HIS FAMILY
I sat inside the car, nervously fidgeting with my fingers on my lap while my thoughts kept circling around the same question over and over again -
Was I really making the right decision?
Vihaan had gone inside the café nearby despite me repeatedly telling him I didn't want anything to drink, because apparently that man believed emotional breakdowns could somehow be solved with beverages.
I stared blankly through the windshield, watching people move outside under the bright afternoon sunlight, my reflection faintly visible on the glass, looking far more uncertain than I liked.
Then I saw him walking out of the café one hand holding his phone and the other carrying a strawberry milkshake.
I let out a quiet breath before suddenly pushing the car door open and stepping outside just as he approached the vehicle.
He looked at me in confusion immediately. Before he could say anything, I stretched my hand toward him.
"I will drive," I said calmly.
His eyebrows lifted slightly at the sudden declaration, but surprisingly, he didn't argue. Instead, he silently handed me the keys, though the suspicion on his face was obvious.
He got into the passenger seat while I slid into the driver's seat, gripping the steering wheel perhaps a little tighter than necessary.
The moment I settled down, he casually passed the strawberry milkshake toward me. I took it automatically and sipped from it absentmindedly as I started the car.
The engine hummed softly and instead of driving toward the company, I took a sharp U-turn.
Vihaan frowned immediately beside me.
"Where are you going?" he asked, turning toward me fully now.
I didn't answer. I just kept driving.
The city moved past us in blurs of traffic, sunlight, crowded streets, and honking sounds while silence slowly filled the car, growing heavier with every minute.
Vihaan kept glancing at me occasionally, clearly trying to figure out what exactly was happening inside my head.
He suddenly took the milkshake straight from my hand and started sipping it shamelessly, clearly trying to irritate me on purpose while I drove.
I clicked my tongue in annoyance and kept my eyes fixed on the road ahead, gripping the steering wheel tighter as traffic moved slowly around us.
"Where are we going, Vivi?" he asked again.
I inhaled slowly, then finally answered. "To Adithya's parents' house."
The effect was immediate. He choked violently on the milkshake and coughed as he turned toward me with complete horror written across his face.
"Is something wrong with your mind?" he asked in disbelief, wiping his mouth while staring at me like I had just announced I was going to start a war personally.
I ignored him completely and continued driving. The roads stretched ahead under the harsh sunlight while my thoughts remained heavy, tangled, restless.
Because the more I thought about it, the more unbearable it felt. Adithya being separated from his family because of me.
Because of my mistakes,threats and the marriage I forced onto him. It felt so painfully wrong.
I knew what it felt like to live without parents and crave affection so badly that even small acts of care became unforgettable.
Despite how unaffected Adithya acted, I knew he was hurting because of it too. Maybe he never said it openly but I saw it.
Every time he hesitated while talking about them and the thought of him losing them forever because of me felt heavier than my own fear.
"I don't want this," I said quietly, almost to myself.
Vihaan looked at me carefully now. "You don't want what?"
"I don't want him to suffer because of me anymore."
Silence filled the car for a moment.
Then Vihaan leaned back against the seat and exhaled deeply, rubbing his forehead slowly like he already knew this conversation was going somewhere emotionally exhausting.
"Viyana," he muttered tiredly, "you threatened those people with guns."
"I know."
"You traumatized them."
"I know."
"You literally forced their son into marriage."
"I know," I snapped this time, my voice finally cracking slightly as I tightened my grip on the steering wheel.
"Don't say it again and again," I muttered sharply, my jaw tightening as I kept my eyes fixed on the road ahead, because every time he repeated it, it felt like someone was pressing against a wound that had barely started closing.
Vihaan let out a dry laugh beside me. "Why?" he asked coldly. "Because you feel guilty now?"
I gripped the steering wheel tighter.
"Because it pulls you out of that lovely little world you are living in?" he continued. "The one where love magically erased everything you did?"
"All of this happened because of you, Vihaan," I snapped finally, turning toward him for a second before looking back at the road. "I went to his house and threatened him for you."
His expression hardened immediately.
"So now you blame me for everything?" he asked, disbelief and irritation flashing across his face. "I asked you to help me. I didn't ask you to marry that man, did I?"
I went completely silent after that, as anger bubbled inside me and my foot pressed harder against the accelerator, the car speeding forward aggressively as I banged the horn at the vehicles ahead of me in irritation.
"Slow down, Viyana!" he snapped. "I don't want to lose my fucking life in an accident. I have a daughter waiting for me at home."
I clenched my jaw tightly, and after a few seconds, I finally loosened my grip on the steering wheel and eased my foot off the accelerator as the car slowed slightly.
Vihaan exhaled dramatically beside me like he had just escaped death itself.
"You are mentally unstable," he muttered under his breath.
I ignored him and he turned toward me again. "What exactly are you going to say to his parents?"
My throat tightened slightly but I answered anyway. "I'll tell them the truth," I said quietly.
He frowned.
"I'll tell them that I was the one who forced him into this marriage," I continued, my eyes fixed ahead on the road. "And that he only married me to protect his family."
Vihaan's expression shifted slightly at that.
"And?" he asked carefully.
"And nothing," I whispered. "They deserve to know."
I wasn't trying to defend myself or trying to justify my actions. I just want them to know the truth.
"Did you inform Adithya about this?" He asked.
My fingers tightened slightly around the steering wheel again.
"No."
His head snapped toward me immediately. "You came here without telling him?"
I nodded slowly.
"What if he gets angry?" He asked.
I breathed out heavily, exhaustion settling deep into my bones as I continued driving ahead in silence, my thoughts refusing to quiet down for even a second.
What if Adithya got angry?
What if he misunderstood this too?
What if he thought I was trying to interfere in his life again without asking him?
I sighed quietly and rubbed my thumb against the steering wheel absentmindedly, trying to calm the restlessness building inside me.
Beside me, Vihaan glanced at me once before suddenly speaking. "Want to know something interesting?"
I frowned slightly but still responded. "What?"
He leaned back comfortably against the seat before saying with complete calmness, "I brought a girl home."
My head immediately turned toward him for a second.
"Girlfriend?" I asked automatically, even though I already knew the answer before asking because this man looked at romance the same way people looked at tax fraud.
He glared at me instantly then dramatically turned his head away like I had deeply offended him.
I snorted softly. "So not girlfriend."
"Obviously not," he muttered with visible irritation.
"Then who?" I asked again, glancing at him briefly as I turned the car into the familiar streets leading toward Adithya's parents' house. The roads themselves felt heavy with memories.
Because the last time I came here with power, arrogance, rage, and a gun hidden beneath my confidence.
I threatened his entire family. Forced fear into this house and Adithya into my life. And now I was coming back for the exact opposite reason.
Funny how life circled people back to the exact place where everything began, only this time with a different version of themselves.
Vihaan leaned back lazily against the seat beside me.
"I'll tell you later," he muttered. "Your own life is already messed up enough."
"Yes," I replied dryly. "And I clearly don't have the mental stability to deal with your sudden romance storyline too."
He glared at me immediately. "There is no romance."
"Mhm."
"I am serious."
"Sure."
He looked genuinely offended while I smiled faintly for the first time in what felt like hours.
Then slowly the house came into view and my chest tightened instantly. I slowed the car and parked beneath the shade of a nearby tree before turning the engine off. I unbuckled my seatbelt, my fingers suddenly colder than before. Beside me, Vihaan watched me carefully for a moment.
"Shall I come with you?" He asked.
I looked at him and for a second, I almost said yes. But this was something I had to face myself so I shook my head slowly.
"No," I said quietly. "I'll manage."
"If they insult you, call me." He said after a moment.
I rolled my eyes immediately. "So you can come and make things worse?"
"I can threaten them emotionally." He said.
I laughed softly despite myself then the laughter faded and reality returned. I looked toward the house again, my heartbeat growing louder with every passing second.
Because behind that gate was the family I once traumatized. The family of the man I loved.
I inhaled deeply before finally opening the car door and stepping outside.
"Good luck," Vihaan said from inside the car.
I nodded once without looking back properly and started walking toward the house quickly before my courage disappeared halfway. By the time I reached the front door, my palms had already turned cold.
I stood there frozen for a moment, staring at the wooden door while my thoughts immediately began betraying me.
Should I just run back?
Get inside the car.
Go home.
Pretend this never happened.
I exhaled shakily and closed my eyes for one brief second.
No. I couldn't give up now. So before I could overthink further, I finally raised my hand and knocked on the door.
My stomach twisted painfully while I waited. After a few moments, footsteps approached from inside the house, and suddenly the door opened.
His sister stood there. The second her eyes landed on me, her expression transformed completely.
I gave her the most awkward smile possible.
"Hi," I said nervously, lifting my hand slightly in an almost pathetic attempt at appearing harmless.
She blinked at me once and without saying a single word, she turned around and ran back into the house at full speed.
"MAAAA!" she screamed from inside with the kind of fear people had when witnessing a ghost appear at their doorstep.
"Okay..." I muttered weakly to myself. "That reaction was fair."
I stood there awkwardly near the entrance while chaos immediately erupted inside the house.
I could hear hurried footsteps.
Whispering.
Someone asking, "Who is it?" And then another horrified, "WHO?"
I rubbed my forehead tiredly. A few seconds later, Adithya's mother appeared near the hallway before stopping abruptly the moment she saw me standing outside.
Her face immediately lost color. The fear in her eyes hit me harder than I expected. Because it reminded me exactly of who I used to be to them.
I swallowed hard and lowered my gaze slightly.
"Hi, Mrs. Menon.." I started softly.