A U T H O R's    P O V  —

The car stopped with a jerk which led the girl sitting at the back seat open her eyes as she got the indication that she has arrived at her destination successfully. A smile automatically made its way on her lips as she glanced through the car's window.

Jaipur, her comfort place.

" After so long." she whispered to herself and got down the car as the driver took out her luggage from the diggy of the car. She thanked him as he gave her a smile.

"SHIVIII!!!" A loud shout was heard as it didn't take a second for shivika to recognize the voice and her smile widened watching her best friend running towards her with her open arms, welcoming her for a hug.

And they did. Her best friend, Sonali, threw herself on shivika's fragile figure making her stumble a little but still balanced herself and hugged her bestie back with the same feelings.

Oh how good it feels to finally meet her!

"Offoo, sona! She didn't even enter the house and you already are willing to kill her from your hug." Shivika's head turned towards the familiar voice as her eyes sparkled. Breaking the hug from sonali, she embraced the lady in her 50's, sonali's mother, rekha. Her second mother.

" Mumma, i missed you so much!! " Shivika spoke while not breaking the hug and making it even tighter. Tears brimmed in her eyes as she felt the motherly warmth after so long. The lady chuckled and hugged the younger one back.

But someone didn't like it and grabbed shivika back, breaking their hug. "haw shivi, that's not fair, i should be the one to get that first." Sonali scrunched her nose, cupping her slim waist making the other two present there to laugh at her antics.

Shivika pulled sonali's chubby cheeks as she hissed at the sudden attack on her cheeks. " But mumma is the one i missed the most and then you, meri jaan!" Shivika chuckled along with rekha who was admiring the duo after so long.

" Huh! I hate you! It's my wedding and you miss mom more than your bestie!" Sonali pouted while now shifting her hand towards her chest and folding them. " Achaa meri jaan, you are the one i was missing this much!" shivika said while opening her arms wide to show how much she missed her bestie, Her saviour.

Sonali chuckled and again hugged shivika, feeling her bestie after years. Their bond was unbreakable, since college days. No one shared such a bond like they both did. Sonali was the reason, shivika was still alive because if not her, then she would have given up so much sooner than she thought.

Rekha smiled at her both daughters, one biological and other no less than her biological daughter. She was happy still their bond was the same as the start. They were indeed the star of her eyes.

"okay okay, do this bharat milap later. Shivi, come you must be tired of traveling." rekha said and they finally parted away and shivika nodded her head and was about to take her suitcase when rekha stopped her.

"Don't, sona will bring it."

Hearing this, sonali's eyes widened. Is she really her mom or shivika's? Shivika giggled looking at sonali's not - so - pleasant expression and walked away with rekha leaving a huffing sonali there, at the entrance.

"dhokebaz , mom!"

(Betrayer)

She mumbled and finally dragged shivika's heavy suitcase inside the house.

Entering the lavish mansion of her best friend, shivika roamed her eyes, glancing at the things that have changed a lot after her last visit to Sonali a few years back. The interior was still the same but a little touch was given to the walls. New added show pieces, got her attention as she was fond of them a lot.

A smile was dancing on her lips as finally they entered the living room of the house where the elders were seated. Everyone's gazes shift towards her direction and a wide smile spreads on their lips.

" are shivika beta, tu akhir aa hi gayi, hum sab kabse betab the tujhse milne ko."

(Oh shivika, you finally came, we were waiting for you so eagerly.)

Shivika heard the old lady, sonali's dadi say as she walked towards her and shivika touched her feet, taking her blessings. The lady gave her blessings whole heartedly and engulfed her in a heart warming hug as the warmth of the hug spread in shivika's body.

"abh toh neri dusri beti bhi aa gayi, ab mujhe jyada dukh nhi hoga ik ko vida krne mein."

(Now that my other daughter has arrived, it won't be that difficult for me to give farewell to my other daughter!)

Shivika snapped her head towards the deep voice of sonali's father, no less than hers, Rahul. She ran towards him and rahul engulfed his second daughter with a wide smile dancing on his lips. Now the overwhelming feeling was too much for shivika to handle as tears flew down her rosy cheeks and her nose turned red.

Rahul broke the hug and wiped her tears with his thumb as shivika sniffed.

" I missed you a lot, papa."

They might not be the one who gave birth to her but they were no less than her biological parents who passed away when she was not even able to talk or walk. The way they treated her made her forget how badly and abusively her uncle and aunt have treated her, all her life.

If it were not sonali and her family, then shivika wouldn't be able to become what she is today. Her dreams were almost crashed by her uncle and aunt but sonali's entry in her life was a hope for her to achieve all her dreams and she did.

She made them proud.

"wahh bhai wahh! Dusri beti ayi nahi ke mujhe bhul gaye! "

(Just great, she just arrived and you all forgot about me!)

They all heard sonali's fake hurt voice and turned their heads towards her who wiped her fake tears in a dramatic way. Shivika laughed a little and sniffed. She was still hugging rahul when he opened his other arm wide for sonali to join them.

Sonali didn't waste a second and ran towards them and they shared an emotional reunion. Rahul felt completely hugging his both daughters. But was it complete yet? Nah, one more member was still left to join the father - daughters group hug.

"Betrayal!! Dad, you forgot your son? Big boss i am hurt!"

Ishaan, the most dramatic member of the goyal family. He was the eldest child of the goyal house but still behaved like the youngest. Their head snapped towards the son of the family who was standing at the stairs while his wife was behind him with their three year old daughter.

He pouted while folding his arms around his muscular chest while his wife, Sneha, shook her head and chuckled. Laughter filled the room as rahul motioned him to join them as well to which he ran like a kid and threw himself on the trio.

Now the family seemed complete. A happy family.

A family which shivika craved to have since her childhood.

TIME SKIPPED ~

Shivika was arranging her stuff in almirah while sonali was busy chatting with someone on her phone. Shivika glanced at her and shook her head. " i came after so many years and instead of chatting with me, you are busy chatting with someone else." shivika huffed while throwing a cloth at her making sonali's phone fall from her hands.

"It's not just SOMEONE." Sonali said while her cheeks spread with crimson on them as shivika raised her brow but soon smirked and made her way towards the bed. Snatching away sonali's phone she started reading the chats between her NOT JUST SOMEONE.

"hey! That's not appropriate to interfere with someone's privacy!" sonali snickered. Shivika rolled her eyes focused on the phone back.

"oh my, you never told me that my jiju is so handsome!!!"

shivika said as she clicked on the profile picture from the chat. There stood two men with a girl with wide smiles on their lips. She scanned each one and all of them looked so much similar to each other. But her eyes fixed on one particular one as something jumped inside her stomach.

She felt weird. Those dark brown eyes reflected a gaze which made her heart take a pace as she gulped and ignored the sudden unknown feeling. She was still staring at him when the phone was snatched away from her hands making her jump back to reality.

She placed her hand on her chest to feel her heart beat which was risen. What is happening?

"i-i was about to show you!" sonali stammered as a blush crept on her cheeks. "Oh hoo!! Someone is blushing! Achaa tell me which one is your man?" shivika said jumping beside sonali as sonali pointed at the other man who was standing beside the one which got her attention.

An unknown wave of relief spread in her body after knowing that it was not him which sonali was going to marry. It would be so weird to stare at her own jiju. She sighed in relief.

"by the way what do you think of him?"

Sonali said while pointing at the one which rose shivika's heart beat to an unknown pace. She glanced at the pic and then at sonali who gave her a smuggy look.

"what do you mean? Who is he?"

Shivika asked to confirm their relationship as she already could guess that they were siblings, but still. "It's arav' s younger brother, atharv and she is nitya, the youngest one amongst them." Sonali defined their relationship as shivika nodded while scanning the pic again.

"so tell me, what do you think of him?"

She again asked looking at her with the same face while shivika stared at his pic. Atharv, nice name. She thought.

His gaze is intimidating.

She was busy describing how she felt in her mind while sonali was observing her. How her weren't leaving his figure and only his, was new for her as shivika was never someone who would focus on boys that much which made a smirk spread on sonali's lips.

She shook her figure as shivika came out of her trance and gulped before sitting straight.

"what do you mean by, what do i think about him? I do not think anything about him" shivika said as she got up from the bed before making her way towards her wardrobe and took some fresh clothes out of it.

"You were focusing on him so much that's why i asked. You know if you both could set up, we will be able to live like jethani-deverani." sonali shrugged her shoulder off.

"shut up, none of it is gonna happen. I am not interested in getting into such things and you know the reason." And suddenly the atmosphere got thick. Sonali looked at shivika as she sighed when she made her way inside the bathroom, closing the conversation.

" How long are you gonna stay like this shivi? " sonali thought with a heavy sigh as she again focused on her phone while shivika went to change.

Some pasts are hard to forget, indeed.

DINNER TIME ~

"are beta aur khaa na, dekh kitni patli ho gayi hai!"

(Eat more, see how skinny you have become)

"no no mumma, i am more than full."

"no you have to. Eat more, shivi beta!"

"no mumma please."

Shivika and rekha were busy debating while everyone was looking at them. Sonali and ishaan looked at their mom, shocked. She never did that with them.

"Mumma, you never did this with us?" Sonali said while glaring at her mom who rolled her eyes. "tum doni pehle hi itna kha lete ho, puchne ki jarurat hi nahu padti. Apne papa pe jo gaye ho!" rekha finally after serving a chapati to shivika who pouted because her stomach was about to blast.

(You both eat already so much that I don't even have to ask you. After all you both have your father's genes)

"Han han we know. Whenever shivika comes, you forget about your kids" This time ishaan snickered as all of them others chuckled at his antics.

"Ishaan, you are a father now but still behave like a kid, what will your daughter think?" He heard his dadi say as he glanced at his daughter who was already looking at him with her doe eyes and soon burst into giggles.

"Dekhlo bhai, apki beti bhi ape has rahi hai!"

(See bro, your daughter is also laughing at you)

Shivika laughed.

" han toh! jab badi ho jayegi na tab vo apne papa ko samjhegi aur Meri side mein rahegi meri pari, haina pari?"

(So what? When she grows older, she'll understand her father and will take my side, isn't it pari?)

Ishaan asked his daughter with hope in his eyes while the baby could not understand anything but still nodded her head.

"y-ye-yeth p-papa!"

Kiara, the little one said in her baby voice as everyone awed at her. Ishaan looked proudly at his daughter and pecked her chubby cheeks.

"bhabhi i feel sorry for you."

Shivika said to sneha who was done with her husband's behavior but a smile was dancing on her lips because that was the thing which made her feel for him harder every single time.

Hearing shivika's voice, she turned her head in her direction with knitted brows.

"what do you mean, shivu?"

"i mean at this young age where you could have enjoyed partying and all, you are stuck with taking care of two babies. One with chotu body and another with a muscular body."

Listening to shivika's words, everyone burst into laughter as ishaan looked at her with wide eyes.

" shivi teri toh!! "

(Shivi you!)

Saying this, ishaan started running behind shivika who already ran away from there because she didn't want to die this soon.

"lo shuru ho gaye ye dono! Hey Prabhu, in dono ko thori sadbudhi dena!"

(Here they go again! Oh god, give them some brain)

Sonali dramatically said while others shook their head looking at the dog and the cat running in the living room with cushions in their hands.

Little kiara, who was on her mother's lap, looked towards her bua and her papa and

laughed at them both while clapping her little hands which made everyone look at her with a soft smile on their face.

Indeed, shivika brought so much happiness to their already happy family.

~~~~

To be continued ~

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