The next day, the air was thick with unspoken tension as Seema and Vikrant arrived at the party hosted by Vikrant’s father. The event was a lavish affair, held in the grand ballroom of a five-star hotel, with chandeliers sparkling overhead and the scent of expensive champagne lingering in the air. Vikrant had insisted Seema accompany him as his date, a decision driven by his grandfather’s request to present a united front. But beneath the facade of normalcy, the undercurrents of their strained relationship were impossible to ignore.

Seema wore a sleek black gown that hugged her curves, her hair styled in loose waves that cascaded over her shoulders.