Herry looked at Sejal with a slightly serious expression.
> "Alright," he said slowly, "Let me see what I can do.
But there's one thing—whether I tell the family or not, we have to tell Ken.
It's not his fault, Sejal. He really does love you. That's why this engagement even happened in the first place."
Sejal remained silent.
Her eyes were lowered, her lips sealed with guilt and helplessness.
Herry added,
> "Give me some time. I'll talk to Ken. I'll explain everything to him as gently as I can."
Saying that, Herry stood up and left the room to freshen up, leaving Dean and Sejal alone.
The room was wrapped in silence.
An uneasy, yet intimate quietness where emotions screamed louder than words.
They looked at each other.
There was so much to say, but it felt like neither had the strength to speak.
Finally, Dean broke the silence.
> "I never married Suzy," he said softly. "Not even for a single day did we live together."
Sejal was startled. A small sigh escaped her lips.
Relief washed over her face, though she tried to hide it.
> "Then... why did you and Suzy lie to me?" she asked gently.
Dean gave a half-smile.
> "To see if you'd get angry...
To know if there was still something left in your heart for me."
Sejal looked away, unable to meet his eyes.
After a pause, Dean asked another question, his voice low but heavy:
> "Sejal... didn't you ever think of contacting me before getting engaged to Ken? Not even once?"
Sejal kept her eyes on the floor as she replied,
> "I wanted to. I really did.
But I had no way to reach you.
My family had taken away my phone, cut off all my access.
And honestly, I was scared.
If I resisted, I thought... they'd never let me live freely again."
Dean listened. Every word from Sejal pierced him deeper.
And yet, in that moment, he finally understood everything. All of it.
Without another word, he pulled her into his arms.
The hug wasn't just an embrace—it was a storm of repressed love, long-held longing, and unbearable fear of losing her again.
Their lips met.
And in that one deep kiss, they relived every memory, every moment, every stolen glance and unsaid word between them.
Dean leaned close to her ear and whispered,
> "No matter what happens... I'll never marry anyone but you.
Only you, Sejal.
You're my beginning, my ending—my entire life."
Tears rolled down Sejal's cheeks.
But this time, they weren't of pain—they were of hope, of finding her way back to the only person who ever felt like home.
She nodded without a word, and in that quiet nod was a promise.
After all the storms...
After all the distance...
After all the masks and misunderstandings...
They had finally found their way back to each other.
Their bound love had finally tasted a breath of unbound freedom.
---
To be continued…