The Rathore's Family

"Pagphera"

Sam entered Advait's cabin. "Sir, Tej sir has come to meet you."

Advait looked up from his laptop screen and smirked. "Hmm, let him come.."

Sam looked at him, puzzled. Advait raised an eyebrow, seeing Sam still standing there. "Should I go to call him?"

Sam snapped out of his thoughts and said hastily, "No, no sir." He ran from the room.

...

He came and sat on the opposite side of Advait and asked,"How are you feeling, sitting in my place?" Tej's voice dripped with sarcasm.

"What do you want now?" Advait shot back, ignoring the question.

Tej laughed, a cold, mocking sound. "Question for question... But if you really want to know, I want to be where you are sitting now."

"You mean I should leave this position... right, Mr. Rathore?" Advait asked, his voice steady.

Tej smiled and said, "Yes."

Advait's eyes narrowed as he studied Tej's smug expression. "Okay, then tell Dadu that you want me to step down. Anything else?"

"Me? Why should I say it? You'll tell him that you don't want to work for this company and want to hand everything over to me."

Advait chuckled, "So you can abandon it all again?"

Tej's smile faded, replaced by a stern expression. He stood up and raised his voice. "Don't test me, Advait. I just want what was originally mine. You should hand it back instead of fighting unnecessarily. Otherwise, you know I'll take what's mine, and I'm only afraid that you might lose everything in the process."

Advait remained seated, his voice calm. "Calm down, Mr. Rathore. Why raise your blood pressure? When did I say this isn't your place? Of course, it's yours. I'm not trying to take it away from you. I'm just picking up the pieces you left behind."

Tej's expression shifted to one of guilt. "I know I made mistakes, but that doesn't mean I don't deserve what is mine. Everyone makes mistakes."

"Mistake?" Advait's voice was filled with incredulity and anger. "Do you consider what you did just a mistake? Do you think everyone has forgotten what you did to Mom? What did you do to your children? To your parents? I feel ashamed to call myself your son, and you think it's just a mistake?"

Advait stood and pointed towards the door. "Now, I think you should leave. I can't control myself any longer."

"You will regret this, Advait," Tej spat as he stormed out in anger.

Advait sat back on his chair and murmured,I am already regretting what will happen if I do a little more."

....................

Today she is going for Pagphera, that place where she doesn't want to go, but how can she deny to not go? What will everyone say? As Dadi was already saying,. So she finally decided to go there.

Now she is standing in front of the mirror in the room wearing a beautiful red saree with intricate gold embroidery. her hand clad in red Chuda, Magalsutra, and Sindoor in a hair partition.

She takes a deep breath and reminds herself that she is strong and can handle whatever comes her way.

At that moment, Advait entered the room. His eyes fell on his wife, and he was struck silent. She looked ethereal, like an angel bathed in the soft morning light. His words halted midway as he became lost in her simmering natural beauty. He couldn't believe how lucky he was to have her as his partner. "One day, she'll take my breath away," he thought.

Drishti noticed him and approached. "Aap kuch keh rahe the?"

Advait snapped out of his daze. "Huh? Oh... no, nothing." He moved towards the bathroom, trying to hide his flustered expression.

She looked at him and mumbled to herself, "Keh to rahe the." She shrugged and picked up her phone.

Her face fell again as she looked at the messages she had sent to her bhabhi. She started pacing the room. "Still no reply. What if I go there and Bhaiya doesn't like it? He'll be angry again... but what can I do? I don't want to go there either."

Advait emerged from the bathroom, now dressed in a grey pant and white shirt, and saw her lost in thought. He walked up to her, making her stare. "You have such bad habits."

She looked at him, confused, then down at her hand, realizing she had been biting her nails. Hastily, she withdrew her hand and showed her teeth in a sheepish grin. "I... I don't have... it was just... I was thinking about something." She knew she was caught.

He folded his arms, making his biceps more prominent, and took a step closer. "Yesterday, you were biting your pen, and today, you're biting your nails. These are bad manners, Biwi Sahiba."

"Woh... no," she said, still denying it. His lips twitched into a smile he tried to hide as he said, "Chalein abhi."

...

They came downstairs together. Everyone was waiting for Advait. He didn't stop in the hall; he went straight outside. Drishti paused to seek blessings from the elders.

She touched Dada and Dadi's feet. "Jaldi aana," Dada Ji said.

"She's not going for years," Dadi Ji said sarcastically. Ignoring Dadi's tone, Drishti touched the feet of the others.

Vihaan and Amaira came and hugged Drishti. "Ma, we're going to see Bhabhi off," Vihaan said, looking at Dadi. "Because even a day without my sister-in-law feels like years."

Drishti smiled, bidding goodbye to everyone. She stepped outside with Amaira and Vihaan.

Outside, Advait was waiting in the car, tapping his index finger on the steering wheel. He mumbled to himself, "Itni der to vidaai ke din nahi lagai jitni aaj laga rahi hai."

Then he saw the trio, lost in their conversation. He smiled at the sight, thinking, "Even when I wasn't there for her, they were. I'll never forget what they did for me, unknowingly."

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the car door opening. He looked up as Drishti sat beside him. Vihaan stood holding the door open. "What? You two are coming too?" Advait asked.

Vihaan made a cute face. "We want to go, but we're not allowed." He leaned toward Drishti and whispered, "But Bhabhi, if you get bored, just call us. Or we could play a game."

Advait looked at them, puzzled. Amaira, predicting his confusion, said, "Bhabhi is going home, not into exile."

Vihaan glared at Amaira and said in a serious tone, "If my Bhabhi were going into exile, her Devar wouldn't stand here. I'd go with her."

Amaira laughed, and Drishti felt a warmth in her heart, touched by the brotherly love she had always craved.

Watching their drama, Advait said sternly, "If you guys are done now, close the door. I don't have all day." Listening to him, Vihaan closed the door immediately.

Advait drove off, glancing at Drishti. She seemed deep in thought, the weight of her visit heavy on her mind......