🍁Hasi🍁

🍁Chapter:02🍁

*Warning- this chapter contains heavy topics such as childhood trauma, panic attack, mentions of self-harm, Injuries, and blood.*

🍁Chapter:02🍁

Isha heard every commotion in the room between Aryan and his mother. Each and every word lodged itself inside her heart and no doubt the now silent boys in front of her heard them too. Sagar had stiffened even more if that was possible while Karan looked uncomfortable. All of them had heard the word 'panauti' and how it was used for her. Tears did not gather in her eyes this time but the hurt was inevitable. No one likes being called a bad omen, especially if they are already hurt by something that shook them whole. Aryan's mother did not like her and it was understandable--Isha was not someone she knew, she was a mere stranger that she was supposed to "happily" welcome inside her home.

Isha cast her eyes down when Aryan came back out silently and moved towards his room without glancing at anybody, the words must have hurt him more than Isha realized. Her thoughts barely lingered on 'Seema' too busy mourning her own circumstances she turned to face her food on the plate...having lost her appetite which was already very less, she simply forced the food in her mouth, and soon the brothers silently followed. No one spoke another word.

A few hours later Isha sat in a car heading back to the one place she dreaded with all her being, after what Virat pulled back at the wedding there was no doubt in her mind that she was going to be victim to a lot of words. Her older cousin sat beside her silently, she knew he had been controlling himself from lashing out at her, after all, it was upon her continuos insisting that he had agreed to fight alongside her and Virat. She did not speak another word the whole morning after that incident between Aryan and his mother, Karan had tried his best to make her talk but all she could muster his way was a small defeated smile.

She then remembered the conversation she had with her now husband's mother-- she had come to her silently with a heavy saree in hand and a few pieces of jewelry, without any explanation she thrust the saree and the ornaments in her hands and in a stoic voice pointed out towards her bare neck, "You are a new bride, wear your nuptial chain. I don't want to hear people talking," when she turned around and stopped dead in her tracks, Isha looked back at her with confusion in her eyes. "Aryan got a call from your brother, they are coming to pick you up for Pag Phera, get dressed they must be close."

With much doubt in her mind, Isha finally called out to the older woman,
"I am sorry," the woman gulped and closed her eyes, her own expression pained but she sniffed and turned to the young girl and faced her blankly, "What are you sorry for?" Isha flinched but remained quiet, "My son married you, it was his decision." carefully Neeta looked at the girl in inspection, in the young girl she saw the similar fragments of her broken self.. the same ones she saw in her eldest son when he left was shattered in the wake of a woman so selfish and cunning.

For a moment Neeta paused as the sight of the young girl reminded her of her own child in pain. She understood the pain, she had seen her son go through the same when he was left behind by someone he held so dearly to his heart. Her stoic eyes softened just a notch when she took in Isha's tired face, eyes so terribly red and defeated that it made her squirm. No new bride deserved that look on her face.

But Neeta reminded herself, until she was sure of this girl's motives and her personality, she would not get attached, and she would not be accepted. As a mother she had failed Aryan once, she would not let him down again.

"I don't want my son in pain," she saw Isha nodding along with her words, she knew the girl did not care for Aryan.. at least not yet. So she continued to make her point clear, "It is your pain, deal with it and I don't want it hindering my child's life," Isha stilled but nodded again, "People will make comments and I know he will protect you each time because that is who he is-" Neeta slowly pulled out her nuptial chain from in between the ornaments and took the girls hand, she slowly pried it open and dropped the chain in her hesitating hands, "So protect him just like he did you." Neeta turned back towards the door and stopped midway, "You didn't want this marriage but you will have to accept it, sooner or later."