PREGNANCY
I buttoned my shirt neatly before looking at myself in the mirror silently, almost feeling unfamiliar with the version of me staring back.
A crisp white shirt rested perfectly against my skin, tucked neatly into high-waisted black formal pants while the polished belt around my waist completed the cold corporate image I once carried every single day like armor.
Behind me, Adithya stood carefully ironing my blazer with complete concentration on his face like he was handling some ancient sacred cloth.
"This looks expensive," he muttered seriously while smoothing the fabric carefully.
"It is expensive." I chuckled while adjusting my collar.
He immediately looked offended. "How expensive?"
"Three lakhs." I muttered.
His hands froze mid-air.
He slowly looked up at me in absolute horror. "You are wearing a blazer worth more than my bike?"
I burst out laughing softly while letting my hair fall freely down my shoulders before combing through it gently.
"Don't look at me like that."
"This cloth has no right to cost that much," he muttered in genuine disbelief.
I chuckled quietly and adjusted the belt around my formal pants before turning slightly toward the mirror again.
For a moment I simply stared at myself because this version of me felt so distant now.
The Vice Chairperson?
After spending months inside this tiny house filled with coffee smell, late-night cuddles, messy cooking, and bike rides, returning to that world suddenly felt strange.
Adithya finally walked toward me holding the blazer carefully before helping me wear it.
His fingers brushed softly against my shoulders as he adjusted it properly.
Then suddenly he went quiet. I looked at him through the mirror.
He was staring at me.
"What?" I asked.
He blinked quickly like he got caught.
"Nothing."
"Adithya."
He sighed dramatically.
"You look..." He paused as if searching for words. "Very corporate."
I laughed softly. "That's the whole point."
"No but seriously," he muttered while looking at me carefully, "you genuinely look like someone who would reject a billion-dollar deal and destroy someone's career before breakfast."
I snorted. "Should I take that as a compliment?"
"It's terrifying actually." He said.
I turned around fully and stepped closer to him.
"And yet," I whispered teasingly while fixing his slightly crooked collar absentmindedly, "this terrifying woman cries when you ignore her for three hours."
He smiled immediately.
"That's my favorite version of you."
He suddenly wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me closer.
"You'll come back early?" he asked quietly.
"I'll come back home to you," I whispered.
He leaned closer before pressing his lips softly against mine, sealing the moment with a quiet kiss that somehow carried more affection than a thousand dramatic words ever could.
My fingers curled lightly against his shirt as he lingered there for a second before pulling away just enough for his forehead to rest against mine.
"Seriously," he whispered softly near my lips, his breath warm against my skin, "this genuinely feels like one of those ridiculous CEO dramas."
I laughed quietly. "What part exactly?"
"The terrifying billionaire husband wearing expensive blazers and the emotionally attached wife who irons his clothes and waits for him to come home. The only difference was, the roles are reversed here." He said.
I burst out laughing properly at that. "You forgot the part where the husband is also overdramatic."
He gasped in mock offense. "I am a man filled with emotions."
"You almost went to fight your mother yesterday." I said.
"She slapped my wife." He muttered.
I chuckled softly at his words, still smiling like an idiot before suddenly his eyes widened in realization.
"Oh my god," he muttered dramatically while pulling away from me quickly. "I am getting late for the hospital."
He immediately started searching around the room for his bag while I leaned casually against the table, shoving my hands inside my pockets while watching him panic with amusement.
"You should honestly resign your job and become a house husband, Adithya," I said lazily. "I literally earn enough for us to buy an island."
He looked at me in disbelief while wearing his watch hurriedly. "Keep your money to yourself."
I raised my eyebrows innocently. "Dignity?"
He snorted softly while taking his bag.
"That disappeared the moment I started getting butterflies for the woman who literally forced me into marriage."
I giggled softly. "Wow. So dramatic."
"You ruined my life." He muttered, still smiling.
"You love this ruined life." I shot back.
He pointed at me accusingly. "That's the problem."
I grinned shamelessly before stepping closer to him again.
"Fine then," I said casually. "How many kids do you want?"
He blinked at me. "What?"
"I'll give you enough children," I continued seriously as if discussing business strategy. "You stay home and take care of them while I go earn money."
The poor man genuinely froze. His brain visibly stopped functioning for a second. Then slowly his face started turning red.
I stared at him in fascination.
"Oh my god," I whispered dramatically. "You are blushing."
"I am not."
"You literally are."
He looked away immediately and grabbed his bike keys aggressively.
"Why are you casually talking about children at eight in the morning?"
I crossed my arms proudly."Because I am family-oriented."
"You are mentally dangerous." He said.
I laughed loudly while he struggled to wear his shoes without looking at me.
Making Adithya flustered had genuinely become my favorite hobby.
Then suddenly he paused midway before looking up at me again.
"How many kids do you want?" he asked carefully.
I pretended to think deeply. "Hm... enough to emotionally torture you."
He narrowed his eyes. "That is not a number."
"Three maybe." I shrugged.
His expression immediately softened unexpectedly.
Three.
The way he repeated the number quietly inside his head almost made my heart melt.
Then suddenly he looked at me suspiciously. "You are seriously planning our children now?"
I shrugged casually. "I already married you emotionally with paper rings. This is the next step."
He stared at me for two whole seconds before suddenly walking toward me again, pulling me close by my waist.
"You know what?" he muttered softly while smiling against my forehead. "You genuinely terrify me."
"But?" I asked.
"But I want every version of my life with you." He chuckled.
I smiled softly at him, warmth spreading through my chest as I looked at the ridiculous seriousness on his face.
"Okay then," I said teasingly. "Start earning enough to raise our three children."
He groaned dramatically.
"Children are huge commitments," I added proudly like some wise philosopher.
Adithya immediately pointed at me with complete seriousness.
"Don't get pregnant, Viyana. That looks horrifyingly painful."
I chuckled.
"I am serious," he continued, already looking emotionally stressed just thinking about it. "During my internship, I once assisted doctors during a delivery case and that was my first labor case. I almost cried seeing how much pain the woman was enduring."
His face genuinely looked traumatized remembering it.
"I don't want you going through that," he muttered softly while holding my hand unconsciously now. "Let's just avoid children."
I stared at him for one second before snorting loudly.
"Wow," I muttered. "Best condom advertisement ever."
He looked scandalized immediately.
"Viyana!"
I laughed harder watching his face turn red again.
"You are impossible," he muttered while rubbing his forehead tiredly. "Why do you say things so casually?"
"Because making you embarrassed is therapeutic." I winked.
He narrowed his eyes at me before suddenly sighing dramatically. "I am genuinely talking emotionally and you are bullying me."
"Why are you stressing so much, Adithya?" I asked while cupping his cheek gently. "I am the one who would actually endure the pain."
His eyebrows frowned immediately. "Exactly."
I smiled helplessly at him. "I know it's difficult," I admitted softly. "But I still want children with you."
The words made him go quiet for a moment. His fingers tightened around my waist slightly before he sighed.
"I just don't want you to suffer," he murmured honestly.
My heart melted a little at that.
"Don't worry," I whispered reassuringly. "I'll manage."
He looked deeply unconvinced.
"But don't blame me afterward," he muttered seriously.
I blinked at him.
"What?"
"During labor cases," he began dramatically, already looking traumatized by the memories, "women scream at their husbands like they committed unforgivable crimes.
They literally start scolding them between contractions.
One woman grabbed her husband's collar and screamed asking why he put the baby inside her stomach.
And honestly, we doctors and nurses struggle so much not to laugh sometimes.
Once, a very brave husband entered the labor room carrying a camera and proudly announced he was going to record the entire childbirth memory. "
I already started laughing before he even finished. "What happened?"
"He fainted."
I lost it completely.
"He literally collapsed onto the floor after seeing all the bed."
I leaned against him laughing while he looked ridiculously entertained now.
"The nurses had to carry both husband and wife out separately," he muttered.
"Oh my god."
"And after waking up," he added with a straight face, "that man apologized to his wife for getting her pregnant."
I slapped his shoulder while laughing uncontrollably.
"Don't worry," I said proudly while trying very hard not to laugh at his traumatized expression. "I will not blame you for putting the baby inside my stomach."
Adithya stared at me for one second then dramatically dropped his forehead against my shoulder in exhaustion.
"I will faint first," he muttered tiredly.
I burst out laughing immediately. "You are supposed to support your wife during childbirth."
"I will support you emotionally from the floor after fainting." He muttered.
I pulled away slightly just to look at his face. "You are genuinely useless."
"I already told you that," he muttered shamelessly. "You still married me."
I laughed softly while brushing my fingers through his hair.
"Imagine you fainting while I am screaming in labor."
"That is exactly what will happen."
"Oh my god."
"I am not built for these terrifying experiences, Viyana," he complained dramatically. "I barely survived seeing strangers give birth. Now imagine you in pain."
His voice softened automatically near the end and suddenly beneath all the humor I could hear the genuine fear there again.
I smiled softly before holding his face gently.
"You would still stay beside me though."
He looked at me like the answer was obvious.
"Even if I faint," he muttered, "I will faint beside you only."
My chest warmed embarrassingly.
God.
Why was this man so lovable?
I pressed a soft kiss against his forehead while he sighed dramatically again.
"You know," he murmured, "our children are going to emotionally torture me exactly like you."
"Genetics."
"They will gang up against me."
"As they should." I said proudly.
He narrowed his eyes immediately.
"I am already outnumbered and the children don't even exist yet."
I laughed as he pulled me impossibly closer again before muttering against my hair-
"But honestly..."
"Hm?"
"If our children get your personality," he whispered dramatically, "I am resigning from fatherhood."
I giggled softly at his dramatic suffering while he continued holding me like life itself depended on it.
"We have literally done nothing except intense kissing and cuddling," I pointed out teasingly. "And you are already panicking over something that won't even happen anytime soon."
"No, listen," he said seriously while lifting one finger like he was about to explain a scientific theory. "First comes emotional attachment."
I nodded dramatically.
"Then cuddling."
"Very dangerous."
"Then kissing."
He looked deeply betrayed remembering our kisses.
"Then suddenly one day there are children running around the house and I am mentally unstable."
I laughed so hard my stomach hurt. "You skipped several important steps there."
"I am a medical professional," he muttered proudly. "I understand the process."
"Apparently not properly."
"You are laughing now," he muttered against my cheek. "But one day you will emotionally blackmail me into becoming a father."
I gasped dramatically. "I would never."
"You already manipulate me with kisses."He said.
I giggled helplessly while he looked at me like I was the greatest threat to his peaceful existence.
Then suddenly he sighed softly and rested his forehead against mine again.
"But honestly..." he whispered quietly now, his playful expression softening, "thinking about a future with you feels terrifyingly real sometimes."
The smile on my lips softened instantly.
Because I understood exactly what he meant.
This was no longer temporary anymore. No longer some forced arrangement built on threats and contracts. Now there were conversations about children.
Homes.
Futures.
Returning back to each other after work.
I sighed softly as my chest felt unbearably full, the kind of happiness that almost scared me because of how deeply it settled inside me.
"Adithya," I reminded him while trying not to laugh, "you are getting late."
His eyes widened instantly.
"Oh my god."
He immediately pulled away from me in panic and hurriedly grabbed his bag before slinging it over his shoulder carelessly.
"You are dangerous," he muttered accusingly while taking his helmet and bike keys. "You distract hardworking medical professionals from their duties."
I snorted softly. "Go save lives, Mr. Justice Saviour."
He pointed at me dramatically. "You are the reason my career is collapsing."
Then without another second to waste, he rushed out in urgency.
I shook my head helplessly and turned back toward the mirror before resuming combing my hair slowly, trying to settle myself mentally for the long day ahead.
The room became quiet again.
I had barely combed through one side of my hair when suddenly a pair of arms wrapped around me tightly from behind.
Before I could even react, Adithya pressed a loud kiss against my cheek.
"Bye, wife," he muttered quickly against my skin.
I blinked at him through the mirror in disbelief. "You came back?"
"I forgot to say bye properly." He said and before I could respond that emotionally attached man literally ran away again.
I stood there frozen for one second. Then suddenly burst out laughing softly to myself while touching the cheek he kissed.
God.
This man genuinely had no shame anymore.
The mighty shy Adithya Menon who once struggled to even look directly into my eyes now returned dramatically just to kiss me goodbye before leaving for work.
.