Coldest story ever told

"You were the moon. All this time.

And he was always there for you,

to make you shine. Was he the sun?

No, honey. He was the darkness"

After the fateful night, when Mishti had seen Veer leaving Pari's bedroom, she refused to talk to her sister, not that they talked a lot before or that she even cared. Every time Pari looked at her it was with that condescending smirk, Mishti had learned to hate so much. Although they had never been close or the best of friends as sisters are supposed to be, still Mishti had never thought she would do something so low to deliberately hurt her like this.

Veer on the other hand... Mishti had been avoiding him since she had seen his betrayal and even though there were moments when she was sure he wanted to speak with her, he never did. Mishti had no idea if he was aware that she knew about him and Pari, but ever since she had seen him leave her sister's room, he didn't even want to look at her.

Two weeks had passed since that ill-fated night, and Mishti had hated every single moment of every single day. Neel hadn't been able to stay as he had promised but that didn't mean he was going to leave her alone, he left Sikander in his stead, to function as her bodyguard, not that she needed one. The man followed her everywhere and was getting on her nerves, and the way he looked at Ananya didn't help either. Mishti was grateful that Ansh hadn't noticed or things would have gotten bloody already.

Ronobir sent her gifts every couple of days; flowers, chocolates, dresses, and jewelry. Every single item he gave her ended up in the trash, he was insane if he thought he was going to buy her pretty things, Mishti was not that kind of woman and would never be.

The wedding was one week away and Mishti had refused to take part in the planning. It was decided that the wedding would be held in Christian style to honor Ronobir's late grandmother's wish.

Ronobir had hired a wedding planner and her mother was the one making all the decisions, Mishti couldn't care less about flowers or centerpieces. She didn't even know why they had to throw a party; she just wanted everything to be over already.

Right now, she found herself standing in front of a big mirror, while Ananya fawned over the dress she was wearing.

"You have to choose this one Mishti", her friend exclaimed, "the wedding is next week and you still have nothing to wear!"

"Great maybe we can postpone it!" Mishti bit out and her friend gave her a sympathetic look.

"We both know that's impossible", she sighed, "but this dress is beautiful!"

The dress was indeed breathtaking. It was an ivory, strapless, mermaid lace gown over web lace. It made her look stylish and beautiful; it was the perfect dress, the one she would wear if she was marrying the love of her life

"I don't know, maybe we should try another one!"

"Mishti, you look stunning in this", Ananya told her, "and it's Vera Wang!"

"Aren't her dresses cursed or something?"

"Nonsense!"

Mishti stared at herself for a few more minutes and saw her mother entering the store, her eyes glancing at her wedding gown-clad figure and her eyes filling up with tears.

"Mishti... you look breathtaking!" she whispered and Mishti knew it was futile to fight this. She was going to get married, this was going to be her wedding and even though she hated the groom with the fire of a thousand suns, she was going to marry him, wearing the most kickass dress out there.

"So I guess this one is the one!" she said as a sense of dread invaded her. In just a couple of days, she was going to be Mishti Chatterjee and there was not a more frightening thought.

"Of course it is!", her mother said, "Sweety you look beautiful!" Her mother was staring at her with stars in her eyes and Mishti wondered how her mother and Ananya managed to forget she was going to marry a psychopath, that this wedding was a lie and she was nothing more than a bargaining chip in a game way out of her league.

They spent the rest of the day shopping for things Mishti was going to need like shoes and undergarments; the minute they entered the lingerie store she felt like throwing up. The only thing they didn't shop for, was jewelry. Ronobir had sent a box, with instructions not to be opened until the wedding day, containing the jewelry he wanted Mishti to wear that day. At that point Mishti no longer cared; he could keep the damn jewelry for all she cared about.

After the shopping was done, her mother went back to the house, while the girls headed to one of their favorite restaurants for dinner, with Sikander trailing behind them as usual.

They chose a secluded table at the back of the restaurant, while their bodyguard sat by himself on one of the tables close enough to aid them if something happened, but not close enough to hear what they were talking about.

"Are you scared?" Ananya asked once they were on their second martini of the night. Mishti had ordered a pear one, it had been her favorite drink ever since he had prepared it for her that night three years ago.

"Of course, I'm scared Ananya!" Mishti answered. "I'm going to marry a man I barely know, someone who kills for a living !" she whispered the last part.

"I don't think he kills for a living but Bappa Mishti, I hate that you have to be in this situation," Ananya grimaced. They had been friends their whole lives and they only wanted each other's happiness. "What are you most afraid of?" she asked.

"Honestly, the wedding night," Mishti said looking down and her friend nodded in understanding. "You know I've never been with anybody Ananya, I never felt ready... and I doubt Ronobir is the kind of man who would wait for me"

"Maybe he could be" her friend tried to reassure her. "Maybe if you talk to him and explain, he could wait. You hardly know the man... he might understand how difficult this situation can be for a girl"

Mishti shook her head negatively, "If he understood, he wouldn't be asking me to marry him. He's not a nice man Ananya; don't they call him The Ice Man for a reason?" Mishti played around with the food on her plate.

"He's going to take whatever he wants from me...", her eyes welled with tears and her friend reached across the table to hold her hand. "I hate him Ananya"

"I know you do honey", her friend stroked her hand softly, "and I wish there was something we could do to get you out of this"

"But there isn't" Mishti whispered. "Family first, always!"

"I'm so sorry Mishti"

"Will you come to visit?" Mishti asked in a hopeful voice.

One of her greatest fears about this marriage was being with Ronobir in a strange city. She had lived her entire life in Mumbai, everyone she had ever met was here, this was her safe place, but Ronobir was going to take her to a completely unknown city, surrounded by people she didn't know, his people, who didn't care for her at all.

"Of course, I will Mishti" Ananya smiled softly. "We've never been apart ever since we were children; we're not going to start now."

Mishti smiled slightly, her friend's words comforting her. She needed her people around her or she was going to lose her mind.

That night when she got back to her house, Mishti went to her bedroom and locked herself there. She pulled out her diary, her confidant and true companion, and started writing frenetically. There were so many thoughts swirling in her head and nothing worked better for her than to put them on paper, it was a therapy of sorts, she had done that since she was a little girl. Pari used to mock her and steal her diary when they were younger, Mishti thought bitterly about how her sister had always tried to make her life a living hell, for reasons she couldn't ever fathom.

An incessant ringing made her pause and she stretched her arm to pick up the offending object that lay on the nightstand, frowning as she looked at the screen of her phone, which displayed an unfamiliar number. She answered anyway and once she heard the voice on the other end, she wished she hadn't.

"Hello sweety"

"Ronobir...", She sighed, "how did you get my number?"

"Well we are going to get married, I guess it's only logical that I have your number don't you think?" She clenched her jaw guessing it had been her father who gave it to him.

"Anyway, I just wanted to wish you good night!"

"Great, I don't care!"

"Ouch, you do have a way of hurting my feelings Mishti", his voice was filled with amusement and Mishti could almost see him smirking on the other end. "You don't care about my phone calls and you throw away all my presents."

"How did you...? "

"There's not a thing you can keep from me," his voice was icy and it send a shiver down her spine. Ronobir had a unique way of changing from funny and playful to cold and calloused in a matter of seconds. "And I want to know what my gifts did to offend you so much that they are lying in the trash as we speak!"

Mishti snorted and cursed mentally, guessing it had been his lap dog, Sikander, who told him about that, the man was like her freaking shadow.

"I don't want anything that comes from you, Ronobir. You can't buy me like a doll!"

"But you are wrong sweety, I don't want to buy you. I don't need to, I have you already," he said arrogantly.

"You're an idiot!"

"That I've heard before. Anyway, I just wanted to spoil my future wife with some presents that were all." There was a slight pause and Mishti could hear the shuffle of papers, "It's a way of showing that I care about you, Mishti, and about what's going to happen between us."

"Then you have no idea what it means to care about someone." She said harshly. "You can't buy people's affection, Ronobir."

There was silence on the other end and Mishti wondered briefly if she had hurt his feelings by not accepting the gifts.

His voice was unsteady when he spoke again, "We'll see about that"

Mishti sighed, "Why are you doing this Ronobir?"

"Doing what?"

She closed the journal that still rested open on the bed and sank onto her big, fluffy pillows, "Why do you want to marry me? I'm nothing special; you could have any woman you want."

"But I want you" his voice was filled with an emotion she wasn't able to name. "I have wanted you ever since I saw your face"

"This is just a whim!"

"It's not! Mishti, your body sings for me, I know you know it." The huskiness in his voice made her blood run hot. "You felt it when I touched you that night, I bet you thought about me more than once."

"I never did," She lied.

"You can fool me but you can't fool yourself", he told her. "I feel it whenever I am around you, the energy sizzling between us."

Mishti closed her eyes and involuntarily rubbed her legs together, the mere sound of his voice did things to her that no one had done before. "You're insane!"

"You wish I was", he chuckled, "but you know I'm right! No one would ever be enough for you, not even that stupid boy you fancy so much"

At the mention of Veer her eyes opened and coldness swept through her body. "Don't you dare... "

"It's the truth Mishti" he silenced her. "Once I have you... babydoll you'll never ask for another, there will be no one after I make you mine."

His words excited and terrified her at the same time but above all, they made her incredibly angry.

"You won't have me" She bit out.

Ronobir laughed and it was such a deep sensual sound that her body started heating up again. Mishti hated the reaction her body had to him, she was like a fucking cat on heat.

"Oh but I will. You're my babydoll and you will be mine forever!"

"I hate you!"

He chuckled, "By all means hate me... that is the perfect beginning of a love story. It means you feel for me, there's passion in you that sings for me."

She sat and gripped the phone tightly in her hand, "You're delusional"

"Dream of me sweety", he whispered before hanging up on her. Mishti stared at the screen of her phone for a second before throwing it across the room in a complete rage.

Who the hell did that man think he was? He might be the most dangerous man in town but he was never going to control her the way he wanted to.

Mishti knew she hated him, but she wasn't sure what she hated him the most; for forcing her to marry him or for the emotions he evoked in her.

Mishti could barely sleep the night before the wedding. Nandani and her mother had wanted to throw her a bachelorette party, but one nasty glance from Mishti was enough to quell their fervor and quiet them down. She guessed Ronobir was having one, and even though she wanted to believe that she didn't care what he did, she knew better, he had gotten under her skin.

She woke up many times during the night, dreading what the morning would bring with it. She would marry him and he would take her to New York, a place where he held all the control.

When her mother came in to wake her up, she found her lying in the fetal position, clutching her pillow desperately. Mauli sat next to her and started stroking her hair lovingly, "It's going to be okay sweet heart!" Mishti wanted to believe her but she wasn't that naïve. Nothing was going to be okay.

"I'm scared mumma!"

"I know, I'm scared too," She confessed.

They stayed like that for a few more minutes, Mishti was so scared her body was visibly shaking and her mother did her best to calm her down. She even asked for tea to be brought to her bedroom and only when they couldn't delay it anymore they stood up and Mishti went to take a shower while Mauli made sure everything was loaded in the car.

The wedding was being held in one of the most luxurious hotels in Mumbai, that's where Mishti was going to get ready and where she would spend her first night as a married woman.

Before walking out of her bedroom Mishti stood at the threshold of her room and gave it a last, lingering look; some of the best memories of her life were associated with this place and now she had to let it all go. She had never lived anywhere but in this city and now she was being forced to go elsewhere; a place where she didn't know anyone and didn't feel safe.

She clutched her chest and tried to control the tears, as she closed the bedroom door behind her. Mishti didn't feel like she was going to a wedding, she felt like she was going to a funeral.