Sia was sitting alone in the garden of her house.
It was Sunday evening. The sky carried a tired orange glow, as if even the sun was exhausted. In just three days, she was going to get married. Yet she still hadn't decided how to tell her family that the day after her wedding was her interview—and no matter what happened, she wanted to give that interview.
The thought kept circling in her mind.
At first, she had planned to talk to her uncle.
Uncle has always been supportive, she told herself. If I tell him calmly, maybe he'll understand my situation. Maybe he'll help me.
But the moment she thought about her aunt, her chest tightened.
Her aunt would never allow it. Never.
Leaving the house right after marriage? Going to another state? For a job interview?
Impossible.
Running away felt like the only option left. The idea scared her. She didn't want to run. She knew how deeply she was indebted to her uncle and aunt. After her parents died, they were the ones who fed her, sheltered her, protected her.
If she ran away, they would never forgive her. They would never want to see her face again.
And then there was society.
What would people say? What would they whisper behind her family's back? Her family would have to hear every cruel comment, every judgment.
Yet despite all of this, she had no other option left.
As the sun slowly disappeared beyond the horizon, her hopes seemed to sink with it. The garden felt unusually silent, as if the world had paused just to watch her struggle.
She knew very well what she was choosing between.
Her career.
Or her family.
Going for the interview was nothing less than gambling with her own life. There was no guarantee she would get selected. The chances were uncertain. And stepping out of this house could mean never returning again.
The final rays of sunlight vanished.
Her heart sank.
Tomorrow is the last day, she thought. Day after tomorrow, I'll be someone's bride.
A bride to a man she didn't love. A man she barely knew.
Her thoughts drifted to Arjun.
He had tried to contact her countless times. Missed calls. Messages. Voicemails. Every time, she cut the call without listening. She didn't even want to hear his voice.
Still, there were moments when her fingers hovered over the screen.
Should I pick up?
But then the image flashed in her mind—the bed, the girl, the lie.
What she had seen with her own eyes and what her heart once believed were no longer the same.
Anger surged inside her, sharp and uncontrollable.
If he had talked to his family…
If he hadn't cheated…
She would have been in a completely different place today.
"Sia didi!" Neeraj called from inside the house.
"Come inside. Everyone is waiting for your sangeet ceremony."
She stood up slowly, as if her body weighed twice as much as usual.
She didn't even remember how the day passed after that. Every day felt the same now—heavy, suffocating, unreal. She had no interest in her own wedding rituals, but she still smiled when needed.
She sat on the sofa placed at the center of the room while her cousins danced around her to loud wedding songs. Claps, laughter, music—everything felt distant.
With every song, it felt like a wire was tightening around her skin.
Suddenly, her phone rang.
An unknown number.
Her heart skipped.
She cut the call immediately, assuming it was Arjun trying again.
The phone rang again.
She cut it once more, irritation and fear mixing together.
Then a message popped up on her cracked screen.
Hey, Sameer this side.
Your would-be husband.
I am outside your house. Please come meet me.
Sia felt nothing.
No excitement. No nervousness. Not even curiosity.
She typed back slowly.
Our wedding is in two days. We'll see each other then.
Two days? I can't wait that long. Please come na.
She stared at the message.
She didn't want to go. Every part of her resisted the idea.
Another message appeared.
Won't you obey your future husband? Please, it's a request.
Her fingers froze over the screen.
Something about that line made her uncomfortable.
After a long pause, she typed:
Okay. Coming.
She stepped out of the house quietly, her heart sinking deeper, as if it were being pulled into an endless ocean.
The night air felt heavy.
In the dim light outside, she saw him.
He was almost double her size. His hair was poorly set. Dark circles hung under his eyes. There was something unsettling—something she couldn't quite explain—about his expression.
The name Sameer didn't suit him at all.
Her instincts screamed at her to turn back.
But it was too late. He had already noticed her.
"Hey, Sia. How are you?" he asked, smiling.
"I'm good…" she replied, her voice barely steady.
"I'm really sorry for calling you out so late," he said. "But I couldn't wait till the wedding."
Her body stiffened.
Couldn't wait for what? she wondered.
"I must say," he continued, scanning her slowly, "you're very pretty."
"Thanks," she replied politely.
"I mean… just look at you."
"Thanks," she repeated, feeling increasingly uncomfortable.
"Why did you call me?" she asked, wanting to end this conversation quickly.
"Nothing much," he said casually. "Just wanted to know you before marriage."
It's only three days away, she thought bitterly. What exactly do you want to know now?
"Our families are quite traditional," he added, "but I'm very modern. We'll live separately from my parents."
She nodded faintly. Her thoughts were still stuck on the interview.
"Hm," was all she said.
Gathering courage, she asked, "You don't mind if I work after marriage?"
His expression changed instantly.
"Well," he said slowly, "good household women don't work. And why do you even need a job? My salary is very high. I'll give you whatever you want."
Her heart cracked open.
The same words. Again.
The same cage. Different man.
I'll be in prison forever, she realized.
"Don't you want to know anything about me?" he asked, sounding slightly offended.
"No," she replied honestly.
"Well then," he said, stepping closer, "I should leave."
Before she could react, he pulled her into a tight hug.
Sia froze completely.
Her mind went blank. Her body refused to respond.
Then he kissed her on the cheek and walked away, as if nothing unusual had happened.
She stood there, numb, her heart pounding violently.
The touch felt disgusting. Wrong. Unwanted.
She had been with Arjun before, but she had never felt this uncomfortable. Never this violated.
Sameer was going to be her husband.
Yet the mere thought of him touching her again made her entire body go cold.
In that moment, something inside Sia snapped.
She didn't care about society anymore.
She didn't care about expectations.
She didn't even care about forgiveness.
She only knew one thing—
She couldn't live like this.
And no matter what it cost her, she had to find a way out.