Demon's Physco obsession

Wedding

The silence in the room was thick, and heavy, pressing down on Ved like a physical weight. He sat on the edge of the floral chaise lounge, his gaze fixed on Ankita who was perched on the window bay, her back to him. The afternoon sun cast long shadows, highlighting the stark pallor of her skin. Her recent suicide attempt had left a visible fragility about her, a vulnerability that clawed at Ved.

"Kittu," he began again, his voice barely above a whisper, "why?" He watched as her shoulders tensed but she still didn't turn. He'd asked her this before, pleaded even, but she remained an impenetrable wall. "Why did you try to...?" He couldn't bring himself to say the words.

Minutes felt like hours as Ankita sat in silence, her eyes betraying a pain that ran deep within her. Finally, she turned to her brother, her once bright eyes now dull and lifeless. "Why?" she whispered, the word carrying a weight of sorrow and longing. The emptiness in her voice echoed through the room, leaving a haunting silence in its wake.

Tears glistened in her eyes as she spoke, her words trembling with emotion. "I miss them, bhaiya," she confessed, her voice breaking with each syllable. "I miss my parents so much that it feels like a part of me is missing." The ache in her heart was palpable, the pain visible in every line of her face.

Ankita hugged her knees to her chest, her body shaking with suppressed sobs. "This place," she said, her voice filled with desperation, "it feels like a prison. I long for the days of my childhood, for the sound of my ma's laughter and my baba's silly jokes." The memories of her past life seemed to consume her, dragging her further into a pit of despair.

But it wasn't just the loss of her parents that tormented her. Ankita's gaze turned sharp as she spoke of a darker truth. "And then there's this," she said, her hand motioning vaguely to the world around her. "To marry a monster would be a fate worse than death." The accusation in her eyes was clear, a raw distrust of the world and those in it.

"I can't trust any of you," she declared, her voice laced with bitterness. "You're all part of this trap, this web of deceit and betrayal." The walls she had built around herself seemed impenetrable, her pain and anger mingling together in a potent mix. Ankita's words hung heavy in the air, a stark reminder of the battles she faced within herself.

She paused, her voice dropping to a near whisper, "Bua is missing, and there's no one to protect me anymore. And even if I marry him, what will happen when he gets bored of me? Where will I go then? Why should I even stay alive?" There was a desperate, almost childlike terror in her eyes.

Ved clenched his fists. "That idiot Shyamla! I told her not to meddle, I warned her..." He trailed off, frustration and guilt warring within him.

"Don't," Ankita interrupted her voice firm for the first time. "Don't say that. She at least tried to help me. She knew what this was, this... this forced marriage."

Ankita's gaze sharpened. "What did you do to stop this, bhaiya? You know him well."

Ved looked away, his guilt burning coal in his chest. "Adhi is... stubborn. He wouldn't listen. He never does." It was a pathetic excuse, and he knew it. He couldn't meet her gaze any longer. He needed to get out, to escape the suffocating truth of his inaction. "I... I need to go," he mumbled, rising to his feet. He couldn't bear to face her disappointment, the silent accusation in her eyes. He fled, leaving her alone in the quiet room.

He found Adhiraaj in his study, standing by the window, a lit cigarette dangling between his fingers. The wedding decorations outside, the vibrant colours that should signify joy, seemed to mock them.

"Adhi," Ved began, trying to keep his voice even, "You need to postpone this wedding. Kittu is not in the right mind. She needs time, not this forced ceremony. She needs to heal, she..."