Together Forever

Revelations

Virat sat in the garden swing, shattered at his father's revelation. Nidhi came to the garden with Casper, to find him deep in thought. He was contemplating whether he should tell his brother about his dad's conversation. But Vikram was still recovering, and stress was not good for him.

Nidhi tapped him on the shoulder "Hey, you alright? "

He answered with a nod, but she was not convinced.

As she sat next to him, Virat looked into her eyes "How happened to your mother?"

Nidhi looked sad, as she revisited that fateful day.

"We were on a trip to a hill station. I was quite young, so don't remember much. But all I remember it was night time. Saanvi and I were sleeping in the back. Suddenly we were woken by the sound of the car hitting something and we crashed into the mountainside rocks. I passed out and when I woke up in the hospital, dad was critical. But Mom had died on the spot."

Nidhi's voice broke as she gathered herself at the memory.

"When the doctor informed us about our Mother's death, I saw Saanvi breaking down, but when she saw me, I saw a change in her. That was the moment she turned into a mom. Even though she was young, she decided to be something for me that she herself had lost."

Virat gingerly asked "Did anyone see who caused the accident?"

Nidhi shook her head "No, it was too dark, and they never found out the culprit. Dad never really recovered from that loss. Because of that, Saanvi doesn't even want to get married as she doesn't want to leave him alone."

As tears dropped from her eyes, Virat put his hand on hers to comfort her. Having never opened up like to anyone else, She let her emotions out as she cried on his shoulder. Feeling guilty that his father was the reason for this family's misery, he hugged her while reassuring her that everything will be fine.

Even as Nidhi relaxed in Virat's friendly embrace, Dhruv walked in with a huge smile, excited to see Nidhi after a long time. The smile froze at the sight of Nidhi hugging Virat. An unknown monster - a intense feeling of anger, jealousy awoke in Dhruv. He walked back inside before they could see him. During lunch, Nidhi gave Virat a grateful smile and he pressed her hands to soothe her. Noticing this, Dhruv averted his eyes and clinched his fist. He hated to think that maybe when he was away, Virat had gotten closer to Nidhi.

On the other side of the dining table, Vikram was watching Saanvi with utmost interest. The way her lips pouted when she was arguing, her hands waving as if she was conducting an orchestra, her constant fiddling with her hair. Everything about her was so fascinating.

Later as Nidhi, Vasudha and Vikram sat in the hall watching TV, Saanvi sat down next to Vikram with a sigh. Vikram who was eating a bowl full of papaya, politely offered it to Saanvi. After a second's hesitation, she began to eat. As they shared the bowl of papayas, Vasudha watched with a smile wondering if they could share their life with each other in the same way.

Nidhi exclaimed at Saanvi "How come you are eating papaya? You hate them naa."

Saanvi blushed furiously as the everyone turned to look at her. She had not been able to say No to Vikram, despite her hatred for the fruit. Vikram was biting his bottom lip, trying to hide his smile. 

Saanvi answered in a slightly seething tone, "I started eating healthy food long time ago. You didn't notice, that's all."

Vikram quipped "She is right. I think that's why her cheeks are looking like Red Apples right now."

Saanvi gave him a stare which would have stopped a raging bull, but instead it only made his grin widen.

She retorted "Looks can be deceiving, you know."