Mad in anger
The car was running at a high speed and Navya didn’t know when and where Atharv would stop the car. She couldn’t tear off her gaze from him while he didn’t pay any attention to her as though she did not exist inside the car. His full concentration was on driving. The situation inside the car was awkward and no one was making a sound.
Navya was drenched in sweat due to fear, despite the air condition was on. She wiped the sweat on her forehead and finally gathered her courage to ask him “Why are you doing this?”
She tried to sound confident but she couldn’t control her voice to not being shaky. This time also Atharv didn’t say anything and just continued driving. He even didn’t look at her once. Navya was really annoyed by his behavior and raised her voice “Mr. Ahuja, I am asking you something?”
Suddenly Atharv pulled the brake and the car stopped with a jolt on the roadside. As she forgot to fasten the seatbelt, her entire body moved forward, unable to control the momentum and she hit her forehead on the dashboard. Feeling pain, she rubbed her forehead which turned reddish immediately. She turned her head to look at him, brows knitted tightly. From her expression, anyone could say that she was not at all happy.
Atharv also looked at her coldly. They were leveling a glare at each other, without a word. No one was taking back their eyes. Their breathing was heavy and anger was fuming inside their chests. After staring at her for a long time, Atharv finally opened his mouth and sneered “You are such a stupid woman. Don’t you know that you need to fasten seatbelt while riding a car? How careless you are?”
“Who asked you to hijack me like this?”
Navya was also angry and asked the question impulsively. But very soon she understood how hastily she acted just now. She covered her mouth with both hands and looked at Atharv in horror.
His razor-sharp glare daggered at her and his expression darkened even more. He just looked like a devil came out from the hell and was emitting a murderous aura. Terrified, Navya shrunk back on the seat but within a blink, she felt a tightness around her throat as he held her neck tightly. She was moving her head left and right holding his wrist and tried to free up from his grip but all her scuffles were futile. Her face turned red as she struggled to breathe. She pleaded “Mr. Ahuja, please release me.”
She slapped on his hand continuously, but his grip not loosened a bit. Gritting his teeth he asked angrily “How dare you to raise voice on me? Do you want to die?” He was so mad in anger that he didn’t notice her struggle. At that moment he just wanted to punish her for disobeying him and for shouting at him.
Navya’s vision turned blurry due to the lack of oxygen. After sometimes, her slapping on his hand turned into a slow tapping as she lost her power to struggle. Her eyes were closing slowly and she was on the verge of losing consciousness.
Then only Atharv noticed she was about to pass out. Panic, he immediately released her. Navya coughed vigorously and struggled to breathe. Tears streamed down through her cheeks while continuously trying to breathe. Perturbed, Atharv pulled her into his embrace and started patting her back. He was scared at that moment and regretted his action. Out of anger, he hurt her and he felt indescribable pain in his heart. She coughed for a few more times and finally, her breathing came to normal. Exhausted, she almost lost her all strength and rested her head on his chest. She closed her eyes and remained still in his embrace for a while.
Atharv didn’t release her and continued patting her back. After sometimes, Navya regained her senses and perceived that she was in his embrace. Panic hit her mind and she trembled vigorously. He was the man who tried to strangle her to death just now. He was a very dangerous person. In anger, he could do anything and even won’t hesitate to kill her. She was so scared that she didn’t dare to move a bit and her body stiffened into his embrace. Just then, she heard him asking “Are you alright?”
His tone was very soft. Navya’s heart thumped loudly to hear his tone. Shocked and surprised, she immediately lifted her head to look up at him, only to meet his deep brown eyes looking down at her affectionately. She was puzzled to see the tenderness in his gaze. How could be a ruthless man like Atharv, who was ready to kill her just now, have such sentiments? And that too for her? For a few moments, she couldn’t avert her gaze from his eyes. She was only staring at him like a stupid, speechlessly, mouth agape. ‘Am I dreaming?’ She asked in her mind.
After sometimes, Atharv regained his senses, and the tenderness in his gaze replaced by coldness, gradually. His face turned gloomy again. He pushed her back instantly and sat back on his seat straight, looking ahead.
Navya nodded in realization. She was indeed dreaming right now. How could he show affection to her? His heart was as cold as an iceberg. She was an idiot to think that this man could have warmth in his heart. Sitting down properly on the seat, she pulled back her gaze from him and looked outside. No one said a single word for a long time.
Atharv glanced at her and asked, “How was the dinner with your fiancé?” His tone was filled with disgust.
Navya turned her head and looked at him in disbelief. She couldn’t help but ask “Why do you care?” Her tone was unharmonious.
“Navya…”
He shouted instantaneously, feeling irritated. Just now because of her tone, he lost his temper and she was repeating the same mistake again. How dare she? He was darting a hot glare at her. Navya recoiled in horror and her left hand hit on the door handle.
“Ah…” Feeling sharp pain, she wailed immediately holding her hand.
Atharv’s eyes instantly drifted from her face to her hand and saw the blood-stained gauge. He frowned deeply and asked “What happened? How did it stain with blood? Did your fiancé torture you again?”
Navya immediately stopped crying and looked up at him. His eyes were bloodshot and his expression reflected both anger and displeasure. She swallowed hard in nervousness and continued staring at him with teary eyes. Within a snap of a finger, he grabbed her left wrist and looked down at it carefully. Looking up at her, he again asked sternly “You didn’t answer me, how did it happen?”
Navya’s heart was beating wildly to see the concern in his eyes for her. She wondered why this man had to care for her. She was missing all the time for such care and love from her closed ones but the irony was that other than hatred and resentment she didn’t get anything from them. But Atharv, he was nothing to her. Despite his cold nature, he showed care for her. This touched her deeply and couldn’t help but feel warm in her heart. If she could feel this warmness from Monty then she might feel happy but it was coming from Atharv, who was far beyond her reach. There was no comparison between them. She shouldn’t feel anything for him. Shaking her head, she said, “I accidentally tripped off and fell on the ground.” She lowered her head instantly after saying this.
Atharv’s brow furrowed wide in incredulity. He was sure in his heart that someone maltreated her, but he didn’t ask further questions. He released her hand and started the engine.
Panicked, Navya asked, “Where are you taking me now?”
“Hospital.”