Chapter 30 #4
And just like that, after adding honey, their daughter happily finished the juice while playing with her doll set.
The three of them spent the entire day together.
But slowly, Siya remembered once again why she was angry with her father, and gradually her silence returned.
That silence became unbearably painful for Shaurya. Still, he remained patient.
No matter how little she responded, he continued talking to her, playing with her, and staying beside her throughout the day.
After dinner, Siya sat on the sofa with her crayons and coloring book while Akansha stepped out of the kitchen after finishing the chores.
Shaurya had wanted to help her, but she refused, reminding him that he had already taken care of everything since morning. So this much, she could handle herself.
"Siya... You just had food, baby. Play for some time before lying down like that", Akansha said while noticing how Shaurya was staring at his daughter with nothing but love and longing in his eyes.
"I don't want to play", Siya muttered.
"Play with Dadda, baby. He will leave for his place soon", Akansha said casually.
Immediately, Siya raised her head from her coloring book and looked first at her mother and then at her father. The next second, she angrily pushed away all her crayons, coloring books, sketches, and stationery lying on the sofa before glaring at Shaurya with teary eyes.
"You don't love me... Go... You won't stay with me... Dadda go... You ale bad, you ale vely bad", Siya cried loudly before hugging Akansha's legs tightly and hiding herself from Shaurya.
The sight shattered him instantly.
"Dadda really loves you, Siya... Please try to understand, baby... I can stay here if you want... Just don't cry, Siya... Dadda can't see you crying... You're right... I am very bad...", Shaurya said brokenly while kneeling in front of Akansha, desperately trying to make his daughter look at him.
But Siya only tightened her hold around her mother's legs and buried her face deeper into Akansha's kurti. Akansha slowly kneeled down to her daughter's level, and Siya instantly nuzzled her face into her mother's neck while Akansha softly ruffled her hair.
"Siya... Papa loves you a lot, baby... Say bye to him properly. He'll come to meet you again soon... Don't cry like this, Siya...", Akansha tried consoling her daughter gently.
But Siya remained inconsolable. Seeing that, Shaurya quietly gestured at Akansha to stop trying. He didn't want to force his daughter into forgiving him.
"Siya... Bacha... Dadda is very sorry... Please stop crying", Shaurya pleaded again while gently touching her hair.
But Siya angrily jerked his hand away. Slowly, Akansha managed to calm her daughter down, much to Shaurya's relief. But Siya still refused to look at him.
"My little unicorn... Dadda is leaving now. Please use your magic on him once... Dadda is very sad, bacha... Please", Shaurya tried one last time, hoping she would at least look at him.
But instead, Siya immediately ran into her room without even glancing at him once again. And unknowingly, she broke his heart a little more.
"It's okay... She'll come around", Akansha assured softly after noticing how worried and shattered he looked.
"I don't know... My daughter doesn't even want to see me, and I have nobody to blame except myself. She's crying because of me... You were right for not telling me about her. I think I'm a terrible father... I made her cry... I'm sorry", Shaurya said hoarsely.
Akansha looked at him quietly. Her eyes softened at his words because she knew he was questioning himself as a father and desperately needed reassurance.
"Kids cry whenever things don't go their way. Siya cried because of me too, that doesn't make me a bad mother", Akansha said patiently.
"Stop blaming yourself for everything. She wanted you to stay with her.
.. like a family... just like the families of her friends.
The moment she heard you were leaving, her little dreams shattered and she got upset.
But eventually she'll understand. She'll have to accept that her parents are separated and can never live under the same roof", Akansha explained softly.
Her words hit Shaurya harshly. Though he already knew this was what she believed, hearing it directly from her mouth still crushed whatever little hope he had held onto.
"She's not old enough to understand all this, Akansha", Shaurya replied quietly.
"We'll explain it to her in a way she understands... just like we explained why she shouldn't reveal that you're her father for now", Akansha said calmly.
Shaurya sighed deeply.
They had told Siya that if Shaurya's bosses found out he was spending time with family, they would call him back to work again, and that was the reason he couldn't meet her all these years.
Thankfully, the excuse worked perfectly on her innocent little mind.
And both of them knew Siya wouldn't reveal anything about him being her father until Shaurya found a way out of this entire mess.
"That lie was necessary... We had no other option", Shaurya tried justifying softly.
"We don't have another option here either, Shaurya... Siya has to grow up with separated parents", Akansha replied quietly.
At that exact moment, Shaurya wanted to reveal the truth to her. About the divorce papers.
About how the divorce had never actually been filed.
But the moment he imagined telling her the truth, he knew she would completely lose control, blame him even more, and hate him further.
And then he would have to explain why he had given her those papers in the first place. Everything he did was to protect her. But the tragedy was... he failed to explain any of it in time.
"Let's not talk about this right now... We'll see what the future holds. For now, just take care of Siya... and yourself too", Shaurya said quietly.
"I'll leave now. I'll call tomorrow and talk to her. If her anger reduces a little, I'll come meet her at midnight again", he added.
Akansha silently nodded because she knew that was the only safe time he could come there without anyone noticing him.
"Suraj... Have you reached?", Shaurya asked the moment the call connected.
"No, sir. I'll be there in an hour. Because of the festivities, people are still outside on the roads, and I don't think it's safe for you to step out of ma'am's place right now", Suraj informed carefully.
"Okay... Take your time. But don't take any risks. Come only when you're completely sure nobody is watching", Shaurya instructed firmly before disconnecting the call.
"I'll remain your guest for one more hour then", Shaurya said lightly.
Akansha simply nodded silently, though somewhere deep inside, she wanted to tell him that he had behaved nothing like a guest the entire day.
Akansha then walked into Siya's room to make her sleep, only to find her daughter already asleep. She softly kissed Siya's hair, wiped the dried tear marks from her cheeks, and carefully covered her properly with the duvet before quietly leaving the room.
"How is she?", Shaurya immediately asked the moment Akansha stepped outside.
"She slept... Must be very tired", Akansha replied softly.
Shaurya nodded silently. The next one hour passed with both of them talking only about Siya.
Finally, when Suraj informed him he had arrived, Shaurya quietly left wearing his hoodie and tracks.
Akansha wanted to reassure him once again because he still looked deeply distressed about his daughter.
But she stopped herself. She didn't want him thinking that she still cared for him.
----------
Three days passed, and on Thursday, Akansha had an approval meeting scheduled with Shaurya, so she reached his office. The moment she entered, she saw Shweta speaking to Shaurya over the phone.
"Mrs. Sudha has sent your lunch, sir... Should I send it in?", Shweta asked carefully.
"No...", Shaurya replied shortly before disconnecting the call.
The moment the call ended, Shweta sighed tiredly while rubbing her forehead.
"Is everything alright? You look tense", Akansha asked.
At first, Shweta hesitated. But after a moment, she decided to tell Akansha anyway. Maybe she could somehow help her boss.
"Sir hasn't had a single proper meal in the last three days... This is the fourth day now", Shweta revealed softly, shocking Akansha.
"This has never happened in the last four and a half years, ma'am. Sir is always extremely particular about his health, but this time... his behavior has surprised all of us."
"How is he managing then?", Akansha asked immediately, unable to hide her worry.
"He is surviving on vitamins, ma'am", Shweta replied quietly, leaving Akansha stunned.
Shaurya had always taken care of his health because he firmly believed he couldn't afford to fall sick.
He often used to say that his profession wasn't the kind where he could casually take leaves whenever he wanted, so staying physically fit was necessary for him.
No matter how stressed or disturbed he was emotionally, he never neglected his physical health.
Akansha should have realized earlier that something like this might happen.
For the past three days, he had called daily to talk to Siya, but Siya remained stubbornly angry and refused even to say a simple "hi" to him.
His voice always sounded unusually low during those calls.
She had asked him multiple times if he was alright, and every single time he assured her he was fine. Now she knew he was far from okay.
Shaurya's nightmares had returned with double intensity.
This time, they weren't only about Akansha anymore.
Now Siya was a part of them too. The facts he recently learned.
.. Siya suffering from jaundice after birth, the unknown truths Akansha was hiding from him, the realization that she hated him even more because of those incidents.
.. everything combined together and transformed into horrifying nightmares that made it difficult for him to even breathe peacefully.
He constantly tried calming himself down. He repeatedly reminded himself that both Akansha and Siya were safe now.
But nothing helped. Nothing calmed his mind. He had completely lost his appetite.
Once, he had even tried forcing himself to eat, but he threw up everything... along with traces of blood. After that incident, he completely stopped trying. Even fluids felt meaningless to him now, so he simply survived on vitamins.
Deep down, he kept believing that once his daughter started talking to him properly again, everything would slowly become normal. Because he knew Siya was only temporarily angry with him. But the pain of being the reason behind his little daughter's tears had shattered him completely.
"I'm here to request a preponement of my appointment which was originally scheduled for five in the evening. I have some work at that time and completely forgot about it earlier", Akansha said calmly while once again putting on her cold professional mask.
Shweta was slightly taken aback seeing how indifferent Akansha appeared toward Shaurya's condition. People worried even for strangers in situations like this. And here she was... his wife.
Meanwhile, Shaurya looked like the kind of man who would willingly give up his life for his wife.
Still, Shweta stopped herself from judging Akansha because she didn't know what exactly existed between the couple.
"Yes, ma'am. Sir is available for half an hour before his next meeting starts", Shweta informed politely.
"That's more than enough. I just need his signatures on a few forms. Thank you, Shweta", Akansha replied politely before walking toward his cabin.
Meanwhile, Shweta called Shaurya and informed him about Akansha's arrival even though she already knew he would never stop his wife from entering his cabin. That man was completely clean-bowled for her.
Akansha knocked on the door, and the moment she heard his "come in", she stepped inside.
"Hi... Sorry for coming at this time when my appointment was originally at five. I suddenly remembered I have some work later and completely forgot about it earlier", Akansha explained.
"It's okay... You don't need to explain yourself. You can visit me anytime. I'll always make time for you", Shaurya replied gently.
The moment she looked at him properly, she could clearly see the exhaustion in him. Not physical weakness exactly... but something else. He looked emotionally drained, as if someone had stolen away his peace, sleep, and sanity completely.
"I need your signatures on this. We are almost at the end of Phase One, and with your permission, we'll start working on the demo next. The final results are mentioned here. Once you approve them, we'll proceed further", Akansha explained professionally.
"That's great. The project is moving ahead of the deadline. I appreciate it", Shaurya replied while going through the files carefully.
Akansha explained every detail clearly to make things easier for him, and after reviewing everything thoroughly, he finally signed the documents and handed them back to her.
Shaurya expected her to take the files and leave immediately. But instead, Akansha quietly placed them aside before getting up and walking toward him.
"Why did you lie to Siya that you already knew about her but still didn't come to meet her all these years? You do realize she's upset because of that, right?", Akansha asked while folding her arms and leaning lightly against his table.
For a brief second, she reminded him of the woman he met years ago. The professor. The woman he fell in love with. Shaurya quickly pushed those thoughts aside and focused on her question.
"Don't worry... I'm not planning to carry this blame forever. Once she grows mature enough to understand why you had to hide her existence from me, we'll tell her everything... and then both of us will trouble you together for this", Shaurya replied with a faint hint of humor.
"Shaurya... Siya genuinely thinks you don't love her, which is completely untrue", Akansha said worriedly, the tension visible on her face.
"Exactly. It's not true. If not today, then someday soon, she'll understand how much I love her", Shaurya argued softly.
"But can you endure her anger until then?", Akansha asked while looking directly into his eyes.
Shaurya immediately looked away because he couldn't answer that question honestly while staring into her eyes.