16. engagement

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The lights dimmed, casting the room in sudden silence

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The lights dimmed, casting the room in sudden silence. Every pair of eyes turned toward the entrance.

And then, she appeared.

My breath hitched.

She looked like a vision—no, more than that.
A goddess.
Serene.
Untouched.
Ethereal.

She stepped inside, gracefully lifting the edge of her skirt, her soft curls cascading across her face like poetry in motion.
My heartbeat stumbled.
One look at her and my carefully built composure shattered into dust.

That smile—those lips—how could something so delicate wreak such havoc in my chest?

And then... she looked at me.

Straight into my eyes.

Her gaze was steady. Deep.
Those dark brown orbs—God, they hold universes. There’s no metaphor strong enough to capture what I felt in that moment.
It was like falling all over again.
Swift, brutal, and unstoppable.
One glance from her, and it felt like she had reached inside and lit my soul on fire.

But she didn’t linger. Her eyes shifted, her smile broadened as she turned to her family. So joyful. So radiant.

And me?

I stood frozen. Hollow.

I’d promised myself I’d be happy in her happiness. Told myself again and again that if she smiled, it would be enough. But here I was, barely breathing.
Because truth is—promises are easy.
Living them? Not so much.

The lights came back on, and the crowd erupted in cheers. She beamed and walked over to stand beside Parth.

My brother.

Her soon-to-be fiancé.

I couldn’t take it.

I turned away and slipped out of the hall, every step heavier than the last. My chest burned like it was caving in, the air too thick to breathe. I couldn’t watch her with him. Couldn’t stand seeing my world belonging to someone else.

My feet took me down the hallway, away from the crowd, away from her... but not really. She was still there—in my mind, in my soul, carved into every beat of my heart.

A single tear escaped before I could stop it.

I quickly wiped it off and let out a broken laugh. So this is what I've become.

Anirudh Singh Oberoi.
The man who never falters.
Who’s faced storms in boardrooms and betrayals in life without shedding a single tear. Who built empires from dust and walked out of ruins with his head held high.

Crying.

Crying for the one girl who means everything to him.

For my Nandini.

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