Chapter 3: Unsaid Words and Cold Meetings

The conference hall at Bharat Electronics Limited was buzzing with anticipation. Engineers, team leads, and business executives were preparing for the final presentation and collaboration meeting between BEL and Suryavanshi Enterprises.

At exactly 3:00 PM, the doors opened quietly.

Poornima Rao walked in.

Dressed in a simple off-white cotton saree with a navy-blue border, her hair tied neatly in a bun, and a small black bindi adorning her forehead — she was the picture of quiet strength. No jewelry, no lipstick, no drama — just grace and self-respect.

Her eyes scanned the room, professionally.

Until they landed on him.

Veeresh Suryavanshi.

He sat at the far end of the long table, dressed in an all-black suit, silver cufflinks, and an icy cold stare. He looked every bit the powerful businessman he had become. And yet, for a fleeting second, his gaze flickered.

He saw her.

She didn’t flinch.

She didn’t smile.

She didn’t even acknowledge him.

Veeresh felt a strange pang — not quite anger, not quite guilt.

Just… something uncomfortable.

He watched her walk calmly to her seat at the head of the table.

No trace of the woman he once married. No mangalsutra. No sindoor. No weakness.

Only Poornima Rao.

His jaw tightened.

> "How dare she act like a stranger?"

"But I left her… I was the one who abandoned her. So why… why am I angry?"

He couldn’t understand the rush of irritation inside him.

---

The presentation began.

One of his managers explained the project proposal for the new AI-based surveillance integration. Poornima nodded, asked sharp, intelligent questions, pointed out flaws in the design with poise and precision.

He watched her in silence.

There was no tremble in her voice. No hesitation in her words.

She was nothing like the girl who waited alone in their wedding room, whose tears he never turned back to wipe.

> She had moved on. At least on the surface. And that—somehow—bothered him.

At the end, she took the pen, signed the approval sheet.

"Signed — Poornima Rao"

Not Poornima Veeresh Suryavanshi.

Not even Poornima Suryavanshi.

Just… Rao.

It burned something in his chest.

His fingers curled into fists. His lips parted—he wanted to say something, anything, maybe even lash out—

But then he stopped.

> "I left her. I humiliated her. I never even called her. Why am I the one getting angry now?"

She stood up and looked straight at the rest of the team.

“Thank you. Let’s begin phase one by next week. I’ll coordinate with your senior engineer.”

Not once did she look at him.

Not even a stolen glance.

And then she walked away — head held high, heart carefully locked — like he didn’t exist in her story anymore.

---

Meanwhile…

Veeresh left without a word, slamming the car door shut as soon as he entered.

The driver turned to ask something, but the look on his face said, not now.

The city lights blurred as they drove past. His mind wasn’t in the present.

It was with a woman who once sat alone on a decorated bed.

It was with a name signed on paper—Poornima Rao.

And it was with the sharp truth he had ignored for two years:

He broke her first.

That night, he poured himself a drink in his high-rise penthouse, but the glass remained untouched.

The city slept, but Veeresh stared into the empty room, wondering why her silence screamed louder than his guilt ever had.