"Laksh, if Swara and Sanskar are not going with us then I don't think we can go?" Ragini queried her husband once they were alone in their room.

"I don't know." Laksh shook his head in disappointment.

"I really want to go. You please do something." Ragini wailed.

"I also desperately want to go but if those two are not coming and we will go, that itself will not look right." Laksh palmed his face. "I don't understand what Bhai's problem is? Why is he so much into work?"

"Will you please talk to him and convince him?" Ragini asked with a puppy face.

"Talking to Bhai? Didn't you see in the morning how he replied, though he is not showing but he is still upset with me. He will not listen to me." His dismay was clearly seen on his sulked face.

They both sat down to figure out their options for convincing Sanskar but none of them looked feasible for the current situation.

"I have one idea." Laksh exclaimed.

"Why don't you ask Swara to talk to Bhai? Bhai will never ignore Swara. He will for sure listen to her. World can go upside down but Bhai will never say no to Swara." Laksh squealed with new hope.

For a moment, Ragini's eyes twinkled with happiness but then the next moment reality hit her hard.

" I know he will never say no to Swara but this time I really don't know. You have seen both of them over the last week. They hardly talk to each other these days. He is not even staying at home like earlier." Ragini whined, keeping her head on Laksh's shoulder.

"Come on Ragini, convince her. You can explain to Swara that on this pretext she will be able to spend more time with Bhai and she will get a chance to solve whatever problems are there between them." He put logical reasoning behind his idea.

"Please Ragini, you have to do this for us. Otherwise our family will not allow us to go as well." Laksh almost begged in front of his wife.

At night, Swara was winding up kitchen work when Ragini finally got a chance to talk to her alone.

"Swara, please can you talk to Sanskar about the trip?" Ragini voiced out. Her sister's red and swollen eyes were acting as discouragement for her.

Ragini's words reminded her of the morning incident.

"Ragini, he already said he is going to the US so he won't be able to make it." She did not even bother to turn back to her sister.

"But Swara, can't he postpone his trip or can't he work from here. Please... Please... Please. This is the first time after marriage that both of us are getting a chance to go out like this. We won't get such a chance again and again." Ragini put all her persuasive skills together.

"Think about it, Swara. Just four of us. We will have a chance to mend our relationships."

"Ragini, me and Sanskar are not joining." Swara declared with a deep sigh.

"If you two are not coming then, me and Laksh will not be able to go as well." After a long series of failed convincing sessions, finally Ragini blurted out her inner thoughts.

Swara stared at her sister for a moment.

"But you and Laksh can go. Nobody is stopping you both." Swara turned back to concentrate on her work.

"But it will not look good in everyone's eyes." Ragini took cautious steps to come near Swara.

"It's not like that. Everyone will understand." Only Swara knew how difficult it was for her to accept this.

"Are you sure Swara? You won't feel bad will you?" Ragini asked slowly, keeping her eyes on Swara's pale face.

"No Ragini" Swara shook her head, passing a fake smile.

Three days later Ragini and Laksh went for their Manali trip. Family members asked and were against Laksh and Ragini's trip in absence of Swara and Sanskar but being the perfect daughter-in-law of the house, Swara persuaded them.

It was just two days for Sanskar's upcoming US trip, Swara thought to help Sanskar with his packings.

"What do you need me to pack?" She asked when he was packing his Mac before going to the office.

Today, he needed to go early for his meetings, he had already informed her about him skipping his breakfast.

"No Swara, you don't have to worry about it. I have already completed packing." Sanskar took his suit jacket, and was ready to leave.

It was always Swara who used to pack his bag for any business trips earlier.

"What about your ties? Should I make a knot?" She knew her husband always had a hard time with it.

Her question halted him in his tracks.

'You will be the only one who will make knots for my ties. No one else. Not even me.' His own voice rang in his ears. The promise he had made to her on their proposal night.

But life is unpredictable... The future is alway uncertain.

On their proposal night if anybody had told him about their future separation of 6 months, Sanskar would have considered that person as crazy but alas they went through pain and struggle where he himself was not sure about her return in his life.

Confidence, security, certainty for their relation was at stake during those 6 months, which resulted him turning into pessimist.

"No Swara. I learned to make a knot. So now I am good." he replied without turning to her.

He knew a sudden change in their simple routine would change the dynamics of their relationship. It will be heartbreaking for her to accept but he himself was left helpless in front of his vulnerable heart which had closed itself in shell.

He left and Swara kept on staring at his retiring figure with dropped shoulders.

But she also was Mrs. Swara Sanskar Maheshwari, a woman who never learned to give up. A woman who always wanted a perfect marriage, perfect family, perfect home.

She knew she had to fight for his attention, his love. Somewhere her heart had reached to a conclusion that their separation had twisted their undying bond.

She had vowed to win him back.

After a long thought, she decided to have lunch with her beloved husband.

Swara cooked Sanskar's favourite lunch with Panneer and Bhindi. She had decided to take lunch for him in the office.

Driver parked car in front of Maheshwari Inc office main door. Swara got down. She entered inside and after taking the elevators she reached the top floor meant for Maheshwari men and other high profile dignitaries.

"Mrs. Maheshwari, long time?" Reshma, floor admin, welcomed Swara when she came out of the elevator.

"Hello Mrs. Reshma, how are you?" Swara had been to the office a couple of times which resulted in her knowing few from admin staff.

"I am fine. How are you?"

"I am good too. Is Sanskar busy in any meeting or is he in his cabin?" Swara asked with a small smile.

But her simple question drained all colours from Reshma's face. She gaped for a moment with a thought of an answer but words could not find their voice.

"Sanskar Sir? He... He is not in the office." Reshma murmured, still gaping at Swara's confused face.

"Did he go out for any client meeting?"

"No. Actually Sir stopped coming to this office. He shifted his stuff to his other office."

It was obscure to process her words for Swara. She could not comprehend the meaning of those.

"Other office?" Swara was still blank. She gaped like a fish.

"Swara" Ram called her from behind. He was going towards his office cabin when he saw his daughter in law in the middle of the foyer.

"Dad" Swara excused herself and moved to Ram to get her answers.

"What a pleasant surprise? I'm glad to have you in the office." Ram started walking towards his cabin.

Swara started following blankly.

"I came with Sanskar's lunch but Reshma said he ..." Her choked words momentarily halt to Ram's walking pace.

"Come inside, let's talk." Ram opened the door for her.

Her eyes went to the door beside Ram's cabin, which was supposed to be her husband's cabin. Today, it had some other name plate.

"Come inside Beta." Ram knew what must have been going around her mind.

"Dad, Sanskar shifted his office to some other office. What does it mean?" She asked the moment they were inside Ram's cabin.

"Karma Inc. He moved to Karma's head office." Ram replied, staring far.

"But he had merged Karma Inc with Maheshwari Inc long back then?" She was still clueless about recent change.

"Not really. He had merged only one subsidiary of Karma Inc with Maheshwari Inc." Ram's words added more to her confusion.

"When two years back he returned, his tactics, strategies and policies, his aggressiveness in the business field had drastically hindered Maheshwari Inc standing in the market. When you made him realise his mistakes, he stepped back but business doesn't work like that. By that time, our business had suffered severe loss. To cover up that loss, he himself invested in Maheshwari Inc. and also merged one of the subsidiaries of Karma Inc with us which resulted in a lot of benefits for us." Ram gave a clear picture about their old days.

"But then is he breaking the merger now?" Her heart thudded inside her ribcage.

"No... No. He is still on the board of directors panel for Maheshwari Inc as well as one of the major shareholders. But he also wants to concentrate on Karma's affairs as well." Swara could feel disappointment in her father-in-law's voice.

"But Dad, he should be here working with you and Bade Papa. You both are getting old. Bade Papa had suffered a heart attack recently." Swara knew that, currently, only her husband could become the backbone for Maheshwari Inc.

"He is taking care of both businesses properly. But he is taking too much load on himself. He buried himself in work. He is keeping distance from family on the pretext of work." Ram took a deep breath. His eyes glistened with unshed tears.

Swara kept on staring at her father-in-laws face, it held a myriad of emotions but she could not decipher any of them.

Swara came back home still lost in her own thoughts, she had decided to confront Sanskar.

Next day morning, Swara found a perfect opportunity when Sanskar was working on his Mac before breakfast. He was on call.

Swara asked, the moment he cut his call, " Yesterday, I had been to Maheshwari Office with your lunch."

Sanskar observed her from the corner eye. He knew what was coming his way. He took deep breaths with closed eyes to calm his mind. The tactic he had learned over the last 6 months.

"You moved your office to Karma." It was a question more than a statement. Her moist voice again was taking a toll on him.

"Yes" He nodded his head not looking at her.

"You did not inform me." her tone changed to complaining.

"I am sorry. I should have informed you earlier."

'Again sorry.' Swara developed hatred for the word over the last one week.

"Why Sanskar?" She tried her best to keep her mental equilibrium.

"Karma is my baby Swara. It needed my attention." He explained again in a soothing and calm tone.

"Maheshwari Inc is your inheritance. It has our family's legacy. It also needs your attention." She tried to negotiate.

"Yes you are right."

Swara could not believe it.

"Then?"

"I am trying my best to look after both businesses." He knew where this was all going.

"Sanskar, Bade Papa and Dad are getting old. Adarsh Bhaiya is not there. Laksh is still naive in business. They need your support." Swara could not hold her last 2 weeks of frustration in her tone.

"I am always there for them." He was still calm.

"Why are you distancing yourself from our family?" She finally came face to face with him for a confrontation.

He did not say a single word.

"You are not joining family for dinner. You come so late from the office that you don't even get a chance to meet anyone. Do you know what is happening at home?"

He still stayed silent looking everywhere but not at her.

"Why are you not talking to anyone? Badi Ma? She asks me every day about you. She wants her son back." Tears started welling up in her eyes looking at his aloof attitude.

"Ok. I will talk to her." He hoped his acceptance would finish their discussion. He just wanted to run away from her at that moment.

"You don't spend any time at home. You have no time for me. What about us Sanskar? It's been 2 weeks since we are back like before but we have not sat together and talked about happy moments or have hugged each other. Cried our hearts out over those painful days. I want your warmth Sanskar, the feeling of being secured in your arms. Hugging is far away, you haven't held my hand even once in these 2 weeks... You have not even touched me for once. Have we turned into strangers from soulmates?" tears started streaming over her cheeks unstoppable.

"It's not like that Swara. And I am sorry, if you felt like this because of me. But..." He took a step to hold her face in his palms.

Swara glanced at his eyes in bewilderment.

He was trying to finish their discussions and move away. She opened her mouth to say something but words could not find their own voice. He accepted her every word without any question. Just like he just needed some closure.

"Are you running away from me?" Her vulnerable tone gave pang to his heart.

"I can never run away from you." he confessed his heart out without even realising it.

His phone started ringing. Ringing tone broke their moment. He pulled back abruptly, taking out his phone from pant's pocket.

"I am so sorry Swara, I have to take this call." he picked up the call.

Swara's eyes were fixed on Sanskar's face. It was reflecting the aura of a determined and authoritative hard core businessman.

He left still busy with his call from their room just waving his hand and small smile.

In the afternoon Swara received a message from Sanskar.

'Sorry stuck in meetings. Please send my bags in the walking closet with the driver. I will go directly to the airport from the office.'

This message churned every dejected emotions bringing fresh tears in her big doe eyes.

Mechanically, she moved towards the walk-in closet when the driver arrived to hand over his bags.

'Happy journey. Please come soon' she typed and hit the send button.

'Bye. Take care.' This time his reply was immediate.

It had been two weeks, Sanskar had left for the US. He was busy but still he did not miss to message her frequently or call her at least once in a day. Their communication was limited to each other's well being, nothing more than that. Most of the time they used to stay silent over the call, hearing each other's heartbeat and hoping the other one would broach any topic for their discussion.

Swara was just playing around with his clothes to pass time. She felt his presence around her while wrapping his shirts around her petite figure. Over the last two weeks, it had become her habit to sleep covering herself with his shirt.

Few files from his closet fell on the floor when she was keeping his shirt back in the cupboard. She picked them and kept on the place but one of the files captured her attention.

It had a bunch of legal stamp papers along with her husband's signature at the end of page.

But the name besides his name caught her attention.

Name which had brought havoc in her and Sanskar's life. The name she was least expected to see in his belongings.

She thought it was over.

Swara gulped heavily, "Kavita Roy.'

"Is she back?"

*************************************************

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