Aryan looked back at her with a soft gaze. Their eyes locked for a moment — a silence filled with unspoken words. Aanya quickly stepped into the car, stealing one last glance at him. He gently closed the door.
Nandini watched the moment quietly, her eyes serious.
At home, Aryan said, "Mom, I'll go to the office. I have some urgent work."
Devika replied, "Okay, beta."
But Nandini added sharply, "Aryan, your sister's wedding is approaching, and as the man of the house, you should take full responsibility."
Aryan nodded. "I will, aunty."
He looked briefly at Aanya before heading outside.
Meanwhile, Prerna sat on her bed, tears in her eyes. She stared at her phone, hesitated, and finally made a call.
"Let's meet," she whispered.
Then, walking downstairs, she said to Devika, "Mom, I have to go meet my friend. It's urgent."
"Now?" Devika asked.
Prerna nodded. "Yes, mom, please."
But Nandini interrupted, "Wait, Prerna."
Prerna turned to her.
"Your marriage is almost fixed. It's better not to go out much now."
"But aunt—"
"It's okay this time. But after the engagement, no more outings."
Prerna nodded reluctantly and left. Aanya watched the whole exchange and thought, Oh no, Nandini aunty is so strict!
---
Outside at the park...
A boy shouted, "What are you saying, Prerna? Why can't we be together?"
Prerna looked down sadly. "Aahil, my family fixed my marriage. We can't meet anymore."
"What? You're marrying someone else when you love me?"
Aahil's voice trembled with disbelief.
"Aahil, please understand—"
"Why should I understand, Prerna? I'll talk to your brother. You can't do this!"
"It's too late now. We're over."
"Don't I matter to you at all?" he asked, his voice cracking eyes glistening.
Prerna hesitated, her lips trembling before she finally spoke.
"Aahil… I wanted to tell them. So many times, IBut I couldn't. I didn't want to hurt my family. They've done everything for me. I just… I didn't have the strength to go against them."
Her voice broke as tears filled her eyes.
Aahil stepped back like he'd been slapped.
"Oh, really, Prerna? And what about my feelings? Do they mean nothing to you?" he asked, voice rising with pain.
"Do you even care about what I'm going through? About the love I gave you? Don't you care at all?"
She looked away, her silence louder than any answer.
"I'm sorry, Aahil," she whispered and walked away, her tears falling like shattered promises.
Aahil stood frozen, watching her go.
His heart screamed, but his lips said nothing.
His knees weakened, but he didn't chase her.
He just stood there—silent, broken—
Tears rolling down his cheeks, the weight of her absence crushing him with every step she took away.
And then, in a voice barely louder than a breath but burning with resolve, he said,
"I will not leave you, Prerna. I won't. You should marry me. Only me."
---
That night, everyone gathered for dinner.
Devika looked around. "Where's Prerna?"
Aanya replied, "Aunty, I think she's in her room."
Just then, Prerna came in. Devika asked, "What were you doing? Dinner's on time."
"I wasn't feeling hungry," she muttered and sat down.
Aanya watched her with concern thinking "why is she looking so upset".
They began eating. Devika turned to Aryan, "From tomorrow, we need to begin wedding preparations, right, sister-in-law?"
"Yes," Nandini agreed. "We must start inviting guests and selecting the wedding cards."
Aryan nodded. "Sure, aunty. We'll handle it."
---
Next morning, in the car…
"Mr. Aryan, I want to ask you something… Actually, Prerna seems—"
Suddenly his phone rang. He answered.
Aanya thought, Maybe she's upset about leaving her family.
After the call ended, Aryan asked, "What were you saying about Prerna?"
"Nothing, Mr. Aryan."
"Nothing?"
"Well… actually, I'm just happy she's getting married."
Aryan said nothing. The silence hung thick in the air.
---
At college…
Meera grinned. "Wow, Aanya! Aryan opened the car door for you!"
Aanya sighed. "You only noticed that part. I mean, didn't you hear? He shouted at me and left me on the road first."
Nisha giggled. "But he came back, right?"
Tara added, "What about Ankitha? Still clinging to him?"
Aanya replied, "She tried, but I stepped in."
"Good. Keep doing that," Tara said.
Nisha teased, "So, Aanya, any marriage plans?"
Aanya sighed. "The marriage is in 14 days. Tomorrow they're selecting cards at Ankitha's house."
"You're not going?"
Aanya shrugged. "Nandini aunty doesn't like me. Even if I stayed, she'd say something."
"Well… what about my attendance?" Aanya added, a little unsure.
"I mean, there are still a lot more days I need to keep track of, and so..."
Nisha said, "Don't worry about attendance. We will manage. Just be there"
Tara nodded. "Devika aunty wants you there. Forget what Nandini said. Focus on Mr. Aryan!"
Aanya smiled faintly but looked conflicted.
---
That evening…
Aryan arrived. Aanya spotted an ice cream vendor outside.
"Mr. Aryan, stop the car!"
Startled, he stopped. "What happened?"
She pointed. "Ice cream! It's been ages since I had one."
He looked amused. "Seriously?"
She ran to the vendor. "Two butterscotch, please!"
"Two?" Aryan asked. "I don't eat ice cream."
"They're both for me," she winked. "But eating one won't hurt you. Come on, try it. My treat!"
He hesitated but took it.
"Well?" she asked.
He nodded, still eating. Aanya beamed.
Just then, a car pulled up.
"Wait… isn't that Mr. Mehra?" a man said to his wife.
They walked up. "Mr. Mehra! Eating ice cream on the roadside?"
Aryan smiled. "Mr. Tripathi! What a surprise."
Mr. Tripathi chuckled. "Well, you made us surprised, Mr. Mehra!""Meet my wife."
"Namaste," Aryan and Aanya said in sync.
Tripathi smiled. "I'm so happy to meet you and your wife Mr. Mehra. We should meet for dinner!"
Aanya was stunned.
"I'm actually—" she began, but Aryan cut in smoothly, "Sure."
She gawked at him. Did he just—did he not hear that he called me his wife?!
Aryan continued eating casually.
Aryan noticed her expression, looked at her, raised an eyebrow, and tilted his head slightly as if asking, "What?"
"Nothing," Aanya said quickly, looking away and picking up her spoon.
She took a bite and thought to herself,
Looks like he didn't hear it...
Wish he had heard it and said, 'Sure, for dinner.'
I know it was just a slip... but maybe one day, he'll really say it.
Say I'm his wife... for real.
---
That night…
Aryan, Devika, Nandini, and Prerna sat making a guest list. Aanya sat far off, pretending to scroll on her phone.
Prerna glanced at her phone — over 100 missed calls and messages from Aahil. She looked away and sighed.
Aryan's phone rang.
"Hello?" he answered, glancing at the screen.
"Hello, Aryan. It's me, Ankitha."
"Ankitha," he repeated softly, stepping outside. "Oh… hi."
Aanya, who was nearby, heard the name. Her ears perked up. Without saying a word, she quietly followed, curiosity tugging at her.
"What is Aunty Prerna doing?" Ankitha asked over the call.
Aryan glanced back briefly and replied,
"Well… they're making the guest list."
Ankitha asked,
"What about Aanya?"
Aryan hesitated for a moment, then said,
"She… is helping too."
Aanya tried to listen more closely, but the words blurred in the distance. She frowned and whispered to herself,
"What are they talking about?"
Just then, Ankitha said, "Let's finalize the cards tomorrow."
"Yeah, we're making our list too," Aryan replied.
"Perfect. See you tomorrow."
"Bye," he said and ended the call.
Aanya quickly pretended to be on a call. "Yeah Tara, I'll call later… okay, bye."
Just then, Aryan turned and saw her.
Aanya froze for a second, then quickly blurted out,
"Hi, Mr. Aryan! You were also on a phone call, right?"
Aryan raised an eyebrow, slightly amused. "Hi?"
Aanya immediately began rambling,
"Well—Mr. Aryan—hi means not that hi. I mean, that hi, but not like I just met you. It's just—suddenly seeing you here and—uh…"
Even she didn't know what she was saying.
Aryan let out a soft chuckle, shook his head, and said,
"Well… bye, Aanya."
He walked past her with a faint smile, leaving Aanya standing there, staring at nothing.
A moment later, she smacked her forehead.
"What did I just say?! Ugh!"
Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment as she replayed her jumbled words in her head.
Why do I always turn into a complete mess around him?
---
End Of Chapter 32.