Janvi stepped out of the hall, feeling the weight of the day's heat slowly leave her as she made her way to her special spot on the rooftop. She had discovered it years ago and had since made it her sanctuary, a place where she could escape the noise and chaos of the city below.

As she leaned against the wall, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, feeling the cool evening breeze fill her lungs. The wind picked up, caressing her face and playing with her hair, sending strands of it flying in every direction. It was a small pleasure, but one that brought her immense comfort.

Despite the constant buzzing of the city below, Janvi found it quieter than her inner turmoil. She had been struggling with a lot of emotions lately, and this rooftop was her temporary escape from the chaos of her thoughts and the weight of her feelings.

She welcomed the peacefulness of the moment, letting herself be lost in the simple pleasure of the cool wind and the soft rustle of her hair. It was a moment of pure bliss, a brief respite from the anxieties that had been weighing her down.

"Did I make a big issue of small things...?" She thought to herself and sighed, wondering if she had been overly dramatic about recent events. But the thought quickly vanished as she allowed herself to soak in the tranquillity of the moment.

After sitting alone for what felt like an eternity, Janvi felt a shuffling beside her and someone sitting down beside her. She knew who it was without even opening her eyes, as there was only one other person who knew about her rooftop hideout or maybe the person was the real founder of this place... She smiled to herself, feeling grateful for the company and the comfort of a familiar presence...

Without even opening her eyes, she greeted the person beside her with a smile, "Long time no see, huh!" She knew he had a silly grin on his face, despite not looking at him...

"Did you miss me, princess...?" He asked in a soft tone.

"Don't think of you so high, Mr. Wagh..." Janvi slowly opened her eyes and gazed softly at Shivay, who was already looking at her with an intense and loving gaze...

The atmosphere was quiet except for the sound of their breathing as they both held each other's gaze...
It was as if time had stopped, and they were lost in their own world, with nothing else but each other in their thoughts...

Janvi's eyes were intently scanning Shivay's face, searching for any sign of what she was feeling. She couldn't help but wonder - why was this man still so madly in love with her?

Shivay was undeniably one of the most sweet, charming, and handsome men that Janvi had ever met. He had a way of making her feel special, and his unwavering devotion to her was something that she found both comforting and intriguing.

However, from the very first day they met, Shivay had never so much as glanced at another woman. He only had eyes for Janvi and Janvi alone. It was a mystery to her - why was Shivay so fixated on her? What is so special about her? Why did he continue to chase her, even though he seemed to get nothing in return?
These were the questions that constantly swirled around in Janvi's mind as she watched Shivay, trying to understand the enigma that was their relationship.
Even Janvi thinks that she doesn't love Shivay, but he is the only person she always trusts blindly...

Shivay's eyes were also fixed on Janvi, and he gazed at her with a soft look that was full of unwavering love. Although there was a small smile on his face, there was a flurry of emotions going on inside him. It felt like a swarm of butterflies were playing kabaddi in his stomach, and his heart was racing as if he were running a marathon.

Seeing Janvi after a long time had stirred up these strong emotions in him, but it was not just the distance that made his heart skip a beat. To Shivay, Janvi was the most beautiful woman he had ever laid his eyes on. From the very first time he had seen her, he had fallen in love with her nature, attitude, and even her savage mouth. She was talented and had a way of carrying herself that made him feel like he was the luckiest man alive...

There was nothing about Janvi that Shivay thought was wrong. To him, she was perfect in every way... Her flaw and virtue, everything was accepted by him with a non-judgemental eye... From that day on, his heart and mind were clear about what he wanted - Janvi.
He knew that he would do anything to make her his own and keep her by his side forever...

Janvi broke their staring because she knew that Shivay was not going to remove his eyes from her until she disappeared...

"So, How was life in Canada...?" She asked while swinging her leg in the air, supporting her body weight on her hands on both sides.

"Alone without you, princess..." He replied without taking his eyes on her for a second.

"But you might have met new people there..." She argued.

"I have already made it clear, princess, that I have a priority for who I want..."
Janvi's heart skipped a beat as she heard Shivay's words. She knew exactly who he was talking about - his priority and heart's desire was crystal clear.

There was no doubt in anyone's mind who he wanted. Even the most clueless person could easily guess the identity of the person who held Shivay's heart... So not to stretch this topic, she changed the topic...

"Stop calling me, princess..."

"Why...?"
This time he didn't say princess... Because it was obvious that he would never goes against his Princess's will.

"Because it feels weird... Call whatever you want but not this princess..." And the weird feeling Janvi is talking about is a tingling sensation in the stomach...

"Hmm!!, what should I call you then...?" He pretended to think while tapping on his chin...
Janvi patiently waits for his response...

"Then can I call you, Shehzadi...?" Those last words came out of his mouth like it's made him to say that...

"And how the hell, Shehzadi is different from princess...? It's just a translation from English to Hindi. " Janvi raised her eyebrows, ignoring her fluttering heart.

"There is a huge difference..." He shrugged nonchalantly...

" Where...?" She asked.

"In my eyes..." he said in a tone matter-of-fact.

Janvi squinted her eyes and pointed her finger at him in an accusing manner,
"Are you trying to be sassy with me...?"

"Es nacheez ki itni hesiyat kaha, ki apni shehzadi ko kuch keh sake.." He said in romantic tone...
("I'm nobody to speak something in front of Shehzadi...")

Janvi's heart increased its speed unusual... If she was not a doctor, then she definitely thinks she has heart disease... A faint blush starts spreading over her cheeks...

" Stop using DRUGS!! and spitting nonsense..." She shouted while turning in the opposite direction.

Shivay couldn't help but laugh. He knew that Janvi always used this sentence as a filler when she had nothing else to say...

"By the way, Are you okay...?" He asked with a concerned tone.

"What would happen to me...?"

"Like!!, you know what happened downstairs and what Nishal did!!..." He clarifies himself.

"Huh!!" She scoffed, "I don't care about that bullshit he talks... At first, I thought I had done wrong by making small things big but then I remembered that, of course, it would turn into a big mess because I literally fighting with a brainless, logicless, shameless pesticide..."

"You really have quite a unique perspective about Nishal..." He chuckled.

"It's just 1% of what I really thought about that nasty parasite ..." Janvi replied.

Then Janvi's eyes suddenly turned gloomy, and Shivay noticed it. He didn't say anything, waiting patiently for her to continue....

"But I didn't like how Nishal talked about Pihu..." She sighed.
"She is the most successful woman in our house and this is how we treated her, But what hurt most is how Brother Naksh didn't take her side... I don't understand, why...? " She looked deeper into the sky.

"But at least Aahan defended her..." Shivay points out.
But Janvi shook her head in denial...

"That's what's bothering me most... I know they both are hiding something but today the way Brother Aahan, reacted only increased everyone's suspicion..."

"You really think they are hiding something...?" Shivay asked while squinting his eyebrows.

"Hmm! The way they both look at each other... It's definitely something." She replied.

"You mean..." Shivay said while giving a knowing expression to her. Janvi nodded her head in confirmation.
Then again she sigh the millionth time today.

"If being married is like this... Then marriage is scary, I don't want to get married."

A soft smile played over Shivay before saying,

"It's okay, Princess... if you don't want to get married... I will still fight against the whole world for you, as your lover boy..."

A warm smile spread over Janvi's face but she concealed it perfectly and said,

"You really need caffeine to refresh your mind, don't call me princess..."

"Ohh! My bad, it's just I have a habit of treating you like a princess..."Shivay said.

Janvi shook her head and said,

"I would rather prefer to be a witch instead of your princess, chuchunder si sakal k..." She laughed loudly while standing at her place.

"Stop laughing... And I'm not whatever you say.." he scrunched his nose in disgust.

"Now let's go..." She said while controlling her laugh...

"Phele aap, Shehzadi..." He bows a little...

Janvi stared at him in silence, unable to find the right words to say. She had stopped laughing a long time ago and walked away with a bewildered expression, with Shivay following closely behind her.

****************

Vedika sat silently on her bed, engrossed in her assignments. She barely registered the sound of the front door opening and paid no attention to the soft footsteps that entered her room a few seconds later. Even when a person took a seat in the room, Vedika didn't take her eyes off her work.

After passing for a while with Nishal looking at her and Vedika ignoring his whole existence, Nishal breaks the silence,

"What happened downstairs? Why did you do that?" he asked.

But Vedika didn't even spare him a single glance. Words were far from expectations.

"Stop ignoring me," he insisted.

But in the eyes of Vedika, he was invisible.

"At least look at me."

After trying to grab Vedika's attention for almost half an hour and receiving no response, he decided to take a more direct approach. He slowly walked towards her, feeling nervous but determined. As he reached her, he slowly got down on his knees and gently took her hand in his, hoping to stop her from working. His heart was racing as he looked up at her, hoping to see a reaction from her.

By a sudden touch, Vedika stopped working but didn't speak a word.

Getting impatient, he started speaking in a low tone with a hint of desperation.

"Stop ignoring me. Just do whatever you want. Shout at me, throw your heel at me, threaten me, but please don't be silent, blossom." And the last word slipped out unknowingly.

Vedika gazed at him with a pair of wide, innocent-looking eyes that resembled those of a doe. While she kept her lips sealed, her eyes conveyed a range of emotions that flickered through them like a slideshow. Her expression was a mixture of curiosity, apprehension, and perhaps a hint of vulnerability.

"Blossom," she whispered with a hint of pain, and Nishal realized what he said.

"So, you remember the past, huh?" She mockingly said.

"I didn't mean-" He stuttered but was cut by Vedika's words.

"You never mean to be, not even when you call me the first time, 'You're just like a blossom, Beautiful by mere existence'..." she blankly said.

"I always mean what I said that time," he sighed.

"But you never proved it," she replied hopelessly.

"I was never rude to you..." He defends himself.

"But you never let me live in peace... Always creating new drama, new mess with my family... Why...?" She looked directly into his eyes.
Nishal didn't reply to her questions, so she continued...

"The people outside you fight are not your family too...? Then why do you hate them...? From when your ego becomes bigger than family...?" She shouted.

"Because they never treated me well..." He spat back...

"Do you really think that's fair? My father took you in and treated you like one of his own sons. My mother has always been there to feed you when you're hungry in the middle of the night. Brother Naksh shared his toys with you, and Brother Aahan saved you from the bully. After all of that, is this the way you repay them?"

Vedika's words make Nishal speechless, he just bites his bottom lips, and many emotions flash through his face...

"Okay forget about everyone... What about me...? Did I treat you badly...?" She asked while pointing to herself, tears were brimming the corner of her eyes...

Nishal quickly rose to his feet as he noticed Vedika's eyes welling up with tears. With a gentle and caring demeanour, he approached her and tenderly cupped her face in his hands. He then proceeded to use the pads of his thumbs to lovingly wipe away the drops of tears that had formed on her cheeks, all the while offering her comfort and support.

"You never treated me badly, blossom..." He whispered...
But Vedika jerked his hand away and shouted while sobbing,
"Then why I'm suffering...? Why I'm feeling unbearable pain inside my heart...? Everything was fine between us until we got married... Are you unhappy with this marriage...? "
But Nishal shook his head in denial...

She spoke, her voice trembling with emotion. "Now, see," she said, "my brother shouted at me. Pihu will think I didn't respect her because I supported my husband even knowing that he was wrong. What more do you want me to do for you to trust me? What more does it take for you to realize why I do that?" Tears streamed down her face as she continued to cry, clearly feeling frustrated and hurt by the situation.

"Blossom, listen to me... Please don't cry..." But this time he didn't dare to touch her...

But Vedika shook her head, ignoring Nishal words,

"Let's break it..." She whispered between sobs...

"What...?" He had been taken aback by the suddenness and unexpectedness of her statement, and it had left him momentarily speechless.

" LET'S GET DIVORCED..." She shouted... " Then you're free from me and this family... No one will question... I promised you..."

"What the hell are you talking about....?" He shouted back while rising from his seat...

"Is this not what you want...? Free from me, from my family..." She retorted controlling her tears.

" I don't want to divorce you..." He whispered...

"And I don't care... I'm done with putting in effort and getting ignored...  That's the final decision..." She said with a serious face with determined eyes...

She stood from her place and started walking toward the door leaving a dumbfounded Nisha,l but was held by her arm on her place...

"Please, don't... I'm willing to do anything for us, blossom..." He said in a slow voice but pleading was clearly visible in his voice...

Vedika hesitated for a moment, her lips parted as if she wanted to say something but couldn't find the right words. Finally, she spoke up, her voice barely above a whisper:

"Then promise me, Nishal. Promise that you will stay by my side." Her gaze was fixed on him, intense and unwavering, as if she was trying to peer into his very soul. and faced him looking into his soul,

"Promised me, you will stay by my side, thin- thick, happy- sad, up down... You will accompany me... You will put effort into this relationship... Then I will think again about my decision..."

Vedika had just finished speaking her mind, and with a deep breath, she turned to leave the room without waiting for Nishal's response. Nishal was frozen, unsure of how to react to what he had just heard.

His mind raced with thoughts and emotions, making it difficult to form a coherent response. He stood there in silence, watching as Vedika walked out of the room and closed the door behind her. As the sound of her footsteps faded away, Nishal was left alone with his thoughts,

"what should I do...?"

..................................................................................................
To be continued...
Don't forget to vote comment and follow💙...