"Bharosa hain na?"

"Mujh par ek percent bhi bharosa nahi kar sakti tum?!"

"Jab tum mere saamne aati ho, meri saansein ruk jaati hain."

"Mera saans kena bhi mushkil kar diya hain tumne."

"Chaahe jaan jism se juda ho jaaye, Shivaay Anika se kabhi juda nahi hoga."

"Divorce application accept ho gayi hain. As soon as we sign the papers, yeh rishta khattam ho jaayega."

The doorbell ringing woke Anika up.  After blinking a few times, she realised she had fallen asleep on the couch. She opened the door and the maid cane in, greeting her.

Anika looked around her house. A 3 bedroom, hall, kitchen apartment on the 10th floor of a building in a posh society complex in Juhu.

Her room was the master bedroom, minimal yet cozy and equipped for munchkins to crash into anytime.

To the left of her room was Shivani's bedroom. Chic, clean and sophisticated.

To the right of her room was Ansh's bedroom. Colourful, fun and always a mess.

"Meenaji, bartan hain nahi. Aap kapde, jhaadu-pocha aur bacchon ke rooms aur bathrooms acche se saaf kar dijiyega. Main naha kar aati hoon." Anika instructed before going inside her room.

Stepping in the shower, she stood under the scalding hot water to wash off the lingering memories of the previous night. She finished off with cold water to help her prepare herself for the day. She dried and styled her hair, dressed in a suit completed with minimal makeup and jewellery.

Anika went to the kitchen and Meena handed her a coffee cup. 

"Didi, aapki kaali coffee."

"Meenaji, isi espresso kehte hain." Anika corrected before sipping her coffee.

"Didi, woh... main kal... chhutti le loon?" Meena asked hesitantly. 

Gulping the sip of coffee, Anika asked. "Kya hua? Sab theek hain na?"

"Woh... mere pati kal ek mahine baad ghar aa rahe hain toh main..." 

Anika was silent for a few minutes then spun towards the refrigerator and replied, "Of course Meenaji. Aur..." She pulled out a box and handed it to Meena. "Yeh waffles hain, aapke bacchon ke liye." 

"Didi, iski kya-"

"Aap toh mere shaitaano ko jaanti hain. Zidd karke haathi ke khaane jitna khaana banwa lete hain likin cheenti jitna khaate hain." Anika said, making Meena giggle. 

"Achha mujhe office ke liye late ho raha hain. Aap darwaza kheench ke band kar dijiyega." Anika instructed and headed out. 

"Didi, naashta?" Meena asked, running behind her.

"Office mein kar loongi." Anika replied and rushed out the door. The driver greeted her and opened the car door for her.

"Lalitji, office le lijiye phir shaam to Kapoor Mansion jaana hain." Anika told him and drove towards her office.

It was on the 15th floor of an office complex in Bandra. She walked in, being greeted by all the employees, and went straight to her cabin.

It was a. corner cabin with a monochromatic colour scheme. It had shelves with her certificates and trophies on display. One was a picture of her with Shivani and Ansh.
Adjoining her cabin was a sea-facing open space that she designed into an outdoor seating area for lunches and meetings when the weather was good.

She opened her laptop and planner, going over her task list and schedule. Someone knocked on the her cabin door.

"Come in."

A woman came in holding two paper plates. "Good morning Anika ma'am. Yeh lijiye Vada pav. Aapki wedding plan team ke saath meeting hain and shaam ko aapko site inspection par jaana at Century Hotel."

Anika took the Vada Pav but looked at her with narrowed eyes. "Chanda tujhe kitni baar bola hain, tu yahaan accountant hain, assistant ke kaam mat kiya karo."

"Aur maine kitne baar kaha hain ki mujhe tere liye yeh sab karna pasand hain. Hogi tu Mumbai ki sabse badi event planner likin meri purani dost pehle hain, jo khaana-peena bhool jaati hain." Chanda told her.

"Ek baat bata, tu itni acchi hain accounts mein. Tujhe kisi bhi badi company mein job mil jaayegi. Tu kab tak yahaan kaam karti rahegi?"

"Tujhe lagta hain main tere liye yahaan kaam kar rahi hoon? Koi aur company hogi jiski CEO ko main chai ke badle chutti maang loon?" Chanda said wriggling her eyebrows. "Aur waise bhi, teri hi wajah se toh Guddu ka admission bade school mein kara paayi hoon."

"Oh Madam! Guddu mujhe "Anika Masi" kehta hain. Kya Masi apne bhanje ke liye itna nahi kar sakti?" Anika said.

"Theek hain madam. Ab main chalti hoon, balance sheets tujhe Monday ko bhej doongi." Chanda told her and left. 

Anika typed a few emails before going to the conference room to meet the wedding planning team. When she entered, all the employees stood up and greeted her. 

"Good morning everyone. What is the status on the Kapoors' wedding?" Anika asked while opening the file.

"Decorators and florists have reached the venue, it'll be done in a few hours." The decoration coordinator informed.

"Catering, servers and bartenders will reaching in an hour." Catering co-ordinator informed. 

"Bride is allergic to paneer and groom is allergic to prawns. Have the caterers been informed of it?" Anika asked.

"Yes ma'am, they have. Here's the final menu as approved by Mr and Mrs Kapoor." Catering co-ordinator replied handing Anika a sheet of paper. 

"Photographers, videographers and DJ have arrived at the location. They are setting up will be ready in time for the event." The videography co-ordinator informed.

"Alright, good job everyone. And as I always say, humare liye yeh roz ka kaam hain. Likin jinke liye kar rahe hain, unki zindagi ke bahot khaas din ke liye kar rahe hain. They deserve our best work." Anika stated and other clapped in agreement. Anika got up and left, followed by the rest. 

When she entered her cabin, a dress hanger was kept on her chair.

"Yeh kahaan se aaya?" Anika spoke to herself picking it up.

"Shaadi hain, tayyaar ho kar jaayiye!" Chanda appeared out of nowhere, startling Anika. "Aur waise bhi, tu CEO hain. Event co-ordinator ko bhej sakti hain toh khud kyoon ja rahi hain?" 

"Ram Kapoor bahot important client hain. Main khud jaa ke sab kuch nahi dekhoongi toh mujhe tassalli nahi milegi." Anika told her. 

"Toh jab jaa hi rahi hain, tayaar ho kar ja na. Shaadi mein coat pehenkar chali jaayegi toh kya impression padega?"

"Chanda main wedding planner ke kaam se ja rahi hoon, baraati bankar nahi." Anika huffed. 

"Kaun kehta hain wedding planners sundar nahi lag sakte? Aur kya pata, kisi barati ka dil tere pe aa jaaye." Chanda teased and Anika nudged her with her elbow.

"Shah Rukh Khan ki filmon se baahar nikal. Aur mere cabin se bhi!"

"Yes boss." Chanda saluted and left. 

Anika sank into her chair and gave a long to the outfit before deciding to wear it. After completing some work and making a few calls, Anika changed into the dress. 

She grabbed the required files and went down to her car. Kapoor Mansion was only a 10 minute drive from her office. She arrived and began cross-checking all the arrangements.

"Ms Trivedi."

Anika turned in the direction of the voice and was met with her client, Mr Ram Kapoor.

"Mr Kapoor, congratulations on your big day. And please, call me Anika." Anika said with a polite smile.

"Ms Anika, Tarun ne bataya aap aayi hain so I wanted to meet you and personally thank you for arranging everything on such a short notice." 

"It was our pleasure working with you Mr Kapoor. I hope everything is according to your preference." 

"Oh yes, everything perfectly fantastic. It's gotten the Ms Pihu Kapoor Seal of Approval. Actually Pihu, meri beti Pihu, she insisted on planning the perfect wedding and my wife would help out but she's pregnant and Pihu and I both want to take care of her but also the wedding is liye we thought ki shaadi ke liye wedding planner hire kar lete hain and so far, everything is smooth sailing. I mean humari pehli shaadi mein mujhe allergic reaction ho gaya, doosra... no, that went well. Phir chaos, confusion, dukh, dard, peeda then hum phirse shaadi karne wale the bit more dukh, dard, confusion and finally ab jaa ke shaadi ho rahi hain... Ek second, ek second, ek second, I'm so sorry main aapko distract kar raha hoon and bore and confuse bhi." Ram was rambling on and on but upon realising so, apologised sheepishly 

Anika pursed her lips to stifle a laughter before replying, "It's alright Mr Kapoor and, trust me, mujhse behtar yeh koi nahi samjhega..." 

Anika stopped for a moment then regained her professional composure. 

"I've checked everything and it's all good. Congratulations once again. I should leave-"

"Ek second, aap shaadi tak nahi ruk rahi?" Ram asked.

"Main kaise..?"

"Please, in case you're not busy, please stay for the wedding. I request, I insist, you stay for the wedding. Mujhe aur meri family ko bahot achha lagega." Ram requested. 

"Alright Mr Kapoor, thank you so much."

"Thank you Ms Anika. I should get going and get ready, late ho gaya toh Priya se pehle Pihu hi mujhe..." Ram swiped his hand across his neck and stuck his tongue out before going away.

Even though Anika had a whole team for wedding planning, she enjoyed doing parts of the work herself, especially catering. It reminded her of the early days of her job when she had just started her event planning business. Now, her company had grown so much that they could only take on weddings when booked at least  3-months prior to the wedding date.
However, when the Kapoors approached them with only one month to spare, Anika couldn't get herself to refuse. The Kapoors had unlimited budget for the wedding and offered twice the fee amount, which would've been a huge profit for company and bonuses for her employees. Not to forget the exposure from planning the wedding of a famous businessman.
But the real reason, personal reason that made Anika take on the event was their story. The love story of Ram and Priya Kapoor. She had heard it in the news and also from Priya's sister. How their marriage was done out of love for their siblings. How they grew to love each other. How an incident seperated them. How they overcame obstacles, sometimes having to fight their own people. And finally, after overcoming challenges after challenges, they how they became a family. Their story inspiring and magical. And in celebrating the love of others, Anika found a way to overcome the loss of hers. The ability to create magical, fairy-tale moments for her clients is what gave her the strength to push forward. 

After a couple hours, the guests started arriving. Anika walked around, doing last-minute checks when she bumped into someone, knocking her phone out of her hands.

"I'm so sorry!" Anika and woman she knocked into said in unison.

The woman was young, probably mid or late twenties and appeared to be from a highly aristocratic family. She picked up Anika's phone and saw the lockscreen.

Handing Anika's phone to her, the woman asked, "Yeh aapke bacche hain? How old are they?"

"Beti 14 saal ki hain aur beta 10." Anika replied.

"Oh wow! Aapko dekh ke keh nahi sakte you have a teenage daughter." The woman exclaimed, making Anika chuckle.
"I'm Avni. Avni Khanna."

"I'm Anika."

"Aap ladkewalo ki taraf se hain ya ladkiwale?" Avni asked.

"Shaadi ki taraf se." Anika replied.

"Huh? As in?" Avni asked, confused.

"Main wedding planner hoon." Anika clarified. "Aap?"

"Main"... Avni thought for a moment. "Ladke..ladkewale. Meri shaadi... Mr Ram Kapoor ke bhai ke friend se hone wali hain."

Anika didn't miss the tint of hesitation in Avni's voice.

"Yeh toh achhi baat hain na Avni? Congratulations."

"Thank you. Um... I know main ek ajnabi hoon likin... Kya main aapse ek sawal pooch sakti hoon?" Avni asked.

Anika nodded.

"Since aapke 2 bacche hain, aapki shaadi ko toh bahot saal ho chuke honge. Aapke hisaab se... Ek successful shaadi kaisi hoti hain? Kaise banayi jaa sakti hain?"

Anika froze hearing Avni's question. But years of maintaining a calm and composed composure allowed her to calmly answer her question.

"Avni successful shaadi mein pyaar ke saath izzat aur bharosa hona bhi bahot zaroori hain. Ek doosre par bhi aur... Khud par bhi." Anika explained. "Aur sabse zaroori hota hain... Khud ki pehchaan na khona."

Anika glanced at Avni, who was confused.

"Paida hote ladkiyon naam pita se jod liya jaata hain. Shaadi ke baad pati se. Is beech hum apni khud ki pehchaan hi bhool jaate hain. Ghar-grihasti sambhaalne mein poori zindagi kat jaati hain. Likin hum akele hi aate hain... Aur akele hi jaate hain. Is liye khud ko kabhi nahi bhoolna Avni." Anika expressed and it felt as if Avni was enlightened but her expression changed into a contemplative one.

"Avni!"

A young man, similar to Avni's age approached them.

"Shaadi shuru hone wali hain. Aap mere saath khadi rahiye."

The man held Avni from her shoulders and took her away. Anika made two assumptions: 1) The man was Avni's fiance, and 2) Something was off about the alliance, most probably it not containing Avni's willful consent. Whatever it maybe, Anika wished for Avni to have a happy life.

The wedding ceremony began. Sitting next to each, exchanging short glances, the bride and groom looked ethereal, there was twinkle in their eyes and serene smiles on their lips. It was visible how deeply they were in love.

"Mr Ram aur Mrs Priya saath mein bade achhe lagte hain." Anika thought to herself.

"Pheron ke liye khade ho jaayiye." Panditji instructed.

As Ram and Priya made vows,  circumambulating the holy fire while their family and friends showered flower petals on them, Anika's mind drifted off somewhere else.

Shivaay held her hand and they circumambulated the holy fire, making vows of togetherness to each other.

"Kanya ki maang mein sindoor bhariye."

Shivaay filled Anika's hairline with sindoor and kissed her forehead.

"Kanya ko mangalsutra pehenayiye."

Anika picked up her things from the dressing table and tossed them in a pouch. When her hand hovered over her mangalsutra, engagement ring and box of Sindoor, she retracted her hand and left them on table. When she looked up, her eyes met Shivaay's in the mirror.

"Mr Kapoor, sign here. Mrs Kapoor, here. Iske saath aapki shaadi legally complete hui."

"Mr Oberoi, sign here. Mrs Oberoi, here. Iske saath aapka divorce complete hota hain."

Anika stayed for a while, congratulating the couple, checking on staff and talking to a couple guests before taking her leave.

In the car, Anika put on earphones with Bollywood dance music playing on full volume as she made notes in her planner; scheduling meetings, bill dues, and especially adding the day's overtime for her driver. Strangely loud dance music eased her racing mind more than typical calming music.

Once she reached home, she immediately set a pot of water to boil. The time she changed into a kurta and leggings, the water was bubbling. She added tea leaves, ginger, sugar and milk, bringing it up to a boil before straining into a cup.

Anika took the cup and hopped onto the bed, taking a whiff and sip of the concoction. Mmm! Nothing like a cup of hot Adrak wali Chai to end the day. 

Even though her Papa ki Pari suggested her to have chamomile tea at night to relax and de-stress, it simply didn't make the cut that Chai did.

Ting!

Speak of the daughter and daughter texts! Anika knew this without even seeing her phone because she had set a different notification bell for Shivani.

Shivani
Chef Singh Oberoi made Penne Alfredo
And he loves me only because I decide what to eat for dinner

Anika laughed imagining how her daughter came to that conclusion.

Me
😂👍

After finishing her tea, Anika kept the cup back in the kitchen. She switched the lights off and slid under the blankets. She was about to put her away but saw Shivani was still online.

Me
Don't stay up too late, you have school tomorrow.

Shivani
Aye! Aye!
Going to sleep only, texting from inside blanket.

Anika smiled. Perhaps her daughter did inherit some of her traits.

Me
Ok
Good night bacche

Shivani
Good night mommy dearest🌙

A/N: The journey of Ram Kapoor from Bandra and Ms Priya Sood coming to an end is making me emo 🤧🤧 so I had to do something to take my mind off of it.

How was the little crossover 👉👈

What do you think about Anika's career progression? Her changed style? Changed life? And changed self?

This was a day in Anika's life.

But what about Shivaay?
Stay tuned to find out

Hope you enjoyed

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