The Maid Love

chapter 1

Meera had never known another home.

The grand Oberoi mansion with its marble floors that gleamed like still water and gardens that stretched farther than her eyes could see was the only world she grew up in.

But she never belonged to that world.

She belonged to the servants’ side of it.

Meera was the daughter of Sita, one of the oldest and most loyal maids of the Oberoi family.

The servants’ quarters were tucked behind the mansion a tiny room with a creaky bed, an old wooden cupboard with chipped handles, and a small stove where her mother cooked their meals.

Yet to Meera… that little room was home.But she was never truly alone growing up.Because she had Aarav.

Aarav Oberoi

===============

The oldest son of the powerful Oberoi family, was the same age as her.

Unlike his siblings and cousins, who barely acknowledged the presence of the servants' children, Aarav was different.

He sought her out, sneaking away from his nannies and tutors to find her wherever she was helping her mother fold laundry in the backyard, sitting by the kitchen door listening to the cooks gossip, or crouched near the fountain, watching the koi fish glide through the water.

“Meeraaaa!” Aarav would yell, voice full of excitement, his hair bouncing as he ran. “Come fast! Before they see us!”

She would look around nervously

“Aarav… someone will catch you again…”

But he would grab her hand anyway.

Warm. Fearless. Pulling her toward the gardens.And she followed.Bare feet slapping the ground, breathless laughter filling the air.

Their favorite place was the old mango tree at the very edge of the estate. The branches stretched wide, the leaves rustled like whispers, and the roots curled deep into the earth as if protecting them.

Under it, they created a secret world.

BIn their kingdom, Meera was always the brave warrior princess, and Aarav declared himself the knight who would “fight ten dragons at once.”

One afternoon

===================

Inside their fort, Aarav suddenly clutched his stomach dramatically.

“Meera… I think I’m dying…”

She blinked. “Again?”

“This time for real! I’m starving!” He flopped like a fish on the ground. “If I don’t eat something sweet, I might faint.”

Meera giggled. “You ate lunch less than two hours ago!”

“That wasn’t lunch,” he argued stubbornly. “That was punishment. All vegetables. No sweets!”

She folded her arms. “So what do you want me to do?”

He sat up straighter, eyes sparkling with mischief.

“Wait here! And don’t move!”

“Aarav! No ..no, don’t go to the...”

But he was already gone, sprinting toward the mansion like a tiny tornado.

Meera bit her lip nervously. If someone saw him stealing sweets… he would get scolded endlessly. And worse, if his mother found out he was taking food for her, a servant’s daughter…

Minutes later, Aarav came running back, panting, hands cupped tightly.

“Look! Look what I brought!” he whispered proudly.

When he opened his palms, her mouth fell open.

Laddoos. Jalebis. Kaju katli.

Some squished, some cracked… but still perfect.

“Aarav! Where did you...”

“I told the cook there’s a lizard under the stove,” he said casually.

Meera gasped. “YOU DID WHAT!?”

He nodded proudly. “He screamed so loudly, even the gardener heard. I grabbed everything like a ninja.”

Meera tried not to laugh. “You’re going to get in so much trouble one day.”

Aarav shrugged like it didn’t matter. “Maybe. But today I’m happy. Here eat.”

He held out a ladoo to her with both hands, like a treasure.Meera hesitated, then took it.

Aarav watched her with a soft grin.

“Meera…”

“Hmm?”

“When I grow up. I’ll take you to the biggest chocolate shop in the city. We’ll buy everything. No hiding. No stealing. I’ll hold your hand and we’ll walk inside like it’s ours.”he said, scooting closer

Meera’s eyes widened. “Really?”

He nodded. “Pakka promise.”

She held out her tiny pinky. “Promise?”

He hooked his pinky with hers.

Warm. Firm. Certain.

“Promise. Always.”

But everything changed when Meera turned thirteen.

Her world grew colder.Crueler.

Humiliating day by day.The boy she once loved… the boy who gifted her sweets and promises…

That same boy became her biggest mistake.

Because he didn’t want her anymore.

He didn’t even want her touching anything that belonged to him.

Her love stayed the same.His turned into something that felt like hate.