CHAPTER 39
Daadi had just returned after failing to convince Ruchi to stay. She entered the living room, her eyes brimming with tears when she saw Kashish standing there with her bags.
“Where do you think you’re going?” she barked.
“I’m leaving this house,” Kashish retorted, her tone equally sharp, matching Daadi’s frustration.
Shekhar and Anjali hurried over, and Shekhar stepped in front of her, blocking her path.
“Kashish, what is all this? You can’t make rash decisions like this. I understand Rudra’s proposal upset you, but we can work it out. Leaving isn’t the answer,” Shekhar pleaded.
Kashish tried to push past him. She knew everyone would try to stop her, but she wasn’t going to listen.
“Shekhar, please. I need to leave. I can’t breathe here anymore,” she confessed.
“I know it’s hard, but running away isn’t going to solve anything. Just don’t go like this, not now,” Shekhar implored.
“I can’t stay here any longer,” she muttered, gently pushing him aside as she made her way toward the door.
Once again, Daadi’s voice rang out.
“You cannot leave this house! These are the court orders, Kashish. Until you turn 25, you’re bound to this family. How many times do I need to remind you of that?”
Kashish didn’t waver. Her mind raced back to the moment he had proposed to her at the hotel with his mother’s ring. The absurdity of the situation hit her all over again. How could he possibly think a marriage between them would work after everything that had happened? She gripped her bags and continued toward the exit.
“Don’t stop her, Daadi. Let her go.” Rudra’s voice cut through the tension suddenly.
Everyone turned toward the door to where Rudra stood. It wasn’t his presence but his words that shocked everyone.
“Rudra, what are you saying? The court has strict orders. If she leaves, we might be held responsible. The court won’t understand that it was her choice,” Daadi protested.
“I don’t care what the court thinks,” Rudra replied coldly. “In fact, I’ve already called the court personnel and told them Kashish wants to leave the family. They’ll be here soon. They need to know what’s happening—that I’m pressuring her for marriage, which she’s obviously against.”
Kashish’s jaw dropped. Was he serious? He was willing to risk his dignity and the family’s reputation to force her into staying? This was nothing short of emotional blackmail. She glared at him, furious, but he only stood there, calm, pushing her further into a corner.
“Let them charge me for troubling and bothering her. I don’t care what happens to me after that,” he added deliberately.
His words stung, but the family members began to realize what he was doing, including Kashish. She knew if she left now, this would spiral into something far worse.
That’s when two court officers entered the house, standing beside Rudra.
“Miss Kashish Bedi?” one of the officers asked.
Kashish’s grip on her bag loosened.
“We received information that you plan to leave this house. Are you aware of the court orders?” the second officer questioned, holding up the document.
Kashish swallowed hard, but before she could respond, Shekhar stepped forward.
“Uh, officers, I think there’s been some misunderstanding,” Shekhar began to explain.
“Bhai, please,” Rudra interrupted. “These officers are here to hear from Kashish herself. She’s old enough to make her own decisions. If she’s uncomfortable in this house because of me, then she should be allowed to say so, and the court can take appropriate action. Against me! ”
Kashish gritted her teeth, glaring at Rudra knowing how he was manipulating everything. This had to stop. She had to take control of this chaotic situation.
“Officer,” she began, steadying her voice. “As Shekhar said, there’s been a misunderstanding. I’m not leaving this house permanently. I work for Raheja Designs, and there’s some business outside the city that requires my presence.”
Rudra smirked at her clever reply. She had managed to defuse the situation with a lie.
“Are you sure, Miss Bedi? You don’t need to be afraid. If you’re uncomfortable here, you can tell us,” the officer persisted.
“I’m fine, Officer. I apologize for the confusion,” she assured them, offering a forced smile.
After exchanging a few words, the officers decided to leave, sensing nothing was amiss. Anjali moved closer to Kashish, mouthing a silent ‘thank you’ for saving their family from unnecessary scrutiny.
But Kashish marched toward Rudra, who had been standing there indifferent with his hands into his pockets.
“You’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you?” she spat. “You think you can blackmail me into staying in this house? Three more months, Rudra, and you can’t do a damn thing to stop me from walking out of your life forever.”
“You’re living in a fantasy, Kashish. Remember when I told you that you were lucky, I hadn’t taken my feelings for you seriously? Well, now I have. Do whatever you want. I’m never letting you go.”
His words sent a chill through the room, not just to Kashish, but to everyone standing there. It was clear that something far deeper had been brewing between them—something Kashish didn’t want to acknowledge, and something Rudra refused to let her escape from.
Kashish felt trapped, powerless, as every pair of eyes in the room stared back at her. But she wasn’t about to back down.
“You knew I would never want to hurt you again. You used that against me, didn’t you?” she accused, her voice filled with rage.
Rudra fell silent, realizing that if they continued arguing, she might reveal her father’s suicide note and the truth she was burdened with. He couldn’t allow that. Without another word, he turned and walked away, leaving the room in a heavy silence. Kashish helplessly stormed back to her room with her luggage.
“Shekhar,” Daadi began. “What did she mean by saying she’s guilty of hurting Rudra? Why would she feel guilty?”
Shekhar and Anjali exchanged uncertain glances, now equally confused by Kashish’s words.
“Rudra and Kashish are hiding something from us,” Daadi concluded. “Just like Rudra hid his feelings for her. There’s more to this, Shekhar, and I’m going to find out what it is.”
Shekhar could only nod in agreement, sharing his grandmother’s concern.
Savitri Raheja knew she had to act fast—this confrontation would need to happen, and it would need to happen in Rudra’s absence. After all, her favourite grandson - her Rudra - was in love with Kashish. The same Kashish that she couldn’t stand. And even if she changed her mind about Kashish, she knew the truth: nothing in the world could make Kashish love Rudra back.
***************
Kashish tossed and turned on her bed. Rudra had thrown her life into chaos. He had proposed to her—marriage, no less—right in front of his entire family. For so long, his feelings for her had been hidden, a secret neither of them acknowledged. But now, they were out in the open, exposed for everyone to see. If his family knew today, tomorrow the entire world would. How was she supposed to handle that?
On one hand, she was furious that he harbored such feelings for her. On the other, she couldn’t help but feel a strange sympathy for him. He was still seen as the man responsible for her father’s death, but she knew the truth—he wasn’t fully to blame. Even though her father had died under Rudra’s car, it hadn’t been solely his fault. Her father had a hand in it, too. But how was she supposed to carry that truth for the rest of her life?
*******************
The next morning, Rudra was startled awake by a blinding light. He had come home late the night before, not wanting to face the inevitable questions from his family after proposing to Kashish. Groaning, he rubbed his eyes, his brother Shekhar’s silhouette coming into focus as he drew the curtains wide open.
“Shut the curtains. It’s Sunday, I have the right to sleep in,” Rudra muttered, turning away from the sunlight and burying himself in the darkness of the other side of the bed.
But Shekhar ignored him, sliding the remaining curtains aside, flooding the room with sunlight.
“What the—” Rudra finally sat up, glaring at his brother.
Shekhar just smiled, undeterred.
“You remember how I used to wake you up like this when we were kids? You hated waking up early on Sundays,” Shekhar said, his tone nostalgic.
Rudra grumbled but accepted the coffee Shekhar handed him. Those days seemed like a different lifetime.
“I know you’re not here to reminisce. You only wake me up this early for one reason—to talk.” Rudra took a sip of the coffee, already bracing himself.
“Right again,” Shekhar said, his tone shifting. “We need to talk about last night.”
Rudra groaned internally. He wasn’t ready for this conversation, not yet.
“I’m not in the mood to talk about it, Bhai. Not today,” he said, standing and heading to the closet, hoping to evade the conversation.
But Shekhar stepped in front of him, blocking his path. “Rudra, how can I help you if you don’t tell me what’s going on?”
“I don’t need help,” Rudra said flatly, trying to move past him.
“Maybe not,” Shekhar admitted. “But a little support from your family never hurts.”
Rudra stopped, sensing the persistence in Shekhar’s voice.
“Kashish mentioned something about guilt yesterday. What was that about?”
Rudra froze. This was the conversation he had dreaded. Shekhar pressed on.
“As far as we know, you’ve been the one feeling guilty. Why did she say she would never hurt you again? What are you two hiding?”
Rudra exhaled sharply, frustrated.
“I need to go to the gym,” he deflected, moving toward the door, but Shekhar blocked him again.
“Rudra... If you don’t tell me, Daadi will go straight to Kashish. Is that what you want?”
Rudra clenched his jaw. The last thing he needed was Daadi grilling Kashish about the note from her father. He couldn’t allow it.
“Where’s Daadi now?” Rudra asked, trying to keep calm.
“She’s in the puja room. But as soon as she’s done, she’s going to corner Kashish,” Shekhar warned.
Rudra felt his pulse quicken. He couldn’t let Kashish reveal the truth.
“Fine. I’ll talk to her myself. But keep Daadi from talking to Kashish until then. Can you do that?”
Shekhar looked surprised by Rudra’s sudden willingness to confess.
“That’s a big ask. What excuse am I supposed to give her?”
Rudra narrowed his eyes.
“You always found excuses to protect me when we were kids. Use one of them.”
Shekhar shook his head, a small smile forming.
“Daadi’s not going to buy any excuses this time. This isn’t like the silly things I used to cover up for you.”
Rudra knew he was right. Daadi was relentless when she suspected something. But he couldn’t risk Kashish telling the family the truth, especially not like this.
“Fine,” Rudra relented. “I’ll tell everyone what happened between me and Kashish. But keep Daadi from talking to her until I do.”
Shekhar was taken aback. This wasn’t like Rudra at all. But there was no time to question it. He nodded and quickly made his way to the puja room to inform Daadi of Rudra’s decision. When Daadi heard the news, her suspicions deepened. Shekhar shared the same unease. They both knew Rudra’s confession would reveal the root of his tension with Kashish—the reason why the hatred she once had for him had seemingly vanished.
*******************
As Kashish lay on her bed, Ram Prasad knocked gently and entered her room.
“Kashish Didi, would you like your breakfast here or downstairs?”
Kashish shook her head, pulling herself from her thoughts.
“I’m not hungry. Thank you. Where is Anjali?”
“Anjali Bhabhi and the others are in Rudra Bhaiya’s room,” he replied, almost casually.
Rudra’s room? Why were they all gathered there? Was this some sort of interrogation? Or maybe, just maybe, they were trying to talk sense into him, convincing him to drop the absurd idea of marrying her. She wasted no time. Throwing on her slippers, she hurried down the hall toward Rudra’s room.
*******************
“You heard me right, Daadi,” Rudra said, his voice steady but strained. He stood surrounded by his family—Daadi, Shekhar, and Anjali—all staring at him in disbelief. “When I was in the juvenile home, a woman… she tried to molest me.”
Their eyes widened with both horror and sympathy. This was a painful truth Rudra had kept buried for years. He watched their reactions, feeling their anguish for the boy he had been and the man he had become.
“I have haphephobia,” he continued, “and when Kashish found out, it hurt her too. She feels guilty because I was in the there because of the accident that involved her father. She somehow connected herself to my pain. That’s why she didn’t leave when the court personnel came. She didn’t want to add to my suffering.”
There was silence. Daadi, Shekhar, and Anjali stared at him, struggling to process what he had just revealed. But Kashish, standing outside the door, was seething. He had told them part of the truth, but not all of it. He had conveniently left out the most crucial detail—the fact that the accident had been more like a suicide attempt orchestrated by her father. That was the real reason for her guilt. Rudra had withheld that truth, protecting her yet again.
Even now, to protect her secret, he had bared his most painful memory to his family. How could he be so selfless?
She gripped the doorframe. Whatever the reason, one thing was clear—Rudra was far more dangerous to her heart than she had ever imagined.