Closer Than Before | 𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙙 ✅

Chapter 40: Complicated?

Samar’s POV:

My mind was still reeling from the call. I stared at my mother, unable to believe the bombshell she’d just dropped. “Marriage?” I repeated, barely able to keep my frustration in check. “Maa, how could you just decide this without even asking me?”

She looked at me, her gaze firm and unyielding. “Samar, this is what’s best for you. Mr. Khanna’s family is well-respected, and his daughter is a lovely girl. I’m doing this for you, for our family.”

“No, Maa,” I said, my voice growing louder, desperation creeping into every word. “You don’t understand. I already… I already have someone. I love Radhika. She’s the only one I see, the only one I want.”

My mother’s expression softened briefly, but her resolve remained. “Samar, you may think you love her, but relationships like these aren’t built on fleeting emotions. We want stability for you, not complications.”

“Fleeting emotions?” I repeated, disbelief washing over me. “Maa, this isn’t some passing phase. Radhika is… she’s everything to me. She understands me, makes me want to be better. I can’t imagine anyone else in her place.”

“Enough!” she said firmly, her voice carrying the weight of finality. “This discussion is over. Mr. Khanna’s family expects a commitment, and the engagement will happen the day after tomorrow.”

Her words felt like a blow, and I could barely breathe. “You can’t be serious, Maa,” I said, feeling my heart race. “You’re asking me to marry someone I barely know, while I’m standing here, telling you I’m in love with someone else.”

“Samar,” she replied, a hint of sadness in her eyes, “sometimes, we must set aside what we want for the sake of what’s right.”

I could feel my world crumbling around me. The thought of losing Radhika, of someone else taking her place, was unbearable.

Memories of our moments together—the way she laughed, the way her eyes lit up when she was passionate about something, the warmth I felt every time I was near her—flashed through my mind, intensifying the pain in my chest.

“No, Maa,” I said, a finality in my own voice. “I love her, and I’ll do whatever it takes to be with her.”

But she only looked at me, a mixture of pity and resolve in her gaze. “The engagement is happening, Samar. Please don’t make this harder on all of us.”

I stood there, my mind reeling, the weight of her words pressing down on me. The reality of what she’d just said hit me like a wave, threatening to drown me.

In two days, I was supposed to stand beside a stranger, pretend everything was fine, and accept a future that didn’t include Radhika.

But in my heart, I knew one thing for certain—I couldn’t let her go, not without a fight.

After my mother left the room, I felt like the ground had been ripped from under me. I sank down onto the edge of my bed, running a hand through my hair as I tried to process everything that had just happened.

How could they expect me to move on, to just replace Radhika with someone else as if she meant nothing? I couldn’t even imagine my life without her.

Every memory, every smile, every shared glance — it all ran through my mind in a chaotic mess, each moment a reminder of just how deeply she was woven into my life.

I picked up my phone, my fingers hovering over her number. I wanted to call her, to hear her voice, to somehow tell her that this wasn’t what I wanted, that I wouldn’t let this happen. But what would I say? How could I explain this to her without causing her more pain?