Destiny's Play!!

Chapter - 78

Shalini hadn't been expecting things to take such an ugly turn. When she had received Tej bhaisaab's call late last night she had been shocked to learn of the developments that had taken place here. Karan had approached his parents with a proposal to marry Avni. And it seemed both Tej and Nilakshi were reluctant about this. She herself would never give permission for something like this even if they had agreed. How could Avni do this? It was the only question Shalini had asked herself all the way here. What she hadn't anticipated was that Avni would challenge her. She had changed. Shalini couldn't remember, in all the months she had known Avni, when she had talked back to her. Even when she had found out the truth Avni had cried but she had stayed quiet. She had never once asked her anything or counter questioned her decisions. But today it was as if Shalini had been made to see her guilt. She had never shied away from the fact that what she had done was wrong but she had never acknowledged it openly and she had justified it to herself as an act to get her only son back. But after today's confrontation it was as if Shalini had just been shown the mirror and by the one person she had never expected to defy her.

"How could she do that to me?" Shalini said to Nilakshi who sat there silently holding her hands.

"You still need to ask that question?" an angry voice sounded in the room and Shalini looked up startled.

It was Karan and if she was to go by anything on his face he looked mad. Anger didn't seem to do justice to what she saw in his eyes. It was fury and hatred. For her. And she had seen a similar look before. In Sahil's eyes. When she had forced him to marry Avni. Shalini just stared at him.

"Karan," Nilakshi said loudly, "you don't need to be here. There has been enough disturbance already. We will talk about this in the morning," she said firmly.

"Why?" Karan asked his mother, "So you could devise a strategy to get that poor girl back into her mold. Or you can come up with a passable excuse for what was forced on her. How would you react if it was done to your own daughter mom?" he asked.

"This is different," Tej said interrupting Karan, "it does not concern us," he said blatantly.

"Nothing concerns you dad," Karan said angrily, "it wasn't a concern to you when those good for nothing seniors bullied juniors at the NDA. It wasn't your concern that one of us was seriously injured because it wasn't your son. It wasn't your concern that your son had struggled to become who he has because you were done with him. What really concerns you dad?" he asked.

"That is enough Karan," Tej yelled.

"Is it?" Karan said sarcastically. "So since it is not your concern I will talk to Mrs. Shalini Raheja alone, because it is a concern to me," he said tightly, "You can excuse yourself and go wherever you need to be," he told his father.

"Such insolence and that too for a stranger," Tej said bitterly.

"No dad, she is not a stranger," Karan said seriously, "besides I am not here to talk to you. I am amazed how calm the two of you are?" he said as if wondering why his parents hadn't thrown the lady out of their house yet, "I wonder if the two of you were in on this?" he said.

"What is wrong with you Karan?" Nilakshi admonished. "How can you take that tone with your own parents? Whatever happened today and whatever Avni said has affected all of us. And we agree nothing like this should happen to any girl. I have one sitting in my home but...without hearing Shalini how can we judge," she said.

"You want to hear her set of excuses and decide what to think," he said and shook his head, "come on mom. That girl has stayed with you for over two months and you don't know who you have been staying with. You are not that bad a judge of character. Tell me this, if you hadn't previously known she was a widow would you have been more receptive to the idea of accepting her? Would you have welcomed her in this household as your future daughter in law?" he asked and as his mother looked away he knew the answer. "Don't bother to answer that mom. I hadn't thought you were this narrow minded. Consider this for a moment while I have a word with your very best friend had it been your daughter who had married early and then been widowed what would you have done?" he said caustically and heard a gasp from his mother. "Coming back to you Mrs. Raheja did you know prior to getting your son married forcefully that he was gay?" he asked.