chapter 21

Maan’s world collapsed. He screamed her name, rushing to her side, his hands shaking as he tried to rouse her. Her skin was cold, her pulse weak. In a frenzy, he scooped her up and raced to the hospital, praying with every breath that she would survive. Shrii’s mother, trembling with fear, called Suhas, who rushed to the hospital as fast as he could.By the time Suhas arrived, Shrii was in the ICU. The sterile white walls and the beeping machines were a stark contrast to the warm, vibrant life Shrii had once known. Hours passed in agonizing silence until finally, the doctor emerged, his face grave. “Who is her husband?” he asked. Maan stepped forward, his voice barely a whisper as he answered, “I am.”The doctor’s words were a death blow. “I’m sorry, but your wife consumed a lethal dose of medication, which caused her to miscarry. Due to her fragile condition and severe blood loss, she’s in a coma. We don’t know if—or when—she will wake up.”The weight of those words crushed them all. Maan sank to the floor, tears streaming down his face, his body wracked with sobs. Suhas stood frozen, the realization of what he had done crashing down on him like a tidal wave. The daughter he had tried to protect was now lying in a hospital bed, her life hanging by a thread, all because of him.As Suhas tried to approach the ICU, Maan stepped in his path, his eyes blazing with a pain that cut through the air like a knife. “No, Uncle,” he said, his voice trembling with rage and sorrow. “You can’t see her. You don’t deserve to see her.”Maan’s voice broke as he continued, tears choking his words. “I begged you, Uncle. I told you I would take responsibility. I asked you to protect her. But you didn’t care about her, did you? All you cared about was your pride, your reputation, your caste. And now look at her. Look at what you’ve done. You sacrificed your own daughter for the sake of your honor. Congratulations, Mr. Suhas. You’ve destroyed your daughter’s life, and for what? From now on, Shrii is my wife. You have no right to see her. Leave.”Suhas was left speechless, his soul crushed under the weight of Maan’s words. Every syllable was a dagger to his heart, each one driving home the unbearable truth—he had failed his daughter in the worst possible way. The girl he had loved and protected was now a fragile, broken shell because of his misguided pride.In the days that followed, Suhas couldn’t bring himself to visit Shrii. The guilt was too much, the sight of her too painful. He replayed every moment in his mind, the decisions he had made, the anger he had felt. How could he have been so blind? But as time passed, he began to notice how devoted Maan was, how tirelessly he cared for Shrii. Maan’s love was fierce and unwavering, a love Suhas now realized he had failed to give his own daughter.Then, one day, the call came. Shrii had woken up after seven long years, and she wanted to see her parents.Suhas’s heart pounded as he walked to the hospital, each step heavier than the last. He didn’t know how he would face her, how he could look into the eyes of the daughter he had so grievously wronged. The sun’s rays scorched his skin, pulling him back into the harsh reality of his guilt. How could he ever ask for her forgiveness?