The sunlight crept into the chamber, laying gold across the marble. Aayat stirred, only to feel it — a heavy arm wrapped tightly around her waist.
Her eyes snapped open. She turned slightly, and her breath hitched. Anirudh. So close, his chest pressed against her back, his hold unyielding.
Aayat (whispering):"Why… why am I here? I was on the couch…"
His eyes opened, sharp and steady, his voice deep.
Anirudh:"Because this is where you should be. With me. And nowhere else."
Her fingers clenched in the sheets.
Aayat:"You can't just… decide my place for me. You don't even know me."
His gaze darkened, his grip tightening slightly.
Anirudh:"I know enough. You are mine now. That is all I need to know."
Aayat (shaking her head):"Marriage doesn't make me yours. It doesn't erase my will."
He leaned closer, his breath brushing her ear.
Anirudh:"Marriage makes you mine in every way that matters. And your will… will bend to mine."
Her eyes flashed with defiance, though fear quivered beneath her voice.
Aayat:"And what if I say no? What if I refuse you?"
The silence grew thick, suffocating. Then, his lips curved faintly — not tender, but dangerous.
Anirudh (low, deliberate):"Then I will teach the word 'no' to disappear from your lips."
Her chest rose sharply.
Aayat:"That isn't love… it's control."
For a moment, he said nothing. Then, without warning, he shifted. His hand slid up gently, almost reverently, and he placed a kiss on her forehead. Soft. Lingering. The kind of kiss that should have comforted — but instead made her blood run cold.
When he pulled back, his eyes burned with something raw and unsettling.
Anirudh :
"You fear me now, Aayat. And perhaps you should. But remember this — no one will ever love you the way I will. No one will fight heaven and earth to keep you as mine. You could run a thousand miles, hide behind a thousand walls, and still… I would find you. Because you are the beginning and the end of me. My bride. My queen. My only."
His arm tightened once more, pulling her flush against him. She froze, her breath stuck in her throat, her body trembling under the intensity of his words.
Then, just as suddenly, his hold loosened. He drew back, his expression unreadable, but his eyes never leaving her face.
Anirudh (softly, almost commanding):"Go. Breathe your air. Take your space. But remember, Aayat… there is no place for you but here. You'll come back — because you belong to me."
He released her fully, turning his face back toward the ceiling, calm once again.
Aayat pushed herself up, her hands trembling. She didn't dare meet his eyes as she slipped from the bed, her body still quivering with the weight of his vow.
She thought she had been freed — but in truth, his words clung to her like invisible chain.