Anaya Verma, a gentle and naive 19-year-old girl from a modest, middle-class family in Jaipur, is the youngest daughter of an overly traditional and controlling household. Quiet, compassionate, and self-sacrificing, she dreams of love, freedom, and a life beyond the rigid expectations imposed on her.
Aarav Rathore, 30, is the heir of one of Delhi's most powerful business dynasties. Cold, ruthless, and emotionally closed off due to betrayal in his past, Aarav lives by rules, duty, and control. Love, to him, is weakness.
When Anaya's family is suddenly crushed under the weight of an old debt owed to the Rathores, her father begs for mercy. The solution? A marriage alliance. Aarav agrees-but not for love. He needs a wife to quell a rising scandal in the business world, and Anaya becomes the perfect pawn.
Thrown into a loveless marriage and a household ruled by power, pride, and prestige, Anaya must learn to survive in a world that speaks in harsh silences and sharp looks. While Aarav remains distant and guarded, Anaya's quiet strength begins to affect the people around her-especially him.
But behind the walls of the Rathore mansion, secrets fester. Hidden betrayals, family rivalries, and emotional scars resurface. As Anaya slowly begins to soften Aarav's stone heart, she discovers that love may not be enough-unless he's willing to fight for her too.
Is cheating always meant to be physical?
What if he emotionally betrays you?
But what do you call it when your husband shares his dreams, emotions, victories, and time with another woman...
slowly forgets that you even exist?
(Short story)