Projections
Ananya
The city lights glittered through the floor-to-ceiling windows. Most of the office had cleared out hours ago, leaving just the two of us with the occasional click of Jai’s keyboard and the low hum of the air conditioning.
A knock.
‘Come in.’
The security guard entered and dropped our delivery bag on the desk.
‘Thank you.’ I smiled gratefully.
He nodded and left.
I closed my laptop. ‘That’s it. I can’t look at another number.’
Jai laughed, shutting his own. ‘Thanks for staying today. I know budgets aren’t exactly your favourite.’ He grabbed the bag and sat on the couch, unwrapping our food: Mediterranean wraps, warm pita bread with beetroot hummus and baklava.
I grabbed plates for us from the sideboard and settled beside him. ‘It’s fine. Rivaayat’s important.’
His tired face softened. ‘It is.’
I watched him portion out the hummus methodically. The same way he approached everything.
‘He’s new to the position. Perhaps he’s making mistakes.’ Rekha’s voice echoed in my head. But observing him so closely, working for hours, obsessing over every detail, triple-checking numbers, I couldn’t see the reckless person she’d described.
Maybe if I understood their relationship better, I’d understand what she was worried about. Why a mother would take such extreme measures to spy on her son.
Maybe then, I’d figure out a way to make her stop.
‘Can I ask you something?’ I asked, keeping my tone casual as I kicked my heels off and tucked my legs beneath me. ‘About your family.’
His hand paused mid-reach for the pita. ‘What about them?’
‘I realised I don’t really know much about them.’ I tore off a piece of bread, not quite meeting his eyes. ‘You don’t talk about them much. I’m ... curious.’
He paused. I could feel him weighing the question. Then he exhaled, setting down his wrap. ‘You’re right. I don’t talk about them much.’ He stared at his plate. ‘There’s a reason for that.’
Guilt twisted in my stomach. I was fishing for information about Rekha and her plausible motives, and he thought I was being a caring girlfriend.
Both were true.
But one felt like a betrayal.
‘My mom … she died when I was three,’ he said quietly.
The words hit me like a physical blow.
‘I—’ My voice came out strangled. ‘I’m so sorry.’
Finally, the pieces came together before my eyes.
Rekha wasn’t his mother. She was his stepmother.
‘It’s okay.’ He gave me a small, sad smile. ‘It was a long time ago.’ But the way he said it – carefully, like he’d practised the words – told me it wasn’t.
‘I had no idea.’ I swallowed. ‘Your family never … I mean the press always—’
I couldn’t finish the sentence.
‘We never talk about it publicly,’ he said. ‘Dad and Rekha Mom got married when I was eight. House of Advani took off four years later. Dad thought it was easier that way. Cleaner. One family narrative.’
Cleaner. For whom?
‘I’m sorry,’ I said softly. ‘That must have been ... I can’t imagine losing a parent so young.’
He shrugged stiffly. ‘I don’t remember much about her. Just this feeling, like I was loved. Dadaji and Dadiji would tell me stories. About how she took me to the temple every weekend. How she loved fashion.’ A faint smile touched his lips. ‘Dadaji said I get my stubbornness from her.’
‘That sounds like a good thing to inherit.’
His smile faded. ‘When Rekha Mom came
along ...’ he paused, choosing his words carefully. ‘Things changed.’
I waited, my heart racing.
‘She never did or said anything bad. It was only in the smaller things,’ he confessed.
‘We only ever had Ayaan’s favourite food at the table.
She’d go to every one of Ayaan’s school functions, but always had an excuse to skip mine.
She hugged and praised him when he did well.
With me ... she’d nod like it was nothing. ’
‘You were just a child,’ I said, my voice shaking. ‘She had no right to treat you that way.’
‘She’s not my blood, Ananya. I understood that, even then. Ayaan was her son. I wasn’t.’
‘That doesn’t make it fine.’ The words came out sharper than I intended.
Rage began to consume me.
‘I’m worried about my son,’ Rekha had said in the car.
But she wasn’t his mother. She’d spent Jai’s entire childhood making him feel like he didn’t belong.
There was no maternal concern. Only thinly disguised cruelty.
And I’d believed her. I’d sat in her car and nodded along while she fed me lies.
‘My father didn’t notice,’ Jai continued, staring at his hands.
‘He was busy building the company. Working constantly. By the time House of Advani was established, he barely saw us at all. We only became closer after I started doing well at work.’ His voice roughened.
‘Sometimes I wonder ... if I hadn’t joined the company, would he have seen me at all? ’
‘Jai—’
‘It’s okay.’ He gave me that same practised smile. ‘It’s in the past.’
But it wasn’t.
Not if Rekha was still trying to control him.
‘Not if it still hurts you,’ I said firmly. ‘And it’s not okay that they made you feel like you had to earn their love. You were a child. You deserved better.’
His eyes met mine, vulnerable and raw.
‘You’re an amazing person, Jai,’ I continued, my voice breaking slightly. ‘And if anyone can’t see that, it is their failure. Not yours.’ It was the simplest truth in the whole world. He couldn’t believe otherwise.
He reached for my hand, and I squeezed it tight.
‘Thank you,’ he said sincerely. ‘For saying that. For ... listening.’
He’d trusted me with this. With the pain he carried, with the parts of himself he kept hidden.
And here I was lying to him. Working for the woman who’d made him feel unwanted his entire life.
Another wave of guilt crashed over me.
‘Are you okay?’ he asked. ‘I didn’t mean to dump all of this on you—’
‘No.’ I forced myself to look at him. ‘I’m glad you told me. I just ... I hate that you went through that.’
He brushed his thumb along my cheek, and something unspoken passed between us. ‘Don’t feel sorry for me. I was a fortunate child, Ananya. I had everything I wanted. Dadaji gave me all the love I could’ve needed.’
‘That’s why Rivaayat means so much to you,’ I murmured.
‘It means everything to me.’
My heart cracked.
This wasn’t reckless expansion. This wasn’t inexperience or poor judgement.
This was love. Legacy. Everything that mattered to him.
And Rekha wanted to ... what? Control him? Stop him? Undermine him?
What have I done?
Jai smiled. ‘I think that’s enough seriousness for one day. Let’s get back to our dinner. You didn’t have much for lunch; you must be starving.’
‘Yeah.’
But only one thought spun in my mind as I ate. I need to end this thing with Rekha.
Halfway through dinner, I dropped a bit of hummus on my white dress.
I scooped it up immediately. ‘This is my favourite dress.’ I dropped the pita bread back on my plate. ‘I’m going to try and get this out.’
I stood up and rushed into his private bathroom. I rinsed my hands, then applied soap and water to the red stain and scrubbed it. The stain bled brighter. Damn it.
I heard Jai’s office door open, and I froze.
It was late in the evening, and most people had gone home. Our food was for two people. My heels were still outside. My stomach flipped.
‘Dad!’ Jai’s voice was loud enough for me to hear. I immediately turned off the tap. ‘What are you doing here?’
A pit split open in my belly. What if his father found out I was in here? What if he found out we were dating? What if he told Rekha? If she found out that we were in a relationship … terror paralysed me.
Their words became indistinct, eclipsed by my pounding pulse. My skin grew cold.
I leaned against the wall, trying to calm my racing thoughts.
It’s okay. Rekha isn’t here; she won’t know.
I could hear voices, but unfortunately, I couldn’t make out the exact words.
Then, a woman spoke.
Rekha.
Nausea churned within me. After my conversation with Rhea, I had completely stopped sending her updates. I was supposed to confront her and put a stop to things, but just the thought filled me with so much dread that I couldn’t eat for days.
She had called a week after my silence, and it gave me another panic attack.
Despite that, I had refused to answer. I told myself she couldn’t blackmail me if she couldn’t reach me. It was cowardly, but it was my only defence. At least until I built up the courage to talk to her.
She could talk to me at the office, but that would mean risking Jai’s suspicion. And I didn’t think she would do that.
Until now.
She was here with Vikram sir to tell Jai about me. So that she could twist facts and have me fired. Jai didn’t have the best relationship with her, but that didn’t mean he knew what she was capable of.
If she told him, that would be it. No more Jai. No more us.
My mind spiralled, overrun with worst-case scenarios, each more terrifying than the last. If I could come up with a way to explain myself to him, maybe he’d understand.
Who was I kidding? Jai despised dishonesty and disloyalty. He would never forgive me.
My breath felt shallow, like my lungs refused to expand fully. Fear, as I’d never known before, crawled up my spine. I couldn’t tell if I was overthinking or not thinking enough.
A knock. My heart lurched.
‘Dad left. You can come out now.’
‘Just a second,’ I croaked. My throat burned.
In. Out. In – fuck it.
I opened the door, curling my trembling fingers into fists as I walked out.
Jai looked dazed.
My heart stuttered. ‘Jai?’
‘I’m going to be CEO,’ he said, still stunned.
‘What?’
He blinked, his eyes finally focusing on me. Then, his face lit up. He laughed, scooped me up into his arms and spun me in a dizzying circle. ‘I’m going to be CEO.’
The tightness in my chest came undone. ‘Oh my God! Really?’ I squealed, clinging to him.
He put me down, grabbed my face and kissed me. ‘Yes.’
Excitement burst through me. ‘What did he say?’
‘Well, he told me how proud he is. Said I’ve proved myself with my work. And when I pitched Rivaayat, he knew I was ready.’
‘This is huge, Jai! And …’ Just ask. ‘What did Rekha, your mom, say?’
‘She wasn’t with him.’
‘I thought I heard her.’
He paused for a second. ‘You must’ve heard his assistant. She was congratulating me.’
Oh. I exhaled, then grinned. ‘Let’s celebrate!’
‘It’s still premature; the board members need to approve this decision first. Dad just spoke to a friend on the board, and both of them think once the line succeeds, they’ll have no choice but to say yes,’ he said.
‘The deal is as good as done, Jai.’ I slid a hand up his chest. ‘I couldn’t be happier for you. You deserve it. I’m so very proud of you.’
‘Thank you.’ He kissed me again.
I loved him. And as his kiss deepened, the reality of our situation fell into place. Because I loved him, I had to confront Rekha.