Kiaan

******

She was supposed to be with our friends, but she wasn't. And no one even knew where she was.

Great! Just great!

I leave for a moment, and she flies away like an actual firefly.

She has no idea what her disappearance does to me. That's why, even when we are apart, I make sure I have eyes on her. I always have someone tailing her, whether she is at her dance academy or anywhere else. I always make sure, apart from Enzo, there is someone watching her from afar, ensuring her safety.

And now, in the middle of all this glitter and noise of our reception, I couldn't even find her.

I was heading toward the security room to check the footage since she wasn't picking up my calls either, but as I passed the restricted area meant for staff only, something caught my eye.

A very familiar veil of a pink saree, flowing lightly in the cool breeze.

Without wasting a moment, I sprinted there only to find my wife standing still, staring into the distance. I let out a breath of relief, though rage still simmered inside me because of her carelessness. First, she decided to walk away from our friends without informing anyone, especially me. And second, she was standing in a restricted area that wasn't her place to be. I might have made sure nothing goes out of my hands, yet even trusting my shadow at such events filled with such a huge crowd was never in my dictionary, still I couldn't let her take her safety for granted. She was supposed to be enjoying herself, not standing somewhere like a mannequin.

"What are you doing here?"

My voice caught her attention instantly. She turned toward me quickly, as if my voice had broken some trance she was trapped in. Her eyes were filled with unshed tears when she looked at me with shock, as if she saw a ghost. Her face looked paler than before.

Concern rose within me, wiping away whatever anger I had felt toward her. My anger didn't disappear, but it simply shifted to the one who had made her cry.

Suddenly, she wrapped her arms around me, catching me off guard. For a second, I was too stunned to react, to even process what had just happened. That was never her first instinct. Hitting me with a coconut would have been believable, but not hugging me like that. As much as I liked it, I was worried about it. It confirmed one thing, though: she felt threatened because of something or someone.

The wild organ in my chest began to pound rapidly.

Her grip tightened around me, and her fingers crushed the fabric of my coat. Slowly, I wrapped one arm around her while the other slid into her hair, gently massaging her scalp. I kissed her hair, softly resting my chin on top of her head.

"Did Ishaan say something?" I asked.

I assumed someone at the reception had made her feel vulnerable again. She was not someone who stayed quiet. She knew how to fight back, and I was certain she must have given an equally sharp reply to whoever hurt her. Still, I wondered what could have shaken her this way.

And if Ishaan had said something, I swear I would do something terrible enough to make him kneel in front of her. Brother or not, anyone who made her cry deserved the harshest punishment. I was no saint when it came to punishing those who hurt her.

"Was it Arvind Kashyap? Did he call and say something?" And if it was her so-called father, heck, there was going to be a war he wasn't expecting.

But she shook her head, her face still pressed against my chest.

"Where were you?" She asked in an accusatory manner, as if I had done something wrong.

"I had to re-check the security. Then some of Dad's friends stopped me, talking business. I would have taken you there, but you would have gotten bored, so I didn't. After that, when I walked over to where you should have been, you weren't there."

She seemed to need an explanation, and I offered it to her to calm her.

She raised her head, still in my arms. Her expression grew a little calmer as expected when she heard me, as if it lifted some weight off her shoulders.

She loved being around our friends. And all of a sudden, she was alone in a secluded area, looking like she would let her tears fall any second. That did not sit well with me.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing. I thought I saw someone over there." She fumbled with her words and pointed toward the closed doors of the restricted area.

"Who?"

"You," she mumbled, then quickly covered it up with, "I was just confused."

"You aren't being completely honest with me," I said. It was obvious she was hiding something.

"I told you, I just got confused." She tried to avoid it, but I was a stubborn man. She could try convincing me all she wanted. It was all going into the drain.

"Either you tell me what happened or we watch the CCTV footage together."

She looked defeated as her gaze shifted back to those closed doors. Pointing to one of them in particular, she said, "I saw a man going into that room with a woman."

She was being vague, and that was annoying. I wanted names, not genders.

"Simran, you know I hate vague answers," I said sternly.

She gave me an exasperated, angry look.

Angry? Really?

She was the one who vanished a while ago. She was the one who was almost crying over something. She was the one hugging me like she needed me the way someone needs a gush of fresh air to breathe. But she was angry at me, who, by the way, had been trying to find her like crazy.

"I saw you with..." She paused, then added with bitterness, "Rhea..."

That name...it stilled me. Not because I wasn't expecting her arrival, but because there was certainly a traitor inside.

And then it all made sense.

Simran must have mistaken some other man for me and thought I walked into a room with Rhea. She still couldn't trust me enough to realize I would never do that to her.

Irrespective of how fragile our relationship was, regardless of how much we fought or will fight, I wasn't the man who found respite in the arms of another woman. I would still prefer to be in the arms of this petite, adorable, fiery woman who loved scaring me with a skeleton, who enjoyed making me skip my meals, who turned into an old woman to bring chaos to my office.

It's always her. She wasn't an option to choose from; she was the only one.

Rhea's presence wasn't entirely a surprise. I had an inkling she would show up with some other scheme so that I could leave my wife. But that wasn't happening, irrespective of whatever nonsense she believed in. She could have come to me, but she did not, which made it obvious she was still very scared of me and my fulfilling threats. Last time when she tried something, I had blown up the clinic she worked at; this time, I might do worse.

But why risk her life by being here?

Why show up at my reception without an invitation when she knew I was capable of killing her at any moment?

The real question that arose was:

Who let her in? Who was her trump card she used against me?

I needed to crush that trump card before she created more problems I would never approve of.

"Let's go back," Simran's soft voice brought my attention back to her face. She tried pulling away from the hug but I held her firm, not letting her go. This misunderstanding needed to be cleared before it made a home in her head.

"That isn't a room you saw Rhea walk into. It's a route to another hallway," I clarified to her. All the closed doors there led to connecting hallways, not private rooms. The room section was on the other side.

"And I am right here in front of you. You don't have a reason to be mad at me. I am not with another woman, I am with you."

"You chose me?" She asked so softly, and it broke something in me. She wasn't an option, and I would chant that a thousand times a day if that's what she wanted.

"I didn't..." Her face fell. But then I added, "You are not an option, you are the only woman for me. And I will keep repeating it until it gets stamped into your head and your heart. Do you get it, firefly?"

She kept staring at me and then nodded, her eyes still searching for something in mine. Her anger cooled slightly then.

Holding her close to me and without wasting a moment, I dialed Enzo's number. I told him what Simran had seen and ordered him to capture Rhea along with the man she was with. I also told him to find who let her in and instructed him to check the entrance CCTV footage thoroughly before moving further.

At the same time, I called Hredhaan and informed him of the same before telling him to take control of things for a while. I needed to stay with my wife. I would not let our reception be ruined.

"What will you do when you find her?" she asked quietly when I hung up the call.

"The same thing I do with anyone who breaches my security. Capture them. Hurt them," I replied coolly.

"I might be wrong," she said, almost to herself.

She could never digest the idea of me hurting someone. That is why she was already trying to convince herself she had misunderstood.

But I lived by rules I created myself. And I made sure this world followed them, too.

One of them was simple.

No one breaches Kiaan Chauhan's security and lives the rest of their life peacefully.

"You are not wrong," I said confidently, trusting her completely.

"But..." she tried to interject.

"I trust you. If you saw her here, then she is here."

Simran wasn't crazy. I knew that look of pain she carried when she hugged me. It wasn't mere confusion or some hallucination. I knew what she saw was real.

"You are putting too much faith in me." She wasn't pleased with that.

I didn't care. Anyone who hurts her deserves to be hurt ten times worse.

"I have placed my life in your hands..." I paused before adding, "Faith is nothing compared to that."

She had learned to make my heart ache in ways no one else could. With every heartbeat, the longing hit me just as hard. She was mine, yet she wasn't. I wanted her badly, yet I couldn't truly have her.

No one would ever understand this conundrum unless they knew our history, our pain, the betrayal she once offered me, which I willingly accepted.

So when I said I had put my life in the hands of the woman who had betrayed me once, it was a big deal.

And if she ever did it again, I would let her.

She gave me that look of longing before she completely pulled back from me. This time, I let her.

Certainly, my words were overwhelming. So was the sudden presence of Rhea there. So was everything between us. But one thing was certain. The overwhelming weight of these emotions had only just begun. It would grow...and grow...and one day it might become unbearable.

It might suffocate her, and she would have to learn to live with that, to breathe through it.

Because I was not going to stop.

"How did she even breach security? There were so many trained security officials." She asked the most reasonable question any sane person would ask. That was the first question I asked myself, too.

"Someone I know must have let her in. That's the only way she could have walked in here alive. But I will have it handled. So you don't have to worry. Let Hredhaan and Enzo handle this. Come on, let's greet our guests first. Shall we?" I extended my hand for her to take.

She shook her head.

"I can't go in..."

Now that stubbornness of hers wasn't sitting well with me.

"Why?"

"Because I think my makeup is ruined," she said, making a sad face.

Agghh! My woman!

She was so adorable it was hard not to kiss the heck out of her right then. She made me lose my mind in ways that made it difficult to control myself. She made me feel powerful and powerless at the same time. I had to struggle with myself not to claim her completely right there until all she would remember was just my name.

Either I could let the beast take over, or I could be a sane husband and do what a sane husband does.

I chose the sane husband.

Instead of letting the beast control me, I called the only person who could handle this situation properly for me. Saavi.

"Hey cupcake, could you come to the private suite? Please bring makeup, and don't let my sister or anyone else join you."

If anyone else joined, they would surely waste our time and completely ruin my plan for after the reception. The one that was a surprise for my wife, and that was why I wanted this reception to end smoothly and fast.

When the call ended, I held Simran's hand and took her to the private suite where we waited for Saavi to bring the makeup, so my wife could do whatever touch-up she needed.

To be honest, she didn't need any makeup. She was beautiful without it, and her makeup wasn't even ruined. I hadn't done anything to ruin it yet. I might do it later, though.

But I didn't want to argue. I had promised her the night was hers. If she wanted to touch up her makeup, so be it. If she wanted anything at all, I would get it for her.

I heard footsteps, but I could tell it wasn't just Saavi. There were multiple distinct sounds, along with soft giggling. I was sure Dhriti must have followed my innocent cupcake. Or worse, she must have overheard the conversation and decided to trouble my wife and me.

"Why do you need makeup? Do you need to hide something from the concealer?" Dhriti entered with her teasing remark.

"Is it a punch mark?" Adya followed her inside.

"No, better, a hickey..." Aditi added.

I had already met most of our friends, except a few who hadn't arrived earlier. Aditi was one of them. She wasn't at our wedding either. She was Dhriti's childhood best friend, close to Simran, and over the years had become a good friend of mine too.

"Ady Di..." Simran couldn't contain her excitement the moment she saw Aditi. She rushed forward and hugged her.

"Hi, sweetheart. Many, many congratulations to you, darling." Aditi hugged her back, smiling warmly.

"Why weren't you at the wedding?" Simran asked as she pulled back.

"I was genuinely ready to go to the airport, and had packed such great outfits to wear at your wedding. Everything was arranged, but Aahir's brother had an accident," she said sadly.

I already knew. Aditi had texted me about her brother-in-law's accident and had wished Simran and me a healthy marriage. I had told her not to inform Simran. She was already stressed enough during the wedding, and I didn't want her to get upset more.

"How is he now?" Simran asked, concern evident in her voice.

"He is fine. Still recovering, though."

"I am really sorry for missing your wedding," Aditi said with a sad smile.

"It's fine. I am glad you are here now," Simran replied with an understanding smile.

Aditi then walked toward me with a smug expression on her face. She had always teased me that I would marry soon, and I had always denied it.

That smug smile was for exactly that.

"Congratulations, Mr. Chauhan..." she said with a teasing smile.

"Thanks, Mrs. Arya..." I replied. She gave me a brief hug.

When she pulled back, Simran was already seated on a chair, ready for the touch-ups she had insisted on.

"God, I wish I had a sister. I would have dolled her up," Aditi said, looking at Simran.

"You have the chance now," Dhriti said, extending a makeup brush to Aditi, who grabbed it excitedly.

"Let me join too," Adya added, picking up another brush.

The three of them surrounded my wife and began working on her like she was a canvas.

Of course, everyone had to join. Seriously!

Now my wife was the Barbie doll, and Dhriti, Adya, and Aditi were the three artists determined to perfect her.

"Sorry..." Saavi entered last, carrying an unapologetic smile on her face.

"I understand, cupcake. I get it. They are tenacious," I said, watching the three best friends fuss over my wife like she was their favorite doll.

I just stood there quietly because my wife was enjoying that attention, and who was I to steal it from her?

******

Simran

******

Sammy Di, Aditi Di, and Adya Bhabhi always used to talk about how they would doll Sonia and me up at our weddings. Turns out, at least one of their wishes came true. So what they couldn't do at my wedding, they did at my reception. They got to do the touchup, if not full makeup, and that made all of us equally happy.

They were excited, and so was I.

Once the touch-up was done, we, along with Saavi, clicked a few pictures, very much to my husband's dismay, who just stood there looking visibly annoyed. I could tell he was seconds away from picking me up and walking out of the room holding me in his arms, just like he did while we entered the grand ballroom.

I almost waited for it with bated breath, and I was sure he would charge any moment now.

With every heavy breath he took that seemed to echo in the room, I knew that the act of him picking me up was one second closer. Every time he paced like he was losing his patience, and with every irritated look and sigh, I knew it was going to happen any moment now.

Then he took a step toward me, and I knew...I knew it was time.

But just then, the door to the room opened again, revealing two more people entering who had missed our wedding. Rohit Bhaiya and Riddhi Bhabhi.

Rohit Bhaiya was Namit Jiju's and Niti's elder cousin, and Riddhi Bhabhi was his wife. They had recently become parents to the most adorable baby boy, Rudraksh, who was barely a month old.

"Guys, look who is here," Niti said as she brought them inside.

The rest of us got really excited the moment we saw them.

Rohit Bhaiya came closer and hugged me warmly. He had always treated me like Niti, considered me like his own little sister.

"I am sorry we couldn't make it to the wedding," he said.

Kiaan gave him a polite nod with a small smile while I replied, "We understand, Bhaiya."

Riddhi Bhabhi and little Rudraksh were not ready to travel back then, which is why they could not attend.

"Congratulations, sweetheart. Look how much you are glowing," Riddhi Bhabhi said, hugging me before she congratulated Kiaan as well.

"I know, right? Who would have thought this little hellion would make Kiaan's heart beat?" Aditi Di teased.

I wondered if that was really the case. I knew Kiaan felt something for me, but I wasn't sure it was as simple as everyone made it sound.

Rudraksh lay in his stroller, making tiny gurgling sounds. He was so small, so fragile, and unbelievably adorable.

I could not stop myself from going closer to greet him.

"Hey, little Rudra..." I gently tapped his nose. He stared at me with wide, curious eyes as if trying to figure out who I was.

"He is so cute. Can I hold him?"

"Of course. Here..." Bhabhi said as she lifted him out of the stroller and placed him carefully in my arms.

Everyone surrounded me and began cooing at the tiny bundle. He seemed to enjoy being held by me, making sweet little sounds as if he loved being around all of us.

"He already made a friend here," Bhaiya said proudly.

"Who?" Kiaan asked, a soft smile playing on his lips, too, as he looked at Rudraksh. I wondered if he would smile the same for our kids.

Wait! Our kids? Where did that come from?

My mind was really weird thinking about stuff like that.

'Control, Simmi. You have a long way to go,' I reminded myself.

Just then, Ikshit came running into the room on his tiny legs and grabbed the veil of my saree, laughing.

Ikshit had been with Kiaan's parents and grandpa earlier, playing with them when I had met Sonia, Ishaan Bhaiya, and Adya Bhabhi.

"Looks like he wants to be in your arms too," Kiaan whispered before carefully taking Rudraksh from me.

Ikshit lifted his arms toward me, and I picked him up instantly. Sonia had brought him to the room with her.

"So the friend my son has made is Ikshit," Rohit Bhaiya said, gently patting Ikshit's head.

Ikshit was so happy to see me that he planted a loud kiss on my cheek.

I could already sense the heat of my husband's jealousy over a child. That man was really something else. But I wouldn't lie, stating I wasn't enjoying that. This new finding was going to come in handy in the future for sure.

Namit Jiju entered the room along with Aahir Jiju.

Aahir Arya was a prominent name in the business world.

Dangerous.. Blunt... A man who did not bend for anyone except one person, his wife, Aditi. For her, he would bow without hesitation. He practically worshipped the ground she walked on. But for the rest of the world, he was ruthless.

He shook hands with Kiaan before congratulating me with a small smile. That smile widened slightly when his gaze shifted to Aditi Di. He walked over and stood beside her, pulling her close to him.

"Okay, guys, tonight I have some spicy news to share..." Di announced loudly, instantly grabbing everyone's attention.

I was curious what she meant by spicy news, but the mischievous look she threw at Kiaan and me made it very clear she had already cooked something to trouble us.

Kiaan handed Rudraksh back to Rohit Bhaiya. Ikshit yawned in my arms, so Adya Bhabhi gently took him from me and laid him down on the small bed in the room to make him sleep.

"What spicy news?" Aditi Di asked, her eyes shining with curiosity.

"About some cats..."

Oh no! Not that!

My face paled when I heard her mention cats. If everyone found out, I was never going to hear the end of it.

I looked at Kiaan for rescue. He immediately clasped my fingers in his, clearly ready to save me from whatever was coming.

Right then, Arjun and Dhruv Bhaiya walked into the room.

"Seriously, you both should be out there. It's your reception, not ours. We have been handling those guests..." Dhruv Bhaiya looked like a man who had just returned from war, looking all exhausted and drained.

"Yeah...one of the guests thought it was our reception..." Arjun said, stuffing his mouth with some starter from the plate of starters he was holding. It was a huge plate, by the way, filled with every starter out there.

Dhruv Bhaiya made an irritated face, looking at Arjun as if rethinking every decision that led him to greet the guests.

"Never ever working alone with this man..." Dhruv Bhaiya complained, glaring at Arjun, and then walked to Saavi to get his peace back, who held her husband, giggling, and then kissed his cheeks softly.

Dhruv Bhaiya's features softened now.

"What...did I do? The guests were the ones who asked if we were together or not. I didn't say anything..."Arjun nagged, going towards Niti to get his peace by the way. Niti smiled, holding his arm, and then Arjun fed her some food from his plate.

Mind you, Arjun Malhotra never shares his food...but he had one exception. His wife, Nitya Malhotra.

"And how would you have said anything? You had your mouth stuffed with food..." Dhruv Bhaiya complained.

"Not a word against my food..."Arjun retorted.

"There we go again!!" This time it was Namit Jiju.

Kiaan rubbed his temple with his free hand and then whispered, "Wanna escape?"

As much as I was enjoying the banter between Dhruv Bhaiya and Arjun, I really wanted to go out there with my man, so I nodded, smiling. Kiaan did not waste another second. He tightened his hold on my hand and escorted me out of the room while the banter of those two men continued in the background.

******

Kiaan

******

We eventually made our way to the center stage, where the guests began coming up to greet us. I hadn't realized I knew so many people until my own reception.

As Simran and I stood there, I with my usual poker face and she with that charming, welcoming smile, the guests kept coming, and coming. It didn't seem to end.

How many people did I really know? Because I didn't even remember talking to most of them before this reception.

I knew how many people I had invited, but the count still seemed extra, and meeting each one of them individually was... a lot.

Besides, I didn't particularly like most of them, so it was a hassle...standing there, pretending I was pleased to have them at my reception, when all I wanted was some time alone with my wife.

This reception was a terrible idea, I had realized by then.

Simran, on the other hand, hadn't let her smile fade even once. She looked genuinely happy to meet everyone, even people she had never seen before. She finally felt like she was becoming a part of my world.

What she didn't know was that she had been a part of my world long before this night. She had been a part of my life, my universe, ever since she wrote me her first letter.

Ever since my firefly wrote to her monster prince.

We keep greeting the guests, with me being annoyed, and my wife happily.

Then came the Marshall son father duo. Ian Marshall and his son Ivan Marshall, the previous owners of Safety Nets, the ones I recently signed a contract with, and whom I would soon destroy. They had to do something with my enemies, and they worked for them. However, I had to invite them. After all, it's better said, keep your friends close but enemies closer.

"Mr.Marshall," I shook hands with them one by one.

"Congratulations, Mr. Chauhan," Ian said with a smile.

"So the rumour was true, apparently. You did get married, then why hide such a beautiful woman from the world?" Ivan eyed my wife from top to bottom.

I could already see the vision of me killing him. He wasn't going to live for another day, that was for certain.

"I don't believe the world needs to concern itself with my wife," I said with a tight smile and clenched jaw. However, my tone remained even and controlled.

"Besides... not everyone knows how to behave in the presence of beauty." I took a brief pause, letting them know I was still in control.

"And I have very little tolerance for those who forget their place," I added at the end. He gave us a bright smile but didn't utter a word again.

Ian, a little sane one from the two, had a quick chat with my wife and me for a few minutes before he decided to excuse himself with his son, as he said, "It was nice meeting you, Mrs. Chauhan."

"Likewise, Mr. Marshall," my wife replied politely.

"So I guess we won't be seeing you enough," The more Ivan spoke, the deeper grave he dug for himself.

Simran smiled sweetly, tilting her head just a little to look up at me.

"I guess you will... considering my husband here seems quite obsessed with me."

I didn't deny it. She was right. I was obsessed, and I didn't mind the world figuring that out. Because that was the whole point of this reception.

The world needed to know she mattered.

They needed to understand she wasn't just my wife by name... she was untouchable, and anyone who even dared to look at her the way they shouldn't wouldn't live for another day.

People needed to think twice before even allowing a single thought about her.

The Marshalls excused themselves, of course, not looking very pleased. Perhaps they thought I had a timid, silly woman by my side. But she was the fire that kept me alive just by existing. I knew they would be bothered throughout the night.

"Why did Ivan Marshall look at you like that? Does he like you?" Simran sometimes says something that had me so baffled that I wondered what exactly goes through her mind to question that. Marshalls left with a grin on their faces, of course, a fake one, but my wife had to take it in another direction.

"Better. He hates me," I told her the truth.

"Then why that smile?"

"To hide his hatred."

She stared at me, confused. To clear it up, I simply said, "Those who hate smiles the best."

That was the ultimate truth: those who hated you truly nurtured their hatred behind their fake kindness and smile.

"I didn't hide my hatred for you under the pretext of a smile." 

She said that with such honesty that I wondered if I wasn't in her life, if I hadn't found her on time, how this cruel world would have treated her. She wasn't weak or feeble, but her honesty always scared me. Honesty and sincerity were two of her morals she never backed down on, which had once made things worse for both of us. But at that time, I wasn't shrewd, but this time I was worse.

"Are you sure you ever hated...me?" She was taken aback by my question.

She opened her mouth to respond, but then shut it. She didn't have anything to say. She averted her gaze, greeting other guests that came crowding us, while I kept looking at her, even when there were guests around, even when people needed my attention. If someone needed my reply, she would pinch my arm slightly to get my focus back on the guests. But I just couldn't waver my gaze to unimportant people when the most important person in my life stood beside me.

"You need to look at the guests. It's rude not to look at them while they talk to you. It shows they are not important," she whispered to me, standing close while smiling at another set of guests leaving the center stage.

"They are not important. You are." I replied, looking straight into her eyes.

She frowned, but I could clearly see heat creeping on her cheeks. That frown was simply to hide how beautiful she blushed. Keeping my hand on her shoulder, I brought her closer, making her breath hitch. With her up that close, we greeted some more guests, some relatives from Mom's side, and then I saw someone I had actually been waiting for Simran to meet.

"This is someone you would really like," I whispered to her as I looked at the man reaching up to us. Once he was close enough, he greeted us with a warm smile.

"Dr. Phil," I addressed him as I shook hands with him.

"Still can't believe you got married, Kiaan." He said without looking at Simran. I knew how much courage he had to gather to be at our reception. But this was needed. It was time Simran met him because I didn't want to keep her away from the truth for long. And for our story to unfold, she needed to meet him, who was an important piece of our story, an integral part of her life.

"Simran..." I called my wife softly as I introduced them both.

"This is Dr. Phil."

"Dr. Phil, this is my beautiful and amazing woman, Simran Chauhan."

"Hi, Uncle," Simran greeted him warmly, though there was a flicker of confusion in her eyes. She had clearly noticed that I was paying attention to this particular guest more than the others. Not because Dr. Phil was important to me, but because he was important to her.

"Hello, Simran..." he replied softly.

"How have you been?"

She looked slightly surprised. None of the other guests had asked her that. The simple question made her radiate a warm smile as she answered, "Thank you for asking, Uncle. I am doing really great, actually."

"Congratulations to you both. I truly am happy for you."

His voice turned slightly heavy, but he masked it well behind a polite smile and steady tone.

"Thank You."

"Uncle, the way you addressed my husband by his name, it's apparent you two are quite close. Looks like we would bond well."

She sounded excited at the idea of bonding with him, not knowing what that bond could bring. It was an invitation to catastrophe, yet it was equally important for her to face it. And she wouldn't be alone. I would be there, like always, shielding her from everything.

"Do you have any secrets about him?" she asked suddenly.

She was being a chatterbox, the way she always was with people she felt comfortable around, people she unconsciously accepted as her own.

"I wish I had," Dr. Phil replied softly. "But you know more... maybe everything."

He passed me a knowing, serious look.

"Hmmm... if my husband and I had met as kids, maybe then I would have known him more." Simran laughed then. Dr. Phil thought she was kidding, so he passed a warm smile to her, but she wasn't joking. She didn't remember me.

"You already know a lot," I murmured, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

She blinked and smiled shyly.

"Enjoy your night. I will be leaving at the next docking point. I wish I could stay longer, but I have some travel plans tonight." The ship had a few docking points where it would stop for a while, so guests who needed to leave early could get off.

"Oh. Uncle, we should meet again. Join us for dinner someday, please," Simran said instinctively. Then she looked at me as if asking for permission, not being aware that she didn't need permission.

"The field is empty, sweetheart. Make whatever plans you want," I said, which made her grin like an excited kid.

She liked talking to Dr. Phil, enjoying every conversation, the funny jokes he passed, despite having a hard time watching her.

It was natural. That is how nature works. You gravitate toward souls you have once belonged to, even if your mind does not remember, but the heart does. And hers remembered things she did not even know she had forgotten.

Dr. Phil was about to leave, and he simply patted her head, making her smile warmly at him, and then he said gently, "Take care..."

Simran nodded, but her grin faltered the moment Dr. Phil turned to leave, as if something inside her resisted his departure. She did not want him to go yet, but she did not understand why.

But I did.

Because I remembered. I remembered everything.

The next docking point was approaching soon. I had to speak to him before he left.

"Stay here, baby. I will see him out. Okay?" I brushed my knuckles gently over her cheek and gave her a soft smile before walking after him.

He was moving quickly toward the gangway, where a few early-departing guests were already being escorted. Running away never gave anyone what they wanted.

"Running away from the truth?" I called out.

He did not stop. I lengthened my strides and stepped in front of him, blocking his path near the gangway, which was the exit of the ship.

"Move away, Kiaan," he said, agitated.

He did not just want to avoid the truth. He wanted to avoid what he felt.

"She should have been by my side much earlier," I said, my voice low and steady. "I just took a little more time. But now, I am not letting her go. Not for a second."

It was not a threat to him but a reminder. A reminder that I did not walk away from her life and that he should stop doing the same.

"She doesn't remember me..." he muttered, staring toward the dock that was slowly coming into view. His shoulders seemed heavier than before.

"Neither me."

His head snapped toward me in shock. He realized that the statement Simran made about knowing me as a kid was not a joke and that she really didn't remember me. That was when it truly sank in on him that she did not remember either of us.

"I want you to help her," I said.

He shook his head.

"No. I cannot."

"You are the only one who can."

"I will lose her..." His voice cracked slightly. The grey in his hair was not much, but his soul looked tired and defeated, not ready for this one more battle.

"You already did once, Dr. Phil," I said quietly.

"But if you do not help her now, you will lose her forever. And this time, there will be no coming back, because this time I would be the one stopping you from going any closer to her."

I held his gaze.

"You do not want to lose your daughter for the second time, do you? Not like this."

His face blanched as he stood there in stunned silence. The fear of losing her again rooted him to his place.

I wasn't giving him a chance with her because he deserved it, but because it was important to my wife. If I started putting my choices above hers, I would have restricted everybody's access to her life. I would have made everyone suffer even for a single glance at her. But I wasn't going to act like that, because I knew what she wanted, what my Tara wanted.

******

chalo sab jaldi jaldi Kiaan ko Sorry bolo... sab ne usko maarne ke plans banaye the pichle chapter main 😂

Hi Lovelies,

How are you all doing? I hope you guys are doing amazing. 🤗

Guys, reception vala sequence thoda long hai as I had to mention a lot of important stuff toh abhi aur chapters hain reception ke. But you guys will enjoy. I will make sure of it. 🥹

What do you all think of Dr. Phil's revelation? 🤔

Do you all believe Kiaan will not mess up, or that he will? 🤔

Will the reception end smoothly, ya kuch toh gadbad hogi daya? 🙈

Do share your views about the chapter. It would mean a lot to me. ❤️

P. S -> The next chapter will be published on Tuesday ❤️

Thanks,

Shrishtee