VIHAAN'S POV
The drive home felt longer than usual.
I sat in the back seat, my head resting against the window of the cab, watching the city blur past me.
Usually, I could lose myself in the traffic—the lights, the noise, the endless movement of people going somewhere.
Today, none of it registered.
Because my mind was somewhere else.
With someone else.
Vanika.
I frowned slightly at the thought.
I had met her only once.
For barely an hour.
Yet somehow, she had managed to occupy every thought that followed.
I could still picture the café.
The quiet corner.
The cup of coffee sitting untouched between us.
And she.
Calm at first.
Then irritated.
Then furious.
I almost smiled.
Almost.
She had looked at me as though I had personally offended her simply by existing across the table.
And then—
The glass of water.
I closed my eyes for a moment.
I could still remember the cold splash against my face and the stunned silence that followed.
She had simply looked at me, said, "Dream on," and walked out.
I should have been annoyed.
Maybe I was.
But there was something about her that made it difficult to stay angry.
She wasn't trying to impress me.She wasn't pretending to be sweet.
She had looked me straight in the eyes and told me exactly what she thought.
And, strangely enough, I respected that.
I straightened in my seat.
The house came into view, its familiar walls illuminated by the warm evening lights.
Home.
Usually, arriving here brought a sense of relief.
Today, I already knew what awaited me.
Questions.
The moment I stepped through the front door, I saw my parents sitting together in the living room.
Both of them looked tense.
Too tense.
My mother, Parvati Ahuja was the first to notice me.
She immediately stood up.
"Vihaan!"
I barely had time to take off my shoes before she was already walking towards me.
"Did you meet her?"
I looked at her.
She didn't even wait for my answer.
"How was she? Did you talk properly? What did she say? Was she—"
"Maa."
"Was she nice?"
"Maa."
"Or was she also arrogant like her father?"
I sighed.
"Please calm down."
She finally stopped.
My father, Harshvardhan Ahuja remained seated on the sofa, watching me quietly over the newspaper he'd been pretending to read.
My mother, however, was still staring at me as if my answer would decide the fate of the entire family.
I walked into the living room and sat down.
"Sit, Maa."
She did.
But only after making sure I wasn't about to disappear upstairs.
"So?"
I leaned back.
For a moment, my mind went back to the café.
Vanika sitting across from me.
Her voice, full of anger.
Her big doe eyes.
Damm those eyes.
The determination in her eyes when she said she didn't want marriage to become the end of her ambitions.
The way her expression changed every time I gave her a calm answer.
And then—
The water.
How would I tell my mother that she is a walking fire, a wild cat, who almost turned the cafe into a battle field.
My mother was still waiting, she is not actually worried about the girl, she is worried for me, she wanted to know if I'll be happy in this marriage or not.
I cleared my throat.
"She's nice."
My mother blinked.
"Nice?"
I nodded.
"Yes."
"And?"
I glanced at my father, he was equally tensed.He was listening now or may be calculating how much my answers hold truth.
"She's not like her father."
My mother's shoulders visibly relaxed.A small smile appeared on her face. My father released a breadth of relief.
Only my father knew about the situation, my mom being a heart patient, we can't take the risk so we hadn't told her the entire truth.
"Really?"
"Really."
"You liked her?"
I paused.
The question caught me off guard. That was unexpected. How could you like someone in just one meeting.
I don't like her, not after what stunt she pulled today.
I looked away for a second.
"I think you'll both be happy to meet her."
That was enough.
My mother's face softened with relief.
"Oh, thank God."
She leaned back against the sofa, finally looking less tense.
Because if I told them the truth, my mother's relief wouldn't have lasted very long.
If I told them that Vanika had made it perfectly clear that she didn't want this marriage...
If I told them that neither of us had chosen this...
If I told them that she had walked out of the café after throwing water directly into my face—
My mother would probably panic all over again.
So I kept it to myself.
My mother began talking about the wedding preparations and everything.I listened.
Or at least pretended to.
My mind had already drifted somewhere else.
Back to that café.
Back to the girl sitting by the window.
The girl who had looked at marriage as though it were a cage.
The girl who had somehow managed to make me curious despite my complete lack of interest in getting married.
I stood up, I need to clear my head. My thoughts were spinning around the fire who walked into the cafe.
"I'm tired."
My mother looked at me.
"Go get some rest."
I gave her a small nod and continued upstairs.
The moment I entered my room, I closed the door behind me.
Silence.
Finally.
I loosened my watch and tossed it onto the table before walking towards the window.
The city lights stretched endlessly outside.
I stared at them.
But once again, my mind betrayed me.
Vanika.
Her eyes.
Her voice.
Her anger.
That infuriating confidence.
I ran a hand through my hair and let out a quiet breath.
"Unbelievable."
I had spent the entire journey home thinking about her.
And now, even in the quiet of my own room, I still couldn't stop.
I didn't want this marriage.
She didn't want it either.
Yet neither of us seemed to have a choice.
VANIKA'S POV:
I wanted to stop everything but can I?
Hell no!
Why can't he just decline the wedding!
I was already having a headache from the cafe meet. Now all I want is some peace.
“Vanika,stop.”, mom commanded me. She definitely wanted to know about the meeting. I took a deep breath to calm my nerves. I don't want to lash out, well not now.
“How was the meeting?” Mom questioned me, she very well knew the answer.
“ I can't believe you both are doing this to me.” I muttered, tears brimming in my eyes but I refused to cry in front of them. “ This is for the best.” Dad stated, I shook my head in denial.
“No, I won't marry him”
“You will”,my mom replied matching my pace.
“No”
“Vanika, you'll marry that guy. He is a good person.”
I don't any explanation.
I want my freedom.
I don't this marriage.
I rushed towards my room. I could still hear Vihaan's annoying voice. I could still see his face whenever I closed my eyes.
That mocking smirk.
I wanted to wipe that smirk from his handsome face. The way he hooked his finger with mine, which I pointed at him. I wanted to break his nose. He thinks so high of himself.
I want some peace now otherwise my head will blast with his thoughts. I sat by the window and took my sketch book and start making some designs. I was so engrossed that I didn't realise someone entered into my room.
“May I sit ?”, I flinched at the voice, I turned my head towards the source of voice and found my brother, Arjun standing there.
“Ofcourse you can, afterall its your house.”I didn't intend to be rude, but I can't help right now. He sighed before taking a seat beside me.
“You don't like him, do you?” He questioned while keeping my sketch book aside. I stared outside the window for a moment before giving him my full attention.
“I don't like most of the people.”, I replied calmly. For a moment hurt flickered in Arjun's eyes. He sighed.
“How was the meeting with Vihaan?”, he asked after a long silence. “You are wasting both of our time.” He shook his head. He won't leave until he knew.
“I have already decided 100 ways to strangle him, rather than marrying him.” I nodded my head while saying this in a mocking way. He laughed at my reply.
“He is a nice guy, I checked his background, he is genuine.” Arjun exclaimed while I stared at him.
“It really doesn't matter. My opinions never mattered. Everything is already decided, so what's the point of asking.” I stated, while looking down at my hands which was kept in my lap.
Arjun opened his mouth to say something but again closed it. We chatted for a while and he left. For a while I kept looking outside the window, thinking about life. The night ended just like this.
Next day awaited for a new drama.
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To be continued...
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