Author’s POV
After the chaos of the haldi function, Chandralok Haveli should have felt exhausted by now.
Instead—
the haveli looked even more alive tonight.
Music echoed through the courtyards, fairy lights shimmered against old walls, and the entire mansion buzzed with the kind of wedding chaos that never truly slowed down.
As if people were deliberately choosing laughter before emotions could catch up to them.
And somewhere between all the music, teasing, and endless preparations—
nobody noticed how certain thoughts still lingered quietly beneath the celebrations.
Especially for two people who hadn’t even met properly yet.
Near the center of the courtyard, Meera sat dramatically frowning at her mehendi while two little cousins circled around her nonstop.
“I’m telling you,” she complained for the hundredth time, “if someone ruins my mehendi before the pictures, I’ll cancel this wedding myself.”
Yash nearly choked on his drink.
“Excuse me? Over mehendi?”
“Obviously.”
Rhea nodded seriously beside her. “Valid concern.”
Vivaan scoffed. “You girls are terrifying.”
“Good,” Meera replied proudly.
Laughter broke around them instantly.
A few steps away, Aarohi shook her head while adjusting the bangles on her wrist. Her sea-green lehenga shimmered softly under the lights, but unlike everyone else, her smile wasn’t completely reaching her eyes tonight.
Ever since that strange night…
something inside her still felt unsettled.
Not fear exactly.
Just… restlessness.
The kind that quietly sat in your chest without explanation.
“You’re zoning out again,” Rhea whispered while sitting beside her.
“I’m literally sitting right here.”
“Haan, physically. Mentally? God knows.”
A small laugh escaped Aarohi despite herself.
Meera suddenly looked toward them dramatically. “Aaru, save me from these people. Your future jiju has been bullying me since evening.”
Yash looked offended instantly. “Bullying? Me? I’ve been suffering silently for months.”
“Shaadi cancel,” Meera threatened calmly.
“Sorry, meri maa,” Yash surrendered immediately, making everyone burst into laughter again.
For a while, things felt normal.
Easy.
Safe.
Music echoed through the courtyard while cousins dragged unwilling uncles toward the dance floor. Someone almost dropped an entire tray of mocktails. Children ran around throwing flower petals at random people while elders watched everything with amused smiles.
The entire haveli felt alive.
And somewhere in the middle of all that chaos—
Aarohi finally stopped overthinking for a few precious moments.
A little later, the atmosphere shifted as the sangeet officially began.
Lights dimmed softly.
The music grew louder.
Cheers echoed through the courtyard as the host grabbed the microphone dramatically.
“Ladies and gentlemen… tonight nobody is allowed to sit quietly! Especially the bride and groom.”
Yash immediately pointed toward himself. “See? Even the universe supports me.”
Meera rolled her eyes. “The universe also gave me patience.”
Vivaan muttered, “Barely.”
The first few performances passed in laughter and nonstop cheering. Cousins danced terribly with confidence, aunties forgot choreography halfway through songs, and uncles somehow turned every performance into bhangra.
And honestly—
that made everything more fun.
Near the entrance, Yash pulled out his phone again and sighed.
Rhea noticed instantly. “You’ve checked your phone like fifteen times.”
“He’s waiting for his emotionally unavailable best friend,” Vivaan answered before Yash could.
Yash ignored him and dialed again.
The call connected after a few rings.
“Bhai,” Yash said immediately, “if you ditch my sangeet after promising me, I swear I’ll personally come drag you here.”
On the other side, Atharv sounded exhausted already.
“I said I’m coming.”
“Then where are you?”
“Getting ready.”
“You’ve been getting ready for an hour.”
“That sounds like a you problem.”
Yash laughed despite himself. “Bas jaldi aa.”
Atharv sighed quietly. “I’ll be there.”
The call ended.
Meera crossed her arms. “He’s actually coming?”
“Unfortunately,” Vivaan replied.
“Why unfortunately?” Aarohi asked casually.
Vivaan smirked slightly. “Because he judges people silently.”
“That’s because most people are embarrassing,” he answered calmly.
Rhea blinked. “Wow. You all sound emotionally damaged.”
“Correct,” Yash said proudly.
A few performances later, the host suddenly announced loudly—
“And now… the bride’s side is finally ready to prove they’re superior.”
Cheers exploded instantly.
Rhea grabbed Aarohi’s wrist dramatically. “Come on.”
“Agar tu steps bhool gayi na—”
“Then we improvise confidently.”
“That’s not dancing. That’s survival.”
Their argument continued all the way toward the stage.
The music started.
And within seconds—
the energy of the entire courtyard shifted.
Rhea was her usual chaotic self, full of attitude and nonstop expressions, while Aarohi moved with an effortless grace that instantly pulled attention toward her without even trying.
She laughed mid-step when Rhea nearly missed a turn.
Rhea glared at her dramatically. “Stop enjoying my suffering.”
“No.”
The crowd clapped along loudly while Meera screamed the lyrics from below the stage completely offbeat.
Yash looked horrified. “Please stop helping.”
“No one asked for your negativity.”
Even the elders were laughing now.
The performance wasn’t perfect.
And that’s exactly what made it feel real.
Full of missed steps, teasing, laughter, accidental chaos—
yet impossible to look away from.
At the same moment—
Atharv finally entered the haveli.
He barely paid attention to anything at first.
Not the lights.
Not the decorations.
Not the crowd.
His focus was still stuck on unfinished meetings, exhausted thoughts, and the conversation he’d had with his grandfather the previous night.
But then—
his eyes lifted toward the stage.
And stayed there.
For a second, the noise around him faded into the background.
A girl in sea-green spun beneath the golden lights, laughing softly while fixing a strand of hair that had fallen across her face mid-performance.
There was nothing overly dramatic about her.
No desperate attempt to gain attention.
Yet somehow—
she had it anyway.
Atharv frowned slightly without understanding why he couldn’t look away.
Maybe it was the way she smiled so freely.
Or maybe the strange familiarity he suddenly felt despite knowing he had never met her before.
Beside him, Yash appeared with two drinks.
“You came.”
Atharv took the glass absentmindedly, eyes still fixed ahead.
“You didn’t mention your functions were this loud.”
Yash laughed. “This is still the calm part.”
Atharv barely reacted.
His attention remained on the stage.
Specifically—
on her.
The performance ended with loud cheers and nonstop whistles.
Rhea bowed dramatically like she’d won an international award while Aarohi laughed beside her, slightly breathless.
Flower petals rained down from somewhere above.
“Thank you, thank you,” Rhea announced proudly. “Autographs later.”
“Please humble yourself,” Aarohi muttered.
“No.”
As they stepped offstage, relatives instantly surrounded them with compliments and teasing.
Meanwhile, across the courtyard—
Atharv silently watched her again.
And for the first time in years…
his mind felt unusually distracted.
“You’re staring,” Yash said suddenly.
Atharv finally looked away. “No, I’m not.”
“Hm.”
“That sounded judgmental.”
“Because it was.”
Before Atharv could reply, Vivaan joined them while grabbing a drink from the table nearby.
“The dance was surprisingly decent,” he admitted.
“From your standards, that’s basically emotional appreciation,” Yash said.
Vivaan ignored him.
Atharv’s gaze drifted again unconsciously toward Aarohi, who was now laughing with Meera near the stage.
Something about her expression pulled at him strangely.
Like he’d seen that smile somewhere before.
Without really thinking, he spoke quietly—
“That girl…”
Vivaan looked up distractedly. “Which one?”
“The one dancing with Rhea.”
Vivaan followed his gaze absentmindedly. “Aarohi?”
Atharv’s brows furrowed slightly at the name.
And before he could say anything else—
he heard Meera teasing Aarohi loudly nearby.
“Ohooo… someone’s getting attention.”
Aarohi frowned instantly. “Shut up.”
Rhea gasped dramatically. “Wait. Are we exposing people tonight?”
Aarohi rolled her eyes and turned to leave before their nonsense grew worse.
But while passing near Atharv and the others—
she accidentally heard the next sentence.
Vivaan smirked slightly and asked, “Why? She remind you of another mall girl again?”
The word hit Aarohi wrong.
Mall girl.
But in the loud music and surrounding noise—
her already irritated mind twisted it instantly into something uglier.
Call girl.
She stopped walking.
For one full second—
everything inside her went still.
Then anger rose so suddenly it shocked even her.
Slowly, she turned around.
Atharv finally saw her properly up close for the first time.
And suddenly—
those eyes.
Soft.
Furious.
Shaking with insult and disbelief at the same time.
Something about them struck him so hard that his thoughts blanked completely.
Aarohi stepped closer.
“How dare you?” she snapped.
Before anyone could react—
her palm struck sharply against his cheek.
The sound echoed through the courtyard.
Silence fell instantly.
Even the music seemed quieter for a second.
Yash froze.
Rhea’s eyes widened.
Vivaan nearly choked on air.
But Atharv—
didn’t react immediately.
His face remained turned slightly from the impact while Aarohi stood there breathing unevenly, anger still burning in her eyes.
And strangely…
instead of anger—
the first thing Atharv noticed was that same unsettling familiarity again.
Like somehow—
those eyes had already become impossible to forget.
Reality returned only when Aarohi stepped back, visibly furious.
“I didn’t expect this from someone standing in a wedding function,” she said coldly.
Atharv’s jaw tightened faintly.
Now the anger came.
Not explosive.
Worse.
Controlled.
Sharp.
“I think you misunderstood something,” he said finally.
“Oh really?” Aarohi laughed bitterly. “Then maybe choose your words better next time.”
The atmosphere remained painfully awkward after that.
Yash exhaled slowly. “Well… that went terribly.”
“Terribly?” Vivaan muttered. “Bhai got slapped in front of an entire audience.”
But Atharv barely heard them.
His gaze stayed fixed toward the corridor she had disappeared into.
The anger in her voice.
The way her hands trembled afterward.
Somehow—
those details lingered longer than they should have.
“Atharv?” Yash called again.
He blinked slowly, finally looking away.
“Forget it,” he said coldly.
But even after saying it—
he knew he wouldn’t.
Meanwhile, upstairs—
Aarohi shut the balcony door harder than necessary before pacing restlessly across the room.
“Unbelievable,” she muttered angrily.
But no matter how furious she tried to stay…
one thing kept disturbing her.
The fact that even after slapping him—
he never looked scared.
He looked…
affected.
And somehow—
that unsettled her more than the misunderstanding itself.
Outside, the fairy lights still glowed warmly across Chandralok Haveli.
Unaware that tonight’s misunderstanding had already become the beginning of something neither of them was ready for.
One misunderstanding was enough to shake them both this much… so what happens when the truth finally comes out?
Tell me your theories...
—your author, Elara
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