He's lying! He's gloating here and making his brother miserable because she was his brother's girlfriend and he wants to get back at him. That's all she could think of when he told her the nasty news. That was it, nothing else.

"Are you listening?"his voice brought her back from the vague thoughts and she stared at him with loathing "I don't have time for your nonsense!"

He simply got up and looked at her "I'll give you some time to get over the grief and everything that follows... after that we can discuss the details of our marriage..."

"Are you insane?"she yelled "what makes you think I'll believe every word that's coming out of your disgusting mouth? I won't marry you even if hell freezes over!"

He shrugged "let's pray it doesn't..." he handed over a small card "call me on this number...I'll be waiting". Before she could think of saying a strong word, he was gone.

She stared into empty space, thinking about the bizarre yet confusing conversation. Although she felt it was a prank, somehow the past few days kept cropping in her mind. Yash had been avoiding her ever since the dinner and he never made it..he had blamed it on his busy schedule.

She felt a sudden wave of nausea and rushed home without even informing her boss. She couldn't even remember the journey back home and rushed inside her room and locked the door.

"Meera?"her mother called from the other side "dinner's ready". She wiped her tears "I already ate maa...I'm really tired and want to sleep..goodnight".

"Your father's calling...atleast sit with us" Damini yelled again. "I can't...I'll see you in the morning" she said, fighting back tears. Was it true?her mind reeled with pain as she tried to recall the past events. No! He would never do that to her!

Finally, when she couldn't bear it anymore, she called her best friend.

"Hey! What's up?"a sleepy Nidhi answered on the other end. Meera clutched her phone tight "can you come over? I'm not in a good place right now".

"What's wrong? Are you okay?" Nidhi asked, suddenly sounding worried. "I'm not okay!" Meera burst into more tears "I'm a mess and I need you!"

There was a pause "it's late Meera, I'll come over tomorrow but you need to tell me what it is" Nidhi said in a calm tone."I can't tell you over the phone" Meera cried slowly "I don't know what to do".

"It's okay Meera...I'm sure we can talk it out tomorrow when we meet...now go to sleep and don't think too much... everything will be fine" Nidhi told her.

Meera felt a little ray of hope and took a deep breath "I hope you're right....I guess I'm worrying over nothing...I needed someone to talk it out that's it...I'll see you then" she hung up, feeling a little better than before.

Nidhi was right, she thought lying in bed; I'm believing the words of a total stranger and a lunatic at that. She almost laughed out.

I've to meet Yash and clarify it, she decided; and put a stop to his jerk brother's antics.

◇◇◇◇◇

Nidhi had lost her sleep; what turned to a beautiful night had suddenly become a nightmare.

After Yash had proposed to her, it was a dream come true. She thought about the beautiful future she was going to have being Mrs Sehgal and the envy among her friends' circle since she wasn't as pretty and attractive among her friends. Meera was the prettiest one and she always outshone everyone with her charm but not this time.

Meera could have her beauty but it was power and money which she lacked and Nidhi was grateful for that.

And now she was back from Bangkok after a very secretive engagement because they didn't want to make it official yet. It had been Yash's idea "let's make it official after I break up with Meera" he told her "I don't want to hurt her like that". And Nidhi had respected his wish since he was right.

She looked at the large chunk of emerald in her finger; she was engaged to Yash! Everything was perfect until this phone call. She phoned him, unable to tolerate the inner turmoil.

"Hey! What's wrong?" Yash asked and she sensed his voice to be widely awake "haven't you slept?"

"No...I had this conference call from US" he explained "and I'm supposed to be asking you this question". She exhaled deeply "did you speak to Meera yet?"

She waited for him to respond "no I haven't...what happened?"he asked.

"She called me a while ago. She sounded agitated and worried...and asked me to meet her immediately" Nidhi explained slowly "I'm worried Yash...I don't want her to create a scene".

"Jeez Nidhi! I told you nothing bad will happen...there's no way she would have known about the engagement...once I explain her, we'll make our betrothal official...till then, stop fretting and enjoy the moment".

"Are you sure? She sounded really upset...I think she got to know..."

"Will you please stop worrying about her?" Yash said, sounding a little harsh "we're getting married with the blessings of our elders...it's not like we cheated on her...so relax..."

"I hope nothing serious happens" Nidhi sighed "I hope she accepts our relationship".

"Why are you so bothered about what she wants? For the first time, think about yourself, not her. It's our life Nidhi...we have to make decisions based on the circumstances...you must understand that" Yash said.
Nidhi agreed with him; it was her life. Maybe she was being paranoid.

"Are you having second thoughts about marrying me?"he teased. That put a smile on her face "of course not..I mean...I would love to..give us a chance" she admitted shyly.

"Me too sweetie" he stated "I lied to you about the conference call..I was busy checking up something".

"What is it?"she asked, curiosity getting the better of her. "Honeymoon destinations" he replied, making her blush "what kind of places do you like?"

She bit her lower lip "I don't know Yash...let's clear the air with Meera first and then..."

"You're really taking it too far now" he chided, stopping her mid sentence "you're a big girl Nidhi...you need to make decisions for yourself...she's not your mess to clean...I understand she's your best friend but trust me...I'll explain everything to her.. leave it to me" he said "so..what kind of places do you like?"

"Islands" she replied, feeling elated. Nothing could go wrong now; everything was falling into place and no one would stop her from having her fairy tale life...with the prince of her dreams.

◇◇◇◇◇

"Here's your cash...now stop troubling me" Tanvi cast a dirty glance at her ex husband who's eyes gleamed at the mere sight of fat bag in her hand.

Standing next to her car which she had parked on the sub basement of Prime Corp, she knew no one came to this part of the building as it was deserted and devoid of CC cameras.

"You have the full amount?"he asked, almost snatching the bag from her but she clutched it firmly "only if you delete all the evidence".

He stopped smiling "don't you trust me baby?" She gritted her teeth anger "I'm not your baby...just stay away from me". He took the bag from her and checked the contents as she watched him.

He still looked the same, the first time she saw him. Tall, handsome with a boyish personality, he was a hearthrob of every girl, and her. A famous formula one racer, he had everything a girl could ever want; money, charm and fame. And like every normal girl, she had fallen head over heels with him, only to have her heart broken after a failed attempt of a marriage.

"Whoa!"he gasped, after checking the money "you've really arranged the money quickly". She didn't reply to that and turned to him with a grimace "now that you have the money, leave me the hell alone and never bother me again" she almost stepped away from him when he caught her hand "not so fast darling!"

She pulled away angrily "I thought we made it clear I won't be seeing your ugly face again!" He smirked wider "I can't Tanu! I really need you" his voice lowered to a whisper "why don't we have a chat at my place? Let's talk about how good our lives would have been if we were together.."

"You mean if you weren't being unfaithful to me" she added with a scoff. He rolled his eyes "how many times do I have to explain to you it wasn't entirely my fault? It was her who was onto me...she was all over me and.."

"I don't want to hear the sordid details of your affair" she retorted "as if the humiliation wasn't enough...now let me go or else I'll go to the cops".

"And tell what? Don't forget, I still have your weakness" he smiled "don't play with me sweetie..."

"You said you'll delete all the evidence" she was close to tears "please don't this to me Ayaan".

"Should have thought of it before getting our personal lives on the media" he sneered "I lost my career, and I'm broke now....till I need money to get back in shape, I need you...and you'll do as I say or else.." he cast a nasty glance at her and sauntered away with a whistle.

She stared at the blank space, unable to comprehend her situation. She knew it was her fault, just like her father indicated. But then, he was always right and she was always wrong, in his eyes.

She took out a cigarette from the bag and lit it as small tears fell from her eyes. She wouldn't let anyone else see her in her most vulnerable as she sat on the pavement and let her emotions overflow as there was no one around until...

"Tanu?" She almost fell off when she heard the familiar voice and looked up at Shlok who had a stunned expression on his face "what are you doing here? Are you crying?"

She forgot her tear stained face and wiped immediately "what the hell are you doing here anyway?"she asked him back.

"I park my car here" he said, pointing towards his Civic which was parked in the corner. She rolled her eyes "guess there's no privacy anywhere".

"You can always cry in the bathroom" he suggested as a joke. She raised an angry eyebrow "I wasn't crying...must be the smoke...do you want one?"she asked, extending it to him.

"I don't smoke" he said in a serious tone "and neither should you". She scoffed "of course saint Shlok...always perfect. I bet you're here for a secret shag..."

She expected him to retort back, or raise his voice but he didn't "do you want me to drop you?"

She got up and faced him with her eyes broadened "what kind of human being are you?"she poked him in the chest "don't you get angry at me? At this sick world? Don't you have any reaction at all?"she poked him again "surely you must be thinking of a thousand swear words to use on me... now's the time...no one's here".

He stared at her for a long moment "you're not angry at me....you're angry at yourself" he said simply. She went onto say something but stopped herself "I'm fine...thanks" she said instead "I would really appreciate it if you left me alone". He nodded and turned away

"Shlok?"she called him halfway through "don't you dare tell anyone about this" she pointed towards the cigarette butt "and that I was crying..I'll cut your balls".

He shrugged "I thought you said it was all the smoke". Before she could come up with a reply, he was gone.

◇◇◇◇◇

Meera sat on the edge of the park bench, her mind reliving the moments they had shared in this very place. He had chosen this place as it was quiet and less crowded. Only the elderly came to have their evening walks and some jogged here. And few others, like her to have small talks and cherish the lost moments.

As she waited for him in the quiet atmosphere, she tried to reflect every single moment they shared and realized with a fleeting heart that he had always been discreet.

He always kept their relationship away from people and she had agreed without any explanation. But then, it had always been about him, she slowly understood now.

She saw him approaching her, and the unsinkable feeling that something was wrong couldn't escape her notice. Please God! Let it all be a misunderstanding, she prayed fervently; let it all be an illusion.

He quietly sat next to her and she didn't show any excitement nor the enthusiasm which she usually did.

"So you finally have time for me" she said with a heavy smile. He took her hand in his "past few days have been very difficult for me sweetie" he whispered "I wish you would understand what I'm going through.."

"Will you stop cribbing about yourself and ask me how I'm doing without you?"she snapped, stopping his speech. Taken aback, he gulped "I was worried about you...why do you think I came all the way here?"

"Because this is the only place where no one can see us" she muttered with slight irritation "I want to put a stop to all of this Yash...I want you to take a stand for both of us...by making our relationship official..."

He looked at her "that's what I wanted to talk to you about" he clasped her hand "I'm holding the reins of our company very tightly but there were few things that got along the way" his voice faltered "my mother's very against us...she said the very idea of us together will hold a negative impact on our reputation...as well as business...I tried convincing her but she won't listen....I don't know what to do...I even...."

"Did you get engaged in Bangkok?"she asked suddenly. His grip on her hand loosened as he could only gape at her "wh...what?"

"Answer me Yash!"her voice rose higher and he bit his lip as his face almost blanched "wh..who told you this?"

"So you won't deny it" she said, her eyes fuming in anger "you got engaged didn't you?"

"Of..of course...I'm denying it!"he stammered "it's not true...I swear..."

"Enough!"she yelled, removing his hand from hers "tell me the truth and save all the trouble" fresh tears made their way down "just tell me the damn truth...you owe me that much..."

He looked at her and she could see the naked truth plainly in his eyes. There was no need for any words; his silence said it all. "Why Yash?"she asked softly "what did I do to deserve this?"

"Believe me...it wasn't at all my intention to hurt you...the situation was out of my hands and..."

"Really?"she yelled, getting up from the bench "you're blaming it on the situation? You didn't even have the decency to tell me! How disgusting can you get?" Her outbursts caught the attention of an elderly couple who were passing by.

"Stop yelling, you're drawing attention" he whispered, noticing the couple "I wanted to tell you beforehand but this happened all of a sudden...I didn't even get a chance..."

It took all the willpower not to scream at him again "so all those words you said...all those promises you made. Those were a joke to you?"

"I love you okay?"he stressed the words "I still do...but my mother...I can't go against her Meera...you know how much I love and respect her...I'm all she has...I'm helpless..."

She stared at him for what felt like an eternity, unable to comprehend what he had said, partly because she was still in the denial phase; that this was all a dream....it was happening to someone else not her... she couldn't be going through the humiliation again..

"I loved and trusted you Yash" she broke down after a while "I pledged my life for you...even fought with my mother because I thought you won't betray me...little did I know people like you exist, who gamble with hearts..."

He placed his hand on her shoulders but she pushed him away "you're way too over reacting Meera" he said "I told you I didn't want all this...it's not like I cheated on you...and the engagement...I never wanted it at all...I wanted to talk to you first and explain the situation...but Nidhi was adamant that we go ahead and then talk to you later..."

She raised her head "Nidhi? What's Nidhi got to do with all this?"she asked with stunned surprise.

"We thought you would understand our predicament...it was our parents' decision" he went on but she couldn't hear anything and ran away from him, unable to withstand anymore torture.

"Meera wait!"he called out to her but she didn't turn back for she had been betrayed and humiliated...just like her father had...

Hi everyone!!
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Have a great day ahead (sorry for the late update😫😫)