RADHE RADHE READER'S.
ENJOY THE CHAPTER.
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A few days later...
Nothing terrible happened.
No broken vase.
No accusations.
No punishment.
And yet...
For Abhimanyu...
These were the hardest days of all.
Because silence hurt far more than shouting.
---
Every morning...
Abhimanyu woke up before everyone else.
He quietly folded his blanket.
Got ready for school.
Packed his own bag.
And walked downstairs without making a sound.
Earlier...
He would jump onto Aarav's bed.
"Wake up, sleepyhead!"
He would steal Aanya's hairband just to annoy her.
He would race Vivaan to the dining table.
Now...
He simply sat in his chair.
Finished breakfast.
Whispered,
"I'm done..."
And left.
No one noticed...
He had stopped smiling first.
---
One morning...
Savitri placed another paratha on his plate.
"Eat one more."
Abhimanyu smiled politely.
"No thank you, Dadi."
"I'm full."
He quietly got up.
Earlier...
He would have hugged her before leaving.
Today...
He simply walked away.
Savitri watched him leave.
For a moment...
Her heart felt strangely heavy.
---
At school...
Anu found him sitting alone.
"Abhi!"
She smiled.
"Come on!"
"Let's play!"
Abhimanyu shook his head.
"You go."
"I have homework."
"You finished it yesterday."
"I know."
"I just..."
"I don't feel like playing."
Anu sat beside him.
"You're avoiding everyone."
"No."
"You are."
"You don't even laugh anymore."
Abhimanyu looked down.
"What if..."
"I make another mistake while playing?"
"What if someone gets hurt again?"
"I think..."
"It's better if I stay alone."
Anu felt tears sting her eyes.
"Abhi..."
"You're not a bad person."
He smiled.
"I know."
But the smile never reached his eyes.
---
That evening...
The Kapoor family called.
Jai answered with his usual excitement.
"ABHI!"
"I learned a new prank!"
"Listenโ"
Abhimanyu interrupted softly.
"I'm tired today."
"Maybe another time."
Jai blinked.
"...Okay."
For the first time...
Abhimanyu ended the call within a minute.
Jai stared at the black screen.
"That wasn't my Abhi..."
---
The next day...
Ishika called him separately.
The phone rang.
And rang.
And rang.
Finally...
Abhimanyu answered.
"Maan!"
"I've been trying to call you all day."
"Hmm."
"How was school?"
"It was okay."
"What did you eat?"
"I don't remember."
"Did something funny happen?"
"No."
Every answer was shorter than the last.
Ishika's heart slowly broke.
The boy who once talked nonstop...
Couldn't even continue a conversation anymore.
She smiled gently.
"Maan..."
"Show me your bracelet."
Without a word...
He lifted his wrist.
"It's still safe."
A tiny smile appeared on Ishika's face.
"I knew you'd protect it."
Abhimanyu looked at it quietly.
"...It's easier to protect a bracelet..."
"Than people's trust."
The smile disappeared from Ishika's face.
"Maan..."
Before she could continue...
He whispered,
"I have homework."
"I'll talk later."
The call ended.
Ishika continued staring at the blank screen.
She had never felt so far away from him.
---
Dinner that night...
The entire family sat together.
Conversations filled the dining table.
Aarav talked about school.
Aanya laughed with Vivaan.
Rahul answered Mira's questions.
Anu kept looking at Abhimanyu.
He quietly finished eating.
Placed his plate in the sink.
"Good night."
He started walking upstairs.
Rajendra looked up.
"So early?"
Abhimanyu smiled politely.
"I'm sleepy."
He wasn't sleepy.
He just didn't know how to be part of the conversation anymore.
---
Inside his room...
He sat beside the window.
The bracelet rested in his palm.
He whispered into the darkness,
"Maybe..."
"This is better."
"If I stay quiet..."
"No one will be disappointed."
"If I stop talking..."
"I won't say the wrong thing."
"If I stop laughing..."
"I won't annoy anyone."
"If I stay away..."
"Maybe everyone will be happier."
A tear slipped down his cheek.
"I miss everyone..."
"But I don't know how to go back."
---
Downstairs...
Anu watched the light in Abhimanyu's room remain on late into the night.
She whispered to herself,
"They think he's changing..."
"But they don't see the truth."
"My Abhi isn't becoming rude..."
"He's disappearing."
And for the first time...
The distance between Abhimanyu and the people he loved...
Could no longer be measured in steps.
It was measured in silence.
The Oberoi Mansion...
The silence that had settled over the house over the past few days hadn't left.
Abhimanyu had changed.
No laughter.
No pranks.
No arguments.
No running around the house.
He simply existed.
No one realized...
A child who once filled the mansion with life...
Had become afraid of taking up space.
---
That evening...
The children were playing cricket in the garden.
"Vivaan! Ball idhar!"
Aarav shouted.
"Rahul! Catch!"
The ball rolled toward Abhimanyu.
He quietly picked it up and walked towards Rahul.
"Yeh lo..."
Rahul snatched the ball from his hand.
"Mujh par ehsaan mat karo."
Abhimanyu lowered his eyes.
"Maine sirfโ"
"Bas!"
Everyone looked towards Rahul.
For days...
His jealousy had been building.
Today...
It finally exploded.
"Tumhe lagta hai sab tumse pyaar karte hain?"
"Tumhare liye sab soft ho jaate hain."
"Tum galti karo toh bhi tum hi bechare."
Abhimanyu's voice trembled.
"Rahul... maine kuch nahi kiya."
Rahul stepped closer.
"Jhooth!"
"Tumhari wajah se har baar ghar mein problem hoti hai."
"Tumhare bina sab kitne khush hote."
Those words pierced Abhimanyu's heart.
"I... I'm sorry..."
"Har baat pe sorry!"
Rahul grabbed Abhimanyu's wrist tightly.
"Face me!"
Abhimanyu winced.
"Rahul... dard ho raha hai..."
"Chhodo mera haath..."
"Nahi!"
For the first time...
Abhimanyu forcefully pulled his hand back.
Rahul lost his balance.
His foot slipped on the wet grass.
He fell backwards.
His head struck the stone border of the flower bed.
THUD!
"Aahhhh!!"
Blood trickled from Rahul's forehead.
Everyone froze.
Then chaos erupted.
"RAHUL!"
Naina rushed forward.
Mira covered her mouth.
Raghav immediately picked Rahul up.
Vikram came running outside.
"Kya hua?"
Rahul cried loudly.
"Papa..."
"Abhimanyu ne mujhe dhakka diya..."
The world stopped.
Abhimanyu's face turned pale.
"Nahi..."
"Maine dhakka nahi diya..."
"Maine sirf apna haathโ"
Vikram looked at him.
"Enough."
That single word made Abhimanyu fall silent.
---
Inside the living room...
The family doctor cleaned Rahul's wound.
"He'll be fine. The cut looks worse than it is."
Everyone sighed in relief.
Rahul sat beside Mira, tears still falling.
Abhimanyu stood near the entrance.
He didn't dare move.
He didn't dare speak.
Vikram slowly stood.
His expression was full of disappointment.
"Abhimanyu."
He walked forward with trembling legs.
"Ji... Papa..."
"Did Rahul get hurt because of you?"
Tears rolled down his cheeks.
"I... I pulled my hand away..."
"He fell..."
"I never wantedโ"
"I asked a simple question."
"...Yes."
Silence.
Vikram closed his eyes.
"I kept giving you chances."
"I thought you would understand."
"I thought you would learn."
"But every few days..."
"Something happens."
Mira looked away.
Savitri lowered her head.
Rajendra sighed heavily.
Aarav clenched his fists.
Aanya whispered,
"I can't believe this..."
Vivaan looked at Abhimanyu with disappointment.
Only Anu stepped forward.
"No!"
"Abhi aisa nahi kar sakta!"
"He would never push anyone!"
Vikram looked at her.
"Anu."
She shook her head desperately.
" Bade Papa, please..."
"Uski baat toh sun lijiye."
"He isn't lying."
Rahul immediately cried again.
"Maine jhooth nahi bola..."
Everyone's attention returned to Rahul.
Anu looked around the room.
No one believed Abhimanyu.
Not even his own siblings.
She turned to him.
Abhi...
"Please bolo na..."
"Please explain..."
Abhimanyu looked at everyone's faces.
Disappointment.
Silence.
Distance.
He slowly lowered his head.
"...Koi fayda nahi."
His voice was barely audible.
"No one will believe me."
Those words broke something inside Anu.
---
Vikram took a deep breath.
"From this moment..."
"You will stay in your room."
"No playing."
"No television."
"No going outside."
"You will remain there until I decide otherwise."
Abhimanyu's eyes widened.
"Papa..."
"Please..."
"I don't like being alone..."
"I'll apologize."
"I'll never fight again."
"Please don't send me away."
Vikram's expression didn't change.
"Go."
Abhimanyu folded his hands.
"Papa... please..."
"I didn't do it on purpose."
"I never wanted Rahul to get hurt."
"I swear..."
"I swear..."
No one answered.
Even Aarav looked away.
Aanya couldn't meet his eyes.
Vivaan remained silent.
Savitri closed her eyes.
Rajendra didn't speak.
Abhimanyu understood.
They all believed Rahul.
---
Slowly...
He turned around.
His tiny feet climbed the stairs.
Each step heavier than the last.
Halfway up...
He looked back.
Maybe someone would stop him.
Maybe someone would say,
"We believe you."
No one did.
---
Inside his room...
He entered quietly.
Vikram closed the door.
The lock clicked from outside.
The sound echoed in the empty room.
Abhimanyu stared at the door.
His lips trembled.
"They... locked me..."
He slowly slid down against the door.
Pulling his knees to his chest.
Tears refused to stop.
---
Miles away...
In Mumbai...
Ishika smiled while holding her phone.
"Butterfly Calling..."
The phone kept ringing.
No answer.
"Maan..."
"Pick up..."
The call disconnected.
She tried again.
No answer.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Still nothing.
Beside her, Jai frowned.
"Abhi kab se meri calls ignore karne laga?"
He dialed.
The phone rang.
Inside the locked room...
Abhimanyu looked at the screen.
Jai Calling...
His fingers trembled.
He couldn't answer.
He pressed decline.
A minute later...
Butterfly Calling...
His vision blurred with tears.
He touched Ishika's name on the screen.
For a second...
He wanted to hear her voice.
Instead...
He switched the phone to silent.
And placed it beside him.
He whispered,
"If Butterfly asks..."
"I'll cry."
"If Jai asks..."
"I'll cry."
"I don't want them to know..."
"How much I've disappointed everyone."
The room fell silent once again.
Outside...
The mansion was full of people.
Yet inside that room...
A little boy sat alone.
Not because he wanted to be.
But because he had begun to believe...
That maybe everyone was happier without him.
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