44.
"This project is surely going to be the death of me," I muttered, burying my head in my hands and tugging at my hair.
The Kahani project—the resort I had been designing for years—was still incomplete.
Almost everything was done, the interiors, the structures, the layout.
But one part of the main villa remained untouched.
Not because it couldn't be built, but because I didn't know how to build it. I had no vision for it.
"Should I come in?"
The sudden voice made me jump. My head snapped up—and there he was. Shaurya.
My pulse quickened. What is he doing here? What if someone saw him?
"Don't worry. No one saw me," he said casually, stepping inside.
I scrambled to gather the scattered papers off my desk, my frown deepening. "Why are you here?"
He paused, uncertainty flickering in his eyes. "Umm... sorry. I'll leave if you want me to."
"No—that's not what I meant," I sighed, pushing out of my chair. "God, sit down. You're limping badly."
I moved to his side and helped him ease into the armchair. My hand brushed his arm longer than necessary before I stepped back. "Don't tell me you came here alone."
"No, Ravi drove me here," Shaurya replied, exhaling as he sank into the chair. His gaze shifted to the mess of papers on my desk.
"You can look at them, if you want," I said after a pause, sliding the sketches toward him.
He studied them quietly. I tapped my pen against the table, nervous under his scrutiny. This was my first project of this scale, and I didn't know if it was brilliant or a disaster.
"They're impressive, Aarav," Shaurya said finally. His tone was simple, steady. "Did you sketch all this yourself?"
I nodded.
"You're good. Really good."
The sincerity in his voice made my chest tighten. "Do you... like it?" I asked quietly.
He nodded again, softer this time. "I love it. This was your dream, and it's finally happening." His eyes warmed as they lingered on me.
A small smile tugged at my lips. "Mhmm. But something's missing. A very prominent part of the villa—I just can't figure it out." My lips pressed together. "But thank you."
He tilted his head, smiling faintly. "You designed it exactly how we once wished our house would be."
I froze, silence stretching between us.
Just then, a staff member entered, carrying a file. He handed it to me, and I flipped through the pages—only for my hands to stiffen. My heart dropped.
There they were. Both mine and Shaurya's signatures.
"What is it?" Shaurya asked, sensing the shift in me.
I swallowed hard. "Our annulment papers."
"Oh." His voice was flat, but when I glanced up, I saw his eyes change instantly, darkening. "I forgot," he said after a beat, his gaze locked on the file. "Our marriage doesn't exist anymore."
His words stung. And yet, he was right. Six years ago, I had sent him those papers, silently hoping he wouldn't sign. But he did. That was how badly he had wanted me gone. That was why I chose annulment over divorce—why make it official, when he already erased me from his life?
"Why do you need those?" Shaurya muttered.
"I—I... the Blood Wedding," I finally said, my throat tightening. "We never dissolved it. It's still recorded in the Shekhawat Treatises. I thought... maybe we could close that chapter now. Since we've met again anyway. That's why I ordered the copies. Maybe it's time the council knew as well."
Shaurya was silent for a long moment. When he finally spoke, his voice was icy. "Do you even know what it means to dissolve the Blood Wedding? It is only approved when one spouse is branded a traitor... or seeks to marry someone else. Not even death can erase it."
"Shaurya... it has to happen someday." My voice trembled. "I—I want to let this go."
He didn't reply immediately. He just stood, walked to the window, and stared outside. His shoulders looked heavy, burdened. I couldn't read him. But what I could read, painfully, was myself. My heart—how it had changed. Six years ago, I would never have had the courage to say this.
I rose quietly and stepped closer. "I've thought this through—"
Before I could finish, Shaurya turned sharply, his hand gripping my waist, pulling me flush against him.
His hold was tight, almost desperate. His face hovered inches from mine, and I could feel the uneven rhythm of his breath.
His eyes—God, they were shattered, broken pieces of a man I once knew. But hadn't I been shattered too?
His hand lifted, trembling slightly, as he cupped my face.
"Your eyes... they really do say you don't love me anymore," he whispered.
"That's what you wanted, isn't it?" My words were bitter, but my voice cracked.
He closed his eyes briefly, then looked at me again. "We can change what I did wrong. We can change the law. We can even change those papers. But once the Blood Wedding is dissolved... nothing will be left between us."
"Nothing is left between us," I said quietly.
His eyes flinched. "What about our daughter?" His voice broke on the last word.
"You'll always have rights over her. I told you before—she's free to choose. She can live with you sometimes, and with me the other times."
He shook his head, a raw edge entering his voice. "I can't. I don't want to do this without you, Aarav."
"You already did. For six years. You were perfectly fine without me," I said, but my voice betrayed me, shaking, breaking apart.
Shaurya's eyes burned red now. "If you're saying we won't raise her together.
.. then listen carefully. I'll never step away from her life.
I'll meet her, I'll love her. But I won't raise her without you.
Because I loved you first—and her life, her very existence—it all reflects you. We are both incomplete without you."
"Shaurya..." My throat ached as I whispered his name.
"I may sound selfish, even cruel," he said hoarsely, his grip tightening.
"But I refuse this." His gaze burned into me, eyes wet and furious.
"A father's love for his child is powerful, Aarav.
.. but it will never be stronger than the love a man holds for the one he's bound to. And you taught me how to love".
"I'm nothing without you Aarav".