My breath hitched.
The cold grip around my wrist tightened, sending chills through my entire body.
"Who's there?" I whispered, my voice trembling in the darkness.
No answer.
Only silence… thick and suffocating.
I tried to pull my hand back, but the grip didn't loosen. Instead, it slowly slid up my arm—firm, deliberate.
"Let go of me!" I shouted.
A soft chuckle echoed in the darkness.
Low. Dangerous.
"You're still resisting…" the voice whispered, closer this time. Too close.
My heart pounded violently against my chest.
"I don't even know who you are!" I snapped, trying to sound brave.
"Don't you?" the voice replied.
Suddenly—
The lights flickered back on.
I blinked rapidly, my eyes adjusting to the sudden brightness.
And then I saw him.
Standing right in front of me.
Tall. Calm. Unshaken… like the darkness itself belonged to him.
My breath stopped.
"You…" I whispered.
It was him.
The stranger.
The man who had tied the mangalsutra around my neck just hours ago.
"How—how are you here?" I stammered, stepping back.
His gaze didn't leave mine.
"Because," he said slowly, "this is where you were always meant to be."
My confusion turned into anger.
"I never agreed to any of this! This marriage—this place—YOU!" I shouted.
He took a step closer.
And I instinctively stepped back… until my back hit the wall.
"Agreement?" he repeated, his voice almost amused. "You think this was about choice?"
A shiver ran down my spine.
"What do you mean?" I asked, my voice barely audible now.
He raised his hand… and gently lifted my chin, forcing me to look straight into his eyes.
Dark.
Deep.
And hiding something terrifying.
"This isn't just a marriage," he said quietly.
"It's a contract."
My blood ran cold.
"A contract…?" I repeated.
"Yes," he said.
"For something far bigger than you can understand."
My mind spun.
Nothing made sense.
"Why me?" I asked, my voice breaking.
For a moment…
He was silent.
Then—
"Because you were chosen."
The room suddenly felt smaller.
Heavier.
Like the walls were closing in on me.
"Chosen for what?" I whispered.
He leaned closer, his lips near my ear.
And said something that shattered whatever was left of my reality—
"To survive."
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