This is the story of Abhay and Ishani. Ishani likes Abhay and even proposes to him, which Abhay rejects. To avenge his daughter, Ishani's dad not only gets Abhay expelled from school but also bankrupts his dad's company. Ishani dreams that Abhay has... This is the story of Abhay and Ishani. Ishani likes Abhay and even proposes to him, which Abhay rejects. To avenge his daughter, Ishani's dad not only gets Abhay expelled from school but also bankrupts his dad's company. Ishani dreams that Abhay has returned to take revenge. Abhay has driven her dad to such desperation that he commits suicide. Ishani's brother, Aarav, is missing, and Ishani eventually commits suicide too. Ishani wakes up from the dream and realizes everything is unfolding in the direction of that dream. The very next day, Ishani apologizes to Abhay and promises to stay away from him. Will Ishani be able to stop her destruction? What will happen when Ishani moves away from Abhay, but Abhay falls in love with Ishani?<br />
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"Dad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Ishani screamed as she saw her father jumping from the roof.
Within moments, his lifeless, blood-soaked body fell to the ground. Ishani's eyes went wide. She didn't dare take a step forward.
"Sir! Sir!!" Dinu Kaka rushed over and sobbed upon seeing his master's lifeless body.
"This is all because of that Abhay. He forced our sir to commit suicide."
Hearing the name Abhay, Ishani was stunned. Abhay, whom she had erased from her mind.
"The company's shares started falling. One by one, all the shareholders abandoned sir. He even asked for help from his old friends, but no one helped him," Dinu Kaka said, crying.
Ishani now understood why her father had suddenly deposited money into her bank account and spoken strangely on the phone at night, as if listening to her voice for the last time. He kept telling her to be happy. Ishani was in America at the time; otherwise, she would have seen how lonely and helpless her father was. Hearing his pained voice, Ishani couldn't bear it, so she returned to India on the first flight in the morning, but she was too late.
Maybe, maybe if she had arrived earlier, she could have seen her father alive; she wouldn't have let him die.
The sound of tapping shoes stopped in front of her. Ishani raised her vacant eyes and saw someone she knew but didn't recognize. It was Abhay Rana, in a black business suit, looking at her with cold eyes.
This was not the Abhay she liked. This was someone else entirely. Abhay Rana, who had made his mark in the business world at a young age, whose company was one of the world's top IT companies, had returned after many years to take revenge.
"Why? Why did you do this?" Ishani asked with trembling lips.
"Who would know the answer to this 'why' better than you?" Abhay said in a cold voice. His eyes were as cold as ice.
Ishani stumbled back two steps. Her eyes widened. The memories that had been buried began to knock again.
Many years ago, she had liked Abhay, but Abhay had rejected her. She had been very sad. From childhood, her father had given her the love of both parents and raised her with great affection; he had fulfilled her every wish. When she told her father the reason for her crying, he had angrily expelled Abhay from school. Not only that, but he had also bankrupted Abhay's father, who died of shock.
Abhay was never seen again. Who knew he was preparing himself for revenge?
Does this mean I am responsible for my father's death? Ishani's mind went numb, and darkness fell before her eyes.
When Ishani regained consciousness, she was in jail; behind bars. Boni was there, Boni was her best friend. After her father and brother, the only one in her life was Boni. Although they had no blood relation, their love was like that of real siblings.
Boni's business was doing well, but now he had cases of rape and financial fraud filed against him. Boni, who always smiled, had become thin as a reed. Who else but Abhay could have done all this? Ishani cursed the day she met Abhay, but how could she blame Abhay? Just like her, Abhay's father was everything to him, and because of Ishani, Abhay had lost him forever.
Ishani stood in front of Abhay's company. She was ready to beg Abhay to save her brother and friend's life.
But Ishani was shoved out of there. When she came home, her house was no longer her own. Abhay had bought all her family's assets.
Ishani was broken. She was filled with guilt. The destruction had started because of her, and it would end with her death.
There was a deep chasm before Ishani. Her life was plunged into darkness, like this chasm, which was now ruined in every way. Abhay had left her no option but to die. She couldn't live with the burden for the rest of her life that because of her, her father had committed suicide; her family was destroyed; her friend was ruined; all because of her.
Ishani closed her eyes and jumped into the chasm.
Ishani was drenched in sweat. The fear of death permeated her every pore. This was a dream, but it felt like reality. She had lived every moment of it. Such a dream cannot be real.
And the most important thing was that she loved Abhay, and she had confessed her love to him this afternoon.
Ishani knew that Abhay loved playing basketball very much, so she wanted to gift Abhay a ball autographed by a famous basketball player. Who knew that as soon as she entered the classroom, she would see Abhay sitting with Anu? Both were talking with their heads down. Abhay was explaining a question to Anu. Ishani had never seen Abhay talk so affectionately to anyone.
As Ishani watched them, Anu took out a cute box from her bag and opened it. It contained small cookies. She shyly said to Abhay, "These are for you. Taste them and tell me how they are."
Abhay hesitated at first, then picked up a cookie and ate it. Ishani was furious. How many expensive gifts had she given him over the years, but Abhay had never accepted them, and he ate Anu's cookies? Ishani threw the basketball in her hand towards the cookie box, but just then, Anu, who had seen Ishani, startled and stood up, and the ball brushed past her cheek. Anu started sobbing, holding her cheek.
"Are you crazy?" Abhay yelled at Ishani, standing like a shield in front of Anu.
Abhay's yelling hurt Ishani deeply. Her father had never even spoken to her in a loud voice. Controlling her emotions, she managed to say, "I don't like it when you talk to other girls."
"This is my life, and I will decide who I talk to. Who are you to question me?"
"Why don't you stop your drama?"
"Drama?" Ishani's eyes turned red. For the past month, what hadn't she done for him? She had tried every effort to win his heart, and he called her love drama?
"Don't you understand? I love you."
"But I don't. I don't love you today, and I never will," Abhay said in his cold voice. Then he said to Anu, "Come on, put some medicine on it."
Abhay left, holding Anu's hand. Ishani felt everyone was laughing at her. On top of that, Abhay's words, like thorns, pricked her heart.
She grabbed Abhay's hand as he left, "You are not going with her."
Abhay glared at Ishani angrily and pushed her back. Ishani collided with a desk behind her. Her waist hit so hard that tears welled up in her eyes, and her face turned pale.
Abhay paused for a moment, but in the end, he left her and went with Anu.
From childhood to today, Ishani had gotten whatever she wanted, but Abhay had rejected her every time. Filled with anger and pain, Ishani called her father, "Daddy, Abhay made me cry. After today, I don't want to see his face."
After this, Ishani took leave from school and went home. She cried for hours in her room and fell asleep crying. Then she had this dream.
She had complained about Abhay to her father in anger. She didn't want to be made a fool of in front of all the students. Otherwise, from the bottom of her heart, she had never wished ill upon Abhay or anyone else.
Ishani quickly got up, washed her face, and came downstairs. She had to go to her father's office and meet him immediately. But when she came down to the hall, she saw her father and brother were at home.
Both of them saw Ishani too.
"Ishu, come, my child," Shailendra Ji patted the spot next to him, gesturing for Ishani to sit with him.
Ishani sat beside him and said in surprise, "Dad, Brother, why are you both home at this time?"
They usually returned home late at night.
"If our little doll is sad, we have to come. We heard our daughter was rejected by a boy?" Shailendra Ji said, stroking Ishani's head.
"What, Daddy?" Ishani blushed. She was so happy to see her father safe and sound that she couldn't express it in words.
Shailendra Ji burst into laughter. His daughter was his life. He fulfilled her every wish. Thinking about how that boy Abhay had hurt his daughter saddened him. Now he understood why his daughter had rejected the opportunity to study abroad; it was all for this boy.
"Child, don't worry. Abhay is not the last boy in this world. I have gotten him expelled from school."
"Forget school, in a few days, his very name will be erased from this city," Ishani's brother Arnav said in a cold tone.
"What do you mean?" Ishani's breath caught.
"We wanted to join hands with the Rana family's company, but they weren't agreeing. Now, we will first bankrupt their company, and then buy it."
Shantanu Rana (Abhay's father) had created a chip that the Mehra Group had their eyes on, which is why they wanted to invest in Rana Company, but Shantanu was very stubborn. He was not ready to join hands with them.
Ishani was stunned. "Is it necessary to do this?"
"It's not necessary, but they will have to pay the price for hurting our daughter... Ishu, don't think about all this. You have your brother to handle the business. You just be happy," Shailendra Ji said lovingly.
Ishani's heartbeats quickened. This was exactly like that dream. Was that dream a warning of the coming trouble? Whatever it was, she wouldn't let everything she knew turn her family to ruin. She told them everything about her dream.
"What? Abhay will become a big business tycoon? Is all this that easy?" Arnav said carelessly.
"But brother, if there's one less enemy, what's the harm in that?"
"Ishu, it was just a dream. You are scared and nothing more," Arnav explained to his sister.
Ishani took Shailendra Ji's hand, "Dad, Abhay is my classmate. Promise me you won't create any trouble for him, promise me?"
Shailendra Ji took a deep breath and lovingly patted Ishani's hand, saying, "Alright, alright. Now that our little doll has found someone she likes, Daddy will help you completely."
Ishani was speechless. Did her father think she still wanted Abhay? Absolutely not. Now, the name Abhay itself terrified her, but it was fine for her father to have this misunderstanding so that he wouldn't harm Abhay's family.
"How do we deal with the Rana Group, Dad?" Arnav asked.
"For now, let's extend a hand of friendship to them. We can't make Ishani sad for that chip."
"Yes, Dad." For Arnav too, his sister's happiness was paramount.
The next day when Ishani reached school, she bumped into Abhay on the stairs, who was coming down. As soon as Ishani saw Abhay, her heart started pounding; not because of love, but fear.
The moment Ishani saw Abhay, she froze like ice. Abhay was younger, not a big business tycoon yet, but he always had that aura.
Ishani pressed herself against the wall, trying not to touch Abhay at all.
"This girl is scared, really?" Abhay thought to himself.
Abhay came in front of Ishani and looked at her with his cold gaze, "Ishani."
He even called her name as if she were his enemy of many years. Ishani trembled even more.
"I don't know what's cooking in your mind now, but let me tell you, you haven't done me a favor by not expelling me from school. Your act of being nice won't work on me."
Ishani gathered the courage to look into Abhay's eyes, "I'm sorry Abhay, whatever I did, I sincerely apologize. From today onwards, I will never bother you again."
Abhay was surprised. He couldn't believe it was Ishani. But seeing the determination in her eyes, it seemed she wasn't lying.
"Okay, so be it."
Ishani left quickly. Away from Abhay's gaze, she felt like she could finally breathe freely. There was pain in her chest too. Abhay would never know how much she loved him.
Why she loved him, she herself didn't know the answer to that question.
That day was her eighteenth birthday. Her dad had thrown a party for her at a seven-star hotel.
Bored at the party, she took Boni and went for a long drive. Her car stopped at a red light. She looked out the window and was mesmerized. A boy was sitting alone at the bus stop, in a white shirt and black trousers. His hair was slightly curly, and his face was very cold. Ishani felt as if only the two of them were left in this world. She kept looking at him without blinking.
The light turned green, and the car started. At that moment, the boy glanced at Ishani, without any expression. Ishani fell in love at first sight. She had read the name of his school on his shirt. The very next day, instead of going to London, she enrolled in the same school where Abhay studied.
For a month, she tried every way to win Abhay's heart, but now she understood. Forget love, Abhay hated her. He didn't even like the sight of her.
It was good that the dream warned her, otherwise, who knows how long she would have languished in her unrequited love, and along with her, her family would have also suffered punishment.
Now was the time to forget Abhay and return to her own life.
Entering the classroom, Ishani didn't sit in her seat but went and sat next to Boni.
Boni was shocked, "Ishani, you'll sit with me?"
She used to sit with him to be close to Abhay, but now it had no meaning. Even if Abhay was nearby, she would remember that terrifying dream. Only she knew that she had lived that dream, every moment of it was filled with reality, and what's more, everything that happened in the dream was coming true.
Boni was surprised. Because of Ishani, he too had enrolled in this school instead of going to London. They were childhood friends. Boni couldn't bear to be without Ishani.
After coming to school, Ishani, in pursuit of Abhay, had left Boni and started sitting with Abhay. Then what happened today that Ishani left Abhay's seat and came to him?
"I thought a lot and finally came to the conclusion that if Abhay doesn't love me, then why should I lose my self-respect and chase after him?"
Hearing Ishani's words, Boni jumped with joy, "Finally, you've come to your senses! I've been telling you for ages, this Abhay is not worthy of you!"
After much thought, I finally concluded that if Abhay doesn't love me, why should I chase after him, losing my self-respect?
Hearing Ishani, Boni jumped with joy. "Finally, you've come to your senses! I've been telling you for ages that Abhay isn't worthy of you."
Boni had known Ishani since childhood. Many boys had proposed to Ishani, but she hadn't even looked at them. And this Abhay? What does he think of himself? He has nothing besides his looks.
He never helps anyone; he always walks around with a sour face.
I don't know what she saw in him that she fell for him.
When Ishani's gaze fell on the bandage on Anu's cheek, she felt immense regret for what she had done.
Taking leave during lunchtime, she went shopping with Boni. There, she bought pens with gold carvings, cold drinks, and expensive Bluetooth earphones.
When they returned to school, the weather had changed. Lightning flashed in the sky; it looked like a heavy rain was about to start.
"Ishani, what is all this for?"
Boni couldn't understand what was going on in Ishani's mind.
"You'll know soon."
Entering the classroom, Ishani and Boni placed cold drinks and pens on every classmate's desk. Anu's desk also had earphones along with these.
Everyone was surprised.
Boni said to everyone, "All these gifts are from Ishani. She apologizes to everyone she has troubled so far and wishes everyone all the best for their college entrance exams in advance."
Everyone's jaws dropped.
"And yes, yesterday Ishani proposed to Abhay; that was just a joke. No one should take it seriously." Saying this, Boni looked towards Abhay, who wasn't paying any attention to him but was studying. Boni felt like punching his face.
"That's all for today; we will never meet again," Boni said and left.
All the students pounced on the snacks and cold drinks Boni had brought.
Vansh, who was a good friend of Abhay, came to him. "What did Boni mean by—we will never meet again? Are these two leaving school?"
"I don't know." Abhay didn't care about anyone coming or going.
In the Principal's office—
"Do you both really want to transfer?" the sir asked in surprise.
"Yes, sir." Ishani had come here only for Abhay. If Abhay didn't want to see her, there was no point in her staying here.
The Principal began the transfer process.
"Are we finally leaving?" Boni said after leaving the office. He was very happy. He wanted to study in London; he had only stayed here because of Ishani.
It was time for the dismissal bell, and it was raining heavily outside.
Just then, Anu rushed out. Ishani grabbed her hand and pulled her back. "Where are you going in such rain without an umbrella?"
Anu looked at Ishani and panicked. "I had some urgent work."
"How is your injury now?"
"It's fine now." Saying this, Anu started to leave again. Ishani held her umbrella in front of her. "Here, take this. You'll fall ill getting wet in the rain."
"No, I'm fine," Anu said hesitantly.
Boni, annoyed by her refusal, grabbed her wrist and thrust the umbrella into her hand. "When Ishani is telling you to take it, just take it, simple."
Just then, Abhay arrived. As Anu held the umbrella, Boni also released her hand, which Abhay saw.
He noticed Anu's red wrist. "Are you okay?" he asked, looking at Ishani with suspicious, cold eyes.
Ishani shivered. What if Abhay thought they were bullying Anu?
Didn't Abhay think they were bothering Anu? Ishani was scared as soon as she saw Abhay.
Anu shook her head. "I'm fine. Dad called."
"Come, I'll go with you to the hospital," Abhay said.
Anu looked fearfully at Ishani. Ishani had thrown a ball at her just yesterday; she didn't want Ishani to flare up again.
"What? What are you looking at like that? Ishani doesn't care about you two anymore. Even if you two are in a relationship, Ishani still has nothing to do with you," Boni glared at them. Since Ishani had stopped chasing Abhay, Boni had become confident.
Hearing Boni's words, Anu's face turned red with shame.
Abhay took the umbrella from Anu's hand, and they walked away, protected from the rain.
It was clear that the relationship between Abhay and Anu was stronger than Ishani had thought. Seeing them go together, Ishani felt the pain of loss, but she convinced herself that unfulfilled love was destined for her.
"Ishani, what's wrong with you? Seriously, since when have you started bowing down in front of them?"
"One has to adapt according to the circumstances."
"Oh, come on, we don't need to be afraid of Abhay."
Ishani knew it was pointless to tell Boni about her dream; he wouldn't believe her.
"Stay away from Abhay; just don't mess with him." Ishani was afraid that Abhay would take revenge on everyone after becoming powerful.
"Why would I engage with him? You know, just looking at Abhay's face makes me want to smash it. What does he think of himself? He's always walking around with such an expression, as if we owe him millions."
The rain had intensified. Ishani began to get wet in the rain. Closing her eyes, she felt the cool raindrops and found great peace.
Boni initially wanted to protect Ishani from the rain, but he ended up getting drenched himself. Both of them started playing in the rain.
They were having fun when Ishani saw Abhay returning. 'Why is he back?'
Abhay stopped directly in front of Ishani. He was glaring at her furiously, which made Ishani so nervous that she wanted to run away, but she didn't let fear show on her face.
"What is your problem? Ishani has forgotten you and moved on; why are you bothering her now?" Boni stood in front of Abhay, chest puffed out.
Abhay ignored Boni. His gaze was solely on Ishani.
"I don't know what your family wants to do, but if there's enmity, then deal with me; don't you dare lay a hand on my dad or the Sharma family; the consequences will not be good." Abhay emphasized the last words.
Abhay wasn't very powerful yet, but his eyes were cold and dangerous, enough to instill fear in anyone.
Ishani trembled. Calming herself, she said, "I don't understand what you're talking about."
Ishani had complete faith in her father; he would never break a promise made to her.
"Don't play dumb. You know very well what I'm saying? And your act of pretending to be innocent in front of Anu won't work."
Boni's patience finally ran out. He directly grabbed Abhay's collar. "How dare you? How dare you talk to Ishani like that?"
"Boni, leave him," Ishani's face had turned pale.
"But he's talking nonsense to you?" Boni said, glaring at Abhay, who was looking at him with expressionless eyes.
"I said leave him; just let go." This time Ishani said it in a loud voice, so Boni let go of Abhay's collar, but his glare continued.
"I don't know what my family has done that you are so angry... but I have already given my transfer application to the principal. In the future, Ishani will not trouble you, and as for my family, rest assured; they will stay away from your family."
"Remember your promise," Abhay said, glaring at her, then added, "Extend your hand."
Before Ishani could understand anything, she had already extended her hand. "What... why?"
Abhay handed the umbrella to Ishani and walked away with quick steps.
Ishani was no longer in the mood to play. She wanted to know what her family had done to make Abhay so furious.
"Ishani, what's wrong with you? How can you bow down to that Abhay?" Boni was still fuming with anger.
"If I told you that Abhay could become our enemy, would you believe me?"
"No."
"Then shut up and keep this in mind; we must not make an enemy of Abhay; the further we stay from him, the safer we will be." Ishani would not let that dream come true at any cost.
After dropping Boni home, she went directly to her dad's office.
Ishani went straight to her father's office after leaving Boni's house.
Mehra Group
"What's going on? You were supposed to be discussing a collaboration with Rana Group?" Shailendra Ji asked Arnav.
"They are overstepping their boundaries," Arnav replied, fuming.
"Today, you were showing so much attitude. You weren't taking our Mehra family seriously at all."
Today, Arnav had gone with his team to discuss a partnership with Rana Group. Shantanu Rana, the company's president, was not present. Therefore, the meeting was with Vice President Sanjay Sharma, who was also a close friend of Shantanu Ji.
However, Sanjay's attitude was terrible. He told Arnav outright that they would work with anyone, but never with Mehra Group.
Not only that, but he even contacted the Oberoi Group in front of Arnav and fixed a meeting with them.
It was no secret that Mehra Group and Oberoi Group were business rivals.
This led to an argument and then a scuffle between Arnav and Sanjay Ji, in which Sanjay Ji sustained a head injury. Fortunately, his life was not in danger.
Ishani, who was overhearing all this, was stunned. She had thought that as long as she stayed away from Abhay, she could prevent the impending disaster. But now it seemed as if the more she tried to step back, the more destiny was pushing her towards calamity.
Sanjay Sharma... he might be Anu's father. That's why Abhay and Anu had rushed to the hospital in such a hurry.
"Dad, you know if Rana Group joins hands with Oberoi, it will be a huge loss for us. I know you are worried about Ishu, but these people are crossing the line. It's important to teach them a lesson. We should buy out Rana Group," Arnav said angrily.
A serious expression came over Shailendra Ji's face. Having been a businessman for so many years, he knew that if that chip truly fell into the hands of their rivals, Oberoi, his company would suffer a heavy loss.
He looked at Ishani. When she had arrived earlier, his daughter had said she had no more dealings with Abhay and wanted to go to London for her studies.
But Shailendra Ji understood everything. His daughter didn't want to leave India not because she no longer loved Abhay, but because she didn't want to show her wounds to anyone. Seeing his princess in such a state made his heart ache.
Shailendra Ji took a deep breath and said, "Tonight, I will meet Shantanu myself. We'll see what happens after that."
"What? No, Dad! They are not worthy of meeting you, and you will go to them yourself?" Arnav exclaimed in surprise.
Shailendra Ji was one of the top businessmen, whereas Rana Group was a small company of twenty to thirty people; like an ant in front of an elephant.
"Don't say that, Arnav. Shantanu, if he can develop that chip, it means he is very talented." Shailendra Ji was a seasoned player in the business world, and Arnav could never disregard his words.
The three of them were in the car. Shailendra Ji told the driver, "Drop Ishani home first."
"No, Dad, I'll come with you, please? I won't bother you at all, I'll just sit outside, okay?" Ishani said innocently.
How could Shailendra Ji refuse his daughter? He agreed, "Alright, you come too."
"Thank you, Daddy." Ishani hugged him.
Shailendra Ji patted her head and thought to himself, 'My foolish daughter loves that boy so much! He rejected my daughter, yet she doesn't want to see the boy in pain.'
Shailendra Ji understood that Ishani was insisting on coming with him because she was afraid he might trouble Abhay or his father.
Meanwhile, Ishani feared that a conflict might erupt between the two families, and she might wake up one morning to find that her father had bankrupted Rana Group.
If she was present, and if things escalated, she could somehow save her family.
However, upon reaching the hospital, Ishani regretted her decision. Her father and brother had gone inside the ward to meet Shantanu and Sanjay, and she was sitting outside on a bench in the corridor. But the problem was that the two people she absolutely did not want to see were right in front of her.
Abhay and Anu were sitting on the bench opposite.
An even bigger problem was her dress. Her school dress was wet. So, she had asked a secretary from the company to buy her a dress, and he had brought a princess dress, in pink.
Ishani felt very embarrassed in this childish dress, especially in front of Abhay and Anu. Moreover, being sleeveless and above the knee, she felt cold, but she didn't dare to close the window because it was facing Abhay.
A strong gust of cold wind blew in through the window, and Ishani sneezed.
Abhay got up and closed the window, then took off his jacket.
Ishani's heart pounded, but the next moment, she felt as if someone had doused her with cold water. Abhay handed the jacket to Anu.
It became unbearable for Ishani to sit there. She would have been better off waiting in the car outside.
Ishani was just about to leave when the door opened and Arnav came out. "Ishani, Abhay, come inside."
Ishani was surprised. Abhay’s face also held an expression of bewilderment. What could they possibly have to do inside?
Anyway, both of them entered with Arnav. Upon entering, they saw that there was no argument happening, but rather Shailendra ji and Shantanu ji were talking with smiles and laughter. Even Sanjay ji, who was in bed, seemed happy.
"Mr. Mehra, you are truly a very sensible person."
"You are also very talented, Mr. Rana. I am quite confident your company will go far."
"I had only heard until today, today I have seen it for myself. You are truly a role model for this generation."
"If you ever need anything, our Mehra family is always here for you. Even if you don't want to collaborate, you will always remain my friend," Shailendra ji said with a smile.
Ishani was watching them all with surprise. The deal wasn't finalized, so why was everyone so happy?
Mr. Rana, looking at Abhay, said, "Abhay, I have good news. Mr. Mehra will help us with your mother's treatment."
Abhay's mother was supposed to undergo a heart transplant. She had been on bed rest for years, but no doctor had been able to cure her. Shailendra ji had high connections and knew big doctors, so there was a higher chance that Abhay's mother would recover.
This touched Abhay's heart.
"Thank you, Mr. Mehra," Abhay said in his deep voice.
Shailendra ji looked at Abhay carefully and understood now why his daughter loved Abhay so much. There was something about this boy.
"Don't worry, son. We will put all our strength into curing your mother. She will surely recover." Then he paused and continued, "But I have one condition."
"Condition?" Abhay's gaze shifted to Ishani, but Ishani herself was confused.
"Two years ago, a boy achieved first position in the Math Olympiad and second position in the Physics Olympiad. He immediately received offers from big universities, which led me to believe that this talented child was studying abroad."
"Today, if your dad hadn't told me, I would never have known that talent was you. You gave up such a big opportunity to take care of your mother... I want you to go to London and continue your studies."
Abhay was astonished. "Why are you helping us so much?"
"Firstly, I don't want talent like yours to go to waste, and secondly..." Shailendra ji looked at Ishani, "...I have raised my daughter Ishani with a lot of love and care. I always worry about her. I want you to look after Ishani in London."
Abhay wasn't as surprised this time. He understood that the matter was connected to Ishani. "You are doing so much for us, how can I refuse such a small request? I accept."
"But I don't accept," Ishani said and came to her father. She hadn't expected her dad to go to such lengths to get her together with Abhay.
"But I don't agree," Ishani said, coming closer to her dad. She hadn't thought her dad would go to such lengths to get her to meet Abhay.
"Dad, I'm grown up now, I can take care of myself. I don't need anyone. Besides, Boni is going with me, right?"
Mr. Shailendra felt his daughter was blushing. "So what? It will give me peace of mind if another friend is with you. Abhay is very smart and sensible."
Ishani pouted. "Dad, you praise everyone's children, not mine! Am I foolish?"
Mr. Shailendra guffawed and patted Ishani's head. "No, my daughter is the best daughter in the world."
Leaving the hospital, Mr. Shailendra was in a good mood. He had even contacted a renowned surgeon.
"Dad, why doesn't Mr. Rana want to collaborate with us?" Ishani asked.
"Shantanu is very ambitious. He doesn't want to take anyone's investment, not even from the Oberoi Group. Sanjay was saying all that just to make your brother angry."
"But why?"
"Sanjay and Shantanu are very close friends. Our family got Abhay expelled from school. He was taking revenge on Arnav for that."
Ishani understood now. Anu's dad was taking revenge for Abhay.
Within three days, a team of ten doctors began treating Abhay's mother. Thanks to Mr. Shailendra's connections, a heart of the same blood group was found in time, and the heart transplant surgery was successful.
Abhay's dad, Mr. Shantanu, himself went to thank Mr. Shailendra.
"Ishu, Mr. Rana was asking me for your university's name today. He said Abhay will also take admission in the same university and will look after you." Mr. Shailendra shared the good news with Ishani as soon as they got home. Ishani was sitting on the sofa in the living room, watching a movie and eating ice cream.
Hearing her dad's words, Ishani was shocked. She started coughing violently.
Mr. Shailendra gave Ishani water and patted her back. Only then did Ishani recover.
"Mr. Rana also said that you both should leave together."
"Dad!!! I don't want to study in the same university as Abhay, nor do I want to go with him."
"Don't say that, dear. I know you're upset that Abhay rejected you, but don't take such small things to heart. Only when you both spend time together will Abhay fall in love with you."
"I don't want to spend time with Abhay, Dad! I don't love him anymore."
Mr. Shailendra felt Ishani was angry. Playing along like a child, he said, "Our princess doesn't love Abhay. In the future, when Abhay proposes to you, don't forgive him easily, okay?"
Ishani was speechless. It meant that no matter what she said, her dad would assume she still loved Abhay. While that was true, she wanted to stay away from Abhay. That was an even bigger truth.
"Ishani is going to Mayank's birthday party tonight, right?" Boni asked.
Mayank Oberoi was the son of Jagat Oberoi. Although the Oberoi Group was their business rival, Mayank, Boni, and Ishani had studied at the same school and were good friends. Mayank had even proposed to Ishani, which she had rejected. Yet, their friendship remained.
Since they were leaving for London in a week, Ishani agreed to go to Mayank's birthday party.
The evening of the party was splendid in the Oberoi mansion's garden. Mayank was surrounded by his friends, chatting. As soon as Ishani and Boni were spotted arriving, he immediately got up and walked towards them.
"You two are terrible! You changed schools and left me alone."
"Your news is outdated. The latest news is that we are both going to London for further studies," Boni said with great attitude.
"What? London?" Mayank was utterly shocked.
"Tickets are also booked. We have to leave in a week."
"In a week?" Mayank looked at Ishani. "Really, Ishani? You didn't even tell me?"
"Is it necessary to tell you every piece of news?" Ishani said, puckering her lips.
"No, but you take Boni everywhere with you, not me..." Mayank mumbled towards the end, but Boni heard him.
"Ishani is my sister, what are you to her that she'd take you along?" he said, rubbing salt in the wound.
"You're asking for a beating!" Mayank lunged at Boni.
"Stop it, both of you!" Ishani was used to their drama.
Mayank received a call and left.
Most of the party guests were Mayank's school friends, whom Ishani didn't know. So, she sat on a sofa in a corner. Boni sat with her and started drinking juice.
A short while later, loud noises began, as if a fight was happening. Boni climbed onto the sofa to see.
"Why is Anu here? It seems she's had a run-in with Tanya. This is going to be fun!" Boni said excitedly.
Ishani was surprised. Anu was here? Tanya also studied at their previous school, and Ishani knew Tanya to be very cunning and sly. She would surely ruin Anu.
Ishani took Boni with her to the place.
Anu was wearing a white dress, which was now ruined with coffee stains. Her hair was also matted.
"This was just a small lesson. Remember your place next time and stay away from my Mayank, understand?" Tanya said, glaring at Anu with her hands on her hips.
Anu trembled with fear, but no sound came from her mouth.
Ishani pulled Anu towards her and said to Boni, "Give me your jacket."
"I won't," Boni knew why Ishani was asking for his jacket.
"Quickly, or I'll ask someone else," Ishani glared at him. Only then did Boni give her the jacket.
Ishani put the jacket on Anu. Anu wiped her tears and quietly said thank you.
"Ishani, do you know her?" Tanya asked in surprise. Because of Ishani's powerful background, she didn't want to mess with Ishani.
"Very well. Apologize to my friend," Ishani looked at Tanya with cold eyes.
"Apologize? To her? Impossible! It's her fault. She was seducing my boyfriend." Tanya said arrogantly.
"No... there's nothing like that between Mayank and me. I'm just his relative," Anu said nervously.
"Relative? You and Mayank? Are you crazy?" Tanya asked, her eyes wide. "And what about you? Do I look blind? I saw with my own eyes how she was clinging to Mayank like a lizard."
Now, Ishani was also surprised. 'Anu and Mayank?'
"Ishani, we should go. It seems they've been involved for a while," Boni said sarcastically.
"You be quiet," Ishani scolded Boni and called Mayank. "Mayank, come here quickly."
Tanya didn't know why Ishani had called Mayank, but she was confident. After all, Mayank had proposed to her just a few days ago.
Mayank arrived within five minutes and was surprised to see the crowd gathered. "What is going on here?"
"Your girlfriend claims Anu seduced you, and that's why she poured coffee on Anu," Ishani said.
"What???" Mayank looked at Tanya angrily. "What kind of disrespect is this? Anu is my relative. Her foot slipped, so I was just helping her, and you?"
Tanya had thought Anu was a waitress, but she turned out to be Mayank's relative. Tanya fell silent.
"Since Ishani rejected you, you made anyone your girlfriend," Boni teased Mayank.
"She is not my girlfriend," Mayank said with a grimace.
"But she said in front of everyone that she is your girlfriend?"
"Not anymore," Mayank showed Tanya the door. "Get out of my house."
Tanya's face turned pale. She showed Mayank her finger. "Fine, don't regret it." And she left.
"I apologize on Tanya's behalf," Mayank said to Anu.
"It's okay," Anu shook her head no.
"Your clothes are ruined. Go change," Mayank called a waitress and sent Anu with her.
After everyone had left, Boni asked, "What was Tanya saying? What were you doing with Anu?"
"Nothing... her foot slipped on the stairs. I was just saving her," Mayank looked hesitant.
"Then it served you right. She was your girlfriend, and you were still flirting with another girl."
"No... Dad had asked me to show Anu around the house, so what could I do?"
"Are you two really relatives?"
"Very distant ones. I don't know why Dad was insistent on inviting them this time."
"Then what was going on between you and Tanya?"
"It was a mistake... who knew she would take it so seriously?"
Two days ago, Mayank was partying with his friends at a nightclub. He had drunk too much and proposed to Tanya in his drunken state. The next day, he started regretting it, but Tanya had already told everyone and even made a video of him proposing.
"I know you well. What do you mean, a mistake? You must have lost your senses when you were drunk."
"Stop talking nonsense. I'm not that kind of guy. I have my own rules." Mayank's face turned red with shame.
He had gotten carried away after drinking, but they had only kissed.
Ishani excused herself to the washroom. As she was returning, she heard voices coming from a room, and the Mehra family was being mentioned. This piqued Ishani's curiosity, and she stopped. She approached the window and slightly pulled back the curtain to look inside. Mayank's father, Jagat Oberoi, and Anu's father, Sanjay Sharma, were seated within.
"Mr. Oberoi, I apologize, but Shantanu Oberoi is not accepting the Oberoi Group's investment. I explained a lot to him, but he wouldn't agree. But don't worry, if he's not taking the Oberoi Group's investment, he won't take the Mehra Group's either."
"But I heard Shailendra treated Shantanu's wife. What guarantee is there that Shantanu won't change his mind?" Jagat Oberoi gave a sidelong smile. Jagat was a very cunning person; he would get what he wanted at any cost, whether it meant taking the wrong path or killing someone.
"Shantanu is firm in his intentions. He wants to build his own mobile brand. He won't take anyone's investment. Rest assured."
"It would be best if he doesn't," Jagat Oberoi said in a dangerous tone.
Ishani left from there. Her heart was pounding. She remembered how Sanjay had spoken about collaborating with the Oberoi Group in front of her brother. Perhaps he was serious then?
When she returned, Anu had also changed her clothes and come back.
"I'm leaving," Anu said.
"Okay. Should I tell your dad?" Mayank didn't try to stop her either.
"No, I'll message him." Anu remembered her dad saying he would have an important meeting with Mr. Oberoi.
As Mayank was about to call his driver to drop Anu home, Ishani said, "I'm going home too."
"No."
"No."
Mayank and Boni said in unison. They tried to stop Ishani, but Ishani said she wasn't feeling very well, so they had to agree.
Ishani asked Anu to come with her. Anu agreed.
There was no conversation between them throughout the journey. As soon as the car stopped, Anu quickly opened the door and got out.
Ishani couldn't help but laugh. "Why is this girl so scared of me?" Just then, her gaze fell on Anu's phone, which she had forgotten in the car.
Ishani, holding the phone, ran after her.
But Anu was nowhere to be seen. "Where did she disappear so quickly?" Ishani looked around when she heard some noises coming from behind the bushes.
Ishani went to see, and her blood ran cold. A man had a hold of Anu, and Anu was struggling. Without thinking, Ishani slammed the phone in her hand hard on the man's head, breaking his grip on Anu.
Ishani helped Anu up. "Run from here quickly."
Both started running. The man seemed drunk. Muttering curses, he also lurched after them.
Anu was too panicked and stumbled, falling. Ishani began to help her up when the drunkard caught them. He lunged at Anu again. Anu started screaming. This time, Ishani struck the drunkard's eye with the phone, eliciting a shriek from him. He then shoved Anu aside and lunged at Ishani. Ishani, unable to recover from the sudden attack, fell to the ground. Her head hit a stone, and something sharp pricked her palm.
Anu, somehow regaining her composure, grabbed the phone and dialed Abhay. Fortunately, Abhay picked up on the first ring.
"A...Abhay, I'm with Ishani downstairs. Come quickly...we're surrounded by a drunkard..."
"You hit me? I'll kill you!" The drunkard went mad with anger. But as soon as he saw Ishani, his eyes gleamed with lust. He reached out to tear Ishani's clothes, but Ishani used all her strength and didn't let him touch her. Frustrated by this, the drunkard choked Ishani.
Ishani began to suffocate. Her face turned red. Just as she felt she was going to die, she was suddenly freed, and a loud scream echoed.
Ishani looked and was surprised. 'Abhay? Does that mean Anu and Abhay live in the same neighborhood?'
Abhay thoroughly beat the drunkard and took out his belt to tie him up.
Anu had called the police and told Abhay everything.
Earlier, Ishani didn't understand why Anu got nervous seeing her, but now she understood. She also used to get nervous seeing Abhay.
"I'm leaving," Ishani said, preparing to go.
"No, the police are coming. We have to give our statements," Anu said. Meanwhile, Abhay's attention was on the blood dripping from Ishani's palm. "Are you hurt?" he asked in his cold voice.
Ishani pulled her hand back. "No, it's just a small scratch."
"Show me your hand," Abhay almost ordered.
Ishani's heart started pounding.
"Show me your hand," Abhay said in his deep voice. Ishani got nervous, but didn't show her hand.
Abhay grabbed her wrist, but Ishani kept her fist clenched. "I'm fine, really," Ishani froze like ice at Abhay's touch.
"Open it," Abhay said in a cold voice. Ishani opened her fist. In the center of Ishani's delicate palm was a large cut. Blood dripped from between her fingers. Abhay's eyes narrowed. Anu, scared, turned her face away.
"Mem Saab, how did you get hurt?" the driver came running. It had been a long time since Ishani had left, so he was worried.
"Let's go quickly, I'll take you to the hospital."
"No, there's no need. It will be fine with a bandage."
"Anu has a medical kit at her house. Get it bandaged," Abhay said in a expressionless voice.
Before Ishani could refuse, the driver started thanking Abhay. "Thank you, Mem Saab. Go, at least the bleeding will stop."
Ishani had no other option. She went to Anu's house with her, but was surprised to see Abhay following them. 'Why is he coming along? Isn't he afraid that I'll bother Anu alone?'
Ishani sat on the sofa. Anu took out the medical kit, which Abhay took from her hands. Ishani was shocked to see Abhay bandaging her himself. "You let it be, Anu will do it."
"She's afraid of blood," Abhay said in a cold voice.
Anu received a phone call. After talking for a while and hanging up, she said to Abhay, "The police have arrived. I'll go talk to them."
"Hmm."
As soon as Anu left, silence fell over the house. The moment Abhay applied medicine to the wound, Ishani trembled with pain. The wound was burning a lot.
"It's done," Abhay said in a cool voice, but he was now applying the medicine more gently. Ishani sat like a stone statue.
As soon as the bandage was done, Ishani felt relieved and stood up.
"Wait."
Ishani looked at him confusedly.
"You have an injury on your forehead too."
Ishani touched her forehead. There was a bruise. She had to sit down again.
As Abhay applied medicine to her forehead, they were very close. Every moment felt like a century to Ishani. She held her breath.
"It's done." As soon as she heard this, Ishani quickly got up to leave and bumped into the table. Before she could fall, Abhay caught her in his strong arms. Their eyes met. Ishani got more nervous looking into Abhay's deep eyes and quickly moved away.
As a result, the medical kit on the table fell, scattering its contents. Ishani hurriedly started gathering the items.
"What happened?"
"Nothing... not...hing." Ishani wasn't even looking at Abhay.
Abhay didn't understand why she was so nervous. Just then, he got Anu's call.
"I'm at the police station with the driver uncle. You both come directly here."
"Okay."
The police station was a seven or eight minute walk from the house. Abhay was walking ahead, and Ishani was walking behind him, maintaining a distance. Abhay was walking very fast, and Ishani was feeling weak. There was an strange silence between them.
No sound came for a long time. Abhay stopped and turned back. In the moonlight, Ishani's dress was shimmering like stars. Her gaze was lowered, and her face looked more beautiful than the moon. Sensing something, Ishani looked up and was startled to see Abhay looking at her.
"Why?" Abhay asked in a deep voice.
"Why what?" Ishani was scared. She didn't know if Abhay would get upset about something and take revenge on their family.
"You shouldn't have put yourself in danger to save Anu."
"I did what I thought was right at that moment." Ishani was telling the truth. If it had been someone else in Anu's place, she would have done the same.
Abhay continued to look at her with his deep gaze, which gave Ishani goosebumps.
Anyway, Abhay didn't ask anything further and started walking. Ishani breathed a sigh of relief. This time, Abhay was walking slowly.
"I want to tell you something. Don't take my confession too seriously. Since childhood, Dad has fulfilled my every wish, so I became a bit stubborn. Your refusal hurt me. I felt defeated, but now I understand— you were my obsession, not my love."
Ishani wanted to speak her heart. She knew Abhay wouldn't care, but still, she wanted to tell him that she had given up pursuing him.
Contrary to her expectations, Abhay stopped and looked at her.
"My dad helped your dad because he was genuinely impressed by his talent and wanted to befriend him. It was a small help for our family, so don't consider it a favor. You don't need to take admission in the same university as me."
Ishani wanted to become a doctor. The university she had enrolled in majored in medicine, while Abhay was far more talented than her and could easily get admission to the world's top universities.
"I won't ruin my future to repay someone's favor," Abhay said calmly.
"Thank God! I was so scared. I thought you would get admission to the same university, influenced by my dad's words."
Ishani's eyes sparkled with joy. It was clear that she was very happy to study separately from Abhay. Abhay averted his gaze.
When they both reached the police station, their statements were taken separately. By the time they came out, Sanjay and Shantanu had also arrived.
Sanjay looked Anu up and down. Only when he saw that she was safe did he feel relieved. "Anu, my child, are you okay? I was out of my mind with worry."
Anu hugged Sanjay and started crying.
Shantanu was surprised when he saw Ishani. "Ishani, you here?"
Abhay told him everything. After hearing everything, Shantanu expressed his gratitude to Ishani. "Ishani, thank you so much. You bravely saved Anu. I will personally come to thank your father."
Then he looked towards Abhay. "Abhay, drop Ishani home. Shailendra will worry."
"No, it's okay. Driver uncle is outside," Ishani said abruptly. She didn't want to go with Abhay.
Still, Abhay came to drop Ishani at the car.
"Get the doctor to check you tomorrow. The wound is deep," Abhay said in his usual cold voice, but Ishani was surprised. Then she quietly said thank you and left.
When Abhay came inside, Sanjay was telling Shantanu, "I'm eighty percent sure that the Mehra family is behind what happened to Anu today."
"I am quite sure this is the Mehra family's doing," Sanjay said to Shantanu.
"Why do you say that?"
"Yesterday, Jagat Oberoi invited me and Anu to his son's birthday party, and that same evening, Shailendra's son, Arnav, called me. He was asking where I was, if I was alright. I found it a bit strange, but now it all makes sense. He must have found out I met Mr. Oberoi, which is why he did this to Anu. To scare us."
"You are mistaken. Arnav couldn't have done this," Shantanu flatly refused.
"If they truly wanted to harm Anu, they wouldn't have put Ishani in danger. And you know very well that Shailendra and Arnav’s lives are in Ishani."
"Ishani in danger?" Sanjay exclaimed in surprise. When he arrived just now, his gaze was only on Anu. In his worry, he hadn't noticed anything else.
"That child has a wound on her forehead, a deep cut on her palm... Sanjay, you can't make baseless accusations like this against anyone."
"Dad, Uncle is right. Ishani saved my life at the risk of her own. That goon had his hands around Ishani's throat. It was Abhay who saved her by arriving in time," Anu added.
"In my panic, I started thinking anything. Arnav's call at that time, and then this with Anu... I said what I felt."
"It can only be a coincidence," Shantanu said.
The police interrogation was completed in some time. It turned out he was a street thug, an alcoholic, with several previous cases against him. It was clear the Mehra family had no involvement in this.
The next day, Ishani went to the hospital. The injury was indeed deep. The doctor gave her an injection.
Two days later, Ishani was shocked to see Shantanu ji and Sanjay at home with Abhay and Anu. She thought they were just saying it casually.
Upon Shantanu ji's revelation, Ishani's small secret was revealed to Shailendra ji.
"So that's why you haven't come down for meals for two days? Such a big thing happened, and you didn't even tell me?" Shailendra ji said in a deep voice. He wanted to show anger, but it was clear he was worried about Ishani, not angry.
"Sorry Dad, I didn't want to trouble you and Bhai, and besides, I'm fine now," Ishani said, fiddling with her fingers.
"It hurt me more that you didn't tell me."
"Sorry Dad, I will tell you from now on."
"Meaning you'll put yourself in danger like this again?"
"No, meaning I'll tell you whatever happens from now on."
"Hmm."
"Ishani is a very dear and brave child. You are very lucky," Shantanu ji said with a smile, looking at them both.
Shailendra ji was also proud of Ishani.
After this, Shailendra ji and Shantanu started discussing business matters, which bored Ishani. She grabbed Anu's hand, "Anu, let's go play outside."
The professional discussions between Shailendra and Shantanu started, which bored Ishani. She held Anu's hand, "Anu, let's go and play outside."
Anu came with Ishani to the garden.
"Uncle said you and Abhay are going to London together," Anu said, then with a strange expression, "and that too in the same university?"
"Abhay is Abhay, I am I. I am not going with him, nor are we both going to the same university."
"But... but you love Abhay?" Finally, Anu asked what she wanted to ask.
"Not now."
"Really?" Anu looked at Ishani with suspicious eyes.
"Why would I lie to you?" Ishani said. She still loved Abhay today, but she knew they could never be together. Maybe with time, she would forget him too.
"Sorry, I didn't know about your relationship with Abhay earlier. I hope you don't mind." Ishani smiled at Anu. "Anyway, I think you are more perfect for Abhay. Both of you have been together since childhood."
Ishani understood as soon as she looked at Anu that she liked Abhay. The way Anu looked at Abhay, anyone could tell.
Anu turned red, "No... how can I?"
"Anyways, it doesn't matter to me. I will leave in a few days." Ishani said and climbed on the swing hanging from the banyan tree in the garden. She loved to swing standing, it was an adventure for her.
Anu was afraid of heights.
When Abhay came there, he saw Ishani swinging and stopped for a moment. Ishani was laughing. Everything seemed dull in front of her laughter.
When Ishani used to follow him, Abhay used to get annoyed with her; so much that he never talked to her directly, nor did he look at her carefully. But now that his annoyance had gone, Abhay had to admit that Ishani was very beautiful; a body like marble, silky long hair, sharp features, that whoever saw her, couldn't help but keep looking.
Shailendra and Ishani accompanied them to the door. Shantanu and Sanjay had to prepare for a press conference.
"Mr. Mehra, you did well. Abhay and Anu will also go to Calonia Island with Ishani. It will also cheer up the kids." As soon as Shantanu said this, Ishani's eyes widened.
Calonia Island was a real estate project of the Mehra Group, on which his brother was working continuously because its opening ceremony was two days later.
Before going to London, Ishani was going to visit there with Bonnie, but her father had invited Anu and Abhay without asking her. Now her plan to go there was ruined.
"I won't be able to go. I have to go to the hospital," Abhay said. His mother's heart transplant surgery was successful, but she was still under observation for a month. Abhay spent most of his time taking care of her.
Ishani was very happy. For the first time, Abhay said something that made Ishani feel like she was flying.
"Abhay, you will go. It's final. I am there for your mother's care, along with doctors and nurses." Shantanu said. He was feeling sorry for Abhay. At such a young age, he had become so mature and sensible.
Abhay didn't say anything else.
Ishani's face fell. She felt like she was riding a roller coaster.
Now she has to go. What will happen when she goes to Calonia Island with Abhay and Anu?
Kailonia Island was a beautiful island in the middle of the sea. Despite being busy, Arnav came to pick them up in his yacht.
As soon as Arnav saw Abhay and Anu together, his forehead furrowed. But he quickly composed himself. On the other hand, as soon as Boni saw them, his expression became as if enemies were standing before him.
The yacht soon reached the island, cutting through the waves of the sea. Boni didn't see Abhay and Anu's faces the entire way.
Arnav left after having lunch with them. He was very busy; preparations for the island's opening ceremony were underway. He left two staff members with them to show them around the island.
The host was enthusiastically explaining about the place, but the listeners were peculiar. Abhay didn't talk much, Anu was too shy, Boni was irritated because of Abhay, and Ishani, she was bubbly but felt uncomfortable in front of Abhay.
The host also understood that there was some discord among them, but still, he was telling them about all the places.
"These are the Nandanvan Mountains. These mountains are very revered. It is said that a king and queen used to live here who still protect this region today," the host narrated a historical story of the king and queen.
Ishani wanted to climb the mountain and go to the top, but Boni refused. He was angry because Abhay and Anu had come. Anu was afraid of heights, and Abhay... it was impossible to ask him.
In the evening, Arnav arranged a barbecue party on the beach, with music, so that they wouldn't all get bored.
Boni left the party and went surfing. Anu went to play by the edge of the beach. Abhay's whereabouts were unknown. Poor Ishani was left alone to listen to the music. After a few moments, bored alone, she got up and left.
Ishani went to Arnav's room. Arnav was standing on the balcony talking on the phone.
"I called him yesterday evening, but my words didn't get through to him. He is still in contact with Oberoi."
"Isn't their press conference at Starlight Inn tomorrow? Talk to the building management. They need to be taught a lesson. It's important to show them their place," Arnav said in a cold voice.
When the call ended, Ishani came forward.
"Brother, who were you talking about teaching a lesson to?"
"There are just a few people who are underestimating our Mehra family, Ishu. Don't pay attention to all these things. Leave the worries of business to me."
"Brother, please don't hurt anyone. It's possible that this enmity might cost us dearly later," Ishani said worriedly.
"I know. Don't worry."
"Why aren't you going to the party? Did that Abhay hurt you again? I'll deal with him right now," Arnav hissed angrily.
Ishani grabbed his hand.
"No, no one said anything to me. I wanted to meet you."
"Okay, fine. Then we'll have dinner together, brother and sister," Arnav lovingly placed his hand on Ishani's head and asked the staff to serve food.
"I've been very busy for the past few days. Just let this opening ceremony go smoothly, and then brother will spend a lot of time with you," Arnav said with a smile. He also ordered ice cream for Ishani.
Ishani wasn't very hungry, so she just ate ice cream, and also ate Arnav's ice cream. She loved ice cream very much.
"Okay brother, you work. I'm leaving." Ishani knew Arnav was busy, so she went for a walk by herself.
Walking along the path, they reached the vicinity of Nandanvan mountain. Listening to their hearts, they started climbing the mountain. It wasn't a very high mountain. After half an hour of climbing, they reached the top. There was a large hall there, illuminated with lights. As soon as Ishani stepped inside the hall, she froze, because Abhay was standing in front of her.
Inside the hall, there was a beautiful statue of the king and queen that looked incredibly lifelike. Abhay was gazing at them; his back was towards Ishani.
Ishani no longer wanted to proceed further. "Abhay will definitely think I'm following him. It's better if I leave," Ishani was about to turn back when Abhay turned around, and their eyes met.
Ishani started feeling very uncomfortable. She didn't know what to do—go back or come inside?
"I was curious to see this place. I didn't know you were here," Ishani said, twisting her fingers.
"Hmm."
"Anu didn't come?"
"She's afraid of heights."
Ishani fell silent. As Abhay began to exit, Ishani quickly said, "I'll look around inside."
Inside, the walls were adorned with paintings of the king during wartime. There were also paintings of the king and queen. It was very peaceful there. Ishani deliberately stayed inside for a longer time so that when she came out, she wouldn't bump into Abhay again.
"He must have left by now?" Ishani looked around first. When she didn't see Abhay, she breathed a sigh of relief and stepped outside.
"Let's go," Abhay's cold voice came from behind, and Ishani jumped. She looked back; Abhay was leaning against the railing. They hadn't seen him due to the darkness.
'So, was he waiting for me?' Ishani was touched by Abhay's unspoken gesture, but still, she wanted to stay away from him now.
Abhay was walking ahead, and Ishani was behind him.
Thinking something, Abhay suddenly stopped and turned around. "Anu was saying..." Due to his sudden stop, Ishani collided with Abhay's chest.
As soon as Ishani realized their closeness, she sprang back like a coiled spring.
Abhay's eyebrows furrowed. This wasn't the first time; every time she saw him, she reacted as if he were a monster.
It wasn't like this before. Ishani was so carefree! No matter how much he told her, she wouldn't back down. Then why such fear all of a sudden?
"Am I that scary?" Abhay said in his deep voice.
Ishani nodded in agreement, but soon realized her mistake and began shaking her head in denial. "No... not scary at all."
"You were saying something?" She tried to change the subject.
"Nothing." Abhay started walking ahead again.
After only two steps, Ishani's stomach began to cramp; the pain gradually increased, but she kept walking bravely without complaint.
When the pain became unbearable, darkness clouded Ishani's eyes. She leaned against a tree for support.
Hearing a groan, Abhay turned around. As soon as he saw Ishani's pale face, he grabbed her hand. "What happened to you?"
"My stomach... hurts..." Ishani could barely speak.
They had already descended the mountain. Abhay turned his back towards her. "Come on."
Ishani didn't have time to think at that moment. She climbed onto his back. Abhay ran with her to the bus. The hospital and bus facilities were located there. The staff helped Ishani onto the bus, and the bus sped towards the hospital.
As soon as they stopped, Abhay picked Ishani up by her shoulder and rushed inside. The doctor immediately took her for a check-up.
Soon, Arnav and Boni also received the news. They both arrived as quickly as they possibly could.
Boni immediately grabbed Abhay's collar and growled, "What did you do to Ishani?"
"Go ask Ishani," Abhay said, pushing him away with a jerk.
Boni kept staring at him. Meanwhile, Arnav, though silent, had decided that if something had truly happened to his sister because of Abhay, then even seven generations of Abhay's family wouldn't be able to repay the debt.
After some time, the doctor came out.
"Don't worry, Ishani is fine now."
Everyone sighed in relief.
"Doctor, what happened to her?" Arnav asked.
"Her veins swelled due to eating too much cold food on an empty stomach. She needs rest and try to avoid cold food for a few days."
"Okay, doctor." Arnav regretted why he had ordered ice cream for Ishani and given her his own. He was truly a very careless brother.
As soon as Arnav entered and saw Ishani's pale face, he felt very sad.
Boni jumped onto the bed.
"Ishani, do you know how much you scared us! I thought I was going to die! I thought that monster Abhay had troubled you again."
Ishani pushed away the dramatic Boni.
"He didn't do anything. Didn't you pick a fight with him?" Ishani glared at him.
Boni scratched his head and said, "No, I didn't even talk to him. By the way, where did he go? He was here just now?" Boni said, looking around. When Abhay heard that Ishani was fine, he had left.
"Ishu, what were you and Abhay doing together?" Arnav asked.
"I had gone to the top of the mountain. I met Abhay there. Then on the way back, I started having a lot of pain, so he helped me."
Arnav brought Ishani to her room.
"Now rest. No more jumping around. I'll send you home in the morning."
"Hmm." After Arnav left, Ishani thought for a moment and then called Abhay.
Abhay's deep voice came from the other end.
"Hello?"
"Thank you for today."
"It's okay."
"I'm going back in the morning. You two will leave in the afternoon, right?"
"Yes."
Hearing Abhay's every answer in "yes" and "hmm," Ishani didn't know what else to say. Just as she was about to say bye and end the call, Abhay said, "Anu said you're going to London? When?"
"The day after tomorrow."
Abhay was silent for a moment. Then he said, "Have a safe journey."
"Thank you."
After hanging up the phone, Ishani thought that ever since she had saved Anu, everything between her and Abhay had become normal. Today, he had even spoken properly. This meant that dream wouldn't come true, right? Her family was safe now.
That night, Ishani slept very peacefully, unaware that this was the calm before the storm, that tomorrow's sun was going to bring a storm into her life.
Ishani was sleeping soundly when someone banged loudly on the door in the middle of the night. But it wasn't Ishani's room being knocked on, but Anu and Abhay's.
Ishani came out rubbing her eyes. She saw Arnav taking Abhay and Anu outside. Abhay's face was tense, while Anu's eyes were tearful.
"Brother, where are you all going at this hour?"
"Sanjay and Shantanu Ji had an accident. I have to take Abhay and Anu to the hospital immediately." Arnav's face also showed clear tension.
"An accident? How?" Ishani's sleep, let alone her senses, had vanished.
"Their car hit the bridge railing, overturned, and exploded."
"Ishu, you go back to sleep. It gets very cold here at night." Arnav said, pushing Ishani back into her room.
Ishani picked up a jacket from her room and came out. "I will go with you."
"Absolutely not. The doctor told you to rest."
"Brother, please. You were going to drop me off in the morning anyway, so you won't have to make two trips."
"Okay, let's go then." Arnav took them all with him.
After getting out of the car, everyone got into another car. Arnav wrapped Ishani up well with a scarf. "I've told the driver to drop them at the hospital and then drop you home. Rest when you get home, don't stress too much, okay?"
"Yes, brother."
Even though Ishani said yes, she didn't go home but came to the hospital with Abhay and Anu. Her heart was very restless.
Some people were standing outside the emergency room. They were all managers from Rana Group, who had rushed there as soon as they heard the news.
After some time, the emergency room door finally opened. Everyone's eyes were on the doctor. The doctor took off his mask and shook his head, saying no. "We did our best, but we could only save one patient."
The one who didn't survive was Anu's father, Sanjay.
Anu started crying uncontrollably. Ishani also felt immense sadness. She could understand this pain. Even if it was a dream, the feelings she had experienced were real.
Ishani hugged Anu.
Shantanu Ji had survived. He had been shifted from the emergency room to the ICU.
Through the glass, Ishani could clearly see Shantanu Ji's face was disfigured. There were burn marks on it. There was nothing below his knees. The blood on the white sheet was heart-wrenching. In the accident, he had lost both his legs.
Ishani looked at Abhay. Abhay was staring at his father with a blank expression. His eyes were so empty that they looked terrifying.
Despite herself, the events from her dream started swirling in Ishani's mind.
"Sir had an accident. What will happen to tomorrow's press conference now?"
"What can we do? It will have to be canceled now."
"This press conference is the result of Shantanu Sir's years of hard work. We cannot cancel it at any cost." This was Sanjeev, the head manager of Rana Group's product department.
"But who will host this conference? Sanjay Sir is no more, and you know Shantanu Sir's condition."
"If there is no other way... I will host it." Sanjeev said with difficulty, as he had no confidence in himself.
"But you don't know about the chip. How can you?"
"And even if we assume you will host, Starlight Inn has still not given us a response."
"This is all the fault of Starlight Inn's management. They created problems at the last moment." said another manager.
"When we went for the inspection earlier, everything was fine. Suddenly yesterday evening at seven o'clock, they called saying there was a problem with fire safety."
"That's right, if they hadn't called, Shantanu Sir and Sanjay Sir wouldn't have had to go there at the last minute, and this accident wouldn't have happened."
"We fixed everything. We even rechecked everything as they said, but we haven't heard back from them. I'm afraid they might create some trouble at tomorrow's press conference."
Ishani, standing nearby, was listening to everything. When she heard 'Starlight Inn', her breath caught. Was this the same place her brother was mentioning on the phone? And he was talking about teaching them a lesson at seven in the evening, and the accident happened afterwards? Could it be that the person her brother wanted to teach a lesson was Shantanu and Sanjay Uncle? If that was the case... Ishani didn't have the courage to think beyond that.
Ishani, standing nearby, heard everything. When she heard 'Starlight Inn', her breath hitched. Was this the same place her brother was mentioning on the phone? And at seven in the evening, they were talking about teaching a lesson, followed by an accident? Could it be that the person her brother wanted to teach a lesson to was Shantanu and Sanjay Uncle? If that happened... Ishani didn't even have the courage to think beyond that.
She went to the managers.
"Are all of you having venue problems?"
Ishani wanted to say that she could help them; finding a venue might be difficult for them, but with a single word from her daddy, this issue would be resolved.
Sanjeev didn't know Ishani. He didn't know she was Shailendra Mehra's daughter. He thought she was Abhay's friend. He nodded in agreement.
"Yes, the venue for the press conference hasn't been fixed yet. We've tried our best, but Starlight Inn hasn't responded."
"Miss, are you alright?" Sanjeev asked nervously when he saw Ishani's pale face.
Ishani was already feeling unwell, and now she was scared that her brother might have done something.
"I'm fine."
"Are you sure?"
"Hmm."
Abhay looked at Sanjeev.
"What time is the conference?"
"Nine in the morning."
"It's three in the morning now. I need all the details for the new cell phone by five, and you need to resolve the venue issue before the conference starts."
"But who will host?" Sanjeev asked, surprised.
"I will host."
All the managers' mouths dropped open.
Abhay was Shantanu's only son. He was a genius. He had won international awards in Math and Physics at a young age, so no one had underestimated him.
Sanjeev was intimidated by Abhay's cold aura. He had never felt this nervous even in front of Shantanu Sir.
Wiping sweat from his forehead, he said,
"This press conference is not just about introducing the new phone, but also the chip technology. Shantanu Sir took four years to develop it. Even none of us know about it. It will involve a lot of technical terms. How will you manage?"
"I've seen everything with Dad. You don't need to worry about the chip. I'll handle all that. You just arrange the venue. If you can't, I'll find someone else," Abhay said in a cold voice.
"No... I'll go right now." Sanjeev left with the other managers.
"Shall I talk to Daddy about the venue?" Ishani said softly.
"No need. If he can't even handle such an easy task, then there's no place for such people in Rana Group."
Abhay looked at Shantanu Ji with empty eyes, then came to Anu and said,
"Come, I'll drop you home."
Hearing "home", tears welled up in Anu's eyes again.
"My dad is no more. Who is there in that house now? How will I live alone?"
Abhay was silent for a moment, then said,
"Come to my house. My dad is just like your dad."
Anu wiped her tears and said as she got up,
"You stay with Uncle, I'll go."
"All the chip information is at home. I'll drop you home and pick up my laptop and documents. Let's go."
Anu nodded and walked with him.
When Abhay saw Ishani standing alone at the end of the corridor, he said,
"Why are you standing there? Come on."
Ishani's driver had left. Abhay hailed a taxi and gave Ishani's home address.
But Ishani gave Abhay's home address.
Abhay looked at her. Ishani said, "First let's drop Anu home. She needs rest."
Finally, they all stopped in front of Abhay's house. Anu and Abhay got out. Ishani remained seated in the taxi. Abhay looked back at her. "Stay put, I'll be right back with the luggage."
Anu was surprised, and so was Ishani.
"I don't want anything to happen to you and your dad blaming our family," Abhay said in a stern voice and went inside.
Soon, he came out with a laptop and a lot of files.
"So many files to read?" Ishani said in surprise.
"Hmm."
This chip was the result of her dad's four years of hard work. Whenever he saw them troubled, he would help them by coding. But that was only to help his dad. Now, when he had to give a presentation, he had to go through everything from the beginning.
"But how will you do so much work in such a short time?" Ishani asked, worried. Abhay still had to look at the information for the new phone protect and prepare the presentation.
"It's okay." Abhay was completely calm.
He left after dropping Ishani home. Watching him go, a turmoil stirred within Ishani. She felt that if she didn't help Abhay tonight, her family would be in trouble.
Ishani went to her room, took her laptop, and, without telling anyone at home, returned to the hospital by taxi.
She saw Abhay carefully reading the files and typing on the laptop. Ishani went and sat next to him. Abhay looked at her in shock. "Why did you come back?"
Ishani opened her laptop. "I've come to help you. You tell me the information, and I'll make the presentation."
Abhay's eyebrows furrowed.
Ishani quickly put her laptop in front of him. "In my old school, I was a PowerPoint Presentation champion."
On the laptop was the same presentation for which she had received an award. But Abhay didn't even look at it. He slammed his laptop shut and stood up. "Go away."
Ishani shivered, but sat there with her fists clenched.
Abhay grabbed her wrist and pulled her up. "Didn't you hear? Go away from here, I don't need your help."
Abhay had held her wrist so tightly that Ishani's face turned pale.
Abhay released her hand.
"I wanted to do something for you. If you don't need my help, then I'll leave," Ishani said, holding back her tears, and started to leave.
Abhay saw Ishani's tear-filled eyes. Drops of tears were lingering on her eyelids.
"Do you really want to help me? Alright, I want to see if you have the capability to be a champion too?"
Both of them got to work. Ishani finally understood why her dad praised Shantanu Rana so much. If anyone else were in his place, they would have probably sold their chip technology and earned crores of rupees by now; but Shantanu didn't do that. He wanted to create his own mobile brand.
Shantanu's greatest asset was Abhay. He was also self-respecting and intelligent like him. Four years ago, Abhay was just 15 years old. At such a young age, he had already helped his dad with research and coding; and his coding skills were so good that professionals would bow down.
Ishani glanced at Shantanu in the ICU and then at Abhay, who was working with complete dedication. Ishani felt inspired.
She reworked the presentation theme: "Promising Breaking Waves".
When Abhay saw the presentation, he couldn't speak for a long time. He was prepared to host the event without the presentation if he didn't like it; but this was much better than he had imagined. If his dad saw this presentation, he would be very happy.
Sanjiv came in, looking happy. He had finalized the venue. When he found out that Abhay was going to use Ishani's presentation, he panicked.
"You can't do that! There will be media, thousands of people. This is a live conference, not a joke."
It wasn't that Sanjiv doubted Ishani's abilities; but he couldn't digest that a delicate, pampered girl like Ishani could prepare such an important presentation in such a short time.
Abhay pointed to his laptop. As soon as Sanjiv read it, his eyes widened in surprise. After watching the entire presentation, he was thrilled.
"Good! Very good! Miss Ishani, I don't believe you created this presentation. It's better than any professional's."
Abhay left with Sanjiv. Ishani stayed behind. Someone had to be with Shantanu.
The press conference was packed with people. Abhay looked handsome in his black three-piece suit. His aura had become even colder and more serious overnight.
Everything went well. Within minutes, the press conference had over a hundred million views.
Ishani was also watching the live conference. She breathed a sigh of relief when everything seemed to be going fine. She just hoped that no one had a hand in her brother's accident.
When Abhay arrived, he found Ishani sleeping on the bench. Her phone was still on. Abhay picked it up and saw that the press conference video was still playing.
He thought Ishani would have left and his dad would be alone; so he rushed here. He didn't expect Ishani to still be here.
Ishani was bubbly and her eyes always sparkled. While sleeping, she looked extremely calm and innocent.
When the sun's rays fell on Ishani's face, she frowned. Abhay quickly stood in front of her to block the sun's rays. That's when Annu's voice came from behind,
"Abhay, I brought lunch for you."
