Title: The Shattered Vows
In a world where love is often the casualty of power, Sahil finds himself trapped in an arranged marriage-a contract sealed by his parents for the sake of business. To him, this marriage is nothing more than a cold transact...
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The grand wedding ceremony—Sahil, stoic and cold, stands beside Tanya, who is hopeful yet nervous. The guests see the perfect couple, but there’s no love in Sahil’s eyes, only detachment.
He views this marriage as a mere transaction, a merger between two powerful families. As he glances at Tanya, a fleeting memory surfaces from deep within his past…
*Flashback to Sahil’s Childhood Event*:
A quiet park on a cloudy afternoon. Sahil, about 10 years old, sits on a bench, staring at his shoes.
He had a terrible day—his parents are in a heated argument about business at home, and he feels small and invisible, lost in a world that’s too big for him.
Just when the tears start welling up in his eyes, a voice cuts through the gloom—a soft, gentle voice.
A girl, around his age, walks over and sits next to him. She doesn’t ask any questions, doesn’t pry, just sits there quietly, sharing a bag of candies with him. Without a word, she offers him one.
Sahil, stunned by this simple gesture of kindness, hesitates before accepting the candy. It’s something so small, yet in that moment, it feels monumental to him.
No one had ever shown him kindness like this, especially without expecting anything in return.
They sit together in silence, and after a few minutes, the girl does something he’ll never forget—she pulls out a small, folded paper crane from her pocket and hands it to him.
“It’s for good luck,” she says, smiling softly. “You look like you could use some.”
As he unfolds the crane, he discovers a little message inside. Written in colorful, childlike handwriting are the words: “Good luck, bunny!” Alongside it, there are cute doodles of bunnies and stars, each one more whimsical than the last.
The paper crane becomes a symbol for Sahil, representing hope and innocence. He clutches it tightly, feeling a connection, one he’d never felt before.
He doesn’t even ask for her name, and before he can, she gets up and leaves, her figure disappearing into the distance.
All she leaves behind is the crane and the feeling that for the first time, someone saw him.
As she turns to leave, Sahil notices something unique that catches the fading light—a small, silver bunny charm dangling from a delicate bracelet on her wrist.
The charm has an intricate design, its ears perked up and eyes sparkling with life, as if it’s listening intently. He marvels at its cuteness, the way it sways gently with her movements.
In that moment, he thinks it’s adorable, something that makes her stand out even more. The charm symbolizes her warmth and playfulness, and it becomes etched in his memory.
He never saw her again after that day, but the memory of that moment—her kindness, the paper crane, and the warmth she brought to his cold world—became something he clung to. It was the only time in his childhood where he felt truly cared for, and it left an indelible mark on him. To this day, Sahil still has that paper crane, tucked away in a drawer, a relic of the past he’s been chasing ever since.
Return to Present:
As Sahil stands beside Tanya at the altar, the memory of that day flickers in his mind, and he feels a deep ache in his chest. He’s never been able to find that girl, the one who made him feel alive, and the hope of ever finding her has kept him emotionally distant from everyone, including Tanya.
He believes the girl is still out there, somewhere, in New York, completely unaware that the very woman he’s marrying is the one he’s been searching for all along.
Tanya, meanwhile, catches a fleeting glimpse of his expression, not knowing that he’s remembering the moment they first met.
The two of them standing together, married by contract but divided by secrets and a past that neither of them fully understands yet.
