Love Happens

Chapter twenty-five

Ladnun
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The weather intensified. It began to rain cats and dogs. The type of rain that hasn't heaped since forever. Shraddha and Anand got drenched with it before going into her home. He left her statement unanswered due to the unexpected heavy pour. Shraddha's mother was trying to draw the windows to prevent the rain from spilling in. But it seemed the windows were jammed.

Shraddha's eyes became a pool of tears. She couldn't contain the happiness of seeing her beloved, dearest mother just a few steps away from her.

"Mother!" she called out with joy.

Her mother stayed put in her place as her hand froze while holding the knob of the window. Shraddha began to approach her, looking very excited. Just when her hand was about to turn her around, she shifted from the spot and turned herself. She gave Shraddha a cold look. A look that lacked her motherly love for her.

"Who are you?"

That question wiped Shraddha's smile from her face.
"What do you mean? I'm Shra......"

Before she got the chance to complete her sentence, she ordered her to leave the house in a harsh voice. Her eyes moved to Anand that was standing near the entrance door.

"And take him with you. I neither have a daughter, nor a son-in-law."

"What sort of joke is this mother?" she gave a slow mirthless chuckle.

"A joke?" her mother used her hand in pushing Shraddha backward. Shraddha's eyes widened in terror.

"A joke?" she pushed her again. Shraddha missed her step and was about to fall had Anand did not hold her hand.

He gazed at her mother with anger loathed on his face because of how she was treating her in front of him. He would not tolerate seeing anyone hurting her, including her mother when he was around.

"What behaviour is this Ma'am?" he questioned in a ferocious tone yet, the respect he had for her as Shraddha's mother still darted in it.

"There's nothing wrong with my behaviour. My daughter isn't my daughter. She sold my respect and her father's respect when she agreed to be featured in a newspaper that tarnished her family's image. She doesn't deserve my love, respect, me, or her father's."

Anand latched his eyes close as he inhaled a deep sigh. He forced a low moan. His father concocted this mess. He tried to destroy another sweet family again. He unfurled his eyes. Shraddha cried silently while staring at her mother that was vetoing to acknowledge her presence.

"It is a misunderstanding. Shraddha had no fault."

"I respect you a lot. For the sake of that respect, take this disgrace away from me." she snarled.

Her tears percolated from her vision continuously without stop. It mopped her cheeks. The word, "disgrace" began to repeat in her head. Not only Poonam, even her mother was calling her that now. The woman that brought her to the world was calling her a disgrace.

"Am I a disgrace?" she whispered.

"Any woman that will agree to have her family's image tarnished for her in-laws is a disgrace."

Anand's blood simmered with rage. He held Shraddha's hand firmly and they spun to leave. As they were walking out of the house, her mother angrily clamored.

"Do me a favour and never return. You've already caused me enough pain. You destroyed your father's image. If you wanted a picture of him to confirm who he really is, you should have asked me and I would have shown you. Talking about it makes me want to curse you Shraddha."