Married But Why?

Chapter 8

Third Person’s POV

The sun was beginning to set. It was casting a warm golden hue over the lush green garden. The soft rustling of leaves and the distant chirping of birds created a serene backdrop. There were five children playing under the shade of a towering oak tree. The garden, vibrant with blooming flowers and neatly trimmed bushes, was the perfect playground for their innocent games.

Ana, a petite girl with curly brown hair and a floral dress, was sitting on the grass with her friends. Her bright eyes sparkled with excitement as she played along in their pretend family game.

“Ana, you are my wife,” one of the boys from the children declared. His voice was filled with the authority only a child could have. He was wearing a red t-shirt and denim shorts. His face was serious as he looked at Ana.

Before Ana could respond to the boy, another boy appeared, Daksh. Daksh is Ana’s best friend. He was slightly taller, with dark hair and a mischievous grin.

“Don’t go to him,” he said to Ana. His tone held possessiveness. He grabbed Ana’s hand and pulled her away from all the children.

“Daksh, mom said we are playing a family game,” Ana tried to reason with him, her voice soft yet firm. Instead of replying to her, Daksh was dragging her away from everyone.

Daksh’s grip tightened protectively around her wrist. “Then too, my wife is my only,” he insisted, leading Ana towards the trees at the edge of the garden.

Once they reached there, Daksh looked at Ana with a smile. “What are we doing here?” Ana asked, curious as they were hiding behind the tree.

Daksh pulled out a handful of candies from his pocket and showed them to Ana. His eyes were shining with a mixture of pride and affection. “I bought you candies.”

Ana’s face lit up with a smile. She immediately grabbed all the candies and said, “Thank you, Daksh.”

“I will always give you candies even when you come to stay with me forever,” Daksh promised. His voice was sincere like he was making a promise for a lifetime. Ana nodded while eating the candies. She also shared some with Daksh.

As they were sitting and playing, a woman’s voice echoed through the garden. “Ananya? Ananya?”

Ananya heard her mother’s voice but ignored it, focusing on the candies.

Ana’s mother appeared. She was worried, but seeing both the children, her face showed both relief and urgency. She was a tall, graceful woman with soft features. Her hair was jet black, neatly arranged in a bun. Her eyes were the same bright hue as Ana’s. She scanned the garden until she found the children hiding behind the tree.

“There you are,” she said. Her voice was sweet. She lovingly walked to them and extended her hand to Ana, saying, “Let’s go, we are leaving.”

“No mumma, I will stay with Daksh,” Ana protested. She held Daksh’s hand with her small hand clinging to him.

“No, Ana. Don’t go,” Daksh also cried. Tears welled up in his eyes as he saw Ana going away. Daksh’s parents were holding him. He tried to hold on to Ana, but Ana’s mother gently pried her away.

“No, don’t take her away from me,” Daksh pleaded, his voice breaking. He was watching helplessly as Ana’s parents were taking her towards the car. Tears streamed down both their faces as Ana was buckled into the backseat.

“Ana? Ana,” Daksh called out desperately and bit his father’s hand. He started running after the car as it began to pull away with Ana. He was running fast and soon fell. Both the children’s cries faded into the distance.

Seeing Daksh fall on the road, Ana yelled, “Daksh.”

With that, Ananya woke up from her dream. She was covered with sweat. Her heart was pounding in her chest rapidly. She took some time and realized that it was a dream. She found herself in her bedroom, beside her husband Rudra, who also woke up hearing her yell.

She glanced at Rudra, who was confused seeing her condition. He murmured, “Daksh?”

“Who is Daksh?” he added, and Ananya wiped sweat from her face with her hand and replied, “No one. Can you pass me the water, please?”

Rudra gave her water, and she sipped it, thinking about the dream she had.

She thought, “I’ve been seeing these dreams since childhood, but this name, I have heard for the first time. There is something that I don’t know about my childhood.”

She determined in her mind, “I have to figure that out if I want to live my life peacefully.”

Rudra, noticing her distress, gently shook her shoulder. “Ananya, are you okay? What happened?”

She nodded. He took the glass from her hand and made her lie down on the bed. He held her by the waist and said, “Calm down, Ananya.”

Her breathing was still heavy. Her heartbeat was so fast. Rudra noticed it and started caressing her hair, saying, “Stop stressing and try to sleep.”

Soon, Ananya slept in Rudra’s arms, forgetting her fight with Rudra.

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The next day, Ananya woke up and found herself caged in Rudra’s arms. She was looking at his face and admiring his sharp features—his black hair, sharp jawline, little to no fat on his body, his abs, and his lips. While looking at his lips, she suddenly realized that they were the same lips with which he had questioned her character. Anger filled her, and she woke up from the bed. With the sudden movement, Rudra also woke up.

He said, “Ananya.”

She turned around and gave Rudra an angry glare that meant stay away from him. Well, if the situation had been different, Rudra might have agreed. But seeing Ananya’s condition and his promise to her parents, he was determined to do everything except stay away from her.

He was waiting calmly for Ana to come out of the washroom. Once she was out, he stood and hugged her from behind. She was wearing a robe.

Ananya held his hand and easily got free from his hold since it was not tight.

She started drying her hair while he was standing in front of her, leaning on the wall. Ananya ignored him like the plague.

After that, Ananya stood to take her saree, but he quickly got it for her. She snatched it from his hand and walked into a private space to get changed. When she was out, she was doing everything, whether checking her mails, calling her assistant, or sipping her coffee. He was with her like her shadow.

Seeing him everywhere with no words, Ananya got irritated and asked, “Who are you?”

“Your husband,” he replied with a smile, to which she responded, “For the name's sake?”

“No, for a lifetime,” he replied, sitting beside her on the couch.

Hearing him, she placed the cup on the table and stood in front of him, saying, “Stop this nonsense. I saw how much of a husband you are.”

Ananya was angry, and no one else could see that more than him. He saw how bad her anger was. So he tried to make her understand, “Ananya, I know I overreacted, but—” before he completed his sentence, he heard, “But Rudra, there is a slight line between anger and humiliation. By getting angry, you don’t get the right to insult the other person.”

He was about to open his mouth, “And for what? You literally questioned my character. You humiliated me. You called me characterless.”

“Ananya,” he again tried to speak, but Ananya interrupted again, “What Ananya? Don’t forget I am the Ananya Shergill who moved your business upside down in a few days.”

“Don’t challenge me,” she warned him, showing her finger to him.

Although, if they were only business rivals, Rudra could have answered her. But the reality is that she is his wife, and her every action was making him attracted to her.

She was silent for a few minutes when Rudra opened his mouth, “Ananya?”

She again started talking, and her breathing started getting heavy, “What were you saying?”

“I cheated on you,” she asked with frustration and added, “With whom? My ex?”

“Ananya, please listen—” Rudra was trying to speak, but she was not letting him.

“Have you met him before?” she questioned.

Seeing Rudra silent, she further asked, “Where did you see him with me?”

“Tell me,” she said.

Rudra was listening to her, but his concentration was on her lips. Those pink lips felt like cherries to him. He was watching their movement and felt like they were calling him.

“Ananya, I—” he tried to speak, looking at her lips, and Ananya said, “Tell me, Rudra.”

She was about to add more, but before that, he held her hand, and the next moment his lips were on hers. Her lips were delicate, and as he thought, they tasted like his favorite fruit, strawberry. He was exploring her mouth, making her moan, “Ummm,” and after that, they both lost the battle of words and dug deeper into the battle of tongues to see who was going to win.

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