Chapter 6
As I marched through the gallery, my fingers trembled. After sending the letter to Mahabaleshgarh, I rushed to Bhai-sa’s chamber. But I stopped like any other man waiting outside their bedroom.
I could hear Bhabhi-sa’s screams. I had never heard a voice so intense and painful in my life, except for once, when I saw her lying on that pyre.
Strangely, life and death can make you cry the same.
I didn’t know why, but these screams, though they signalled good news and a new family member, brought back memories of her painful screams.
It’s been over a month, yet the image of that pyre, her lying there alive, a man lighting the flames, and the crowd awaiting to hear her screams remains as vivid as that reality was. Dangerous—something that could break someone for the rest of their life.
I didn’t know what came to my mind when I read her letter. I had known her as much as I had known the soldiers of our army—living in the same palace, but with little to no interaction. Yet, I couldn’t stop myself from saving her.
But our conversations were no longer reduced to formal messages. I understood it meant nothing, at least not for either of us. Yet, the incident left me with a deep sense of guilt.
I couldn’t erase the visuals of her crying in my arms, her tiny hands, which used to serve food to me, fisted on my clothes, and her voice, trembling, crying, begging, that used to bring me messages from Bhabhi-sa. Everything told me she was a nice person, that she didn’t deserve to die.
I couldn’t calculate the consequences back then and still can’t.
But after that incident, I felt a connection every time I saw her. I believed it was my duty to keep her safe from those people.
I was deeply drawn to her. It was hard to figure out why I kept struggling to stay away whenever she walked into my room. Each time she stood before me, I felt an irresistible urge to engage, tease, or do anything to make her want to stay with me.
Her skin felt soft against mine. Her lips had never looked so beautiful. Or perhaps I was being observant now. She had such captivating eyes, and whenever she applied kohl to them, as she did today, it made me feel, maybe without my choice, that she was mine.
In the previous two weeks, I noticed she was ignoring me, and I, too, tried my best to ignore her. However, just glancing at her would make me feel that everything with her was real.
Still, she couldn’t be my secret affair. Even though my defences crumbled before her, I tried hard to mask them with my rudeness. I couldn’t get close to her.
Everything was going against my original plan.
I wanted to be close to her before I left for Mehrangarh again. Because if anything happened to me, she would blame herself.
It was a hard truth to swallow, but it was evident in her eyes that she saw me as more than just a prince. Her fierce demeanour toward me and her ferocious words implied she felt a claim on me. Everything was driving me crazy.
Suddenly, Bhabhi-sa’s screams grew even louder, snapping me out of my thoughts.
I intertwined my fingers and felt a hand on my shoulder.
I turned to look at Ranvijay Bhai-sa. “Bhai-sa,” I said, prompting for a hug.
“Oh, what happened?” he asked, amused, as I felt him gently patting my back.
“It’s okay, Agastya; it happens during childbirth; she’ll be fine.” His words made me even tenser, and I closed my eyes.
“I don’t know, Bhai-sa; she’s the only person I’ve ever seen as a motherly figure,” I mumbled.
He brushed his fingers through my hair and replied, “Just a little more time, and we’ll both become father figures to someone.”
I immediately broke the hug and looked at him.
“Yes, yes, I’ll become Kaako-sa24,”
He narrowed his eyes. “Chote Kaako-sa.” He corrected me, and I smiled.
“Sixteen days fast… no… no, twenty-one, twenty-five. Twenty-five days fasting, I need a girl, a girl…” I continued negotiating with God and walked toward the corner.
My gaze landed on my half-wife walking through the hallways to the other side of the chamber. I sprinted to stop her midway.
“How is she doing now?” I asked.
She furrowed her brows at me. “Same.”
Okay, she was mad about the hot thing. She hurried past me.
“What does ‘same’ mean?” I asked, following her while keeping my eyes open and alert so as not to be noticed.
“In pain,” she replied, stepping into Bhabhi-sa’s dressing room. I followed her inside and watched as she opened a trunk.
“When is the girl coming out?” I inquired politely.
She lifted her ‘unbelievable’ gaze to my eyes. “It’s going to be a boy,” she countered.
My eyes widened. “No,” I said. “It’s definitely a girl.”
She clicked her tongue in frustration and grabbed a fresh pair of clothes. “No, no, her symptoms showed a boy,” she stated.
I didn’t understand it; it upset me. There were three boys; we needed a girl. I had never even seen a baby girl.
“But I asked for a girl,” I countered, “I even told Bhabhi-sa that I wanted a girl,”
She immediately looked at me in disbelief. “Girl or boy doesn’t depend on a woman; it’s up to God,” she said.
“But I negotiated with him, too,” I replied. “I know it will be a girl. The Princess of Suryagarh, and she will call me
Chote Kaako-sa,”
She side-eyed me. “It’s going to be a boy. The next king of Suryagarh, the physicians said,” she said, closing the trunk.
I didn’t know why, but blood rushed to her cheeks whenever she got furious, and her lips looked redder. Kissable.
Fuckable too.
I let out a sigh to control my intentions with her.
“Girl,” I affirmed, biting my lower lip, following her.
She shook her head. “Boy,”
I couldn’t help but click my tongue. “Girl,” I repeated.
“Boy,” she turned her furious gaze on me. “It is going to be a boy, who’ll call me Maasi-maa,”
My heart raced, gazing into her eyes. “It’s going to be a girl,” I repeated, but she shook her head and walked away.
I seized her hand, pulled her back, and pinned her against the wall.
Her eyes widened with shock.
“Bet,”
She inhaled deeply, paused momentarily, and declared, “Bet!”
I gulped. “And if it’s a boy, you will never touch me again!” she exclaimed, lowering her gaze to my hand and holding her wrist between our chests.
A challenge.
I sucked in a deep breath, replying. “And if it’s a girl, you’re going to suck me on her every birthday.”
Her eyes enlarged, and words stuck in her throat.
A smile lingered on my face.
The screams of Bhabhi-sa broke the eye battle. “Go,” I left her hand. “She needs you, Kaaki-sa,” I said.
She sighed, flustered, before walking away.
When I walked out, Ranvijay Bhai-sa’s voice caught my attention.
“What’s going on?” He noticed me coming out of the dressing room after her.
“What were you talking to her about?” he asked, pulling my ear. “You’re getting married in just four months. Cut out the flirting,” he said, and I immediately chuckled, shaking my head.
“Flirting?” I widened my eyes. “I was just asking her about Bhabhi-sa, Bhai-sa.” I smiled.
He let go of my ear. “It’s alright then.”
Suddenly, the whole chamber became chaotic, and we both heard a faint cry.
“Finally!”
“Finally! Congratulations.”
We hugged each other tightly, and I felt goosebumps all over my body.
The attendants ran, announcing loudly. “It’s a girl, Rani-sa is fine!”
“It’s a girl, Rani-sa is fine!!!”
My smile widened by two inches, and it felt like I might’ve died from happiness.
“It’s a girl, Bhai-sa. It’s a girl, our daughter.” I squealed, laughing through tears.
“Yes, Agastya, it’s a girl, the Princess of Suryagarh,” he said.
I immediately shook my head. “I need to ask the attendants to prepare sweets; our Bhai-sa has become a father! Oh my God!” Tears of happiness rolled down my cheeks.
Ranvijay Bhai-sa laughed. “Yes, I need to prepare for the baby’s first shower,” he said.
I noticed my half-wife approaching us.
“Prince Ranvijay, Prince Agastya, Ranaji is asking for you both,” she drawled, and I noticed her red cheeks.
She didn’t even raise her eyes to meet mine, and I couldn’t help but chuckle.
You are so dead.
Ranvijay Bhai-sa and I walked into Rudra Bhai-sa’s bedchamber. Nandani Bhabhi-sa’s curtained bed caught my attention. Rudra Bhai-sa walked to us with the baby in his arms.
“Come, meet our daughter,” he said, his voice emotional and his cheeks wet with tears.
The baby was too small for his arms, like a small papaya. My gaze fixed on her tiny face. She had some hair on her head, and her lips were soft pink.
“Her height is going to be the same as Bhabhi-sa’s.” I couldn’t help but say, and laughter broke out in the bedroom.
“Can I hold her?” I looked at Ranvijay Bhai-sa, and Rudra Bhai-sa nodded.
“Of course.” I watched closely as he passed the baby to Ranvijay Bhai-sa, and I couldn’t understand why my palms were sweating with nervousness.
What if he couldn’t hold her, and she fell?
No, no, why was I having such disturbing thoughts?
I quickly shoved those thoughts aside and glanced at Ranvijay Bhai-sa, cradling her in his arms.
“She’s really so small and beautiful,” he said, and I nodded.
“She’s a girl,” I said, and Rudra Bhai-sa chuckled.
“Yes, yes, she is a girl, as you asked,” he said.
Ranvijay Bhai-sa slowly tried to hand the baby to me. I immediately shook my head and took a step back.
“She is so small,” I said, paranoid. “Bhabhi-sa will kill me if something happens to her. I’ll play with her in a few months; I want to look at her,” I said, and everyone laughed.
“Then give her to me,” Aishwarya Bhabhi-sa intervened happily. She walked toward us and took the baby from Bhai-sa’s hand.
“She needs to be fed,” she informed, taking the baby in her arms.
“How is Bhabhi-sa now?” Ranvijay Bhai-sa asked.
“Weak and in pain,” she replied, before walking away.
“Agastya, instruct everyone in the kitchen to prepare sweets for the entire kingdom, comprising all one hundred and nine villages, and Ranvijay, dispatch invitations to all our allied kingdoms and arrange a grand feast for the sixth day,” Rudra Bhai-sa commanded, and we both nodded in agreement.
“But, Bhai-sa, you know I’m not very good with ingredients,” I said, “I mean, I could use some help.”
He turned his gaze to my half-wife and called, “Suman,”
She looked at us and came running. “Ji, Ranaji,”
“Go with Kunwar Agastya,” he ordered. “Help him make the list of ingredients needed and take care of the preparations for the sweets.”
I noticed her eyes widen at the mention of my name, and I couldn’t help but bite my lip slightly, suppressing a smile.
“But, Ranaji, Rani-sa might need me. Should I send someone else?” she asked.
Bhai-sa shook his head. “I’m here with her, and I’ll send the message if she asks for you. The sweets are important.”
She nodded immediately. “Yes, Ranaji,” she bowed while glaring at me.
It was a double celebration for me: first, for the girl, and second, for winning the bet.
“Let’s go,” I said, but she walked past me without sparing me a glance. I nodded at Bhai-sa, and he smiled in return.
I walked away and noticed her hurrying to the kitchen.
“Ab bhaag kyun rahi ho?”
“Why are you running now?” I called.
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