Chapter 60 - 2
This wall she was building between them-it wasn't made of hate. No, hate would've been easier. Cleaner. This was something far more fragile. It was made of pain. Of fear. Of memories that still ached like fresh wounds.
She wasn't pushing him away because she didn't care. She was doing it because she cared too much.
Because she knew how easily he could shatter her-without even meaning to. Because even the gentlest parts of him held the power to turn her world upside down.
When she was with him, when she let herself feel, it was like standing on the edge of something too deep.
That quiet trauma whispered constantly in her ear-what if something happens again? What if he has to leave? What if he chooses to? Or worse, what if life pulls him away and he can't fight it?
She wouldn't survive it. Not again.
Not the waiting. Not the silence. Not the fear of losing him without warning.That fear terrifies her...
That's what made her so vulnerable when it came to him-he wasn't just a man she loved. He was the one person who could destroy her without lifting a finger.
Yet beneath all that pain, another fear had begun to claw at her-quiet, cruel, and relentless.
What if he was truly giving up this time?
What if that one day of silence... is surrender? What if her silence, her distance, her cold words had drawn the last line he wasn't willing to cross anymore?
What if, in trying to protect herself, she ended up driving away the one person who had always come back... until now? Did she pushed him too far? She didn't know how to survive that either.
The thought gripped her like a cold fist around her heart, stealing the air from her lungs. Because for all her defenses, for all the walls she'd built-she wasn't ready to lose him either.
She closed her eyes and drew in a slow, shaky breath. Was Meera still around him....?
The thought made her eyes snap open.
Meera.
Her eyes narrowed slightly as the memory surfaced-the way that girl had looked at him, a gaze that lingered just a little too long, the softness in her voice when she said his name like it meant something more.
Aarushi had noticed it all. Every glance. Every subtle shift in tone.
At first, she brushed it off, convincing herself she was just overthinking. Just being insecure.But the thought refused to leave her.
It clung like a shadow, growing heavier each time she replayed the moment in her head.
And that restlessness had led her, two days ago, to do something she'd never imagined herself doing-she stalked her all social media. Quietly. Anxiously.
That's when she found out-she was from the same college as him.
And suddenly, all her unease didn't feel like overthinking anymore. It felt something else....
She shook her head. No.
She trusted Abhimanyu. She knew him,but....the problem wasn't him.
It was her.
She didn't trust the world around him. Especially that women.....
Aarushi reached for her phone again, her thumb already tapping on Rudra's name in her recent calls. If she couldn't call Abhimanyu directly... she could at least ask about him.
The phone rang a few times before he answered. "Hello, bhabhi,Good morning"
"Good morning,bhai" she greeted softly. "How are you?"
"I'm good," Rudra replied, cheerful as always. "You tell me, how are you?"
"I'm fine," Aarushi said. "Actually... I wanted to ask something. Are you busy now.....what are you doing"
"Oh, I'm on my way to meet Abhimanyu" Rudra answered casually. "Something related to work."
Her heartbeat quickened for no reason. "Oh..."she replied.
"I wanted to ask something," she began again, gathering her words carefully.
"Boliy-" Rudra's voice cut off mid-sentence. "Meera? You here? What are you doing here?"
Aarushi stiffened.
Her entire body froze as she heard her voice reply through the phone-sweet, composed, and far too familiar.
"I came to meet Abhi... needed to talk about something."
Abhi.
How dare she call him Abhi.
Only she called him that. Only she had the right to say that. Aarushi clenched her jaw.
Her hand gripped the phone tighter as her heartbeat grew louder in her ears. Her thoughts drowned out the rest of their conversation. All she could think about was her walking into his space like that. So casually. So comfortably.
She didn't hear the rest until Rudra's voice returned, "Sorry, bhabhi! What were you saying?"
Aarushi blinked herself out of the haze. Her voice came a second late. "Uh-I was just asking how is Navya?"
"Navya?" "Rudra sounded puzzled. "She's alright, why? What happened?"
Aarushi quickly covered, "No... nothing. I just wanted to know."
" You can ask her directly too, bhabhi," he chuckled. "Why are you asking me?"
"Vo... actually," she lied with a small sigh, "her number got deleted from my phone. Can you send it to me?"
"Sure," Rudra replied easily. "I'll send it now."
"Thanks," she whispered and ended the call.
She stared at the phone in her hand for a few seconds. The silence in the room suddenly felt suffocating.
Her gaze wandered back to the messages.Her thumb hovered over the chat icon, but she couldn't bring herself to open it again.
Instead, she locked the screen and set the phone aside.
The jealousy was gnawing at her now-quiet, bitter, and raw.
"I came to meet abhi....my foot" she scoffed mimicking her.
She didn't want to admit it. Didn't want to say it aloud. But she hated the idea of Meera being around him.
Not because she thought Abhimanyu would break her trust... but because she didn't trust Meera's intentions. And more than that, because it wasn't fair.
Because she was hurting in silence, struggling to breathe through the weight of it all-someone else had the comfort of simply being near him. How could anyone else be allowed that closeness,to call him with nicknames?
Aarushi pressed her hands into her lap, drawing a slow breath, eyes filled with a storm that didn't know how to settle.
She hated this silence. She also wants to reach out but that fear is stopping her....
After few hours ~
The old clock on the wall struck ten. The air in the Rathore mansion was heavy with silence. Not the comforting silence of peace, but the kind that was dense with unsaid words and feelings left unspoken. The kind that made your chest feel tight.
The front door creaked open softly, and Abhimanyu stepped in.
He was on a call, his voice low and distant, head slightly bowed as he walked through the living room. His tailored coat clung to his broad shoulders, but there was a visible weight pressing down on him, a quiet exhaustion that dulled even his sharp presence.
Badi Ma, sitting on the couch with her knitting abandoned in her lap, looked up as soon as she saw him. Her heart tugged.
Abhimanyu didn't glance just walked past them and started climbing the stairs, still speaking softly into the phone.
Badi Ma stood up almost instinctively. "Let me go and call him for dinner," she said, her voice gentle but firm. "He hasn't eaten properly for days."
But before she could take a step, Bade Papa's voice cut through. "He is not a child anymore. If he's hungry, he'll come down. Let it be. It's late-we should get some sleep."
The bitterness in his tone was impossible to miss.
Navya, who was quietly sitting beside them scrolling through her phone, clenched her jaw. Her hands curled into fists on her lap. Her heart throbbed with restrained anger.
"But he hasn't eaten anything since morning," Badi Ma said again, her brows knitted with worry. "I saw the staff take his lunch tray back untouched. You saw him just now, he doesn't look well-"
"I said let it be," Bade Papa interrupted her, his tone hard, final. "He made his decisions. He can also take care of himself."
That was it. The last thread snapped in Navya's restraint.
She stood up abruptly, her voice sharp and filled with emotion. "Why are you doing this, Papa?"
Bade Papa turned to her, his face already tired with the weight of his decisions. "Navya-don't start again"
"No, I will start" Navya snapped. "You're all acting like he's done something unforgivable! I'm not saying he was entirely right, I'm not saying he didn't make mistakes-but you know why he did what he did. He didn't abandon Bhabhi. He was trying to protect her"
Bade Papa looked away, but Navya wasn't finished.
"You are all behaving like he betrayed her.... He just acted like that, So that no one would link her to him and put her in more danger.Can't you see that he was burning from within while doing it?"
Badi Ma's eyes welled up. She looked away, quietly wiping a tear, her voice caught in her throat.
Navya's voice trembled, but her resolve stayed firm.
"It's been a whole week, Papa... a week of watching him fall apart in silence.
He barely sleeps, skips meals, and spends every waking moment buried in files and evidence-relentlessly trying to prove Bhabhi's innocence since the day she was arrested.
...Rudra told everything to us didn't he"
"And you know what's worse?" Her voice cracked, thick with unshed tears. "He never says a word. Not one complaint. Because deep down, he believes he deserves this... this cold silence from us. Like punishing himself is the only way to atone for what he did. Even if it was to protect her."
Bade Papa's expression flickered, a small shift of guilt shadowing his otherwise stern features.
"But no," Navya continued, bitter laughter on her lips, "instead of standing beside him, we've turned our backs.
Again. Just like we did when he returned to us after so many years.
Just like we did when he first stepped into this role and took every responsibility .
Why is it always him who has to prove his loyalty? "
"Navya-"Badi Ma finally tried to speak, her voice trembling, but Navya didn't stop.
"You say we're a family," she said, her voice softer now but more cutting than ever. "But right now? We're just spectators, watching him fall and refusing to extend a hand."
"He was wrong," Bade Papa said gruffly. "He could've trusted us-he could've said something-"
"He couldn't" Navya shouted, her voice echoing off the cold walls.
"Papa, Aakash was in this house. In every room, at every event, monitoring everything.
One wrong word, one slip, and Bhabhi could've been dead before morning.
He couldn't able to trust anyone at that time why don't you understand. .."
A silence fell between them.
Navya's chest heaved with every breath. "And now... now when he needs us the most... we act like he's invisible."
Her eyes locked with her father's, voice trembling but steady.
"I know he hurted Bhabhi. I know she's in pain too. And I'm not saying she's wrong for feeling the way she does. But Bhai... he's hurting too. No matter how strong he pretends to be-he's still my brother."
She took a breath, her voice laced with the weight of old memories.
"You know... he was the first one who stood by me always without needing to say a single word."
" During my entrance exams, everyone just expected me to do well-as if success was a given.
But no one really saw how anxious I was, how overwhelmed I felt, because those dreams..
. they meant everything to me. I wasn't asking for much, just a little support, a little reassurance.
But everyone was caught up in their own worlds. "
"I was drowning in stress... but he saw me. He'd come and sit beside me, quietly talk to me, remind me to breathe. He never asked for recognition, never made a show of it-he was just there.
"Every night after work, when I'd be up late studying, he'd come to check on me. Always he'd bring me something he made-tea, a snack, anything to show he cared in his quiet way. He always tried to help, in the only way he knew how-by simply being there when I needed someone most."
Her voice cracked softly.
"He's always been there-for all of us. Without asking, without demanding anything in return,Papa. How can you ignore it"
She turned and walked away, her heart heavy. She knew how deeply it hurt him... she knew because Rudra told her everything-every unspoken pain, every buried emotion, everything he never said out loud.
With that, she walked away, the sound of her steps sharp against the silence of the hall.
Bade Papa exhaled deeply, the weight of Navya's words heavy on his chest.
On the other side ~
The steam still clung faintly to Abhimanyu's skin as he stepped out of the bathroom, dressed in comfartable clothes.
Water droplets trailed down his jaw as he ruffled his hair dry, walking toward the edge of the bed. He sat down with a tired exhale.
A faint ding from his laptop broke the silence. He glanced at the screen and saw the email he had been waiting for had finally arrived.
Without wasting a second, he clicked it open, scanned through the contents, typed a short and precise reply, and then closed the lid with a quiet thud. But that did little to silence the noise inside him.
His hand reached out for his phone out of sheer habit, his thumb hovering over the chat window he'd opened countless times that day-Aarushi.
He stared at her name on the screen for a few seconds, the tiny green dot next to it gone.
He sighed softly and tapped into their chat, the silence on her end louder than any words. He started typing-Jaan-but Sid's voice echoed in his mind.
He stared at the word for a long moment, then slowly erased it. Letter by letter.
His fingers stilled, jaw tightening as guilt surged through him. With a heavy heart, he set the phone aside, elbows resting on his knees, fingers laced tightly. What could I even say to make this right? What should I do?
Just then, a soft knock echoed through the quiet of the room.
He stood up, blinking out of his thoughts, and walked to the dor and opened it. Navya stood there, a gentle expression on her face, holding a dinner tray in her hands.
He frowned, confused. "What happened?"
Navya gave him a small smile. "Um... Bhai, you didn't eat dinner. Let's have it together."
He shook his head, stepping back. "I'm not hungry. I had some snacks earlier. You go ahead."
Navya didn't budge. "Well, I didn't eat either. And I'm hungry. Please, I want to eat with you."
There was a quiet pleading in her voice that softened something inside him. He sighed, stepping aside to let her in.
She entered the room and placed the tray gently on the low table near the couch, uncovering the dishes. The smell of warm dal, soft rotis, and a side of aloo gobhi filled the space.
"Even if you're not hungry, just have a little," she said gently. "Please"
He looked at her for a beat, the exhaustion clear in his eyes, but eventually nodded and walked over to sit beside her.
They ate in silence for a few moments, the only sound being the clinking of spoons against plates.
Then Navya broke it. Her voice was soft, testing. "Have you thought of any way to... make it up to Bhabhi?"
His hand paused mid-air, spoon lingering just above the plate. He placed it down slowly and leaned back.
"I tried,"he admitted quietly. "I went to her house... she didn't want to see me. I messaged her, called her-but she's not replying. I really messed it up, Navya. I don't even know what else to do."
Navya looked at him, eyes filled with quiet sympathy. "Did you try sending her something? Something made by you....you know She used to tell me how much she loved your cooking,"
Navya continued gently. "That no matter what happened, food made by you gave her comfort."
He blinked and said "I did. I made her favourite snacks and sent them to her house. But... her mother sent them back." His voice dropped. "She didn't even touch them."
Navya's heart squeezed at his expression. The pain in his voice wasn't loud-but it was there, raw and real."Don't worry,she is just angry with you bhai but don't stop reminding her that you are not giving up"
"I don't know if she wants that" he whispered.
Navya offered a small, bittersweet smile. "Maybe not yet. But she will. And when she's ready"
He didn't say anything. But his hand reached for the glass of water beside him with a quiet nod. And as they continued eating, the silence between them didn't feel so empty anymore.
As soon as I stepped into the kitchen, the quiet hum of home wrapped around me like a familiar shawl.
I found Mumma standing by the sink, rinsing dishes, her back slightly hunched, the sleeves of her simple cotton kurta rolled up. She looked tired, but peaceful in her rhythm.
"Mumma," I called gently. "Let me help you."
She turned, eyes soft, and handed me a dripping plate. "Okay, "she murmured with a faint smile.
I stepped beside her, rolled my sleeves, and dipped my hands into the warm soapy water.
For a few minutes, we worked in comfortable silence-the clink of dishes, the trickling of water, the hush of a calm evening. I could almost pretend everything was okay.
Then she said it. Just like that.
"Today I met Abhimanyu."
My hand froze mid-scrub. My fingers clenched the edge of the plate just a little too tightly.
My heart stuttered, just once-but enough to make me breathless. I didn't look at her, just swallowed and forced my hands to keep moving.
Still... I had to ask.
"Where?"
Her voice remained steady, but I could hear something deeper in it. "I was returning from the market, just five minutes from here. He was also passing from here . He saw me and helped me"
My heart warmed at her words.
"He asked about you," she added.
I clenched my jaw.
"What did he say?" I asked, trying to sound unaffected, but the tremor in my voice betrayed me.
"He asked if you were okay. If you were eating properly."
I scoffed bitterly. "He didn't even message me yesterday. Not one word."
There was a pause. And then she said something that made me go still again.
"I returned everything he sent."
My eyes lifted instinctively-drawn to the far corner of the kitchen. I didn't have to ask what she meant.
"The letter. The flowers. The snacks. The gifts."
I placed everything he had sent over the past week right there and told her firmly-she was to return them to him when he came back.
They remained there, untouched and unopened, as if time itself had paused around them. But now, the space stood empty... a quiet ache behind the words she'd once spoken.
My throat tightened, but I said nothing.
Mumma wiped her hands, turned off the tap, and slowly walked over to me. Then, she turned me around gently by the shoulders and cupped my cheeks, just like she used to when I scraped my knees as a child.
"What is this, Aarushi?" she asked softly, but firmly. "How long are you going to keep doing this to yourself? To him?"
My eyes burned. I looked away, but she wouldn't let me.
"I know you're hurting, beta. I know you're scared," she said. "I'm your mother. I can feel your pain , your fear in my bones. But do you think he didn't suffer too? You felt abandoned, I know. But Aru... he was fighting for you every single second."
I bit my lip hard to stop it from trembling.
"You love him, don't you?"
I nodded slowly. "Too much."
"Then why punish the both of you like this?" she whispered. "You're scared of losing him again... I understand. But in doing that, aren't you pushing him away now? You're doing to him what you feared most-making him feel unwanted, unloved."
A tear slipped down my cheek. "Mumma... I'm scared. That day in court... when he acted like he didn't believe me, when he announced divorce... I thought everything was over. I couldn't breathe. It felt like my whole world was collapsing."
"I know, beta," she whispered, brushing the tear away. "You were shattered. But think of him, too. You felt that pain, that fear. And now... he's feeling it but he's showing up. Again and again. With flowers, gifts, letters... with hope."
I let out a shaky breath and looked down. My voice broke.
"Mumma... he means too much. I feel too much. Even the smallest thing he does affects me like a storm. If something goes wrong again, if I lose him again... I won't survive it."
She pulled me into a hug, her voice growing firmer now, more urgent.
"That's because you love him deeply. But Aarushi.
.. that same depth of love lives in him too.
You used to tell me how possessive he was, how fiercely protective.
Do you not see how this must be tearing him apart?
You were in jail, yes. But he was out here, helpless.
Watching the world accuse you. Watching your name dragged through the mud.
And he couldn't even hold your hand through it.
Do you know how much that must've killed him? "
I closed my eyes, a sob escaping before I could stop it.
"He never stopped fighting," she said. "He fought for your innocence. He apologized to us when he told us everything. He fought for your dignity. He does everything just so he could uncover the truth. Don't those things count, beta?"
"They do..." I whispered.
"Then why not let him in?" she asked softly, pulling back to meet my eyes.
"He's already broken, Aarushi. Just like you.
I know he made mistakes-but don't you think it's enough?
You're both suffering because of it. Don't let fear destroy something that was once so beautiful.
You're standing on opposite sides of the same door-hurting, aching, waiting. "
She looked at me with quiet intensity. "Do you trust him?"
I barely managed to whisper, "Yes..."
"Then talk to him," she urged gently. "Make him understand. Make him know that even for a second, he must never make you feel those things again. But also... see that he loves you. Even after everything, he's still here. Trying. That has to mean something. Give him a chance."
I didn't respond. I couldn't. My heart was too heavy, my mind too full of everything I had tried to bury.
But in that silence... something shifted.
A thread of hesitation loosened.
A small crack formed in the walls I had so carefully built around my pain-and for the first time in days, I let myself feel the faintest trace of hope.