29 - Just take care of yourself for me(S1)

|BACK IN RAJASTHAN|

Prithvi stopped his car in front of the palace, with Niharika closely following him. He ordered one of the male employees to take out the luggage from the car, and then he started moving inside.

Once again, Niharika followed him closely, matching his footsteps like a kid with her pet. This didn't go unnoticed by him, and with a heavy sigh, he continued.

However, he stopped abruptly, closing his eyes. It seemed like Niharika was truly testing his patience, seemingly unaware of how spiritual and intellectually inclined her husband could be when he lost his patience. She had no clue, or perhaps she would have avoided messing with him.

He stood his ground, and she bumped into him, muttering an "ahh" under her breath.

She rubbed her forehead melodramatically, as if she had just hit her head against a solid rock.

However, she didn't say anything to him, just rubbed her head. Meanwhile, her dog wasn't as liberal as her.

The dog barked at Prithvi, *woof, woof* seemingly upset for bumping into him.

Niharika, with wide eyes, got nervous and started shushing her pet, placing her finger on her lips, as if expecting the pet to understand.

Prithvi turned around, his mouth wide open in disbelief. It seemed like he was thinking, 'Did her pet just bark at me? On me?'

He let the incident go, and frustratingly said, "Why don't you walk beside me? Why are you following me like a lost tail from behind?"

Niharika just looked down in response, her pet now quiet, as if they both had done nothing wrong, questioning why This gentleman was looking at them.

Prithvi started speaking but stopped, looking at her.

She was looking down, resembling a child being scolded for something they were stopped for.

He sighed, placing his hand on his temple, rubbing as if visibly getting enough of this child, or should we call her a 'young lady'? But she wasn't behaving like one, right?

She began, "I...was..."

"Okay," he said, taking her hand.

She snapped her head up, her face flushed, and he continued without realizing how he affected her. "Walk beside me then if you have no reason to justify. It's disturbing my peace." He held her hand in his grip tightly, her eyes widened, and her face, now not just flushed but entirely red by his action.

But what happened between all these days that this young lady standing there was now blushing hard for the very first time in the mere touch of his...

"What?" he said, looking into her eyes, clueless.

"H.huh," she responded, snapping out of her thoughts. It was the only response she could manage.

"Lets go," he muttered, gripping her hand more tightly.With that, he started marching inside, while she looked at him.

But then Prithvi stopped when someone called his name from the opposite direction, and she stopped with him.

"Prithvi?" a fatherly figure called out, and they both turned around.

Prithvi's expression turned into a questioning one, while Niharika looked confused and curious, unsure of who the person was. Was he Prithvi's father? She looked down, the word 'father' enough to bring fear and anxiety.

Losing his grip on her hand, Prithvi moved towards the owner of the voice and first touched his feet in respect. Getting up and fixing his suit, he asked, "Kaka sa, you? We thought the election was going to last for weeks, and you were supposed to come back after a week."

"Haan, we were, but the election campaign was done before the timeline," Vinay chauhan, his nana kaka sa, replied, answering Prithvi back.

Then he looked toward the girl standing there, looking down on the floor.

He began to speak but was cut off.

"Yuvraj!" a dominant voice accompanied from the back.

Prithvi's face momentarily turned cold and emotionless, betraying no feelings. Knowingly, he turned around to meet the owner of the voice, his father, Yashvardhan Chouhan. His father had the same expression as Prithvi, a cold and emotionless face.

"Come to our study room," his father stated.

Prithvi didn't utter a single word, just looked at his father with a cold, blank expression.

His father turned around and went inside without acknowledging the girl standing there.

Prithvi followed him.

However, he stopped in his tracks while thinking deeply, then turned around, coming back towards Niharika. Maybe he had a glimpse of past events.

She was still standing there, lost in her thoughts. Leaning down to her level, he spoke in a low, deep voice, almost a whisper. "Go back to 'OUR ROOM'," emphasizing the last two words.

Her worry had vanished. She snapped her face up, her expression resembling a blue litmus paper strip that turns a light shade of red after reacting with acid. his hot breath fanning on her earlobe worked like acid on her, creating their equation and fusing. But did this gentleman have any clue about the effect he was starting to have on her?

He got up and walked away.

Meanwhile, a fatherly voice, Prithvi's nana kaka sa, came to be precise. "Bahu beta, go relax in your room."

The onlookers seemed more embarrassed than her, serving as a barrier between the couple, and they went their separate ways.

She nodded in acknowledgment.

***

INSIDE THE STUDY ROOM,

"Was the election work over so soon? You should have informed us!" Prithvi asked, maintaining a cold expression, as if engaged in a formal business talk rather than a father-son conversation.

"Like you informed us?" his father replied, taunting him.

"The election campaign was supposed to last longer, but we had to wrap it up as Amar informed us. There is no one to handle the chaos, and his boss is busy somewhere else. But where?" his father stated.

Prithvi did not respond and maintained a blank look.

His father stopped at his place, thinking in brief silence.

Then, finally, he spoke, flooding his hand with different interests and a victory smile on his lips. "So, you finally decided!"

Prithvi, well aware of what his father was talking about, maintained his famous poker face and didn't utter a word.

His father continued, "You finally accept your defeat. Now what, 'Yuvraj'?" He approached Prithvi, with different interests.

Prithvi kept looking straight.

"No, not 'Yuvraj,' but 'Raja Prithvi Chauhan,'" his father stated, emphasizing each word.

Still, there was no response from Prithvi, as if he had been prepared for this, seeing it coming long before.

"Now, what will you say, Raja Sahab? You had your defeat. Should we count it? You too use your royal title like the others, like us. Now you too have become like us, who use their royal tag as a privilege. I sent you there to attend the wedding, as we got a personal request from the Jamwal family head. But you..."

"We never imagined it even in our nightmares," his father said, reflecting on why he wasn't angry but felt victorious, seeing his son defeated, as he had always wanted.

"But why are we not feeling angry, as we should feel," his father said, taking his seat beside the couch in a regal manner.

Prithvi stood still like a statue, his face betraying no emotion.

"Mr. Prithvi Chauhan finally using his king title in front of others. Something he never did before or claimed as his own. Always running away from it and the responsibilities it entails, just to claim a girl, a normal girl?" his father remarked.

"Dad," Prithvi finally spoke.

But his father just showed his hand in a gesture to stop, and Prithvi complied.

Does Prithvi fear his father? The answer is 'no.' He might hate him, have some conflicts, but respect is the one thing he never left. It seems he never mixes those two different emotions together, even in rage.

That's why he stopped when his father showed his hand & started getting up.

"Amar told us everything," Prithvi's face briefly showed terror. "The fear he felt-did Amar tell everything about her?" he masked it up again with his famous poker face.

His father continued, "Prithvi, how you came forward for that family girl and took a stand for her. Good, that was a good decision. You stood against something wrong, as our family tradition taught. We don't oppose you here. But then you married her? To save her family's dignity? Why? Without rational thinking? You didn't even give a rough thought to the idea. Does that girl really belong to this family without checking any facts? You announce marriage. On what basis?"

"On top of that, she runs away from the marriage. Was this not enough of a sign for you to back down and come back here, leaving your male ego aside? You didn't get any clue; she isn't responsible enough to be a 'daughter-in-law' of the Chauhan family."

Prithvi's facial muscles relaxed a little as he felt relieved, hearing his father's words and coming to his own conclusion that Amar didn't tell his father the whole story.

"You never take emotional decisions as much, in the sense that we know you. Now? What? What happened to you, my son? You are proving yourself wrong with your own actions," his father said, looking towards Prithvi.

***

Niharika's POV:

"Go back to our room." Why am I feeling such a rush of blood after hearing a few words from him? Why did I go numb? It was just a simple hold, right?

*Woof, woof* Kicky barked, and I snapped out of my own world.

I looked at her as she excitedly moved around her new place. I have complaints from her too.

"W..h..hy d..did you bar...rk at th..e.em, huh?" I said to her, but she ignored me, sniffing the floor.

"Huh! Y..you're ign...o..oring me. T..the..e.y d..didn't say an..nything to u..us, and y...you ba..r.rk at them," I said, ruffling her fur.

She just jumped, sticking out her tongue, and I sat there. "Y..you k..k.k.now, we we..ere W-w-wrong there. We we..re follo...wing the.m!" I said, pointing my finger as if she understood me.

Then I let her be.

Why do his small gestures toward me affect me so much? Am I fabricating scenarios in my mind? Yet, he genuinely cares for me, in ways I never fathomed anyone could. He stood up for me in front of my family, tended to me when I was sick. Were these actions merely out of human kindness, or did they extend to his feelings for his wife? Wife? Am I envisioning myself in a role he vehemently denies, and I refuse to acknowledge-being his wife?

***

"FOUR DAYS BACK"

" you are heating up" Prithvi muttered under his breath, his face betraying the concern and worry he usually kept hidden.

He rose from his seat, and Niharika murmured, "W..what?" as she instinctively placed her hand on herself, checking her condition. She hadn't realized until now. "O..oh," she exclaimed, feeling the warmth of realization.

"Oh! That's what you've got to say. Are you crazy? By any chance, you're heating up. Look at your temperature! How careless can you be, roaming around like this?" he scolded, not rudely but with genuine concern, as she listened, nodding like a child.

"Where are your goddamn slippers? Walking barefoot on a cold floor, huh?" he continued, expressing his worry.

"Um...w..woh(That)" she began to speak.

He ran his fingers frustratingly through his hair before moving towards her, his expression perplexed.

She too looked at him with confusion as he said, "Okay, lay down here. I'll call the doctor," gently guiding her to lie down on the sofa by placing both hands on her shoulders.

Confused and slightly annoyed, she started to speak again, "N..no, it's n..othi..n.ng-"

"Just lay down," he instructed, ignoring her words and ordering her once more, pointing a warning finger, signaling her not to annoy him further.

And she complied with his directive.

Prithvi started dialing the doctor's number, exaggerating her symptoms and speaking with a worried tone. She attempted to get up, saying, "I...it's not s.s..something B-big. I c...can ta..ke me..dicine. I w..ill be-"

"Shh..." he hushed her, placing his finger on her lips while talking on the phone, signaling her to be quiet and obedient, not to disturb him. And behaved as if she were an obedient child.

As now her temperature increased, he continued on the call, "Yes, so how long will it take you to arrive here? Yes, come up as soon as possible. My wife is heating up; she doesn't look normal to me."

He then made another dramatic comment, "Doctor, I would suggest you leave every other appointment and grace your presence here. It looks kinda serious to me; now her whole face is red, it's serious. Yes, please, her situation is getting worse than before," his tone laden with worry.

'Not normal, wasn't that too much, Mr. Prithvi? She indeed looks alright to us. You're just being hyper for no reason, stressing yourself and the doctor. And for heaven's sake, remove that finger from her lips. You're making the situation worse for her.'

He withdrew his finger from her lips and asked in confusion, "What?"

She muttered, "I...i..i w...was just sa...y..ying I w..will be al...lright on my o..own," looking down, trying to hide her embarrassed face, now flushed red.

He ended the call, placed his phone on the table, and looked at her, ignoring whatever she had mumbled.

Then, in a serious tone, he gazed directly into her eyes and said, "Will you at least take care of yourself for me? If you couldn't do that for yourself, huh? It's kind of-" He struggled to find the right words and paused.

She stared at him in utter shock after hearing his confession, keeping her eyes fixed on him.

He muttered in frustration, "Why are you so messy?"

"Huh!" she replied, scrunching her nose in confusion.

He took a long sigh and continued, "Why are you always surrounded by trouble? Is it too much for you to take care of yourself and not worry others, at least for me? Stop behaving like an immature kid. Okay? Be a young lady. Did you get that?" He scolded her like a guardian, and she listened, at times stealing glances at him with a silly smile creeping on her lips when she heard the word 'worried' from him.

Was he genuinely worried about her?

He instructed again, putting both his hands on her shoulders, "Now, lay down," and she complied.

He went inside and returned with a bowl. She watched as he rolled up his shirt sleeves, his hand causing her to gulp hard. Perhaps Prithvi was too naive to notice that he was the one raising her temperature, a prime factor in her condition worsening, while a small pill could have sufficed for Niharika.

He settled down near her and placed a soaked towel on her forehead.

"W..what a...a..re yo...u d...d..doing?" Niharika questioned, feeling uncomfortable with his actions.

"Y...ou don't ne...e.ed to d...o.o this. Yo..u a...already d-d-did a lot la...st night. I c...caused yo...u so m..m..much trouble, being a bu...r.rden on y...o.ou," she confessed in a sad tone, stopping him from continuing.

"Lay back!" Prithvi shouted at her authoritatively, his jaw clenched in anger.

After hearing words like 'trouble' and 'burden' from her, it made him angry, though the reasons remained unknown. But She could be anything to him, but a burden or trouble? No. She could neither be a burden on him nor a Trouble. yes indeed it's true. She constantly surrounded him with problems, stealing his peace. However, that didn't mean she should jump to her own conclusion that she was burdening him. Maybe he secretly enjoyed the trouble and chaos she brought into his life, and it might put a smile on his face at times. His life was once boring, filled with schedules and deadlines, but now she was in his life, giving him an excuse to prioritize 'his' life, not just business priorities. To procrastinate in a good sense or that could feeling named after anything but burden-nah,never.

"The doctor will take some time to show up; it might help with your temperature," he said softly this time, concerned laced in his voice.

As she looked at him, he added another piece of information, "And please behave yourself with me. Stop acting like you could do everything on your own. Even if you can, let others sometimes do things for you; it won't make you dependent on them, okay? When they tell you something, don't be stubborn, did you get it?"

"And we can't go back home with you in this condition. What will I tell my family? How did you get those? So bear with me for a few days," Prithvi said, pointing towards her bruises, not wanting to mention anything else.

( PRESENT TIME)

"Ki..cky, I've ne..ever se..e.en s..s..someo..ne t..take car...re of me li...ke he d...o.oes. It feels g..g..good wh...h..hen you don't ha...ave to h..h.h.ide being s...sick to avoid tr..r..roubling s-s-someone el..se. I...it feels so g..good wh...e..en s...someone w..o.orries about you, and ta...k..kes c..cccare of you," I said while patting her, recalling how he cared for me.

I never imagined experiencing something like that, and I subconsciously made another confession.

"K..k.icky, a..am I b..building a s...sssoft co...r..rner in m..my h.heart for h..him, for P..prithvi Ji? Sh...o.ould I let m..m.myself sur..r..render to th...these fe...e.elings I'm s..starting t...o..o fe..eel, or sh..o..ould I k...e.eep my g..guard u..up, f...feari..ng b..eing hurt? I'm sc..cared, Kicky-"

Someone knocked on the door, interrupting my thoughts.

I got up to open it and met Vanshi standing there with a tray. She looked scared, and I opened the door for her to come inside.

"W..hhy ar..e e you s...scared?" I asked as she entered.

"Yuvrani, can I ask you a favor?" Vanshi inquired.

"Y-yes!" I replied.

"Could you please take this tray to Bade Malik's study room?" she asked, looking fearful.

"M-m-me?" I said in shock, pointing at myself.

She nodded.

"Yes, please. I know I'm asking too much, but I was ordered to take this tray to Bade Malik's study room. But then 'Suman Kaki' said Prithvi Bhaiji is also there. And when they are together, I can't tell you in words. Please, a small favor. I won't let anyone know. I can't face their wrath," she pleaded, wiping her forehead.

"B..but how ca..n.n I?" I questioned.

"Please," she urged.

How do I tell her that I'm no different from her? I'm also scared of the people in this palace. Does she, by any chance, see me as braver or stronger than I am? I too don't like to go generally into the lion's den. I love my life just like her and his father look scared, just like him. The way she's talking, I simply can't.

"They don't like anyone disturbing them, but Suman Kaki insisted. I told her I couldn't, but they......" she trailed off, looking down, while I swallowed hard.

"No, Niharika, you can't," I thought.

"I can't," I was going to say, but for some reason, I stopped her.

"W..wait."

"I'l..l.l g.o.o," I said. Why, Niharika? Are you any different from her? So why did you agree?

"Really? Take this. Thank you, Yuvrani. I will always remember," she said.

"B..but w..wait," I tried to speak, but she was already gone.

"Wh...e..ere is th...eir s..s.study r...o.oom?" I muttered under my breath.

Taking a deep breath, I muttered, "N...no, t...they w...will n..not s..say any...th...i..ing," and looked at the tray.

'What's gotten into you, Niharika?' I thought, shaking off the doubts, and went outside.