Chapter 1
Hey guys,
The book is going to out in paperback and in ebook format!!! First 10 chapters will be free and there will be extra Chapters as well which I will be publishing on Inkitt and scroll stack. You can get the full book or you can pay chapterwise as well. I really do hope you like the seriesss!!!
Bye byeee
“Marriage is a bond nurtured by petals, one that connects the chord of hearts with love. But what if that mere night turns into a thorn lodged in the heart, causing nothing but bleeding?”
The eyes, glittering with pearls of gloominess, shower tears that roll down her face, beholding the reflection of herself. Never did she imagine that the bridal attire that adorns her would only bring hatred with it, drenched in impending doom. The flashes of the blissful moments she spent with Arya appear in front of her eyes, causing mere grief in her heart.
“No, I can’t do this wedding!!!” Vaani utters, the cold metal of the nath brushing against her red lips, upon which the tears rolled down, akin to a river. She lowers her eyelashes to the tiny bottle wrapping poison in its glass, whose frostiness strikes her mehendi-decked hands, adorned with haath-phool and diamond rings.
“Tonight, this wedding will only lead to your downfall, Shaurya Singhania. You’re full of pride, aren’t you? But tonight, everything will shatter and crumble. The love you took from me, you will never have it too,” she swears vengeance, but the moment the door swings open, her gaze instantly drifts to it. On the notice of her sister Sneha’s arrival, the hand grasping the bottle quickly finds its way beneath the solace of the dupatta. Steps taken toward Vaani only drop her lips, fading the smile away.
“Vaani, today is the most beautiful day of your life, and it’s your birthday too. At least today, there should be a smile on these lips.”
“You all snatched my smile, Dee. You took Arya, my love, from me, so what happiness is left?”
“Vaani, now, nothing can be done. Now, you just have to go to the mandap and embrace this relationship.”
“Dee, please.” Her voice breaks, yet she proceeds with the last attempt to convince her sister to understand her at least for once.
“Dee, you know what kind of person he is. Please, Dee, I don’t want to marry Shaurya. He’s an appalling, cruel person. Please, Dee, stop this wedding. I love Arya.”
Her joined hands touch her forehead, with the tears breaking down into a sob echoing in the room. Though Sneha felt pity for her sister’s state, nothing was in her hands.
“Vaani, I’ve worked hard for my degree, and I won’t ruin my career just because of you or let restrictions be placed on my life. It’s better if you stop this behavior and quietly go, and marry Shaurya. If you dared to love Arya, then you should’ve thought earlier about the consequences your actions can bring too,” Sneha rebukes, lifting the heavy beaded dupatta off the bed.
“Vaani, don’t tell Shaurya about your affair with Arya. Let this new beginning take away the gloominess of the past. If you tell him, there will only be distance and hatred. Wouldn’t it be better if this marriage were filled with love instead?” Though her sister made every endeavor to push her to understand, little was Vaani willing to let go of the love that consumed her heart.
“Dee, I have my exam the day after tomorrow. Please try to understand me. My dream will shatter; I want to become a nuclear engineer, Dee. This marriage will ruin me, break me apart. Why can’t you understand?”
“Vaani, shut up!!!” A single yell almost jerks her into silence. The dupatta is placed on her head, having it pulled below her face, concealing the fist that shook in rage with eyes drowning in tears that seethed. Vaani is determined to destroy everything.
⚭
A few days ago,
The clouds swayed away from the night sky, lending the opportunity to glance at the starry sky, glittering all over. Captivating the excitement and elation in her heart, Vaani walks down the golden light-bathed path, whose opening leads to the lake. With a single desire in her heart to catch a single glance of Arya, she is overwhelmed by the distance declining between her and the lake. The 12th board exams, though ongoing, had a five-day gap before the last exam, lending Vaani and Arya moments to spend together. Never has she been separated from him for such a long time.
Halting by the lake, her eager, brownish kohl-laced eyes darted around searching for Arya, whose presence was nowhere to be found. Her lips lose the elation immediately as her hands touch the wooden bench by the lakeside, where the yellow string lights that dangle from the branches of the trees shimmer their glow. Switching the phone’s screen to life, her fingers hastily dial Arya’s number, and the ring resonated through her ears.
“Where are you?” Vaani questions being despondent that they won’t be able to meet once again.
“Close to you, behind you.” His soothing, low voice states, having a romance-tinted tone. Vaani swirls instantly, and the smile glows on her face. Just a glance at him made her cherish, taking away the sadness that had enveloped her minutes ago. “Arya,” she sprints to him and throws her arms around him into a tight hug.
“I missed you,” she whispers.
“I missed you a lot, too, Vaani Sharma.” He embraces her, drifting away all the tiredness and the pressure the exams hurl upon a student. “You don’t know how these days passed when I didn’t see you even once, didn’t feel you,” Arya says, brushing his gentle lips against her neck. The breeze flew her hair into the air.
“I love you, Arya.” The confession lets loose, expressing the heart.
“I love you too, Vaani.”
He pulls her back, forming eye contact infused merely with love.
“I exist because of you; everything I have is because of you.” Her lips curve into a smile at the mere words, with her eyes perking up. A single stroke of his finger slides away the hair that was an obstacle to her vision. In an instant, he pulls her closer by the waist. The eyes close, living in that moment as the distance closes between their lips and arms wrapped around each other, unaware of the fact that the coming minutes would be sufficient to change her life forever.
A glance, lent to the media, through the towering glass window of the 15th-floor building, provides the consequences of the recent case being closed. Shaurya yanks the string down, causing the curtains to conceal the wall.
“Bhai, I don’t think you should go through the main gate,” Karan advises, to which Shaurya raises a hand.
“We will go through the main gate. When I haven’t done anything wrong, then why should I be afraid?”
“Bhai, but there’s a whole media outside, and they will ask you lousy questions again. They just need one mistake from you to tarnish your reputation. Please, we have already endured so much; don’t do anything that could ruin everything, especially Papa…”
“You don’t need to worry; those who see me as a criminal shouldn’t care that much about me. I know very well how to handle everything.” Guilt rushes through Karan, who somehow prevents himself from speaking out in his defense, that he never considered Shaurya guilty. The keys chime when Shaurya grabs them from the table and leaves. Karan, too, rushes behind him, fearing the consequences of the action and the headlines that can surface in tomorrow morning’s newspaper.
The camera flashes reflect on the door, which slides open, revealing Shaurya, who carries confidence and a subtle smile on his lips. With the questions bursting at him, each one of them pricked, yet he was prepared to toss the answers their way.
“Sir, did you rape your wife’s sister?”
“Sir, why did you kill Mehak Ahuja?”
“Sir, did...?”
“Does anyone have any evidence against me?” Shaurya yells, causing murmuring among the reporters.
“Yes!!! There is evidence, Shaurya Singhania.” A voice comes piercing through the crowd. Her high heels strike against the concrete with every step approaching Shaurya, whose brows constrict together just at the sight of Ahana.
“It’s you, right?” she questions, holding the picture in the air, which was the truth of the night, Shaurya on top of Mehak, while her wrists, in his grasp, were pinned down to the bed. His expression cleared up, retaining the smirk.
“Then why don’t you show it to the police, Ahana? But it seems like that’s not enough, isn’t it?” Ahana crumples the picture into her fist, and her hand drops to the side. Shaurya walks past her, but the statement freezes his steps.
“Today or tomorrow, the truth will come out, Shaurya Singhania.”
“When it does, you will regret it a lot, Ahana,” he thinks, storming to his car.
A sudden, strong grasp on her arm jerks her away from the passionate moment, and before Vaani has the time to react, a sharp slap lands on her cheek, sending a jolt to her balance. Her knees land on the grass, and her hand touches her stinging red cheek. Arya’s eyes widened on spotting Raghav there, whose blood boiled at the mere vision of the scenario.
“How dare you have the audacity to touch my sister?”
“I... I…” he stutters, words seem to have been terrified and lost their trail.
“You!!!! Scoundrel!!!” Raghav yells, smashing a punch on his face.
Still processing the shock, Vaani brushes her index finger against her lip, and the blood smear comes into sight. She shoots her head toward her right and gets to her feet instantly. Before another fist can land on Arya’s face, Vaani stands in between them, akin to a shield.
“Bhai, please don’t do anything to him; he hasn’t done anything wrong. I called him here,” she cries.
“I love Arya!!!!”
Raghav seethed in anger at his sister’s fearless confession.
“Hell with your love!!”
He grabs her arm and takes her away with him. A thrashed Arya, who lies on the ground, watches her being separated from him. With every step going away, extending the distance, Arya’s vision blurred, and a sharp stab injured his heart, akin to seizing his life from him.
Raghav shoves her toward the road. Eventually, her legs give out, and she is unable to maintain her balance. Her knees hit the road harshly. “Bhai!! What’s wrong with you?” Vaani yells, turning her head toward Raghav, only to encounter emptiness except for his bike.
A sharp glare of headlights fell into her eyes, almost blinding her. She lifts her hand covering her face, but fear grips her that the approaching racing car might knock her off if she didn’t move away, but her ankle was twisted, restraining any movement.
Vaani attempts to get to her feet, but the pain shoots sharply, and eventually, her body hits the road once again, forming bruises on it. She squeezes her eyes closed, fearing death to be close, but a screech echoes in the area, and the tires form a mark upon the road’s surface.
Every breath she took came heavily with a trail of sweat rolling down her face. The lights dim, and the door is hurled open. Shaurya steps out of the car only to encounter a trembling Vaani sitting on the road. Her hair flew in the air, and light glowed upon her face. He rushes to her, and for the first time, Vaani catches sight of Shaurya.
“If you have such a strong desire to die, then go and die somewhere else.”
Vaani glanced around for Raghav, but he was not there. She glares at Shaurya, refusing to be intimidated. “Can’t you see I’m in pain? I’m hurt!!! I don’t have any desire to die!! Do you understand?” Tossing silence toward her, Shaurya grabs her arm and pulls her up. Vaani squeezed her eyes, letting the tears flow down her cheeks, though she yelped in pain, standing on one foot. Shaurya didn’t care for a second.
“How cruel you are!!!!”
“Right!! That’s what I am, and you mean nothing to me; you don’t matter.” He shoves her toward the roadside close to the bike. “Don’t come in my way again,” he snaps, heading to his car.
“Cruel, ruthless person,” Vaani yells. Her hand holding her foot, but the moment there is movement in the bushes, a shiver runs down her spine.
