Vaishu sat cross-legged. The moment she rested her forearm on the chair’s armrest and placed her palm on the table, the entire aura in the room shifted. It was as if she had donned armor for battle and her smirk confirmed it.
“So you think our daughter is a failure, and you’re here to ‘save’ her—or to offer her a life out of pity? Fine, Mrs. Giridharan. If that’s the case, I’m sure you’ve planned everything. Tell us, what is your demand for the wedding in return?” Vaishu asked, her fingers drumming lightly against the table. Rey’s chest swelled with pride watching her, admiring the powerful presence she radiated and the way she intimidated everyone in the room.
Ishaan sat upright beside his mother, eyes fixed on the old woman. He watched them like a hawk watching its prey, elbow on the armrest, waiting for her to state her terms. His hands itched to pull the gun from his waistband and end this then and there, but Vaishu lightly patted his arm—a gesture the old woman did not miss.
“You see, we are family,” Mrs. Giridharan began calmly. “Pari is the only daughter of Mr. Mithun and Kajal—the granddaughter of ex- Central Minister, the powerful spokesman of the ruling party and the goddaughter of Reyansh Badrinath and Central Minister Vaishnavi. So why would I demand anything? I only have one request. I heard from Varun that Pari has been under a lot of stress recently. He and Pari haven’t been together for the past two weeks. I believe stress could have contributed to her condition today, and I don’t think she should continue to shoulder the business going forward. We don’t want her to fall ill; we want her to be happy. It would be better if, after the wedding, Varun took over the role of partner in Rey’s business. If you have doubts, let him work for a probationary period and once you’re satisfied, you can let him run the business. He is efficient, Pari chose him, she trusts him, and he loves her.”
Ishaan let out a short, humorless chuckle and rose to his feet, hands sliding into his pockets.
“Quite interesting. We thought the same and had a discussion last night. Everyone in our family felt that Pari shouldn’t be working—at least not for a while and Pari was more than happy to stay home while she recovers,” Ishaan said and he was about to continue when Varun cut in, smiling at Mithun.
“It’s good Pari has decided that. So let’s plan the wedding, and I can take over Rey’s business with Ayaan. I should meet Pari immediately, she’ll be happy to know we’ll be married very soon.”
He was about to leave the room when Mithun’s voice stopped him.
“Varun, Ishaan hasn’t finished yet. You rushed to a decision already? Sit down and hear him completely.”
Varun froze, embarrassed, and slowly sat back down, turning his attention toward Ishaan, who wore a knowing smirk.
“Pari agreed to step down from being one of the partners in Rey’s business and gave up all her rights to Ayaan. The papers were signed last night. From now, Ayaan is the sole heir to Rey’s business. And Pari also felt Varun should be available anytime for her. With the new collaboration, I don’t think Varun would be able to spend enough time with her, so I cancelled the project between us.”
Varun and his family were stunned. He slammed his palm against the table.
“How could you cancel the collaboration on your own? We signed an agreement, it requires both parties to end it. I know you’ve hated me ever since Pari chose me over you. Please don’t ruin our lives”
Ishaan shook his head, walked around the table, and casually draped his arm over Ayaan’s shoulders.
“Pari is my family. I would split the sky and crush the earth to protect my family, so whom she chose doesn’t matter to me. And about the collaboration, there was a clause in the agreement that said the deal becomes void if either of us signs a new project before completing ours. Yesterday, before you returned to Chennai, you signed a new project in Bangalore.”
Varun and his family clenched their jaws, on the verge of exploding, but restrained themselves.
Reyansh rose to his feet and checked the time on his wristwatch.
“Alright. Now it’s clear, Ayaan will run the business, and Pari will stay home. You wanted the wedding to happen soon, so let me discuss it with my family, especially with Pari. We’ll let you know.”
Reyansh looked at Mithun, who simply shrugged and flashed a smile at Varun and his family as they left the room. Varun ground his teeth when he caught sight of the gun at Ishaan’s waistband.
Back in Pari’s room, she found her mother restless and took her hand.
“Mom, please tell me about that old lady. What does she have to do with our family?” Pari asked.
“She’s the mother of that monster Rey killed for Vaishu, the same man my wedding was once arranged with. She’s the mother of the woman who was hell-bent on ruining Rey and Vaishu. Her husband, Mr. Giridharan, worked as a finance analyst in your grandpa’s office when he was Finance Minister. Rey and Mithun destroyed that entire family… everyone except this old witch. They should have finished her too,” Kajal said, and Pari flinched at the words.
“You mean she’s back for revenge?” Pari whispered.
Kajal hummed and fell into thought.
Ishaan passed the gun to Ayaan before entering Pari’s room. Pari raised an eyebrow at him, and he caught the frown on her face, he knew Kajal must have told her everything. To ease the tension, he winked and flopped onto the couch with Ayaan beside him.
“Tell me, what happened? What did she say to you all?” Pari asked, looking from one family member to another.
“Varun wanted to be a partner in Rey’s business and insisted on an immediate wedding,” Mithun explained. “Ishaan said you gave up your rights to Ayaan, and he even cancelled the collaboration with Varun because you’d need Varun to take care of you.”
Pari leapt off the bed, fury in her eyes. “How dare he? The bastard won’t get to work in Rey’s business. I will kill him today.”
She pushed toward the door, and Ishaan sprang to his feet, catching her by the waist and pulling her back.
“My feisty cat, hold on. Did you forget you are a patient now?” he spoke softly in her ear and pulled her back to bed. He offered her water, but she refused and huffed in annoyance.
“Pari, are you angry? Bro, why do these girls look even cuter when they’re angry?” Ayaan teased, trying to lighten her mood.
Pari immediately rushed to him and began pulling his hair. Ishaan only watched, amused, as the two fought. With great difficulty, Ayaan freed himself and glared at Ishaan.
“You’re cruel. Why don’t you save me from your girlfriend? She ruined my hairstyle, and Zara hates messy hair” Ayaan huffed while quickly fixing his hair.
“Hey mister, I’m not his girlfriend. He never asked me to be his girlfriend,” Pari retorted, and Ishaan chuckled at her words. Their parents were thoroughly enjoying the banter, and Pari once again ruined Ayaan’s hairstyle before returning to sit between Rey and Mithun.
“Daddy’s little princess, always hiding between them,” Ayaan scoffed, and Pari stuck her tongue out at him playfully.
Just then, they heard a knock on the door. Reyansh signaled Pari to get back into bed before his PA opened the door.
Varun and his family entered the room, and Mrs. Giridharan blessed Pari before handing her a gift box.
“Stay blessed, Pari. We shall meet soon. I’m sure your family has a lot to discuss with you. Think wisely and decide, Pari. This is your life, and I know you trust Varun. I wish you both a long life.”
Pari only nodded, and Varun stepped forward to stand beside Pari to hold her hand but Pari faked a cough and covered her mouth with a tissue.
” Pari, take care. Grandma is very tired so let me drive her back to home. She only wants us to be happy together. I know you will not give up on us. “
Pari simply nodded her head and Varun’s family left the hospital. The moment they were gone, she threw the gift aside and looked at Ishaan, who seemed tense while texting someone.
“Ayaan, call the PR team and have them ready. I’ve got my team set too,” Ishaan ordered.
Pari frowned, questioning the need for a PR team, but Ishaan only shrugged and asked the rest of the family to leave. Soon, only Ishaan and Ayaan stayed back with her. Ayaan was sprawled on the couch, casually chatting with Zara.
Ishaan was sitting on the bed, holding Pari, when his phone pinged with a notification. Both he and Ayaan immediately turned alert, and Ayaan switched on the TV. The breaking news about Pari being hospitalized, along with rumors about her fertility was going viral across every channel and social media platform.
Ishaan kicked the seat in frustration, then exhaled deeply before looking at Pari with a smile.
“Ready, baby?”
Pari nodded, though she had no idea what he was planning.
An hour later, a video featuring Pari and Ayaan was released nationwide by Vaishu’s NGO. It was a short but impactful clip spreading awareness about Endometriosis among young girls and women, highlighting how most dismiss its symptoms as just normal period pain. By the end of the video, Pari and Ayaan were seen thanking the crew, the doctor, and the NGO team. Pari looked radiant on-screen, with no trace of illness.
Meanwhile, Ishaan had already destroyed every hospital report and cleared all CCTV footage related to Pari’s stay.
A press note was then issued in the name of Pari and Ayaan, announcing that they would be filing a defamation case against all news channels responsible for spreading false information and causing severe damage to their reputation and business. Ishaan and Ayaan’s PR teams ensured the press release spread everywhere, while the awareness video went viral across the globe.
Ayaan glanced at Pari, who smiled, kissed his cheek, and affectionately ruffled his hair.
“My sweet brother has turned out to be a genius,” she said, just before Ishaan groaned and shoved Ayaan out of the room.
“Excuse me. You’re not supposed to throw out my sweetie. He’s such a cute boy” Pari protested, but Ishaan cupped her nape and kissed her deeply. Pari instantly wrapped her arms around his neck.
When they finally pulled apart, Ishaan traced her cheek with his knuckles.
“Let’s get back home. Do you remember, we have plans for the weekend? I want you all to myself. Just you and me away from this world.” Ishaan said.
Pari chuckled as he lifted her in bridal style, twirling her around the room. Just then, Ayaan entered and quickly snapped a photo of them. Pari waved at him playfully while Ishaan carried her to the couch and sat down with her beside him.
“We’ll wear masks and leave. Dad has already informed Varun that we released the video to stop the rumors. He’s also stopped Varun and his family from visiting the hospital, since their engagement was only a private family gathering without media. Dad made it clear that we don’t want any media attention around you or our family right now,” Ishaan explained.
Pari sighed in relief, happy she could finally look forward to the weekend.
Wearing masks, they stepped into the elevator. Instead of their usual vehicles, an Innova waited at the back entrance. Ishaan and Pari settled into the back seat while Ayaan took the passenger seat in front.
Soon, they arrived at Rey’s manor. Now that Ishaan and Pari were officially included in the family circle, Ishika and Adhvika immediately pulled Pari into their room for gossip, while Ishaan and Ayaan joined Reyansh and Mithun in the study for further planning.
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