Author's POV

A car pulled up inside the mansion, coming to a smooth stop. Trisha stepped out elegantly, her heels clicking against the way as she prepared to head upstairs. But just as she was about to take the first step, a voice halted her in her tracks. She turned, glancing at the person behind the comment.

"Swati, look at your daughter. Doesn't she know how to dress? I mean, just look at her legs!" The woman's voice carried a hint of mockery.

Swati, who was busy, glanced at Trisha in confusion.

In her mind, Swati thought, Haan, kafi sexy legs hain, kash mein bhi aise... Aur mein bhi aise kapde pehan pati. She silently cursed her fate.

Trisha smirked knowingly, fully aware of what her mother must be thinking. It wasn't that Swati had never worn such clothes herself, but with all the relatives arriving for Trisha's wedding, things had to remain "traditional" for now.

"Swatiii!" the woman called again, snapping Swati out of her thoughts.

Swati quickly composed herself. "Haa, magar kya karein... aajkal ke bacche," she replied with a dramatic sigh, adopting a sad expression, as if to say, What can we do? Kids these days don't listen.

Trisha walked toward them with a sweet, practiced smile, her voice lilting as she called out, "Daminiiii... aunty..."

Damini's attention shifted, her eyes narrowing slightly as she waited for whatever remark was about to come her way.

"I heard what you said," Trisha continued, a playful glint in her eyes. "You've got such high standards. And honestly, you're right."

Damini raised an eyebrow, curiosity flickering across her face.

"But," Trisha leaned in slightly, dropping her voice as if sharing a secret, "I think this dress would actually suit you better."

Damini's eyes widened, caught off guard by the unexpected compliment. "M-me?" she stammered slightly, unsure of how to react. A hint of a shy smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.

"Of course!" Trisha exclaimed, stepping back and giving Damini an exaggerated once-over. "I mean, look at you! Even at this age, you're looking so pretty. How do you manage to maintain yourself so well?"

Damini shifted uncomfortably but with a small smile, clearly pleased by the flattery, though unsure of its sincerity.

"I was thinking," Trisha continued, her tone sweet, "maybe I should gift you a dress like this one. Maybe even better! The design below? Oh, don't worry about the legs. We can always adjust it."

Damini blinked in surprise, unsure. Meanwhile Swati glare at her secretly.

Trisha added, "Alright, I'll go now and call my badi mom. I'll tell her to have the designer make something for you."

She started to walk away, but Damini's voice snapped out, now sharp and laced with irritation, "Stop!"

Trisha paused, turning back with an innocent look plastered on her face.

"Why go to her?" Damini's tone had shifted to something more defensive.

"Arrey," Trisha said innocently, though she knew exactly what she was doing, "she's the one who gifted me this dress. She had it made by her designer. If I ask her, she'll definitely get one done for you as well."

The color drained from Damini's face as her entire demeanor changed. Her voice hardened. "There's no need to go to her," she said sharply. "Oh, so she gave you this dress. That explains it. Someone who dresses like that would only give such clothes to others."

Her words were a thinly veiled taunt, and Trisha knew she'd struck the right chord.

"Look at her," Damini continued, now on a roll. "On one side, there's my sister-after marriage, she's only worn sarees. Before marriage, she only wore suits. And look at me, the same!"

Trisha's gaze traveled slowly from Damini's head to her toes, as if assessing her statement. She suppressed a chuckle, as her mother's glare kept her silent.

"Haan but, Just because a woman wears a suit doesn’t make her good, and just because she wears revealing clothes doesn’t make her bad."

Finally, Swati, who had been quietly observing, stepped in, her voice calm but clearly tired of the tension. "Damini ji, please, let's not bring up those who are no longer with us. There's no point in discussing it."

Damini nodded.

"Trisha, go and change," Swati added.

"Yes, I've prepared the food myself for my son. After all, he's coming back to India after so many years. It seems like no one else here is concerned about him."

"Even Prithvi isn't here. He should at least be concerned about his son and be present to welcome him," Damini said.

Just then, the sound of approaching footsteps broke her thoughts. Both women turned to see Prithvi Agnihotri entering the room.

Swati cast a glance at Damini, observing her freeze in place, eyes locked on Prithvi as he walked in. There was something in her gaze, something deep and unreadable. She subtly adjusted her saree, smoothed her hair, and began to move towards him.

Prithvi, preoccupied with his phone, didn't notice her as he continued walking. Then, in a split second, he collided with her, forcing him to look up.

His eyes were cold, indifferent, as he acknowledged her presence. Damini, still lost in her gaze, dropped her phone.

Without a word, Prithvi bent down, picked up the phone, and handed it back to her.

"Damini..."

"Hii Prithvi, kaise hain aap?" she greeted with a soft smile, her voice light. "I was wondering where you were; I hadn't seen you around."

"I've been busy with work," he replied curtly.

"You seem tired. Let me bring you something. Don't you take care of yourself?" she asked, her hand extending towards him, almost touching. But she halted mid-action as another voice interrupted them.

"Damini, tum kab aayi?" The voice came from the stairs.

Damini quickly turned to see an elderly woman descending. "Just a little while ago," she replied softly, moving towards the woman and bending down to touch her feet.

"Khush raho," the elder woman blessed her.

Swati muttered under her breath, "Maa's asking her to be happy. What's next? A blessing for immortality?"

Aloud, Damini added, "I thought I'd cook for my son myself, after all these years. I wanted to welcome him with a meal prepared by my own hands."

The old lady smiled warmly at Damini, who returned the smile.

"You always take such care of this house and its people," the older woman praised her.

Swati rolled her eyes, muttering sarcastically to herself again, "Her smile's sweeter than diabetes. Anyone who looks at her will be affected instantly."

The elder woman continued, "You're right, Damini. He doesn't take care of himself at all. And there's no one around to do it either." Her gaze shifted pointedly towards Prithvi, who had already started walking away.

"Everyone's caught up in their own worlds," she said bitterly. "On one side it was her, on the other side it is her."

Just then, the sound of a car pulling into the driveway caught their attention.

.

.

.

Trisha's phone pinged with a message. She glanced at it, and her eyes widened in surprise. Without a second thought, she quickly left her room.

As she reached the staircase, she noticed her elder brother already there. Not wanting to draw attention, she took a different route, slipping out of the house quietly.

When she reached the parking area, she let out a sigh of relief, only for her gaze to land on him.

He was there, angrily shooting hoops, his frustration evident with each throw. Without wasting time, she hurried towards him, snatching the basketball from his hands, forcing him to stop.

"What the hell are you doing?" she yelled, grabbing his hand, noticing the bruises.

He shrugged casually. "Don't overreact. It's not that bad."

"Oh really?" She raised an eyebrow. "Then let's see you say the same thing in front of your Mom. She should be here any minute now."

He visibly gulped, and she had to bite her lip to keep from smiling.

"Oo, Avi... You're scared," she teased.

"Don't call me that," he growled, clearly annoyed.

"Aww, is my baby brother angry?"

He glared at her intensely.

Trisha chuckled. “Okay, fine, let’s go bandage that hand before your Mom sees it.”

He nodded, and they began to leave, only to freeze at the sound of a car pulling up.

Both of them exchanged nervous glances, gulping in sync. Avik quickly ducked behind Trisha, trying to hide his injured hand from his mom’s view. Trisha shot him a glare.

“What are you two doing here?”

Trisha fumbled for an answer. “Uh… we were waiting for you!”

Karishma Kapoor eyed them suspiciously, noticing how they kept smiling at each other. Something felt off to her.

She shook her head and sighed. “When did you get back from college?”

“Just now,” he answered quickly.

“How was the match?”

“It was good, but we lost…” Avik trailed off, trying to avoid the topic, not wanting to reveal how he lose the match and his injury.

Before their mom could press further, her phone rang. She stepped aside to take the call, giving them a temporary reprieve.

“Let’s go, fast,” Trisha whispered urgently.

Her eyes widened when she saw Avik heading straight for the main door. She lunged forward, grabbing his hand. “Not that way! This way!”

“Di, are you crazy? We need to get out of here fast. Come on, let’s go to my room. Stop acting so weird,” Avik muttered, shrugging her off and making a beeline for his room.

Trisha ran after him, her heart pounding. As she reached the main door, she breathed a sigh of relief – their elder brother wasn’t around.

Trisha hurried behind Avik as they entered the hall.

Damini, who was sitting calmly, glanced at him briefly, but her attention shifted when a servant carrying a tray of hot tea approached from the opposite side.

Daksh agnihotri emerged from a room just as the servant’s foot wobbled. In an instant, the tray slipped from the servant’s hands, and the steaming hot tea splashed onto Avik’s already bruised hand. He screamed as the burning liquid made contact, and shards from the broken teacups hit his hand hard.

Damini, still seated calmly while seeing avik condition, watched the scene unfold, but her eyes immediately darted to Daksh when she notice him, whose hand had also been scalded, though not as severely. She shot up from her seat and rushed towards Daksh.

Trisha’s eyes widened in shock at the sudden chaos.

Karishma, Avik’s mother, had already rushed over upon hearing the commotion. She quickly come by Avik’s side, gently taking his injured hand into hers, worry evident in her eyes plus anger as she saw the pain on his face and the slight tears welling up.

Damini, meanwhile, slapped the servant. “Can’t you walk properly? He’s been here for barely a day and already got hurt! Must be some evil eye on him.”

Karishma didn’t pay attention to the commotion. She focused on Avik, leading him away to his room, Trisha trailing behind them quietly.

Daksh, still standing where he was, froze at the sound of Karishma’s voice. His breath caught as he watched her moving towards Avik, taking care of him without sparing a single glance in his direction. His jaw clenched tightly.

Others approached Daksh to check on him as Damini’s shouts echoed in the hall, but he roughly pulled his hand away from them.

“I’m fine,” he muttered, the sting in his voice matching the burn on his hand.

.

.

.

At dinner, the atmosphere was tense as everyone ate in silence. Trisha quietly stepped out of the kitchen, holding plates for herself and Avik, intending to take them to his room.

Just as she was about to leave, her dadi’s sharp voice broke the silence.

"How did so much salt end up in the dal? Are you trying to make me sick before the wedding?" Dadi glared at Karishma, who remained unbothered, continuing to eat her dinner calmly.

Trisha's mother, looking perplexed, furrowed her brows. She distinctly remembered preparing the meal as she always did.

“Wait a second, maa, I’ll get you another plate,” she offered, her tone tinged with frustration as she mumbled something inaudible under her breath.

Before things could escalate further, Trisha interjected, "It’s okay, Dadi. If you keep talking like this, your BP will shoot up... and ours too." Her last words were muttered quietly, more to herself.

But she froze when she heard a soft chuckle. She turned her head and sighed—it was Reyan.

"Right," Reyan chimed in, teasing.

Trisha, embarrassed but trying to keep her composure, muttered under her breath, "Kaash meri dadi bhi uski dadi jaisi hoti..." (I wish my dadi was like his dadi...) But before she could fully process her slip, her brother overheard her.

"What?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Trisha bit her tongue, eyes wide. "Nothing!" she quickly replied, looking around nervously.

She mentally scolded herself, Control your tongue, Trisha. Mumbling that to herself, she hurried out of the dining room with the plates and headed toward Avik's room, trying to avoid any more awkward attention.

Avik immediately made a face upon seeing Trisha enter the room and quickly looked away, obviously still irritated. Trisha ignored his attitude and began setting up the plates for their dinner, acting nonchalant.

"What happened to this delicate bud now?" Reyan teased, leaning casually against the wall with his arms crossed as his gaze fell on Avik’s bandaged hand.

Avik shot him a sharp glare, making Reyan chuckle in amusement.

"Oh, his hand got burnt," Trisha explained casually as she stepped back from washing her hands. She then muttered to herself, frustrated, "Why isn’t this girl picking up my calls?"

"By the way, your friend didn’t show up for the engagement?" Reyan asked, raising an eyebrow with curiosity.

"Who?" Trisha replied, distracted.

"You know, the one from that day at the café. The one complaining about her boss."

"Oh, right. Yeah, I called her, but she said her boss gave her some urgent last-minute work. That’s why she couldn’t make it." Trisha sighed and added, "But she promised she’ll definitely come to the wedding."

Avik suddenly spoke up.

"Will she really come to the wedding?" His voice was unusually interested, catching Reyan off guard.

Trisha chuckled, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "Look at him... it's because he has a crush on her."

Reyan’s eyes widened in surprise, then quickly filled with amusement. He glanced at Avik, whose face had turned a noticeable shade of pink.

"Oh, so the little boy’s all grown up, huh? Not bad," Reyan teased.

"Crush?" A voice interrupted, startling both of them. They quickly turned to see Karishma standing at the doorway, her eyes narrowed in curiosity.

Both Trisha and Reyan froze in place, while Avik blushed even harder, looking like he wished the ground would swallow him whole.

                           ******

𝗜 𝗵𝗼𝗽𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘂𝗽𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲!

𝗛𝗮𝗽𝗽𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴! ❤️✨