63. The Unwanted Return
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I placed my painting supplies back properly and left the canvas near the window so the paint could dry.
It is almost complete now.
Just one glossy finish left, then framing... and finally I could send it to its owner.
Honestly, I was proud of how beautifully it turned out.
After cleaning myself up, I walked downstairs and found everyone already sitting in the living hall. Dadi, Dadu, Dhrithika, Ishaan... and the guest who came for dinner.
Her back faced me while she discussed something with Dadu, but the moment my footsteps echoed in the hall, her voice stopped.
"Here is my wife... Dhwani," Yugant said with a smile before walking toward me. His arm wrapped around my shoulders naturally.
I smiled at him and looked toward the guest.
And the moment she turned around...
The air vanished from my lungs.
No.
No no no.
It can't be her.
Fear crawled up my throat so suddenly I couldn't even swallow properly. It felt like tiny needles tearing through my skin from inside.
She can't be here.
Not after all these years.
My eyes moved around the hall helplessly before landing on her face again.
Shock.
Pain.
Disbelief.
The same emotions shaking inside me reflected in her eyes too. Her lips parted slightly like she wanted to say something but forgot how words worked.
Did she recognize me?
No. Impossible.
I changed too much. I rebuilt myself from scratch. Seven years had passed.
She can't recognize me.
It's impossible.
It can't happen.
She can't be here.
"Dhwani..." My name left her lips so gently that for one dangerous second, every wall inside me cracked and all I remembered was warmth.
Motherly warmth.
Yes. She was my biological mother.
Mrs. Mrinalini Udayveer Ranawat.
But then why...
Why was she using her paternal surname instead of her husband's name?
Slowly, she stepped toward me.
My chest tightened painfully.
No.
I couldn't let her come near me. What if she punished me again?
Another step.
And within a few steps she stood right in front of me.
My eyes burned badly. Tears gathered instantly, but I refused to blink because I knew the moment I did, they would fall.
And I didn't want to cry in front of her. Didn't want to waste tears on her.
"Dhwani... my child." Her trembling hand lifted toward my face.
I stepped back immediately.
"I... I'm not your child."
The words slipped out filled with fury before I even realized it.
Pain flashed across her face.
"Yes, you are," her voice broke. "You're my child. You're my Dhwani, you're my-"
"Ms. Arora," Yugant interrupted firmly while moving slightly in front of me, "I think you have some misunderstanding. She is not your daughter. She is my wife, and she is Rathore."
Her eyes snapped toward him instantly.
"NO."
The single word came out sharp enough to cut through the room.
"She is not Rathore. She is my Dhwani. She is Dhwani Ranawat. You don't know anything."
Yes. Yugant knew nothing.
He didn't know my real identity. And now she would tell him everything. She would ruin everything between us just like she ruined everything before.
I hated her.
God, I hated her so much.
"He knows everything," I lied quickly. "And I don't know who you are. Maybe your daughter died seven years ago."
"DHWANI... STOP IT!"
Her sudden scream made me stumble back in shock.
"Stop saying that," she cried, eyes filled with tears. "Please... just let me hold you once..."
She opened her arms and stepped toward me again.
For one second...I wanted to go to her. Wanted to collapse into her arms and cry like a child again.
But then memories crashed harder.
Fear. Punishment. Loneliness.
Before she could touch me, I pushed her away forcefully.
Too forcefully.
She lost balance and fell backward, her forehead hitting the sharp edge of the couch.
The sound alone made my stomach twist.
"Oh God, Dhwani..." Yugant rushed toward her immediately. "What have you done?"
Ishaan quickly helped her sit properly.
"Are you alright, Ms. Arora?" he asked while checking the small cut on her forehead.
A thin line of blood appeared near her hairline.
Did I do that?
My breathing turned uneven.
But another voice inside me screamed louder immediately.
So what if she got hurt?
It's just blood.
Why did she keep coming near me after I told her not to?
"Dhwani..." she whispered again, struggling to breathe properly. "Please listen to me, beta..."
"No!" I covered my ears immediately. "No, no, no..."
I couldn't hear her voice anymore.
"I am nothing to you!" I shouted, my entire body shaking. "Don't come near me. I hate you!"
Everyone stared at me silently. I could already see it in their eyes.
Questions.
Confusion.
Judgment.
Fear clawed through my chest violently.
"You came back..." my voice broke. "You'll destroy everything again. You'll ruin things between me and Yugant. Everyone will hate me because of you. I hate you!"
I stepped backward again and again.
"I don't want to stay here..."
Then I turned and ran.
"Dhwani, wait!"
I heard Yugant's voice behind me, but my feet didn't stop. I didn't even know where I was running. I just needed to get away from that house.
Away from her face.
Away from those memories.
Away from the questions waiting in everyone's eyes.
How was I supposed to go back there now?
How was I supposed to explain the parts of my life I spent seven years trying to bury?
I ran past the mansion gates while the security guards called after me in panic.
But I couldn't stop.
Because breathing inside that house became impossible the moment I saw her again.
I don't know in which direction I ran or where exactly I wanted to go.
I just kept running until my legs started hurting and my lungs burned with every breath.
When I finally stopped, my heart was beating so fast it felt like it was trying to tear out of my chest.
My hands trembled uncontrollably.
I looked around blankly and realized I had reached a nearby park. Children were playing around freely, elders were walking their voices echoing through the evening air like life was still simple somewhere for someone.
My feet carried me inside automatically.
I sat down on a bench tucked away in one corner and stared at the ground silently.
I didn't know what to do anymore.
The past I spent seven years running from was suddenly standing right in front of me again.
Alive.
Breathing.
Ready to destroy everything all over again.
And maybe that was the real reason I kept pushing Yugant away emotionally in the beginning.
Not because I didn't love him.
But because I was terrified of this exact moment.
Terrified that someday he would discover the truth and look at me differently afterward.
I always thought he would leave eventually anyway, just like everyone else did.
But now... when I finally allowed myself to hold him close, when I finally started believing I could belong somewhere... she returned.
Like fate itself refused to let me stay happy for too long.
Now Yugant would find out everything.
And once he did... he would hate me too.
The thought alone made my chest ache painfully.
What if he felt betrayed?
Because I let him believe I was Rathore when technically... I wasn't.
God.
I bent forward slowly, resting my elbows on my knees before covering my face with my trembling hands.
I suddenly felt seventeen again.
Small.
Scared.
As my breathing slowly settled a little, reality hit me harder.
I couldn't go back. Not like this.
Swallowing the painful lump stuck in my throat, I slipped my hand into the pocket of my dress and pulled out my phone.
This was exactly why I loved pockets in dresses.
At least one useful thing existed in life.
Unlocking the screen, I realized the phone was still on silent mode.
And the moment notifications loaded, my chest tightened again.
Missed calls.
Yugant.
Dhrithi.
Ishaan.
Almost everyone from the mansion.
My thumb hovered over Yugant's name for a few seconds.
Should I call him back?
He must be worried. Probably searching for me already. But if I went back now... he would ask questions.
Questions I wasn't ready to answer.
Questions I spent years burying deep enough that even thinking about them hurt.
And honestly?
I wasn't sure I would ever be ready.
I scrolled through my contacts slowly until my fingers stopped on one name.
Samarth Bhai.
A shaky breath left me.
I didn't want to return to the mansion because she might still be there. And even if she wasn't, she would come back eventually.
And then there were the questions waiting in everyone's eyes.
I couldn't handle that right now.
But between all this chaos, if there was one person who would understand me without forcing answers out of me... it was him.
The only person in front of whom I could completely break down without fear of judgment.
I think... I should go back to Rajasthan.
After staring at the screen for almost a minute, I clicked on 'call'.
After a few rings, bhai finally picked up.
"Hello, bhai..." I tried hard to keep my voice normal.
"Yes, I am here."
Just those four words.
And suddenly my throat burned again.
Because no matter how badly life changed, some people still answered you with the same warmth that once taught you what safety felt like.
" Bhai... wh-where are you?"
"Wait. Why do you sound like you're crying?" his tone sharpened instantly.
Damn.
"I'm not crying," I lied quickly while wiping my face harshly, though I didn't realise that I was actually crying.
"Yes, you are," bhai replied immediately. "You just wiped your tears, didn't you?"
My head instantly lifted and I looked around the park.
Was he here?
"I was not there, stop looking around," his voice came again calmly.
I frowned. "Wait... did I accidentally connect a video call?"
I quickly checked the screen.
No.
It was a normal audio call.