👑 Thirty Nine~

"Come carefully. Haan! Yeh dekhiye Jiji. This is the pic which I told you about,"Snehanvi told Durdhara, bringing her to the storeroom.

Durdhara took a snap of the picture on her phone while saying,"Exactly! You were right. This man indeed looks like our father-in-law."

"Hain na? Who is he?"

"I guess he's the elder brother of Dad."

"Elder brother? Dad has an elder brother? Where is he now?"

"Dead! People say he had a heart attack, while some say that he died due to an accident. Nobody knows much about it. He didn't become the king as he was not interested in all these. He had stayed abroad most of the time throughout his life. And about this lady and the kid, I don't know who they are."

"Maybe they're his wife and child!"

"Possible! Highly possible, and this child seems very known. But in that case, where are they?"

"Hmm! And why is their picture kept out here and not in the open?"

"Hmm! I have seen this man's picture in that room filled with ancestral pictures, I guess, but I am seeing this lady and the kid for the first time. Anvi, I guess Dadabhai might know about them."

"Hmm! Hum ghuma phira ke pucchne ki koshish karenge unsey."

"Aur hum Ranaji se."

"Done! Aaiye chaliye before someone finds us here,"Snehanvi said before taking Durdhara out of the room, carefully.

They were crossing the corridors when they heard Rishabh's disappointed shouts and immediately hurried towards his room while Snehanvi said,"Inka toh flight hain na aaj?"

"Haan! They should have left for the airport by now,"Durdhara added.

Rishabh's face reddened with anger as he stormed through their room, tossing aside pillows and opening drawers with a force that made Devangini flinch.

"How could you be so careless, Gini?" he thundered, his voice echoing off the walls. "We were supposed to leave for the airport any minute now, and now the tickets and passports are nowhere to be found!"

Devangini's eyes brimmed with tears as she frantically searched alongside him, her hands shaking as she rummaged through their luggage. "I-I don't know, Baujiraj,"she stammered, her voice trembling. "I remember putting them in the drawer of our dressing table, but now they're not there. I'm so sorry!"

Rishabh's anger only intensified, and he glared at Devangini, his eyes flashing with frustration. "Sorry? Sorry isn't going to fix this! Our honeymoon is ruined because you have been careless. Kitna kuch socha tha humnein, kitna kuch plan kiya tha tumhare liye. But nahi! You took it too casually."

Devangini's face crumpled, and she took a step back, her eyes welling up with tears as she was facing Rishabh's anger for the first time.

"Rishi! Aisey kiyu chilla rahe ho? She might have misplaced..."

"Bhabi aap kuch nahi bolengi. How can she misplace such important things in the first place?"Rishabh stopped Durdhara from speaking further.

"Yahi kahi hoga. Let's check again,"Snehanvi said.

"Nahi hain yaha kahi bhi, Badi Bhabi Sa. We have searched every place,"Rishabh said in a frustrated tone.

Unbeknownst to them, Meghatri watched the scene unfold from a distance, standing near the door while a sly smile spread across her face. As she observed Rishabh's anger and Devangini's distress, a twisted sense of satisfaction washed over her.

"Hum hain hi kiyu yaha? Someone clearly doesn't care,"Rishabh said before storming out of the room.

"Baujiraj suniye toh..."Devangini failed to stop him and sat on the bed, crying.

"Roiye matt. How did this happen in the first place?"Snehanvi said.

"Haan! Passports aur tickets ke pairh thodei honge ki chalke kahi nikal jaaye khud se,"Durdhara said.

"I don't know. Humein kuch samajh nahi raha,"Devangini said helplessly.

Rishabh stood by a window, his eyes gazing out at the scenery, but his mind was consumed by frustration and disappointment. Meghatri approached him, her voice soft and sympathetic as she placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I can understand how bad you're feeling. Devangini shouldn't have been so careless. But she's not that careless actually, maybe she just didn't want to go."

Rishabh turned to her, his brow furrowed in confusion. "Why wouldn't she want to go? Megha please leave me alone for some time."

Meghatri's hand lingered on his shoulder for a moment before she removed it, her expression understanding. "Of course, I'll leave you alone for a bit. I know you're feeling low."

As she turned to leave, she added with a hint of teasing, "Actually, Devangini should be the one consoling you, Rishi. Usey aakar manana chahiye tha tumhey. But she's busy chatting with your sisters-in-law in the room. Anyway, you calm down, okay?" Rishabh nodded, his eyes drifting away from hers.

Meghatri walked away with a smirk, while thinking,"Slowly but surely, I'll drive a wedge between them, and they'll drift apart. Aisey hi chhotey chhotey waar se aap dono ko ek duje se dur kar denge hum. Aur phir humara Rishi khud humare paas laut aayega."

Devangini tried to pacify Rishabh during lunch time, but he remained indifferent towards her, hurting her sentiments. Virat noticed them and said,"Come on Rishi. Mood thik karo apna. You can still go for the honeymoon, hum khud taiyaar..."

"Koi zaroorat nahi hain Dadabhai, people aren't interested in going I guess,"Rishabh said.

Meghatri smirked and took her seat watching Rishabh block Devangini's hand as she was trying to serve him one of his favourite dishes.

"Aap ne sachmein laparwahi ki hain, Devi. You should have been careful,"Meenakshi said.

"Aisa bhi toh ho sakta hain ki Devi ki koi galti hi nah ho. Maybe Rishu hi kahi pe rakh ke bhul gaya ho,"Hardik said.

"Bhai! Hum itney laparwah nahi hain. Not regarding this trip at least, which I have been planning for so many days,"Rishabh said.

"Mood off karwa diya na Rishi ka. What is this Devi? Tumsey toh yeh ladki Snehanvi behetar nikli,"Shalakha added.

"Snehanvi Yuvrani hain, Bua Sa. Shouldn't you be calling her bahurani?"Virat said and everyone looked at him.

"Veer, Bua Sa ka voh matlab nahi tha bete,"Meenakshi said.

"Jo bhi matlab tha, Maa Sa, Snehanvi isn't a maid, she deserves minimum respect,"Virat protested and Snehanvi smiled looking down, elated to hear him taking a stand for her.

"Dekha Bhabi, kaisey aapka Veer aapki baat ko taal raha hain, voh bhi iss kal ki aayi ladki ke liye? Kahi aisa na ho ki kal ko aap ko hi ghar se rawana karde iskey kehene pe,"Shalakha whispered to Meenakshi who said,"Humare saarey bete sirf humari hi baat maante hain, Shalakha. They'll always choose me over their wives. I am their mother. Humein apni zindegi laga di unki parvarish karne mein."

"Of course,"Shalakha added with a smirk.

In the meantime, Devangini whispered to Rishabh,"Baujiraj, I am sorry. Humnein jaan bujhke..."

"Kuch nahi kiya right? No need to explain. Huh!"Rishabh said and concentrated on his food and thinking,"Bass sorry boldo aur baat khatam. Yeh nahi hain ki aakey manaye pyaar se."

"Rishi, yeh Duck Curry taste karo na. Humnein banaya hain,"Meghatri said.

"Tum araam karne ki jagah yeh sab kiyu kar rahi ho?"Rishabh asked.

"Rishi! Megh ka mann tha isiliye banaya unhoney. Why are you scolding her?"Meenakshi said.

"Haan, hum jaantey hain tumhey humari fikar hain, but I am better now. Mann kiya isiliye banaya. Humnein bataya tha Aunty ko,"Meghatri said, serving him the dish.

Rishabh tasted it and she asked,"Kaisa bana hain?"

"Accha hain. Nice,"he replied, making her smile while Devangini looked away, fighting back her tears.

"Hum roz hi kuch na kuch banaya karenge abb se. Yeh humara bhi toh ghar hain. Hain na Aunty?"Meghatri asked Meenakshi who gave a nod.

"Aap coconut milk daalna bhul gayi curry mein, Megh Kanwar. Good try but dobara matt banaiyega. I mean, aap mehemaan hain, yeh sab kaam karna shobha nahi deta aapko,"Durdhara said, making Meghatri frown.

"Hum iss ghar mein bachpan se paley barey hain, Bhabi Sa. Aap se kahi zyaada purana rishta humara hain iss parivaar se. Hum apne hain iss parivaar ke, koi mehemaan nahi,"Meghatri protested.

"Beshaq purana rishta hoga aapka iss parivaar se. But aauda humara zyaada hain aap se. Hum bahu hain iss parivaar ki, aap nahi. Rishta humara zyaada gehera aur pakka hain iss parivaar se. Aapko log kitna bhi apna maan le, you aren't a Shekhawat, but when it comes to me, Yuvrani Snehanvi or Devangini Bai Sa, everyone will know that we are Shekhawats. So this fact itself makes you similar to a guest. Haan if you still consider yourself an integral part of this family then you can be considered as a daughter here. In that case do tie rakhis to all the four princes,"Durdhara argued back.

"Bahurani Sa! Why are you behaving like this with her?"Meenakshi asked in a scolding tone.

"Sorry Mom, I had a sudden mood swing,"Durdhara said.

"Oh dear. It's alright. Lijiye aap yeh khaiye,"Meenakshi said, mellowing down at once while Durdhara passed a look to Meghatri and Snehanvi nudged her.

"Jiji! Kiyu iskey saath mooh larah rahi hain aap? Chudail kahiki!"she said and Virat cleared his throat.

"Language, Sneha,"he said and she frowned.

"Hum Meghatri ke room mein kiyu aaye hain Jiji?"Snehanvi asked while sneaking into Meghatri's bedroom, followed by Devangini.

After the lunch was over, Meghatri had followed Rishabh to the backyard lawn and was with him, much to Devangini's disappointment. Taking that as a chance Durdhara suggested them to come with her to Meghatri's bedroom.

"Haan! Humein toh lawn mein hona chahiye. Yeh Megh Kanwar Baujiraj ke saath ghum rahi hain,"Devangini said.

"Isn't it obvious? She is taking her chance as Rishi is upset with you. But the actual reason for coming here is the missing tickets and passports."

"Kya matlab?"Snehanvi asked.

"Devi said that she clearly remembered where she had kept the things, but it wasn't there or anywhere in their room. Now how is that possible unless someone has deliberately hidden those?"Durdhara said while searching the room.

"True! Even I have thought about it once. Jiji is right. Aur poorey ghar mein unkey ilawa aur koi aisa hain bhi nahi jinhey Rishi Bhai aur Devi ke honeymoon se koi problem ho,"Snehanvi added.

"Humein toh yeh baat socha hi nahi. Chaliye dekhte hain yaha,"Devangini said and the trio searched for the missing things before Devangini found it hidden under the cushion cover. "How clever! She has hidden it in an unusual place too. Look!"

"Dekha! Devi, abb bolo. Yeh ladki aap se aapki pati churane ka soch rahi hain, aap aisey hi baithi rahengi? Bina kuch kiye?"Snehanvi said.

"Nahi! Kabhi nahi! Hum abhi jaakey..."

"Nahi Devi! Aap kuch nahi karengi."

"Kya? But Jiji usey confront toh karna chahiye na?"

"Haan bilkul. Bilkul confront karna chahiye, but in a different way. First you pacify Rishi. He's upset with you. Remember?"

"Hmm!"Devangini said, looking down. "All because of that Meghatri!"

"That's the anger you should have. But keep that for Meghatri. Filhaal aap taiyaari kijiye Rishi ke liye."

"Kaisi taiyaari Jiji?"Devi asked.

"I guess humein samajh araha hain thoda thoda,"Snehanvi said and Durdhara chuckled and whispered something to Devangini.

"Kya? Uh...will that work? I mean...hum aur aisa..."

"Kya aisa? Paraye mard ke saath karengi kya? Pati hain aapki voh,"Snehanvi said.

"Ek raat mein kaafi himmat barh gayi hain Yuvrani Sa ka haan?"Durdhara teased her with a smirk, making her frown.

"Hey! Did I miss something?"Devangini asked.

"Baad mein batayenge, filhaal aap chaliye humare saath. I'll send Chitra with you,"Durdhara said and the trio came out while she made a call to Hardik.

"Yes Jaan?"he said over the phone, while walking through the corridor of their office.

"You have a private villa here, don't you?"

"Haan yah. Why? Ah haaaaan! Planning something romantic for us?"

"Offh! Not for us, but for Rishi and Devi. Now get that villa decorated and ready for tonight,"Durdhara commanded.

"Kabhi apne pati ke liye bhi aisa kuch karliya kijiye, Rani Sa. Thik hain hum karwa denge. Aur koi hukum, Maharani?"Hardik said with a chuckle.

Durdhara giggled and said,"Haan ji! You'll get to know that at night,"she whispered the last lines.

"I'll reach home by 7p.m,"Hardik said making her frown.

"Too excited! Bye!"Durdhara said and he giggled and disconnected the call after saying,"Bye, Jaan. Love You."

That evening, Shubman stopped his new Lamborghini in front of the studio while the participants were chilling outside.

"Oh there he is!"Sharon said and walked ahead, but stopped on seeing him open the door for Chandrika who stepped out of the car.

The duo walked towards the entryway, locking their arms while Ishan shouted in excitement,"OH MY GODDDDD!"

"New couple alert!"Abhishek added.

"Hi Sharon! Shoot shuru nahi huya abhi tak?"Chandrika asked and Sharon replied in a low serious tone,"No__not yet."

"Great! We aren't late then. Let's get going,"Shubman said and walked towards Ishan who said,"Guys, sunney mein aaya hain ki finals mein final round will be dangerous. And top ten participants last dono finalists ke saath collab karenge."

"How will that thing work?"Chandrika asked.

"Finalists mein se end tak sirf doh final participants bachenge for the last and final round. Uss round mein baaki eight participants mein se chaar ek finalist ke side honge aur baaki char dusrein ke. However, the lead vocalists will be the final two participants. Also, sunney mein aaya hain ki doh singing sensation on stage perform karenge with them, both choosing their respective finalist's group,"Abhishek said.

"Dude! That will be insane! Wowww!"Shubman said.

"I will beat you up in the finals. Congratulations in advance for being the first runner-up, Maan,"Chandrika said.

Shubman smirked and said,"Time will tell that. Filhaal aaj ke episode ka shoot karle?"

As the group chatted excitedly about the upcoming finals, Sharon's expression turned increasingly strained. She forced a smile, trying to blend in, but her eyes betrayed her hurt. When Shubman kissed Chandrika's hand in front of everyone and all of them went "awwww" over them, Sharon's facade cracked.

"Excuse me, I'll just... um... check on some things,"she said, her voice tight, before quickly excusing herself from the group.

As she walked away, her steps quickened, and she reached her car, her back against it. She banged her fists on the roof, feeling a mix of emotions: hurt, anger, and frustration.

"Why does he have to be so close to her?"Sharon muttered to herself, her eyes welling up with tears.

Meanwhile, Chandrika understood the matter and excused herself from the group and approached Sharon, her expression soft and understanding.

"Sharon, I know how you feel,"she said gently. "I know you like Maan, but he likes me, not you. He has considered you a friend, nothing more."

Sharon looked up, her eyes red-rimmed, and sighed, leaning against the car. Chandrika continued, "You'll find someone who loves you for who you are, Sharon. But Maan isn't that person. You deserve better."

Sharon nodded slowly, as if noting each words. "Why are you here?"

"That's because being a girl I can understand how you're feeling right now. I just wanted to let you know that I have no hard feelings towards you. I had just been jealous of you whenever Maan used to pay attention to you. But now, after knowing that he likes only me, I don't have any such negative feelings for you. You're his friend and that makes you mine too."

Sharon looked at her and then looked away. She sighed and then looked back at Chandrika, extending her hand towards her.

"You're right, Chandrika. I should have understood that beforehand. I was dumb to think that Shubh would like me, whereas he was clearly into you for a long time."

Chandrika took Sharon's hand, her grip warm and reassuring. "It's okay, Sharon. We've all been there. You'll move on, and someone will come along who will be yours truly."

As they stood there, the tension between them dissipated, replaced by a sense of understanding and newfound clarity. Sharon took a deep breath, feeling a weight lift off her shoulders.

"Thanks, Chandrika. You aren't a bad person."

Chandrika smiled, her eyes sparkling. "You're too not that bad, Sharon. Maybe we can be good friends."

"Yeah, maybe. But not until I win the competition. Till then you're my competitor,"Sharon said with a smirk

"All right then!"Chandrika said with a chuckle and added,"let's go back to the others. We don't want to keep them waiting."

With a newfound sense of resolve, Sharon nodded, and together they walked back towards the studio, ready to face whatever lay ahead.

************************************Here goes the update. Keep Reading and Keep Vommenting Guys.😘❤️