In a distant marriage with her brooding husband, Ayan, Adira Khanna has resigned herself to a mundane life. However, fate has different plans when Ayan's childhood friends plan a week-long trip to Goa. Little did Adira know that this vacation would...
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Chapter 32
Bad Blood
Ayan
Today's dinner left a bitter taste in my mouth.
I walked back to our room, shedding the confines of my formal attire and unbuttoning my shirt in an attempt to find some comfort.
I entered the room, my gaze fell upon a small packet on the side table - a pregnancy kit. An uncertainty intertwining with a sense of inevitability churned within me. I knocked on the bathroom door, and when Adira emerged in the same saree from the dinner. Her eyes indicated anxiousness.
"I am pregnant," she uttered those three words in a hushed whisper.
Those three words made the world seemed to shift on its axis. It was as if time had paused, and every worry, every fear, and every hope converged into those simple words. My heart raced, my mind whirred, and my palms became sweaty.
Adira's gaze held mine, and I could see the tremor of emotions dancing beneath the surface.
Those three words had the power to reshape everything we thought we knew, to bind us even tighter or to introduce a new layer of complexity to our lives.
Esha was a significant part of my life now, and my heart had led me to propose to her, to imagine a future together. But now, Adira's pregnancy had introduced complications. How could I reconcile these two worlds that seemed so different?
My heart dropped, and I needed confirmation. "Are you serious? You are pregnant?" The words tumbled out, laden with less astonishment and more trepidation.
Adira nodded "Yes," revealing the two red marks that sealed our fate.
I touched the back of my neck, a nervous gesture that betrayed my inner battle.
Despite the swirling worry, "That's great news," I uttered, hoping to infuse some optimism. Yet, even as I spoke those words, a voice inside me questioned the validity of my response.
Adira's probing gaze met mine, and her next question hung heavy in the air, "Is it really?"
My response was a soft affirmation, a weak echo of assurance.
"Don't worry, Adira," I reassured her, "We won't tell anyone about this now. After the anniversary, we can sit down and figure things out together."
Her response was a simple "Okay," yet I could sense the depth of emotions.
However, even as I offered her my words of comfort, I knew that there were other pressing matters that needed my immediate attention.
I made a decision that I knew would haunt me forever—the decision to leave her alone with this shocking news, at least for the time being.
Walking away from that moment was the hardest thing I had ever done. But in my mind, I justified it by believing that I needed to address the tangled web of my own life.
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Adira was fucking pregnant. I needed to make things right, and I knew the first step was to find Esha and tell her the truth.
With a determined resolve, I set out to search for Esha, my heart pounding with urgency. The weight of my secret felt heavier with every step, and I knew that honesty was the only way forward.
Descending the staircase, my mind had agitated thoughts, I approached her room. But the scene in front of my eyes was nothing short of a nightmare.
Esha was in the arms of another man, their lips smashing, hands moving over each other's bodies, his presence igniting a spark of jealousy and anger within me that I had never felt before.
Without thinking, my emotions took over. I lunged forward and delivered a forceful punch to the man's face. Esha's scream pierced the air.
"What is wrong with you?" the man exclaimed, his own surprise evident in his voice.
"Leave," I demanded in anger and desperation. "Leave. Right. Now."
I couldn't comprehend the scene before me—the woman I thought I loved, the one I had envisioned building a future with, was entangled with another man. Anguish, anger, and disbelief surged within me.
"Why?" I demanded.
Her face showed guilt and desperation. She tried to speak, but I couldn't bear to let her words wash over me so easily.
"I loved you, Esha," I continued, my voice laced with the bitterness of betrayal. "How could you do this? I wanted to marry you."
"Ayan, we can talk inside," Esha pleaded, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Just because I was busy, you decided to move on to... I don't know who," I spat out, my heart aching with every word. "A stupid replacement."
"Ayan," she implored, her eyes searching mine for understanding.
"I wanted to marry you," I repeated, my voice breaking. "I was ready to leave Adira and my baby for you. Yet you did this to me."
Regret gnawed at me like a relentless ache, a heavy burden that I had to bear alone. The weight of my actions settled upon my shoulders like an unyielding force, reminding me of the vows I had taken, the promises I had made to Adira. How had I let it come to this?
Instead of investing time and effort into healing the fractures in my own marriage, I had allowed myself to be swept away by an affair, a mirage of happiness that had now crumbled into disillusionment.
Every stolen moment with Esha now felt like a betrayal, a painful reminder of the bond I had forsaken so easily.
I had cheated not only my wife but also myself out of the chance to salvage what was left of my marriage.
"Ayan, I got tense when you asked me to marry you," Esha explained, her voice trembling. "I can't. I felt the pressure was killing me. There are so many things I wish I could do."
My anger flared anew. "Yet you kissed another man. What have I not done for you? You could have talked to me."
Esha's voice trembled, a hint of frustration lacing her words. "You weren't listening, Ayan. Every time, you were already starting on our future. I was not ready. We were not on the same page."
I clenched my fists, my heart pounding in my chest."I left my marriage vows, and you are telling me we weren't on the same page. You are so selfish, Esha."
Her hand reached out toward me, an attempt to bridge the gap, but I recoiled, unable to bear her touch.
"It's over," I declared, my voice heavy with finality.
Her voice echoed after me. Her desperate cries that trailed behind as I walked away. My heart torn between the remnants of what I had once believed was love and the harsh reality of the present.
....
Cheater got cheated on. I am posting this chapter after a LONG TIME!
