Thank you so, so, so much for your love on the last part! Almost 600 comments! I'm so moved! I had a long day, but despite that... I've written the update for you all when I saw so many sweet comments on the last part. 

Please get the last chapter and this chapter to 450+ stars, to show me that you're catching up. Then I can comfortably post more frequently too. ❤️

This chapter was a fun, yet emotional one for me to write... especially the second half. I would love your thoughts on it, as I know many of you were wanting me to explore this angle too. I would appreciate your lovely comments here too! 

--

Anirudh gazed into Bondita's eyes, his heart hammering hard in his chest. "Y... you got wet in history class," he repeated, when she asked him to say something. 

Bondita nodded innocently. 

Anirudh furrowed his brows slightly. Madame knew she was being adorable, that was why she dared to give him these innocent looks. She very well knew how these looks turned him on. 

They turned him on... alright. 

Oh... so much. 

"Bondita..." he said in a thick voice, filled with desire. He reached for her shoulder, gently squeezing it with his hand and pushing her back on the bed so she could lie flat down, causing him to have more control. 

Bondita could hear her own heart beating... or was it his heart that she was hearing? She couldn't tell. When he pushed her down on the bed, and lifted his head, looking down at her from over her, with that look in his eyes, the desire was flooding her system.

It was a big flood, alright.  

"Yes... Pati Babu?" she asked, trying to act innocent. 

Anirudh felt his throat dry up. 

He desired her very much, but the thought of satisfying his own desires, was a scary one... it only confirmed that he had unleashed his instincts on her, and he never should have. He was guilty for this... incredibly guilty. And if he went wild on her right now, like he desperately wanted to, he may never recover from this. He may lose that hope that she had lit within him through her letter. 

"Do you... want... this...?" he asked, his voice still thick and needy, as he gazed at her, feeling a war being waged in his mind right now. 

She was his wife. She deserved every pleasure in the world. Even if he didn't deserve it... he couldn't snatch away the right he believed she had, the right over him. 

Bondita looked at him, her own throat drying up, as a painful ache hit her chest. 

She wasn't trying to seduce him. It just happened. Now she was being reminded of when she first tried to seduce him and tempt him, before they ever got sexually intimate. It felt like when she kept bothering him to be intimate with her, and it was all her fault back then... and even though he was lighter now since the day he found out about the pregnancy, she knew he still had a long way to go. He had yet to recover fully. 

And she was the reason for it. 

"Do... you?" she just asked in response, looking at him, trying not to let the pain show in her eyes. 

Anirudh brought his hand to her cheek, cupping it and looking at her with intensity. 

"We are husband and wife... we should... have full rights to do... this," Anirudh murmured to her, almost like he was convincing himself. 

"Even if we weren't husband and wife... we should have... full rights to do this," she breathed back to him, placing her fingers over his own, which was still holding her cheek, and caressing them gently. 

Because they belonged to each other. Keeping themselves away from each other was just torturous... yet, coming close together, was like a forbidden fruit, one that they tasted already, and reaped the consequences of. Now, if they tasted it again... would the consequences take a worse turn through their emotional state? 

Would it heal them or hurt them? 

Anirudh looked at her, as if he was convincing himself, "If... I desire you... I should... enjoy you..." 

Bondita looked at him, her heart fluttering slightly and she whispered, "You... should." 

"And if you desire me... you should enjoy me," Anirudh murmured to her, rubbing her cheek gently with his thumb. 

Bondita trembled pleasurably with his touch. 

"Should I?" she whispered. 

Anirudh leaned closer to her, the urge to eat this fruit of his, getting stronger and stronger. 

Bondita squeezed her eyes shut, her heart hammering wildly in her chest. She could feel his warm breath on her ear, and her toes curled with pleasure. 

"You look so delicious," he whispered into her ear, making Bondita's breath get hitched in her throat, her whole being shaking with desire right now. 

"Then... would you like to eat me?" she whispered back. 

Anirudh groaned into her ear, losing it completely when she said those words to him, and her hand wrapped around the nape of his neck, drawing him closer, his lips being pressed against her ear. 

It was taking her a lot to hold back. If she was the old Bondita, she wouldn't make him wait so much.

But, that was the problem wasn't it? 

She wasn't the old Bondita anymore... and he wasn't the old Anirudh either. 

They had locked their true selves within a guilty version of themselves... one where temptation and desire was there, but along with it, the battle in their minds existed as well. 

A war was going on; a war between expression and guilt. 

Would their temptation to express their love win, or the temptation to cave into their guilt? 

--

Vikram looked at Mallika, both of their legs dangling down from the water tank, as the magnificent view of Tulsipur from this height loomed below.  

She had tears rolling down her cheeks. 

Even though he had been heartbroken himself, tears in his own eyes, wanting to be alone... when he saw the pain on Mallika's face, he somewhere forgot about his own. 

"What did Batuk do to you?" Vikram just asked softly. 

Mallika shook her head, the tears in her eyes stuck as she held them in, unsure about how to explain herself. She just stared ahead at the sight -- at the beautiful view of Tulsipur, as the afternoon sun shone over them all. 

From this height, she could see small figures walking, although it was impossible to tell who was who. They almost seemed like small ants, that she could pick up between her thumb and forefinger, and move them around, as she wished. But things were never what they seemed. It was all an illusion. From this height, those who seemed small, were bigger than her. Taller than her. Stronger than her. She couldn't even make them flinch, let alone move them around. 

"I don't know how to explain it ji," she finally said. 

"Try, at least," Vikram offered. 

And that was all she needed, because she had been aching, aching to voice out her feelings; feelings, she didn't even understand. 

Mallika turned to look at Vikram, the wind blowing her braids back slightly, her eyes teary. "He - he doesn't tell me things!" Mallika confessed, her voice cracking, "He didn't tell me that Surabhi was his girlfriend! I... saw... him and Surabhi kissing! And... I didn't like it! I don't like when they hold each other's hands! I don't know why I don't like it, but I don't ji! It doesn't make sense to me because I never felt this way before! Not even when..." 

Vikram watched her, his eyes slightly wide as Mallika confessed her problem to him. He already got a suspicion, as to what Mallika felt for Batuk, but he wasn't here to tell her things. 

He was here to be a friend. He was here to listen. Not to provide his opinions and two cents to someone who needed his emotional comfort the most.  

"Not even when...?" Vikram asked her. 

"I didn't even get this sad, when in Punjab my uncles, aunts and grandparents would ignore me and the girls in our family, and give all their love to the boys!" Mallika confessed, her eyes glossing with tears. "I just thought it's a part of life, and girls go through this... my parents had to fight with their family to put me in school in Punjab... and..." Her voice cracked even more, "I always got taunted for it." 

Vikram looked at Mallika with shock, not expecting this backstory from her. 

"You know... we have always been well off financially. Our family. In Punjab, we have a lot of land, and my grandfather, uncles, they earn well too. But still, I would hear taunts from everyone, including my grandma and aunts, that... I'm costing them money. That being a girl shouldn't cost so much... because we are already costly to raise..." Mallika explained, her heart heavy, her voice heavier. "That they will need to spend money on dowry for us when we wed, and we are just being raised like animals for slaughter...eating, living, surviving, until we go to our real home... our husband's home." 

She continued, "They sent my Papa to Italy to study when he was younger... and I don't know, but for some reason, maybe it was because he studied in Italy, he didn't have the same thoughts as them. When he married my Bebe, my mother... she... she was quiet, and a shy type. She never expected that my Papa would give her all his earnings to take care of. My grandparents, my uncles, aunts, they didn't like it when my Papa used to give her his money. They believed that she should ask what she needs, when she needs it, not have access to everything... but my Papa trusted my Bebe, and he respected her. He gave her his keys, wallet, property papers... everything... and she never misused it, he truly believed that she had full rights to his earnings, and she shouldn't have to feel shy to ask him... or ever explain herself, and nobody liked that." 

Mallika went on, "I guess my aunts got jealous... they used to treat my mother very badly, but she never spoke up. She never even told my Papa. He would be at work all day, and he wouldn't know... but at times they even... h - hit her. My grandma used to abuse her a lot too." Tears filled Mallika's eyes. "I didn't know this story ji... until my own Bebe told me recently after we moved here. I saw the way they treated her in Punjab, but I didn't know this had been happening for so long." 

Vikram felt a strong pain in his heart as Mallika narrated her tale to him. 

"You know Vikram, my grandma used to feed my cousin brothers with her hands. She used to spend time with them. With me? She barely even looked my way... and when I started going to school, I only heard taunts. I still didn't think much of it, because I'm a girl, and we know how girls are treated here. I thought that since I'm going to school, this is just the price I have to pay... and it's a small cost, because my Papa always told me I would have a bright future if I studied, so I didn't let it get to me." 

"In Punjab, we even have all girls schools, and I used to be part of that. There are many girls in Punjab who go to school actually. But despite that, my own family... didn't believe in educating women," Mallika explained sadly. 

Vikram swallowed a lump in his throat, never expecting that Mallika had to go through so much. 

"My Papa would be at work most of the day, so he didn't get to hear a lot... but my Bebe did. She was the one who kept getting taunted, who kept getting yelled at for educating me... even though educating me was my Papa's decision. But my Bebe supports my Papa in all his decisions. So she even started to talk back to the family members in support of my Papa's wishes... she also began to fight for me. Maybe because I was younger at the time, but they let it go with some taunts and scolding but when I first... got my m - menstruation..." she was still nervous to speak about it because of the taboo, "My g - grandma threatened that if they didn't pull me out of school, I will do something scandalous with a boy and bring shame to the family." 

Vikram continued to look at her, just listening... not to respond, but simply for the sake of listening. The problem these days was that people listened for the sake of responding... instead of listening, they were too focused on what they were going to say next... and hence they could neither understand the other person, nor allow them to truly feel understood. 

Voicing one's own two cents and opinions, was not more important than the unbiased, judgment-free ear that a friend needed when they were emotionally down. Being a good listener, was an important quality for a good friendship. It was a virtue, a great boon, that the greats had... compassion was built through the medium of unbiasedness; which could be built simply from listening to others. 

Not listen to respond... but just listen to listen. 

"My Bebe and Papa fought with them. There were big fights in the family. Somehow, because my Papa was earning more than my uncles, they decided to let it go, and continued letting me go to school... until..." a fearful look appeared in Mallika's eyes now. "Until one day... on the way home from school, a boy on the street, had merely asked me for the address to go somewhere. One of the neighbours saw, and reported it to my family. I got the most beatings I ever got in my life... and you know what they said to me?" 

She looked up at Vikram, a horrified look on her face. "That because I went to school, I entertained boys, and I'm a harlot. I don't even know what that word means to this day Vikram! I just know that the tone that they said it in, was scary... and I n - never had the guts to check the dictionary. I am too afraid to find out the meaning... I'm so scared to know what it is." 

Vikram looked at Mallika, incredibly pained and hurt. He knew what a harlot meant. Prostitute. However, he couldn't tell her... he just wouldn't. She didn't even deserve to be called this. He wished he could erase the memory from her head completely. 

"My Papa was out... and my Bebe was begging. Crying. Pleading with them to stop beating me. They were... beating me so much, she was afraid that they would kill me. My Bebe said to beat her instead. She begged them to take her life. She said to spare her daughter, to let me go, but t - take h - her in exchange..." Mallika cried, tears rolling down her cheeks. "I'd never seen her like this. So protective of me. So scared for my life... and when she said that, I got s - so scared too ji. Scared for my Bebe... w - what if something happened to her? She was the only one, other than my Papa who always tried to do the best for me in the house." 

She wiped her tears away and said, "A - and when my Papa came home, he was furious to see my state. He told my Bebe to pack our bags immediately, and she ran to do it. He protectively held me. I had wounds on my body... I was bleeding from m - my ear and cheek. There were gashes on my body, and I was so hurt... I was on the verge of fainting. My uncles hit me the hardest... and... they kept on insulting me, that I was bringing shame to the family... my cousin brothers, they... quietly watched." 

Her voice shook violently, "And while I was getting beat, my grandma was stroking the hair of one of my cousins who was my age, and telling him that see... this is the luck of being born a woman, and how one should do what nature wants y - you to do... n - not rebel. And how he should never allow his wife or daughters in the future to get their wishes... I was in so much pain Vikram, but all I knew to do was watch... watch as the grandma who was a woman h - herself, was stroking his hair and showing him the way I got beat... like I was an attraction for sight-seeing. That hurt more than anything else... all b - because a b - boy asked me for directions."

"And while we were leaving, and my grandma realized that she was losing a major source of income in the family, she begged my Papa not to go... that... that they were wrong... but my Papa had enough. He said that he wasn't staying here a minute longer..." Mallika shuddered again, as she said, "My grandma cursed us as we were leaving! She said that watch, Mallika is going to bring shame to the family! If my parents continue to raise me this way, then... I'll definitely do a scandal... I'll definitely dishonour my family... my grandma sounded so certain about it ji!" 

"And my Papa..." Mallika whispered, "He took the challenge. He said, he promises that I will never do such a thing... and if... I do, then he will get sent to his grave... it was so scary to hear ji..." 

Vikram was crying now too... tears rolling down his cheeks. Tears for Mallika. How he wished he could support her... but he didn't realize that being here and being able to listen to her, was such a great support for the girl who hadn't yet been able to confide in anyone like this. 

"That's how... we came to Tulsipur ji... my Papa found work here easily, because he studied in Italy and he has such a good skill set anyways."

"Mallika..." Vikram just said, his voice heavy, wishing he could support her more. 

"Vikram," Mallika said, looking at him with lost eyes, "Despite all of that, I never wished to be held in my grandma's lap like my cousin brothers. I never wished to be loved like them, by my uncles and aunts. I had accepted my fate... that as a girl, I'll get less love... and I had become okay with that." Her lost eyes contained fresh tears now, as her voice cracked again, "Then why... w - why does my heart hurt when I see Batuk and Surabhi holding hands? Why do I want attention for the first time in my life from someone? I n - never craved it from my family! I swear I didn't, even when they flaunted all their love for the boys! But all of a sudden, I want it! I want Batuk's attention... why?"

She looked at Vikram, her wet eyes looking incredibly lost and pained, "Is there something wrong with me ji? Tell me Vikram, if there's something wrong with me. I promise... I won't feel bad. You just... tell me the truth." 

Vikram shook his head and reached for her shoulder reassuringly. "No Mallika," he said, his voice heavy, as he gripped her shoulder, "There's absolutely nothing wrong with you. You didn't do anything wrong... and the people who did, they're the ones who should be questioning themselves. Not you."  

Tears rushed down Mallika's cheeks as she whispered, "Really ji?" 

Vikram nodded, and looked at her sincerely. "Really Mallika... and I'm glad that you've told me this... I hope that it helped you feel a little lighter." 

Mallika nodded, reaching to her cheeks and wiping the tears away. "I do feel better ji..." 

Vikram looked at her, not sure how to bring up this topic, but he was getting worried about her now. He couldn't not warn her, when she was crying buckets of tears over him. "And Mallika... about Batuk... d - don't rely on him so much... don't get hurt by him... he... he has a girlfriend." 

Mallika looked at Vikram and asked, sounding confused, "I don't understand." 

Vikram looked at Mallika and let go of her shoulder, gently reaching for her hand instead.

"I think... it's possible... that you... have a crush... on Batuk..." Vikram confessed, his heart heavy. "I don't want you to get hurt so --" 

"A crush?" Mallika gasped. "On Batuk?!"

Did she really have a crush on that idiot?

--

I really hope you enjoyed this chapter!

This one was an emotional one for me to write. I teared up while writing Mallika's backstory. What did you think of it? 

What did you think about the Anidita scene in the beginning? 

Will Anirudh and Bondita's temptation to express their love win the war, or the temptation to surrender to their guilt?

If you followed the story, you can draw many parallels with the beginning of MDMB and this track. From their love realization phase, to even the guilt -- remember, Anirudh and Bondita both went through extreme guilt in MDMB? Anirudh... well his whole realization that he loved her was based on guilt and fear. And Bondita had been so guilty of her sexual desires as well... she thought she was dirty, and it was wrong. We explored all of this in detail in the story, and this phase is a parallel to all that MDMB has to offer! (Even the sneaking into each other's bedrooms and other nuances. 🙈🤭)

Is there anything that stood out to you/that you enjoyed? 

Remember to press star (on both the last chapter and this one please) and share your comments!

Love you all so much! ❤️