35. JEALOUSY
Vivan turned away from the railing, jaw tight, breath shallow.
He couldn’t stay there another second — not with that scene echoing in his head, not with the realization clawing at his chest.
He walked to his room, each step heavier than the last. The air felt suffocating, like every corner of that house was reminding him of what he’d just seen. Of what he’d done.
When the door shut behind him, he sank onto the couch, pressing his palms against his face.
He had told himself this distance between them was necessary — that it kept things simple.
But the image of her standing there, trying to hold her composure while everyone’s eyes burned into her, shattered that illusion completely.
He had made her feel alone.
Not just at the office. Not just in their marriage. But here — in his home.
A quiet knock on the door broke his thoughts.
He didn’t answer.
Seconds later, the door creaked open anyway.
Yuvan stepped inside.
Vivan didn’t look up at first, just muttered, “You didn’t need to say that.”
Yuvan shut the door behind him, crossing his arms. “Maybe. But someone had to.”
“Had to?” Vivan’s voice rose, bitter and sharp. “Had to humiliate her in front of everyone?”
Yuvan frowned. “No. I said the truth because she was already humiliated — by your silence.”
That made Vivan finally look up.
Yuvan’s expression wasn’t mocking this time — it was steady, cold, and disappointed.
“You think she doesn’t notice?” Yuvan said quietly.
“How she becomes invisible the moment you walk into a room? How she covers for you every single time someone asks about this marriage? You asked her to hide it, and she did — because she respects you. But tell me, Vivan…” His voice lowered, almost a whisper. “Do you respect her?”
The question hit harder than he expected.
Vivan opened his mouth, then closed it again. No words. No excuses. Just the sound of his heartbeat thudding painfully loud in the silence.
Yuvan sighed, taking a step back. “You don’t need to answer me. Just… look at her once — really look at her — and then ask yourself if she deserves this.”
Vivan opened his mouth to say something, but Yuvan cut him off sharply.
“Leave that. I’m not here to lecture you,” he said, his tone suddenly serious. “I got the information about who leaked the files—”
Before he could finish, Vivan straightened, his voice sharp. “Who?”
Yuvan hesitated. His eyes dropped to the floor for a moment, as if trying to find the right way to say it. He exhaled slowly, shoulders tense. “Kiara.”
Silence.
A heavy, suffocating silence.
Yuvan knew that quiet wasn’t going to last.
Vivan’s jaw clenched, his knuckles turning white where they rested on the desk. His voice, when it came, was dangerously low — almost a growl. “What the hell are you saying, Yuvan? How can you even think she would do something like that?”
“I know it’s hard to believe,” Yuvan replied calmly, watching him. “But don’t you think something’s… off about her lately?”
“Off?” Vivan’s brows furrowed, confusion laced with irritation. “What are you even talking about?”
Yuvan took a slow step closer, his tone steady but deliberate. “You both love each other, right? Yet it’s been weeks — and neither of you has spoken properly. Don’t you find that odd?”
Vivan’s lips parted, a flash of something uncertain in his eyes. “I tried—”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying,” Yuvan interrupted, his voice rising just enough to make the point clear. “You tried. Not her.” He put a little weight on that single word, letting it sink in.
Vivan looked away, jaw tightening. “She’s… busy,” he said finally — and even he could hear how weak that sounded.
Yuvan’s gaze softened for a brief moment, like he almost pitied him. “Maybe,” he said quietly. “But, Vivan, whatever is going on between you two—don’t let it affect the company. The last thing Singhania Industries needs right now is another hit to its reputation.”
Vivan didn’t answer. He just nodded once, curtly, his expression unreadable.
Yuvan waited a moment longer, studying his friend’s face — the conflict simmering beneath his calm mask. Then, with a quiet sigh, he turned toward the door.
“Think about it,” he said before leaving the room.
The door clicked shut.
Vivan sat still, staring blankly at the floor, the name Kiara echoing in his mind.
It felt like someone had lit a match inside his chest — one that burned with denial, confusion, and something far more dangerous than either.
Because for the first time…
He wasn’t entirely sure Yuvan was wrong.
Aarvi walked slowly down the hallway, fingers brushing the edge of the wall as she approached Vivan’s study.
It was late — the rest of the house quiet, lights dim — and she assumed Vivan and Yuvan were still discussing work.
She hesitated at the door, hand halfway to the knob, when voices reached her.
“—I got the information about who leaked the files,” Yuvan was saying, his tone serious.
Aarvi froze.
Her breath hitched when she heard Vivan’s sharp reply.
“Who?”
The pause that followed made her heartbeat quicken.
“Kiara.”
Her eyes widened instantly. Kiara?
Through the slightly open door, she could hear the air thicken — silence stretching heavy and sharp.
“What the hell are you saying, Yuvan?!” Vivan’s voice rose, furious. “How can you even think she’d do something like that?”
Aarvi bit her lip, heart thudding. She shouldn’t be listening — she knew that — but her feet wouldn’t move.
“I know it sounds impossible,” Yuvan continued calmly, “but don’t you think something’s off about her lately?”
Their voices faded into a lower argument, but that one line — Kiara leaked the files — wouldn’t leave her mind.
When Yuvan finally walked out of the study, Aarvi stepped back, pretending she had just arrived from the corridor.
He’d barely taken a few steps when she called softly, “Uh… Yuvan?”
He turned immediately, surprise flickering across his face before he smiled lightly, nodding as if telling her to go on.
“Can we talk?” she asked, her tone unsure but earnest.
Yuvan looked around, confirming she was really talking to him, then smiled again. “Of course. Why not?”
“Ah, not here…” she said, glancing at the corridor that led to the family lounge. “Shall we go to the terrace?”
He nodded without question. “Sure.”
They walked in silence — the soft sound of their footsteps echoing against marble until they reached the terrace.
The night breeze brushed past them, cool and faintly scented with rain. Aarvi stopped near the railing, turning to face him.
“I heard what you were talking about,” she said quietly.
Yuvan’s shoulders stiffened slightly — realization dawning instantly. He exhaled slowly, lowering his gaze before meeting hers again. “I… I—”
“You shouldn’t tell him about Kiara,” she cut in quickly. “He won’t believe you.”
Her voice cracked at the end, fingers nervously twisting together.
“He didn’t believe me either…” she added, the words almost a whisper.
Yuvan frowned in confusion, tilting his head. “What do you mean?”
Aarvi looked down at the floor, gathering her courage before speaking again.
“Me and Vivan were out shopping one day,” she began softly. “I saw Kiara… with someone. A man.”
She paused — eyes distant, remembering the moment. “At first, I thought maybe it was her friend. But then she… she kissed him.”
“What?” Yuvan blurted out, eyes widening. He hadn’t expected that — not from her.
“I know it sounds crazy,” Aarvi said quickly, voice trembling, “but trust me, I’m not lying.” She instinctively pinched her throat, like swearing it.
Yuvan blinked a few times, still stunned. “I… I don’t even know what to say.”
“I’m just saying,” she continued, her voice gaining quiet strength, “don’t tell him directly about Kiara. He won’t believe you until there’s proof.”
Yuvan looked at her for a long moment, reading her sincerity.
Then he nodded slowly, his usual playfulness replaced by something serious.
“I’ll find the proof,” he said.
“And I’ll be with you,” she replied softly, a small, determined smile curving her lips.
For a second, Yuvan’s own smile returned — faint but genuine. “Thanks,” he muttered, his tone warm.
Together, they turned and walked back downstairs — the sound of their steps blending with the faint hum of the night — both unaware that the decision they made tonight… was about to change everything.
The house was quiet when Aarvi and Yuvan returned downstairs — the kind of silence that lingers after a long day.
The others had already gone to their rooms, and only the dim golden lights near the staircase painted soft shadows across the marble floor.
Yuvan walked beside her, saying something light — casual, almost teasing — but Aarvi was too lost in thought to respond much.
She simply nodded, her mind still circling around Kiara’s name, around the image that refused to leave her memory.
From the hallway above, a faint creak echoed.
Vivan stood at the end of the corridor, half-hidden in shadow. He had come out of his room for water, but the sight below stopped him cold.
Aarvi and Yuvan — walking together.
Talking quietly.
Her face soft with a small, hesitant smile.
Something shifted inside him — sharp, unfamiliar, irritating.
His fingers curled loosely around the railing, knuckles whitening slightly.
He didn’t even know what it was — anger, discomfort, or something worse. But it tightened his chest in a way that made him want to look away and yet… he couldn’t.
When they reached the base of the stairs, Yuvan said something that made Aarvi smile again, and this time — that unfamiliar feeling in Vivan flared harder.
He swallowed the bitterness rising in his throat, forcing his voice steady.
“Yuvan,” he called out.
Both of them looked up instantly. Aarvi’s smile faded, nervousness flashing across her face as her eyes met his.
Yuvan, however, looked completely unbothered. “Hey, man,” he greeted easily, one hand in his pocket. “Didn’t expect you to still be awake.”
“I could say the same to you,” Vivan replied, tone clipped. His gaze flicked between them — lingering on Aarvi a second too long before he forced himself to move.
“We were just… talking,” Aarvi said softly, her voice breaking the stillness.
“Talking?” Vivan repeated, his jaw tightening just a fraction. “At this hour?”
Yuvan raised a brow, half amused. “It’s about work,” he said casually, saving her from answering. “Don’t worry, I didn’t keep your wife out for a midnight stroll.”
Aarvi’s cheeks warmed at his teasing tone, but Vivan’s expression didn’t change.
If anything, the muscle in his jaw ticked harder.
“Good,” he said, his voice calm — too calm. “Because she needs to focus on her actual work during office hours, not… side discussions at night.”
Aarvi blinked, the quiet sting of his words catching her off guard.
Yuvan noticed it — his usual smile fading slightly.
Vivan didn’t wait for a reply. He turned, stepping back into the corridor, voice low.
“Lock the door when you’re done.”
And then he was gone — leaving behind an air so tense it almost hummed.
Aarvi looked at the staircase for a long moment after he disappeared, her throat tightening with words she couldn’t say.
Yuvan watched her quietly, then sighed. “He’s jealous,” he murmured under his breath.
She looked at him, startled. “What?”
“Nothing,” he said quickly, smiling faintly. “Guess I should go before he throws me out for being your late-night company.”
She shook her head softly, a helpless smile tugging at her lips. “Goodnight, Yuvan.”
“Night, Aarvi,” he said, giving her a small salute before walking out.
And when the door clicked shut behind him, Aarvi stood there in the empty hallway — her heart too loud, her thoughts too tangled — not realizing that upstairs, in the dim corridor, Vivan hadn’t gone to sleep either.
Because even if he didn’t want to admit it —
he was jealous.
And worse… he didn’t know why.