"Aishu? Your brother-in-law is...strange, no?" Annika asked her sister while spinning an apple around by the stem. She wanted to seem genuinely uninterested, merely asking for the sake of conversation, but c'mon. Strange? That's a little harsh, even if it is apt to describe him.
Aishwarya cocked an eyebrow in her direction. Oh, shit. She's caught. Pressing her lips together into a thin line, Annika looked down at the apple, busily twirling and twisting the poor stem torturously. Wait, do the stems of apples have feelings?
"Why are you asking about Shivaay, Ann?" Aishwarya asked as she fluently chopped the bell peppers and threw them into her husband's omelette. Forget apple stems, Annika. Focus on the mystery that is Shivaay Singh Oberoi.
"Just, aise hi. I just find him weird."
"Well, he's been through a lot. It's pretty obvious to anyone that he's disturbed as of late. The once workaholic Shivaay Singh Oberoi lazes around at home all day long, it is strange," Aishwarya agreed, stirring the bhaji she was preparing for lunch.
"Whoa! Shivaay used to work?" Annika asked, widening her eyes. Aishwarya looked at her with a weird grin. "You don't know? Shivaay used to manage Oberoi Industries with Om. He loved what he did. He'd wake up, eat breakfast, and shoot for the office. Sometimes, he'd forget to take Om along," Aishwarya chuckled.
"What happened?" Annika questioned. Aishwarya's face fell. She took a moment before choosing to reply. "That's not my story to tell, Ann. If he wants to tell you, he will. Excuse me, hon. Gotta go serve breakfast."
Aishwarya left the kitchen with a dull face, but a small smile nevertheless. Annika continued to twist the apple in her hand, deep in thought. Aishu seemed so sad when she was talking about Shivaay's old work habits. "Morning!" someone shouted from the entrance of the kitchen.
At that exact moment, the apple broke free from it's stem and fell to the floor. It rolled to someone's feet.
Annika looked up to find two people around the same age. There was a young man in a navy blue t-shirt and a girl in a bright purple anarkali.
"You're not Aishwarya Bhabhi," the young man stated. Annika smiled nervously.
"I'm Annika, Aishwarya's sister," she introduced.
The woman picked up the apple near her feet and handed it to Annika. "You're Annika?" the woman asked with a raised eyebrow.
Annika nodded. Wasn't that what she just said? "You look nothing like Bhabhi," the woman stated.
"Well, she's my step-sister. Um, you are?"
"Meera Thakur. This is my brother, Kushal," she stated formally. Kushal nodded his head in acknowledgment. He seemed friendlier than his sister, just from the kind of aura he threw off. "Aishu just went to the dining area," Annika offered up lamely. Meera shared a look with Kushal before proceeding outside.
"Sorry about her. Trust issues," Kushal smiled. Annika looked after Meera's retreating figure. "That much, I could tell." Kushal cleared his throat, catching Annika's attention. "You're from Italy, right?" Annika smiled and nodded, sparking up a conversation.
YOU ARE READING
Broken Hearts and Strange Girls || Shivika AU FF
Romance"Hearts will never be practical until they are made unbreakable." ~°~°~ He was a breathing body, a lifeless soul, a tortured zombie, without someone to call "home." His brother was the opposite. He dwelled in every mome...
