Happy Readingš š
First vote and commentsš¬ then read..
It's free to vote and comment there is nothing in charge. So please
More than 8k+ words
82, 83 and 84 are uploaded on the scroll stack..
Shivansh's POV
I folded my hands around my knees until my knuckles went white and the corridor blurred around the edges, but something inside me - some small, furious ember - began to roar. Ranveer's words had landed like a fist and then a match. I sat there on the cold floor and let myself feel it all: the shame, the ache, the stupid, stubborn love that still smelled like her hair and tasted like the last thing I'd ever want to lose.
"I'm done being a coward," I told the empty tiles, and even my own voice surprised me with how steady it sounded.
Ranveer watched me without pity, but not without understanding. He had always known how to strip the excuses clean. He crouched down again and said, quietly, "Then do something. Don't just brood. Decide."
Decide. The word hit me like permission. I straightened, pushed off the wall, and felt the old, familiar armor slide into place - not the fake remorseless mask I'd worn for years, but something sharper: clarity. I thought of every stupid thing I had allowed to fester for five years, every silence I'd mistaken for strength. I thought of the night I had let her go and convinced myself it would protect her. I thought of the way she'd looked at that child as if she'd belonged to her for a lifetime, and how I'd pretended an entire universe was still mine.
"I will tell her," I said, voice raw. "I'll tell her everything. No more lies. No more hiding. I'll cut through it like a blade."
Ranveer's lips twitched. "Good. Start with the truth then. What will you say?"
I closed my eyes and let the memory sharpen - not the staged versions I'd told myself to sleep at night, but the raw facts. The plan, the lies I'd fed into the story so she'd be safe; the choices I'd made when I thought I was choosing protection but actually built the wall that cut her away from me.
"I will tell her I never cheated," I said, each word an oath. "I never - not once. I staged what I had to stage. I let them think I'd been with someone because it would make a story cleaner, because it would buy me time to fix things nobody knew needed fixing." My hands moved as if I could lasso the truth into a neat sentence. "I broke her heart on purpose once to keep it safe from something worse. That's the worst kind of cowardice, Ranveer. I thought I was saving her. I think I was saving my own coward soul."
Ranveer's eyes were hard but not unkind. "You know what she'll say when you tell her that?"
"She'll scream. She'll cry in front of me. She'll call me monster," I said, and I imagined each wound on her, the betrayal that still lived like coals under skin. "She deserves every word."
"Then go accept it," Ranveer said. "Stand in front of her and take it. Let her hate you loud enough that she can't carry that grief into the rest of her life."
Anger flared - not at him but at myself, for all the time I had wasted letting fear steer. "I won't let her marry him," I said before I could stop myself, and the confession surprised me with its clarity. It wasn't a threat. It was a claim. "I won't stand on the sidelines and watch my life be given away because I was too scared to speak."
Ranveer's hand landed on my shoulder, two pounds of brotherhood that felt like a gauntlet thrown down. "Then don't. Make her see you again. Make the truth so heavy and undeniable that she has to reckon with the man behind it. You will not win her back with speeches - you'll win her back with the kind of truth that makes her believe you trusted her enough to bear the consequence with her."
Truth. The literal word steadied something in me. The plan inside my head started forming - jagged and honest. Go to her. Face her in private. Tell the whole story, names, dates, lies I told, and why. Confess every ugly thing and every noble deviation; strip the narrative bare so she could choose with all facts in front of her. Let her see the reason behind the monstrousness and the love that had been clumsy enough to hide inside it.
"But what if she never forgives me?" I asked, voice smaller for the first time.
Ranveer's jaw worked. He didn't answer with platitudes. He gave me something better: a sentence that sounded like a verdict and a promise at once. "Then you live with it. But at least you will have been honest. At least you won't have let her go because of your fear. That is a life with no regrets. Not easy. Not pretty. But honest. Sometimes honesty is the only war worth fighting."
I thought of a life without her: hollow, a palace of trophies and muted laughter that would fold inward the moment evening came. I thought of Riyan's small hands on her coat and the way he'd said 'mama' like it belonged to her instincts now. That image should have made me retreat - it should have been the final dagger. Instead each tender thing she wore like armor made me more determined: if she could give that opening to another man, I would not let her do so because I had been a coward.
"I will go tonight," I said. The decision felt like pulling a sword from a scabbard. Sharp air filled the corridor. "I'm not waiting. I can't - not now. One conversation, Ranveer. I will sit with her, say those words I've swallowed for five years, and then I will accept what comes."
"You sound like you mean it," Ranveer said, and for the first time there was a strange, reluctant softness in his voice. "Good. You need that more than anything. Enough second-guessing. Enough hiding. Let the man who ruined her see the woman she has become and the life she built. Be honest. And if you still want her after that - fight for her."
My chest tightened and then relaxed like a wound that had finally been exposed to air. Fear still sat at the base of my skull, a slow, cold thing. But beneath it - the ember had become a flame. I felt steadier than I had in months. The mania that had once been my undoing was not gone; it had been refined by loss. If I loved her, it would be by the only means left that mattered: truth and the willingness to bear whatever consequence it brought.
"I will not let her slip away," I whispered. "Not like this. Not because of me or my cowardice. I will tell her everything. I will make her hear me. And if she chooses to leave anyway, then I will have no lies left to cloak me."
Ranveer nodded once. "Then go. Don't be theatrical. Be brutally honest. Be the man she can at least respect enough to hate or forgive."
I stood up. My legs didn't tremble now. Somewhere down the corridor, life kept moving - muffled voices, the faint clatter of cutlery - tiny mundane things I had once taken for granted. Now they felt like countdowns. I took a breath so deep it felt like drawing in the wind before a storm.
"For her," I said to the corridor, to Ranveer, to myself. "For truth. For the chance to be the man she deserves, even if she never wants me again."
Ranveer pushed off the wall. "That's the sound of a man finally getting angry enough to do something right," he muttered. Then, quieter, "And if you need me in the next minute or the next year - I'll be there. Not to fix you. Just to make sure you don't back away."
I let the gratitude burn, private and fierce. Then I walked back toward the room where she was, every step a little less like punishment and a little more like a promise.
The corridor still hummed behind me - that faint vibration of truth once spoken.
Ranveer's voice echoed somewhere near the back of my head, but what stayed louder was my own heartbeat.
I wasn't the same man who had sat there on the floor.
Something inside me had rearranged itself into purpose.
When I stepped into the living room, it was as if the air had changed.
Lighter. Sharper. Full of unfinished sentences and the scent of afternoon sun on old marble.
I sat down on the sofa where I could see the stairs - habit, strategy, instinct - all the same thing now.
Because I wasn't just waiting.
I was planning.
How do you win back a woman who has already learned to live without you?
You don't beg.
You make her remember.
Every laugh, every moment that once made her feel alive.
You make her remember the man she loved before she learned to doubt him.
I would start with truth - strip everything down until there was nowhere left to hide.
Then I'd rebuild. Slowly. Ruthlessly.
My thoughts were broken only when I heard her steps again.
That soft rhythm - the one that still owned the air before she did.
I didn't turn immediately.
I wanted to feel her enter before I saw her.
She came in quietly, almost like she didn't belong in the same room as me anymore.
Her eyes avoided mine the way people avoid a memory that still hurts to touch.
She was talking to ishika - Luka's name floated in between the chatter like a bruise - and then she sat, far enough that I could still see her, close enough that I couldn't ignore her.
I looked once.
And she looked away fast.
There it was.
The proof that the fire wasn't one-sided.
I know the fire isn't one-sided. It never was.
If it had died in her, she would have never let me touch her the way she did a while ago. She would have never allowed the silence between us to hum like that - alive, trembling, dangerous. If it was truly one-sided, she would have stepped back, she would have frozen when I pulled her closer. But she didn't. She breathed. She trembled. And she held on.
That isn't indifference. That's a memory. That's the body remembering what the heart refuses to admit.
She can say she's moved on - she can pretend I am a shadow that once flickered in her story - but love that deep doesn't vanish; it hides. It finds corners in her laughter, in her pauses, in the way her eyes soften when my name almost escapes her lips.
I felt it a while ago - not out of arrogance, but truth. The fire we began didn't end; it only changed shape. And I'll make her see it again. Not by begging, not by demanding - but by standing in front of her as the man who still carries that flame. The same one she once lit herself.
If she had truly stopped caring, she would have looked right through me.
But she didn't.
She trembled instead.
Dadi sa's voice rose, cheerful and oblivious.
"It's been a long time since you all went out together! Why not go out somewhere today? Like the old days?"
Isha was quick. "No, Dadi sa. It's not needed."
Her tone - too quick, too careful.
The kind of no people give when they're afraid of what might happen if they say yes.
Arjun laughed. "Oh, come on, it'll be fun. Let's go somewhere!"
Then ishika, ever the perfect guest, added, "Yes, Dadi sa. A little outing would be good for everyone."
The words everyone tasted wrong in my mouth.
She meant him. Maybe.
I kept my jaw locked. My eyes on the glass table, on the tiny scratches running across its surface.
If I let my gaze lift, it would burn right through him.
Ranveer caught my glance and, without a word, said everything.
He smiled at that tiny half-smile of conspiracy.
"We'll come too," he said suddenly. "Me, Shivansh, and Aviyansh."
Dadi sa clapped her hands. "Perfect! The more the merrier."
Isha hesitated. Luka looked at her, waiting for her approval.
She gave a faint nod - that same restrained politeness that used to belong to strangers.
"Fine. By evening," she said softly.
I watched the way her lips moved when she said it.
That tone - calm, but not indifferent - was how she always sounded before she caved into something her heart already wanted.
Aviyansh grinned. "Then it's a plan."
His eyes flicked toward Ishika, who was pretending to scroll through her phone.
Ranveer muttered something teasing under his breath, and for a moment the tension cracked into something almost human.
But beneath it all, I was still watching her.
The way she straightened her dupatta even when it didn't need fixing.
The way she refused to meet my eyes again.
The way Luka's hand hovered near her arm but never touched.
That told me enough.
He was cautious. He didn't have her the way I once did.
And that meant she wasn't his - not yet.
I leaned back, the faintest smirk curling my mouth before I could stop it.
Ranveer saw it, shook his head.
"Don't start plotting murder in public, brother," he whispered.
I almost laughed - almost.
"I'm not plotting murder," I said under my breath. "I'm planning to bring her home."
Ranveer sighed. "You sound like a man ready to burn cities again."
"Maybe I am," I said quietly. "Because she's my home, Ranveer. And I'm done being exiled."
He didn't reply - just looked at me with that same half-respect, half-fear that only old friends can manage.
I turned my gaze back to her.
Isha was talking to her mother now, nodding at something, smiling faintly.
It was the kind of smile people wear when they're trying to prove they're fine.
She wasn't fine.
Neither was I.
But I would fix that.
If I had to drag the truth out of every shadow I'd hidden it in - I would.
If I had to make her hate me just to feel something again - I would.
Because hate is closer to love than indifference ever will be.
And I could work with hate.
ļæ¼
Author's POV
She walked through the hallway one last time before leaving, checking everything the way she always did - doors half open, curtains pulled, the faint hum of evening settling over the house.
"Tell me," she said softly to her mother, "if riyan wakes up or needs anything, don't hesitate to call me. As soon as he woke up please call me, if he didn't find me here, he will be worried, and please, make sure dinner is served on time."
She nodded, and isha turned to go to kitchen but she stop and turned,
" Mummy, Don't worry, everything's arranged. And please don't stay up too late, okay? I'll be back before night."
She smiled, drowsy, and murmured, "You always take care of everything."
I pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Someone has to," I said, forcing a small smile. "And if anything happens, just call me. I'll come right away."
she turned towards the kitchen to instruct the staff.
I turned to the housekeeper at the door. "Make sure everything is perfect, don't disturb anyone and serve the dinner on time and take care of everyone. "
"Yes, ma'am," she said, and I felt the tightness in my chest ease a little.
Before leaving, Isha moved through the corridors one last time, making sure everything was in place. The sky outside was beginning to melt into that soft orange that always made her restless - the kind of evening that asked for movement, for escape.
She stopped by the kitchen, giving a quick set of instructions to the staff.
"Make sure everyone eats on time," she said, glancing at the clock. "Dinner's already prepared, so just heat it if anyone stays back. And please check that the lights in the backyard are on after sunset."
They nodded quickly, accustomed to her gentle but firm tone. She smiled faintly - a small, habitual thing - then turned to leave.
"Also," she added, almost as an afterthought, "if anyone needs anything while we're out, just call me or Luka ."
Then she was gone, her dupatta brushing lightly against the edge of the doorway, her voice echoing faintly in the hall.
By the time she stepped outside, the air had cooled. The courtyard lights had come on, golden and soft against the dusk. Everyone was already waiting near the cars - laughter, chatter, the usual mix of chaos before leaving.
Outside, the cars were lined up in a neat row, the golden light spilling across the gravel. Everyone was already waiting - laughing, teasing, the kind of pre-departure chaos that came with any group outing.
In the first car sat Arjun, Dhruv, Arav, Ishika, and prisha. Ishika was leaning out of the window, shouting, "Isha, come fast!" but Isha shook her head, holding her bag close.
"You all go," she said. "I'll come later. I'll come with Luka and then join you."
Her tone left no room for argument, though Ishika frowned for a second before turning back with a playful sigh. The engine started, and soon, laughter faded into the hum of tires on the long driveway.
The second car waited - Luka was already inside, tapping his fingers lightly on the steering wheel. Isha slid in beside him, her face calm, unreadable. Luka gave her a polite smile, one that didn't quite reach his eyes.
Behind them, in the third car, Aviyansh sat beside Ranveer and Shivansh.
The moment Shivansh heard her say she would "come with luka," something in his chest tightened. His jaw flexed; his knuckles turned pale against his thigh.
Ranveer noticed but didn't comment. He knew better than to interrupt the quiet storm building behind those eyes.
Shivansh's fists closed, nails digging into his palm. He couldn't do anything - not now, not here - but his resolve sharpened like a blade.
Very soon, he thought, I'll take her away from all this pretending. I'll snatch her from this distance she keeps building.
He didn't mean it cruelly; it wasn't ownership. It was desperation - the ache of a man who had already lost too much time.
They all had decided to spend the evening somewhere in Jaipur - away from the city noise, a place where laughter could breathe again. Maybe a fort cafƩ near Nahargarh, where the wind carried the whole view of the city below, lights like scattered stars.
The drive was long, golden fields fading into rose-tinted dusk.
The drive stretched longer than expected. The plan was to head towards Nahargarh Fort, where they'd decided to watch the sunset and have dinner later at a rooftop restaurant that overlooked Jaipur's glittering skyline.
They drove up the winding road that led to Nahargarh Fort, the city of Jaipur stretching far below like a sea of gold. The sun was already leaning westward, its last light painting the sky in soft strokes of orange and rose.
They had come here to watch the sunset together - all of them. It was supposed to be simple, ordinary. But for him, nothing ever felt ordinary when she was near.
By the time they arrived, the fort was bathed in the last glow of sunlight. The pink walls seemed alive under the dying gold, and the air smelled faintly of rain that hadn't yet fallen.
Everyone stepped out - chattering, stretching, clicking pictures.
But Shivansh wasn't seeing the fort. His gaze followed only her.
Isha was laughing - her head thrown back, her hand brushing her hair away as Luka said something that made her giggle again. She looked... light. Unburdened. Like the Isha she had been years ago, before the chaos, before the hurt.
For a moment, Shivansh thought this must be heaven. Because peace - real, wordless peace - was seeing her like that. Smiling without restraint. Breathing freely.
He had forgotten what that looked like.
But the spell broke when her eyes accidentally met Dhruv's. The smile on her face faltered, the laughter vanished.
Dhruv was still angry. It lingered in his expression, in the way he avoided her gaze.
And just like that, the air changed. Isha's shoulders tensed, and she slowly walked toward him, her fingers nervously clutching the hem of her kurta.
"Dhruv bhaiyuu," she said softly, "don't be like this."
He didn't answer. Just looked away, pretending to adjust his watch.
"I know I should have told you," she continued, her voice trembling a little, "but I didn't mean to hide it. I just... didn't know how to explain everything."
Still no response.
She sighed, stepping a little closer. "You're angry, and you have every right to be. But please, don't stay silent like this. Talk to me once - yell if you want, but talk."
The wind carried her words, fragile as glass. For a few seconds, only the distant hum of the city below filled the silence.
Finally, Dhruv turned to look at her - the anger in his eyes softening, even if only slightly. "You always say that," he said, his tone low. "But then you do it again."
Isha bit her lip, guilt flickering across her face. "I won't this time," she whispered. "I promise."
Behind them, Shivansh watched. Every word, every breath, every unspoken apology that passed between them - he saw it all.
And it burned.
Not with jealousy, but with the ache of someone who had no right to step in yet.
Ranveer leaned against the car beside him, arms folded. "You're going to explode if you keep watching like that," he muttered.
Shivansh didn't reply. His gaze was still fixed on her, the edges of his restraint fraying.
"I'm not watching," he said after a pause. "I'm remembering."
Ranveer raised an eyebrow. "Remembering what?"
Shivansh's jaw clenched. "What it felt like when she used to smile like that for me."
The sun slipped lower, painting the fort in amber and shadow. The evening stretched - laughter, pictures, stories echoing in the wind. Isha eventually rejoined everyone, sitting beside Ishika and prisha, trying to mask the storm in her chest.
But somewhere, between the laughter and the fading light, her gaze drifted again - to where Shivansh stood near the wall, half-shadowed, his eyes unreadable.
For a second - just a second - everything else went quiet.
And that was enough to set his heart on fire all over again.
Shivansh barely heard the conversations. He was somewhere else entirely - somewhere between the memory of her laugh and the silence of her absence. His gaze drifted toward the other car every few minutes, as if just catching a glimpse of her was enough to keep him anchored.
She was laughing - freely, carelessly - with Luka and Ishika, the wind tangling her hair, her face glowing in the fading light. For a moment, he thought he was looking at heaven. Because the peace that settled in him watching her smile felt too rare to belong to earth.
He hadn't seen her like that in years - unguarded, light. It twisted something inside him.
But then she looked at Dhruv.
And her smile faltered. Just like that - gone.
The air shifted. Dhruv's jaw was tight, his silence sharper than any argument. The space between them carried what words couldn't fix yet.
Isha sighed softly. She knew it was time.
She moved closer, whispering something, trying to coax him, to make him understand - "Don't be angry, please. I didn't hide it to hurt you. I just... I didn't know how to tell you."
Her voice was gentle, careful, pleading in a way that made Shivansh's chest ache from afar.
Dhruv looked away at first, stubborn. But Isha kept talking, small words, quiet smiles, that familiar persistence she had when she wanted to make peace.
And somewhere, in that tiny moment of her trying to mend what was broken, Shivansh saw everything - her kindness, her guilt, her heart that refused to give up on anyone.
And it made his decision even sharper.
He would tell her the truth.
All of it.
And this time, he wouldn't let her walk away.
Isha stood a little away from the group, her hair catching the wind. Luka was beside her, camera in hand, showing her something on the screen that made her laugh. That sound - the one he'd thought he'd forgotten - echoed through the wind, and Shivansh felt it all over again, right in his chest.
Ranveer stood quietly next to him, arms folded. Avyansh was beside them, leaning against the railing, watching the horizon without saying much.
Farther down, Arjun and Aarav were deep in some quiet conversation, the kind of talk that only brothers could have - half teasing, half protective. Aarav's voice was calm, grounded, while Arjun's laughter occasionally broke through like sunlight.
Ishika and prisha were sitting on the stone ledge, legs dangling, passing comments that made Isha laugh so hard she had to cover her mouth. It was the kind of laughter that carried freedom - and for a second, Shivansh almost forgot how much it hurt to see it.
Dhruv stood apart. Quiet. Watching. His expression unreadable. He didn't join their jokes, didn't even smile. Just kept his gaze fixed somewhere beyond the hills, pretending he wasn't listening to the sound of Isha's laughter echoing behind him.
Shivansh's eyes followed Luka again. The man was holding his phone in that casual, too-practiced way - and then he noticed it. Luka was clicking photos. Quietly. Every few seconds. Every time Isha smiled.
Something inside him twisted - sharp, hot, instant. His hands clenched, nails biting into his palm. Jealousy. That old, unwelcome ghost he thought he'd buried years ago. But this time it wasn't just jealousy - it was something deeper, rawer. Possessive.
He tore his gaze away, forcing himself to breathe. But then Luka leaned closer to show Isha something on the screen, and she laughed again - and it burned all over.
Aviyansh, meanwhile, had turned his phone toward ishika snapping quick photos of her without her noticing. The look in his eyes was soft, quiet, almost reverent - as if he was afraid the moment would dissolve if he blinked. He hadn't seen her this carefree in years either.
Time felt slower here. The sun was sinking, the horizon melting into amber. The air smelled faintly of earth and wind and that strange sweetness Jaipur always carried at dusk.
Ranveer said nothing. He didn't have to. His eyes were watching everyone - calm, assessing, knowing too much without speaking. He saw the tension in Shivansh's shoulders, the jealousy simmering under his silence, the way his gaze never left Isha even for a second.
He also saw Aviyansh's quiet eyes - the younger one, whose silence wasn't just observation but understanding. Because maybe, once, he had gone through the same ache - watching love slip away and not knowing how to breathe without it.
The sun finally touched the edge of the hills. Isha turned back once, catching a glimpse of them all together - her friends, her brothers, her old ghosts and new peace. For a moment, she smiled - small, but real.
And for Shivansh, that one smile was enough to rewrite his entire evening.
He had thought watching her laugh with someone else would destroy him, but instead, it reminded him why he had fallen in love with her in the first place - because she carried light even in the ruins he had left behind.
The last ray of sun disappeared, leaving behind that brief, trembling gold that only lasted a few seconds before darkness took over.
And in that moment, he decided.
He wasn't going to let another sunset pass like this - with words buried, and silence pretending to be peace.
The sun had begun to dip lower now, flanked by old sandstone walls, bougainvillea spilling over the edges in bright pink waves.
The air felt different here - lighter, scented faintly with the warmth of the evening and the distant smoke of street stalls. Laughter trailed from the first car, spilling out even before the doors opened.
Arjun was the first to step out, already stretching his arms like he had run a marathon. "Finally!" he said dramatically. "If I had to sit another minute between Dhruv's silence and Ishika di's bad singing, I would have jumped out."
"Excuse me!" Ishika shot back instantly. "At least I can sing. You just make sounds."
Prisha laughed from behind her, looping her arm through Ishika's. "He's just jealous because his voice cracks like a teenage boy every time he sings."
Arav, standing beside the car, raised a brow. "You mean to say he can sing?"
Everyone laughed, and Arjun pretended to be offended, clutching his chest. "You people have no appreciation for raw talent."
"Raw talent?" Isha teased, finally walking up. "If by raw you mean unprocessed noise, then yes, we completely agree."
The group erupted again, the tension of the long drive dissolving into easy laughter.
Even Dhruv's lips twitched faintly, though his eyes still avoided Isha's for a second too long. She noticed but said nothing - not yet.
They walked toward the open terrace cafƩ perched on the edge of a small fort - "Hawa Mahal Viewpoint," the signboard read, though everyone called it The Fort CafƩ. It overlooked the whole city. Below, Jaipur glimmered like gold dust scattered under the evening sky.
Tables lined the railing, strings of fairy lights hanging above like a net of stars. A musician sat at one corner with a guitar, his low voice blending with the wind.
It was almost too beautiful - the kind of place where time slowed down and memories quietly anchored themselves.
Isha took it all in, breathing out softly. "It's beautiful," she said.
"It's Jaipur," Prisha replied, bumping her shoulder lightly. "Everything here looks like a painting."
"Except you when you cry," Ishika added teasingly, earning a glare from Prisha and a laugh from everyone else.
Shivansh had arrived a few minutes later with Ranveer and Aviyansh. He didn't step forward immediately - he just stood near the car, his gaze finding her in the crowd without effort.
There she was - Isha - laughing with her friends, her hands gesturing wildly as she spoke, her hair flying loose in the wind. Luka stood beside her, smiling softly, but it didn't bother Shivansh as much as it once would have. Because the sound of her laugh drowned everything else.
He had forgotten what that laughter did to him. How it stitched him together and tore him apart at the same time.
Ranveer glanced at him knowingly. "You're staring again," he muttered.
Shivansh didn't deny it. "She's happy," he said quietly.
Ranveer hummed. "Then don't ruin it. At least not yet."
"I won't," Shivansh replied, though the words tasted like restraint. "But I will remind her what that happiness once felt like with me."
At the table, the banter had only grown louder.
Prisha was pretending to be offended about something Arav had said. "I am not clumsy!" she said, crossing her arms.
Arav leaned back, smirking. "You literally tripped over a carpet that wasn't even there, Prish."
"That was the wind!" she argued, and Ishika burst into laughter.
"The wind made you fall? What is this, a romantic music video?"
Isha chuckled, shaking her head. "Next thing we know, she'll blame gravity."
"I will!" Prisha snapped playfully, then leaned toward Isha, whispering loudly, "You're supposed to be on my side."
"Sorry," Isha said between laughs. "But it's hard to defend someone who fought the floor and lost."
Everyone laughed again, and for a few minutes, the air was filled with warmth - no pain, no past, just that easy rhythm of friendship that made everything else fade away.
Across the table, Aviyansh wasn't laughing as much.
He was watching Ishika - quietly, almost shyly. She was sitting beside Arjun, arguing over something ridiculous, her hair catching the soft glow of the fairy lights. Every time she laughed, his eyes softened. Every time she spoke, he looked like he was memorizing her voice.
Ranveer noticed but said nothing. There were some things that didn't need to be spoken - they just existed, unannounced but undeniable.
Aviyansh's fingers tapped lightly on the table, but his gaze never drifted. And when Ishika turned suddenly, catching him looking, he looked away, pretending to study the view. She smiled faintly, a blush threatening to rise, but she covered it with another sip of her drink.
It was all so subtle - that quiet dance between them, the kind that didn't need words.
For a while, everything was laughter and stories. Arjun exaggerated some incident from college. Prisha rolled her eyes dramatically. Ishika and Isha laughed so hard they could barely breathe.
Even Dhruv, after a point, gave in and smiled when Isha accidentally spilled juice on his sleeve. She gasped, apologizing immediately, but he just sighed and shook his head. "You haven't changed," he said, half-scolding, half-fond.
Isha's smile returned, small but real. "Then forgive me like you always do."
Dhruv looked away, his silence softening.
And Shivansh saw it all - every flicker of her expression, every piece of her that used to belong to his world. The way she talked to Dhruv with guilt in her voice, the way she teased her friends, the way she laughed again as if life had finally loosened its hold.
He didn't join the table; he stayed back for a moment, watching from a distance. The wind caught the sound of her laughter and carried it to him, and something inside him clenched.
She was free here - happy, glowing, alive.
And still, he could feel that invisible thread pulling between them.
Because the fire wasn't gone. It had only been waiting.
The night was calm, draped in that soft Jaipur glow that seemed to make everything more golden than it really was.
By the time they reached the hotel, everyone's stomachs had begun to growl louder than their laughter.
"I swear," Prisha said dramatically as she jumped out of the car, "if I don't get food in the next five minutes, I'll faint right here in front of the valet and haunt this hotel forever."
"Please do," Arav teased, on the table. "At least that way, the ghosts will have someone to argue with."
Prisha glared at him. "Keep talking, Arav. I'll make sure you don't get dessert tonight."
"Dessert?" Arav raised a brow, smirking. "So you're planning to share?"
Ishika groaned, tugging Isha's arm. "Can we please order food before they start flirting in the cafe. "
Isha laughed, the sound so easy and unguarded that for a second, Shivansh forgot how to breathe.
She looked so alive under the dim hotel lights - hair falling over her face, eyes bright, her laugh echoing against the marble walls as they sitting on the chair
Ranveer booked a table at the corner, overlooking the city through a wide glass wall. The lights below looked like fallen stars, and a soft instrumental filled the air.
As soon as they sat down, Luka leaned toward Isha. "You're the one who said you were starving. So, Miss Organizer, what's the royal order tonight?"
Isha tilted her head, pretending to think. "Hmm, something light. Maybe soup, salad-"
Prisha interrupted with a gasp. "Excuse me? Salad? You brought me all the way here to eat leaves?"
Ishika laughed. "You don't even look at salad without insulting it first."
"Because I respect myself," Prisha declared. "And self-respect starts with paneers."
Everyone burst out laughing, even Arav, who leaned closer just to whisper, "So you'll eat my fries too?"
"Obviously," she shot back, "I'm a giver."
At the other end of the table, Aviyansh was quiet, watching Ishika from across the plates. Every time she smiled, his fingers drummed nervously against the tablecloth. He wasn't subtle - not even close - but no one teased him for it yet. Not tonight.
Shivansh sat beside Ranveer, his eyes constantly drifting toward Isha. He told himself he was just observing - that he needed to understand her again, to read the small shifts in her expressions - but the truth was simpler. He couldn't stop looking.
Luka reached for the bread basket first, tore a piece, and without thinking, held it up to Isha.
"Here," he said casually, "you didn't eat since afternoon."
Isha blinked, startled. "I can take it myself-"
But Luka smiled, leaning closer. "Just one bite. You'll thank me later."
She rolled her eyes but took it anyway, a quiet laugh slipping past her lips.
And that single, harmless moment hit Shivansh harder than anything Ranveer had ever said.
His fingers clenched around his fork. He didn't speak, didn't even let his expression shift, but something sharp and hot coiled inside his chest.
Ranveer noticed. He leaned sideways slightly, muttering under his breath, "Relax. It's bread, not a proposal."
Shivansh's jaw tightened. "It's not about bread."
"Then what is it about?" Ranveer asked, though he already knew the answer.
Shivansh didn't reply. He only looked at her - the way she smiled at Luka, the way she tilted her head when she laughed, the way she didn't look back at him even once.
It was punishment wrapped in politeness.
Across the table, Dhruv was unusually quiet. He stirred his drink absent-mindedly, his expression unreadable. Arav nudged him once, trying to pull him into the banter, but Dhruv just gave a faint smile. He was watching too - watching how fragile peace could be, how easily laughter could hide unspoken storms.
"Isha, stop frowning at the menu," Prisha said suddenly. "Just pick something. You take longer than a bride choosing her lehenga."
"I'm not frowning," Isha protested.
"Yes, you are," Ishika joined in, teasing. "You always do that thing with your nose when you're thinking."
Isha made a face. "I don't!"
"You do," Luka said with a grin, "and it's adorable."
Shivansh's fork hit his plate a little louder than necessary. The sound made Ishika glance his way, then exchange a quiet look with Aviansh - the kind of look that said, here we go again.
"Alright, everyone," Ranveer said, trying to lighten the moment. "Let's order before we all die of emotional tension."
The waiter arrived, and chaos followed. Everyone talked at once - Prisha demanding extra cheese, Ishika changing her order twice, Arav asking if they had spicy food. Isha tried to calm them, laughing helplessly.
When the food finally came, plates filled the table - pastas, naans, butter paneer Marsala, dal makhni, salad everything at once.
"Okay, this is heaven," Prisha said, digging in.
Ishika nodded, mouth full. "You're not supposed to talk with food-"
"Then you'll never hear my compliments!" Prisha retorted.
Laughter spilled around again, loud and genuine. Even Shivansh smiled faintly this time, though it didn't reach his eyes. He caught himself watching the small moments - how Isha leaned forward to listen, how she stole naan from Luka's plate, how her shoulders relaxed when everyone laughed.
But every smile she gave Luka felt like a slow dagger twisting deeper.
Ranveer poured himself a drink and murmured under his breath, "You're staring again."
"I'm allowed to look," Shivansh replied quietly. "I lost the right to touch, not to see."
Ranveer sighed, leaning back. "You're going to drive yourself insane before dessert."
"Too late for that," Shivansh said.
Across the table, Aviyansh finally spoke, half-teasing Ishika. "You've been ignoring me all evening."
"I've been ignoring everyone," she said with a smirk. "Don't take it personally."
"I always take you personally," he said softly.
That made her pause - just for a heartbeat - before she turned away, pretending to focus on Prisha's joke. But Aviansh saw the faint blush that crept up her neck.
"Stop looking at me like that," she murmured.
"Like what?" he asked, smiling.
"Like you're waiting for me to change my mind."
"Maybe I am," he said.
The table had become a world of small moments - jokes, glances, secret tensions no one else noticed.
And in the middle of it, Isha laughed again. That laugh - the same one Shivansh used to chase in another lifetime.
He watched her, every detail memorized in the quiet ache behind his ribs.
She had no idea he was burning just a few seats away.
She had no idea that every smile she gave someone else was a reminder of what he had thrown away.
But for now, he stayed silent.
Just a man among friends, nursing his guilt with patience and the kind of love that didn't know how to die.
No one at that table knew how much the night would change them - how close they were to the truth, to the storm waiting just outside the walls of that hotel.
For now, there was only laughter, half-empty glasses, and the fragile illusion that everything was still fine.
They had finished dinner later than expected - laughter spilling between bites, conversations layering over one another like music.
When the waiter arrived with the dessert menu, Isha looked at it once, then shook her head with a small smile.
"I don't want anything heavy," she said, "I want ice cream."
The table went quiet for a second - then Ishika leaned in, eyes wide. "Ice cream? After a royal dinner? Seriously, Ishu?"
Isha just grinned. "Exactly after a royal dinner. It balances life."
Prisha laughed so loudly that Arav nearly dropped his spoon. "Of course, it does! That's our Isha - who needs logic when she has cravings?"
Everyone joined in, one after another. Arav rolled his eyes with exaggerated fondness and said, "Fine, if the queen wants ice cream, the kingdom shall obey."
"Thank you, Your Majesty," Isha said dramatically, bowing slightly.
"Let's go to Iceberg," Ishika suggested, clapping her hands. "They have the best waffle cones!"
"Done," Aviyansh said instantly, his voice too casual to hide the way his eyes followed Ishika when she stood up. He didn't say anything else, but the quiet ache in his gaze said enough.
They all decided together - skipping dessert, skipping plans - just to chase ice cream.
The night air outside Jaipur was soft and alive. The city glowed like molten gold against the dark sky, and the roads ahead twisted in ribbons of light. They drove to Iceberg, all cars filled with chatter, music, and small bursts of laughter that made time blur.
By the time they reached, the place buzzed with the scent of vanilla and roasted nuts. Everyone scattered near the counter - one arguing for chocolate, another tasting mango, someone else fighting over waffle or cup.
"I want mint choco chip!" Isha declared, eyes gleaming.
"Of course, the weirdest flavor possible," Ishika teased.
"Excuse me," Isha said with mock pride, "mint is elite."
"Elite and toothpaste are not the same thing," Prisha said, pretending to gag, and Arav laughed so hard that even the servers smiled.
For a while, the world felt small and kind again - like nothing could touch them outside that bubble of melting scoops and clinking laughter.
After buying their ice creams, they decided to drive further uphill - to the place locals called Paris Point, a railing near Nahargarh that showed the whole city stretched out below. From there, Jaipur looked like a scatter of diamonds, each light flickering like a heartbeat.
Everyone found their own spot.
Prisha and Arav leaned against the railing, quietly sharing one cone between jokes and little shoulder bumps.
Ishika sat nearby, swinging her legs over the stone edge, teasing prisha about "finally finding a man who can tolerate her shopping addiction." Ishika threw a tissue at her, laughing.
Aviyansh stood a few steps away, pretending to look at the city - but his eyes kept drifting toward Ishika. Every time she laughed, his jaw tightened a little more. It wasn't bitterness - just that quiet, aching wish of someone who loved too late.
Dhruv and Arjun were on the other side, arguing about which view looked better for pictures. Their banter was loud enough to draw attention, and even Isha smiled softly at their voices.
She was standing a little apart - ice cream in hand, eyes fixed on the glittering city below.
Maybe it was the calm after too many restless nights. Maybe it was the wind brushing her hair back or the way the lights blinked like promises she didn't believe in anymore. Whatever it was, she felt peaceful for the first time in days.
She didn't say anything. She didn't need to.
And behind her, Luka stood - quiet, close enough that she could feel the warmth of his breath whenever the wind shifted. He didn't touch her, didn't speak. But his presence was steady, familiar, like a shadow that refused to leave.
She knew he was there.
He knew she knew.
That was enough.
A few steps away, Shivansh stood beside Ranveer and Avyansh, but his eyes - they were elsewhere. They never left her.
Every time she laughed at something Luka said, he felt that slow, hollow twist inside his chest.
And yet, her laughter also filled the empty space inside him.
She was radiant under the city lights - hair messy from the wind, the corners of her eyes soft with warmth. He couldn't remember when he had last seen her like this.
Ranveer noticed the stillness beside him and nudged his shoulder. "If you're going to keep staring, at least go talk to her," he said quietly.
Shivansh didn't answer.
Ranveer sighed, "Fine, I'll distract Luka. You'll have five minutes. Say whatever you need to."
Before Shivansh could respond, Ranveer called out, "Hey Luka! Come here, man - come see this angle for photos."
Luka hesitated but eventually walked toward him. Shivansh watched his chance appear like a small crack in the wall that had been suffocating him.
He took a step forward.
Another.
The air seemed to grow thinner with each one.
Isha was still looking at the city - ice cream half melted, her lips curved in a faint, thoughtful smile.
But just as he reached closer, her phone rang.
She frowned and glanced at the screen - it was Alessandro. Luka's brother.
"Hello?" she answered, stepping slightly aside. Her tone shifted - polite, formal at first, then surprise broke through.
"Tomorrow?" she repeated softly.
Her brows drew together. "So soon?"
Shivansh froze mid-step, the words pricking his chest like needles.
"Yes, yes, that's fine," Isha said after a pause. "I'll tell everyone. Tomorrow afternoon, then."
She nodded to herself, then hung up slowly. Her eyes flickered toward Luka across the railing, and then at the phone again, as if she couldn't quite believe what she'd heard.
Alessandro and Meher - Luka's brother and sister-in-law - were coming tomorrow.
Because the engagement couldn't wait any longer.
It would happen tomorrow night.
The phone slipped slightly in her hand, and for a second, she just stared at the city lights that no longer looked so beautiful.
She turned toward the group, her face unreadable.
Shivansh's breath caught.
He already knew something had changed.
The world beneath them sparkled, the laughter around them continued, but between Isha and Shivansh - something heavy had settled in the air.
Tomorrow, she would belong to someone else.
And tonight - was the last night he still had the right to speak her name.
----------------------------------------------------------------
How was the Chapter??
Aage kya hoga? Hmm?
Share your thoughts and don't forget to click on the star button below.
And follow me on Instagram for spoilers.
šlink in bio.
Love you all, bye
Ishš