"Robin, let's end this cleanly and sign the divorce papers."
"Aisha, it's Ma's 60th birthday today. Her heart's weak. Can we talk tonight, please?"
"When I beg you, Robin!"
Robin Seth looked at the woman he'd loved for ten years, his voice low, steady, but laced with hurt.
The rich aroma of Hyderabadi dum biryani, sizzling seekh kebabs, and sweet sheer khurma wafted through their upscale Banjara Hills apartment. The dining table sparkled with silver trays, a towering chocolate cake at its heart, its icing gleaming under the LED chandelier. Outside, Hyderabad's monsoon rains lashed the glass walls, blurring the neon glow of HITEC City's skyscrapers.
Around the table sat Aisha's refined parents, Joseph and Margaret Fernandes, her cocky brother Daniel and sharp-tongued sister Clara, alongside Robin's mother, Sarita Seth, in a simple cotton saree, and their five-year-old daughter, Tara, her eyes glued to the cake's gooey layers.
Then there was Vikram Malhotra, Aisha's old flame—her "First Love"—fresh off a flight from London, whom she'd picked up from Rajiv Gandhi International Airport hours ago.
Aisha's kohl-rimmed eyes flickered with doubt, but she shook her head. "We need to sign now, Robin."
"Robin beta, Aisha, what's with the whispering? Come, let's eat!" Sarita called, her voice warm but frail, her hands trembling from her heart condition.
"Papa, Mummy, Tara's hungry!"
Robin glanced at his mother and daughter, his chest tightening. "You want a divorce, fine, but can we at least get through Ma's Birthday meal first?"
Aisha's manicured brows arched, a hint of disappointment flashing as she saw Robin's calm, almost too-rational demeanor. He wasn't the fierce young man she'd known. Or so she believed.
Ten years ago,
Robin Seth was a whirlwind. At twenty, he ruled Hyderabad's underworld, running betting dens and pearl smuggling from the Old City's maze to Secunderabad's docks. His sharp mind outsmarted rivals and cops, his name a whisper of fear and respect.
Aisha, then eighteen, was a college freshman, working shifts at one of Robin's swanky bars near Hussain Sagar to fund her dreams, her eyes alight with ambition under Hyderabad's neon glow.
Now,
Aisha ran Fernandes Enterprises—a glittering empire of luxury salons, trendy clubs, and Tollywood production deals, mingling with Hyderabad's elite at rooftop bashes in Gachibowli. Her face graced billboards, her Insta reels racking up millions of likes.
Robin? After Operation Clean Sweep crushed Hyderabad's gangs in the late 2000s, he'd faded out. Now a stay-at-home dad, he drove Tara to school in their old I10, cooked dal, and scrolled X for cricket updates. To the world, he was a nobody, left behind by Hyderabad's tech boom.
But Robin was no ordinary man. Beneath his casual tee and easy smile, he was a modern genius who'd fused ancient wisdom with cutting-edge tech. His mastery of Ayurveda went beyond herbs—he'd built an AI-driven health app, blending ancient diagnostics with smartphone sensors to read vitals like pulse and stress, masking it as a "hobby" side project. His Kalaripayattu, the ancient martial art that birthed Kung Fu and Karate through Bodhidharma's journey to China, wasn't just tradition. Robin had modernized it, merging its fluid strikes with HIIT, parkour, and VR combat simulations, training in secret to achieve Siddhi—perfection—where mind, body, and tech became one.
They were worlds apart, Aisha thought.
Worse, her first love, Vikram, was back. The man who'd filled her teenage heart with poetry under Charminar's arches had returned. She'd vowed to end this rushed, family-pressured marriage the moment he landed.
What Aisha didn't know was that her empire rested on Robin's shoulders. His old underworld ties secured her business permits, his quiet calls to politicos blocked tax raids, his hidden moves crushed her rivals—like the competitor who tried to sabotage her flagship salon in Jubilee Hills. She thought she was Hyderabad's destined queen, that Robin was a weight dragging her down.
"Robin, you're stalling. It's pointless. I've decided."
"On Ma's birthday? Not even one day's wait?"
"Yes!"
Robin's fingers twitched, then steadied. His smartwatch vibrated, syncing with his app to monitor Sarita's pulse discreetly. "Fine, I'll sign, but one condition."
"What?"
"Tara stays with me."
"Impossible!"
His voice dropped, eyes sharp. "You want to chase your old flame and live your dream. I won't let Tara suffer with a stepfather."
Aisha's face flushed. "Vikram and I just met today—there's nothing there! Even if we end up together, Tara would never be hurt!"
"Nothing? Then why drag him to Ma's birthday dinner? Aisha, what am I to you?"
"You're wrong. I didn't bring Vikram to shame you. He just landed, had nowhere to stay, so I let him crash here..."
"Nowhere to stay..."
"Divorce, fine, but Tara's mine. No deal otherwise."
"Robin! You're selfish. You're jobless, broke! Tara with you will struggle. With me, she'll have top schools, trips to Dubai, everything!"
Robin's lips curved faintly, his smartwatch buzzing with a stress alert for Sarita.
"Papa, Mummy, why're you whispering? Tara wants cake! Tara wants to blow candles with Dadi!"
"Tara beta, Mummy's coming."
"Tara, chill. Your mom's sorting out a divorce with your dad. Cake comes after."
Vikram's smug voice sliced through like monsoon thunder.
"Divorce?"
Sarita shot up, her face ashen. "Robin beta, what's this? Don't scare me!"
"Ma, relax. It's just a spat with Aisha. We're good."
Robin steadied her, his fingers subtly pressing an Ayurvedic pressure point, guided by his app's biofeedback, to calm her racing heart. Sarita's condition, worsened by years in their village, couldn't take shocks.
"Really?"
Sarita's breaths rasped. "Aisha, tell me, what's happening?"
Aisha glared at Vikram. "Sorry, I thought it was out there. My mistake..."
"But truth comes out, right? Better now than never."
"Shut it!"
Robin's gaze, lethal as a bullet strike, pinned Vikram. The man froze, unable to meet those blazing eyes.
Aisha bit her lip, wavering.
"Ma, don't worry. Aisha and I aren't divorcing. It's your Birthday—let's eat."
Robin smiled, guiding Sarita back.
"Robin! Why drag this out?"
Margaret Fernandes stood, her silk dress rustling. "Short pain's better than long torture. Sign the divorce now. We're all here to witness."
"Aunty ji..."
"Sarita ji, their marriage is done. They don't fit anymore. Divorce today!"
Margaret's tone was iron.
"Ma, no rush..." Aisha whispered, seeing Sarita's pallor, guilt flickering.
"Beti, you're too kind, but some men exploit that! Celebrate, but settle the divorce first. Don't let Robin trap you. A woman's youth is short!" Margaret snapped.
"Exactly, di! This loser's beneath you. Divorced, you can have anyone! Vikram bhai's solid!" Daniel sneered, his gold watch flashing.
"Aisha di, you're meant for better! Sign now, file tomorrow. After the cooling-off month, you're free of this nakko!" Clara added.
Aisha's face twisted, guilt battling resolve. She hadn't wanted this public mess, but Robin's refusal forced her hand.
"Beta, what's wrong? Don't scare me... Couples fight, they fix things..." Sarita's voice broke, lips pale.
"Ma, sit."
"Aisha, tell me—you and Robin aren't divorcing, right?"
"Ma, Robin and I..." Aisha faltered, glancing at her family, then Robin's steady gaze. The room stilled, rain pounding outside, food untouched. She sighed. "We have to. It's over."
Sarita clutched her chest, gasping. "No... my family..."
"Ma!" Robin caught her as she swayed, Tara wailed, and the Fernandes family erupted. Vikram smirked. Robin's fingers worked another Ayurvedic point, his app buzzing with alerts. Tomorrow, the papers. Soon, they'd see the modern master he'd become.