The Next Morning ☀️
Anisha woke up at 6 a.m. sharp.
Within minutes, she was fresh, dressed, and downstairs.
As soon as she entered the hall, she noticed Janki ji and Arvik's aunt, Manju ji, sitting on the sofa. From the way they were dressed, it was obvious—they were ready to go somewhere.
Anisha walked up to them and touched their feet respectfully.
But neither of them placed a hand on her head.
No blessing.
No warmth.
Honestly, Anisha had expected exactly this.
She straightened up without saying anything.
She knew it very well—everyone in the Jindal family hated her.
In their eyes, she was nothing but a deceitful girl who had trapped Arvik into marriage.
Every single family member believed she was wrong.
"Good morning, Mummy ji… Chachi ji," Anisha greeted softly.
The moment the word Mummy ji left her mouth, Janki ji shot her a sharp glare.
"I am not your mother," she snapped.
"And you have no relationship with me or my family. So please—don't call me Mummy ji."
"But you're Arvik's mother… and I'm his wife," Anisha replied gently.
"So by that relation, I'm your daughter-in-law. I can call you Mummy ji, right?"
Her soft tone only annoyed Janki ji further.
"Listen carefully, Anisha," she said coldly.
"Even if you tricked Arvik into marrying you and entered this house, I will never accept you as my daughter-in-law. Got it?"
"And one more thing—no matter how hard you try, you'll never make me happy. Because you are neither my son's choice… nor mine."
"Your family sacrificed you just to save their so-called honor. But they never once thought whether we would accept you after marriage or not."
Each word felt like a knife piercing Anisha's heart.
And the worst part?
Every word was true.
She couldn't even defend herself.
Janki ji was about to continue when she noticed Grandmother stepping out of her room. She immediately went silent.
A heavy silence filled the hall.
Suddenly, Janki ji changed her tone completely and smiled at Anisha.
"Anisha beta, we're going to the temple. Would you like to come with us?"
Anisha stared at her, stunned by the sudden switch.
"Aunty ji… what is this—"
Before she could finish, Janki ji cut her off.
"Beta, I told you—call me Mummy ji, not Aunty ji."
Anisha was now completely confused.
Before she could react, Grandmother spoke from behind—
"Leave it, bahu. What values are you trying to teach an illegitimate child anyway?"
The word illegitimate hit Anisha like a slap.
Her face turned red with anger as she turned around and glared at Grandmother.
"Hey, girl! Lower your eyes," Grandmother barked.
"This isn't your parents' house where you can show attitude."
Grandmother had a sharp, toxic tongue. She said whatever she wanted—and Janki ji always used that to her advantage.
Manju ji, on the other hand, stayed completely detached, like none of this concerned her.
"I still don't understand," Grandmother continued,
"What did Arvik even see in that Aditi that he was desperate to marry her? That girl turned out to be a runaway—she fled before the wedding!"
"And your family?" she scoffed.
"One daughter ran away, so they pushed the other one into marriage. And that too—an illegitimate one. Amazing, right?"
"They thought about saving their honor, but what about us? Society is mocking us. People say—'Wow, the eldest son of the family married an illegitimate girl.' What answer are we supposed to give them?"
That was it.
Anisha had reached her breaking point.
"Enough, Dadi," she said firmly, her voice shaking with rage.
"You've said more than enough, and I've heard more than enough."
"Just because you're elder doesn't give you the right to say anything you want."
"I will not listen to a single word against my family anymore. You can say whatever you want to me—but don't you dare say anything about my family."
Grandmother exploded.
Seeing the situation getting out of hand, Janki ji quickly intervened.
"Mummy ji, why are you getting so angry?" she said sweetly.
"The doctor told you not to take stress, remember? Please calm down."
Then she turned to Anisha.
"Anisha, please leave. If something happens to Mummy ji because of you, it won't be good for you. Go."
Anisha didn't want to stay there either.
She immediately went back to her room.
After Anisha left, Janki ji somehow calmed Grandmother down.
Soon after, Janki ji, Manju ji, and Grandmother left for the temple together.
A while later, Anisha came downstairs again.
Arvik had gone out for jogging.
She didn't tell him anything about what had happened downstairs.
And no one else in the house knew either.
Anisha went into the kitchen and started preparing breakfast.
Within 30 minutes, everything was ready.
She made coffee specially for Arvik and took it upstairs to his room.
Arvik had returned early from jogging since he had to leave for the office. He was in his room, getting ready.
Without knocking, Anisha walked in.
Arvik had just come out of the shower, a towel wrapped around his lower body. He was busy picking clothes and hadn't noticed her yet.
Anisha froze.
Her mouth literally stayed open.
Six-pack abs.
Muscular body.
Water droplets.
She was completely lost.
Suddenly, Arvik sensed someone behind him and turned around.
That's when he saw Anisha—staring like she'd forgotten how blinking worked.
Before she could process anything, Arvik stepped right in front of her.
Reality hit.
Anisha instantly closed her eyes and turned her back to him.
Seeing her like that, Arvik felt mischievous.
Leaning closer, he whispered near her ear,
"So… what exactly were you staring at?"
"I– I… I didn't see… anything," Anisha stammered.
"Oh really?" Arvik said flirtatiously.
"Because your voice is telling a very different story."
Anisha internally panicked.
I'm dead today.
She quickly placed the coffee down and ran out of the room like her life depended on it.
Behind her, Arvik burst out laughing, holding his stomach.
As Anisha ran out, she suddenly collided with someone.
BAM.
Both of them fell to the floor.
The other girl hurt her elbow and snapped angrily,
"Are you blind? Can't you see where you're going?"
"I'm sorry," Anisha said, helping her up.
"You got hurt because of me."
The girl completely ignored her apology and sneered.
"Sorry my foot."
"First tell me—who are you, and what are you doing in this house?"
Before Anisha could reply, Arvik appeared behind her.
"She's my wife," he said casually.
"And the daughter-in-law of this house. That's why she's here."
"What?!" the girl exclaimed, shocked.
Arvik ignored her completely.
Turning to Anisha, he said softly,
"Baby, I'm starving. Let's go downstairs and have breakfast."
Holding Anisha's hand, he walked away with her.
Anisha was stunned by Arvik's sudden behavior—but chose to stay quiet.
What just happened?
Why is Arvik suddenly acting so affectionate?
And who is this girl?
So tell me 👀
Who do you think this girl is?
And will Anisha ever find her place in Arvik's family hearts?
The drama has just begun 💥🔥