V I A A N
I sat on the edge of the chair, my elbows resting on my knees, my head buried in my hands.
My fingers pressed hard against my forehead as if that could stop the storm raging inside my mind.
I... I...
I exhaled sharply.
Never in my life had I imagined this moment.
Never.
That I would leave my bride standing alone at the altar.
The image flashed in my mind again.
The altar.
The guests.
The empty space where I was supposed to stand.
And Ira... waiting.
My chest tightened uncomfortably.
But I forced myself to breathe slowly.
It was over.
Over and done.
I had given her chances. More than anyone would have.
Again and again.
And every single time she managed to disgust me a little more.
Today was simply the final straw.
I leaned back in the chair, staring blankly at the floor.
"I couldn't do it..." I muttered quietly to myself.
I couldn't marry someone like that.
Just because I had loved her since childhood didn't mean she could get away with everything.
Love didn't mean blindness.
And what she had done today...
My jaw tightened.
It crossed every line.
Maybe someday, if she ever changed
Maybe then I could look at her without feeling that same disgust twisting in my stomach.
But if she continued being the same person...
Then I would never even spare her a glance again.
Not now.
Not ever.
A soft voice broke through my thoughts.
"Vi... I mean...Viaan... are you okay?"
I lifted my head.
Niya lay on the bed across the room.
The dim white light above her made the bruises on her skin look even worse.
Dark marks covered her arms. A cut ran across her cheekbone. Her lip was slightly swollen.
Even the way she moved seemed careful, like every muscle in her body hurt.
The sight made something ugly stir in my chest.
Anger.
"How could she do this..." I muttered under my breath.
Niya noticed my expression and gave a small, weak smile.
"I'm fine," she said softly.
Her voice sounded fragile, but she tried to make it sound reassuring.
"Don't worry about me."
I stood up slowly and walked closer to the bed.
"Don't worry?" I repeated.
My voice came out sharper than I intended.
"Niya, look at yourself."
She lowered her gaze.
The blanket shifted slightly, revealing more bruises along her wrist.
My hands clenched automatically.
The doctor had just left minutes ago after examining her.
And the list of injuries still echoed in my mind.
Bruised ribs.
Sprained wrist.
Multiple cuts.
All from what she had told me happened earlier.
I dragged a hand through my hair, frustration boiling inside me.
"I still can't believe she did that," I said bitterly.
Niya looked up quickly.
"Viaan... please don't say that."
My eyes snapped to her.
"Why not?"
She hesitated.
"Ira... she's just.."
"Don't defend her," I interrupted immediately.
The words came out colder than I intended.
Niya went quiet.
I exhaled slowly and rubbed my face again.
"I tried," I said after a moment.
"I really tried with her."
My voice was quieter now.
"I ignored so many things over the years because I thought... maybe she'd change."
I let out a humorless laugh.
"But today proved I was wrong."
Niya watched me silently.
Her eyes softened slightly.
"You loved her," she said gently.
The words made something tighten painfully in my chest.
"Yeah," I admitted.
"I did."
For a moment the room was quiet except for the faint beeping of a monitor.
Then I looked back at her bruised face again.
And the anger returned.
"But loving someone doesn't mean accepting everything they do," I said firmly.
My voice hardened.
"She crossed the line today."
Niya shifted slightly on the bed, wincing from the pain.
I noticed immediately.
"Don't move too much," I said automatically.
She smiled faintly.
"I'm okay, really."
But I could see the pain she was hiding.
My jaw tightened again.
I looked away, my gaze settling on the window where rain still slid slowly down the glass.
"Vi... Viaan, I just wanted to know something."
Her voice was soft, hesitant.
I didn't look at her immediately. My eyes were fixed on the dark window across the room.
"Ask."
There was a pause.
"I know it's me being selfish... and today was Ira's wed_"
"Ask, Niya."
My tone came out firmer than I intended.
She fell silent for a moment before speaking again.
"You loved Ira selflessly for years, Viaan. Meanwhile... I was just your best friend."
Her fingers twisted nervously in the bedsheet.
"But I really loved you for years too," she admitted quietly. "I just stayed silent... because you loved her."
I slowly nodded.
But her confession still shocked me.
Niya was the kind of girl every man admired. Gentle, kind, beautiful in a way that drew attention without trying.
If not for Ira... maybe I would have dated her too.
But it was always Ira for me.
Always.
And Niya had only ever been my best friend.
Yet hearing her say those words twisted something strange inside my chest.
Because Niya cared.
She cared about me more than a best friend probably should.
More than Ira ever did.
"I wanted to know something," she continued softly.
My gaze finally shifted to her.
"If... if I can ever have a small place inside your heart?"
Her eyes trembled slightly as she looked at me.
"After our marriage... I don't want to be just a replacement for Ira."
"Niya, I.."
"Viaan," she interrupted gently. "Did you really mean it... when you told her that you love me now?"
I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment.
The memory hit me again.
'I love Niya now.'
The lie I had thrown at Ira just to end everything.
I had lied about loving Niya.
But not about marrying her.
Because I had already promised Niya that.
And I was a man who kept his promises.
I opened my eyes again.
"I'm going to marry you, Niya," I said quietly.
Her breathing slowed slightly.
"It's my promise. And I keep my promises."
I paused before continuing.
"And no... she will never be you."
My voice hardened slightly.
"Not today. Not tomorrow. Not in seven lives."
I looked at her injured hands resting on the bed and gently placed mine over them.
"You're gentle," I murmured.
"Pure... unlike her."
Niya's eyes softened.
"After marriage... love might take some time," I admitted.
"But you won't feel abandoned by me. Or by my family."
Her lips trembled before she leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to the back of my hand.
"I love you, Viaan," she whispered. "I always did."
I forced a faint smile.
"I... I'll try," I said quietly.
"I'll try my best to keep you happy. And protected."
For a moment the room fell silent.
Then Niya spoke again.
"Everything is fine now, Viaan," she said softly.
"Then why are you still tense?"
Her eyes searched my face carefully.
"Do you still feel for her?"
The question hung in the air.
"Even after everything she did?"
My chest tightened slightly.
"I... I don't," I said.
But there was hesitation in my voice.
Niya noticed immediately.
"Then?" she asked quietly.
I looked away again, my gaze falling somewhere far beyond the window.
"I just never thought things would end like this," I murmured.
Leaving a wedding.
Walking away from someone I had known my whole life.
But as I glanced back at Niya's injuries again.
My promise to her for marriage.
My chest filled with a cold certainty.
Some lines, once crossed, some promises made, could never be undone.
|AFTER SOME HOURS|
I don't know what it is.
But something inside me won't stay quiet.
A small voice.
A stubborn feeling sitting deep in my chest.
Demanding answers.
My fingers tightened around the steering wheel as I drove through the empty roads.
What if it's a misunderstanding?
The thought kept returning again and again, no matter how much I tried to push it away.
My jaw clenched.
Everything inside me screamed the same thing.
Please... let it be a lie.
Please let this all be wrong.
Please let it be something else.
Because the truth sitting in front of me right now felt too ugly. Too simple.
Ira may have been many things.
Stubborn, difficult even immoral.
But...
My chest tightened.
She wouldn't do something like that.
Right?
Or maybe yes.
Because she had already this type of things more than the times I can count.
But not something brutal and disgusting like this.
I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment as the car finally stopped outside the venue parking lot.
It had been hours.
Most of the lights inside the wedding hall were already turned off.
The place looked deserted now.
The digital clock on my dashboard blinked softly.
12:57 AM.
Almost one in the morning.
Rain dripped quietly from the edges of the roof as I stepped out of the car.
The cold night air hit my face instantly.
I closed the car door slowly.
My footsteps echoed faintly in the empty parking area as I walked toward the entrance.
The entire place looked like the aftermath of a storm.
Half the decorations had been taken down.
White flowers lay scattered on the ground.
A few chairs were stacked to the side.
The altar still stood in the middle of the venue, but the lights around it had been dimmed.
It looked... abandoned.
My chest tightened slightly.
A strange uneasiness crept into my stomach.
"Where are you, Ira..." I muttered under my breath.
She should still be here.
After what happened today... she wouldn't just disappear without saying anything.
Would she?
I pulled my phone out of my pocket and stared at the screen.
Her name still sat in my recent calls.
My thumb hovered over it for a moment.
Then I exhaled slowly and locked the phone again.
No.
First I would find her.
Then we would talk.
Properly.
Because no matter what happened today.
I needed to hear the truth from her.
Even if it changed nothing.
Even if the damage was already done.
I stepped further into the silent hall.
But the moment I entered.
Something felt wrong.
Too quiet.
Too empty.
My brows slowly pulled together.
"...Ira?" I called out.
My voice echoed faintly through the large hall.
But no one answered.
A strange uneasiness began crawling up my spine.
I walked faster, checking the hallway leading to the bridal rooms.
The door was half open.
I pushed it wider.
Empty.
The mirror lights were still on. A chair had been pushed back roughly. Makeup brushes were scattered across the table like someone had left in a hurry.
But Ira wasn't there.
My heart began beating harder.
"Where the hell did she go...?" I muttered.
I stepped back into the corridor, scanning every direction.
"Ira!" I shouted louder this time.
Nothing.
Only silence answered me.
Frustration and unease twisted together inside my chest.
I walked quickly through the garden area.
Then the reception hall.
Nothing.
Not a single familiar face.
My hand ran through my hair roughly as irritation crept into my voice.
"Damn it..."
Just then I noticed a resort servant walking down the side corridor carrying folded tablecloths.
"Hey!" I called out sharply.
The man turned immediately, startled.
"Sir?"
I walked straight toward him.
"Where is everyone?" I demanded. "The Veyansh family. The guests."
The servant looked confused for a moment.
"They... left, sir."
My brows pulled together.
"Left where?"
I stepped closer.
"Did they already go back to the mansion?"
The servant shook his head nervously.
"No, sir."
My patience snapped slightly.
"Then where the hell are they?"
The man swallowed.
"They went to the city hospital, sir."
My mind blanked.
"...Hospital?"
The word came out slowly.
"Why would they go to the hospital?"
The servant shifted uncomfortably.
"Sir... Miss Ira..."
My heart suddenly slammed violently against my ribs.
"What about Ira?" I demanded.
"She got into an accident."
For a moment the entire world seemed to tilt.
"...What?"
My voice cracked slightly.
"A truck accident, sir," he repeated quietly.
My stomach dropped.
"That's not funny," I said immediately.
My voice rose.
"Don't joke about things like that."
"I'm not joking, sir," the servant replied quickly.
My breathing became uneven.
"What happened?" I demanded.
"They said... a truck hit her on the road."
My head snapped back slightly like someone had struck me.
"No," I whispered.
"No..."
That didn't make sense.
No.
"Where is she?" I asked quickly.
My voice shook now.
"They took her to City Hospital."
"Is she injured?" I asked immediately. "Is she conscious?"
The servant hesitated.
That hesitation made my chest tighten painfully.
"What did the doctors say?" I pressed.
"Sir..." the servant said slowly.
Somewhere inside me, a terrible fear started spreading.
"Answer me!" I shouted.
The servant flinched slightly.
"Some of the staff went there earlier," he said quietly.
"They called back..."
My breathing became shallow.
"And?" I demanded.
"They said..."
His voice lowered.
"...Miss Ira didn't make it."
For a moment I thought I misheard him.
"...What?"
The word came out like a broken whisper.
"They said she was already gone when they reached the hospital."
The floor beneath me suddenly felt unstable.
"You're lying," I said immediately.
My voice shook violently.
"You're lying!"
The servant shook his head quickly.
"I'm not, sir. Some of our staff went there too. They confirmed it."
My chest felt like it was being crushed.
"No."
The word escaped me weakly.
"That's impossible."
My mind raced wildly.
Images flashing.
Ira in her white dress.
Waiting at the Altar.
Looking at the entrance.
Waiting for me.
"She was just here," I said hoarsely.
My hands trembled as I grabbed the edge of a nearby table to steady myself.
"She was fine!"
My voice cracked loudly.
"How can she be dead?!"
The servant stayed silent.
That silence made something snap inside me.
"No!" I shouted suddenly.
The sound echoed through the hall.
"No no no no!"
My breathing turned ragged.
"This isn't real..."
I shook my head repeatedly.
"She can't be dead."
My chest burned painfully as panic spread through my body.
"She can't be..."
My voice broke.
"I was supposed to talk to her..."
My mind replayed the phone call.
My words.
You disgust me.
A sharp pain stabbed through my chest.
"No..." I whispered hoarsely.
My eyes burned.
"I... I didn't mean..."
The thought refused to finish.
I suddenly pushed away from the table.
"I need to see her."
My voice came out rough.
"I need to see her right now... she's ok.. I..know"
Without waiting for another word, I turned and ran toward the exit.
My footsteps pounded loudly against the marble floor.