Mishti angrily snatched the pillow from his hand, placed it back where it belonged, and turned back to him. “Get on the bed. Stop annoying me now, please.”
His brow lifted, clearly stunned by her tone and her anger. She caught the question in his eyes and continued, “Is this how you want to respect my decision to go to London? By agreeing to it, but avoiding me on purpose? Do you think that’s fair?”
Karan said nothing. He only stood there, watching her vent, knowing he did not want to stress her, not tonight. So, without another word, he exhaled deeply, returned to his side of the bed, and switched off the lights. Only after he lay down did she finally relax and lie down too, turning onto her side to face him.
Karan did not look at her. But Mishti watched him, her eyes threatening to tear up as she felt him growing distant again. As if he sensed it, Karan turned toward her and, in one swift motion, wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close. She immediately curled into him, her face resting against his chest.His arms came around her, holding her protectively. That was exactly how he wanted to end every day with her in his arms. But with her flying to London and no idea for how long, tonight was the only night he could hold her this close again, and he did not want to waste it.
Mishti too wrapped her arms around his back and pulled him closer still. Karan kissed her hair, then her forehead once, before gently stroking her back and closing his eyes. They both needed sleep, and the best cure was finding it like this, in each other’s arms.
CHAPTER 44
Next Day – Private Jet
Karan was just a step away from imposing his decision on Mishti, telling her that she was coming straight home with him and not waiting for the layover before her next flight to London. They were still flying together in the private jet from Jaipur to Mumbai, with another half an hour left before landing on the private airstrip.
Ever since they had woken up that morning, they had barely spoken again. The last-minute packing, the checkout formalities, and the constant presence of family had made any real conversation impossible. Avni and Rajat needed their attention too, pulling them in different directions. The entire night before, he had barely slept, despite being exhausted and despite having his wife in his arms. It was the thought of parting from her today that gnawed at him relentlessly.
Throughout the night, he kept looking at her, memorising her, holding her close in his mind, recalling the days when he had deliberately kept her away from himself. And then came the memory of how desperately he had yearned for her once she had left for London. Every brutal action of his replayed in his head. Every hurtful word he had thrown at her came back with cruel clarity, making him regret with each passing minute.
After doing all that to her, after making her live through a marriage devoid of love for so long, how could he now ask her to stay back? For him. With him.
He exhaled deeply and kept pretending to work on his laptop now. It was the only way, the only excuse to avoid facing Mishti again, because he knew that the moment he did, he would end up begging her not to leave. And he did not want to do that. Not for his sake, but for hers.
Mishti stared out of the aircraft window, watching the clouds pass by beneath them. Her heart began to beat faster as they drew closer to Mumbai. She did not even realise when her fingers moved to the mangalsutra around her neck, clutching it tightly, as though loosening her grip might make it slip away from her. Her throat felt tight, not physically, but emotionally, at the thought that once they landed in Mumbai, she would head straight to the international airport to board her next flight to London in just a few hours.
Karan had never brought up that topic again. On the surface, he appeared calm, but she knew better. She knew he was only masking it. He did not want her to go. No one in the family was truly happy with her decision, even though they all stood by her, choosing to show support rather than opposition.
Karan had been alone for years now. Sixteen long years. And when destiny had finally given him that single ray of hope, a chance to have someone close to him again, someone he had grown to feel so deeply for,his wife, she was leaving. Walking away.
Although this time, it would be different. She would stay in touch. She would talk to him. She would not disappear from his life the way she once had. But would that ever be enough? No. Then why was she doing this? Mishti had no answer.
Her gaze shifted from the window to the seat across the cabin where Karan sat, pretending to work on his laptop. He wasseated alone. VK was busy with Kanika, while Rajat and Avni were lost in their own newlywed bubble. Abhimanyu and Komal had taken the morning flight and had not travelled with them on the jet. Komal had received an urgent call from the hospital, an emergency that had made her leave on the next flight, with Abhimanyu joining her.
Mishti watched Karan closely. Not once had Karan come to her or taken the seat beside her during the flight. Should he not make some effort to talk to her when they had so little time left? He looked exhausted. Not from work, not from the pressure of the past weeks of wedding rituals in Jaipur, but from the constant restraint he was forcing upon himself. From the knowledge that he would not stop her this time. She saw how close he was to breaking, to making her stay, and yet how fiercely he was controlling himself. She saw him rub his palms over his face, exhale sharply, then lean back in his seat, trying to steady his fraying nerves.
She almost stood up, wanting to walk toward him, when the stewardess asked her to remain seated and fasten her seatbelt as they had begun their descent and would be landing shortly. Frustration flared within her. Angry at herself for not being able to cross even that small distance between them, she sank back into her seat.
***************
After the jet landed, Karan was once again busy settling Avni into Rajat’s car. He personally checked if Rajat had kept her bags safely inside, like a brother who did not know how to stop taking care of his sister even when she was no longer his responsibility alone.
VK walked up to Mishti then and pulled her into a warm hug. “Are you okay, Mishti?”
She nodded, even though her eyes betrayed her. He then looked from her to Karan, standing a little distance away, andsighed inwardly. Both of them were hurting, no matter how hard they tried to hide it.
Karan, meanwhile, continued to act as though everything was normal. As though nothing inside him was breaking.
He hugged Avni next, holding her close. “You’re coming home soon,” he told her. “The Wadhwa mansion is waiting to welcome you too. We’ll keep a proper dinner this week. You, Rajat and VK uncle. We’ll celebrate you the way you deserve.”
Avni smiled through the moisture in her eyes. “I can’t wait, Bhai,” she said honestly. “Can’t wait to relive our childhood memories back in that house with you.”
Karan nodded, emotion tightening his throat. He bent slightly and pressed a kiss to her forehead. Then he straightened and turned to Rajat and punched his chest lightly and said, “Look after her.”
Rajat nodded heavily, his own heart hurting seeing Karan today. “You okay?” he asked.
Karan replied at once, “Of course. One of my biggest headaches you are taking away with you.” He said it while glancing at Avni, who chuckled.
Rajat shook his head. “Be serious, Karan. You’re not okay. Stop diverting and hiding your pain.”
