched her face and a bit of mascara smeared on her hand. She bit her lip in realisation.

How long had she been drowning in her own tears?

Mitali: I'll fix it, give me a sec.

She went in and washed her face and came out in a bit. Anu locked the door and both of them walked ahead.

              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Shanu sat still on the couch beside Nandini, as both of them sobbed in silence.

It all was flashing in front of her eyes. Sahil's hurt face, his screams, his agonizing voice and his last words to her.

What if he meant what he said? Would she never be able to see him again? Would she never be able to hold his face in her hands again? Would she never be able to look into his eyes and find the home for heart again? Would he never call her Shanu again?

She shuddered at the thought. She wasn't just hurt in her heart. She was hurting in her whole body. Her lips trembled as she tried to reason with herself.

She closed her eyes , not being able to take it anymore.

Just then, the elevator bell dinged and two familiar figures stepped out of it.
Shanu looked up and saw her two best friends standing. Seeing them, she started crying even more. Nandini looked at the two girls questioningly.

Ananya and Shanu looked at each other anxiously. They rushed beside her and asked,

Mitali: Shanu, what's going on? What happened?

Shanu didn't say anything but cried more.

Ananya went up to Nandini and asked,

Anu: Aunty, what's going on?

Nandini looked at her and broke down in tears.

Anu: Aunty, why are you both crying? What's going on?

Nandini: He knows.....he knows......

Mitali looked up at her and asked,

Mitali: Wait a second......are you talking about Sahil?

Nandini nodded slightly.

Anu: What does he know?

Nandini looked at Shanu worriedly.

Shanu: Sahil......he knows.....he knows that...... he's....not..... he's not Rudra Uncle's son.

                   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The whole room was in pin drop silence. The only sound was of the quiet sobs that Nandini was crying.

Ananya and Mitali knew something was off but they never imagined the matter to be so big and complicated.

Ananya finally breaking the silence, said,

Anu: Ruhaan....he saw.....Sahil leave the hotel in a frenzied state. And that's why we came looking for you, to see if you knew anything.

Shanu glanced at her. Her eyes reflected  terror and fear.

Shanu: Where is Ruhaan?

Anu: He and Daksh went after Sahil. They didn't wanna leave him alone.

Shanu hung her head as a lone tear escaped her eyes.

Shanu: He hates me.

Mitali: No , he doesn't, okay? He loves you. Sure, he's hurt now. But.... he'll realize that it wasn't your fault sooner or later.

Shanu: No.....no, he won't. I saw the way he looked at me. His eyes.......they reflected his hatred.....his pain.....the pain that I caused him.

Mitali: Shanu....

She was cut off by her phone's ring. The screen flashed Ruhaan's name. She picked it up and answered.

Mitali: Hello?

All she could hear in response were frantic voices and sirens. Her heart raced in anticipation.

Mitali: Ruhaan?

A silent shriek left her mouth as she heard his response. Before she could ask anymore, the call disconnected.

Shanu , sensing the look of terror in her eyes, asked,

Shanu: What is it? What'd he say?

Mitali took a deep breath and said,

Mitali: Sahil......he....he was in an accident.

                 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Guys, so here's the update you've been waiting for. I rewrote and wrote this chapter a lot of times because I wasn't sure about some things. The word limit has gone beyond my usual word limit and I really hope that you guys weren't bored reading the chapter.

Check out the song in the media section! It's one of my favourites and I was listening to this one while writing.

Anyways, if you guys have scrolled down this far, make sure to leave a vote and comment on the chapter and tell me your views!!!

Love you loads,
❤️Bosedisha ❤️