Chapter 13

Siddharth laughed heartily at Raha's cute act, but it unintentionally brought tears to her eyes. Realising this, Siddharth immediately stopped laughing.

"Okay, I won't laugh anymore. Stop crying," Siddharth said gently, wiping away her tears with his palm. The touch of her soft skin against his hand made him pause for a moment.

"Let's go," Siddharth said as he held Raha's hand, guiding her to the car. He made her sit in the front seat next to him, and with that, he started driving. The weather was cold, and Raha began shivering.

Siddharth, focused on the road, didn't notice her discomfort. Clutching her body to ward off the cold, Raha sat silently beside him.

While Siddharth was solely focused on his driving, he couldn't afford any risks with her life due to his mediocre driving skills. In that moment, he wasn't just driving; he was carrying his life with him.

After some time, Siddharth glanced at Raha and noticed that she was shivering, yet deeply asleep. He promptly stopped the car in the middle of the road, bewildered at how she could sleep so soundly. "Idiot girl," he muttered while looking at her. He took off his jacket and placed it over her, then got out of the car and closed the window. Siddharth refrained from closing the window from inside, fearing that his proximity might wake her up.

Later, he got back into the car, ensuring to drive slowly as Raha was sleeping inside. Siddharth drove at an unusually slow pace, a departure from his usual driving style. After 35 minutes, they arrived at Siddharth's apartment.

Siddharth stopped and parked his car in his apartment parking. He glanced at Raha, deeply asleep. "Raha," he called her name, but she remained undisturbed, lost in her dreams. Realizing she wouldn't wake up easily, and perhaps hesitating to disturb her peaceful slumber, Siddharth decided against waking her. He got out of the car, opened the door from Raha's side, and gently lifted her in his arms. She felt lighter than any feather, almost fragile in his grasp.

He walked into his mansion, carrying Raha in his arms. Instead of placing her in the room where Raha had been staying since their marriage, he carefully laid her on his bed. Siddharth covered her entire body with a soft duvet. Afterward, he changed into his night clothes and retreated to his study room. Knowing that if Raha woke up in the middle of the night and found him there, she might panic, he chose not to sleep in his usual room.

In Siddharth's study room, he reclined on the sofa, immersed in thoughts of her—her face, her smile. Unbeknownst to him, sleep overcame him, and he drifted into dreams filled with her presence.

In the morning, Raha awoke gradually. As her eyes fluttered open, she rubbed them, only to be met with shock when she realized she was in Siddharth's room, lying on his bed. The memories of the night before rushed back, the uncertainty of how she ended up in his room lingering.

"Where am I?" Raha muttered, scanning her surroundings. The realization struck her, and she remembered the last thing she knew: being in Siddharth's car. The gap in her memory left her questioning how she had ended up here, in his room.

Anxiety gripped her as she recalled the night she had slept on his bed and how he had scolded her. Fearing his reaction, she hastily got up, wondering who had brought her to his room.

After that, Raha decided to return to her room, the one Siddharth had assigned to her after their marriage. As she walked outside his room, a delightful aroma reached her senses – the unmistakable scent of donuts.

"Donuts," she mumbled to herself, her curiosity piqued. She followed the tantalizing smell, and it led her to the kitchen. There, she discovered an array of donuts – chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, orange, mint, and more.

The sight of the varied donuts triggered memories of the previous night when Siddharth had callously consumed her precious donuts.

She entered the kitchen and noticed a maid at work.

"Excuse me," Raha called out to the maid.

"Yes, ma'am," she replied.

"Can I have one donut, please?" Raha asked the maid politely.

"These donuts are all for you, ma'am. Sir instructed us to make them for you," the maid explained, leaving Raha in shock. She couldn't comprehend Siddharth's sudden change in behavior.

Raha walked toward the kitchen exit, but the maid stopped her.

"Ma'am, won't you eat them?" the maid inquired.

"I haven't brushed my teeth yet. I'll do that first," Raha replied, continuing on her way to her room.

After getting freshened up, Raha came to the hall when a maid called her to have breakfast. She sat at the dining table, and a maid brought lots of donuts along with some strawberry milk in a pink shade. Raha became extremely happy upon seeing them. She started eating with delight, completely lost in her breakfast. Unbeknownst to her, Siddharth had come to the dining table, observing her. He found her very cute while enjoying the donuts.

"Do you like them?" Siddharth asked her.

"Too much," Raha replied after a second, looking at him, and then realizing it was him whom she talked to. "You!" Raha exclaimed.

"Yes, me. Now eat," Siddharth said. However, she found it challenging to eat with him staring at her. It became an awkward situation.

"Eat," Siddharth insisted when he noticed she wasn't eating. "I'm late for college; I should leave now," Raha replied.

"I will drop you. Now eat," Siddharth said to her. A maid placed his breakfast, a healthy one with some salad, in front of him, and he started eating. Raha was confused about why he wanted to drop her; she didn't need him.

"Eat," Siddharth insisted when he noticed she wasn't eating anything.

"I will go by myself; I don't need you," Raha replied to him because she didn't want his presence at all.

"Even I'm not asking you," Siddharth replied coldly.

"Huh?" Raha was shocked.

"And one more thing," Siddharth said sternly, looking at her. She got scared at his gaze and looked down.

"Don't you dare to tell Abhay that you are with me. Tell him that you are at his apartment, okay?" Siddharth said.

"Why would I lie to him? I won't," Raha replied.

"Do as I said, Raha. Don't make me angry," Siddharth warned while getting up from his chair.

"I'm waiting outside in the car; pack your bag. I will drop you at college," saying this, Siddharth left. He didn't give a chance for Raha to reply.

After 10 minutes, Raha packed her stuff and got into his car. Siddharth waited for her patiently, staring at the car. There was deep silence in the car. He wanted to talk to her, but he knew she wouldn't reply, so he decided to keep quiet.

After some time, they reached her college. Raha immediately opened the car door as she wanted to vanish from his eyes as soon as possible.

"Wait," Siddharth stopped her. She looked at him.

"Remember my instructions about Abhay," Siddharth reminded her.

Raha nodded.

"Now go, and I will come to pick you up," Siddharth said.

"I will come by myself," Raha said.

"Did I ask you to do that?" Siddharth replied. Raha decided not to argue with him; she just left from there.

In college, Raha was very confused by his behavior. Why is he suddenly so changed? She knows that he married her only for revenge against his ex-girlfriend, nothing else. Then why is he behaving like an ideal husband? Why?

Her college ended a little earlier today because she had a free lecture. She didn't want to call Siddharth and ask him to pick her up, so she decided to work at the cafe. She went there and worked until her college time.

She didn't want Siddharth to know that she works at the cafe. When her college time ended, she left and saw Siddharth waiting for her. She got into his car, and there was silence again.