She comes rushing down the stairs, her breath heavy with anxiety. As she looks around, she struggles to figure out what she should ask or even who she should approach. Her eyes dart here and there, hoping to find someone she could speak to—but there’s no one around except the household staff. Vanjeet had already left, and despite everything that had happened, she felt like a complete stranger in a place where everyone else seemed to know what was going on. An odd sense of panic grips her as she once again tries to spot a familiar face, but there’s no one. She whispers softly to herself, almost in despair:

“What should I do? I can’t understand anything. Should I just leave? Would it be of any significance to them if I did? Anyway, they probably don’t even consider this forced marriage valid. All they cared about was saving their so-called reputation, and they’ve managed to do that. So what use am I now? I should go home immediately...”

She begins to walk hurriedly but stops in her tracks.

“No, there’s no point going home either—not yet. I should call Mom first and find out what’s going on. If she’s done something about it, then fine. If not, then I’ll search for my sister myself. I’m not going to depend on anyone else anymore.”

As she walks out of the mansion gates, she quickly pulls out her phone and dials her mother Sunaina’s number. The phone rings, but her mother doesn’t pick up. She tries again, more urgently this time. On the second ring, Sunaina answers, sounding extremely irritated and agitated.

“Why are you bothering me so early in the morning with your calls?”

“I wanted to ask… Did you speak to Dad? Has he sent anyone to find Didi?”

“Look, I’m telling you—don’t escalate this issue anymore. Stay there quietly and let us have some peace. And just so you know, from what we’ve managed to find out, your sister wasn’t taken away against her will. She left on her own, by her own choice—dragging our reputation through the mud in the process. Your father is furious, beyond anything I’ve ever seen. I don’t even know how to explain the extent of his anger. You know very well how much he loves Koyal, don’t you? If he’s this angry with her, imagine what must’ve happened. He’s never even raised his voice at her, and today, he’s seething with rage. Now hang up the phone and let me handle things here. And don’t you dare call me again!”

Sunaina abruptly disconnects the call, leaving her daughter staring blankly at her phone screen for a long, stunned moment. She has no resources, no reliable contact, and no clue where to begin figuring out what really happened with her sister—or why. But deep down, she knows one thing with absolute certainty: something did happen at the last moment. Something serious that forced her sister to leave like that.

“I can’t just do nothing… I have to do something. I know something went wrong. My heart is telling me something definitely went wrong with Didi. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have left like this... I saw her... I saw how much she loved Vanjeet… Then why did she leave…?”

Determined, she quickly hails a taxi and gives the driver an address. As the vehicle begins to move, she drifts into memories from the recent past.

PAST EVENT

Both families were seated together, chatting and enjoying the moment. However, her gaze kept returning to Vanjeet and Koyal, who sat together, conversing softly and occasionally grinning. Ever since Koyal had confessed her feelings for Vanjeet, she had started noticing the two of them more closely. It had become increasingly clear to her how genuinely happy Koyal was around him. And though she knew she should feel happy for her sister, she couldn’t deny the sharp pang of jealousy twisting inside her. In her heart, it felt like her sister was slowly slipping away from her.

Just then, Vanjeet looked up and caught her staring. He smiled warmly at her, but she didn’t return it. Not even slightly. Her lack of response caught Koyal’s attention too, and she turned to look. As soon as their eyes met, Koyal smiled at her—gentle, loving. The sight made her break into a childlike grin, as if she couldn’t help herself. Vanjeet, who was sitting beside Koyal, noticed the entire exchange and leaned closer to Koyal, whispering: which Aavya can listen very clearly.

“I don’t think your sister likes me very much.”

“That’s absolutely true,” Koyal replied, half-laughing. “She doesn’t like you at all, and I know exactly why. Look, you already know she’s ten years younger than me, right? I practically raised her myself. I looked after her every need, listened to her every worry, and became her friend, her confidante, and sometimes even her parent. All her life, she’s had me to herself. And now, with you entering my life, she feels like she’s losing me. I know she’s genuinely happy that I’m happy with you. But it’s also human nature—we tend to feel jealous, even of the people we love most. And in her eyes, you’re taking away the most precious thing she has. So of course, she doesn’t like you.”

Hearing her explanation, Vanjeet chuckled and looked over at her sister again.

“So basically, I’ve unknowingly created an enemy for myself,” he said playfully. “Well, that’s fine. Even if I end up with enemies because of you, it’s worth it. I’ll try to win her over after the wedding, though I highly doubt it will be easy.”

Then, after a pause, he asked curiously, “Tell me something—just hypothetically. I know this question doesn’t make much sense, but I’m still going to ask. If you ever had to choose… between your sister and me… who would you choose first?”

Koyal looked deeply into his eyes, as though searching for something unspoken, while Vanjeet waited eagerly for her response. Before responding to him, Koyal cast a glance at her younger sister, who, despite her family's presence, appeared utterly alone. She was silently trying to eat, barely managing to swallow a few bites just as she was sitting here only for her sister. It was clear she didn’t want to be there; she was only part of this family gathering because she had no other choice. Koyal looked back at Vanjeet and smiled, and then he replied with gentle conviction.

“Of course, I would choose my sister…”

Vanjeet had not expected that answer at all. He was momentarily taken aback. But before he could say anything, Koyal placed her hand over his beneath the table and spoke softly:

“I had always decided that I would think about marriage only when everything else in my life happened on my terms. And ever since you’ve come into my life, I’ve thought only of you, only of us—our future, our life together. But in the midst of all that, I have never forgotten that the most important part of my life has always been my sister. God forbid I am ever placed in a position where I have to choose between you and her, but if such a moment ever comes… I want you to know, I will choose her. Because you… well, you still have the whole world. But I am her whole world. You know, it’s not like she isn’t happy for me, she’s incredibly happy that I’ve found love, but what’s hurting her the most is the fear that she’s going to lose me.”

Vanjeet, deeply moved by her honesty and the bond the two sisters shared, gently sighed. In all these months, he had come to understand the depth of love these two had for each other. They were willing to do anything for one another. He looked again toward Aavya, who still seemed completely disconnected from the gathering but had a winning smile on her face because her sister always chose her. Smiling thoughtfully, he said to Koyal:

“Look, I’ll admit your words made me a little sad… But I’m trying to understand them. And I promise I’ll do everything I can to make sure the bond between me and Aavya is never ruined.”

After dinner, everyone relaxed and continued chatting, enjoying the family warmth. As the others laughed and talked, Aavya quietly began walking away, heading toward her room. Koyal immediately noticed and followed her. Vanjeet glanced at his family members, who were watching him curiously, and decided to follow them too. Koyal caught up to Aavya and gently called out.

“Avu… Everyone’s still sitting downstairs. What will you do alone up here? Come back down. I know you're not enjoying yourself, but do it for me—just sit with us for a little while.”

Hearing her sister’s request, Aavya turned around and started walking back down with her. As they reached the staircase, they saw Vanjeet standing in front of them, smiling. Looking at the two sisters together, he teased.

“I have a feeling I’m going to receive this sister-in-law as dowry!”

Koyal laughed at his comment, but Aavya, clearly unimpressed, frowned, and, definitely not like him, she replied sharply.

“And I feel like ever since Didi started spending more time with you, our home has started to feel like a forest… Because clearly, someone around here has started loving forests a bit too much.”

Koyal burst into loud laughter at her sister’s sarcastic jab and walked off, still laughing. Vanjeet, amused but confused, looked at Koyal and asked,

“Why does she call me Forest…?”

“Because she’s your sister-in-law,” Koyal said between laughs. “And that means she can say whatever she wants to you…”

PAST EVENT ENDS

She had finally reached the address she had given the taxi driver. As soon as the car stopped, she stepped out, determination written all over her face. Her mind was clear now—she was going to meet every single friend of Koyal’s and speak to them personally. She had to find her sister. If something had troubled her, if something had gone wrong, she was going to get to the bottom of it. She couldn’t rely on anyone else now. It was up to her. And she wasn’t going to stop until she got answers.

~~~~~

"I don’t know much; I just know one thing—that this marriage happened solely because of the pressure from the families. At that moment, all they cared about was protecting their so-called honor in a crowded hall, nothing else. You know very well that no law recognizes such a marriage. I haven’t even registered the wedding yet, which means legally, it can be annulled very easily and very soon."

"Yes, you’re absolutely right,” the man responded thoughtfully. “But I suggest you speak to your family properly before making any decisions, because I don’t want to end up getting caught up in trouble just between powerful people. I’m not refusing to support you, sir. Everything you’ve said is valid. But you also know very well what kind of men Vishambhar Sir and Yogendra Sir are—they have the power to dig up even the smallest detail and destroy everything with it. I’m just being cautious—for my own safety."

Vanjeet opened his mouth to respond, but just then, his phone began to ring. He quickly pulled it out and glanced at the screen—it was his father. He didn’t want to talk to him right now, especially since solving this issue was far more urgent. But the phone kept ringing persistently, so he finally answered it.

“Yes…”

“Where the hell are you right now? Do you even realize the kind of storm we’re dealing with at the company right now?”

Startled by the intensity in his father’s voice, Vanjeet stood up abruptly, anxiety surging through him. He turned and started walking toward the exit as he asked.

“What happened all of a sudden? Everything was fine… What’s going on at the company?”

“Where have you been since this morning?” his father snapped. “We’re trying to track down that girl—she’s not at the house… I don’t know what kind of joke you people think you’re playing, but it’s all blown up now. I don’t know who did what or how this even happened, but the photos from your wedding with Aavya have been published in every newspaper…”

“What…? How is that even possible? And how could Aavya’s photo be released? She was under a veil the whole time.”

“Of course, she was wearing a veil. But someone recorded a video of Koyal leaving the wedding venue and paired it with stills from your wedding ceremony… That video is going viral—today it’s become sensational news. And if you look closely at the wedding photos, even with the veil, Aavya’s face is clearly visible.”

Vanjeet felt his anger intensifying, clenching his jaw and pressing his hand against his forehead as frustration boiled within him. Without saying another word, he hung up and took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. He quickly unlocked his phone and started scrolling through social media—everywhere he looked, people were talking about his wedding. Because it was a high-profile union between two prominent families, major media houses had covered it extensively.

He began watching the viral video carefully. The opening clip clearly showed Koyal’s face as she left the venue in plain clothes and calmly sat in an auto-rickshaw, looking completely unaffected. The second part showed a blurry shot of the bride’s room footage taken from when chaos was unfolding and family members were arguing with each other.

Suddenly, something in the video caught his full attention. He paused it. His eyes widened in disbelief as he saw Sunaina slapping Aavya. His expression darkened, and he pressed his fingers to his forehead, trying not to let the emotion overtake him. He resumed the video. The next clip was from the wedding ceremony itself, he watched intently. Even beneath the veil, Aavya’s face was unmistakable. Her eyes—those tear-filled eyes—were visible. She hadn’t stopped crying.

Fury exploded inside him. He slammed his hand down hard on the steering wheel, breathing heavily. Without wasting another second, he stomped his foot on the accelerator and sped off, driving away with fiery determination in his eyes.