"Oh...She is the boss' fiancee." Keshav blatantly lied to her face.

Sneha's head turned towards Keshav in a flash. Surprise, confusion and disappointment clouded her vision.

"Viraj is engaged?" 'Again', she wanted to add but refrained.

"Yes, ma'am. His father forced him to marry after your divorce with him." Keshav lied again while noticing her expression closely. If he finds any jealousy, he will surely let Viraj know about it. He had seen Viraj long for her all these months and he really wanted the both of them to get together...but with mutual understanding, of course.

Sneha visibly gulped.

"Oh!" She slowly murmured while looking at Viraj drive away with that girl.

"You look...sad?" He asked, faking concern.

Sneha faced him again.

"Why would I be sad?" She faked a chuckle.

"Jealous, then?" Keshav playfully asked.

Sneha rolled her eyes. They had always been playful when he was her full-time guard, months ago.

"I am not jealous! It's just that...I didn't expect him to get engaged to someone else... It hasn't even been a year." She murmured, still trying to digest the news.

"He is over 30 now. His father must want him to start his own family." Keshav added.

The image of Viraj living a happy married life with kids flashed through Sneha's eyes.

And, she would hate to admit it, but she felt a pang in her heart to even visualize it.

With a heavy heart, she replied.

"Well, I am happy for him. I really wish both of them to be happy with each other." She said with a small smile. What else could she say?

Keshav sighed. He really hoped that she would make a fuss out of it and then her jealousy would be taken advantage of to make her realize her feelings for him. But, alas! He didn't care to correct himself since he found it futile.

"Ms Sneha, your father is conscious now." The nurse informed her and Sneha literally ran in the said direction.

.

.

.

They were correct when they said that the thing that has gone from our lives appear more beautiful and attractive. That's what Sneha felt right now.

Viraj daily came to check on her family members and indirectly get an update on her health too. The doctors had recommended they be admitted for at least two weeks till everything settles or at least become stable in all aspects.

In a way, she was glad that Viraj was still concerned about her family members despite being engaged to someone else. But, the way he ignored her, hurt her every time he would look away from her as if she repulsed him.

This time too, as she saw him from the corner of her eyes entering the corridor, she looked at him but he turned his gaze away after looking at her once involuntarily. Her eyes lowered.

'Isn't this what you wanted?" She found herself asking.

'I did...but...' She had nothing to say in defence of her strange feelings.

Viraj went inside the ICU where her father was resting. The doctor followed him to give the updates. Unlike yesterday, she didn't follow him inside. She knew enough about her father's health's progress. Moreover, she didn't think she could handle his rude ignorance again and again. It affected her more than anything.

'But, this is what you wanted?" She found herself asking again. Her jaw tightened since she was speechless again.

After about ten minutes, she saw him come out. As expected, he didn't look in her direction and walked straight in the direction of the reception.

"Excuse me, your father seems to be gaining consciousness again." The nurse informed her and she followed her back into the room.

Sitting beside her father, she was about to hold his hand when she saw a smartphone at the edge of the bed. As far as she remembered, it looked like Viraj's phone.

"Whose phone is this?" She asked the nurse who was changing the glucose bottle on the stand.

"Uhh...I am not sure. I'll just ask outside." The nurse answered.

"I think it is Viraj's..." She murmured and held it in her hand.

"I'll come in a minute." She informed the nurse.

"I'll give it ma'am. You need not worry." She insisted.

"No, it's fine. Please take your time in changing the bottle." Sneha said and walked out of the room. She saw, just in time, Viraj turning around the corner. Running behind him, she couldn't help but wonder.

'Why are you running after him, Sneha? You can ask Keshav to give it to him too.'

'He has helped me so much. Can't I at least return his phone back?' She answered herself.

Sneha sighed at her own strange behaviour.

The slight vibration of the phone made her look at the phone's screen. She couldn't see the details of the message since the notifications were hidden. But, she did notice the wallpaper of a white rose.

'Why did he change his wallpaper? And that too to a flower?' She wondered.

"Viraj!" She called for him when he was significantly close to her.

Viraj stopped in his tracks. Putting his hands in his pants pockets, he slowly turned around to face her.

Sneha had to gulp hard because he looked so beautiful today...and highly attractive. She hated to admit it to herself. He had that light stubble that suited him and gave him a mature look.

His gaze fell on her eyes first and then followed to his phone in her hand. Maintaining the fake strictness, he forwarded his right hand to get back his phone.

No words were exchanged.

"You left it on the bed." She finally mumbled lowly and gave it to him.

He didn't reply and was about to hold it when she left the phone a little too early. However, both were quick to hold it before it could fall on the floor. In the process, his hand engulfed hers as she held the phone safely.

Viraj was cent per cent sure that she would behave as if the touch burnt her. But, she surprised him by giving a light awkward smile...but it was a smile.

"Sorry." She apologized for her clumsiness.

Maintaining a small smile, she looked at him briefly and slowly turned around to go back to her father.

She had taken a few steps when she suddenly remembered the identity of the white flower that she saw on his phone's screen.

It was the first flower that she had given him. She remembered that day as clear as the clear sky.

'Did he preserve it?' She thought and the mere thought, in a way, warmed her heart...strangely. Turning around, she looked at him in surprise. What should she do if he really did preserve it? And, why was he keeping it when he was engaged to someone else now?

The questions bothered her as her gaze remained locked with his.

Viraj was more confused than elated to see her staring at him like that. But, keeping his promise to her, he turned his gaze away and resumed his walk towards his car.

As Sneha entered the ICU, she touched her chest, above her heart curiously.

'Why is my heartbeat so fast?' She wondered.

'You have gone crazy, Sneha.' She scolded herself.

.

.

.

"You look happy!" Gaurav commented as he saw Viraj enter the office.

Viraj looked at his friend and his smile widened.

"Why are you here?" He asked.

"Just wanted to give you some papers."

"Oh."

"So?" Gaurav indicated towards his initial question.

"What?"

"Why this smile? You are literally smiling after so many months!"

"I smile daily." Viraj chuckled.

"Not like this."

"Whatever."

"Tell me..." Gaurav still insisted with a smile.

Viraj sighed. In a way, he was excited to share today's event with someone.

"Sneha smiled at me."

Gaurav's smile fell as he heard his friend talk about the woman who had literally ruined his life. He hated Sneha since the day he came to know the way she played with Viraj's innocent feelings...no matter what her reasons were. His friend was everything to him and he knew how much Viraj loved her.

"Sneha?" He asked to reconfirm.

"Yup. She smiled at me. I think it is a good start...Don't you think?" Viraj asked hopefully. And, Gaurav couldn't break that hope.

"Why did she smile at you?" He asked.

"She was returning my phone that I forgot in her father's room. Our hands touched briefly and I thought she would shout at me again. Instead, she surprised me with her beautiful smile." He explained as the smile remained static on his lips.

Gaurav forced a smile when he looked at him with hope. He looked at Viraj as he took the engagement/wedding ring out of his pocket and put it on his finger again.

"I think...she has started developing feelings for me. What do you think?" Viraj asked as he caressed his ring.

"Why are you still wearing it?" Gaurav asked while ignoring his question.

"What?"

"Why are you still wearing the ring?"

Viraj chuckled at Gaurav's grim expression.

"I wear it daily."

"Yeah, why?"

"What sort of question is this, Gaurav? This is my wedding ring."

"You both are divorced!"

"Not for me. She will always be my wife."

Gaurav rolled his eyes in frustration.

"How many times should I tell you that she will not come back to you?"

Viraj sighed.

"I know she will."

"How and why? Why would she come to you when she wants nothing to do with you."

Viraj remained silent for a moment before he spoke.

"On the day when she asked for the divorce, she told me that if my love for her is true, then the entire universe will make her come back to me. And, I know that my love for her is true."

"That's bullshit." Gaurav exclaimed.

"That's my hope." Viraj mumbled lowly. But, Gaurav heard him.

.

.

.

"Hey, Sneha!" Jyoti greeted Sneha who was waiting for her in the cafeteria of hospital. Keshav had given her some privacy to talk to her friend who had informed her about her arrival.

Sneha instantly stood and hugged her friend to exchange pleasantries.

"How is uncle, now?" Jyoti asked and Sneha then explained the entire story of how Viraj helped her out in the grave situation.

"Wow. Even though that sounds strange but thank God that Viraj came to help you." Jyoti commented after a short pause. It was difficult for her to digest the update.

"I know... What about you? How is the PhD going?" Sneha asked.

"A little hectic. The next three months are given to us to select our research project and propose the idea to the supervisor. So, I decided to do my research here in Mumbai instead of Delhi where most of the students are working. In this way, I'll be close to my family too."

"Yup, good idea. So have you finalized your project?"

"Not yet. I plan to go on a small trip in the countryside and see if there is any patch of land that suits my work." Jyoti said.

Sneha nodded and then decided to order coffee. She had just looked in the direction of the waiter when she saw another familiar face approach her. So, she stood up in acknowledgement with a gentle smile.

"How much more do you want?" Gaurav almost shouted at her, making her smile falter.

"What?" Sneha asked, knowing that everyone in the cafeteria was now looking at them. Even Jyoti stood up in surprise.

"Don't act, Sneha and tell me, how much more do you want?" Gaurav repeated himself. His tone and posture screamed anger and hatred for her.

She had never known that Gaurav disliked her so much!

"I don't understand what are you talking about!" She still maintained politeness.

"How much more money do you want to let go of Viraj completely?"

The question stunned her...and more than anything, it hurt her. That man was not leaving her mind these days at all, even when she tried her best, and here, Gaurav was accusing her in the worst way possible.

"I don't want any money, Gaurav. And, I am not holding on to him." She slowly and awkwardly defended herself.

"Then why are you giving him hope?" He asked in frustration.

"What did I do?" She asked hopelessly.

Gaurav took a deep breath to calm himself.

"You know he loves you. So, if you are not planning to accept him, then stop giving him hope for it. Don't go near him...Don't smile at him...Don't talk to him. Because these simple things affect him to the core. I have seen him at his lowest moment because of you and I don't want him to suffer that again."

Sneha didn't know what to say. She just bit her lip and accept the accusation because she somehow knew that she did all of the above intentionally.

"How can you be so selfish, Sneha! I actually believed that there was finally someone who would understand and cherish Viraj for who is. He would finally trust someone and be happy."

Sneha had heard enough now. Why are they calling her selfish?

"I was forced into the relationship....threatened by his father and him" She retorted.

"But you were not forced to play with a man's feelings!"

"I had no option!" Sneha whined.

Gaurav bitterly chuckled.

"Your victim card may work on my love-sick friend, Sneha, But not me."

Sneha's eyes started watering, but she managed to keep them at bay.

"Love can't be forced, Gaurav."

"Then, love must not be played with either. You played with his innocent love for you and gave him false hope...the hope that he had been wanting his entire life after his mother died! Believe it or not, Sneha, but you broke a heart and someday you will pay for it and suffer the same heartbreak that my friend went through."

"What would you have done at my place? If you were threatened..."

"You must have told him everything. He loved you and he would have done anything for you."

"I did tell him and in return, I just got further threats."

"And you couldn't find a better time for that? What do you expect from a man who sees his fiancee running from the marriage hall? Do you not know how embarrassing it is for any family to cancel the wedding just because either the groom or bride has run away? It is not just disrespectful to the bride's family, Sneha. The groom's family suffers the same societal embarrassment."

Sneha had nothing to say now. In a way, his accusations made sense to her.

At the same time, Keshav entered the cafeteria and saw the commotion. He ran towards Sneha to understand why Gaurav was shouting at his boss' wife!

"Sir, boss didn't tell me that you were coming to meet ma'am!" Keshav asked politely.

"Oh, so Viraj is still providing you security." He spoke while looking at Keshav briefly.

"You are one lucky girl, Sneha. You have a man completely entangled in your charm and whom you can play with on your whim." Gaurav said bitterly.

Keshav immediately piped in.

"Sir, you can't talk to her like this." Keshav said gently yet sternly.

Gaurav looked at Keshav momentarily almost challenging him.

Stepping closer to her, Gaurav spoke again.

"Now that I think about it, you are the unluckiest girl in the world Sneha. You broke the heart of a man who truly loves you. You lost him. But, if you still have any shame left in you, then the least you could do is apologize to him for whatever you did to him. My friend doesn't deserve to live with hopeless expectations. Please free him and let him live happily too." Gaurav almost begged.

He threw a glance at Keshav before turning around to leave.

Sneha continued looking at the floor in embarrassment. Everyone was looking at her.

She had always believed that she had not wronged Viraj in any way. Then why were Gaurav's words getting on her nerves?

"Ignore it, ma'am. I'll inform the boss about Gaurav sir's disrespectful behaviour with you." Keshav said and took out his phone to call Viraj.

Sneha quickly stopped him from making a call by keeping her palm over his phone's screen.

"Don't tell him, Keshav."

"Why? No one is allowed to talk to you like that!"

Jyoti looked at Keshav and was in a way stunned by his loyalty towards Sneha.

"It was a best-friend talking. You should be happy that Viraj has such a faithful friend...He wasn't wrong completely." She mumbled the last statement.

"You weren't wrong either!" Keshav almost whispered.

Sneha gave him a small smile.

"We'll just go and check on Priya. Meanwhile, don't tell Viraj anything about this, okay? I don't want to ruin their friendship." Sneha almost ordered him.

Keshav sighed.

.

.

.

Sneha played with her phone as she sat on the bench outside the ICU.

Gaurav's words played in her mind continuously.

'If you still have any shame left in you, then the least you could do is to apologize to him for whatever you did to him.'

The more she thought about the past months and the days she spent with Viraj, the more she found herself guilty...maybe not completely, but she couldn't meet her own gaze as she recalled how she fooled him and led him on to believe that she too loved him.

He had always trusted her blindly. All her lies and cooked-up stories...he believed them easily.

He would always try to make her smile. To make her feel special, he even went beyond his capabilities to learn how to be or act romantic!

She had always thought of his love as mere infatuation. It suffocated her because she had no free will or choice.

But now that there was no compulsion, she finally could see everything in a new light. The way he helped her, supported her and guided her through her most difficult times, made her realize what she had always wanted for herself.

He did love her unconditionally.

Even now, when they have had the divorce, and he was engaged to someone else, he didn't let her suffer alone. He cared for her without expecting anything in return.

She wondered if she had another chance with him, would she accept it?

'What are you thinking, Sneha? Have you gone mad?' She scolded herself for even thinking of having a relationship with him. His true identity was not hidden from her. He was a criminal, involved in shady works and who can go to any limits to get what he wants.

'But he loved you.' She told herself.

'He is engaged to someone else, now. I can't ruin their relationship just because I ...' She didn't want to accept it.

Her thumb grazed over his contact number on her phone's screen.

"You too wronged him, Sneha. You should at least genuinely apologize to him." She told herself and finally, mustering a lot of courage, she made the call.

Bringing the phone near her ear, she held her breath, waiting to hear his heavy voice.

She could hear her heartbeat loud and clear. Was she scared or excited...she couldn't differentiate.

But, her hope nosedived when she heard the three long beep sounds, indicating that he cancelled the call.

'Is he busy?'

'Should I call him back?'

'Did he cancel my call intentionally?'

'Did he by mistake cancel my call?'

Sneha started overthinking.

'Viraj won't cancel my call!' She thought confidently.

"Ma'am?" Keshav came running in her direction.

"Yes?" She asked in concern.

"Were you calling boss?" He asked in surprise.

"Uhh..." She gulped in embarrassment before nodding nervously.

"Why? Do you need anything?"

"No."

"He is asking if everything's alright."

"Yes. I just wanted to...nevermind." She mumbled while realizing that he indeed cancelled her call.