**Chapter 16: Shadows in the Light**
Arjun returned to Hyderabad earlier than planned.
The Bangalore meeting had wrapped up quickly, and the moment he got into the cab for the airport, a restless unease took over him. Aanya hadn't texted much while he was away. One-word replies. Long delays. A cold wall he could feel even through the screen.
He hated that he noticed.
He hated that his first instinct was suspicion.
Still, he didn't message her that he was coming back early. Maybe he wanted to catch her off guard. Maybe he just wanted to see her as she truly was—when she wasn't performing the role of a wife under observation.
The apartment was quiet when he entered. Dimly lit. Aanya's sandals were by the door.
"Hey," he called out. "I'm home."
No answer.
He placed his bag down and walked toward the bedroom.
Empty.
He checked the balcony next. She wasn't there either.
Then he saw it—the phone.
Not hers. A second phone. Old. Cracked screen. And switched on.
He frowned. Picked it up.
There were just a few messages in it.
Most were blank.
But one, from an unsaved number, caught his eye.
**R:** *"Thank you for meeting me. I'm glad we still matter."*
Arjun's heart dropped into his stomach.
He knew. Instantly.
This wasn't a business contact.
It wasn't a friend.
It was someone from before him.
The bathroom door creaked open and Aanya stepped out, wearing an oversized tee, toweling her hair.
She froze the moment she saw the phone in his hand.
His eyes met hers. "Who's this?"
There was no dramatic explosion. Just silence—thick and poisonous.
"Arjun…" she began.
"Who is it?"
She reached for the phone. "Give it back."
He held it tighter. "Is this why you've been distant? Why you didn't tell me where you were going? Who's 'R'? Raghav?"
She went very still.
He laughed bitterly. "It *is* Raghav, isn't it?"
"I met him once," she said flatly. "For closure. He reached out, and I—"
"And you *met* him?" Arjun's voice rose. "You went behind my back and met your *ex*?"
She crossed her arms. "It was just a conversation. I didn't hide it—I just didn't volunteer it."
"That's the same thing!"
"No, Arjun. It's not. I don't owe you a report of every person I speak to. Especially not when I know how you react."
He stepped closer. "You knew it would hurt me. You knew what he meant to you."
"Yes," she admitted. "And I still went. Because I needed to know that I was done with him."
His face twisted. "Are you?"
She hesitated. "Yes."
Too late. The pause had already planted doubt like a seed in his chest.
"I trusted you," he said, softer now. "After everything… I was trying."
"And so was I," she shot back. "But trust isn't a one-way street. You follow me everywhere. You doubt every call. You interrogate me when I breathe wrong."
He flinched.
"You love me like I'm something you're afraid to lose," she said. "But I'm not a trophy, Arjun. I'm a person."
Silence.
Then he threw the phone onto the couch.
"Fine. Next time he messages, let me know. We'll invite him for tea."
And he walked into the bedroom, slamming the door behind him.
***
Aanya didn't cry.
She sat on the couch, staring at the broken phone like it held all her broken decisions.
She hadn't done anything wrong. Not really.
But she hadn't done anything right either.
She'd let a door crack open.
She'd allowed a ghost to walk in.
And now it haunted both of them.
***
The next morning was strained. They barely spoke.
Arjun went to work without saying goodbye. Aanya stared at her phone for a full ten minutes before throwing it back into a drawer.
Later that day, she decided to escape the silence and went to her parents' place. Her mother welcomed her with a tight hug, instantly noticing the storm behind her daughter's quiet eyes.
"You had a fight?" she asked gently.
Aanya nodded. "A big one."
"Over what?"
"Raghav."
Her mother's expression darkened. "That boy should never have come back."
"I let him in, Ma. That's on me."
Her mother didn't say anything for a moment. Then she handed her a cup of chai. "You know… you may not love Arjun yet. But he's trying harder than most would. That's worth something."
Aanya sipped her tea in silence, uncertain if it *was* worth enough.
***
Elsewhere, Arjun sat in his car outside his cousin Tanvi's place.
He hadn't meant to come. But his mind was a mess and he needed noise—any noise that wasn't his own thoughts.
Tanvi opened the door with raised brows. "Well, this is unexpected."
"I need a drink," he muttered.
Minutes later, a whiskey glass in his hand, Arjun sat slouched on the sofa while Tanvi watched him like a hawk.
"You fought," she said. Not a question.
"Yes."
"Over that Raghav guy?"
His head snapped toward her. "How do you know?"
Tanvi smirked. "Please. Shruti mentioned him years ago. Aanya's great forbidden love. Everyone in Pune knows."
Arjun's jaw clenched.
"She was young," Tanvi added casually. "But still. It's messy."
Arjun stared into his glass. "She met him. Didn't tell me. I found out from a phone."
"Classic."
"I just…" he shook his head. "I'm afraid, Tanvi. I look at her and I don't know what she's thinking. I try, but I never know if I'm getting closer or pushing her away."
Tanvi leaned in. "Then stop chasing. Stop fearing. If she loves you, she'll stay. If she doesn't, no amount of guarding will help."
He blinked.
"You're too smart to be this emotional," she added.
"You think I should give up?"
"I think you should step back. Let her decide. That's how you find out what she really wants."
***
That night, Aanya returned home.
She found Arjun in the kitchen, making tea.
He looked surprised but said nothing.
"I stayed at Ma's," she said.
"I figured."
"I needed time."
He nodded.
They stood in the silence.
Then Aanya took a deep breath. "I deleted Raghav's number. And the second phone. It's gone."
He looked at her.
"I'm not going to let a past that didn't fight for me ruin a present that's trying," she added.
He swallowed.
"I still don't know how I feel about us," she whispered. "But I do know I want to find out."
Arjun reached for her hand—tentatively.
She let him take it.
A fragile truce.
But even as they stood there, fingers entwined, Aanya couldn't help but wonder—
*What if trying wasn't enough?*
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**[End of Chapter 16]**