Chapter 30: chapter 30

Imara was awakened by the soft sunrays filtering through the glass door leading to the balcony. Opening her eyes only slightly, she squinted to check the time—it was seven. Letting out a lazy yawn, she rolled over and snuggled back under the duvet.“Only good daughters-in-law wake up early,” she grinned mischievously before dozing off again.Before long, a faint knock at the door broke her peace. She groaned and ignored it at first, then groaned again at the second knock. However, by the third knock, frustration won over laziness. Tossing her hair into a messy bun, she reluctantly dragged herself out of her cosy cocoon to answer the door.“Imara!” Vandana’s worried expression greeted her, and her eyes flew open as Vandana entered the room, inquiring, “Are you alright?”Imara furrowed her brow. “Yes, what happened?”“I just found out Adhiraj brought you back in the middle of the night. He’s in for a scolding from me…” Vandana declared, her face conveying her annoyance.Imara couldn’t help but replay Adhiraj’s words from last night in her mind, each recollection causing her heart to quicken its pace. The words escaped her lips before she could stop herself. “How...how did you know?” taking note of Vandana’s just-woke-up look. In her memory, this was the first time she saw her mother-in-law in a nightgown, a stark contrast to her usual attire of a saree and jewellery.“A maid saw him entering with you…how dare he disobey my orders when I explicitly told them to bring all of you in the evening today? What your parents must be thinking?” She was practically steaming with anger.“I wasn’t at Rathore Mansion,” Imara replied, her statement catching Vandana off guard, causing her to blink and try to make sense of the situation. Hoping to make Vandana see her rebellious side, she added, “I went at my apartment.”Vandana’s anger seemed to vanish as she approached Imara, gently holding her face and saying, “Why didn’t you just tell me you didn’t want to go there? I wouldn’t have sent you. And as for Adhiraj, trust me, he’s going to hear it from me for sure. No husband should be bossing around his wife like that.”Vandana’s casual acceptance left Imara stunned. She had expected that Vandana would be livid upon knowing that she had defiantly gone to her place, even after leaving with her brothers.“Take some rest…I will see where that brat is…” Vandana casually said as she walked out of the room, leaving Imara in a state of pure confusion.—————“Raj….” Vandana hollered at her son, surprising not only him, but also Atharv and Samrat. Adhiraj set down the dumbbells, feeling the burn in his muscles, and grabbed a towel to wipe his sweaty face before asking his mother, “You seem angry?”Vandana shot back, “Shouldn’t I be? Why did you go fetch her in the middle of the night?” That took Atharv and Samrat by surprise, their eyes going wide with amazement.“She was…” Adhiraj began.“At her own apartment!” Vandana snapped with her arms tightly folded across her chest. “So? How does it matter? That’s her home for her…”Adhiraj let out a deep sigh of annoyance. He couldn’t admit that he was worried about her, fretting that she might feel lonely, cry herself to sleep, or worse, become a target because she was his wife.As he uttered the words, “Once she has learned to keep me in a loop, she can live there for as long as she wants...” he walked away from the gym, leaving Atharv and Samrat exchanging amused looks and Vandana shaking her head in disbelief.—————As Virender sat down at the breakfast table, he noticed Imara’s absence. His voice laced with confusion as he inquired, “Raj...where is Imara?”“Probably on her way down, Papa ji,” Vandana responded.Virender couldn’t resist teasing Adhiraj. “I was half expecting her to kick you out of her apartment!”Jaidev, feeling out of the loop, asked, “What’s going on?”Adhiraj explained, “Dadu informed me she opted to stay at her apartment instead of going to Rathore Mansion.”As Jaidev gave his son a skeptical look, Virender couldn’t resist poking fun. “So, did she try to kick you out of her place or not?”Adhiraj wanted to yell, “Of course she did!”Just as he was about to come up with a diplomatic response, Imara came over and joined them for breakfast.“Imara, are you headed somewhere?” Vandana inquired as she noticed Imara in her office attire."Yes, the factory," Imara affirmed with a nod, as she calmly prepared her breakfast of bread and butter, pairing it with a steaming cup of tea.“I’ll have a car and driver ready for you,” Virender declared, his words carrying a sense of approval.Jaidev and Vandana followed suit, nodding their heads in understanding, while Adhiraj’s suspicious mind went into overdrive. And it didn’t take long for Imara to confirm his doubts as she insisted, “I’ll just take a cab.”Hoping the girl would heed his advice, Jaidev suggested, “It would be much more convenient if you took the car, Imara.”But Imara was determined to defy everyone, so she shook her head and insisted, “I prefer taking a cab,” causing Jaidev to withhold any further comments and exchange a glance with Adhiraj.Adhiraj understood that Imara may resort to making hurtful remarks to win the challenge. To prevent any further defiance, he gently added, “Atharv is heading in the same direction and can drop you off. And why not have Babli come along with you?”The name Babli had everyone’s attention on Imara, who looked like a deer caught in headlights.“Who is Babli?” asked Vandana, clearly confused.“It’s the name of her car!” Adhiraj clarified, hastily stuffing a spoonful of pasta into his mouth to hide his uncontrollable grin.The people around the dining table fell into a hush as all eyes turned to Imara, who shot daggers at Adhiraj. The guy had just slyly hinted that she had no choice but to accompany Atharv, throwing her car’s name into the mix to deflect attention. Meanwhile, Atharv and Samrat couldn’t contain their laughter, with Atharv declaring, “We’ll be leaving in ten minutes, Bhabhi!”Imara continued to shoot death stares at Adhiraj as she nodded in agreement to Atharv, “Sure!”Vandana’s soft touch on Imara’s hand prompted Imara to instinctively turn her head and lock eyes with Vandana. “Anika and Tarushi will be back by tonight. Tomorrow’s ritual involves making something sweet. Would you be able to take out time for it?” Vandana’s question was filled with a sense of understanding, as she wanted to give Imara the freedom to choose and avoid making her feel burdened, especially considering how the previous ritual had unfolded.Imara saw this opportunity as a step closer to her victory in the challenge and found herself agreeing, “I’ll manage...”Adhiraj couldn’t help but roll his eyes internally, knowing Imara would try to twist the situation to her advantage. Deep down, he hoped that by meeting her condition of refraining from any tricks and informing his family, he wouldn’t risk losing both the challenge and, more importantly, her. After witnessing her remarkable skills the night before, he was determined to not lose someone as unique as her. Imara had truly left a lasting impression on him, unlike anyone he had ever met before.—————The entire ride was filled with silence, except for Atharv’s soft utterance of, “Anu misses you...” while Imara remained deep in thought, staring out of the window.Imara simply nodded, choosing not to respond. She reminded herself of the one-month deadline to make Virender hate her, all while being clueless about the impression she had left on him.Despite knowing his words may not have much of an impact, Atharv continued as they pulled up to Imara’s factory. “She hasn’t told me what happened, but she always says her Imu Di is the best sister ever.”Imara paused, her jaw clenched as she held back a sharp comment before replying, “Everyone is nice for her because she is too nice herself...” She then got out of the car and walked into her factory.Atharv waited until Imara had entered the building before turning back home. He may not have had a reason to be on this route, but he was always there to help his brother when needed.