Roy Mansion was unusually quiet.

Aryan and Krutika stood in the drawing room.

Abhina entered after returning from court, still wearing her black advocate's coat.

The moment she saw Krutika, her expression hardened.

"You?"

Krutika stood up immediately.

"Abhina... please, just five minutes."

"I have nothing to hear."

Abhina turned to leave.

Aryan stepped forward.

"Please."

"I wouldn't have brought her here if it wasn't important."

Abhina looked at Aryan, then reluctantly sat down without looking at Krutika.

"Speak."

Krutika's hands trembled.

"For three years... I've lived with guilt."

Abhina replied coldly,

"Then continue living with it."

Krutika closed her eyes.

"That night..."

"Hrittik never betrayed you."

Abhina slowly looked up.

Krutika continued through tears.

"I lied."

"I came to his apartment pretending I was frightened."

"I mixed an intoxicating substance into his drink."

"He became unconscious."

"I dragged him to his bedroom."

"I tore my own clothes."

"When you arrived the next morning... I deliberately made it look as though we had slept together."

Silence.

Abhina stared at her in disbelief.

Krutika continued crying.

"He never touched me."

"He couldn't have."

"He wasn't even conscious."

"I destroyed your marriage because I was jealous."

"I wanted him back."

"I thought if you left him... he would return to me."

"I was wrong."

The room fell silent.

Abhina's eyes filled with tears.

"You..."

"You stole three years of our lives."

Krutika nodded.

"I know."

"You made me hate the man I loved."

"You made him suffer alone."

"I believed every lie..."

Krutika folded her hands.

"I deserve your anger."

"I only came to tell you the truth."

"I don't expect forgiveness."

Just then Mareena and Abhinav entered after hearing the conversation.

"What truth?" Abhinav asked.

Aryan quietly explained everything.

As the truth unfolded, Mareena's face turned pale.

Abhinav stood speechless.

Then, for the first time in years, he lost his composure.

He looked at Krutika.

"Three years..."

"My daughter cried for three years."

"My son-in-law destroyed himself for three years."

"Our family suffered because of your selfishness."

"You cannot return those years."

Mareena's eyes were wet.

"We watched our daughter's marriage fall apart."

"And all along..."

"...he was innocent."

Krutika fell to her knees.

"I'm sorry."

"I know my apology can never repair what I broke."

Abhina quietly turned away.

Without another word, she picked up her car keys and left.

---

Hrittik's Apartment

The apartment door was unlocked.

Abhina slowly stepped inside.

The place was dark.

Empty bottles covered the floor.

Dust had settled everywhere.

The curtains remained closed.

The smell of alcohol filled the room.

"Hrittik?"

No reply.

She walked towards the bedroom.

Her heart stopped.

Hrittik sat on the floor beside the bed.

A half-empty bottle rested beside him.

His once neatly groomed hair had grown long.

Grey streaks had spread through it.

His beard was untrimmed.

His clothes were untidy.

He looked years older than his age.

Around him...

The walls were still covered with hundreds of sketches.

Every single one was of Abhina.

Wedding portraits.

College memories.

Her smiling face.

Her courtroom appearance.

Even little Vaishnabi.

Abhina covered her mouth.

She broke down.

"Hrittik..."

He slowly raised his head.

His eyes struggled to focus.

For a moment he thought he was imagining her.

He smiled faintly.

"I've started seeing you in my dreams now..."

She rushed forward and embraced him tightly.

"I'm sorry."

"I'm so sorry."

Hrittik froze.

"...Abhina?"

She cried against his shoulder.

"I know the truth."

"You never betrayed me."

"I was wrong."

Hrittik's trembling hands slowly wrapped around her.

For a long moment, neither of them spoke.

Finally, he whispered,

"You came back..."

His eyes overflowed with tears.

"I waited every day."

Abhina looked at him through her tears.

"I should have trusted you."

He gently held her face.

"I never stopped loving you."

Unable to contain years of longing, he kissed her forehead again and again before resting his forehead against hers.

They remained in each other's embrace, quietly crying for the years they had lost.

---

A Final Apology

Outside the apartment, Krutika had arrived with Aryan.

She quietly entered after seeing the couple reunited.

Without saying a word, she bent down and touched both Hrittik's and Abhina's feet.

"I'm sorry."

"I have no excuse."

"I only pray that both of you find happiness again."

Hrittik looked at her calmly.

"I forgive you."

"But forgiveness doesn't erase consequences."

Krutika nodded.

"I know."

She quietly walked away with Aryan.

---

The Hospital

Abhina immediately took Hrittik to the hospital.

After several tests, the doctor returned with the reports.

He spoke seriously.

"Mr. Hrittik has developed significant liver damage due to prolonged alcohol misuse."

Abhina's face turned pale.

"Will he recover?"

"The damage is not beyond treatment, but he must stop drinking completely and follow medical advice. Recovery will take time, discipline, and family support."

Abhina looked at Hrittik.

She firmly held his hand.

"We'll do whatever it takes."

---

A New Beginning

Over the following weeks, Abhina threw herself into caring for her husband.

She cleaned every room of the neglected apartment.

The empty alcohol bottles disappeared.

The walls were dusted, but she carefully preserved the sketches he had drawn of her over the years.

Fresh curtains replaced the old ones.

Plants appeared on the balcony.

Sunlight once again entered the home.

She accompanied Hrittik to every medical appointment, ensured he took his medicines, and helped him follow a healthier routine.

Slowly, the apartment that had become a place of loneliness began to feel like a home again.

One evening, as they sat together watching the sunset from the balcony, Hrittik quietly said,

"I thought I had lost you forever."

Abhina rested her head on his shoulder.

"So did I."

"But we're here now."

"This time..."

"I'm not letting go."