Adranksh Singh Rajput:

I have two beautiful children.
My kids. Mine.

"Dhruv, cancel all my meetings for today," I say before hanging up.
Today belongs to them. Anything they want. Anything at all.

It's the least I can do after missing out on five whole years.

I take my sports car out of the garage, hoping it would somehow soften the edges of my son's anger. Maybe, just maybe, he'd hate me a little less.
Still, I can't believe it. Five years. How did she manage all of it? The pain, the pressure, the parenting - alone?

How?

A song plays on the radio. Her song. Her favorite one - the one she'd always dance to, barefoot, twirling like the world didn't exist. But I watched.
Because she was my world.

Even now, as much as I want to hold onto anger, I can't.
She's still my everything. My life. My world. My future, my past, and all of my present.

Even if she hates me...
I'll bring her back.
She needs to know the truth. Until then, I'll play her game.

Let's see how long she can stay away from me.

It's still early - barely ten in the morning - when I reach the Kshatriya Mansion.
The guards let me in without hesitation. They know better. If they didn't, their heads would no longer be attached to their shoulders.

"Khamma Ghani, Hukum-sa," they greet me respectfully as my car glides into the driveway.

I park right in front of the grand entrance and step inside.

The house is quiet. Almost too quiet.
Then I hear it - soft footsteps, childish laughter from the kitchen.

"Mummaaa, don't, don't!" a high-pitched voice shrieks in delight. My little doll.

She's running, looking back at Maya, laughter bubbling from her.
She's in her pajamas, her hair messy, her smile wide. My heart rate spikes.
It's been years since I've seen her like this. So alive. So carefree.
And yet, she still steals my breath.

She's beautiful.
Even if she wore rags and hadn't bathed in years - I'd still call her the most beautiful woman to ever exist.
Because she is. To me, she always was.

Suddenly, Adhya trips - and time slows. Her little body lunges forward.
I act before I can think.

"Adhya!" Maya screams, her voice breaking with fear.

"Careful, Princess," I whisper, catching her just in time.
She gasps, eyes squeezed shut.

She's safe.

When she opens them again, her eyes widen.
"Dada!" she exclaims, and I swear my heart skips a beat.

She smiles - the brightest smile - and throws herself into my arms, sending us both crashing to the ground. I don't care.
She's in my arms. Safe. Happy.

"Hey, baby," I say, and she presses a kiss to my cheek.

"You came!" she says, joy dripping from every syllable.

"Yeah. Did you not want me to?"

"I did!" she says, wrapping her tiny arms around my neck. "It's like God gave me my birthday gift early!"

My throat tightens.

She wished for me.

"What did you wish for, Princess?"

She grins, innocence lighting her up.
"I wished my dada would come and spend time with me, Mumma, and Anna."

I close my eyes for a moment, anchoring myself. I've missed everything.

"Princess, not just today," I say gently. "From now on, I'll spend every day with you."

"Realllly?" Her eyes sparkle.

I nod.
She turns toward Maya, eyes hopeful.

"Mumma, did you hear? Dada said he'll stay with us forever!"

But Maya... Maya's expression is carved in stone. Shock. Rage. A storm held back by sheer willpower.

She's not happy.
Well, too bad.

She's had them to herself all these years.
Now, it's my turn.

"Adhya, baby," Maya says tightly, "why don't you and Anna go to your room? I need to speak with your father."

Adhya looks up at me, uncertain.
She leans in and whispers, "No matter what Mumma says... don't leave us, Dada."

A single tear slips from her eye.

I gently wipe it away. "Never, Princess. I won't leave any of you."

I glance up at Maya. My message is clear - any of you.

Adhya runs off, and before I can say a word, Mayank steps forward.

"Just because you're my father doesn't mean I'll let you hurt my Maa," he says. Steady. Fearless.

A mirror image of me.

I arch a brow. My son. The first person to ever dare blackmail me.

"Nobody speaks to the Hukum-sa like that, Mayank!" another voice snaps.

An elderly woman steps forward, visibly scandalized.

"I can, Dadi," Mayank replies coolly, his chin lifted with quiet defiance. "After all, I'm the next Hukum-sa, aren't I?"

He smirks-and for a moment, pride burns in my chest.

Yes. He is my son.

The woman looks between us, her expression faltering. The resemblance is unmistakable now. Blood never lies.

"You will not raise your voice at my son again," I say, my tone ice-cold, firm with warning. "He bows to no one but me. Do you understand?"

The woman's eyes widen, and she nods hastily, backing off.

Mayank meets my gaze, something unspoken flickering in his eyes-an emotion I can't quite name-before he turns..

But I saw it.

And it meant something.
That look in his eyes just before he turned away... It wasn't fear. It wasn't defiance.

It was something deeper.

It was the need for recognition.

The desperate hunger of a boy who has lived in the shadows of a crown he was born to inherit, yet never held close enough to trust. He looked at me like he wanted to believe in me-but didn't know if he could.

And maybe he couldn't. Not yet.

He has his mother's fire, my steel, and too many questions neither of us have answered.

"Mayank," Maya says firmly, "go to your room. I need to throw your father out."

I laugh under my breath. Throw me out? She can only wish.

Mayank gives her a knowing smile and walks away calmly. Like a king-in-training.

Maya's arms cross tightly as she walks up to me. She stands in front of me, radiating defiance.

It reminds me of our engagement day. The fire in her. The strength.
She looks even more irresistible now.

"Miss me, Malyshka?" I murmur.

Her eyes soften - for just a moment - then harden again.

"Why are you here, Adranksh?"

I flinch. I hate hearing my name from her lips. I prefer Ansh.
Only she ever called me that. Only she had the right too.

"I'm here," I say coldly, "because you kept my children from me for five years. And now I'm trying to fix what you broke."

"I wouldn't have if you hadn't cheated on me," she snaps. "Tell me - how was she? Where is she now?"

Her voice cracks. She's breaking. Vulnerable. And still, so goddamn beautiful.

I step forward. "Why don't you find out? Why didn't you trust me? Why didn't you believe me? Where did all your love go, Maya?"

She stares at me. Shocked. Silent.

"I-I saw you," she stammers. "I saw-"

"No, Maya. You assumed. You thought. And in doing that, you shattered everything we had."

Silence stretches. She looks away.

I take a breath, steadying the storm inside me.

"Go inside. Think again. While I take my children out and try to make up for the years I missed - even if it's only one percent."

I turn to leave, but then I stop. My hand catches hers. I pull her gently toward me.

Her eyes meet mine. That familiar emotion flickers again - the one that still has the power to break me.

I lean in, slowly, and press a kiss on her lips. Just once.

I pull away and she stands there - frozen.

Still mine.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Maya Kshatriya:
I hate it. I hate him.
God-how dare he kiss me like that?
The audacity of that man.

I'm still reeling, trying to catch my breath and push away the heat that climbed up my neck the moment his lips touched mine. It meant nothing. Nothing.

And then he walks out, carrying Adhya in his arms like he never left.
Like he didn't shatter everything.
Like five years didn't pass with him gone.

Adhya dressed herself in that pink frilly dress she loves - the one with little white flowers - and she even clipped a matching pin in her hair. She was smiling up at him, giggling at something he said.

That smile.
That damn dimple. I hadn't seen it in years, and God help me - I missed it. I missed him.

As much as I try to deny it... there's still something there. Lurking.
No. I buried that Maya long ago.

Mayank follows behind them, now changed into jeans and a shirt. Not something he'd do on his own, which only meant one thing: Adhya got to him. Probably struck some deal only siblings understand. I taught them well - to protect one another, to stand together.

Because this world? Our world? It's twisted. And I don't know what tomorrow will bring.

So I prepared. Transferred almost everything in their names.
Taught them how to think, fight, and survive.

If anything ever happened to me... they wouldn't need anyone.
Not even him.

My children are my strength.
After him, they were all I had left.

The version of Maya who loved recklessly? She's buried. Gone.
I can't afford to be weak again. Especially not in front of him.

They stop in front of me.
Adhya frowns at me like I'm the one holding everything up.

"Come on, Mumma! Get ready - we need to go," she says, hands on her hips like a tiny queen.

I glance at all three of them. And for a second, it looks like a family.
Like the dream I once had.

Mayank steps closer, grabs my hand, and makes our secret signal.
I smile despite myself, lean down, and lift him.

He leans in, close to my ear.
"You shouldn't leave us alone with him, Mumma," he whispers.

My heart clenches. He's looking out for me. Always.

But I know my boy. I know that somewhere deep down, he wants this. He wants a father.
I've seen it - in how he looks at the other kids at school when their dads pick them up, ruffle their hair, hug them tight.
He pretends to dislike Adranksh - for me.

Because my son is smarter than his years. And loyal to the bone.

But maybe... just for today. Maybe I can let them have this.

It's their right.

I look at him seriously. "Fine," I say softly, "but only if you both finish your milk before I come down. Promise?"

Mayank nods instantly - too fast, like he was waiting for me to cave.

I turn to Adhya, who scrunches up her nose in protest.

She glances at her father. He nods at her with an encouraging smile.

And damn it - she nods too.
Just like that. She's already listening to him.

God. Help me.

I lower Mayank to the ground and look at Adranksh.

"They better finish their milk," I warn, eyes locked on his.

He says nothing - just watches me. Calm. Dangerous.

I turn and walk up the stairs, ignoring the weight of his gaze trailing behind me like fire licking at my back.

Inside my room, I move on autopilot - pick out my clothes, grab a towel - but my mind won't stay still.

All I can picture is his face.
His ridiculously handsome, maddeningly perfect face.
The same face that used to make me laugh until I couldn't breathe.
The same face that kissed away my tears.
The same face that destroyed me.

Damn him.

And the worst part?
My body still remembers him.
The way his hands felt on my waist. The way his lips brushed my skin like worship.
I hate that I still react. That part of me still wants.

And those words...
Were they true?

Could I have been wrong?

Could I have destroyed us... all by myself?