My head bowed in fear, the belt rose and fell against my body once again. I stood there, eyes clamped shut against the searing pain."Please don't hit me, Mother..."I pleaded through the agony, but she didn’t listen. She just glared at me with a cold, terrifying cruelty.That woman was none other than the one who gave birth to me. My mother—if you could call her that.A few months after my father passed away, she had remarried a handsome, striking man. Ever since, she couldn't stand the sight of me. Everything I did provoked her rage, and I had no idea what I had done to deserve such resentment.Today, this brutal punishment was simply because my exam marks were a little low.After one last lash of the belt, she shot me a harsh look and walked out, slamming the door behind her. As he followed her out, my eyes caught his for the very first time.Until then, I had never taken any interest in him. But now, I looked at him—really looked at his physique—as if seeing him for the first time.Half an hour later, the sound of the car told me my mother was leaving. About ten minutes passed before the door opened and he stepped inside."Child..." he called out softly. There was a look of compassion in his eyes—something I hadn't seen on my own mother's face in years.I had been sitting with my head buried in my knees; I slowly looked up. But instead of pain, my eyes held a different expression entirely.He looked at me in bewilderment, perhaps caught off guard by the heavy, half-lidded gaze I gave him."Apply this ointment. The pain will subside," he said, holding out a tube toward me."You apply it for me, Uncle..." I said, turning my back to him.I knew my response shocked him. I had never behaved this way before. He stood there frozen, staring at my back through my T-shirt. To make it easier for him to apply the cream, I slowly lifted my shirt.He must have been stunned, his breath catching at the sight of my nineteen-year-old form. There would be red welts on my back from the belt, but at that moment, I had only one thought: I wanted to leave a scar on that woman’s heart, just like the marks she left on my body.

The Betrayal​"Did it have to be your own sister’s husband, you sinner? Weren't there enough other men in this town? Now, haven't you ruined her life too?"Prabha asked, her hands pressed against her head in despair. She spoke out of the agonizing pain of seeing her eldest daughter shattered.​soumya didn't lift her gaze at the question. Though it had been a struggle, she was secretly gloating that what she intended was finally happening. However, she couldn't let that joy show. Instead, she let her eyes well up with tears and looked around. Standing a little distance away, unable to meet anyone's eyes, was Prithvi—the man of her dreams. Even in that moment, a sense of obsession flickered in her eyes.​A short distance away stood another girl, srishti, soumya ’s elder sister, looking as if her entire world had crumbled. Aside from the tears streaming down her face, her body appeared lifeless.​"Don't make such a scene... the kids just made a mistake. Before the neighbors gather, try to settle this and take your younger daughter with you. Otherwise, the future of both your daughters will be ruined."​It was Lata, Prithvi’s mother, who said this. People from all around were already starting to peer in. If the neighbors found out, they wouldn't be able to hold their heads high in shame. Lata also worried that if the family of the youngest daughter, Preethi, heard about this, she would lose her respect in her husband's home.​Thinking of all this, she tried to ensure the matter didn't escalate.​After all, was this something that could be told to the outside world? An affair with the wife's younger sister—and caught red-handed. She wanted to settle it somehow and keep Shrishti there, or else the family's reputation would be lost at sea.​"What are you saying, Lata Chechi? Is this something that can just be 'settled' without a second thought? My child hasn't even come out of the shock yet," Prabhavathi said, weeping.​She was also mindful of her husband's condition. These were daughters they had raised like the apples of their eyes. And now, one had destroyed the life of the other. He couldn't even bring himself to accept it. But how could he deny the truth he saw with his own eyes?​Until yesterday, he couldn't have believed that Soumya—the girl who waited for the snacks he brought home every night—had such a side to her. In that shock, he had collapsed to the floor, clutching his chest.​"Prabha , why are you talking like you don't know anything? Both these children are yours. If this gets out, will your youngest one have a life? Men are like this... we women are the ones who have to forgive," Lata said in a lowered voice.​Prabhavathi didn't like what she heard and replied quite loudly, "That might be the norm in your family. My husband has never gone seeking the warmth of other women. If he did, I’d take a sickle to him!"​Lata felt deeply insulted by this.​"Look at the arrogance, even when they have nothing to eat! Because your eldest daughter is incompetent, the younger one used her charms to seduce my boy. When I tried to settle this quietly so people wouldn't know, you're trying to walk all over me?"​Lata raised her voice too. With that, the neighbors rushed to the spot. There stood Soumya, with disheveled clothes, messy hair, and cheeks swollen from being slapped, and Prithvi, looking as if he didn't belong to this world. One look at them was enough to understand the situation. Moreover, everyone had already grasped the matter from what Lata had shouted earlier.​"My goodness, look at her... would anyone think she had such a character? Last time I saw her, I even asked Lata Chechi about a proposal for my son," a neighbor woman said, placing a finger on her nose in disbelief.​"The eldest girl was such a sweetheart... what will happen now?" Opinions flew thick and fast.​The crowd intervened and called the Panchayat member. Prithvi’s father, Gunasekaran, arrived from somewhere in a hurry. The moment he arrived, he delivered a stinging slap to Prithvi’s face.​Prithvi held his cheek and looked at his father in shock. It could be said that it was only then he returned to reality; until that moment, he had been standing there as if in a dream.​The discussions dragged on. Many people asked many things, but Shrishti alone didn't utter a single word. It was as if her mind and body were frozen.​"Don't everyone talk at once. Let me ask... if we can't reach a decision, we'll have to call the police."​Vatsalakumari, the famous person , said this as she walked over to Soumya.​"Child... what do you have to say about this?" she asked, needing to hear all sides. Her face clearly showed her resentment toward Soumya based on what she had heard so far.​"I love Prithvi ," Soumya said.​Prithvi looked at her in shock. She didn't look back at him and kept her head bowed.​"Now, what do you have to say?" The question was directed at Prithvi. He looked at Soumya and Shrishti alternately.