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"But I just missed one number," I whined from the ground, not being able to feel my legs. I had jumped rope around a thousand times after restarting twice for pausing in the middle.
"Don't nag, get up and start again."
It was crystal clear, he was punishing me for bugging him to teach me dancing.
"But Vikrant, this is not even dancing! You are training me to join an army! Definitely not dancing!" I sat up, throwing my hands in the air.
He kept his file aside, stood up and quickly came to stand before me, "You think this is all unnecessary and want me to go straight for dance lessons?"
I just kept staring at his narrowed eyes gulping the knot that had formed out of nowhere.
Oh no! He was going to kick me out of his training now!
Stupid stupid Rynah! Couldn't you keep your big mouth shut for once!?!
"Then you do the homework about the basics of the dance and be here sharp at eight in the evening," he turned on his heels and walked out grumbling about me being a nagger. That left me gawking at his retreating figure.
Was he really Vikrant? Or was it some alien in Vikrant's skin?
Well, whatever it was, I was grateful to be exempted from being tortured like a militant trainee. Slowly getting up and limping out of the gym, I headed for the elevator. A long bath sounded really good to relax my aching muscles.
"No, we had Chop Suey the last time. Cancel it from our menu. Put on Japchae this time for the noodles dish. And cake pops instead of tarts," I heard Asha's voice from the library making me halt to peep inside. Ash had been surrounded by numerous people. Some were making notes, others were showing her pictures before barking orders to the former ones.
"Keep the cake classic white. No changes there," she instructed looking at another picture.
It looked like the men weren't that good at keeping secrets. Asha was planning her own birthday now.
"And the appetizers, madam?" A man with clean shave asked in a British accent.
"You know, Russel. The men did make it clear, right? Appetizers are, as usual, your signature ones." Asha kept another picture aside as she looked up and found me eavesdropping.
"Rynah dear? What are you doing there?" And it looked like I wasn't an expert at hiding either. I just gave her an embarrassed smile and walked in when she signaled me to come in.
"Everyone, this is my daughter-in-law and Viaan's wife, Rynah Raivardhan. And Rynah, they are the master chefs from around the world, who take care of the food at our parties," she introduced us briefly. And immediately, I was swallowed by the crowd of master chefs and their introductions.
"Mrs. Raivardhan, a pleasure to meet ya! Am Phillipa Pierre 'nd this is Alice Cook, my PA. We're from the land down unda’. Cakes 're my forte," A blonde chef spoke, giving me a quick handshake before gesturing towards another blonde standing a few feet away from her.
"And I am Joshua Petit, a Patissier from France. And this is my PA, Theodore Blanc," a dark-skinned man gave me an air kiss on my cheeks followed by a red-haired guy doing the same. It went on till all of them introduced themselves to me. The discussion about the dishes went on for another half an hour before they left the library in silence.
"The men aren't good at keeping secrets, are they?" I broke the silence while watching out of the giant glass wall towards my aunt's house. It reminded me of the time I and Anjali stalked Daksh making me cringe a little in embarrassment.
"No, they are actually really good at keeping secrets," Asha's skeptical tone made me turn to face.
"But then you already know that they are planning for your birthday," my eyebrows came together upon my frown.
"Oh," understanding dawned over Asha's face before she cleared her throat and looked at me seriously, "Rynah, now that you are a part of the family, you need to know something. The party that is going to be held soon is the party in the honor of my late sister, Aradhana, Viaan's biological mother, and my husband's first wife."
I sat up straighter, wide-eyed. The shock had zapped through my entire being, left me numb and zapped again to make me feel all sorts of emotions, "What?"
Disbelief was clear in my tone, as well on my features.
"Yes, my husband was married to Aradhana before marrying me. I was carrying Aaryan when he brought me to India. At that time Vikrant was only five years old, and the twins were four. What I wasn't expecting was my husband lying to two women at the same time just to break their trust, their faith in marriage and their meaning of life. Viaan had just turning seven back then and it was a bigger blow to Aradhana and him but she kept all the hard feelings at bay and took care of me like my own sister when I needed it, when my final trimesters were a nightmare, even when I had snapped at her and my husband for giving me such a big shock, for his betrayal I had avoided her. I don't think I would have had the strength to do what she did for me and I realized how great of a soul she was right then."
She had paused, lost in distant memories that came out of her mouth. It was shocking to hear her reveal something like that, I was completely speechless.
"And that was the time, I thought calmly. She was a victim of it just like me, yet she had no grudge towards me. I let her in, and that was one of the best decisions I had made. We understood each other, empathized with each other, and realized what had to be done to save our children's future. She died in an accident, trying to save us and Viaan was right there when it happened. Since then, Viaan has taken care of us. Though I haven't given birth to Viaan, he is my son in every aspect and I'm his mother. He never differentiated between me and his birth mother. And he will always be my first son."
She blinked, coming back to the present and looked at me. I had been utterly speechless as I realized why everyone said he had trust issues. I realized why he behaved coldly because he had witnessed his father's betrayal and his mother's death at such a tender age. My heart ached for him. He wasn't what I had thought him to be. All of a sudden, I felt guilty and wrong for judging him without knowing anything about him. And wondered if he looked like his mother.
