Chapter 13 – The Truth She Buried

Gayathri’s grip on Ravi’s shirt tightened as her breathing shook again, her tears still not stopping, her voice breaking between every word.

“Ravi… I feel too much… I can’t… it’s too much…” she cried, her face pressed against his chest.

Ravi didn’t stop her this time.

He didn’t interrupt, didn’t correct, didn’t even ask her to slow down.

His hand just moved gently over her back, steady, patient.

“Let it out, Gayu,” he said quietly. “Don’t hold anything.”

That was all she needed.

Her words started coming out, messy, painful, unfiltered.

“I… I wasn’t ready for the baby, Ravi,” she said, her voice trembling. “I told Rehan… I told him we can plan next year… I wasn’t ready…”

Ravi’s hand paused for a brief second, then continued, softer now.

“But he said no,” she continued, her grip tightening again. “He said we should do it now… because… because he found out…”

Her voice broke.

Ravi didn’t move.

He waited.

“Before my marriage…” she whispered, her breath uneven, “I loved someone… Rakesh…”

The name hung in the air.

“I met him during my degree,” she continued slowly. “He was… a good person, Ravi. He didn’t care about money… or status… he just… saw me.”

Ravi closed his eyes for a second, listening, not reacting.

“But my dad got to know,” she said, her voice turning bitter with pain. “And he said Rakesh is not our status… not our level… he threatened me… forced me…”

Her fingers curled into Ravi’s shirt harder.

“I had to break it,” she cried softly. “I didn’t want to… I tried to run away once… but I couldn’t…”

Ravi’s hold around her tightened slightly—not stopping her, just… holding her together.

“And then… he fixed my marriage with Rehan,” she whispered.

Her voice trembled again as she continued.

“After marriage… Rehan found out,” she said, her breathing growing uneven again. “He saw our photos… one where we were close… and… one where Rakesh kissed my cheek…”

Ravi’s jaw tightened, but he stayed silent.

“He accused me,” she said, her voice cracking. “He said I cheated him… I told him it was before marriage… I told him my dad said everything to him…”

She paused, her breath catching.

“But later… I found out…” her voice dropped, almost breaking into nothing, “my dad never told him anything…”

Ravi opened his eyes slowly.

“He didn’t believe me,” she whispered, her tears falling harder. “No matter how much I said… he didn’t trust me…”

Her body shook again.

“I had to contact Rakesh… I made them talk… only then… only then he believed me…”

Ravi exhaled slowly, his hand still moving gently on her back, grounding her.

“And after that…” she continued, her voice tired now, drained, “he suddenly wanted a baby…”

She let out a broken breath.

“I know why he did that,” she said softly. “He wanted to hold me… tie me… make sure I don’t go anywhere…”

Ravi didn’t respond.

But his grip around her grew firmer.

“I felt so… hopeless, Ravi,” she whispered. “That he didn’t trust me… that I had to prove myself like that… I couldn’t take it…”

Her voice cracked completely now.

“But I still got pregnant,” she said, her words filled with guilt. “And I felt so bad… about myself… about everything…”

She shook her head weakly.

“There were times… I didn’t even want to live,” she admitted, her voice barely audible.

Ravi’s hand stopped for a moment.

Then slowly, he pulled her closer.

“From childhood…” she continued, her voice hollow now, “I never enjoyed anything… it was always marks… ranks… pressure… scolding…”

Her tears didn’t stop.

“The only time I felt… happy…” she whispered, her voice softening painfully, “was with Rakesh… because he saw me… not my status… not my marks… just me…”

Ravi’s eyes lowered, listening to every word.

“And now…” she said, her breath uneven again, “even in my marriage… I didn’t feel that… not even with Rehan…”

Her fingers loosened slightly, but she didn’t let go.

“I always felt like I was proving something… again and again…” she said.

Silence followed.

Heavy.

Real.

Broken.

After a moment, her voice came again—soft, fragile.

“I’m sorry, Ravi…”

She didn’t know what she was apologizing for.

Her past.

Her pain.

Or the fact that she had just poured everything out in front of him.

But she said it anyway.

And this time—

She didn’t hold anything back.