“Ma, are you seeing this? He’s laughing at me,” Drishti complained to Anjali, though her tone held a hint of playfulness. Anjali tried to smile back, but the scene only made her heart swell further.

Advait’s laughter softened, his eyes watering from amusement. “Bhabhi, you looked at us like we were planning a murder,” he teased, wiping his eyes.

Drishti, exasperated, took a seat beside Anjali again. “Yes, yes, keep laughing. Soon enough, I’ll be gone, and then everyone can laugh without me.” She glanced around, seeking any answer to ease her frustration.

“Oh, right, you’re supposed to go to your friend’s place today,” Vihaan chimed in, nodding.

“Yes, I—” She was cut off by Advait’s sudden, firm voice, “No.” His tone left no room for argument, and everyone, including Drishti, looked at him, surprised.

He said the other day that I can’t go anywhere if I’m angry, she recalled, but I’m not angry now. I mean, I was earlier, but that doesn’t count, right? Maybe I should just act calm... She mentally assured herself with a mix of defiance and uncertainty.

“Wow, Bhabhi won’t go?” Amaira’s chirping voice cut through Drishti’s thoughts, her eyes sparkling with mischief. Drishti shot her a glare, as if ready to scold her, while Amaira seemed delighted by her inability to leave.

Her gaze shifted back to Advait, who took a leisurely sip of his coffee. Batting her lashes, she asked sweetly, “But why?”

“Why?” he replied, raising an eyebrow and taking another sip. “You don’t know?”

“No, please do enlighten me. I would be honored to understand,” she responded, her voice laced with that deceptive calm that often came before a storm.

Anjali, finally stepping in, asked, “Yes, Advait, what is it? Why can’t she go?”

“Good question, Ma,” Drishti added, folding her arms with a challenging smirk.

Ask her." He said it even without looking at anyone.

She got taken aback by his words,and everyone looked at her and Anjali with questioned her,"What happend"

Ma mujhe kya pata hoga inse puccho. "

''Jaao yrrr mujhe nhi khelna vihaan took everyone'sattention. .Inko unko mere gale me dard ho gaya idhar udhar dekhte dekhte majaaal hai abhi to kucch samjh aaya ho mujhe."

Kisi kaha tumse samjhne ko magar yahi dimaag he rehta hai tum logo ka games kehlo collenge na jaao aur na he office aana," he said, and his voice was commanding, leaving no room for argumentation.

He slid back his chair and stood, eyeing everyone, and one dare to match his eyes. "I have an important meeting. I am going." He said it with finality before walking out of the hall.

As he went out, they took a breath of relief, but Drishti's mood went off.

Vihaan looked at Drishti and said, Bhabhi aap dukhi kyu ho rahe ho abhi aapka devar jinda hai aapko main le chalunga wanha."

Han per phir aaj k baad zinda nhi rahega bahut dukh k saath kehna pad raha hai." Amaira said, laughing, and Vihaan gazed at her with a serious expression.

Tujhse darungi main tere in choti choti aankho se." Amaira said, mocking him..

Yrr chup ho jaao tum dono, Drsihti said and looked at her mother. "Maa, Mujhe jaana hai main jaau, please mera jaane ka man hai bahut " she said, looking at her so that she could deny her.

Anjali put his hand on Drishti's and said,When I denied not to go o beta, but.

But kya ma... aapke ke bete hai aap daat dijiyega kahiyega ki jab aapne bola to woh kaaun hote hai mana karne wale."

Acchaa. Anajli chuckled along with Ridhimma.

Han ja tu ham dekh lenge agar kucch kaha to usne hain na bhabhi," Ridhhima said, looking at her pleading.

Chachi,You are the e great..." Anjali also nodded and said to Vihaan,Tu Drishti ko ghar chod aana theek hai aaj."

He nodded yes, Ma maine to pehle he kaha tha."

Hamare time to koi aise nhi manta jab hame jaana hota hai aur aap logo bhabhi ko jaane de rahe ho wo bhiaya k against waah,ab main aise he kahungi aap logo se "

"Bhabhi aapko jalne ki mahak aa rahi hai kya kyuki mujhe bahut tej se aa rahi hai."

And everyone laughed.

"Ask her," he said without even looking up. His words took her aback, and everyone turned their gaze to her as Anjali questioned, "What happened?"

"Mother, how would I know? Ask him," she replied, her voice holding a mix of confusion and reluctance.

“Just go; I'm not interested in playing," Vihaan intervened, steering everyone’s attention away. “These people… My throat hurts just watching them glancing around everywhere, yet they still don’t get a single thing,” he muttered in mock exasperation.

“Did anyone even ask you to understand? You people just keep busy with your games, then don't go to college, and don't even go to the office,” he said, his commanding tone leaving no space for argument. He slid his chair back, stood, and looked around the room, daring anyone to meet his eyes. “Mother, I have an important meeting. I’m leaving.” With a finality in his voice, he walked out of the hall, leaving everyone to let out a sigh of relief.

Yet Drishti’s mood sank. Noticing her downcast expression, Vihaan leaned over and asked, "Bhabhi, why are you feeling sad? I’m still here, your loyal brother-in-law! I’ll take you wherever you want to go."

“Yes, but sadly, I’ll have to say goodbye to you afterward. You may not make it back alive,” Amaira teased with a laugh, and Vihaan shot her a serious look.

“You think I’m afraid of you? With those tiny eyes?” Amaira scoffed, mocking him further.

“Oh, just hush, you two,” Drishti said, turning to Anjali with a plea in her eyes. “Mother, I really want to go. Please, can I? I really need to get out for a bit,” she implored softly, her gaze so sincere that Anjali couldn’t refuse.

“When did I say you couldn’t go, dear?” Anjali assured her, squeezing her hand.

“But, Mother… You can always scold him later and remind him that if you said yes, who is he to tell me I can’t?” Drishti said, a faint glimmer of mischief in her eyes.

“Oh, I see,” Anjali chuckled, joined by Ridhima.

“Yes, go ahead. We’ll handle him if he says anything, won’t we, bhabhi?” Ridhima replied, looking at Drishti with a grin.

Drishti laughed, "Oh, Aunt, you're the best."

Anjali nodded, turning to Vihaan, "You take Drishti home today, alright?”

He nodded. “Yes, Mother. I told you I’d take care of it!”

“In my time, we couldn’t go anywhere without a hundred permissions, and here you all are, letting her go against his wishes. I’ll be sure to remember this next time I want to go out!” Vihaan teased.

“Bhabhi, do you smell something burning? Because I sure do," Drishti quipped, glancing knowingly at Vihaan, and everyone burst into laughter.

Though a part of Drishti wanted to ignore his words and do as she pleased, she couldn’t shake the fear of his reaction—a fear she kept hidden even from herself.

She vividly remembered how his voice had changed, the way his eyes darkened, so intense she couldn’t even meet his gaze. Now, she was going to do something against his will again, but she couldn’t help but justify it to herself: This is all his fault; he’s the one who gave me permission in the first place. Why is he backtracking now? I’m not doing anything wrong, she reassured herself.

"Where did you get lost, Bhabhi?" Vihaan’s voice brought her back to reality.

“Oh, I was just thinking... The weather doesn’t change as quickly as his moods do, right?” she replied with a lighthearted sigh.

“Exactly! One moment he’s angry, then smiling, then off scolding us before storming out,” Amaira chimed in with a chuckle.

“Yes, yes! It seems he has no job other than yelling at us poor innocent souls,” Drishti added with a playful pout.

Anjali joined in, laughing, “Don’t you all feel any shame badmouthing my son?”

“Well, what can we do, Mother? He’s just like that,” Drishti replied, looking to her friends for support.

“Yes, yes,” they all echoed, sharing a laugh that continued until Dadi and Dada arrived for breakfast.

That night, Advait returned home, going straight to his room. The lights were off, signaling that the room was empty. He switched on the lights, his eyes scanning the room as if hoping to find her there. He knew she would probably ignore his words and go anyway, yet a part of him had held out hope.

He changed into casual clothes and laid back on the sofa, glancing around the room. “This sofa has spent more time with you than me,” he muttered to himself, a wry smile touching his lips.

Picking up his phone, he fought the urge to text Drishti. She’d had a fever, and he wanted to check on her, make sure she was feeling better. But as he looked at the time—11 p.m.—he thought she must be asleep by now or maybe out enjoying time with her friends. “And here I am, worrying about her when it doesn’t even matter to her,” he murmured, resigned.

A soft knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. He rose from the sofa, surprised, and opened the door to find his mother standing there. “Ma, you’re here… Is something wrong?” he asked, his voice laced with concern.

She smiled gently. “Oh, so many questions. I just came by to see if you’d like me to serve you dinner since Drishti isn’t here.”

He mouthed a quiet “Oh,” then stepped aside, allowing her to enter. “I’m not hungry, Ma,” he said, settling back on the sofa.

“Why? Did you eat something outside?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“No, just… not feeling like it,” he replied, shrugging.

“So, just because Drishti left, you’ve decided to skip meals?” Anjali teased, a playful smirk on her face.

“Well, what else am I supposed to do? You all chased away my wife, so how can I eat?” he replied, trying to keep a straight face as they both chuckled.

“Then why don’t you tell her how much she means to you instead of just yelling all the time? She has no idea what she means to you,” Anjali scolded, settling down beside him.

“Oh, come on, Ma, when do I yell? Do you two really need to remind me of this day and night?” he groaned, feigning annoyance.

“Oh, yes, the whole world knows how calm you are,” she quipped, her tone light.

“Of course, I am!” he said, then lay down in her lap as she gently stroked his hair.

Anjali smiled, her voice soft. “Seeing you two talking this morning… it made me so happy, especially seeing her speak to you without fear.”

“Talking? She was fighting with me,” he corrected, unable to suppress a grin.

She playfully tugged his ear, causing him to wince. “And who told you to say such things to my daughter-in-law?”

“Ma, what did I even say? She thinks I’m constantly filling your ears against her without even saying a word!” They both laughed, recalling the morning's clash.

“She’s such a lovely girl… You’ve done one thing right in your life by bringing her into this family,” Anjali remarked fondly.

“Only one thing, Ma?” he asked, pretending to be wounded.

“Yes, what else have you done?” she teased.

“Oh, nothing! I just built a whole company. But that doesn’t count. All you care about is my wife,” he scoffed, sitting up and crossing his arms in mock annoyance.

“Oh, fine, fine. I admit, you’ve done a few other good things too.”

“Yes, but your dear daughter-in-law is all that matters to you,” he said, shaking his head. “Sometimes, I feel like if I ever left this house, she’d leave me for you.”

He didn’t mean to say it out loud, but the words slipped, and Anjali’s smile faded. Her face fell as she listened to him.

“You mean you’re still holding onto that…?” she asked quietly.

“It’s just the truth, Ma. Pretending otherwise doesn’t help. And I don’t see why we should pretend to be close when he and I…” His voice turned bitter as he trailed off.

“Advait, that doesn’t change who he is to you, no matter what’s happened—”

“He’s nothing to me,” he said, his eyes meeting hers, the resentment clear.

Her expression softened, pained. “And… and what about me? Or Vihaan, or this family? Does none of us mean anything to you if you’re willing to walk away?”

“Ma, please,” he said, but she rose, her expression resolute.

“Fine, do what you have to do,” she whispered, leaving him alone in the room.

“If the two of us stay in this house, it’ll be nothing but a battleground,” he muttered as he lay back down on the sofa, thoughts racing until he finally drifted into a troubled sleep.