Chapter 42 #3
Akansha shook her head internally. These two best friends had successfully corrupted even Rachna now.
"Play date, yayyy... Ivaan will also meet Siya then," Dev whispered again just to provoke Shaurya further.
"Don't come if you're thinking about play dates," Shaurya shot back instantly.
Rachna and Akansha were sitting in constant fear that someone around them might overhear their conversations, but the two men beside them looked absolutely carefree.
Fed up with them, Rachna quickly created a WhatsApp group for the four of them.
"Fight here... You dogs..." Rachna typed.
"Exactly... Don't open your mouths and start bickering here. Rachna and I are already getting stressed enough," Akansha sent immediately.
"True... My blood pressure is skyrocketing," Rachna added dramatically.
"Good for your health. You have low BP anyway," Shaurya replied.
Dev instantly reacted to his message with a laughing emoji ??
Without warning, Akansha slapped Shaurya's arm.
Siya, who had been busy playing with Ishaan till then, immediately looked up hearing the sound. Her eyes widened seeing her father rubbing his forearm.
"Dadda... Is it paining?" Siya asked worriedly, gently rubbing the same spot on his arm.
Dev and Shaurya exchanged amused looks. The little girl didn't dare question her mother but immediately rushed to comfort her father instead.
"No baby... Dadda is fine," Shaurya assured softly before holding her tiny palm and kissing it reassuringly.
Siya looked at Akansha cautiously, clearly wanting to ask why she hit her father, but she lacked the courage.
"What?" Akansha asked, catching her daughter's expression instantly.
"Nothing Mamabear..." Siya muttered obediently.
Shaurya chuckled hearing it while Dev burst out laughing openly at the scene. Rachna immediately pinched his arm hard.
"Stop laughing like a demon. There are kids around. They'll get scared," Akansha typed in the group.
"Looking at your daughter's frightened face, it's pretty obvious who the real demon is," Dev replied instantly. "At least give the devil inside you one day off."
"I can't. With demons like you around, even humans have to turn into devils for self-protection," Akansha shot back.
Dev immediately started typing another reply, but before he could send it, Rachna snatched his phone and glared at him threateningly. Only after he promised not to continue fighting with Akansha did she return the phone.
The very next second, Dev typed again.
"@RachnaBisht since when did you become Vibhishan?" he sent.
"So you agree you are Ravan?" Akansha replied instantly.
"Vibhishan was a good man, so yes... I proudly accept," Rachna wrote, replying to Dev's message.
"Bewakoofon @RachnaBisht @DevBisht @AkanshaDixit, Ravan and Vibhishan were siblings. Are you two siblings?" Shaurya typed.
Akansha immediately glared at him. Completely confused, Shaurya frowned back at her until Dev nudged him to check the group again.
Only then did he realize he had accidentally tagged Akansha too while calling them "bewakoof."
"Galti se tag ho gaya... (I tagged you by mistake) sorry," Shaurya whispered quickly while editing the message.
Dev nearly laughed aloud seeing his best friend's panicked expression. Akansha turned her face away to hide her smile. The way Shaurya became instantly cautious and scared whenever it came to her was unexpectedly cute.
Of course, she immediately reminded herself that these tiny feelings changed absolutely nothing. They didn't erase the pain he caused or the decision she had made not to reconcile with him.
At least that was what she kept telling herself.
Meanwhile, Dev and Rachna desperately wanted to spend time with Siya. Dev had already interacted with the little girl before and had even carried her in his arms, but Rachna never got that opportunity. He knew how eager she was.
"Siya bache... come here. Talk to us," Dev said softly, extending his hand toward her.
"Dadda..." Siya immediately clutched Shaurya's hand possessively.
Shaurya smiled before lifting her gently from Akansha's lap and setting her down near Dev.
"Go talk to Uncle," he encouraged.
Siya nodded obediently and walked toward Dev, who immediately picked her up and settled her between himself and Rachna on the sofa.
The moment Rachna touched Siya's cheeks lovingly, her eyes filled with tears. This little girl was Shaurya and Akansha's child. Just thinking about everything Akansha might have endured while bringing Siya into the world made Rachna emotional.
She still didn't know the full truth about that horrifying day because Dev had honored his promise to Akansha and kept those details hidden from everyone.
"Ah... Dev... something went into my eye. Please check," Rachna said quickly, trying to cover up her tears.
Akansha rolled her eyes at the woman's terrible acting.
"You two are sinners," she whispered near Shaurya's ear. "You corrupted this once innocent woman and turned her into a professional liar."
Shaurya chuckled softly.
"I'll see..." Siya declared seriously before carefully holding Rachna's eyelid open and blowing air into it exactly the way Akansha usually did for her.
Rachna smiled through her tears.
"I'm fine now. Thank you, Siya," she said warmly.
The little girl grinned proudly at successfully helping her. Watching all this, Dev looked at Shaurya with fresh jealousy. How did this man get so lucky to have a daughter this adorable?
"Dev... your face has subtitles. Hide your jealousy," Rachna whispered to her husband.
"Why him?" Dev muttered dramatically. "I want a daughter too."
"No chance now," Rachna whispered back immediately, making him groan in disappointment.
"But no worries..." she added softly while caressing Siya's cheeks lovingly. "We already have Siya."
Completely unaware of the emotional chaos around her, Siya remained busy playing with Rachna's necklace, fascinated by the jewelry.
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After some time, a few father-child pairs were picked through chits for the next round of games. Siya had already grown restless because neither her nor her father's name had been announced yet.
"Dadda... When will our name come? Dev uncle and Ishaan also played alleady," Siya pouted impatiently, making all four adults chuckle at her adorable expression.
"Ask your mumma. She's the one who wrote our names and dropped them in the box," Shaurya said, winking subtly at Akansha.
"Mumma... You dlopped(dropped) it in the box only na? Not on the flool(floor), right?" Siya asked suspiciously.
Both Shaurya and Akansha burst into laughter hearing her concern.
"Yes baby, I wrote your names properly and dropped them in the jar only," Akansha assured patiently. "I didn't throw them on the floor. Don't worry, your names will come soon."
Almost as if the universe heard her, the teacher on stage suddenly announced, "Siya - Shaury... Shaurya sir."
Akansha sighed at the added "sir."
"Yayyyyy!" Siya squealed excitedly before grabbing her father's hand. "Dadda come!"
She started dragging him toward the stage at full speed while Shaurya jogged beside her, matching his steps to her tiny legs.
Halfway there, Siya nearly slipped.
Shaurya immediately caught her protectively before she could fall and lifted her straight into his arms, kissing her hair instinctively, making the crowd collectively go soft at the sight. Akansha hid her smile seeing how absurdly overprotective he became around their daughter.
"Look at him and his overprotectiveness, as if he's the only man in the world with a daughter," she typed in their WhatsApp group.
Rachna reacted with ?? while Dev sent ??.
"Any man who has a daughter like Siya would be protective. No amount of protectiveness is enough," Dev replied immediately.
"Dev... your face is green with jealousy. Please hide it ????," Akansha teased.
"Exactly what I've been telling him ??," Rachna added.
"Okay ladies, stop roasting me and focus on the game," Dev replied dramatically.
All three finally shifted their attention toward the stage where the selected father-daughter pairs were gathering.
"Dadda... Thich(this) is Ammu... My best flend(best friend)," Siya introduced proudly after spotting Amulya nearby.
"Ohhh... Hi Ammu. Nice to meet you bacha," Shaurya greeted warmly, extending his hand toward the little girl.
"Ammu... Shake hands with sir," Amulya's father corrected gently.
"Uncle is fine," Shaurya immediately said politely. "I'm just her best friend's father."
Amulya's father looked visibly overwhelmed interacting with the Chief Minister so casually, but Shaurya's simplicity instantly impressed him.
"Nice to me... nice to meet you uncle... I am Amuyya(Amulya)," Ammu introduced herself proudly with help from her father.
Soon, the other fathers on stage also approached Shaurya to greet him properly. Instead of waiting for them formally, Shaurya himself walked toward each of them and shook hands warmly.
"Wowww Siyu... your daddy is really famous," some of Siya's friends whispered excitedly.
Siya grinned proudly. For the first time, she didn't feel bad watching Ammu with her father because now her own Dadda was beside her too... and he clearly loved her just as much as Ammu's father loved her.
The fathers finally settled into the chairs arranged for them while their children stood between their legs. The host picked up the mic and began explaining the rules.
"You all have white boards, markers, and dusters in front of you," she announced. "I'll ask questions about your children — favorite color, favorite food, favorite game, and so on. Fathers have to write the answers, and the kids will tell us whether they're correct or not."
The children cheered loudly.
"Bacchon(kids)... no cheating," another teacher warned playfully. "You cannot help your daddys. Let's see how well they know you."
All the kids were gathered to one side while the fathers prepared themselves.
"Dadda... Make me ploud(proud)," Siya warned sternly.
The fathers around Shaurya laughed hearing her tiny command.