That day, Vani dropped Jeev off at school and headed straight to the hospital.
Life was simple for Vani. It was just her and her son, and she was content in her little world—completely unaware of the storm that was about to enter her life once again. Let's see how Vani faces the storm named Jay Singh Rathore.
One Month Later
Manav barged into Jay's cabin, furious.
"Jay! What the hell am I hearing? You're getting engaged to Mittal's daughter next month? How could you do this?"
His voice was shaking with rage.
"Have you forgotten everything? You were supposed to find Vani and your son! We still haven't traced them, and now you're getting engaged?"
"What's going on in your mind? Just yesterday, you were desperate to meet your child—and today this? And of all people, you chose her? Mittal's daughter?"
"What's her name again? Yamini? Her name should've been 'Kamini'—it suits her more. You know very well how spoiled and arrogant she is. She only cares about money and parties. She has no value for relationships! And you're planning to marry a girl like that?"
—
Meanwhile, since it was Sunday, Vani and Jeev were both at home. Jeev was playing in the garden with Neesha while Vani sat with a cup of tea, switching on the TV with the remote.
She rarely watched television, only when she had nothing else to do or while sipping her tea. She preferred listening to songs or news. The dramatic, tearful family soaps with scheming mothers-in-law didn't appeal to her at all.
There wasn't any significant news airing at the moment. She was about to change the channel when suddenly, the face of a man flashed across the screen—and she froze.
Her eyes widened, and the remote slipped from her hand and fell to the floor.
The screen was displaying Breaking News: Jay Singh Rathore and Yamini's engagement had been officially announced and was now the top headline of the morning.
A wave of discomfort and pain hit Vani as she saw the news. Despite herself, tears began to fall from her eyes. A bitter smile crept across her face as she whispered to herself:
"You thought he would wait for you? He married you only to seek revenge. You must mean nothing to him now. He must've forgotten you long ago. And here you are… still carrying the weight of that fake relationship."
"It's better this way. There's no place for him in mine or Jeev's life. We're enough for each other. We won't let anyone else enter our world."
Tears flowed uncontrollably down her cheeks.
Just then, Neesha walked into the room, calling out, "Vani! Come see how much fun we're having! Come play with us!"
But when she reached near and saw Vani crying, she panicked.
"Vani! What happened? Why are you crying?" she asked, sitting beside her and trying to comfort her.
Jeev, confused by Neesha not returning, came inside as well. Seeing his mother in tears, he stopped in his tracks. Since Vani and Neesha had their backs turned, they didn't notice him.
Vani clung to Neesha and sobbed uncontrollably. Neesha, upon hearing Jay's name, turned toward the TV. Watching the news, her face twisted in rage.
At that moment, she felt like if Jay was in front of her, she would have killed him with her bare hands and surrendered to the police without a second thought.
But right now, her priority was to support Vani.
"Vani! Pull yourself together! You're crying for a man who doesn't give a damn about you?" she said, trying to console her.
Jeev looked at the TV. For the first time, he saw Jay's face. From Neesha's words, he realized—that's my dad.
He stared at the screen with hate-filled eyes.
"I won't let that man hurt my mamma again," he promised himself. "I hate him. I'll never forgive him for making my mamma cry."
Jeev then came up with a distraction plan.
"Mamma! Mamma!" he shouted as he ran over.
Hearing Jeev's voice, Vani quickly pulled away from Neesha, wiped her tears, and tried to compose herself.
"Mamma, come on! It's so much fun playing with us!"
He then turned to Neesha and said with a teasing tone, "Silly aunty! You came to call mamma, and now you're sitting here chatting!"
"And wait… you weren't tattling about me to mamma, were you? 'Cause if you were, then let me confess—the glass that broke at Elephant Aunty's house yesterday, that was both of us!"
Neesha glared at him playfully. "Stop it, you little mouse! Do you ever stop talking?"
Vani narrowed her eyes at both of them.
"And you blamed it all on me," Jeev went on. "You even argued with her! She came to our house to complain, but I scared her away with a threat. We both broke the glass, so you can't blame me alone this time!"
Vani folded her arms and glared at them.
"So, you two broke Mrs. Khanna's glass window, fought with her, and you threatened her, Jeev?"
The two kids gulped.