2. Eyes That Saw Too Much

Avya had always been exceptionally skilled at reading people. It was both a finely honed skill and a crucial survival instinct—a trait refined over years of navigating two vastly different worlds: one polished and corporate, the other brutal and unforgiving. She saw the truths hidden beneath facades, the quiet fears, the unspoken desires.

So when Naira, her best friend, pulled her across the bustling party floor, giggling like a child on a sugar rush, her excitement practically infectious, Avya simply followed. "You have to meet him!" Naira bubbled, her eyes sparkling. "My fiancé! He's wonderful, Avya, truly!"

Avya didn't expect much. Riaan Malhotra was just another name to her—a man with ambition, influence, and likely more ego than empathy, she had assumed. She certainly didn't anticipate anything beyond a polite introduction.

Until she met his eyes.

Dark. Observant. Guarded. They reminded her, startlingly, of herself. A recognition, not of a face, but of a shared depth, a carefully constructed wall.

"Avya Mane," Naira announced with proud affection. "My best friend, my backbone, my secret therapist, the one who always tells me the ugly truth." Naira squeezed Avya's arm, her grin wide.

Avya offered a faint, almost imperceptible smile and extended her hand. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Malhotra."

Riaan's grip was confident. Firm. But not overpowering. His smile was polite, yet his dark eyes lingered on hers, a flicker of something she couldn't quite decipher. "Likewise, Ms. Mane."

She held his gaze for a second longer than necessary, a silent assessment passing between them. That same flicker, that unsettling sense of recognition, stirred within her again—something she quickly, instinctively, shoved down. It wasn't attraction. It was a premonition, a quiet hum that something felt off.

Later, as Avya stood at the corner of the crowded room, a wallflower observing the intricate dance of high society, her eyes kept returning to Riaan. She watched him laugh with Naira, blend seamlessly into the wealthy crowd, move with a practiced ease. He was perfect. Too perfect. And if life had taught her anything, it was that perfection was almost always a carefully worn mask, hiding deeper truths.

It was much later that evening, amidst the winding down of the party, that Naira pulled Avya aside, her earlier effervescence replaced by a desperate, panicked whisper. "Avya, I can't do it. I can't marry him."

Avya's expression remained impassive, but her mind instantly sharpened. "Why not?" she asked, though she already suspected the answer.

"I'm running away," Naira blurted out, her voice trembling. "Before wedding when everyone leaves. He's waiting for me. My real love. I can't live a lie, Avya. You always told me to be true."

Avya felt a surge of cold anger, not at Naira for loving someone else, but for her cowardice. "Running away is not being true, Naira. It's an escape. It's abandoning your responsibilities and making others pay the price for your silence." Avya grabbed Naira's shoulders, her grip firm. "You need to tell him. Tell Riaan. Tell your family. Yes, it will be hard. Yes, they will be angry. But you owe them the truth, and you owe yourself the courage."

"I can't!" Naira choked out, tears finally spilling. "They'll disown me! He'll hate me! I can't break his heart by telling him the truth to his face. I'm too scared."

Avya's voice dropped, cold and clear. "Then you'll break it worse by running. You'll destroy not just his trust, but his dignity. You will shatter him and everything he believes in. And you'll leave a wound that festers. If you choose to run, I won't stop you physically, Naira. It's your life. But I cannot support that choice. You know where I stand on lies."

Naira pulled away, her eyes wide and conflicted, but the desperate longing to escape was stronger than Avya's counsel. "I have to," she whispered, and then she melted back into the dwindling crowd.

Avya watched her go, a grim certainty settling in her heart. She knew Naira wouldn't heed her advice. And a silent anger began to simmer within Avya. Not just at Naira, but at the injustice of the situation. At the lies that festered.

Weeks passed. The wedding preparations continued, a grand charade. Avya observed, her warnings unheeded, her unease growing. She did not intervene further, for she believed deeply that truth was a personal burden, and it was not her place to speak Naira's.

And then, the truth unraveled. Just as Avya feared. Naira disappeared.

And now, here Avya was—wearing crown of betrayal, not for love, but as a symbol of revenge, rage, and the devastating consequences of another's lie. Married, by force, to the same man she once silently judged across a crowded ballroom. The man who now, she knew, would face the full storm of her vengeance.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***