Sidharth's jaw tightened. "She's my sister. You will not disrespect her under this roof."
The words hit like a physical blow. After everything—after twelve days of being ignored, dismissed, treated like a ghost—this was where he drew the line?
"Disrespect her?" Advika's voice rose. "She's been disrespecting me since the moment I arrived! Snide comments, dismissivelooks, treating me like I'm something she scraped off her shoe. But that's fine, right? Because she's your sister and I'm just... what? The inconvenient wife?"
"She's family."
"So am I!" The words tore out of her. "Or did you forget? We're married, Sidharth. That makes me family too. But you wouldn't know it from how I'm treated in this house."
"You've been here two weeks—"
"Twelve days. And every single one has been hell. Your sister hates me. The staff doesn't know what to do with me. And you—" Her voice cracked. "You act like I don't exist. So forgive me if I finally snapped when Nisha tried to treat me like a servant in my own home!"
"This isn't your home," Sidharth said, echoing his sister's words. "This is the Singhania Estate. It's been in my family for generations. You're here because of a treaty, not because—"
"Not because you want me here. I know." Advika felt tears burning but refused to let them fall. "Trust me, I know exactly how unwanted I am. You don't have to keep reminding me."
Something flickered in his eyes—surprise, maybe, or regret—but it vanished quickly.
"Nisha is difficult," he said, his tone slightly less harsh. "She doesn't trust easily. Our parents' deaths left scars."
"And I'm sorry for that. Truly. But her pain doesn't give her the right to abuse me. And your loyalty to her doesn't mean I have to accept being treated like garbage."
"What do you want me to do?" The question sounded torn from him, like he genuinely didn't know.
"Defend me," Advika said simply. "Just once. Tell your sister she can't talk to me like that. Tell her I'm your wife and she needs to at least pretend to respect me. Is that really too much to ask?"
Sidharth ran a hand through his hair, frustration evident in every line of his body. "You don't understand the dynamics here—"
"Then explain them to me! Talk to me like I'm a person instead of a problem to be managed!"
The words hung between them, raw and desperate.
For a long moment, they just stared at each other. Advika saw the war in his eyes—duty versus... something. She didn't know what. Didn't know if he was even capable of seeing her as anything other than a Pradhan spy.
"I'll talk to Nisha," he finally said. "But you need to be more... tactful."
It wasn't the defense she'd wanted. It wasn't the support she'd needed. But it was something.
"Fine," Advika said, exhaustion washing over her. "I'll be tactful. Right up until the moment she orders me around like hired help again."
"Advika—"
"No." She held up a hand. "You want me to be tactful with your sister? Then you need to keep her in line. Because I'm not going to keep my mouth shut when she spews venom. Next time she orders me to get her tea like I'm her paid maid, I'll throw it on her face. And I'm not kidding."
Sidharth's eyes widened slightly. For a second, she thought she saw the ghost of something that might have been respect.
"That would be a mistake," he said.
"Living here is a mistake," Advika shot back. "But I'm stuck with it. Just like you're stuck with me. So we can either find a way to coexist that doesn't involve me being the family punching bag, or..." She trailed off, because what was the alternative? There wasn't one. "Or nothing. There is no 'or.' I'm trapped here."
The word hung in the air. Trapped.
Sidharth's expression shifted into something unreadable. He looked like he wanted to say something, but instead, he just nodded once and walked toward the bathroom.
"I have work to finish," he said before disappearing inside. "I'll be late."
Of course he would.
