Anika had no track of the time when she started working, the lunch was ordered by Rohan who was working with her. Since he ordered the lunch for her, she didn't have any opportunity to get off her table. But she got a call from tharra during lunch since she planned it with her, Anika denied it politely by telling her about her condition. She understood but Anika was guilty she promised herself that she will make it up to tharra.

Anika checked the time, it was 10 pm when she crossed the ground floor to reach the parking. Over then, she recalled telling Shivaay she will be back by evening, and its night, she ran towards her car without her knowledge and started her car. It took her exactly 18 minutes to reach home. She finally pressed the elevator button, but the lift door opened with surprise when she saw him before her in the lift, he was in his casual t-shirt and had his car keys in his hand. Also, he looked a bit tensed but relaxed after seeing her.

"What happened to your phone, Anika?" He questioned her the next second, her phone got switched off before 4 hours and she forgot to put it in charge.

"Switch off." She said in a low tone.

"The time is 10, did you know that?" He asked her, she remained silent and entered the lift. He pressed the floor number, and Anika could feel his tension through the way he spoke, after a long time, someone asked her for working late, when she started working, her mom used to call her every night but once she shifted to PG, she never asked her for working late. Sometimes, she even worked full day and night, just returning to her PG to change, during then, nobody even asked her, now when he asked to check the time, she felt strange as well as comforted.

"Had dinner?" He asked her. She knew he must have waited for her to have dinner.

"No. You?" She asked him in the same low tone.

"Waited for you." He said after a long pause.

"Sorry got held up with work. Please don't wait for me." She said while dropping her head down.

"I told you the same before 4 years, did you ever listen to me, then why should I listen to you?" He asked her, while then the lift door opened on the mid-floor, people started walking in, and their conversation abruptly stopped. They waited till their floor, when the lift door opened, his palm automatically held her palm and excused her outside. He didn't leave her arm till they reach their home, and she didn't think before holding him back with the same intensity.

They had dinner in silence, not with how it tasted, but sensing its smell, she could say who would have prepared it. She felt weird, he could feel it on his face and the way he served the food on her plate said something was deeply troubling him and it would be cent percent because of her.

"Election time, that's why it's late" She tried to start the conversation.

"I am not upset about this." He said while eating. She would have asked for the reason if everything was normal between them. But she remained silent.

"Why are you too hesitant to tell everyone I am your husband?" He asked her out of blue. She stopped eating and focused on him

"Why are you asking so?" She asked him.

"Did you know how I felt when it became too late and couldn't be able to contact you? Neither I could call any of her colleagues nor I could come over. Did I ever leave you in that situation, you had both of my friend's contact numbers." He asked her. She felt the concern in his tone, he wasn't controlling her but he was concerned, he was always careful with her, he always gave his friend's numbers to her in case of emergencies, and he was never hesitant to introduce her as his wife to anyone, even when she wore a cropped fancy t-shirt and stripped jeans while chewing gum and arrived to his office to meet him, she accidentally met his investors, then too, he didn't embarrass to introduce her as his wife to them.

Her heart prickled when the memories of his mature behavior with her made her tremble also she started to realize the facts. Eventually, it created fear in her heart, what if everything turns out to be her misunderstanding?

***

Anika didn't reply anything to him but stayed silent, neither she ate nor she replied. He felt wrong to ask her about that during their dinner time, but only he knew how he felt, he had none of her colleague's numbers to ask her about her status when her phone switched off. Neither he could go to her office and wait for her. When the time turns 10, he couldn't stop himself, he took his keys and decided to go to her office to check on her. Before that, she already arrived.

"Okay, leave it." He said, but she still didn't respond.

"Eat, Baby!" He again asked her, this time a little sweet. While then she took her phone and typed something completely ignoring him. He remained silent. He felt like hitting himself, at least, he would have handled it with some patience. Out of a sudden, she got up from her seat holding her half-done plate, and placed the phone back on the dining table.

"Baby..." He called her but she didn't respond. Soon his phone popped up with notifications. At first, he ignored it by concentrating on his wife but soon he got a call from his sister-in-law, bhavya. He couldn't ignore that.

"Jiju" She called him in a shocking tone.

"Yeah, Bhavya." He asked in a calm tone following his wife to her room, just to see her locked in the washroom.

"Didi posted the photo of your marriage on her official Instagram page. Did you see it?" Bhavya said, for a while, he couldn't understand. Keeping her in the call, he opened her profile, bhavya was right, Anika posted their picture which was taken in their pheras where both of them looking at the priest holding each other hand, both had that lopsided smile on their face, till that date, that was their favorite picture of their wedding, both looked so cute in that picture. The caption had their marriage date, an infinity symbol, and a red heart.

"Have you seen it?" Bhavya asked him, he couldn't speak for a while, she just posted that picture in the past thirty seconds when he asked about her hesitation about hiding him.

"Yes, I will call you later, Bhavya," He said and disconnected the call. When he was confused, Anika walked out of the washroom wrapped in the bathrobe. Even though she looked fresh and mesmerizing, he requires answers to his questions.

"I didn't mean it, Anika. Why did you do this?" He asked her when she stayed silent looking at him.

"You were right, Shivaay. Also, I will send my colleague's contact number tomorrow, now I am so tired, can I sleep?" She asked him, it was too unusual of her. He didn't reply anything but nodded yes, and she walked towards her suitcase which he arranged in the wardrobe.

"I arranged it in the wardrobe." He said, she walked numbly to the wardrobe. More than getting confused by her actions, he couldn't see her in that condition, as far as he knew about her, it would be not only difficult but it would be next to impossible to guess what was going on in her mind. She changed her clothes and walked towards the bed and dozed off while he watched her every move.

The news of his got married spread like fire, he got calls and calls continuously since he had no mood to reply anything to anyone but sent a message to her friends to handle it positively. And in a few minutes, their other marriage picture was posted in his account by his PR.

"I never wanted to force you for anything," He said and sat next to her where she was sleeping, he half sat next to her.

"Just trust me once and tell me what happened, I can't see you like this." He said while tugging her hair behind her earlobe when she was sleeping. Soon she turned around to him and threw her leg about his leg when he half sat and placed her head on his lap.

"What happened, Baby?" He asked her when she stopped trembling in his lap and got a contented sleep. But the tears formed in his eyes were never answered.

****

Again, Anika was the first one to wake up, but something was comforting over then, she figured it out she was in her husband's embrace, he held her tight to himself and she never wanted to wake up and stay like that forever, but it was his voice made her open his eyes.

"Wake up, Baby," he said and kissed her forehead. She opened her eyes.

"Come on, I will make coffee for you," he said while caressing her face. He didn't ask her with a loving face but a concerned face, she knew the reason behind his concern, It was her.

"I will do it." She whispered to him, she wanted to do it, she confirmed with one thing, neither she hated him nor she was angry, she was in a confusion and the confusion started to fade away. She would never be able to take it if it turn out just like her misunderstanding and confusion, she couldn't forgive herself for staying four years away from him and leaving him suffering.

"Okay! Let's go" he said and helped her to get up. She got freshened up and walked to the kitchen while shivaay waited for her in the dining where her mobile phone was kept last night, she was not scared but had no answer, what will she say if they ask her why she didn't stay with him for the last four years. The milk was already prepared, she just had to add sugar and coffee power as per the taste for them.

"I will drink normal coffee with you." He said and turned down her idea of preparing espresso for him.

"Okay." She said and walked towards them with two cups in her hand. Even though there were seats opposite to him, she took the seat which was next and close to him. She didn't know what was going on in her mind. But doing everything out of her control, both drank coffee without speaking with each other, her eyes were on her phone, he held it in his hands and gave it to her.

"It's okay. Tell them, you were away from me due to my busy schedule and also your parents staying here." He came up with the point of what she struggled with. Tears formed in her eyes and nodded no to him.

"I can't." She whispered.

"Why?" He asked her, even his eyes were welling up.

"I am confused." She finally opened up to him.

"About what?" He asked her.

"About us. I thought I hated you before meeting you, but after meeting you, I concluded that I can never hate you but just be angry with you..." She said and he listened to her carefully.

"But now, after spending time with you, recalling every single happy moment we led together, I can't say I am angry with you, all the points my mind made up against you proving the wrong one by one." She busted off, he held her palm tightly and looked at her, tears crossed from his eyes too.

"I don't know what's going on with me?" She finally spoke out.

"I can't forgive myself if we were separated for four years because of my misunderstanding" She finally told me.

"Baby! Let's put an end to everything, right now." He said while holding her palms.

"Just say what happened?" He said, her mind became blank.

"What led you to go away from me?" He added, she felt like he was digging the pain that was buried inside her heart out, before telling it to anyone, she should first build up the courage to face it by herself and she was not ready to recall the worst memory of her life.

***