30. Pushing Away, Falling Deeper

Charu stepped out of Abhir's room cautiously, her heart still pounding from the madness of the previous night.

Her head throbbed with the remnants of her hangover, and she was still in last night's dress-a clear giveaway that she hadn't returned to her own room.

Just as she was about to rush down the hallway unnoticed, a sharp voice made her freeze.

"Charu!"

Her blood ran cold.

She turned slowly, dread creeping up her spine as she found herself face-to-face with her father, Sanjay Bansal.

His face was thunderous, his jaw clenched so tightly that she swore she heard his teeth grind.

"Dad..." she started, but the words died on her lips.

Sanjay's furious gaze flickered between her and the door she had just stepped out of.

His expression darkened even further. "This is that arrogant Abhir' s room right? Why were you in his room?" His voice was dangerously low, vibrating with barely contained rage.

Charu felt her stomach twist.

She wanted to explain, but how?

Before she could even attempt to form a coherent sentence, the door behind her swung open.

And out stepped Abhir.

Barefoot, slightly disheveled, yet exuding an effortless swag, he stretched his arms before casually leaning against the doorframe.

He took one glance at the scene before him-Charu standing frozen, Sanjay fuming-and let out a slow, amused sigh.

Scratching his ear lazily, he drawled, "Mr. Bansal, why don't you tone it down a bit? You're ruining my morning peace."

Sanjay's face turned red with fury. "I will deal with you later. Right now, I'm talking to my daughter"

He shot Charu a hard look. "And you-what the hell were you doing in his room all night?"

Charu felt the ground slip beneath her feet. "Dad, it's not I-"

Before Charu could even attempt an explanation.

"She is not at fault.."Abhir spoke up.

Sanjay turned his glare back to Abhir.

"So it was you. I always knew you were nothing but trouble. You tried to take advantage of my daughter-"

Abhir's smirk vanished instantly.

His eyes darkened, his entire demeanor shifting.

He took a step forward, positioning himself between Charu and Sanjay. His voice dropped, dangerously calm.

"Mr. Bansal," he said, his tone devoid of its usual playfulness. "I suggest you tone down again. And watch your words."

Sanjay scoffed. "You think you can intimidate me? you will face the consequences.I'll make sure everyone knows what kind of characterless man you really are. You're-"”

Abhir's jaw clenched, and his voice came out sharp. "I'm not double-faced like you."

Sanjay stilled.

Abhir's eyes burned into his as he shot bacj. "I have one face, and I wear it proudly."

Charu gasped softly at his shriek.

But Abhir wasn't done.

"Your daughter is far safer with me than she can ever be with you."

Sanjay's eyes widened with disbelief. "What did you just say?"

"You heard me." Abhir's tone was flat, unreadable. "Before handing out character certificates to me, maybe take some time to get to know your own daughter first."

Charu's breath hitched.

Sanjay looked furious, but for a second, something flickered in his eyes.

Doubt.

Before he could retort, Abhir exhaled and ran a hand through his hair, as if forcing himself to stay calm. His eyes briefly flickered to Charu, who stood frozen, her eyes filled with unshed tears.

She was terrified.

Not of her father.

But of him.

She knew his anger-how far it could go.

She looked at him now, silently pleading him to stop before things got worse.

Abhir took a deep breath and shut his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, his voice was level again.

"Mr. Bansal, stop creating a scene," he said, folding his arms. "I don't give a damn about what you think about me, but Charu is your own daughter. Don’t let your baseless accusations tarnish her reputation."

Charu stared at him, surprised by his words and restraint.

Sanjay clenched his fists. "So now you'll teach me how to behave with my daughter?"

Abhir sighed, exasperated. “All I’m saying is that nothing happened the way you’re imagining.”

Turning toward Charu, whose face was still taut with tension, he reached into his pocket and slipped a strip of Dispirin into her hand with a wink.

Then, feigning innocence, he said, “She just came to me to check if I had Disprin as she was having a bad headache. That’s all happened before you  stormed and accused us.”

Sanjay narrowed his eyes, scanning their faces for any sign of deception. He wanted to keep arguing, but some part of him-no matter how reluctant-knew he had overreacted.

Though he regretted his outburst, his pride wouldn’t allow him to apologize.

Instead, he turned to Charu with a warning. “If you want anything like this again, you come to me or any family member. You don’t need to rely on outsiders.”

Abhir's jaw tightened.

But before he could retort, Charu spoke up.

"...Yes, Dad" she said quietly.

Abhir smirked, feigning a mock offense. “Yaa yaa Bansal. From now on, don’t come to me for anything. I’m just an outsider, as he rightly said. Ask your great, honorable father instead.”

Charu blinked at him, stunned at how smoothly he had diffused the situation with a polished lie.

Sanjay bristled. “Watch your tone when speaking to my daughter, you brat!”

Abhir folded his arms, unfazed. “Same applies to you, Sir. Now that this pointless war is over, can you do me a favor and disappear? I’d like to have some peace.”

Sanjay muttered curses under his breath and stormed off, leaving Charu standing there, torn between relief and exasperation as she glanced at Abhir.

The moment he disappeared down the corridor, Charu exhaled, her entire body sagging with relief.

A beat of silence passed.

Then-

"Damn." Abhir whistled lowly. "Your old man really doesn't like me."

Charu shot him with a withering look.

"Come on, go now before someone else decides to show up and have a moral meltdown, here's I got you a duplicate keycard last night from reception" he said, nudging her forward.

Charu walked alongside Abhir as they made their way through the quiet corridor, her mind still spinning from the confrontation with her father.

She still felt shaken, but she wasn't about to let it show-especially not in front of him.

Abhir, on the other hand, seemed completely unfazed, his hands tucked into his pockets as if nothing had happened and swiped open the door for her

She glanced at him from the corner of her eye and hesitantly  tried to thank him "Thanks... So now.."

He exhaled sharply, cutting her off. "Now, you stay the hell away from me for the rest of the day."

Charu frowned, taken aback by the sudden dismissal. "Excuse me?"

Abhir finally turned to face her, his expression unreadable. "I have no time and zero patience to deal with the blame game or the moral lectures your family will be throwing my way after all this."

His tone was clipped, firm. "I have a concert tonight, and I'd rather not waste my energy on any pointless conversations  with you before that."

Charu stiffened at his words, something inside her twisting.

So that was it?

Just like that, he was drawing a line.

"Wow." She forced a laugh though his words pricked her "Listen I get your angry with what dad said but you got the audacity to tell me that?"

Abhir's lips twitched, but there was no humor in his eyes. "You should be thanking me, Charu. I just saved you from a huge mess. So do me a favor and stay away."

Charu scoffed, masking the way his words dug into her skin. "Oh, don’t worry. That’s my line."

Abhir raised a brow.

"I wish I didn’t have to meet you so often after this anyway," she added, her voice sharp even as something inside her recoiled at her own words. "Would love to keep my distance."

A tense silence stretched between them.

Abhir tilted his head slightly, his jaw clenching. "Good."

Charu swallowed, ignoring the sudden sting in her chest. "Good."

They stared at each other for a second longer—neither willing to be the first to break the gaze. Then, without another word, she turned on her heel and slammed the door shut in his face.

Abhir stood there, unmoving, his eyes closed, jaw tightening.

Distance was the best thing for both of them.

At least, that’s what he kept telling himself.

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Abhira leaned back against her chair, sipping on her coffee as she replayed last night’s events in her mind. “Yesterday’s party was a riot,” she mused, shaking her head.

“Even the chorus gang didn’t have much fun. Bhai left early too… They said Charu wasn’t feeling well and retired to her room.”

Ruhi who sat beside her , had been scrolling through her phone absentmindedly, suddenly frowned.

A thought struck her.

Wait… both of them were gone? Together?

She glanced up, her brows knitting together. “Yeah… I didn’t realize it before, but now that you mention it… both of them disappeared around the same time.”

Abhira, confused by her tone, blinked. “What do you mean?” she asked, setting down her cup.

“I was just worried because Bhai was drunk.”

Ruhi’s eyes widened in shock. “He was WHAT?!”

Abhira bit her lip.

She hadn’t meant to let that slip.

Seeing Ruhi’s stunned expression, she sighed, realizing there was no point in hiding it now.

Lowering her voice, she admitted, “Armaan and I… sort of had a plan with bhai and Par Nanu.”

Ruhi’s expression turned from shock to sheer disbelief. “Wait… you spiked his drink?”

Abhira winced at the accusation. “Okay, technically yes, but it wasn’t like that! We just… we thought it would help.”

Ruhi’s jaw tightened. She crossed her arms, her tone sharper now. “Help how, exactly?”

Abhira exhaled, rubbing her forehead. “Look, we wanted him to open up to Par Nanu. They’ve been at odds for so long, and we thought—maybe, if he let his guard down a little, they could finally talk.”

Ruhi stared at her incredulously. “And you thought getting him drunk was the best way to do that?”

Abhira groaned, throwing up her hands. “It wasn’t like we were going to let him make a fool of himself! The plan was to get both of them out of the party and leave them alone together, so they could finally talk without all the awkward tension.”

Ruhi narrowed her eyes. “And?”

Abhira slumped back, looking defeated. “And the lights went out, Bhai was already gone before we could do anything, and the whole plan flopped.”

Ruhi pinched the bridge of her nose, exhaling sharply. “You and Armaan need to stop with these childish plans, Abhira.”

Abhira pursed her lips, guilt gnawing at her.

Ruhi’s voice softened slightly, but it still held firm conviction. “His pain isn’t something you can ‘fix’ by tricking him into a conversation. I know Par Nanu is hurting too, but they’ll find their way to each other in their own time. Forcing it will only make things worse.”

Abhira looked down, her fingers fidgeting with the hem of her sleeve.

Ruhi’s words hit home.

She had been so desperate to see them reconcile that she hadn’t thought about how Bhai would feel in the middle of it all.

She hadn’t considered the weight of his emotions, the depth of the hurt he carried.

She nodded slowly. “You’re right…” she murmured, feeling the guilt settle in.

“I just—I just wanted to help.”

Ruhi placed a comforting hand on hers. “I know. But right now the best way to help is to let them be.”

Abhira sighed, finally letting go of her stubbornness. “Okay… No more stupid plans.”

Ruhi arched a brow. “Promise?”

Abhira hesitated for a second before chuckling sheepishly. “Fine. Promise.”

Ruhi gave her a satisfied nod.

“By the way, why did you think Bhai and Charu could be together?” Abhira asked, tilting her head suspiciously.

Ruhi gulped.

Abhira’s brows furrowed. “Ruhi… spill it.”

Ruhi sighed dramatically, throwing her hands up. “Fine! I think something is going on between them.”

Abhira gasped. “WHAT?”

“Yes! They fight, they argue, but it’s not the hate kind of fighting anymore. It’s like they actually enjoy it.”

Abhira looked like she had just been hit with a frying pan. “OMG, seriously? How come I didn’t notice this happening?!”

Ruhi rolled her eyes. “Do you ever get your head out of your Armaan-obsessed bubble?”

Abhira gasped dramatically and smacked Ruhi’s arm. “Excuse me, he is my husband okay?”

Ruhi smirked. “Yeah, yeah, but meanwhile, the most unexpected love story is brewing right under your nose, and you’re too busy to notice.”

Abhira folded her arms. “Okay, fine. What exactly did you see that makes you so sure?”

Ruhi grinned. “For starters, remember at the hospital when Abhir stormed away? I saw them hugging.”

Abhira’s eyes widened. “A hug?”

Ruhi nodded. “And not the ‘I hate you but I’m forced to be here’ kind of hug. It was soft, lingering—like they actually felt something.”

Abhira let out a dramatic gasp, grabbing Ruhi’s arm. “You mean… they like each other?!”

Ruhi smirked. “Well, I wouldn’t go that far yet, but there’s something there. And if that wasn’t enough, all these little moments—they always get too affected by each other. Like how Abhir always ends up being around whenever Charu needs help, or how she gets all flustered when he teases her.”

Abhira pressed a hand to her forehead. “Oh my god, how did I miss all this?!”

Ruhi snickered. “Because you have been busy making heart eyes  at your husband.”

Abhira shot her a glare before sighing. “But you know how the Poddar brothers are so protective of Charu. I mean, they like Bhai, but I don’t know if they’d ever approve of him for their sister.”

Ruhi nodded in agreement. “Exactly. That’s why we need to keep this theory under wraps until Abhir and Charu themselves make a move and want to tell the family.”

Abhira pursed her lips in thought before nodding. “You’re right. Let’s not interfere—yet. But if this actually happens… oh my god, it’ll be the biggest happiness in the house.”

Ruhi grinned. “And we’ll be the first to know.”

Abhira giggled, already imagining the chaos.

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