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Let's begin with the chapter now.

Akash's POV

"What happened baby" I was on alert now on my toes and Sid followed shortly after.

He asked me to put the phone on speaker and I did.

"Akash" she was sobbing by now.

"Please...please baby. Don't cry. Drink some water first" I said.

"Akash...I...I do...don't wa...want to li...live here. Ple...please ta...take me wi...th you" she said and my eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Please don't cry baby. I am here. I am right here with you" I tried to console her but she wasn't listening to anything.

"No you aren't with me here. Please take me with you" she said and sobbed.

"I'll take you with me Siya but first please stop crying. Have some water first, please baby" I pleaded and heard ragged breaths from the other side.

"Sid, please call Kriti. I don't think Siya is in a condition to talk right now" I said and he dialed Kriti's number.

She picked up in the second ring and he immediately kept the phone on speaker.

"Thank god you called Sid. We've been trying to reach you both since yesterday night" she said.

"What happened Kriti? Why is Siya crying?" I asked.

"Is she crying again?" she asked.

"Again? What do you mean by she's crying again?" I asked.

"She was crying since morning bhaiya and we didn't even go to office today. With lots of pleading and consoling, I somehow pacified her to stop crying but seems she couldn't hold enough and when she heard you, she's crying again" she said.

"Are you still on call with her?" she asked.

"Yes" I said.

"Okay. I'll just go check on her" she said and disconnected the call.

"Siya, baby are you there?" I asked but there was no reply from her.

I checked my phone to confirm if the call was still ongoing or it got disconnected and I saw that the call was ongoing.

After few seconds, I heard a door opening and closing. Probably Kriti entered her room.

"Bhaiya. Wait let me video call you" I heard her voice from Siya's phone and then she switched to video call.

I looked at Siya and the sight in front of me, broke my heart.

Her eyes and nose were red due to crying and there were tear stains on her cheeks.

Her whole face was swollen, indicating that she had been crying for a long time.

I cursed myself internally for not calling her yesterday night and keeping my phone on silent mode.

If only I had talked to her yesterday night.

"Please don't cry. Have this water" she said and handed her a glass of water.

She gulped it in one go and Kriti made her drink more water.

When I looked at Sid, he was staring at the phone screen, his eyes were stuck to it.

"What do you think happened?" he asked and I swallowed a lump in my throat.

"I don't know" I whispered. It was like my voice was stuck and I was struggling to speak. My mouth was dry by now looking at her condition.

Even Kriti was worried sick about her.

"Shhh...shhh please don't cry" Kriti tried to console her and cradled her in her arms.

"She'll take me with her Kriti" Siya said and cried again.

"No she won't. I won't let her take you" Kriti said looking in her eyes.

"Who's taking Siya away?" I asked, my blood boiling in anger now.

"My mother" she whispered and I was seeing red by now.

"She can't take you away from me. Not this time. I won't let that happen" I said and asked Sid to call the bodyguards who where appointed by me for their protection.

"Yes sir" he replied.

"Don't let anyone enter their flat. Anyone means anyone. Not even Siya's parents. If anyone wants to see them, you'll call us first and let us know who has come to visit them. Once we give permission, only then let them enter or else not." Sid said.

"Yes boss. We won't" he said and disconnected the call.

"Listen now you two. We had already appointed bodyguards around you both for your protection. Don't go out of your house without them. They're living in the same flat where we were living. You don't need to go to office as well. Apply leaves for this week. This implies for Kriti as well" I said and they both nodded.

"I don't trust her mother and hence Sid has asked both the bodyguards not to let anyone enter your flat without letting either of us know" I said.

"I don't want her to manhandle Siya or you" I said.

"Okay" they both nodded and Siya was normal by now.

"I think I should give you both some time alone" Kriti said and Siya just nodded.

"You talk to her. I'll go get ready for office" Sid said.

"I'll probably be late for office today" I said.

"Don't worry. I'll handle everything. Siya should be your priority. She needs you. Even if you decide not to come to office, just let me know, okay?" he said and I nodded.

"There's an important meeting today with a new investor and client. I don't think I can skip this meeting" I reminded him.

If we both don't attend the meeting, I suspect that they wouldn't agree with the deal but I didn't care about it now. We could get investors later as well but then this would delay the process of setting up our branch in London. I had no problems with it but Sid had asked for only three years from Mohit for Kriti and any delay from our side could delay his progress in establishing himself as well.

I didn't want Sid to suffer because of me. If it was just me, I wouldn't have thought about it even once but when you've another person whose career depends on your actions, you couldn't possibly ignore it.

It would be so ungrateful of me to ignore it, when he had a lot of things at stake, including Kriti.

"I'll handle both of them. Don't worry" he said.

"I can't let you handle it alone. They would back out" I said.

No doubt I was conflicted but I couldn't let him risk it for me.

"If Kriti would've been in this situation, would you've asked me to accompany you?" he asked.

"No" I said.

"I understand how important this meeting is but at the same time the girl on the other side of your phone screen is the one because of whom we're here, establishing our own company. She has kept you motivated to take this step. She has endured a lot to keep you safe and I don't want her to suffer anymore. She's the one because of whom me and Kriti are together" he said with a sad smile.

"How could I be selfish to not let you be with her when she needs you the most? Don't make the same mistake twice Akash. The last time you left her, she had to go through all those emotional and mental torture. Don't do this to her again. She doesn't deserve it" he said.

I didn't know when tears started making it's way to my cheeks.

I don't think I could ever get a friend like him. I am indeed lucky to have him in my life.

"Thanks man" I said and gave him a brotherly hug.

"Anytime" he said and hugged me back.

Breaking the hug and wiping my tears, he said "take care of her. About the meeting, don't worry, I'll will handle it."

Once he was out of the room, I turned my attention on the phone and saw Siya looking at me with teary eyes and once she saw me, she wiped them away.

"Please baby, don't cry. I am here" I said.

"I am just a burden to you both, isn't it?" she said with tears and my eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

Siya's POV

"Why would you say that?" he asked me.

"There's an important meeting you're missing today, all because of me" I said and looked down.

"Hey. Nothing's more important than you and you know that" he said.

"Look at me Siya" he said.

When I looked at him, he had a smile on his face.

"I can fight the world for you, Siya. I can leave everything behind, for you" he said.

"I don't want you to leave everything for me" I whispered.

"With you by my side, I can achieve everything" he said.

Wiping my tears, I gave him a small sad smile.

"Now tell me what happened?" he asked.

Taking a deep breath, I said "ever since I started talking with my mother, she has been acting...strangely."

"Okay. Strangely....I don't understand. I remember you both arguing over me and Kriti but what suddenly happened?" he asked.

"Yes, strangely in the sense, she was talking to me very nicely when you went to the US" I said.

"Well that's a very good thing. What can be better than she treating you nicely? That's what we both wanted right, for her to understand you and respect your point of view?" he said.

"Yeah. I was actually feeling very happy talking to her. I thought she's finally understanding me" I said.

"Then, what happened?" he asked.

"I really wanted to talk to her about you and I thought it would be right time to talk to her" I said.

"Then?" he asked.

"She ignored me whenever I talked to her about you but thankfully she wasn't disrespecting" I said.

Then tears started flowing from my eyes, thinking about the conversation we had, last week.

"Hey mom, how are you?" I asked, chirping.

I was so happy that she was finally talking to me nicely. Akash was right, I felt at peace when I finally talked to her and she is talking with me so well.

Though she hasn't apologized to me for what happened between us but I think, someday she will.

"I am fine, how are you?" she asked.

"I am fine too. Just came back from office" I said.

"That's good to hear" she said and there was an awkward silence for a few seconds before she spoke "I want to talk to you about something important."

"Yes mom, tell me" I said.

"We've got a good proposal for you" she said and my breath hitched.

"And?" I asked after a few seconds, asking her to continue.

"I want you to meet him" she said.

"Mummy, you already know I love Akash. I won't marry anyone except him" I said, stubbornly.

"We've already had this discussion a number of times. I won't accept him and stop being stubborn" she said, irritated.

"No I won't stop being stubborn. I won't meet anyone" I said.

There's no way I am going to meet any other prospect groom for me when I love Akash. I've promised him that I'll be strong for him and I intend to keep that promise.

"Why do you've to be so difficult?" she asked.

"I am being difficult? It's you who is being stubborn mummy. What's your problem if you meet him once? You haven't even met him and you're rejecting him as if he's nothing? Do you even know the family he belong to?" I asked with raise voice.

"Whatever family he belongs to, I don't care. I only know for a fact that he can't marry you" she said.

"Don't tell me you're still stuck with that old theory of yours. I don't want to hear it again" I said with anger.

"If there's any valid reason for rejecting him, then tell me mummy or I don't want to talk to you" I said.

"You won't understand my point of view. You'll understand it only when you become a mother" she said.

"Okay, so I don't understand because I am not a mother and you understand because you're? So tell me, why did you physically and mentally torture me?" I asked.

She didn't say anything.

"You not agreeing with my choice was something I would've made peace with but you torturing me to leave him was unacceptable. Which mother, in the right state of their mind would torture their child like you did?" I asked, tears streaming my face by now.

"What you did to me was emotional blackmail and physical abuse. No child deserves this, especially when I did nothing wrong. The only crime in your eyes which I did was to love someone unconditionally and believe me, I would go to any lengths for him. I've already done it once and I can do it again" I said.

"So you'll choose him, over me?" she asked.

I was quiet for a few seconds at her question but it caught me off guard.

This thought never crossed my mind.

Will I choose Akash over my parents? Over my mother?

Should I choose Akash, who has always treated me like a queen? Like his life partner, who has cared for me like parents do and loved me like a crazy boyfriend does, who is madly in love with his girlfriend and can go to any lengths for her? Who hasn't let any tear come to my eyes because of him? Who has never hurt me? Who has always kept me above everything, everyone, even himself?

Or should I choose my mummy? Who has done nothing but tortured me for years. Gave scars for my whole life? Physically abused me for loving someone unconditionally, for standing for him, for taking his side, for protecting him? For not allowing me to do anything of my choice my whole life? For controlling my life? For emotionally blackmailing me when I tried to stand for him?

The answer was clear. If I had to choose between the two and if she wanted it, so be it.

"I'll choose Akash" I said.

There was a pause for a few seconds before she spoke "you can't do it."

 "I'll do it, a thousand times, without any second thoughts. Do you know why?" I asked.

"Why?" her voice barely a whisper.

"Because he treats me the way you should've treated me, because he'll never let any harm come to me, because he loves me like I am the most precious possession of his life. I am sorry to say this, but it's true" I said through gritted teeth.

"He has brainwashed you" she said.

"He never brainwashed me mummy. In fact, he was the one who asked me to talk to you, to get our relationship normal for my inner peace but I guess, he was wrong. Moreover he never asked me to choose between you and him. It was you who asked me to choose between him and you" I said.

"My Akash would never bring me to a situation wherein I would've to choose between you two. You know, we could've got married, without even informing you" I said and she gasped.

"No need to act surprised. He has been ready to marry me for a very long time, in fact all his family members have already approved of me and you know what, I am glad that none of them are like you" I said.

"I was ready to marry him but you know what, he said that without your and papa's blessings, he wouldn't marry me, however long it takes to convince you, it doesn't matter" I said and a tear slipped my eyes.

"What else do you want in your son-in-law? He respects me, respects your decision. He's not a playboy. He has always treated me well and I know he'll always keep me his priority. What else do you want from him?" I asked.

"I can't accept him" she said with a sigh.

"Why?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

"You won't understand" she said and disconnected the call.

"I didn't talk to her for the next few days but yesterday she called me, saying that she wants me to meet the prospect groom and sent me his details" I said to Akash.

"So, did she send you any details?" he asked, nervously.

"Yes, she did and it seems, she was talking about our project manager" I said and looked down.

"Your project manager? Amit?" he asked, shocked.

"Yes. His father sent the proposal and he already knows about me, obviously I report to him" I said.

"I've already said no to my parents but last night she called me again and threatened me that if I don't accept the proposal and say yes to this marriage, she would take me home" I said with tears welling up in my eyes.

"She won't take you anywhere. I won't let her take you this time" he said.

"I know, but it's difficult to convince her. I need you Akash" I said, my voice was almost a whisper.

"I am coming there tomorrow" he said.

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