Chapter 51 #2
"It's not your fault, Akansha," he said softly. "You always tried to do the best for this family. At such a young age, you became the man of this house and carried responsibilities none of us should have placed on you."
He let out a heavy sigh before continuing.
"And when you first found out about Dilip's double game — when he lied about Aakriti faking her s***ide attempt — didn't you try to stop Suman's marriage even then? What happened after that?"
Bitterness slowly crept into his tone.
"Your mother and sister made this house hell for you. So no... don't carry all the blame alone."
Akansha lowered her gaze.
"When Shaurya tried exposing Dilip and told us about the messages he sent Aakriti just days before the wedding, I should have at least demanded proof.
Had I done that, I would never have let Suman marry that bas***d.
.. no matter what." A painful laugh escaped her.
"I genuinely believed he loved her. I thought everything he did was because he desperately wanted to marry her. .. but I was so wrong."
Her throat tightened painfully.
"The thought that I could have prevented all this... that I could have saved her from that hell... it keeps eating me up." She inhaled shakily. "I wanted to meet her, Papa. I just need reassurance that she is okay now."
Her eyes welled slightly.
"It must have been unbearably difficult for her... and it still is. Being a single parent isn't easy. At least now she has all of you beside her..."
"But you were all alone right?..." Vasant interrupted suddenly, his voice cracking badly.
Akansha looked up at him, startled.
"You were a single parent too until around a year ago. At least Suman had your mother and you beside her during pregnancy, during delivery, during Harsh's checkups... but what about you?"
His eyes filled painfully.
"You handled everything alone... hospital bills, your health, your child... how did you even manage all that?" His voice broke completely. "I was such a useless father..."
Akansha's hands trembled remembering those days, though she still forced herself to remain composed. Shaurya's breathing hitched badly hearing it all.
The mere thought of his wife giving birth to their daughter all alone made his hands go ice cold.
"Papa... your daughter is strong," Akansha said with a faint smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "And Richa was there. She took me to the hospital at the right time and everything... everything went well."
She gently held her father, calming him down.
But the moment Vasant settled slightly, Akansha instinctively turned toward Shaurya — and alarm bells instantly rang in her head. He had completely stiffened.
"Papa... could you please get me some water?" she asked quickly, using it as an excuse to send him away.
"Yes beta..." Vasant nodded before slowly getting up with the support of his walker and walking toward the kitchen.
The moment he left, Akansha immediately shifted beside Shaurya and grabbed his freezing hands into hers.
"Shaurya... breathe... breathe properly... relax... I am okay. Siya is okay. Everything went fine," she said anxiously.
His palms were cold and drenched in sweat. She knew she and Siya were his biggest weakness, but she hadn't realized the intensity of it until now.
"Shaurya... look at me, damn it..." she said firmly, forcefully holding his chin and making him face her.
"I'm here. I am fine. I am holding your hand. Nothing happened to me."
For that moment, she pushed aside all her anger, hurt, complaints, and confusion. Right then, only one thing mattered — calming him down.
Shaurya suddenly pulled her tightly against his chest, breathing heavily. He could tolerate every pain in the world except hers. Her pain felt like poison to him. He hated himself... his helplessness... and every decision that had forced her to suffer alone.
Akansha gently rubbed his back, forearms, hair, and cheeks, grounding him slowly.
As a psychologist, she understood exactly what was happening to him.
She had survived everything because she always had something to hold onto — her hatred, her daughter, her responsibilities. But Shaurya? He had been completely alone with nothing except guilt, regret, and fear that he might never find her again in this lifetime.
And suddenly, for the first time, she started seeing the other side of the story properly — his side.
Yes, she had suffered terribly. But he had suffered too. Had he been hiding his own health issues all these years? Had he mentally broken down during those five years?
Looking at him now, struggling just to steady himself, she already knew the answer.
And strangely... the thought of his suffering didn't satisfy her anymore like she once imagined it would. Instead, it filled her with dread.
Vasant cleared his throat softly while returning with water, and both of them immediately pulled apart.
Shaurya too regained some control over himself. He hated that he lost control in front of her again. He didn't deserve her care... her concern... her love.
But God, he craved it.
Badly.
"I'll... I'll be back," he muttered while standing up.
"Have water first," Akansha said immediately, pouring a glass for him.
He drank the entire thing quickly before walking out without another word, without Siya who was busy playing with Harsh's toys nearby, noticing him.
The moment he stepped outside, he called his P.I.
"Ashwini... I don't think you take your job seriously anymore. So why don't you quit?" Shaurya said coldly the moment the call connected.
He had assigned Ashwini the task of finding out exactly what happened on the day of Akansha's delivery, but till now, he still hadn't received proper answers.
"Sir... I have a breakthrough. I'm just waiting for complete details. I'll send everything soon," Ashwini replied instantly, startled by Shaurya's tone.
He had never heard him speak this sharply before.
"I don't know how much 'soon' means to you. But for me, it's forty-eight hours. After that, someone else will replace you."
Shaurya disconnected the call immediately. Ashwini sighed deeply before calling Dev. Dev had specifically asked him to keep the truth away from Shaurya.
After hearing the conversation, Dev fisted his hair in frustration.
Shaurya would shatter completely if he learned the full truth. When it came to Akansha's pain, he was dangerously vulnerable.
Dev had watched him break apart countless times during their marriage. Every time Akansha cried, every time she suffered while Shaurya had to stay silent, he had crumbled internally.
Dev's eyes welled up remembering those days.
"I have something to say," Dev texted Akansha.
At the exact same moment, Akansha texted:
"I have something to ask."
"Woah... what is it?" Dev replied, surprised at the timing.
"I'll call you later."
"Okay."
Dev leaned back tiredly.
He couldn't stop Ashwini forever. He had only managed till now by repeatedly using the "Shaurya's wellbeing" card, but Ashwini had already warned him that once Shaurya started pressuring harder, he wouldn't be able to hide anything anymore.
Dev knew he had to speak with Akansha soon. Only she could handle Shaurya now. After learning the truth, Dev silently thanked God for creating a woman like Akansha.
If Shaurya possessed the capability to control a state and face every external challenge thrown at him, then Akansha possessed the strength to control Shaurya himself — to steady him emotionally and stop him from collapsing completely.
Meanwhile, after regaining some composure, Shaurya turned to head back inside, but halted upon overhearing Akansha and Vasant's conversation.
Akansha was still asking her father to call Suman back, while Vasant remained adamant that Suman wouldn't return until Akansha left.
Shaurya quietly made a decision then. Akansha deserved that reassurance. Otherwise, he knew she would never truly be at peace.
Shaurya walked towards Suraj and quietly asked him to get the details of Harsh's school and its closing time. Within the next ten minutes, Suraj gathered everything they needed, and they immediately left, hoping they would still find them there since the school had dispersed only a few minutes ago.
The moment they reached the school, Shaurya's entire expression darkened.
That bas***d Dilip was trying to snatch Harsh's school bag from Suman's hand. He kept forcefully pushing her away while one of the school guards tried helping her.
Harsh, meanwhile, was crying behind another guard, who was desperately trying to shield the little boy from the scene by covering his eyes.
"Suraj, shoot the video," Shaurya ordered coldly.
Suraj instantly began recording. The footage clearly captured Dilip harassing Suman, aggressively shouting at her, and threatening to snatch Harsh's custody away from her.
Once enough evidence had been recorded, Shaurya looked at Suraj.
"Help her."
Suraj immediately nodded and rushed toward them. The moment Dilip noticed the NSG commando approaching, his forceful behavior visibly faltered.
"Is there a problem here?" Suraj asked sternly.
"It's a family matter, sir. Don't interfere," Dilip replied arrogantly.
Suraj looked toward Suman, expecting her to protest, but she only lowered her gaze and nodded weakly.
Dilip's threatening glare had already frightened her enough.
She was terrified he would trap her in more false cases and somehow snatch Harsh away from her.
She wasn't strong like her sister to fight such battles head-on.
"I don't think so," Suraj said sharply. "You are clearly harassing her."
Before he could continue, Dilip interrupted rudely.
"Sir, you don't have the right to interfere in our family matters."
"Yes Saab, he was troubling this madam," one of the gatekeepers spoke up immediately.
"Shut up!" Dilip barked at him angrily.
That was enough for Shaurya.
He stepped out of the car and walked toward them, instantly shocking the guards, Dilip, and most importantly, Suman herself.