1?

                                        

                                              
The sindoor burned on her forehead.
Eshani Saxena sat quietly on the edge of the grand, dimly lit bed, her wedding lehenga heavy on her trembling frame. The laughter, the rituals, the shower of petals—they were all over. What remained now was silence, deafening and cold.
And him.
Aaryan Vashisht.
The man she had just married.
He stood by the window, tall, emotionless, and distant, his silhouette sharp against the moonlight. His sherwani had already been discarded. The cufflinks lay forgotten on the floor like everything else that was sacred.
He hadn’t looked at her once.
Not during the vows.
Not during the rituals.
Not even now.
Eshani’s fingers clutched her dupatta tighter. She had been taught that marriage was a dream. A promise. But today, it felt like a punishment she hadn't earned.
"You can sleep on the bed if you want," Aaryan’s voice finally cut through the silence, deep and empty.
She turned to him, startled, but he didn’t move. Didn’t glance back.
“I won’t touch you. I have no such intentions.”
The words stung more than if he had raised his voice. More than if he had been cruel. Because this was something worse—complete indifference.
“I didn’t expect you to…” Her voice was soft, almost childlike, barely escaping her lips.
He didn’t respond.
The silence stretched again. She swallowed hard, standing up slowly.
“I just… I want to understand, Aaryan. Why did you marry me if you—”
He turned.
Finally.
His eyes were like steel, sharp and cold, yet holding a storm beneath.
“You really want to know why?”
Eshani nodded, her throat tight.
“I married you because your father destroyed something that mattered to me. Because your family took away someone I cared about. And marrying you? That’s how I return the favor.”
Each word was calculated, emotionless, deliberate.
“But I didn’t—”
“No. You didn’t.”
A pause.
“That’s what makes this easier.”
Eshani felt something collapse inside her. A weight she didn’t know she carried sank deep into her chest. Her wedding wasn’t a beginning—it was a prison sentence. A calculated revenge.
He walked past her, unbothered. As if her tears were expected.
"You’ll be Mrs. Vashisht in name. Nothing more."
A beat.
"Don't expect love. Don’t expect answers. Just do what’s required, and stay out of my way.”
With that, he disappeared into the adjoining room, slamming the door shut.
And she stood there—bride, wife, pawn—with her heart breaking quietly inside her chest.
Outside, the night continued as if it knew nothing.
But within those walls, something had already begun—
A war of hearts.
A punishment veiled as marriage.
And a silent promise of something neither of them was ready to name.
🐇
The door clicked shut behind him, and the silence that followed was heavier than any words he could’ve thrown at her.
Eshani stood frozen in the middle of the room, her limbs unsure of what to do. The lehenga clung to her like a cage. Her jewelry sparkled mockingly under the chandelier, each piece now feeling like a shackle of a wedding that wasn’t real. Not to him.
She moved slowly, her fingers trembling as she pulled the dupatta from her head. It slid down her arm and onto the floor, a silent witness to vows that were never meant to mean anything.
Her eyes burned, but no tears came.
Not yet.
She wasn’t sure if she was allowed to cry. Would it change anything? Would it make Aaryan come back and say he didn’t mean it? That this wasn’t about revenge?
But no such fantasy followed. Just silence.
Her fingers reached for the mirror. She looked at herself—the red, the gold, the sindoor still fresh in her hairline.
“Mrs. Aaryan Vashisht,” she whispered to herself. The title didn’t feel like her own. It sounded... borrowed.
What had she walked into?
Everything had happened so fast. The proposal, the rushed wedding, the blank expressions from his family, the absence of any warmth from him—all ignored in the haze of hope.
Hope that maybe this was just his way. Maybe he was just a little cold. Maybe, just maybe, she’d find a home with him.
But that hope was now sitting like ash on her tongue.
She stepped out of her bridal shoes, then carefully lifted the heavy skirt and walked toward the large bed. The silk sheets looked untouched, pristine.
Unlike her emotions.
She climbed onto one side and sat, tucking her legs under herself. The silence now felt like a second skin. Too familiar. Almost expected.
He doesn’t love you.
He married you for revenge.
The words kept replaying, looping like a cruel lullaby.
Still, no tears.
Her fingers reached for the bangle her mother had put on her that morning, whispering blessings. Eshani clenched her fist around it now, willing herself not to break.
“I’m not like them, Aaryan…” she whispered into the darkness, though he was long gone.
“You think I’m part of that mess, but I’m not. You’ll see.”
It wasn’t a plea. It was a vow—small, fragile, but real.
Because if he had married her to break her, he was going to learn something the hard way.
Eshani Saxena doesn’t shatter quietly.
She curled up on the side of the bed, pulling the blanket over her. She could still feel the chill of his voice, the disdain behind his words. But beneath it all, there had been something else. A flicker in his eyes. A hint of something broken, buried.
And she wasn’t sure why—but that haunted her more than his hatred.
Maybe he wasn’t the only one trapped in a prison built by others.
Maybe… she wasn’t here just to be ruined.
Maybe she was here to uncover the truth no one dared to say aloud.
And maybe—just maybe—his broken vows weren’t the end.
But the beginning of something neither of them saw coming.
🐇
So that was Chapter 1!
Aaryan’s coldness and Eshani’s silence have just begun to clash—what do you think will happen next?
This 온라인카지노게임 is really close to my heart, and I’d love to know your thoughts so far.
Don’t forget to vote if you enjoyed it and leave a comment—even a small one keeps me motivated to write more! 💬✨
Let’s aim for 20 votes and 10 comments on this chapter? 🌸
Much love,
– Iniya 💛