🖤 The unlikely union 🖤

chapter 9

The sun peeked over the horizon as Sarah woke up early the next day. She had planned to pay a visit to her old house to collect some belongings, particularly her parents' photographs and a few medical books that were still stored in her old bedroom.
With a sense of determination, Sarah got ready and made her way to her old home, the memories of her past swirling in her mind.

As Sarah walked into the living room, she was met by her cousin, Lily, who immediately started hurling cruel words at her.
"Oh look who's back," Lily sneered, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "What, got kicked out of Aarav's house already?"
Sarah felt a twinge of pain at her words, but refused to show any sign of weakness. Her aunt, Priya was sitting on the sofa, a cold smile on her face.

Her uncle, David, chimed in, joining in on the mockery.
"Looks like your little stint at Aarav's didn't work out, did it?" he said, a cruel smirk plastered on his face.

Sarah took a deep breath and replied, trying to keep her composure.
"No, that's not what happened," she said firmly. "I just came here to take my parents' photograph and my medical books that I left behind when I moved away."

Sarah's blood boiled as her aunt snatched the photograph from her hands, breaking the frame in the process.
"What are you doing?!" Sarah exclaimed, her anger rising.
But before she could say anything else, her aunt slapped her hard across the face, her words filled with venom.
"You're nothing but a useless ," her aunt spat. "You deserve nothing but misery."

Her uncle David chimed in again, his voice filled with derision.
"You're lucky we even allow you to step foot in this house" he growled

Sarah's voice was laced with anger as she responded.
"This is my house, my *parents* house. You're all just staying here."
Her aunt's hand shot out, slapping her again in response.

"Don't you dare speak to us like that," Priya hissed. "This is our house now, and you're not welcome here if you can't respect that."

.Sarah's eyes brimmed with unshed tears as she carefully picked up the broken pieces of the photograph from the ground. Her hands were shaking, and the cruel words and the slap from her aunt had left her feeling vulnerable and hurt.
Her uncle David and aunt Priya  looked on with cold eyes, their expressions filled with disgust.
"Get out," her uncle said, his voice cold and authoritative. "You're not welcome here anymore."

As Sarah stepped out of the house, clutching the broken frame with the picture of her parents, tears streamed down her cheeks

As soon as Sarah arrived at the mansion, Aarav's voice rang out, his tone filled with concern.
"Where have you been all this time? I even called you, but you didn't pick up," he said.
Sarah was taken aback by Aarav's worried voice and the fact that he had been trying to reach her. She took a deep breath, trying to gather her emotions.

Aarav's eyes widened as he noticed the redness on Sarah's cheeks.
"Wait, what happened to your cheeks? Why are they red?" he asked, his voice filled with concern.
Sarah looked down, avoiding his gaze. She didn't want to burden him with her troubles.

"It's nothing," she muttered, trying to brush it off.

Sarah tried to brush off Aarav's concern, claiming it was just a minor accident.
"It's nothing, I just bumped my face while walking," she insisted.
But Aarav wasn't buying it. He looked at her with a knowing gaze, realizing that something more than just a bump had caused the redness on her cheeks.
"I don't think it's a bruise from bumping into a wall by mistake," he said firmly. "Who did this to you? Tell me what happened."