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Phir se ud chali main, khushbuon ke jaise hawaon mein…
Naye sapnon ki raahon par, likh rahi hoon apni kahani…
Zindagi ke is mod par, khushi aur darr dono saath hain…
Dil ke kone mein ab bhi ek aawaz gunjti hai…
Tere bina main adhoori si, duniya adhuri si lagti hai…
Woh muskaan jo kabhi mahalon ko roshan karti thi,
Ab sirf tasveeron mein hai…
Mohabbat thi ya sazaa, samajh na paaye hum…
Kabira mann jaa… tu ab laut aa…
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TRING! TRING! TRING!
My phone buzzed, disturbing my sleep. I tried shoving it under the pillow without even checking who was calling. But the phone kept buzzing.
Arghhhh! I groaned and picked up the call. A loud voice waited for me, so I had to remove the phone from my ears.
It is my best friend, Aaliya. We were working together at internships, and now we both have to apply for jobs, and this thing totally blew my mind.
“Aaruuu uth ja, kumbhakaran ki behen” She screamed as I murmured sleepy gibberish on the call.
(Wake up, Aaru, you devil’s sister.)
Her loud voice made me sit straight, and I rubbed my eyes, taking away every last remnant of sleep.
“Kya hua Aalu?” I asked in a sleepy voice while dragging myself from the bed to the washroom.
(What happened, my Aalu?)
“Jaldi uth kar cafe mai mil.”
(Wake up fast and meet me at the cafe.)
“Theek hai, darling, I am coming.”
(Ok, darling, I am coming.)
She hummed and disconnected the call. I also entered the washroom, finished my business and got dressed in formals as I might have to attend interviews in the evening if I got selected by any of the companies.
As far as I remember, after struggling for a whole 10 years, I have been struggling alone with the finances with the bare minimum money I earned.
Maybe I would also be able to live a pretty decent life if I got a job.
Thinking about that, I went to the café with my laptop in the bag.
“Aaaluuu!” I excitedly chirped as I saw her sitting in the back row, sipping a cold coffee.
I also ordered one for myself, and we both started applying for Journalism Companies.
After we were done, we decided to treat ourselves to a bit of shopping after spending hectic hours of slavery as interns.
We went street shopping, buying juttis, Kurtis and jhumkas. By almost mid-afternoon, we were tired and as we got seated under the shade, sheltering ourselves from the scorching heat.
Our phones buzzed simultaneously, one after the other. We checked our phones and it was offer letters from one of the biggest journalism companies we had applied to.
It was almost like a dream come true. If we get accepted into this company, finally, our financial condition will be greatly improved.
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Ever since Aaranya has been lost, her father and her brothers have turned into madmen searching for her.
Yuvraj, the man she loved, the ever calm, composed, chirpy and warm person, had turned into a cold and ruthless man veiling his emotions. He never even dared to look at any woman in the eye due to his unconditional love for his woman, his Anya.
Her brothers, after trying to find any information about their sister, found out that it was their mother and their elder sister to blame.
Flashback begins
Three months after the night Aaranya disappeared.
The princes of Alwar, Aaranya’s brothers and the king of Alwar, Aaranya’s father, were not able to handle the news of her sudden disappearance well and tried to find her all around the city and the entire state of Rajasthan.
But every time the result was the same. They were not able to find her.
Despite their dismay after losing the charm of their palace, Rajeshwari, Aaranya’s mother and Priyal, Aaranya’s sister, were happy. Moreover, the happiest and their emotions didn’t go unnoticed by anyone.
One night, as King Rajendra was approaching his bedroom after a tiring day of searching for her daughter.
He heard murmurs coming from his room. The conversation and the owner of their voices made his eyes widen in disbelief and blood boil.
“Mummy, by now, she must have forgotten her entire past, right?” Priyal said in a low murmur.
“Haan baccha, she must have forgotten all her relationships and the entire past. Now, Yuvraj is entirely yours.” Rajeshwari replied in a low voice laced with cruel intentions. An evil smirk spread on her face.
Rajendra couldn’t handle it anymore and called for his sons.
Soon, Veer, Lakshay, Devansh and Aditya came and witnessed the conversation between their mother and sister. Their veins raged with blooming anger as they stormed into the room.
There was a sudden and quick switch in their personalities as they feigned innocence.
“Is it true?” Rajendra’s voice roared through the silence, expressing his anger and a slight hope that it might not be true.
But the evil duo shook their head, afraid of the consequences of more lies, seeing the enraged expressions on the king and the princes.
“Why did you do it, Mrs Rajeshwari Rajput?” Veer shouted. Rajeshwari stood there in tears, while Priyal flinched at his tone.
He was the son who once loved her more than anyone, and now he is even refusing to address her as his mother.
“P-Priyal liked Yuvraj, so I had to,” Rajeshwari said, covering it up with a nervous chuckle.
This revelation made the last string of Rajendra’s self-control snap, and he fell unconscious.
Devansh handled his father, while Veer walked towards the women standing “Where is my sister?” He asked in a no-nonsense tone.
Rajeshwari and her daughter gulped visibly but didn’t answer “Ham nahi batayenge”
(We won’t tell you)
“Theek hai fir," he said and called the guards to lock them in the dungeons.
After ensuring they cannot escape, he rushed towards the hospital where their Father was taken.
(Ok then)
A surgery was in progress as Rajendra, being a heart patient, had taken a lot of stress for his little princess out in this dangerous world alone.
The doctors came out of the ER. “The king is stable now. You can see him once we settle him in another ward.” The brothers nodded.
A senior doctor called Veer with him to his cabin. He followed him and sat in the chair in front of the doctor.
“Kunwar sa, we know that the king is stressed because our rajkumari has gone missing. But you need to ensure his health more now as the stress is triggering his heart.” Veer didn’t reply for a second, letting the information seep in and then nodded and left.
(Prince.... Princess)
Flashback ends
Since the time Veer had become the king, he had kept both the women who termed themselves as his so-called mother and elder sister locked in one of his warehouses.
He tortured them every day like it was an essential part of his schedule that he couldn’t skip.
As per the rest of the family and city, both the mother and daughter had escaped prison and run away from the state, completely oblivious to Veer’s actions.
He always made sure to give them treatments and the necessary medical requirements after the daily sessions.
Because he still cared about them? A big no
Because they were the culprits of his little sister. So, she had the right to punish them as per her own will.
Yuvraj spent years roaming around cities and countries with the slightest hope that he would meet his Anya once again.
He just wanted to see her smile. Her face. And hear her speak once more.
He wanted to cry his heart out on her chest like he did whenever the world felt overwhelming.
Rajendra, Aaranya’s father, struggled with his heart condition yet couldn’t help but search for his daughter every day and night, look through her childhood pictures every other minute, as if it was the only lifeline holding him.
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Spoilers and updates for this chapter and the next chapter are uploaded on my Instagram handle 'khushiiwrts'.
THIS CHAPTER IS ALSO UPLOADED ON WATTPAD AND SCROLLSTACK.
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