Chapter 52 #5
"Stay for some more time, Shaurya... please..." Aakriti requested, holding Siya's palm in hers. "Ma'am, please... I want to spend some more time with Siya."
Siya too held her aunt's hand tightly. She liked Aakriti. According to her, Aakriti was a cool aunt because she had puppies, so many toys, and most importantly, beautiful paintings. Aakriti had even promised to teach her to paint.
"We can start an hour later?" Shaurya suggested softly, looking at Akansha for her opinion.
"We all have work tomorrow, and Siya has school too. An overnight journey will already be hectic," Akansha hesitated.
"It will be the same even if you start now. Please, ma'am... just one more hour," Aakriti requested again.
Akansha finally nodded.
"I'll take Siya with me to office tomorrow. She can skip school and rest there," Shaurya suggested, and Akansha agreed.
"Yay! I can play with Bua for some more time," Siya jumped happily before pulling Aakriti back toward the canvas. Soon, both of them were busy enjoying their painting class again.
"Everything is fine between you two?" Shaurya asked Akansha quietly.
"Yes. We cleared everything. She is drowned in guilt, and so am I. It will take time for both of us to get back to normal, but time will heal things," she said, and he nodded.
"Where is Mr. Bisht?" Akansha asked, remembering Shaurya had told her Rajnath also lived with Aakriti.
"He'll be late today. He's stuck in a meeting," Shaurya answered.
Akansha simply nodded.
When only a few minutes were left for midnight, Shaurya brought out the cake he had made and started arranging everything on the table.
"What's this for?" Akansha asked in surprise.
"I'll tell you," he said before calling Aakriti and Siya too.
"Wow, cake... Dadda, I love you!" Siya screamed, jumping in happiness after seeing her favorite cake.
"I love you too... you three," Shaurya said.
Aakriti and Siya smiled, while Akansha froze for a second before composing herself. Hearing "I love you" from the man she had loved so immensely still had the power to unsettle her. She had to try hard to act unaffected.
The moment the clock struck twelve, Shaurya pressed the remote, and multiple party poppers burst around them.
"Happy Women's Day, my beautiful and strong ladies," he said, surprising all three of them.
"Woah... when did you do all this?" Aakriti asked, stunned.
"We got these installed during Rajnath uncle's birthday last year, remember!. I only refilled them and blasted them... like this," Shaurya said, pressing the remote again.
Another party popper burst right above Aakriti, startling her badly. Shaurya burst out laughing at her expression while she glared at him.
"Shaurya..." Aakriti smacked his forearm.
"Bua... I won't be your fliend if you beat my Dadda," Siya warned angrily.
Shaurya smirked at Aakriti, but Akansha ruined his victory within seconds.
"Bua is not hurting Dadda. She actually slapped her own hand... like this," Akansha explained, demonstrating it.
Siya observed carefully and then nodded in realization. Now it was Aakriti's turn to smirk at Shaurya, who seemed to be losing the game.
"If you are done showing your teeth, please cut the cake now... the three of you," Shaurya said.
Aakriti glared at him first, followed by Akansha.
"Ask properly," Aakriti said, folding her arms.
Siya had already moved forward to do exactly what her father asked, but Aakriti and Akansha quickly held her back.
"Siya, today is Women's Day. That means it is all-girls day. We have to show our strength. Let your Dadda request politely, then we will cut the cake," Aakriti told her.
Siya looked at Akansha for confirmation. Akansha nodded seriously, making Aakriti grin and stick her tongue out at Shaurya.
"I am always ready to bow before you ladies," Shaurya said, immediately going down on his knees. "So please, come here and honor this cake."
All three of them nodded with smiles on their faces.
Akansha stared at him in awe. For that brief moment, she forgot every complaint and every wound she carried against him. She saw the Shaurya who had fallen in love with her, the Shaurya she had fallen in love with — the loving, caring man who never failed to make her feel important.
Siya immediately held her father's shirt and tried pulling him up, worried that his knees would hurt.
Akansha rolled her eyes at her overprotective daughter. It was as if her father was made of glass and the entire world existed only to injure him.
Aakriti looked at Akansha and sighed at the father-daughter drama, making Akansha chuckle at her expression.
"This is the new normal I have started adjusting to. You'll get used to it too," Akansha said.
"How do you even bear their drama?" Aakriti asked.
"I just give them a look when it gets too much. They understand and stop," Akansha replied.
"I want to see it live... how you control my brother with just one look," Aakriti said with childish glee on her face.
Akansha tried hard not to blush in embarrassment at the word 'control'.
"Well, I wouldn't say I control—" she began in a low tone, but Aakriti cut her off.
"Oh please, ma'am. I saw how one glare from you is enough for him to correct his actions. I loved watching it the last few hours," Aakriti said, chuckling.
Akansha shook her head at this mad sister-in-law of hers.
Still, her heart felt oddly light seeing Aakriti so carefree and peaceful now.
There was a time when Akansha's heart used to break every time she saw Aakriti's lifeless form in the hospital.
Aakriti used to get admitted frequently due to her unstable health, which often required medical attention.
"Dadda... I will also sit on my knees if you don't get up. You will hult your knees, they will pain," Siya declared, trying to sit on the floor too.
"No bacha... the floor is hard. Sit here, come," Shaurya said, trying to make his daughter sit on his thigh.
While Akansha and Aakriti spoke about them, the father-daughter duo remained busy in their own little drama world — until Akansha cleared her throat.
Both of them immediately looked at her. Akansha raised her brows silently, calling out their overacting without saying a word.
Siya and Shaurya instantly got up from the floor. Aakriti burst out laughing at how Akansha brought both father and daughter in line with just one look.
"See, this is exactly what I was talking about," Aakriti said, making Akansha chuckle too.
Shaurya and Siya looked at each other, not understanding what the women were talking about, but shrugged their shoulders at the same time.
Their entire focus had already shifted to the cake. After all, it wasn't just Siya's favorite. It was Shaurya's too.
The two of them shared the same taste buds, just like they shared almost everything else. Siya was her father's photocopy in nearly every possible way.
Akansha, Siya, and Aakriti started cutting the cake when Shaurya's phone rang with Dev's video call.
He already knew why Dev was calling, so he picked it up and saw Rachna standing in front of another cake, holding the knife dramatically.
"Shaurya... you are so sweet. You sent me such a beautiful cake for Women's Day?" Rachna asked emotionally.
"Well, I am celebrating the women in my life who make me want to become a better person every single day," Shaurya replied sincerely. "And you are one of those four women who are my pillars of strength."
"Awe... Shaurya!" Rachna clutched her heart dramatically. "Don't make me cry." Then she glared at Dev, who was standing behind the camera. "You idiot, learn something from Shaurya."
"God, woman... stop scowling at me and cut the damn cake," Dev groaned.
Apparently, she had been taunting him nonstop ever since Shaurya's cake got delivered.
"Cut his tongue if he opens his mouth again, Rachna," Akansha said calmly, making Dev growl from the other side of the screen.
"Shaurya... show that ruthless woman once. Just once," Dev complained dramatically.
"Do you think I am scared of you?" Akansha shot back instantly before snatching the phone from Shaurya's hand.
"Hey, you—" Dev started aggressively, but the moment he noticed Siya and Aakriti beside her, his entire expression softened.
"Hi, my lovely ladies..." he greeted sweetly. "Aakriti 1 and Aakriti 2."
Aakriti rolled her eyes while Siya blinked at him curiously.
"Awe... my Siyakriti is looking so pretty in her frock. Just like an angel," Dev cooed lovingly.
Akansha immediately made a disgusted face hearing him baby-talk. Dev glared at her before returning his attention to Siya with a grin. Aakriti quietly chuckled watching their endless petty fights.
"Dev uncle..." Siya spoke thoughtfully. "You know my bua? Her name is also Aakriti. How you know?"
Then Shaurya explained how Aakriti was Dev's sister too. Siya didn't fully understand the complicated family tree, but she at least understood one thing — Dev was also related to her cool bua.
"Okay, now let's cut this beautiful cake properly," Shaurya announced, and everyone agreed.
Just then, Rajnath walked inside. Akansha instinctively stiffened seeing him. But Rajnath only smiled gently at her.
They had never actually met in person before, though she still remembered speaking to him once over the phone years ago. Of course, she recognized him instantly. Rajnath Bisht was the chairman of one of the country's biggest media giants. His face was practically everywhere.
"Thank God... I didn't miss anything," Rajnath said dramatically while entering.
"Hello Dad!" Dev, Rachna, and the kids greeted him together.
Rajnath responded warmly before walking toward Siya first.
He affectionately caressed her cheek before pulling Shaurya into a hug. The love he carried for Shaurya was visible in every gesture. He loved him like his own son, and Shaurya respected him far more than he had ever respected Virendar.
"Give me the phone. I'll hold it while you shoot the video," Rajnath said emotionally. "After years, my whole family is together. God... I am so happy today."
Shaurya chuckled hearing his emotional tone.
"Come on... don't drop your ruthless businessman facade now. What will the nation think if Rajnath Bisht melts like this?" Shaurya teased.
Rajnath immediately slapped his arm lightly.
"Shaurya..."
"Let the old man cry," Dev added dramatically. "We'll make a breaking news headline out of it — 'Why is Rajnath Bisht in tears? The nation wants to know.'"
He paused thoughtfully before adding,
"Trust me, TRPs will skyrocket."
Both Dev and Shaurya burst out laughing while Rajnath glared at his sons.
Yes, sons.
Akansha suddenly remembered the exact words Rajnath had once spoken to her years ago over the phone.
"I don't want to hear anything from you. Thank your stars that my sons are not home. If they knew you called, they would destroy you and your entire family. Do not take Aakriti's name from your filthy mouth ever again. And do not try approaching her or my family. Take this as my warning."
Back then, she hadn't blamed him.
He was a father watching his daughter slowly die in front of his eyes. Any parent would have reacted the same way.
In fact, somewhere she was even grateful to him for stopping Dev from filing a police complaint against her for abetment of suicide.
At that point, her family was already collapsing under pressure.
A police case or jail would have destroyed whatever little stability they still had.
Rajnath had thought about her future and career despite everything.
So she never truly held bitterness toward him.
And now, watching him shower affection on Shaurya and Siya so naturally, she finally understood something clearly.
When Rajnath had referred to Dev and Shaurya as his sons back then, he hadn't merely said it emotionally. He genuinely meant it.
Soon, the cake cutting turned into complete chaos filled with laughter, teasing, and nonstop talking.
Rajnath spoke to Akansha warmly throughout the evening, his affection and respect evident in his tone. He even made Siya sit on his lap and asked her to call him "Dadu," introducing himself as her father's father.
Siya immediately looked toward Shaurya for confirmation before accepting the new title. Shaurya nodded with a smile.
Meanwhile, Dev and Akansha continued fighting throughout the video call exactly the way they always did.
They truly were the Tom and Jerry of the real world, and honestly, anybody could see it.