Chapter 21

Sanyukta thought she should just give up and marry Parth. If Randhir wanted this, then why was she struggling so much? She couldn't force herself on him anyways... but it hurt, because she knew that he loved her so much. He loved her like crazy, and the intimate moments they spent together were not just for a purpose, but they were an expression of their love. Sanyukta knew that those moments were just as beautiful to him as they were to her.

She felt tears escape her eyes as she placed her shaking hand on Parth's upon the Pandit's request.

How was this happening? She was walking into a trap. A trap that would lead her to a fate worse than death... and she wasn't doing anything to stop it.

Shraddha came behind them with Randhir to tie the knot between them. She started to shake, as he placed his hand over Shraddha's and helped her with tying the knot.

"What the HELL is going on?" Sanyukta heard a familiar female voice, and Shraddha and Randhir stopped before they finished tying the knot.

Sanyukta took a deep breath, relieved as she saw Vidhushi walk in, wearing a beautiful lengha.

"Vidhushi?" Parth voiced out loud, sounding confused.

"Vidhushi?" Randhir repeated after Parth.

Vidhushi stormed into the wedding and Randhir walked up to her, grabbing her wrist.

"Get out of here," he hissed, but she pulled her arm away from his grasp.

"Sanyukta you bitch!" she screamed, and Sanyukta felt an ache in her chest - still she knew that she ought to trust her.

Randhir looked furious at her comment and he grabbed her shoulder.

"There is a kid here," he hissed. "And don't say that to Sanyukta again."

Vidhushi looked apologetic for a second before regaining her demeanour.

"How could you steal him?" Vidhushi yelled.

Sanyukta stood up, along with Parth, both of them holding a confused expression on their faces.

"S - Steal who?" Sanyukta gulped, hoping that Vidhushi wasn't about to expose her relationship with Randhir in front of all the guests.

"Parth! Come on Sanyukta you know how much I love Parth!" she told Sanyukta, as if it were the most obvious thing and Sanyukta's jaw nearly dropped.

Wow Vidhushi, you're brilliant, she wanted to say, but she kept her mouth closed.

Vidhushi stormed upto the two of them and Parth looked at her with a very confused expression.

"Vidhushi what are you saying?" Parth asked her.

"I mean I love you idiot!" she yelled, her eyes filling with tears. "Ever since college, I loved you but you didn't look at me once!

Sanyukta and Randhir both watched in awe - Vidhushi's tears looked real, very real.

"I thought I could move on, and for a few years I did. I moved on with... with someone else," she said, sparing a quick glance at Randhir. "I thought the compromise I forced myself into was love... but no, when I found out you were getting married to Sanyukta, how could I let my love get away?"

"But Vidhushi there was nothing like that between us," Parth replied.

"I know, but do you remember the time we made out in college? In our final year? In that store room?" Vidhushi asked him, grabbing the sleeves of his sherwani and shaking him. "I know you never loved me Parth, but that day was the best day of my life... I thought maybe since we were going to different places for placements, you didn't want to be with me."

"Vidhushi, I never loved you," Parth told her calmly, "I love Sanyukta."

Vidhushi breathed sharply before slapping him hard.

"Shraddha please go to your room. I'll come and see you in a bit," Randhir murmured to his daughter, and a frightened Shraddha nodded before running upstairs.

"You bas***d, I know you very well!" Vidhushi shrieked. "I know that your love for Sanyukta is some sort of infatuation. You know what true love is? True love is when you don't mess with someone else's life so your happiness will be satisfied. That's true love. Like Randhir - he's doing the ultimate sacrifice because he wants her to be happy, because like a fool, he thinks her happiness is with you!"

Sanyukta started to tremble and she covered her mouth with her hand, trying to hold back her tears.

"You idiot, you're not only spoiling her life and Randhir's, but you're spoiling your own!" Vidhushi yelled. "You will never be happy by marrying a corpse!"

Sanyukta took a moment to glance at Randhir, who was looking at her with shock, unable to believe what was the truth and what was a lie.

She had no idea that Parth had made out with Vidhushi, nor did she know that Vidhushi ever had feelings for Parth, and judging by Randhir's completely confused expression, she knew that he had no clue either.

"Sanyukta don't listen to this girl. She's out of her mind," Parth said harshly. "I don't know who she thinks she is, coming back after five years and claiming to be in love with me. She never told me she loved me before!"

"Parth do you have a selective hearing problem or what?" Vidhushi screamed. "I told you a more important thing - that Randhir loves Sanyukta and Sanyukta loves him, yet you're standing there defending yourself like the jerk you are! Do you not see her tears?"

"Vidhushi fine, I admit that at one point we were close," Parth replied loudly, "I agree we made out, I agree you may have feelings for me, and maybe we were even good friends at one point... but now I don't see you even as a friend, so if you could stay out of my life, it'll be better for you."

"Oh yeah? Better for me?" Vidhushi asked sarcastically. "I guess Parth, you've left me with no other option. If you backed out of this yourself, I would have let you retain the respect that Sanyukta has for you. Now I have no choice."

Parth's eyes widened when Vidhushi said that and Sanyukta looked at them with a bewildered expression on her face. What could it be that would make her lose respect for Parth?

"Vidhushi no," Parth warned. "You stay out!"

"Shut up Parth! I should have told them long ago, but I was selfish too," Vidhushi screamed. "I felt what you feel... but the difference between you and me is that I have shame and I regret what I did... I die of guilt every day, but you? Look at you? You're trying to hurt the one you claim to love even more!"

"What is going on Vidhushi?" Randhir interrupted, stepping in between the two of them.

"Randhir this girl is saying whatever nonsense is coming to her mind!" Parth replied.

"No Vidhushi, you tell me," Randhir urged.

She took a deep breath.

"Randhir, do you remember when you got Sanyukta to do a DNA test for her baby, the reports came back negative, it said you weren't the father?" Vidhushi asked and he nodded slowly, unsure of where this was heading, unsure of how Vidhushi even knew this piece of information, "Parth called me Randhir. He told me that Sanyukta had sent DNA reports to you, and I had to get them first and switch them with fake ones."

Randhir and Sanyukta's mouths both dropped open upon hearing this.

"Are you serious Vidhushi?" Randhir asked her sternly. "This is a big accusation."

"Randhir I'm serious. Parth told me to do it, and I did it because I was stupid... I was in love with him and I loved blindly. I didn't know that he was trying to separate you two. I guess it was obvious, but I truly did it because I was blind in my love for him... he just wanted Sanyukta Randhir. That's all he wanted. All those misunderstandings, the reasons he gave you to doubt her, they were done on purpose. He knew the truth that you were dating Sanyukta even before she told him," she explained. "I'm so sorry Randhir."

Sanyukta placed a hand on her chest, unable to believe what was happening right now in front of her.

"How do I believe you?" Randhir then asked Vidhushi. "Can you prove it?"

"Randhir you tell me... how do I even know about all this? You never told me any of this - you didn't tell me Sanyukta was sending you DNA reports. You never said that you were getting into fights with her," she told him. "I swear on my life Randhir, I'm telling you the truth."

Sanyukta fell to the ground, feeling betrayed. She didn't know how to process what was going on. She didn't know anything anymore... Parth? The one person she trusted the most in this world was the reason behind her misery for the last five years?

"How could you Parth?" Randhir asked, grabbing the collar of Parth's sherwani and shaking him. "How could you do that to my Sanyukta? How could you separate her from me? How could you break apart our love?"

Parth looked up at Randhir before saying something that was about to sting both Randhir and Sanyukta's hearts.

"Was your love really that strong Randhir if a piece of paper was enough to drive you two apart? Was it really that strong when you couldn't trust each other? Someone else was able to get between you two? Yes, I changed the reports. Yes, I wanted to separate you two... but you tell me honestly. How could your bond really be so unbreakable when I just came in and effortlessly broke it?" he asked Randhir, his tone neutral.

Sanyukta squeezed her eyes shut. As much as she hated to admit it, he was right. Parth wasn't faultless, but Randhir and Sanyukta were still the only ones to blame for their own break up.

"I can't stay here," was all she said, before getting up and starting to walk up the stairs. "I... I can't stay."