THE UNEXPECTED DESTINY

Abhishek’s Side

The moment he walked away from her, his chest felt heavier than it had in months.

He told himself it was just anger. Frustration. Confusion. Nothing more.

But it wasn’t just that. Something about seeing her again—her presence, her silence, the way she looked away instead of at him—had ignited a chaos inside him that even he couldn’t name.

Abhishek stormed out of the restaurant's service corridor, loosening the top button of his shirt as he walked straight to the car. His driver opened the door, and without a word, he slid inside. The ride back to his office was quiet, but his mind wasn’t.

That girl.
His wife.
Anya.

What the hell was she doing there?

He clenched his fists.

"What kind of game is this? Why is she working in Luminous Lily of all places? That too under Leela?"

He’d met Leela before. Powerful businesswoman. Strong reputation. But what was Anya doing in her circle?

He kept trying to convince himself that he didn’t care.
That she meant nothing to him.

But every time her face flashed in his mind—those eyes filled with quiet pain, the trembling in her voice when she told him, "I don't know you"—something twisted deep inside his chest.

He shouldn't care.
He didn’t believe in love.
He never wanted this marriage.

Then why did he feel like someone just punched a hole through his carefully guarded heart?

When he reached his office, he didn’t say a word to his friends. Rahul and Vinod were waiting as always, but he brushed past them.

“Bro, you okay?” Rahul asked.

Abhishek paused and looked back, his face unreadable. “Cancel all meetings for the rest of the day.”

Vinod looked surprised. “You sure? There’s a board call at—”

“I said cancel it.”

They nodded and stepped back. Abhishek walked into his cabin, shut the door, and finally let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding.

He collapsed into the chair, elbows on the table, palms against his forehead.

She’s here. She’s working. She didn’t even flinch when she saw me.

She looked right through me.

His assistant, Veer, came in quietly, setting down a file. Abhishek didn’t even lift his head.

Veer cleared his throat. “Sir, should I speak to Leela Ma’am?”

Abhishek raised his head slowly. “No.”

“Should I keep a tab on her?”

He paused.

“...Just make sure she’s okay. From afar. No interactions. No names.”

Veer nodded and left.

Abhishek closed his eyes.

He didn’t tell anyone else. Not his best friends, not his siblings. Only Veer knew. Veer had always been the quiet one—loyal, smart, and discreet.

No one else needed to know about Anya. Not yet.

He wasn’t ready to accept her.
He wasn’t ready to tell the world she was his wife.
He didn’t even know if he believed it.

And yet, he couldn’t stand the idea of her being in pain.

The next few days passed in fragments. He worked like a machine. Meetings, contracts, phone calls—all executed with his usual ruthlessness. But every time he closed his eyes, her image surfaced.

That girl who didn’t cry. That girl who didn’t plead. That girl who didn’t look at him like she once had.

And that hurt the most.

She had changed.

She wasn’t the same scared girl the villagers forced into marriage.

She had grown stronger.

He saw it in her posture, in her poise, in her control.

He wasn’t sure if that scared him or impressed him.

Late one night, as he stood at his penthouse balcony, wind brushing against his face, the city glittering beneath him, he asked himself the question he had avoided since the day they were forced together:

What if she’s meant to be in my life?

And his heart whispered,
You already know the answer.

But his pride—the walls he built over years—kept him from accepting it.

For now, the world wouldn’t know. Not his friends. Not his family. Not anyone.

Only he and Veer would carry the truth.

He’d watch her. Protect her. From a distance.

Until he was ready to face the truth he refused to speak aloud:
That maybe, just maybe, he wasn’t as heartless as he thought.

He wasn’t ready to accept her.
But he wasn’t ready to lose her either.