After Advait left Samaira heartbroken on the day that was supposed to be the happiest of her life-their wedding day-her world shatters. Picking up the pieces, she barely manages to rebuild herself when her family insists she marry Aarav, a successfu...
The priest’s chants filled the air, steady and rhythmic, a sacred sound that should have calmed my nerves. But there was an uneasy feeling settling in my chest, one I couldn’t shake. Today was supposed to mark a new beginning—a fresh chapter in my life, starting with Aarav. But as the ceremony progressed, I couldn’t shake the weight of the past pressing on me. A year ago, I had stood at another altar, wearing the same lehenga I wore today. Back then, I thought I was marrying the man I loved, only for him to leave me broken and humiliated. Advait.
The memories of that day flooded back—the look in his eyes when he told me he never loved me, how he had used me to get revenge on my family for his father’s death. The moment he walked away from me, leaving me shattered, was still fresh in my mind, no matter how much I tried to bury it.
And just as I was trying to calm myself, trying to focus on Aarav, the atmosphere shifted. The doors creaked open, and in walked Advait Singh Shikhawat.
I froze. My heart nearly stopped beating, and for a moment, I couldn’t move. **Why is he here?**
I had known Advait for years—his presence in any room always commanding attention. But today, his arrival felt like an electric shock, jolting me back to a painful time I had tried to forget. I kept my head lowered, praying he wouldn’t recognize me, that he wouldn’t notice I was the bride. But I could feel his gaze on me, sharp and unyielding, as if he knew I was there, even though my face was hidden behind the veil.
He spoke to Aarav, his voice as calm and cold as ever. “I’m here to finalize the contract with your groom. A deal that should’ve been signed a long time ago. I expect it to be done today.”
I exhaled quietly. *Business.* That was it. He wasn’t here for me. He wasn’t here to cause trouble. For a brief moment, I allowed myself to relax. He would do his business, and then he would leave. I could endure this.
But then, his gaze shifted.
I saw him take a moment to scan the room—first to Aarav, then the Singhania family—and then something changed in his expression. His eyes narrowed slightly, calculating, cold. He seemed to be assessing the people around him, as if something had caught his attention. And that was when I realized it—he hadn’t noticed me at first, but now, his eyes were slowly beginning to recognize the situation. I wasn’t just another woman at a wedding; I was the bride.
I didn’t dare look up, but I could feel his presence, feel the tension rising in the air. He wasn’t here for a contract anymore. No, something had shifted within him, and I could see it now in the way he was staring at my family, then at me, though I still kept my head lowered, hoping the veil would shield me from his prying gaze.
It was too late.
Before I could stop him, he moved closer, his hand reaching out to lift the veil from my face. My heart skipped a beat, and the room seemed to hold its breath. In an instant, I was exposed to everyone—my family, the guests, and most of all, to him.
The gasps echoed through the room as my face was revealed. I could hear Advait’s breath catch, and for the first time, I saw a flicker of something in his eyes. But whatever it was, it vanished quickly, replaced by a familiar smirk.
“So, this is the bride,” Advait said, his voice carrying through the room with a mocking tone. “The same woman who had everything and lost it all. The woman who thought she could have it all, but now, look at her—just another deal in a wedding made for the sake of reputation.”
The words hit me like a slap to the face, but I didn’t respond. I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. I wouldn’t let him see the effect he still had on me.
But his gaze wasn’t on me anymore. It shifted to my family—the Singhanias.
“And your family,” he sneered, “reduced to using their own daughter as a bargaining chip to save their precious name. Pathetic. How far you’ve fallen.”
His words were poison, cutting through the air. I could feel the sting of his words deep inside me. But it wasn’t just about me anymore. It was about my family, the ones who had stood by me, supported me through all of this. And that was when something inside me broke.
I had kept my composure for so long, but this—this was too much.
Without thinking, I slapped him. My hand flew through the air, and it landed across his face with a loud crack. The room went silent. The sting in my palm mirrored the fury that had exploded within me.
Advait’s head snapped to the side. He was stunned, his eyes wide with surprise. The audacity of it. The unexpectedness of it. But I didn’t care. I was done. Done with his words. Done with the way he always belittled me and my family.
**Advait's POV**
I hadn’t expected this.
I came here for business. A simple contract with Aarav—something that should’ve been finalized months ago. That’s all. But when I stepped into the room, I didn’t expect to see **her**. Samaira.
Seeing her there, dressed as a bride, was like a slap to the face. I didn’t want to care. I had moved on. She had moved on. Or at least, I thought she had.
I noticed the veil, and my mind screamed to lift it. To see her face, to remind myself of what I had lost, of what I had thrown away.
But it wasn’t just about seeing her face. It was about reminding her. Reminding her of everything that happened—of how she had shattered my world, of how her family had been the cause of my father’s death. And that was why I had left her. Why I had betrayed her.
I wasn’t here for sentimental reasons. No, I was here to remind her. And when I saw her family—when I saw them in the front row, acting like they still had some dignity—it pushed me further. I couldn’t let them walk away with their pride intact. They had used Samaira. Reduced her to a pawn in their game. They deserved to feel the same humiliation I had felt.
When I spoke, I saw her eyes flicker with the pain I had hoped to see. But she remained still, her gaze lowered. Her silence was a victory of sorts, but it didn’t matter. I had come to do more than that.
But then, as I mocked her family, as I reminded them of their disgrace, something unexpected happened.
She slapped me.
The sting of it was sharper than I anticipated. My head snapped to the side, and for a moment, I was speechless. She had never done that before—not to me. Not even when I had betrayed her.
I felt the burn on my skin, but I didn’t care. What I cared about was the fire in her eyes, the anger that had resurfaced after all these months. Samaira wasn’t just the woman I had left behind. No, she was still the woman who could stand up to me. Still the woman who could challenge me.
And as I stared at her, I realized something. **This wasn’t over.** This was just the beginning.
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