Love will Remember » Book 1 ✓

Chapter Eight : The Shocking Truth

Shivaay was sitting by the pool wondering about his next move. All the things that were revealed to him today were hard to believe. After he had a talk with tia, he decided to go forward with their engagement.

All he could think about was annika because the man who was with annika knew shivaay too. Daksh mehra used to be shivaay's best friend; shivaay was astonished to find out his involvement with annika. According to the report he got from khanna, there was a debt to be paid. Annika's sundari bua had taken a loan from daksh but when the time came to repay it, she put it on annika's head.

Annika was paying the loan back but daksh started to follow her, as if he had a new found interest in her; he was obsessed, in the initial days (according to annika's neighbours), daksh used to visit her a lot and always bought her presents.

Thinking about him with annika made his blood boil but when he thought rationally, he was able to connect the dots; annika's strange behaviour, denial of her feelings for him and being constantly terrified of phone calls. It was such a coincidence that daksh was after annika and after so many years of no news of him, shivaay found him through annika.

Yesterday, annika had told dadi that she will be leaving but where? Was she talking about leaving the city? Annika had no family, well except for sahil so she must be planning to leave so that she could get away from daksh but if she was suffering so much then why didn't she tell him? He would have helped her but he knew annika would have never told him about her problems, she was stubborn like that.

~

Annika was ready to leave but she was still stuck in Oberoi mansion and this made her anxious, she was afraid daksh will find out and then she won't be able to escape him. She also feared that she might have to stay for shivaay's engagement.

An hour had passed since annika came out of shivaay's room and left him with tia; even though there was nothing wrong in their wanting to talk to each other, annika felt nauseous at the thought of them together in a room, alone. There was nothing she could do, daksh seemed to hold some old grudge against the oberoi's; she suspected that because of how angry daksh was when he came to know that annika was working for the oberois and if it was true then annika wasn't going to lead him to them.

It was time, everyone was ready and as annika saw shivaay and tia descending the stairs together, she couldn't keep herself from looking at him; he looked stunning like a prince charming in his black kurta and chudidaar. Her breathing hitched as shivaay's gaze found hers.

She was lost in him but when dadi called her out she looked away, she had no right on him, to look at him. All the while that shivaay and tia were being congratulated on their about to happen engagement, annika kept working, she kept herself busy.

Then Dadi asked annika to get a thali that was kept by the poolside. Annika went there and picked up the thali, there was no one by the poolside as everyone was gathered in the hall. Annika turned and bumped into someone, she tried to gain balance but failed and so a hand held her by the waist and the other held the thali. Annika looked up to see it was shivaay.

"shivaay" she whispered.

"annika"

Both of them said nothing for a long moment.

"annika, ask me to stop"

"what?"

"this engagement, I know you don't want me to marry tia, even I don't want to marry tia."

"I never said that" she looks away.

"that is why I am asking you, just tell me what you really want to say. I know there is something you are not telling me" shivaay observed annika as he mentioned this.

"you are wrong there is nothing I have to tell you" annika denied but there was no confidence in her voice. Of course there was so much she wanted to tell him, most importantly that she loved him.

"annika, I know you are lying but I promise, if you tell me what is bothering you, I will help you, I will fix everything."

For a moment annika believed him, that he would help her If she told him about daksh but she couldn't.

"you shouldn't worry about me, today is your engagement and you should be there."

Annika stands properly and then starts to leave when shivaay says something that makes her stop.

"I love you Annika"

Shocked, annika turns to look at shivaay. "so, I am asking you to tell me what you want annika, just tell me that you like me, that you feel for me and I will make everything right."

But annika just leaves without saying anything.

~

Seeing annika run away, Om and rudra had had enough; just because they weren't interfering in whatever shivaay was doing didn't mean they couldn't see that shivaay and annika liked each other and it was heart breaking for annika to watch shivaay get engaged to that tia.

"what are you doing shivaay?" om asked as he and rudra took shivaay away from the crowd. Shivaay looked as if he didn't know what they were talking about. "what?"

"what do you mean what? Aren't you going to stop this engagement? Didn't you see annika run away?"om asked in a disbelieving manner.

Shivaay sighed, "I'm not going to stop her, not yet anyway. I have a plan".

"so you do have a plan, I thought I'd have to do some khidkitod planning." Rudra said and then asked what the plan was.

"what's the plan?" om asked.

Then shivaay told them the plan. Rudra was very impressed, "I never thought tia would say this to you but I am glad she did but your plan is dangerous bhaiya? What if something happens to annika didi?"

" I won't let anything happen to her." Shivaay assures his brothers and himself.

"om ask khanna to follow annika when she leaves the house and let's get through with this engagement." Shivaay joins tia on the stage.

Om does as shivaay asked but still kept looking at his phone. "are you waiting for someone's call?" rudra asked in a teasing manner. "ishana must be back from delhi and she said she will call me but she hasn't."

"oh ho lover boy" rudra teased but he got a slap from om "shut up rudra".

~

The engagement ceremony was done and shivaay went to his room when he got a call from khanna "shivaay sir, I lost annika mam."

-to be continued-

I know you all might have many questions, this chapter has no answers but next one will be full of revelations.

I hope you all liked this one.

Comment and Vote 💚