### Title: *Beneath the Surface*
#### Chapter 1: The Wedding Bells Fade
Ananya sat on the edge of the bed, watching the reflection of herself in the mirror. Her hands shook slightly as she adjusted the delicate dupatta that had once felt like a symbol of her new life. But now, it was a burden.
It had been six months since her wedding to Arjun, and everything seemed like a dream she had been forcefully awoken from. The bright, lively ceremony, the sweet promises exchanged, the laughter of friends and family... it all seemed like a lifetime ago. The warm embrace of her new family had quickly turned cold.
She had married Arjun, the man she loved—at least, she thought she did. He was a software engineer, or at least that’s what he claimed. He was tall, handsome, and from a respected family in the village. He was everything her parents wanted for her. But she had quickly realized that the man she had married was not the man she thought she knew.
Ananya’s phone buzzed on the side table, and her stomach twisted as she saw the name flash on the screen: *Maa-in-law*.
It wasn’t the first time.
"Ananya, how’s everything at home? I was just thinking—have you put on some weight? I remember how lovely you looked in your wedding pictures, but now..." The words seemed to hang in the air, suffocating her.
Before she could reply, the next message popped up.
"You know, you really should think about getting a new job. You’re still in that little office, aren’t you? There are so many better opportunities out there, don’t you want more than just that tiny salary?"
It was always like this. Constantly poking, probing, questioning. She wanted to scream, but she swallowed her frustration. She had learned, after all, that there was no escaping the grip of her toxic mother-in-law.
---
#### Chapter 2: The Weight of the Past
The house was silent, save for the occasional hum of the refrigerator and the sound of Arjun tapping away on his phone. She glanced over at him, but he didn’t seem to notice her gaze. His eyes were glued to his screen, absorbed in whatever world was happening behind it. It had always been this way. They rarely spoke, and when they did, it was like pulling teeth.
She had asked him, so many times, to tell her what was wrong. But his answers were vague, or worse, nonexistent. He would nod, say "everything’s fine," and the conversation would die there. The truth was, Arjun had been emotionally unavailable since the wedding, and Ananya couldn’t figure out why.
Her thoughts drifted back to the early days of their relationship. She had heard him talk about a past love—one who was dark-skinned, a girl he had adored with all his heart. Ananya, by contrast, was fair-skinned. Perhaps that was the reason for the distance between them?
There was a part of her that wanted to confront him. To tell him how much it hurt, how she longed for the connection they once shared. But every time she tried, he would pull away. He would mention some trivial detail—like how a colleague from work reminded him of a Bollywood actress—and suddenly, he was lost in a world of fantasies.
She knew he had been checking out other girls on social media—liking their photos, sending them heart-eye emojis. The other day, he had been scrolling through Instagram, admiring the hair and figure of a girl from his old college, making comments like, "I wish you had her kind of hair," or "Her complexion’s so smooth." It cut her deep.
His fantasy world felt like a slap in her face. Wasn’t she good enough?
---
#### Chapter 3: The Sister-in-Laws
The other challenge came from her sisters-in-law, who were living in the house. They had been "working in the city" for months now, but the truth was, they had never actually moved out. They had taken over the guest room, which had been meant for Ananya’s parents when they visited, and it felt like they were always around, offering unsolicited advice on everything.
"Arjun needs to stop working so hard," they would say. "He’s been sitting at home for four months now, and it's not good for his mental health. Maybe if you cooked him better food, he would feel better. He should stop being so lazy."
Ananya hated the way they constantly undermined her—pointing out everything she did wrong, while they sat back, criticizing from the safety of their own unproductive lives. They didn’t have jobs, but their egos were inflated by their family’s status.
And then there was the constant commentary about her background. Ananya came from a poor family, and she could sense the subtle envy in their eyes every time they spoke. Her father had been a schoolteacher, and her mother worked at a local shop. There was no grandeur to her family’s lifestyle, and for her in-laws, that was unforgivable. They thought her humble background made her less deserving of their son.
"Why didn’t your father send you to a better school? You could have gotten a better job," they would say, as if her achievements were nothing.
The bitterness from her sisters-in-law was clear. They envied her because she had married well, and perhaps in some way, they felt threatened by her. So, they kept her isolated, pushing her further and further into a corner.
---
#### Chapter 4: The Husband Who Faded
Arjun had become a ghost in their marriage. He seemed to care about everything except for her. The promises he made before their wedding—about supporting her, sharing their dreams, growing together—felt empty now.
She had asked him, just once, why he wasn’t affectionate anymore.
His answer was vague. "I’m just tired, Ananya. There’s a lot going on at work."
But Ananya knew better. She had seen how he still talked about his old love, how he romanticized a past that didn’t include her. She couldn’t shake the feeling that she was never truly the one he wanted.
It hurt in ways she couldn’t explain. She had tried everything. She had dressed up, cooked his favorite meals, planned dates. But Arjun’s indifference only seemed to grow.
And now, as the months passed by and the awkward silences filled the rooms, Ananya felt more and more like an outsider in her own marriage.
---
#### Chapter 5: Fractures
One evening, after yet another round of criticism from her mother-in-law and an uncomfortable dinner with her sisters-in-law, Ananya found herself sitting on the balcony, staring into the night sky. The stars seemed distant, much like the dreams she once had.
She had built her life around this man, this family. She had believed in love and partnership. But now, she questioned if any of it had been real.
"Why am I still here?" she whispered to herself. "Why am I fighting so hard for something that doesn't seem to care about me?"
It was then that she realized something she had known deep down: she could no longer ignore the cracks in her marriage. Arjun was lost in a world that wasn’t hers, and she couldn’t keep pretending that everything was okay.
She didn’t know what her future would look like, but she knew that she deserved more. She deserved someone who saw her for who she was, not as a reflection of a past he could never let go of.
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#### Chapter 6: Breaking the Chains
Ananya stood at the edge of the kitchen, her hands on her hips, looking at the mess Arjun had left behind after another late-night meal. Her mother-in-law was on the phone in the living room, her voice shrill, dissecting every detail of Ananya’s life, as usual.
But Ananya had made a decision. She would no longer be a puppet in her own life.
"Arjun," she said softly, but firmly, "we need to talk."
It wasn’t just about the house, or the job, or the pressure from his family. It was about their marriage, and about her.
"I deserve more than this," she told him quietly, but with conviction.
For the first time, there was a flicker of realization in his eyes.
"I’m sorry," Arjun said, his voice barely a whisper.
But Ananya was no longer waiting for his apology. She was done waiting for things to change. She had waited long enough.
She took a deep breath, and walked out the door. It was time to live her life for herself—for the first time, in the way she always deserved.
---
### Epilogue: Finding Freedom
Months passed, and Ananya started over—new friends, new opportunities, new dreams. She never returned to that house where silence screamed louder than words. She built a life for herself, one that wasn’t defined by others' expectations, but by her own.
And as for Arjun? He would have to find his own path, in his own time. But that was no longer her concern.
Ananya had found peace, and in that peace, she had found herself again.
