He will make her fall in love again.

Ch-35

Rahul drove all the way to the middle of the city. He has no aim or direction. He just drove where he could find peace.

Unknowingly after a long drive, he appeared near Hussain Sagar. The sun left the earth taking the light away and giving the darkness to the world. And for Rahul's sake, it's a no-moon day. He watched as the Hyderabad city brightened with the city lights on the backside of the Buddha statue.

The cold breeze hit his exposed arms making him feel refreshed. If only he was there for her. She would not have gone through any of those things. A tear rolled down his eyes. Why wasn't he strong enough to convince his mother? Weren't they both women? Why does she need to torture her like this?

Three months back…

Rahul went to Chennai to set up his branch. He didn't take Laya because there was a local goon who tried to attack him for not bribing him for the land he brought. With the help of the police, he dealt with them. And the way the Indian police worked it took him time. He used politicians to get things done early. Even the building construction… he made the workers work double the time paying twice and got it finished in three and a half months. And he was glad that Arjun Pasupuleti, Laya's brother, helped him out.

Even though he was tired as hell… he would wait for Laya's call or when he didn't get he would call her. They both used to talk a lot during their face time. Rahul thought he was crushing the walls of insecurities in her heart with every passing second.

One day…

When he called Laya's phone… his mother picked the call. She said that Laya went to her maternal house to do some rituals. Since he wasn't here, Laya had to do the pariharam Prayers (prayers to say that they were sorry) for the rituals he failed to attend. And from his mother, he got to know she won't be in the paternal house.

Rahul felt confused about why Laya wouldn't take her phone. Rahul called Laya's phone but they always said she was busy or wasn't interested to talk to him. Even Arjun spoke nothing about Laya all the month. The whole month was spent in disappointment. Only he knew how he spent those one and half months without hearing her voice.

Every day he slept with disappointment. But he cheered himself that he would be welcomed with her open arms. When he finally reached home… he saw his angry mother and guilty father. His wife was nowhere to be seen. He heard that his sister also reached home the day before. He went to Saranya's room and saw her weeping.

He wondered what had happened that made everyone like this. He went to his room and settled the luggage in his room. He passed through the dining room, he saw the unclean dishes from yesterday. He saw some food fall on the ground that was not cleaned again.

Again… Rahul's mind went back to his wife. Didn't she still return? Maybe he should go to her maternal house to get her back. But before that, he has to pacify his sister.

He went to her room and hugged her tight and assured her everything would be alright. "What happened?" he asked, feeling annoyed by the silence from everyone.

"Anna(brother), m-m-mo-om i-is d-domestically ab-abusing sister-in-law," she said, stuttering.

Rahul knew his mother was a kind of control freak. Domestic abuse was not something she would do.

"Saranya… What are you saying? Mom would never do that," Rahul tried to defend her.

"EVEN YOU ARE DEFENDING HER!!! SHE BURNED MY SISTER-IN-LAW'S BODY RIGHT IN FRONT OF MY EYES! SHE HASN'T EAT FOR DAYS TILL TODAY!! GO AND SEE HER IN THE HOSPITAL!! IF WE GO THERE HER FAMILY WOULD KILL US RIGHT THEN AND THERE!!" Saranya yelled at the top of her lungs.

Rahul knew it was true at that moment. He asked Saranya the hospital name and his wife's ward. He sprinted to that place like he was on a marathon. He didn't feel at ease till he got to see her face. Her family members would be there and at least one person would be there. Raghuram used to sit outside her ward without moving while the other family members used to change shifts.

Raghuram felt his guilt eating him up. He didn't care about Rahul or anyone. When Rahul's family came to look for Laya he chased them away accusing them that they were the reason for their daughter's misery.

Maha Lakshmi yelled at them saying they were accusing them. She just made Laya lose her wait but that was Laya's personal choice too.

Raghuram was so angry he almost raised his hand to slap Maha Lakshmi but the fact Maha Lakshmi was a female stopped him. He asked Harish Chandra and Maha Lakshmi to leave the ward till she recovers. They didn't even allow Saranya to enter the hospital. They refused to let anyone from Yendamuri's family enter the hospital. If not for the sake of Arjun he would be chased out.

But it just happened that Laya turned like a canvas sprayed with different colors with no orders. She turned into a mess. She needs someone who could make those messy colors into a beautiful painting.

Rahul swore to make her fall in love with him again. He would do it even if hell has to break. He would protect her from everything she was scared of. Not even his mother or family or her family. He would take her as his forever and ever.

Taking a deep breath, he returned to his car and drove back to the hospital after a long journey again.

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Author's Notes:

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