As Sarangi brought the tea, Shikha deliberately lifted her cup and spilled it on Sarangi, pretending regret."Oh no! I'm so sorry, Sarangi… I don't know how that happened!" she said with fake concern.
The hot tea made Sarangi flinch in pain, her eyes welled up with tears, but she composed herself and replied,"It's okay, I'll clean it up..."
"Come on, let me give you a change of clothes," Shikha immediately offered, showing false sympathy, and led Sarangi to her room.
While Sarangi went to change, Shikha quickly grabbed her phone, blocked Vairagya's number, and deleted it—ensuring that neither could contact the other.
Shortly after, Sarangi returned home. As soon as she left, Shikha took out a diamond necklace from her hand—the one she had sneakily taken off Sarangi earlier. Her eyes gleamed with wicked satisfaction, and a cunning smile spread across her face.
"I tried to separate you from that government dog, and you went straight for Vairagya Rajvansh? No problem, sweetheart... Soon all these necklaces, phones, sarees... and even Vairagya Rajvansh will be mine," she said, twirling the necklace around her fingers.
Meanwhile, Vairagya had left his meeting and was calling Sarangi repeatedly, but the call wouldn't go through. It either said "busy" or "unreachable."
"Did my jaan block me? But why…?" Vairagya was growing anxious."Was it because I teased her in the morning? Or maybe because I hugged her without asking…? Damn it, Vairagya, what are you doing... maybe she felt uncomfortable... that's why she blocked you..." he muttered to himself.
Later that night, after dinner, Sarangi went to her room and tried to find Vairagya's number in her contact list—but it was nowhere to be found.
"Did Mr. Rajvansh never save his number...? Does he not want to talk to me...?"Sarangi's heart sank. She began to feel as if Vairagya was distancing himself. "Should I ask Shikha...?" she thought and called her.
"Yes, Sarangi?" Shikha answered sweetly.
"Shikha... there's a little problem," Sarangi said hesitantly.
"What happened?" Shikha asked curiously.
"Actually… I need to call Mr. Rajvansh..."
Shikha's face lit up with a sly smile. Her eyes sparkled mischievously."Then go ahead... he's your husband after all, I'm sure he gave you his number..."
"That's the thing! I have everyone else's number... except Mr. Rajvansh's. Now how do I call him?" Sarangi replied, sounding disheartened.
"What?" Shikha feigned shock. "He didn't give you his number?"
"No…" Sarangi said quietly.
"That's quite strange, Sarangi. Married couples usually exchange numbers first thing. I mean, I get that this marriage was a compulsion for Mr. Rajvansh, but... a marriage is still a marriage, right?" Shikha said, carefully planting doubt.
Sarangi began to believe her. Even she started feeling uneasy.
"Yeah... it feels weird to me too," she said sadly. "I thought things would improve after the wedding... but maybe he really didn't want this marriage. Maybe it was just a compulsion..."
Shikha saw the opportunity and went in for the kill."Look, Sarangi, I don't want to hurt you, but think about it. If it weren't for those photos, there wouldn't have been any compulsion, right? What if he's not happy in this marriage? Or... maybe he's interested in someone else?"
Shikha carefully used words that would instill doubt and insecurity in Sarangi's heart.
Sarangi was now deeply troubled. Vairagya's behavior was becoming a puzzle to her. He hugged her that morning, but didn't give his number. Now her heart was clouded with fear—was her marriage nothing but a compromise?
"What should I do, Shikha?" she asked, nearly in tears, her voice full of helplessness.
Shikha pretended to care. "Don't worry, my love. I'm here for you. I'll find out if Mr. Rajvansh has a girlfriend… after all, he's rich and dashing—there must be girls lining up for him. Don't feel bad, but tell me honestly… why would someone like him be interested in a simple, middle-class girl like you? He'd probably want someone modern and high-class..."
Her poisonous words struck deep. Sarangi was left devastated, her heart torn. Somewhere deep inside, she now truly believed that she was just a compulsion in Vairagya's life—nothing more.
Tears streamed down her face. Her heart was overwhelmed by sorrow and loneliness. She felt trapped in a relationship where love seemed to have no place.
Meanwhile, Vairagya was pacing restlessly in his room.His eyes kept drifting to the side of the bed where Sarangi used to sleep. Her scent still lingered faintly in the room, stirring even more longing in his heart.
"Do you not miss me at all, jaan…" he whispered. His voice carried pain and yearning."I'm dying here just to hear your voice… just to see you… and you, heartless, are letting me suffer like this…"
Vairagya's soul ached with longing for Sarangi. To him, it felt like ages since he last saw her or heard her voice.
To be continued...