Chapter 102: chapter 102

THE SILENT LOVE ... Chapter 101 :Sreekar could feel his heart ready to explode, a mix of confusion, disbelief and anger pulsating through his veins and  With a Wavering voice, he gathered the courage to learn about the truth which he is unaware of."Wh … What are you saying? Didn't my brother …? Didn't he attempt suicide after being cheated on? Why are you now pointing fingers at a person who is no longer alive?".The atmosphere in the room was engulfed with a heavy silence as if no one could slice through it a sharp knife. Balaramaiah and Ajith were caught off guard realizing their mistake of spilling the truth. The remaining occupants in the room fixed their gazes upon the both,  frozen with mixed expressions of astonishment and misbelief, being stupefied with their words.Feeling suffocated to go through the tension in the air which is palpitating his heart, Sreekar repeated his words to learn the truth they were hiding from him.“Sir! Would you care to explain the hidden truth behind your words? How is my life compared to my brother who is no longer alive leaving you petrified for your daughter’s life?”enquired Sreekar with the fixed gaze on them scrutinizing carefully.Balaramaiah and Ajith exchanged looks, heaved a huge sigh with the weight of guilt in their hearts for breaking the promise they made to a particular person.“It’s not in my competence to disclose the truth of your brother’s life. You can garner it directly from him. Fortunately, he is not departed as you believe but embraced with a happy and joyful life with his loved one’s. He is dwelling at our place guarding the truth of his existence from the society”, Balaramiah disclosed the truth delicately and carefully being aware of the storm that would usher into Srekar’s life.Sreekar sensed an explosion within his chest as the revelation about his brother's secret life  unfolded. In a whirlwind of emotions, he took a step back, battling with the feelings of delight for his brother's liveliness, agony over the years of unknowing, astonishment at the revealed truth and a twinge of betrayal for being kept in the shadows.The sudden  overwhelming emotions left him dizzy, and in that vulnerable moment, Gautham and Ajith swiftly moved to support him, preventing his descent to the ground.After gathering his composure, Sreekar surged forward, clasping Balaramaiah's hands and he pleaded,“Sir! Is what I heard true? Where is he? I must see him at once. I need to confront him for keeping me in ignorance all these years. You cannot imagine the depths of despair I endured, believing he had taken his own life. Please, Sir, reveal his whereabouts”, his voice quivering with a mixture of emotions that gushed like a torrent from his heart, while his eyes welled up with tears.Unable to watch the agony Sreekar was going through, he informed,“He is residing at our place. Ajith will usher you there”, darted his eyes towards Ajith and suggested,“Why don’t you help him in reaching his brother? You people can reach by early morning, if you start now”.Swetha, who was observing their entire conversation, unable to resist herself and queried her father,“Father! Are you referring to Sreekanth brother?.Balaramaiah spun his head towards Swetha, glanced at her for a while and nodded his head as an acknowledgement while his eyes carried the weight of the  remorse to shatter her dreams.Swetha was taken aback by  perceiving the emotions that were swirling in her father’s eyes and his acknowledgement made her realize the underlying  reason behind her father’s displeasure towards their relationship.She was  cognizant of Sreekanth, who endured the hardships for their survival along with his wife  for whom he sacrificed everything behind and initiated a new  life  concealing his true identity who turned out  to be   the son of a billionaire.She witnessed their struggles, their turmoil for getting abandoned by their family, their loneliness despite having  their dearer one’s. She was devastated to learn the reality of the person whom she adored equally with her brother Ajith for his unwavering determination to cherish his wife, providing  whatever she deserved for, despite the trials and tribulations he had endured.She suddenly experienced the hollowness in her heart, realizing the depth of her father’s concern to protest towards their relationship, comparing her life to Sreekanth’s wife. No father would allow his daughter to endure such torment, going through the sacrifices, loneliness   and abandonment.Swetha could feel the throbbing pain in her heart with the realization dawn on her and with a  quavering voice, she  enquired,“You …, you know Sreekanth brother and he  are siblings? Isn’t it the reason for your disapproval?  Why didn’t you notify me about the reality of the Sreekanth brothers?”.Balaramiah couldn’t meet her sharp gaze which penetrated directly into his soul, unraveling his intentions  for his denial to their relationship.“Sreekanth himself is oblivious of me being aware of his identity. I never confronted him, fearing that they might flee if they got  exposed about their identity. I treated them as strangers and embraced with love and affection that they  required at that time, supporting their journey of their new life with their hard work. I never disclosed their secret to anyone  other than Ajith”, explained Balaramiah  while his heart was feeling remorse for hurting his daughter . He was ready to accept anyone as her companion but not Sreekar who is from that family whom he despises the most.Kamal’s family felt awkward being outsiders to invade their personal matters. They left the place  after informing Krishna Kumar and Mahalaxmi about their departure followed by Akash’s family.Balaramiah’s explanation expelled all the clouds that were swirling in Sreekars mind and could acknowledge his resentment towards him due to the struggles his brother endured. He could understand his fear of seeing her daughter going through similar obstacles if he was  chosen as her companion. He struggled to decipher how he had become the victim for his brother’s affairs when he is the one who abandoned their family faking his death living somewhere cherishing his life with his loved one. Was there something he was missing to see through? Does his brother and his mother had any conflicts  regarding his love life which made him desert his family.Swetha fixed her gaze at her father for a while processing his each and every word  which made her realize how her unwavering determination towards Sreekar drowned her father in anguish.A feeling of dread consumed her with the thoughts of the upcoming circumstances they are going to experience which can lead them to depart from each other. A wave of  conflicted emotions surrounded her like a whirlwind and she covered her mouth to control the sob that was threatening to escape from her mouth but her eyes deceived her by gushing out the tears which she  tried to push back.Unable to control her anxiousness, Swetha spun her head, tilted to one side carrying all the sorrow that  exists in this universe and with a pitiful look she stared at Sreekar who had already fixed his gaze at her.