Aakash froze in surprise when Abhi asked him about Purab.

"I think you should ask Bhabhi about that," he said slowly. He avoided Abhi's eyes, looking down at the stack of papers in his hands. They were meeting in one of the smaller sitting rooms in the house, which Aakash had turned into an office. Piles of documents occupied the marbled surface of an ornamental table, stacked all around Aakash's laptop and phone.

"But she wasn't there," Abhi insisted. He leaned forward, compelling Aakash to look at him. "I don't remember Pragya being there. How would she know?"

Aakash took a very long time to say anything. Abhi watched his face, wondering what made his cousin look so conflicted.

Clearly there was something Aakash didn't want to tell him. This hint of more secrets surrounding him frustrated Abhi. What could he have been up to in recent months that people couldn't just tell him about?

A restless tension churned in Abhi's veins, the echo of a foreboding chill that surged whenever he thought about the riddles of this life he had woken into. Too much about his current reality just didn't make sense.

He had always faced the world openly, khule aam (openly), without playing games. After losing his parents too early, all of his choices were driven by the conviction that life was too short not to be honest about who he was and what he wanted.

How had he wound up with these endless knots to untangle about his recent experiences? His life had become nearly unrecognisable. Losing just a few months of memories should not have made him feel like he was suddenly starring in someone else's story.

Aakash finally spoke, choosing his words carefully. "Bhai, the doctors said that one person should handle telling you emotionally-charged information. As you might guess, what happened between you and Purab was very emotional. It's better if Bhabhi tells you about it."

Abhi frowned. He did not remember Dr. Aman saying any such thing.

Why did all roads lead back to Pragya during his recovery process?

How could someone he had only met three months ago become the most important person in his life, displacing everyone else he knew?

Well, your wife is supposed to be the most important person in your life.

It was a logical thought. But it gave him no comfort, since he couldn't remember why he had chosen to get married in the first place.

"So you're saying Pragya knows why I fought with Purab, even though she wasn't there?" Abhi prompted Aakash. A sickening suspicion flared in his mind. "Does it involve her?"

The idea that he might have fought with Purab over Pragya made Abhi's gut sear with an ugly feeling. He couldn't imagine losing his best friend over a woman; he had been through too much with Purab, the brother of his heart, to let anyone come between them like that.

But somehow, it was even worse to think of Pragya having any personal history with Purab. It just felt wrong on every level. God, I hope that's not it.

Aakash quickly shook his head. Relief flooded Abhi's thoughts, driving back the tide of dread.

"You were angry with Purab because he decided he couldn't marry Aaliya. Bhabhi wasn't there, but she knows all about it. It's best if you discuss it with her."

Abhi sat back, stunned. Purab had broken his engagement to Aaliya?

Understanding slashed through his heart, a jagged grief abruptly making things click in his mind. The overwhelming sense of betrayal from his dream-memory now made sense.

He had wanted to unite Aaliya and Purab not just because he thought they would love each other, but also because he wanted to keep them both close to him for the rest of their lives. The commitment he had asked them to make to each other was a commitment to him, too. He never would have thought it possible for Purab to go back on a promise to him.

But...it didn't really explain why he would beat Purab so brutally. Even if he hadn't expected it, Abhi could understand that Purab was entitled to change his mind about marrying Aaliya. There was never supposed to be any compulsion behind the engagement. If they weren't both willing for the marriage, it simply didn't need to happen. Why would he thrash his best friend over that?

Purab had a good head on his shoulders. He must have had a good reason for his decision. If he didn't want to marry Aaliya, then he must have felt they weren't right for each other.

As much as Abhi had hoped that Purab would officially join his family, losing that hope did not seem reason enough to attack Purab so mercilessly. And to fire him as his manager on top of that, completely kicking him out of his life? It was an overreaction that didn't feel like something he would have willingly done.

Was that really all there was to the story? The uneasy inkling that Pragya was somehow involved jabbed at him again. Surely Purab had not been connected to Pragya in a romantic way. They were all wrong for each other! And Pragya had already given him her detailed relationship history, without any mention of Purab.

Unless she left him out on purpose?

Aakash held out a folder to him. "I have a contract for you to review. Do you feel up to looking it over?"

At the moment, all Abhi wanted was a real answer about his estrangement from Purab.

But Aakash was obviously uncomfortable with the subject and unwilling to say more. Abhi realized he would not get the answer he needed from Aakash.

And since he was clearly eager to do his new job as Abhi's manager, Abhi might as well pay proper attention. Accepting the folder, Abhi mentally boxed away the issue of Purab, promising himself that he would come back to it later.

Besides, maybe it will help if I have something to think about other than my damned lost memories.

"So you'll see on page two that they agreed to your bonus requirements, but..."

As Aakash summarized the contract for him, Abhi applied his focus to the document. Even if his personal life was a mess, at least he could get up to speed on his professional life and make sure everything was still ok with his career.

He was relieved to find that all parts of the contract made sense to him. He had not forgotten anything important on that front. He turned to the last page and found a concert schedule.

"These dates are for last week," Abhi noticed.

"Yes, they agreed to reschedule because of your injury. We actually need to get back to them about dates, do you have an idea of when you can perform?"

Abhi felt like he could get up in front of a crowd and sing that very moment. He really didn't feel impaired. "Why don't we make it next week? The doctor didn't say I can't work."

Aakash looked worried. "Isn't that too soon? We should do some rehearsals first, see how it goes and then decide."

Abhi chafed at the suggestion. It felt unnecessarily cautious. But, even if he was feeling fine, he had to admit he wasn't his normal self. He could see that Aakash had a point. "Yes -"

"And besides, you should talk it over with Bhabhi, she would know best," Aakash continued, once again demonstrating one hundred percent confidence in Pragya.

Does she have otherworldly powers to know everything under the sun?

Abhi wanted to be irritated, but mostly he was just mystified. He liked Pragya, but he didn't understand why people seemed to think she could do magic.

Aakash's phone rang. A girl's picture flashed across the screen as Aakash rushed to pick it up. To Abhi's surprise, Aakash declined the call and turned his phone face-down on the table.

"Girlfriend problems?" Abhi asked, curious. He hadn't thought of Aakash as being old enough to be involved with women. He was barely out of college, and until now Abhi had always seen him as a kid. Three months ago, Aakash had been peripheral in his life. Despite living in the same house, Abhi hadn't been close enough to him to keep up with his relationship status.

Aakash met his gaze, looking even more worried and conflicted than he had so far in their conversation.

"Yes...well..."

"Tell me," Abhi said, hoping he was sounding encouraging instead of demanding. Aakash looked stressed. "Is it something I knew about before?"

Aakash gave a curt nod. "Yes, but...I'm kind of ashamed to tell you this," Aakash said, and then looked surprised at his own words.

"No judgment," Abhi assured him, feeling more curious than ever. 

"There was...there is...I met a girl some months back, and we got married at a mandir, and now she's pregnant," Aakash said in a rush.

Abhi stared at him in amazement. "Your girlfriend is pregnant? If you're already married, why isn't she here?"

Aakash closed his eyes for a long moment, shaking his head slightly. "It's really messy, Bhai. She's not...my mom doesn't approve of her. Mummy tried to get me married to someone else. I even went along with it, to keep the peace. Luckily, it didn't work out."

Abhi wanted to ask what that meant, but Aakash continued his explanation.

"I just don't know what to do. I love Rachna, I want to be with her and our baby. But with my mom not approving, the whole situation feels impossible."

The image of a fair-skinned young woman flashed in Abhi's mind. A pregnant girl in a salwar suit, standing in the hospital hallway with Pragya's family. "Rachna, as in Pragya's neighbour?"

Aakash's gaze on him widened. "You remember her, Bhai?"

Abhi shook his head. "No, but I saw her with Pragya's family at the hospital. Pragya told me her name. She said that the father of her baby was not in the picture."

Aakash crimsoned in embarrassment. "Right. That would be me."

Abhi frowned, rapidly thinking over the situation. "I knew all of this before my accident, and I didn't help you? I didn't talk to your mother for you?"

Aakash blinked in surprise. "Well...you said I should listen to my elders. Mummy thinks Rachna is trying to trap me for money, so she won't accept our marriage."

"Aakash," Abhi said slowly, trying to measure his words because he didn't know if he was forgetting something that might change his opinion. But he had a gut feeling about all this, and the always trusted his gut when it came to important decisions.

He didn't see why this should be any different. "Listen, this is not about what your mom wants. Yes, it's important to respect your elders, but you are a grown man now and you have to live up to your responsibilities. If you love Rachna, you should bring her home and take care of her. And if you can't do that, you still need to be your baby's father and provide for them financially. You can't let your mom stop you."

A sea change swept Aakash's face. Hope transformed him, washing away the anxiety that had locked his features.

"So you think...you think I should just ignore Mummy, and bring Rachna here?"

"I think we should have a formal wedding, in front of her family and ours. And if you think it will help, I will talk to Taiji to make her understand."

Aakash jumped up and grabbed Abhi's hand in a firm handshake. "Bhai, this is amazing, I can't thank you enough!"

"Of course," Abhi said, smiling easily. Aakash quickly wrapped up their meeting and walked off, presumably to call Rachna.

After he left, Abhi tried looking over his contract again. But his mind grew troubled as he wondered why his past self had not intervened in Aakash's problem before.

Supporting the young couple and talking sense into Taiji was clearly the right thing to do. It was fully within his power as the breadwinner of the family, and he had nothing to lose by helping. Why hadn't he done it already?

Just like his rift with Purab, his behaviour in this situation did not make sense to him.

How many other inexplicable decisions had he forgotten?

He had failed to support his baby cousin.

He had broken ties with his best friend.

He had married a perfect stranger.

Could his past self really have had a good reason for these choices?

Or had something turned his values inside out?

***

Carrying the tea tray to the living room after dinner, Pragya was not expecting to walk into a battlefield.

"I won't have it, Abhi!" Taiji rose from the sofa, her body vibrating with agitation. "This is absolutely unacceptable. I will not let this happen."

Tauji tried to motion her to sit back down. Taiji ignored him.

"Taiji." Abhi's tone was firm but calm, his voice steadied by a clarity Pragya had never heard from him before. "It's the right thing to do. Please don't make it harder for everyone."

"Abhi, you don't understand! The girl is a schemer, she only wants money -"

"That's not true Mummy!" Aakash moved to stand up and face his mother, but Abhi raised his hand to stop him.

Pragya set down the tea tray and quietly went to stand behind Abhi. Her hand closed around the top of his chair, the plush leather providing a comforting resistance against her fingers.

She understood they were talking about Rachna, but the intense argument didn't make sense to her. She had only been in the kitchen ten minutes after dinner, what could have led to such a big scene?

"Abhi, please," Taiji said, real distress strangling her voice. "Aakash is still a child, he doesn't understand -"

"Aakash is going to be a child's father, Taiji. The child belongs with our family. We all have a responsibility here, and the sooner we get them properly married, the better."

Taiji finally sat back down, speechless. Total consternation seized her face, and she clutched a hand to her chest as if to hold in her heart.

Abhi nodded slightly at Aakash and then leaned back in his chair. Aakash got up and made his way to his parents.

Abhi reached up and squeezed Pragya's hand, nearly making her jump out of her skin. But his focus remained on his family. He did not look up at her. Pragya wasn't sure if he even realized he was touching her.

Pragya tried to ignore the weird feeling his touch set off in her chest. His hand stayed loosely clasped around her own as they watched the scene playing out in front of them.

Aakash knelt in front of his mother and took her hands. "Please, Mummy, don't be angry anymore," he said softly. "Rachna is a good girl and she will be a good bahu, please give us your blessing."

"I can't," Taiji snapped, snatching her hands back from Aakash's gentle hold. "I may not be able to stop this. But I won't give it my blessing."

"Pammi," Tauji said in a warning tone.

"I won't!" Taiji glared at her husband, and then finally turned to face Abhi. She shooed Aakash away with an irritated wave of her hand.

"Abhi, if you are insisting on this, there's nothing I can do. But you are ruining Aakash's life! You are going to have to live with that. He will never be happy and neither will you."

Pragya gasped. Taiji's bitter words felt like a curse on Abhi. Even Mithali Bhabhi looked appalled, her eyes round with disbelief as she glanced between her mother-in-law and Abhi.

Abhi shook his head slowly. "Trust me, Taiji, this is for the best. I know you don't agree now, but you will see that it will all work out."

"Hmph!" Taiji left in a huff, marching away to her room in a righteous rage.

Tauji quickly got up to follow her, sparing a thankful nod in Abhi's direction.

When his parents were gone, Raj Bhaiyya spoke up. "Abhi, do you want us to call Daadi's pandit? Maa won't do it for this, but I have his number."

Abhi turned to Aakash. "What would Rachna want, Aakash? She'll only get to be a bride once. Maybe we should have all the functions for her. I don't see why we should skip them."

Pragya was amazed at this thoughtfulness. What made Abhi think of what Rachna would want as a bride? And by the way he said "we should have all the functions," she knew that he meant he would pay for them too. It confused her to see money-loving Abhi so ready to spend on his cousin's behalf.

She had always thought it was generous of him to support his extended family on his income, and she could honestly say that she had never seen Abhi behave cheaply. But still, before his injury, she had never seen him offer so easily to pay for expenses that didn't involve or benefit him.

And how had any of this come up to begin with? After the attack, Abhi had obviously forgotten all the drama surrounding Rachna and Aakash's relationship. Had Aakash taken advantage of that and convinced Abhi to help?

But Pragya knew Aakash wasn't that manipulative, and Abhi didn't sound like anyone's puppet. She had never heard him sound so decisive and confident, his voice ringing with moral authority.

"What do you think, Bhabhi?" Aakash asked, turning to her. "Should we have all the functions?"

Pragya was flustered to feel all eyes on her, especially Abhi's. She felt at a loss in the situation, like she had missed something really important.

If Abhi was supporting Aakash and Rachna's marriage, if he was insisting on it, of course that could only be a good thing. 

The Mehra family had treated Rachna badly since learning of the mandir wedding and pregnancy, but Pragya believed that Rachna would forgive them once they genuinely accepted her and her baby. And underneath the doubts fostered by his mother, Aakash wanted to build a life with Rachna too. This could all work out to a truly happy ending.

Remembering that helped Pragya clarify her thoughts enough that she could respond. "I think you should talk to Raccho about it, Aakash." She glanced briefly at Abhi. "I know that all she wants is some peace and stability, but your Bhai is right. There's no reason for us to skip the functions."

Aakash nodded. "Yes, I will talk to her! But she might not believe me." He turned back to Abhi with a troubled look. "Bhai, do you think we could go to her house, as a family? Even if Mummy won't come, Rachna and her family will know I'm serious if I bring you and Papa and Bhaiyya with me."

"Yes, we can do that, if you think it's a good idea," Abhi said easily. "We should take your Bhabhi too, though. Both of them." He gave a friendly nod to Mithali Bhabhi.

Mithali Bhabhi and Raj Bhaiyya exchanged a look that Pragya couldn't decipher. It was bittersweet to witness the shared, silent communication they had developed as a married couple. She wondered fleetingly if it was something she would ever get to experience.

Then she felt Abhi's eyes on her. She turned to him and their gazes held.

Every coherent thought evaporated into mist.

It was like being in a space out of time. Whenever their eyes locked, an overwhelming intensity breathed between them. It felt endless, vast enough to make the rest of the world fade away.

Raj Bhaiyya cleared his throat, breaking the moment. "We're turning in for the night. Let's talk more about this tomorrow," he said, nodding at Abhi and Pragya as he gestured for Mithali Bhabhi to follow him.

"Ok, goodnight," Abhi said, tilting his head in return.

Raj Bhaiyya and Mithali Bhabhi left, and Aakash got to his feet as well.

"Bhai, I can't thank you enough -"

Abhi stopped him with a laugh. "You've already said that, more than enough times! Go to bed Aakash, we'll plan the rest in the morning."

Aakash leaned in and hugged Abhi. "Still, Bhai, thank you." As he pulled away from Abhi, he flashed a huge grin at Pragya. "Goodnight Bhabhi."

"Goodnight Aakash," Pragya said, watching him walk away. She had never seen him smile so wide before. It warmed her heart to see her devar so