Happy reading

In the Hotel Room

The attendant opened the door for Shivaay and let him inside.

"Thank you," Shivaay said before asking him to close the door.

The attendant nodded and shut the door with a soft thud.

The sound made Anika open her eyes. She looked at Shivaay through her drowsy gaze, her lips forming a tiny pout.

"Are you going to throw me off the roof?" she mumbled.

"No. Why would I?" Shivaay chuckled at her innocent expression.

"Because you hate me. You don't love me. That's why I assumed you would."

She rested her head against his chest.

"I don't hate you, Anika. I never did."

He gently placed her on the bed as though she were the most fragile flower in the world.

"Yes, you did! You always did. You even said it yourself."

She leaned against the headboard and poked her finger against his chest.

"Anika, I was angry at that time. That's why I said those things."

"People speak the truth when they're angry. And you always hated me."

She lay back on the bed, placing her hands beneath her head.

"Tch... Annie."

Shivaay sat beside her and tried pulling her into his arms, but she immediately wriggled out of his hold, silently sobbing.

He sighed before deciding to change the subject.

"Okay, tell me what you want to eat. I'll order something for you."

"I'm not hungry."

She turned her face away sadly.

"You haven't eaten anything since morning, baba. Just tell me what you want to eat."

"How do you know?"

She turned towards him, looking at him with her innocent brown eyes.

"Because I've noticed."

He smiled, raising an eyebrow while admiring her face.

"Now tell me what you want to eat."

Anika blinked and let out a tired breath. She was about to fall back onto the pillow when Shivaay caught her around the waist.

She silently scooted closer to him and rested her head against his chest, her eyes half closed.

"What happened?" he asked, gently caressing her back.

"I'm feeling sad."

She sniffed.

"And can I ask why?"

"Because I'm feeling lonely. No one likes me."

She played with the buttons of his shirt.

"Anika, it's just your mind provoking you. No one hates you, baby. Everyone loves you."

He ran his fingers gently through her hair.

"No one does. I know that."

She looked up at him.

"Especially you. Tomorrow you'll start hating me again and hurt me without caring how much it makes me cry."

She sniffed and got onto her knees, looking at him through moist eyes.

"I won't. I promise. Just don't think that I hate you."

He tenderly caressed her cheek.

"Your promises are fake, just like you."

She swallowed.

"You only want my sister in your life. You don't care about anyone else, especially me. You don't care whether I live or die. You just want her."

Her voice trembled.

"I wish I had been dead instead—"

Her words died in her mouth.

Shivaay suddenly held the back of her neck and kissed her.

Anika froze in complete shock at his sudden move.

He gently settled her properly in his arms, kissing her for several moments before finally pulling away.

For Shivaay, the moment felt overwhelming. The emotions he had spent so long suppressing suddenly came rushing to the surface.

He cupped her face between his palms and looked into her stunned eyes.

"Don't you ever dare say that you'll die. Do you understand?"

His voice was firm, but his eyes were filled with emotion.

"You're not leaving me. You're going to stay with me. No matter what happens. Get that straight in your head."

Anika stared deeply into his blue eyes.

For the first time, she noticed something she had never seen there before.

A warmth.

A sparkle.

She had always found his eyes cold and unreadable whenever she accidentally met his gaze.

But today, they were different.

"I won't leave you," she whispered.

Shivaay smiled and slowly made her comfortable in his arms.

"Stop stressing your brain. I'll make everything perfect."

He lovingly caressed her hair.

"Pinky promise?"

She held out her little finger towards him.

Shivaay found the gesture incredibly adorable.

"Yes. Pinky promise."

Anika gave him a wide, toothy smile before throwing her arms around him.

Shivaay was surprised for a moment, but soon wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer.

After Some Time

Anika still hadn't fallen asleep even after another hour.

Shivaay finally decided that she needed to freshen up and come back to her senses a little.

He found her sitting on the bed, completely engrossed in counting the apples in a basket.

She frowned when he took her hand and started leading her towards the bathroom.

"Where are you taking me? I lost count of the apples!"

"You need to take a bath, so let's go."

"But it's cold! I don't want to take a bath."

She huffed, giving him her best puppy eyes.

Unfortunately for her, Shivaay didn't melt.

He took her into the bathroom.

Anika gasped when cold water suddenly fell over her head.

She tried to run away, but Shivaay held her gently and kept her beneath the water.

"You're evil, you know that?"

"Yes, I am. So be afraid of me."

He ran his fingers through her wet hair and pushed it away from her face.

But as she slowly relaxed beneath the water, Shivaay found himself lost in her beauty.

She looked completely different with her wet hair and damp eyelashes.

His gaze softened as he looked at her.

Without thinking, he held her waist and pulled her closer.

Anika instinctively rested her head against his chest.

Shivaay didn't care that his clothes were getting wet.

For the first time, he simply wanted to enjoy being close to her.

A few moments later, he felt her arms tighten around him.

He immediately shut off the tap and cupped her face, gently wiping the water from her eyes.

"You okay?"

Anika nodded, shivering from the cold.

"Here. Take the robe. Put it on immediately and then come out, okay?"

She nodded and took the robe from his hand.

Shivaay didn't want to leave her, but eventually forced himself to step outside and close the bathroom door behind him.

A Few Minutes Later

Anika came out and sat on the bed beside Shivaay, who was lost in his thoughts.

"I'm hungry."

She pulled the blanket over her bare legs.

"Huh?"

Shivaay snapped out of his thoughts.

"I said I'm hungry. I need food."

"I've already ordered it. Look."

He pointed towards the table.

Anika's eyes immediately lit up.

She was about to run towards it, but Shivaay caught her hand and made her sit back down.

"Don't move. Sit here. I'll get it."

Anika sniffed and tucked herself comfortably beneath the blanket.

Shivaay gently caressed her face before walking over to the table.

The moment he brought the bowl back, Anika's eyes widened with happiness.

"You ordered noodles?"

She happily took a sip of the soup.

"Yes. I thought you'd like them."

"It's my favourite! You know that?"

She giggled, quickly slurping the noodles.

"I know. That's why I ordered them."

"Thank you!"

She suddenly leaned over and kissed his cheek.

Shivaay blushed slightly and smiled.

Of course, Anika didn't notice.

She was far too busy enjoying her noodles.

Shivaay shook his head fondly and began eating his own food.

A few moments later, Anika's eyes landed on his plate.

Chinese rice and sweet-and-sour chicken.

Her mouth watered.

She stared at his food longingly.

Shivaay noticed immediately.

"What happened?"

"Can I taste that?"

She looked at his plate with sparkling eyes.

"But only if you share yours."

He grinned teasingly.

"But I don't want to."

She pouted.

"Then you can't have mine."

He smirked.

"Please! Please give me some. Please!"

She pulled out her best puppy eyes.

Shivaay couldn't resist.

He passed his plate to her, which she happily accepted before digging into his food as well.

Later

After they finished eating, Shivaay handed the dirty plates to the attendant and closed the door.

When he turned around, he found Anika already fast asleep.

She had managed to finish the entire large bowl of noodles and almost half of his food.

He shook his head with a small smile and dimmed the lights.

Then he quietly walked towards the bed and lay beside her, resting his head on his hand as he looked at her sleeping face.

Only a few days ago, he had been avoiding getting close to her.

He had convinced himself that he was still in love with his first wife and that getting close to Anika would mean using her.

But the more he noticed Anika, the more he realised something.

He had left his past behind long ago.

It wasn't that he had stopped caring about his first wife.

He simply had something new in his heart now.

Anika had made a place there that no one had ever occupied before.

Her tears hurt him.

Seeing her broken hurt him.

And whenever she managed to smile, even for a moment, it gave him a strange sense of relief.

He didn't know when it had happened.

He didn't know how it had happened.

But he knew he couldn't bear seeing her suffer anymore.

He knew he had hurt her terribly.

He had been the reason behind so much of her pain.

And tonight, after hearing everything she had been carrying inside her heart, he finally understood just how badly he had treated her.

She had never openly complained.

But behind her silence, she had been breaking a little more every day.

He had shattered her confidence and made her stop expecting anything good from life.

But now, he had made a promise to himself.

He would make things right.

He would move forward with Anika and stop allowing his past to destroy their present.

Shivaay slowly leaned towards her and placed a soft kiss on her lips.

"I'll make everything fine, Ani. I promise."

He kissed her lips once more.

The movement made Anika stir in her sleep.

Without even waking up, she climbed closer to him and rested her head against his chest, her fingers clutching his lapel.

Shivaay immediately wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer.

For the first time, he didn't regret being close to her.

In fact, he felt happier than he had in a very long time.

He gently ran his fingers over her back and kissed her forehead.

In the Morning

Anika slowly opened her eyes.

She immediately shut them again, feeling lazy and dealing with a pounding headache.

She tossed around on the bed before burying her face into the pillow.

"Good morning."

She gasped at the sudden voice.

Anika quickly sat up and found Shivaay sitting in front of her with the brightest smile she had ever seen on his face.

She had never seen him smile like that since the day she had married him.

Anika hissed and immediately held her head.

Shivaay's expression changed to concern.

"You alright?"

She shook her head and continued massaging her temples.

"What happened last night?"

She looked at him with sleepy, confused eyes.

Shivaay's mind immediately flashed back to everything that had happened.

He remembered her words.

Her tears.

Their conversation.

And the kiss.

But he quickly pushed those thoughts aside and smiled.

"Err... nothing. You just got drunk. That's it."

"Are you sure?"

She frowned.

"Because I don't remember anything."

"Yeah, but I do. So don't worry. Nothing happened."

A small part of Shivaay felt disappointed that she couldn't remember.

But perhaps it was better this way.

He wasn't sure how she would react if he told her about the kiss.

"Where's Ayaan? Didn't we go home?"

She looked around the unfamiliar room.

"We couldn't. You weren't in a state to go home, so I decided to stay at the hotel."

"Ayaan must be crying without me. We should go home."

She tried getting up, but Shivaay gently placed a hand on her thigh to stop her.

"Don't worry. He's asleep. Mom fed him and put him to sleep. I called her a few minutes ago."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Hmm..."

Anika made a sad face, trying desperately to remember something from the previous night.

But everything was completely blank.

"What happened?"

"Nothing."

She looked at him suspiciously.

"I need the washroom."

She quickly slipped on her shoes and walked towards the bathroom, leaving Shivaay confused.

But after a moment, he simply shook his head.

He was beginning to understand her better.

After a Few Hours

Shivaay stopped the car near the house and got out to open Anika's door.

But before he could even reach it, Anika had already jumped out and hurried inside, immediately calling Ayaan's name.

Shivaay shook his head and followed her.

The moment he entered, he found Anika hugging Ayaan tightly and covering his little face with kisses.

It looked as though mother and son had been separated for years rather than a few hours.

"Mom."

Shivaay walked towards Pinky and kissed her forehead.

"How are you, Mom? You alright?"

"Yes. I'm just a little tired because of all the preparations for today's function."

"Don't worry, Maa. I'm here now. I'll help you."

Anika took Pinky's hand into hers.

"That's why I was waiting for you."

Pinky smiled and caressed her face.

"Mom, when is the function going to start?" Shivaay asked.

"Just in a few hours."

She turned towards Anika.

"Anika darling, put Ayaan to sleep and then come help me, please."

"Yes, Maa."

Pinky nodded and walked away.

Shivaay and Anika were left standing together.

"Come. Let's go to the room."

He placed a hand gently against her back.

But before they could leave, a familiar voice stopped them.

"Anika!"

Vikram walked towards her with an apologetic expression.

"I'm sorry, Annie. Because of me, you got drunk last night. I swear I didn't mean to do it. I didn't even realise our drinks had been exchanged."

"It's okay. Never mind."

She smiled and patted his hand.

"That's so sweet of you, Annie. That's why I like you so much."

Shivaay's hand immediately curled into a fist.

His eyes narrowed dangerously at Vikram.

"Annie, if you don't mind, can I talk to you in private?"

He looked directly at Shivaay.

But Shivaay didn't move an inch.

"You can tell me here. It's not a big thing."

Vikram hesitated for a moment before nodding.

"Okay."

He took a breath.

"Will you go on a date with me?"

Anika's eyes widened.

"What?"

Shivaay was equally shocked.

"There is no pressure, Annie. Take your time and tell me. Will you go on a date with me?"

Shivaay opened his mouth to speak, but Anika's unexpected answer left him speechless.

"Right now, there is a wedding, so I can't go. But... we can decide about it after the marriage, right?"

Vikram's face immediately lit up.

"That's great! I don't have any issue with that. I'm just glad you agreed to go. I'm so happy, Annie. Thank you!"

He smiled widely before walking away.

Anika turned and headed towards her room.

Shivaay followed her, his anger growing with every step.

In the Room

The moment they entered, Shivaay shut the door.

"What was that?"

Anika frowned.

"What was what?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about."

His voice was deep and irritated.

"I don't think you should have any issue with me going somewhere with someone. After all, as per your wishes, we're going to get divorced soon, aren't we?"

Shivaay gritted his teeth and pulled her towards him.

"I told you we're not getting divorced! So why have you started ranting about it again, Anika?"

"Because now I want it!"

She sobbed, looking at him through glistening eyes.

"I don't want to live with someone who doesn't like me and treats me like I'm trash."

"Stop assuming things, Anika. Don't make the same mistakes I've already made."

He softened his voice.

"I don't want us to separate. Let's give each other a chance."

"Then what will happen?"

She laughed bitterly through her tears.

"I'm sure if I bend down in front of you again, I'll be left alone like always."

"You are not my second choice, Ani. You are—"

"Yes, I am!"

She interrupted him.

"I'm your second choice. The woman you don't even like, but you're bearing me because of your family and your son."

Her voice trembled.

"Other than that, if they weren't there, I'd be nothing to you. Not even a human being whose feelings matter."

She wiped her tears.

"So it's better that we go our own ways and live separately, okay?"

She turned to leave.

But then she stopped.

"I tried my best..."

Her voice broke.

"I tried my best to make this work. But it didn't."

She looked back at him.

"And how could it? You never wanted it in the first place."

She wiped her cheeks.

"So now I've decided to let you go free."

Her voice became barely a whisper.

"Holding you back will never work for me. Never."

With that, she walked out.

Shivaay stood completely frozen.

Just last night, he had believed that everything had finally fallen into place.

He had thought there were no more hurdles between them.

But he had been wrong.

With the new sunrise, their lives had once again returned to the same painful track.

Anika wanted to leave him.

But this time, Shivaay wasn't going to let her walk away.

He would fight for her.

He would make her understand what she meant to him.

And he would keep her with him.

That was his promise to himself.

Precap...

Anika suddenly remembers everything that happened the night before.

Precap ..... she remembers everything

Target ....260 votes unlimited comments

Kainat