Chapter 31 #5
But she could clearly see Shaurya struggling to control his emotions, and she didn't want him exposing his vulnerability in front of his staff.
She knew he wouldn't want that either.
"Bye Dadda... You come home night?(Will you come home tonight?)", Siya asked innocently.
To her, "home" meant the place where she lived with her mother. And Shaurya immediately understood what his daughter was asking. Instinctively, he looked toward Akansha.
Because if she had no objection, he would willingly go there every single night... even if it meant troubling Suraj daily to create different routes so nobody noticed him.
"Mumma will answer that. Now go... Mumma is getting late. Bye, baby... See you soon", Shaurya said softly before kissing her cheeks repeatedly.
Then he personally carried her till the entrance.
From there, Suraj carefully took Siya into his arms despite Akansha insisting that she could walk herself.
Apparently, not just Shaurya... even his staff had collectively decided to pamper Siya endlessly.
Soon, they finally left. And with a heavy heart, Shaurya slowly walked back inside before immersing himself in work again.
After some time, he finally left for his office and started handling all the meetings he had cancelled or postponed the previous day.
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It was evening by the time everyone from the Curriculum Review Committee reached the government venue where the Phase One presentation of the CR project was scheduled to take place.
The entire venue was filled with influential personalities.
Several government officials from different states, some of the finest education ministers in the country, all District Education Officers of the state, renowned academicians, business leaders from the educational sector, doctors, and many prominent political figures had made their presence felt.
Why wouldn't they?
After all, the invitation carried the name of Shaurya Singh Shekhawat, the most popular Chief Minister in the country.
Meanwhile, Mrs. Arora and the rest of the team carefully supervised every arrangement to ensure the demo became the grand success Shaurya had envisioned.
And considering the amount of effort, investment, time, and political battles Shaurya had fought to bring this project to life, everyone genuinely believed the event would be a huge success.
"Where are Akansha and Mr. Khanna? Why haven't they reached yet?", Mrs. Arora asked worriedly while looking toward Mr. Khan.
"They'll be here soon. Mr. Khanna has already picked up Dr. Dixit from her school", Mr. Khan replied reassuringly.
Shaurya's specially appointed team efficiently handled all the guests and arrangements.
Nearly half an hour later, Shaurya himself arrived at the venue.
Since Akansha was supposed to deliver the main presentation immediately after Mrs. Arora's introduction, everyone remained visibly anxious about her absence.
Thankfully, a few minutes later, Akansha finally entered the venue alongside Mr. Khanna.
The moment Mrs. Arora glared at her sharply, Akansha immediately understood she was definitely going to receive a long lecture after the event ended.
But for now, she remained calm and focused completely on her upcoming presentation.
After the event coordinator introduced all the dignitaries and thanked everyone for attending, Shaurya quietly instructed Suraj about something.
Suraj immediately conveyed the information to the host, who then formally announced that even the Governor would be joining the event virtually.
"Now, I request our Honourable Chief Minister to address us", the host announced respectfully.
Shaurya calmly walked toward the podium.
Before beginning his speech, his eyes instinctively found his wife for a brief second.
"I would first like to thank everyone present here for gracing us with your presence today", Shaurya began in his composed voice.
"I am deeply attached to this project. Years ago, when I was still an MLA, a very talented person approached me with this idea. I was extremely intrigued by both the concept and the passion with which it was explained to me."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"Unfortunately, at that time, I couldn't take any concrete initiative regarding it because the then Education Minister believed the curriculum was already fine the way it was."
His tone remained calm and respectful.
"I respect his opinion. However, personally, I believe the curriculum must continuously evolve according to the changing demands of the job market. I strongly feel we need to make our future generations skilled... not just educated."
The hall remained silent while everyone listened attentively.
"The Curriculum Revision Team has been working on this project for several years now, and with the new additions to the team, the entire process has accelerated significantly."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"I am genuinely glad to finally implement the vision of the person who originally gave birth to this idea."
Akansha immediately looked at him after hearing those words.
"I request all the scholars and experts present here to carefully evaluate the developments and freely suggest any necessary modifications.
My team and I are always open to constructive suggestions.
In fact, that is the foremost reason behind arranging this demo session.
Before moving toward the next phase, I wanted all your opinions and feedback. "
"With this, I conclude my speech."
The moment he stepped away from the podium, the entire hall erupted into applause and cheers for his calm demeanor and mature speech.
If he had wanted, Shaurya could have easily turned that stage into a political battleground by criticizing the previous government and the former Education Minister, who was now one of the opposition party's most prominent leaders.
But instead, he consciously chose not to shift the focus away from the project itself.
Akansha quietly admired the way he handled the situation.
Especially the way he acknowledged and credited her idea publicly while simultaneously protecting her identity.
She was genuinely surprised to learn that years ago, Shaurya had actually approached the then Education Minister regarding her proposal.
Until now, she had believed he never took her idea seriously.
At one point, she even thought he was merely bluffing about supporting her vision and never genuinely intended to take it forward.
But once again, she had been proven wrong.
Then why didn't he tell her he had actually tried?
Why did he allow her to misunderstand him all these years?
And was this only about this particular matter... or were there several other things she misunderstood too?
Countless thoughts flooded her mind until Mrs. Arora called her name, pulling her out of her thoughts.
Taking a deep breath, Akansha calmly walked onto the stage and took over the presentation from Mrs. Arora.
She started presenting confidently, explaining every point carefully and in detail while still remaining within the allotted time frame.
Meanwhile, Shaurya sat there staring at his wife with immense pride.
The confidence, elegance, and aura she carried effortlessly held not only his attention but the attention of the entire hall. And strangely enough... he hated that.
Akansha silently thanked her stars when the host announced that all questions would be taken only after the presentation concluded.
She immediately knew that arrangement was Shaurya's doing.
Because he was probably the only person who knew how much she disliked interruptions while presenting.
Eventually, Akansha completed her presentation successfully.
Later, Mr. Khan took over the statistical and numerical section of the project and helped conclude the final part of the presentation. While working on the data earlier, Shaurya himself had corrected several numerical inconsistencies and statistical projections.
In fact, it was Akansha who suggested involving him in the statistics section. Initially, everyone had looked confused by her suggestion because very few people knew about Shaurya's love for numbers and his exceptional analytical abilities.
But later, everyone ended up thanking her because Shaurya's inputs significantly improved the final presentation. That realization filled Akansha with an odd sense of pride again.
Despite being academically brilliant and having an extraordinarily successful corporate career in the past, Shaurya never used those achievements to establish his credibility as a leader.
Instead, he deliberately kept his previous career and accomplishments hidden, even though revealing them would have greatly enhanced his public image.
But almost immediately, Akansha shook those thoughts away. Who was she to feel proud of him anymore? What relationship even remained between them now for her to feel that way? They were simply Siya's parents. Nothing beyond that. At least, that's what she kept reminding herself repeatedly.
Though the thought still pinched her heart slightly, she had accepted it long ago, so the pain no longer hurt as deeply as it once did.
What she didn't know, however, was that the relationship she believed had ended years ago still existed.
The relationship of a husband and wife.