"Sambhal kar kadam uttao, Abhira. Kahin giri kar aapni barbaadi na bula dena."
Hearts, those whimsical creatures, paid no mind to reason or counsel. They danced to their own melodies, drawing him inexorably towards her. His heart throbbed with longing, and if not for Dadisa's firm grip on his wrist, he would have dashed forward, sweeping away the treacherous shards of glass from her path.
O bedardeya, yaar bedardeya
O merciless beloved of mine
O bedardeya, yaar bedardeya
O merciless beloved of mine
Abhira gave a short, mirthless laugh. "Meri barbaadi toh ussi din shuru ho gayi thi jab maine tumhari booking liye thi, Mr. Armaan Poddar." Blood oozed from where the glass punctured her skin, but she pressed forward. "Ab kya darna."
Kaveri, the matriarch, observed the scene with a mix of pride and concern. Her eyes shifted between her grandson, Armaan, and Abhira, the woman he was infatuated with. She took a certain satisfaction in seeing Abhira hurriedly packing her bags, but her heart sank when her gaze fell on Armaan. Despite the glass shards Abhira was walking on, it was Armaan's face that had lost its colour. Armaan hadn't physically broken free from Kaveri's hold, but his feelings for Abhira were painfully clear. Even in her departure, Abhira had left a seed of defiance in the family, which was boiling Kaveri's blood.
Dard-e-dil ke bina mehfil hi kya
The gathering is useless without any heartbreak
Joh na toota kabhi woh dil hi kya
A heart that has never been broken isn't a heart
"Armaan, behto. Roka ki samay nikla jaa raha hai."
"Maa sa, hume-" Kaveri's raised hand quashed Madhav in his tracks. He earnestly tried to postpone this ceremony, hoping - praying - that his son would come to his senses.
Perhaps Madhav was wrong. Perhaps he had failed to raise his son. The weight of regret settled heavily on his shoulders. If he had only intervened sooner, things might have been different. Armaan might have a spine, not strings attached like Kaveri's puppet.
Mindlessly, Armaan sat at Ruhi's side, letting the charades continue.
The Rishta, ceremony, divorce—everything was orchestrated with Vidya's support. She firmly believed in her heart that she was right and was saving her son's life. Madhav's scornful looks could not deter her. Then why did her hand freeze when it came time to tikka Ruhi and Armaan? Kaveri asked herself.
"Armaan," Vidya's triumphant smile waned when she met Armaan's eyes. She kept searching for something—anything—a glint or a tear—anything that proved he was with them.
Nothing. His eyes were vacant, seeing through everyone yet not seeing anything.
Kyun saiyan maahi mera saudaiyan
Dhoop loot ke joh de gaya parchaiyan
"Kahan jaa rahi ho, Abhira. Armaan aur Ruhi ko roka ka shagun nahi dogi?" Sanjay caught Abhira slithering out with her suitcase through the back exit.
His earlier threats echoed in Abhira's head. Chun chun ke haar bezati ka badla lena ka waada kiya tha, akhir adhoora toh nahin chod sakta.
Abhira cleared her throat. "Zaroor." Abhira Akshara Sharma. Abhira Akshara Sharma. She chanted her name, breathing in the power her mother bestowed on her. Abhira Akshara Sharma nahi jhuke gi; she steeled her resolve.
Hope. Recognition. Fury. A cascade of emotions replaced Armaan's vacant gaze. Vidya followed his eyes and landed on Abhira's presence.
Yes! It was a sign from above, ushering Vidya in motion. Armaan loathes Abhira. He can't stand her presence. I'm not wrong. Vidya leaned forward with the tikka, but Armaan busted out of his seat and dropped the thali on the ground.
Everyone gasped.
"Tumhara Mangalsutra kahan hai? Aur Sindoor?"
Everyone gasped. Armaan traced her forehead, scouring for the vermillion like his life depended on it.
"Armaan?"
Abhira's heart was detonating with trepidation. She pushed him back with as much vigour as her trembling body could produce. "Tum pagal toh nahin ho chuke?"
He bounced back from his fall with a relentless fire.
"Main kuch puch raha hoon, Abhira! Jawab do."
'"Kyunki main kissi ki biwi nahin hoon!" Tears flooded her eyes as the memories flashed once more. They were haunting her. His screams, his taunts. Everything. It was etched into her soul and she felt she was going insane.
Hum mein joh tha woh raha kyun nahi
Why is there no longer any love in between us
"Kya matlab hai tumhara? Main marr chuka hoon kya? Khara toh hai tumhara pati." He bellowed.
"Armaan," she begged. "Bass karo." He was a petulant child who played with himself whenever it tickled his fancy. One day she was nothing but a mistake and the next, his possessiveness knew no bounds.
"Kya bas? Ek kagaz ka tukra sab kuch nahin badal sakta Abhira." Was he telling her that or his heart? Could he really believe that nothing changed.
"Armaan!" Kaveri raised her voice and ordered her sons to separate the two. Armaan was two steps ahead of her, picking up a shard of glass, puncturing his finger, and coating Abhira's maang with his oozing blood.
"There."
Abhira was agape.
"Jo rishta khoon se bandha hai, woh kagaz kaise tod sakta hai."
Their hearts destroyed them like the lovers before them. Like Devdas, Armaan became a ravaging monster and Abhira became a withering flower in his pursuit. They were in cages, close together that they got a taste for the other's company, yet far apart that they knew it wasn't possible.
This is by far the most toxic thing I've written/ But the prompt and couple are angsty and toxic so what can I do. I need Abhira to run! Like run far and wide - just take Krish, Manisha, Manoj, and Madhav with her and build a life full of rainbows and unicorns and success. Like this ain't it.
YOU ARE READING
Hum Tum
FanfictionMufat. Ziddi. Pagal. Azad. She was Abhira Sharma. At first glance, Armaan wanted nothing to do with her. But the sincerity in her voice and the innocence in her eyes brought him back, first to her resort and then into her life. Fate intervened, bi...
