The Raizada dining room was a battlefield, Khushi’s words—“You let your mother bully her, and now you’re telling me I’m harsh? Maybe look at yourself first!”—hanging in the air like a thunderclap. Akash stood frozen, his face flushed with embarrassment, his eyes unable to meet Payal’s tearful gaze. Payal’s lips trembled, her heart torn between Khushi’s fierce defense and Akash’s stinging silence, her role as a Raizada bahu a heavy chain. Nani’s hands shook, her voice faltering—“Khushi bitiya…”—her sorrow deep as the family’s fractures lay bare. Manorama Raizada, her sneer gone, fumbled with her words, her face pale, her usual bravado shattered by Khushi’s raw truth. “Arre, hello hi…” she muttered, her voice weak, no taunt following, her confidence shaken.
Khushi, her bandaged foot throbbing, pushed her plate away, her appetite gone, her eyes burning with exhaustion and defiance. She gripped her puja thali, her resolve to escape to the Devi Maiyya temple reigniting. “I’m done,” she said, her voice low, trembling, as she tried to stand, her injured foot protesting with a sharp jolt of pain. But before she could move, Manorama’s eyes narrowed, her arrogance surging back like a tidal wave, her wounded pride fueling a venomous comeback.
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