Only You....

I stared at my mother, completely shocked. She knew Sheetal! Does it mean Arnav was telling the truth all this time? Oh, Lord! I couldn't say a word. I just sat there, feeling lost and confused.

My mother closed her eyes in irritation, 'Akash, why are you bringing up Sheetal and Shashi ji's brother? What do they have to do with all this? It has nothing to do with Arnav and Khushi!' She paused and said angrily, 'You should focus on finding your brother, not digging into things that don't matter...'

But Akash wasn't backing down, 'How can you say that, Aunty? It has everything to do with Bhai and Khushi... The truth needs to come out.'

I looked between the two of them. My heart was beating faster than ever. It was like I had been blind to something huge, and now everything was crashing around me. I asked tremblingly, 'Amma, do you really know Sheetal? How Amma? Please tell me the truth...'

She held my hand and said,' Khushi.. Sheetal.. sheet.. one minute.' She paused and looked at Akash and me. 'How do you guys know her?' Akash and Payal both looked at each other and then at me, and the realization hit me hard... I never told my mother anything about Sheetal. She doesn't know why Arnav broke up with me. I hide that part of my life from her, thinking I was protecting myself from having to explain the pain and protecting Arnav's image... But now, I am realizing I probably made a huge mistake... I glanced at Akash and Payal, who exchanged worried looks before turning back to me.. They were waiting for me to say something, to explain. But I didn't know where to start. With a trembling voice, I asked again, 'Amma, please tell me how do you know Sheetal?'

She squeezed my hand gently, 'Khushi... Sheetal was working at your father's office.. she.. she.. But why are you asking me this now? What does she have to do with Arnav?'

I looked down at the floor, feeling my heart pound. 'Amma, Arnav was working with Sheetal before going to US and I thought he broke up with me because they were in a relationship, though he said something else but I saw them together in a restaurant, I was there with ba... ' I stopped, unsure how to continue.

My mother's face turned pale, and she pulled her hand away slowly. 'What are you saying?' she asked being shocked.

I swallowed hard. ' I never told you this, Amma. I didn't want you to know but Babu ji knew...'

She stared at me shaking her head negatively, I could see the disbelief in her eyes, 'How's that possible, Khushi? Sheetal... with Arnav? '

'That's what I thought, Amma... I thought they were together, and that's why he broke up with me. He said a lot of time that.. ' My voice cracked, and I struggled to hold back my tears.

'Sheetal... she wasn't with Arnav. She was... she was with your father.' My mother replied gulping a big lump..

I stared at her in shock... She closed her eyes for a moment, as if gathering the strength to continue. 'Sheetal was Shashi ji's girlfriend...'

I felt like my whole world is falling apart, I took deep breaths, 'Amma, why didn't you ever tell me this?'

My mother looked away, 'Your father... Shashi had many bad habits. He wasn't perfect, but he loved you... Though he was not a good husband, he was a good father and I didn't want you to hate him. That's why I never told you about Sheetal or any of this. I didn't want to break your heart beta..'

I felt like I was suffocating. How could my father, the man I trusted and loved, and my mother have hidden so much from me, hided her pain just to protect me... Akash, who had been quiet until now said, 'I'm sorry to say this, Aunty, but he wasn't a good father either. If he really cared about Khushi's happiness, he wouldn't have done what he did. He wouldn't have destroyed his own daughter's life like this.'