Alina couldn't grasp a hold of her surroundings. Her chest was operating in an up and down motion and her eyesight was blur. It was tough for her to breathe in that moment.
She felt a hand gently tapping on her shoulders.
"Are you okay Alina?" A nervous yet soft voice entered her ears.
She was afraid to look back. Something in her was stopping her but something in her wanted to face the person.
As soon as she looked back,she was met with someone who she was least expecting. The Young girl in front of her was more scared than Alina was. Was she this petrified of approaching Alina. Alina knew she intimidated her but this...
Her Student, Ruhani was standing right in front of her and her eyes weren't meeting hers even though she was the one who approached her first.
"Alina..I'm..I'm sorry to intrude..It's just I saw you crying and I..I wanted to check on you..I'm sorry..I hope everything's Fine -"
Ruhani's voice was shaking. She nervously moved her hand to place on Alina's shoulder but as soon as her palm lightly came in contact with Alina's skin,she brought her hand back.
Alina could see,The girl was Rambling trying to comfort her,giving it her all even though she was shaking as if she would have a Heart attack any given moment.
Alina was watching her,looking at her,Observing her. How her Hands moved when she was nervous,How her eyelids flickered when she was too intimidated,How her lips twitched when she struggled to form Words. HER LIPS.
Alina unconciously brought her into a Hug. A hug which unintendedly occured in some couple of seconds. She didn't realised how her Body got pressed against Ruhani's. Her grip on the girl getting stronger with each passing second. Her hands tracing her Back. She smelled nice. And So did her Hair. Ruhani's face leaned on Alina's ear. There wasn't much of a height Difference. Eventhough the girl's body was Cold, Alina felt some kind of warmth. A warmth in pit of her stomach, A warmth in her Body, A warmth in her hea-...
Alina's eyes were closed. Still closed the way, they were minutes ago when she Brought Ruhani into her embrace. She felt safe In her Arms. This was so odd and Unbelievable. Although she knew Ruhani had nothing to do with her life and could do nothing to solve her Problems,She believed if she clasped on her a little bit longer..All her problems would magically Vanish. Her Arms were...Her Arms..
She realised how Ruhani still hasn't hugged her Back and Alina moved away rather awkwardly.
None of them spoke nothing for some good Seconds.
"Alina..let's go inside,I'm sure The Night is just getting started" Ruhani smiled gently
Alina didn't noticed how her tears were dry now.
"Pretty House,Miss Oberoi. I'm sure,People wouldn't want to see it's equally Pretty owner Sobbing like that." Ruhani said while passing her a light smile before moving inside.
Alina followed behind her. They were just steps apart but as soon as she entered the hall again,Ruhani was lost somewhere in the Crowd of Hundreds Drinking,Dancing and Partying there.
She looked around. Party was resumed again. No signs of The Birthday girl and Her Family. Family including Maya.
Kashvi came and suddenly grabbed her Hand.
"Are you okay Alina...?We were looking for you" Kashvi said huffing.
"Oh yeah...I was just grabbing some fresh Air"
Kashvi opened her mouth to speak again but stopped. She sighed instead. "COME,let's drink"
They entered a corner where just Four of them were accompanying each other's company,The other two being Shanaya and Raghavi. Alina needed this for a bit. She was wondering why Kash chose this particular corner but then she noticed.
Aliya,Arjun,Amrita and Maya were chilling,laughing,crying at some distance. From whatever she could make out of their animated conversation, it was as if they were remnicising on the past. She saw her mother hugging Maya for the fourth time. Her dad looked like,he was holding back his tears and Aliya was glued in Maya's arms and Maya kissed her forehead. They looked Happy,complete and like a perfect family. A family without her. A family which didn't needed her. She felt her heart sinking.
Not even once Maya tried to look for her,Tried to approach her. It was as if Alina never even existed for her.
Is that why ....
Is that why Aliya was nervous Today? Is that why she decided to celebrate her Birthday in the first place? Did she always knew Maya was Coming back? Did she called her ?She felt betrayed. She raised Aliya as her child. She loved her to death. Aliya knew how much Maya meant to her. All of them knew. Then why didn't anyone tell her. Was Alina even Important,as she thought she was in their lives? Alina wasn't hoping to spill tears for the third time in the same night.
She didn't voice her thoughts but she knew her friends understood her state of mind. None of them spoke nothing and rather Stood beside her. Alina was never a person to make a show out of her Misery. She always dealth with her Problems alone,With silence and throughout Time..Silence became her comfort zone. Words during her tough times agitated her or maybe she never had someone who used them to comfort her. All she could remember was that Words were always used against her,to Absuse her.
She watched the whole family reunion and how the family,which didn't felt like hers was enjoying. None of them even pretended to look for her. Maya never pretended to look for her. Did she even cared ? Ever?
All of it started making sense now. For the past two years,It was Alina making efforts. Travelling around countries,contacting Maya's friends, Calling all the companies,all the Agents she was ever connected to...Turning the whole world upside down For Maya but she..
She never contacted her back eventhough Alina's messages surely reached her. She always and only called Aliya. She called everyone Back except Alina.
Even after being Slapped by the truth right in the face,Could Alina hate them?
Never. She Never could. She loved Maya and Aliya despite the fact it was physically paining her to watch them together. Together without her.
She felt so lonely. So heartbroken. After being trapped with Aviraj for the rest of her life,she knew a real Partner,A real relationship would never be a part of her life. She just hoped that one day Maya would be back and she could spend just mere moments of happiness with her sisters.
She smiled looking at them and didn't approached Maya. She was hell bound on getting Maya back but after today,watching them together being this happy..She finally decided to never approach her ever again. She wished deep in her heart that may her sister be blessed with all the love and success and may Alina never get to see her Elder sister crying the way she saw her in the office two years ago.
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Vikramjit Oberoi and his son never in their life attended Family parties. Vikramjit used to tag along everywhere with his Brother untill their Father was alive. Their Dad valued Family values and wanted their Family to be intact. Vikramjit never cared for those things. All he had was the Hunger for his Dad's Property. So, he prenteded to do and become whatever his dad wanted. Vikramjit being the Eldest Son was sure that the Possession of Millions would lie in his cluster. But their Dad,Mohan Singh Oberoi passed on his Legacy to his Brother, PRITHVI RAJ SINGH OBEROI.
Large Capital,Finances were never Arjun's area of interest. The only thing that made him grieve was his Father's Death. Imparting of millions at that point never bugged Arjun but it irked every corner of Vikramjit's Skin. Years later, Prithvi Raj Singh Oberoi died an unnatural death. No one ever got to know how it happened,he was just found unconscious in his bedroom.
Prithvi Raj never had a child of his own. He just had an adopted daughter whom he loved more than himself. She was just an infant when he died. No one knew what happened to her or became of her later on. It seemed like Prithvi Raj knew his death was near, maybe that's why a handwritten letter was found near his body.
"If you are reading this letter,it means I'm most probably dead by now. No need to stress over a man who's gone, but you surely need to look out for his possessions. I hope that I did justice to my Elder brother's legacy. I promised him that I'll hold on to his hardwork untill the end and that's why I'm passing on his inheritance to someone who surely will carry his heritage forward.
I Prithvi Raj singh Oberoi with all my senses and consciousness is passing on my will to Arjun singh Oberoi.
P.s - Please look after my Daughter, Zoya."
This letter was his last known words. Vikramjit couldn't contain his anger and stormed out of the country. He came back when he ran out of the money. Arjun being the brother he was made him a major shareholder in the company, yet Vikram's hunger for power never left. And now he has passed on that hunger to his son, YUG.
Rumors say that after the Birth of Maya,he made his wife abort until he had a son. He wanted another one and that's why he impregnated her again and again which deteriorated her health and led to her death eventually.
Vikramjit never attended Family parties or more like Arjun didn't let him. The only reason he let him have the shares was out of respect for his amazing wife and Maya who used to live with him back then. Arjun didn't wanted to compromise with their lives and handed him those shares out of pity. An year later, his wife died and Maya moved in with Arjun's family. Arjun never treated Maya differently due to her dad's indecency or what a devil of a human he was. He raised her as his own daughter and as years passed by he even came to love her more than he can imagine.
But if Maya was raised as Arjun's Daughter, How come Vikram got to have a say if she got the company or not?
Their family got a lot of Mysteries to solve out and here they were some 30 years later since Prithvi Raj died.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
Alina had some minor eye contacts with Ruhani here and there but both of them maintained their distance. Alina couldn't divert everyone's gaze which rested on her and she knew associating with Ruhani amidst the party would only lead to unnecessary questions and right now she wasn't in any kind of mental state to be investigated.
Alina was watching the whole family from a far when a tall man , A handsome tall man came into her view. He had a glass of wine in his hands and Aliya ran into his arms, passing him a polite hug.He hugged her back and messed her hair a bit. Aliya didn't seem too happy and playfully punched him. All of them laughed. He pecked on Maya's lips and...OH. He must be the fiancee. He then touched Arjun and Amrita's feet and they stopped him midway,bringing him into a hug. Her dad seemed way too happy and patted his back more than once.
As all of them were about to walk away from the corner,The guy moved his gaze towards Alina. They locked their eyes for mere seconds when the guy genuinely smiled at her. His teeths were white and shiny. He looked Graceful & Elegant in his Tuxedo. He placed his right hand on his chest and half bowed at Alina,that shiny grin still plastered on his face. It made Alina chuckle. As soon as she could respond,she saw Maya coming back for him, not noticing Alina and pushed him hurriedly,both of them chuckling.
After everything which happened in a single night, The night was just stretching for Alina. Suddenly the lights turned off and someone stepped on stage. Before the lights could turn on,Aliya grabbed the mike and made an announcement.
"Hey everyone, May I have your attention please?"
The crowd cheered for her.
"Firstly,Thankyou so much for coming here. I genuinely appreciate you all. Now not to take much of your time, I would like to welcome my friend and a very known social media creator on stage. Just sit back and Enjoy"
Suddenly the lights turned on & Ruhani came into view. It took Alina by Surprise. She smirked for a second. Rather than claps,The audience fell into complete silence.
"It's okay everyone..you can comment on my cheap dressing,It's from sarojini if you are wondering" Ruhani started it all with a smile.
She moved her gaze playfully among the audience. "Sorry I forgot. You rich people won't know,what Sarojini is.."
And just like that she broke the ice. People were getting comfortable and the crowd broke into a light laughter. Ruhani was making small conversations here and there when Alina noticed how her gaze moved towards Maya.
"Aliya,why didn't you tell me such gorgeous woman would be present here..I would have came hours ago"
"That's my-" Aliya tried to speak but was cut in between
"Can we pass a mike to her please?" Ruhani asked and someone from crowd passed on a mike to Maya
"What's your name sexy..uhm..I mean Miss?" Ruhani asked and the crowd laughed
"Maya this side" She replied,her voice husky and her personality gentle
"Oh god..even your voice is seductive"
Alina could see even though Ruhani was flirting,her demeanor was respectful which created a sense of comfort and humour in the environment.
The crowd cheered even more and Maya just smiled.
"Who's that standing next to you?" Ruhani asked
"That's my fianc-"
"Please take the mike away from her "
Multitude of people broke into a crazy laughter,everyone cheering, hooting and clapping. Both Maya and her fiancee were laughing as well.
"That's my sister you shithead"
Aliya screamed and the whole crowd passed an unanimous "OHHHHHHHHHHHHH"
Ruhani's expressions changed. "You mean THE MAYA OBEROI???"
"Yes" Aliya replied and Ruhani couldn't find words which made everyone laugh even more.
"Ma'am, Aliya told me how one of her sister is out there busy and she rarely comes home but I didn't know that sister would be this Pretty....I mean..Sorry,Trust me..I don't flirt with my friend's siblings"
"That's fin-" Maya couldn't complete
"LIARRRR" Aliya and her friend group said in unison.
"WHAT? Liar,Me?" Ruhani tried to act confused
One of Aliya's friends snatched the mike "Let's ask Alina then"
Everyone was shocked and the hooting went next level crazy. Alina internally groaned,they must have noticed last time at the Oberoi's success party when Aliya was calling Ruhani to meet her friends and how all those nosy bastards were side eyeing them. PIECE OF SHITS Alina muffled under her breath.
Ruhani couldn't muster any words. Aliya noticed the situation and took control. "My sisters are hard to resist Ohkay,I understand !! Can we please move on" Aliya said playfully and the topic got lost between the laughs. THANKFULLY
The night moved on. Everyone laughed and hooted for Ruhani. Ruhani interacted with Alina's parents,her friends,herself making them all laugh in the process. She was out there on stage for good two hours and the time just passed by. Not everyone knew her but Alina could sense how everyone's perception of Ruhani was changing. Some from the crowd even clicked pictures with her when she got off stage. Aliya's friends were now different towards her. Not all of them were shitty but some handfuls who were,there was a complete change in their demeanor. Everyone was now kind to her,meeting her,shaking hands with her including Alina's friends. Alina was watching everything from a corner and all of it made her smile,maybe happy,she didn't know what or why but it did.
Aviraj was no where to be seen. Maybe Ragini's warning was too much to handle for him. Right now, Alina didn't wanted to think about what would happen next. She was looking for Ruhani so she could find her alone,obv to congratulate..what else.
It wasn't tough to look for her today. She was wearing a pretty body fitting slit dress which made her look different from everyone. Or maybe the person wearing it was hard to miss. Alina was looking for her when her eyes finally found her. But she wasn't alone.
Who was it? Silhouette of a woman was visible next to her but the woman wasn't. She was surely older than Ruhani, maybe in her early thirties. She was hot that was for sure but the woman's hand on Ruhani's waist made Alina clench her teeths for some reason.
Suddenly,Both of their eyes fell on Alina. Ruhani moved back a bit from the woman. Ruhani just plainly smiled but the lady...The lady smirked at Alina.
WHY WAS SHE SMIRKING?
"Hi Alina" Ruhani said politely
"Hi..I just wanted to appreciate -" She eyed between them "Uhm..Am I interrupting something"
"No..not at all-" Ruhani said but couldn't complete
"Maybe you were" The lady next to her spoke
"What? No.." Ruhani nearly screamed "Alina..there's nothing going on. Tell me,How can I help you?" Ruhani took a step forward and was still smiling at her.
Alina could feel how the woman was piercing her gaze through Alina. She didn't speak anything for some good seconds.
"I-" Alina wanted to speak but the lady continued finally breaking the silence
"Well Ruhani,Won't you introduce us?"
"Oh yeah..sure" Ruhani said nervously. Alina could sense her discomfort.
"I'm sure you might know her,She's Alina..Aliya's elder sister,whose birthday party you are enjoying" It felt as if Ruhani taunted her with the last line.
"And this is ZOYA" Ruhani continued
"ZOYA, aage?" The woman who presumably was Zoya arched an eyebrow and asked
Ruhani cleared her throat. "She's Zoya..Zoya, My ex"
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