Chapter 12: Chapter 12

"How dare you touch me?" Anahita pounced on him as he set his foot inside their room, "Who do you think you are?"

"Shut up! I saved you from further interrogation because no girl in their right mind would refuse to meet her family. I didn't my family to suffer because of you." Yuvraaj said and moved to his cupboard.

Anahita followed him closely, "You know what, you successfully made me feel like a bitch but I am not, okay. Why will they get hurt if I don't want to go that home?"

An extremely frustrated Yuvraaj spun to face her, "I am really surprised now. Why don't you want to go your home? Is it because of your butter spine boyfriend?"

"Excuse me! He's not butter spine and it is my personal matter." She retorted, making him sigh.

"Fine!" Yuvraaj raised his hands in surrender, "We will leave from here and I will throw you at your home, then go wherever you want to. I won't come behind. Now get ready."

"Throw me? Did you say that? What am I? A garbage!" All she could see was red, his each word added on to her anger and she threw the perfume bottle kept on the table.

So swift, in a friction, she was plastered to the nearby wall by him. Yuvraaj tightly gripped her wrist, stamping on the fact to leave marks and greeted his teeth.

"Listen to me once and all Anahita, I do not like violence, especially with a girl. So just don't push me. The days you've decided to spent here, you'll be wending them on my terms, understand?"

His eyes clouded with fury, "What you did just now, if you repeat it again. I'll do something that we both will regret of it for the rest of our life. So behave yourself. Be a civil woman, not a barbaric. Don't make me tame you, trust me, you won't like that. I am not a man who allows his woman to behave so rustically. I am not saying anything doesn't mean I will allow you to cross limits. If you don't want your hatred for me to increase, if you don't want to see me at my worst, I suggest stop getting under my skin and behave yourself." His eyes got darker by each passing moment. Anger in Anahita's eyes dissipated and fear filled the void. She frantically squirmed to get out of his grip but the more she wriggled, the more he twisted her wrist.

"Ah! Leave me Yuvraaj." She winced, trying to unclasped his grip.

"Answer me that you will behave." Yuvraaj demanded, twisting her wrist making her whimper more.

She nodded frantically, tears streamed down her eyes. Yuvraaj left her hand and ruffled his hair.

"Now just get out of here!" He yelled.

Anahita jumped to her feet, shaking in fear and pranced out, not bothering to look at her again. She cursed her parents for finding someone like Yuvraaj for her, for throwing her before this demon. She was certain that she wouldn't want to stay in this relationship where Yuvraaj physically abused her.

She wiped her tears and leaned on the balcony. Her thoughts circled their journey in a wink. Yuvraaj was never nice to her. He pulled the act of being nice before everyone and now when they were married, he was showing his true colours. He never needed a wife, he wanted a slave.

Anahita sobbed profusely judging where she was stuck. Crying before him was the last thing she would do. He thought himself a ruler and what was she to him, a prisoner. Rubbing her nose, she hiccupped and pledged to never cross his way again.

***

Hauling up the car before Maurya Mansion, Yuvraaj ignited off the engine and waited for her to step out. Angularly, Anahita remained sitting on her seat, looking away. Yuvraaj glanced at her and sighed. He stepped out, rounded the car and clicked open the door for her. Anahita blankly stared at him and the big white Mansion before her. Last time she was here, her mother slapped her and her father abandoned her. The reason, she believed, was stupid; she just wanted her happiness.

"I'm not your chauffer. Come out." Yuvraaj said. They were still not in speaking terms. Anahita remained silent.

"Come out or else I'll pick you up. Choice is yours." Yuvraaj threatened, leaning against the door.

"You said it was important for your family to leave me here but they are not coming after us, so please drop me somewhere else; in nearby park." She mumbled looking away.

"Who are you to command me? Come out because I've to accompany you inside." Yuvraaj sniped but she didn't waver.

Moments of silence passed by, Yuvraaj stared at her and she pretended to be oblivious. Huffing at her stubbornness, he leaned on the window. "Why are you so stubborn?"

"Drop me somewhere else."

"Fine! Don't blame me then." Yuvraaj said on an exhale and scooped her up in his arms, closing the door with his leg.

Anahita gasped, binding her arms around her. "Yuvraaj, what are you doing?"

"You look fragile but I bet you weigh almost 50pounds." He jested, striding to the doorstep.

"Yuvraaj stop!" She exhaled, hiding her face in his chest in embarrassment. Delighted and somewhat marvelled, that's how Yuvraaj felt, this was the first time she'd hugged him and that swelled his chest in mirth until....

"I don't believe in this marriage or rituals, then what's the need of performing this crap. Five weeks and it's all over, so it doesn't make sense." She tried to explain him calmly, for she knew that anger wouldn't work with him.

Five weeks! The term had started to acuminate his ears, whenever she said these two words, he felt that she was burdened and he had committed some crime. Her chants of five weeks reminded him, all the time, that she was not his. She didn't belong to him. She will be gone.

Frustrated, he dropped her on the ground on her feet and straightened himself, "I know Anahita and that's why I'm not expecting anything but where my family's happiness is involved. I'll bent you down, whether you like it or not."

"What about me Yuvraaj? Now even you are not caring about me. What am I now?" She looked at him with hurtful eyes.

"I have nothing to answer. Come!" She was in a stroke of shock to see him responding softly, he had never done that since their marriage up till now.

Latching her palm with his and pulling her closer, Yuvraaj sauntered to the main door and pressed the doorbell.

Mrs. Maurya opened the door. Anahita instantly smiled at her and Yuvraaj bended down to touch her feet, "How are you Aai?"

"I'm good. Come inside!" Mrs. Prakash lovingly caressed Yuvraaj's hair, welcoming then inside while Anahita desperately looked for her father.

A moment before, the girl who didn't want to come inside, was frantically flapping her eyes around to see her father.

"Ma. Where's dad?" She asked, sitting on the couch and Mrs. Maurya didn't even smile at her. "In his room."

"Didn't he know that I was coming today?" Anahita asked, already knowing that her father was deliberately ignoring her but she was afraid to hear that; not on her face, not before Yuvraaj.

"He is not well. Let him rest." Mrs. Maurya indirectly refrained her to meet. Anahita hadn't expected less, she knew she had to suffer. Her father wouldn't forgive her easily, after all, it was he whom she had inherited her stubbornness.

Mrs. Maurya indulged herself in cooing Yuvraaj and neglected Anahita all throughout. She was hurt, seeing that her mother wasn't even glancing at her and her father didn't want to meet her; she had had a hard time.

Yuvraaj was aware of her state, she thought she wasn't showing it but he could read her thoroughly, he tried to derive some reactions from her by taunting her before her mother for her surreal cooking which she hadn't done up till now but she didn't retort back.

She just didn't want to pretend anymore.

"Mom, I am going to my room. Call me up if you need anything." She mumbled and sprinted upstairs to her room without waiting for reply.

Her room was as she had left it, not a thing was misplaced. She felt gratitude towards her parents that they didn't throw her things away just like they'd thrown her. It reminded her of being her dad's princess once.

Bouncing on the bed, she dipped her face in the pillow and fell asleep, crying silently.

"Oh, you are up!"" Yuvraaj closed the magazine as he noticed Anahita, blinking her eyes, "Good Evening. I hope you had good sleep."

Wordlessly, Anahita sat up, her head heavy owing to her crying session. She glanced outside the window to see it was almost dusk. She couldn't believe that she slept all the day, without having lunch and her mother didn't come for once to wake her.

"Your bed is quite fluffy." Yuvraaj remarked, gently falling on his elbow and smiled at her.

"What are you doing on my bed?" Anahita interrogated, rudely and he inclined his eyebrows, "What does that suppose to mean? Ain't I sharing my bed with you? I was sleepy too, so I just fell next to you."

"Ah! Speaking of which, listen you were too sleepy last night, so I didn't object but from today onwards, I'm not sharing bed with you. So find your easement." She made a bun of her hair and Yuvraaj pulled her by her hand, earning her surprised squeal and panda eyes.

"What the hell!" She thought she flinched loud, but that came out as a whisper, when cold fingertips of Yuvraaj stroked the contours of her face.

Her eyes closed instinctively as his fingers faded in her nape and pulled her face closer. Gulping loudly, Anahita fought back with the butterfly sensations erupting in the pit of her stomach and the tingling that occurred where his fingers had roamed.

"What..are you...doing Yuvraaj?" Her once steady and firm voice came out of her throat as stretching gasp.

"Finding my ease!" Yuvraaj replied, keeping his eyes latched with her. Nonplussed, Anahita noticed the strokes of russet in those coffee brown eyes, his thick eyelashes fanned out onto his cheeks every time he blinked.

Bet he'd done eyelash extension. She registered, mentally.

"Huh?" She gave an incoherent reaction, unable to fathom the spell he was casting upon her.

Smirking, Yuvraaj flipped their position by crawling upon her. Anahita couldn't understand why and what was happening. She was numb, not completely, but Yuvraaj's citrus smell was casting havoc in her senses.

"Yuv..." She opened her mouth but he pressed her finger on it, "Relax! I'm not going to do anything. Not in your room. Not when I know that your parents are just next door and they can hear you screaming my name in pleasure."

His each punctuating word coloured her cheek with deep shades of red, her eyes refused to meet his stormy ones at all as she looked down at his chiselled chest.

For a friction of second, Mukund completely left her mind. The only person who had the charge, was the one lying on top of her, colouring her cheeks with his blunt remarks.

"If your dad is not succumbing, why don't you initiate? Crying is not the solution. He is your father, he will never turn back on you." He persuaded her, and removed her hair from her forehead.

Anahita kept mum, exerting herself to process his words as Yuvraaj went on, "Go and talk to him."

She gently pushed him off her, breaking the moment and sat up, her eyes brimmed again, "You don't know my dad. He will—"

"I may not know him but I know you." He emboldened, tipping her chin with his index finger and made her look at him, "You do not want to regret this, right?"

Like a baby she shook her head.

"Then go and talk to him." He emphasized, "There's no harm in being low hand once, if it worth."

"Dad!" Anahita knocked twice before peeking inside Mr. Maurya's study room. The room was dark, certainly no one was reading.

It is just an escape. She thought, remorsefully. Her mind compelled her to back off but Yuvraaj's words resonated in her ears. She needed to take the initiative because she didn't want to regret it.

Bargaining with situation, she paused and waded inside, "I know, dad, you're not working. I know you're angry but that doesn't mean you will ignore me. I am sorry."

She blabbered in the dark and groped for the switch board. Once she switched on the light, the room brightened and revealed her father sleeping on the chair.

She knelt beside him and rested her head on his lap, "I am sorry, dad. If you've been awake, I would have never been able to see in your eyes and apologize for my callowness but dad, you must know that you are the best father in the world. I miss you, dad." She confessed, crying silently.

Except her dad was listening. Mr. Maurya, being the obdurate personality he was, wasn't ready to succumb but he was dying to see his daughter. When he noticed Anahita coming inside, he pretended to sleep. Trails of tears followed the cheeks of father-daughter duo.

Anahita confessed her mistakes, crying and Mr. Maurya silently listened to her, wiping his own tears.

"Thank you!" She whispered, once inside the car and glances at Yuvraaj, who was driving stoically, "I know you did it for me."

"No need to built air castles, Ms. Maurya." He threw a stern gaze at her. "We're going to keep it even. I helped you and now, you've to comply with something I will demand."

"And exactly what's that?" She catechises bluntly, momentarily cursing her for speaking softly with the devil.

"You will know." An inexplicable smirk crawled upon his lips but his eyes told her different story.