His Bride

21 / NM

Arushi's Pov

Two months. Two peaceful, almost surreal months of being happily married—or at least pretending to be. On the surface, everything looked perfect. Dhruv's family had embraced me and Aadhi wholeheartedly. His brothers treated me like one of their own, Baba and Chachu were the epitome of warmth, and Dadi had taken to calling me her daughter instead of daughter-in-law.

It felt like a dream I didn't dare wake up from. But somewhere deep inside, unease prickled at me. A feeling I couldn't quite shake.

Something was bound to happen. I could feel it in the air, like the calm before a storm.

Late that night, I found myself standing outside Dhruv's study. The door was slightly ajar, revealing him seated at the desk, surrounded by Baba, Chachu, and his brothers. The tension in the room was palpable. The air was thick with worry and frustration.

"Dhruv..." I knocked softly and stepped inside. All eyes turned to me.

"It's too late," I said, glancing at Baba and Chachu. "You two shouldn't stay up so late. It's not good for your health."

Baba gave me a tired smile. "Aru... Beta, we know. But this situation isn't fitting into our hands. It's complicated."

"Bhabhi, someone's trying to hack into our network system," Hardik explained, rubbing his temples in frustration. "Our entire security team has been working on it, but we can't trace the source."

I crossed my arms, narrowing my eyes. "Have you identified the IP address? Or at least the hacking pattern?"

The room fell silent. They all exchanged bewildered glances as though I'd just spoken in another language.

"Dhruv, pass me your laptop," I said firmly. He raised an eyebrow, clearly curious, but handed it to me without a word.

I settled onto the chair and began typing, my fingers flying across the keyboard with practiced precision. The lines of code and security breaches appeared before me, and it took only a few minutes to locate the breach and patch it.

Naksh leaned over my shoulder, eyes wide in disbelief. "Bhabhi... your coding style... it looks familiar."

"NM..." Both Naksh and Lakshay said simultaneously, their voices barely a whisper.

I paused, turned to them, and smiled faintly. "Yes. I'm NM. That's my hacking alias."

Dhruv's POV

I stared at Arushi, trying to process what she had just said. My wife—was the NM. The same NM who had taken down one of the most notorious hacker networks years ago?

Everyone else seemed equally stunned.

"Wait... You're that NM?" Lakshay asked, his voice filled with awe. "The NM who's basically a legend in the tech world?"

Arushi closed the laptop and handed it back to me, nodding casually. "Yes, that was me. It was a long time ago, though. I haven't done anything like that in years."

Naksh looked like a kid who had just met his hero. "Why didn't you tell us?"

She shrugged. "I didn't think it was important. It's just a part of my past. I don't hack anymore... unless it's necessary."

My mind reeled as I tried to reconcile the Arushi I thought I knew with the one standing in front of me. She had just protected our company from a major threat without breaking a sweat.

"You've been holding out on me, Mrs. Chauhan," I said, crossing my arms with a playful smirk.

Arushi's eyes twinkled mischievously. "You never asked."

Hardik let out a low whistle. "Bhabhi, you've officially become the coolest person in this family. No competition."

Baba and Chachu, who had been quietly observing, shared a look before turning to me. "Dhruv, we're glad Arushi was here tonight. If not for her, this could have escalated into something much worse."

I nodded, still processing everything. "Yeah... I'm starting to realize how lucky I am."

Arushi's expression softened, and she gently touched my arm. "It's late. Baba, Chachu, you should rest. We can look into this in detail tomorrow."

One by one, everyone left the room, leaving just Arushi and me.

I took a step closer, studying her carefully. "So... there's a lot I don't know about you, isn't there?"

She smiled faintly, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. "There's a lot you didn't ask."

Her words hung in the air—a subtle challenge, a warning, or maybe a promise.

I wasn't sure whether I should be intrigued... or terrified.

But one thing was clear: Arushi wasn't just the woman I thought she was. She was something far more extraordinary.

And I was determined to uncover every hidden piece of her.