A week had passed since the baby shower and Aakash and Meenakshi were back in the comfort of their own home, basking in a quiet, happy routine.
Her parents visited frequently, though they only stayed for a few hours at a time. To ensure Meenakshi was never alone, Aakash paid their housekeeper, Sarala, extra to stay until he returned from the office. Even then, he was a constant presence via phone, calling throughout the day to ensure she was eating well and taking her medicines on time.
Aakash’s colleagues had also become a pillar of support. Over the months, professional ties had blossomed into genuine friendships. Their wives frequently sent over homemade sweets and special dishes to satisfy Meenakshi’s pregnancy cravings. Aakash felt profoundly lucky. Meenakshi was the angel of his life, a source of light that had transformed his world for the better in every possible way.
One evening, Aakash arrived home to find Meenakshi relaxing in front of the TV. Sarala, the kind, elderly woman emerged from the kitchen with two steaming cups of coffee.
“Did you have your coffee yet, Sarala Akka?” Aakash asked as he settled onto the sofa beside his wife.
“Yes, Aakash sir. Dinner is ready and waiting for you both. I’ll take my leave now, but call me if you need me to come in earlier than usual tomorrow,” Sarala said warmly before heading out.
After a quiet dinner, the couple retired to their bedroom. Aakash was gently massaging Meenakshi’s legs and the two of them lost in peaceful conversation, when his phone began to vibrate.
“Who could be calling this late?” he mumbled. He checked the screen and seeing his father’s name, he showed it to Meenakshi before answering.
“Hello, Appa? Is everything okay?” Aakash asked and his voice was laced with instant concern.
“Aakash… I’m fine, but Lavanya went to meet a friend this afternoon and she isn’t back yet. Her phone is switched off. I know it’s late, but can you please come over?” Balaram’s voice sounded thin and strained.
“I’m coming right now,” Aakash promised and hung up immediately.
As he explained the situation, Meenakshi instinctively started to get out of bed to join him, but Aakash gently stopped her. “No, Meena. You need your rest. I’ll call Hema and Vishnu to come over and stay with you until I’m back. I’ll call you the moment I get there and keep you updated.”
After ensuring Hema and Vishnu were on their way, Aakash locked up and drove toward his father’s house. His mind raced with frantic, worst-case scenarios and he prayed silently for Lavanya’s safety.
When he arrived, the house was in a state of controlled panic. Balaram was pacing, desperately calling Lavanya’s friends one by one.
“Aakash, she’s missing. We have to go to the police station and file a complaint immediately,” Padma cried, her face stained with tears.
Just then, Rajesh entered, looking grim and he shook his head. “I checked all the places she usual visits. Her friends haven’t seen her since their exams ended.” he said sighing defeatedly.
Balaram and Padma exchanged a look of pure shock. “She wasn’t with her friends? Then where has she been going all this time?” Balaram asked and his voice trembled with fury.
Aakash ruffled his hair in sheer frustration. “Enough talks. Let’s go to the station,” he said, heading for the door with Balaram and Rajesh trailing behind.
They barely made it to the gate before they froze. A car had just pulled up into the driveway. The door opened and Lavanya stepped out followed by an unfamiliar family who looked just as solemn as the group standing on the doorstep.
Lavanya stepped into the light, tightly holding the hand of the man standing beside her. Padma let out a sharp gasp at the sight and a heavy silence fell over the group as they retreated back inside with the unfamiliar family following closely behind. Rajesh closed the door and stood by it, watching the unfolding drama with a wary eye.
“Lavanya, what is the meaning of this? Where were you and who are these people?” Padma asked and her voice trembled as if she was trying to deny the obvious. Meanwhile, Balaram and Aakash stood like statues, fuming with silent rage.
The older man from the other family stepped forward. “This is my son, Charan. Today, he brought your daughter home and claimed they are in love. It was our daughter’s birthday and we had friends and relatives over. Now, everyone knows about them. They could have handled this with some dignity, but it seems they chose the most scandalous way possible.” he said through clenched teeth.
Balaram clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white. The sting of public humiliation was hitting him for the second time and the shame felt unbearable.
“We had no idea. What is it you expect from us now?” Balaram asked in a calm voice.
“I am a businessman, I will not have my reputation dragged through the mud for any reason. The only solution is to get them married so they can live their own lives” Charan’s father said coldly.
” However, I have a daughter of my own and I don’t trust a girl who behaves like this. I won’t have her living under my roof. I will fulfill my responsibility by seeing them married at the earliest. I don’t want them showing up on my doorstep months from now saying they are expecting a child.” he added, looking at Lavanya with disdain
“My daughter isn’t like that. We didn’t raise her to be…” Padma started but Charan’s mother cut her off with a mocking sneer. “And yet, here she is, a girl who wasn’t ashamed to crash a family celebration to force our hand. I don’t care how you raised her. Just ensure the wedding happens within the month or we will disown Charan entirely and your daughter can have him for herself. We will send you the venue and date. Be prepared.” she said with an authority and without another word, the couple turned and walked out.
Charan lingered for a moment, looking guiltily at Balaram. “I’m sorry, Uncle. Please forgive me. I didn’t want to rush this but Lavanya was so stressed about our future. She was terrified I might leave her. Please… don’t be harsh with her.” He then turned and hurried after his parents.
The moment the door clicked shut, Padma whirled around and delivered a stinging slap to Lavanya’s face. As she raised her hand to strike again, Balaram caught her arm, only to swing around and slap Padma instead.
“This is your fault. If you had listened to me, none of this would have happened. You spoiled Rajesh and you spoiled this brat. Look what they’ve done to this family. You all ignored me and never listened to my words just because I wasn’t earning and providing for this family ” Balaram thundered and his voice shook the room.
Lavanya collapsed to the floor, sobbing and clutching her burning cheek.
“She just finished college. What was the hurry to get married? Did I not tell her to focus on a career first?” Balaram shouted.
Aakash remained silent but his jaw was clenched so tight. He watched the scene with a cold, piercing clarity, seeing through the web of lies and manipulation.
“A month…? How are we supposed to organize a wedding in a month?” Balaram groaned, dropping onto the sofa and burying his face in his hands
Padma, now weeping alongside her daughter, suddenly turned her frustration back on Lavanya, hitting her shoulders. “We trusted you. We gave you everything and you brought shame on us just like that idiot brother of yours. Why? You could have talked to us. We could have approached them properly ” she said crying.
“Appa wanted to marry me off into a poor family. I was scared and I thought he would actually do it “, Lavanya shrieked through her tears, finally finding her voice.
The room fell into a tense, vibrating silence. Desperate and looking for a lifeline, Padma reached out and grabbed Aakash’s hand.
“Aakash… please. What should we do now?” she asked desperately.
Aakash gently removed his hand from Padma’s grip and stepped toward Lavanya, looming over her. The air grew heavy with a sudden, chilling calm.
“You planned every bit of this, didn’t you?” he asked and the room fell into a stunned silence.
“You saw me spending money on my wife. You saw that I chose to keep Meena with me and provide for her instead of sending her away with her parents. You could have waited a few years, but you were terrified I would spend all the savings and leave you with nothing. So, you fast-tracked this plan to force my hand. You want me to spend my savings on your wedding right now instead of on my wife and my baby. This is all just a calculated move to secure your own life at the expense of mine, am I right?” Aakash spat the words with such visceral disgust that even Rajesh flinched.
“Aakash, how can you speak to her like that? She is your sister. She would never think such dark thoughts.” Padma cried, stepping to Lavanya’s side.
“Stop supporting them. I know them better than you do. They won’t change and neither will you. All of you keep proving that your own happiness is the only thing that matters. You don’t give a damn what happens to me or my wife.” Aakash roared, his composure finally snapping.
“Aakash, You don’t have to carry this burden anymore. Go back to Meenakshi. Look after your family. These three don’t deserve your kindness, they don’t even deserve your time.” Balaram intervened, his voice was weary but firm.
Padma shook her head frantically and grabbed Aakash’s hand again. “Aakash, please! Forgive us. You important to me as Rajesh and Lavanya. Please help her… she is your sister. Don’t abandon her. I would rather die than see her suffer.” She moved as if to touch his feet in a desperate plea but Aakash recoiled as if burned.
“Stop lying that you care for me. I’m leaving. I left my wife alone in the middle of the night for this. It was an absolute waste of time.” he said in a voice cold and hollow.
He turned and walked toward the door. Padma screamed his name, trying to follow, but Balaram caught her by the arm and dragged her back into the hall. He raised his hand as if to strike her, but stopped, instead settling for a look of pure loathing.
“How low will you stoop? How long do you intend to torture my son? You have lived off his blood and sweat for years. He is finally trying to build a life, his wife is about to deliver any day and here you are, destroying his peace when he should be happy. You couldn’t even give him that.” Balaram thundered at his wife and daughter.
He turned a deadly glare on Lavanya. “I don’t care what happens to you anymore. You couldn’t have waited even a month? Do you feel an ounce of pity for that man? He has been more of a father to you than I ever was and this is how you repay him? You have erased every bit of love he had left for you. You have lost him forever.”
Balaram’s voice cracked and he collapsed onto the sofa, his body shook with jagged sobs. He wiped his tears aggressively and stood up.
“Be ready to leave this house. I won’t let my son suffer another second for this selfish girl. I’m selling this house. I’ll give fifty percent to Aakash and the rest will be split between you three. Do whatever you want with it. Get married, go party with friends, I don’t care. I’m calling the real estate agent in the morning.” he declared.
Padma went pale. “What are you saying? This is our home. Where would we go?”
“I’ll go to Kasi or Rameshwaram. And you? You can go beg at the temples for all I care. This is what you deserve for discriminating against your own children. This is the price for abusing a soul as kind as Meenakshi. What goes around comes around, Padma. Aakash and Meenakshi were the ones who kept this house running and you drove them out.” Balaram deadpanned.
He turned his back on them and walked into the room that had once belonged to Aakash and Meenakshi and slammed the door.
When Aakash arrived home, he found Vishnu, Hema and Meenakshi in the hall. They were watching a movie, but Meenakshi was visibly tense. The moment she saw him, her shoulders dropped with relief.
Aakash gave them a weary smile and explained everything that had transpired. Meenakshi noticed the way his jaw remained tight with tension and squeezed his hand gently.
“You both should rest. Discuss everything in the morning when you are both calm. We’ll head out now.” Vishnu said, standing up.
After they left, Aakash refreshed himself and joined Meenakshi in bed. She rested her head on his chest and he sighed, his fingers traced patterns in her hair.
“What do we do now?” she asked softly.
“She thought I would spend her marriage fund on you, so she staged a crisis to lock it down. I would have helped her regardless when the time came, but this… this was a betrayal. I’ll give the money to Appa and let them deal with it. But I’m done, Meena. I don’t want any relationship with them anymore, except for my father ” Aakash said, his voice thick with hurt.
Meenakshi simply nodded against his chest and held him tighter. She knew that this time, the bridge hadn’t just been burned, it had been turned to ash.
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A/N:
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