AKANSHA'S POV:

The figure in front of me stared at me with so many emotions in her eyes.

O.M.G.

Am I dreaming?

I slowly walked towards her without blinking my eyes in fear that she would vanish the next moment if I closed my eyes. I touched her arms and felt it.

Is this real?

"Mom", I choked the words out.

I hugged her tight. The protected, homely feeling filled with love and affection hit me hard. I can't believe that my mother is here!

"O My Baby! ",my mom whispered between her sobs. She kissed my forehead, cheeks and looked at me with her palm holding my head affectionately.

"You are so thin. Haven't you eaten well? ",she asked, making me chuckle a little.

Typical mom!

"I missed you mom ",I said whole-heartedly.

"So should I go back since my daughter is not missing me? ",I heard my father's voice.

"Dad ",I ran towards him and embraced him tight.

"How is my brave woman doing? ",dad asked, staring at me with a proud smile.

"Great ",I smiled, my eyes flowing with happy tears.

"You know that I hate these tears, right? ",he asked me, wiping out the tears softly.

I hiccupped crying more.

"Hey Princess! Don't cry. When did you become a cry baby?", he asked, his tone trembled a little but he composed himself.

"I missed you Dad ",I sobbed and hugged him tight.

He held me securely and comforted me.

"Oh gosh! Dad-- Mom--- how come you bot-- ",Sam's voice was heard.

He came and hugged mom who was crying silently.

"How dare you not talk about Kanz? You dared to hide the info about her from us ",Mom asked him in an angry tone.

"You decided to do your higher studies all of a sudden which was very suspicious. And when your dad did a little check on it, we were both shocked that you dared to hide such a thing from us even when you knew that we were searching for her all over Tamil Nadu. But you found her in Mumbai and didn't think to tell us about it? ",Mom asked him.

"Mom-- it was me who asked him not to disclose the truth. I-- I was just lost; I-- I didn't have the guts to meet any of you as I was not myself at that time."

"What hap-- ",Dad stopped his words when he looked at the entry of my friends.

"Dad--- Mom-- these are my friends ",I said and I introduced them and everyone smiled at them in respect.

"What happened to you? ",Dad asked.

"Did someone break your heart? ",Dad asked bluntly, making me gasp. How does he always see right through me?

His jaw clenched tightly, seeing my expression as confirmation.

"Who is he? ",he asked coldly.

At that time, the door squeaked open and the person whom Dad spoke about entered the hall but stopped when he noticed my dad and mom.

"This is Parth Saxton, m-- my boyfriend", I walked and stood beside him and said it. It's better I say it before they find out about my relationship.

"Who broke your heart? Did he help you from your heartbreak? ",Dad asked.

"Shane, we just saw them just now. Let's speak about it later ",Mom tried to say but Dad stopped her.

"Sweetheart! We should never postpone things. It leads to too many problems and confusion. It's better to clear it up so that we can be calm and peaceful ",Dad said and Mom kept silent without saying anything else.

"Tell me ",Dad asked strictly. Well, it's now or never!

"Parth broke my heart but now I have reconciled with him ",I said the truth.

Dad and Mom stared at him. Dad morelike scrutinized him with his hard gaze.

"I am Shane Winston ",Dad introduced himself.

Is Dad going lenient on him? That's a sweet surprise! How come did he easily forgi--

"I need to speak with you alone ",he said more like ordered him in a strict tone.

I am taking back my words.

Damn! Me and my stupid thoughts! He is not at all lenient. Whenever Dad speaks in this tone, then he is very angry right now. But the outsiders don't know him well including Parth, which is why he eagerly accepted with a professional aura.

"Da-- ", "Kansha-- I can handle it ",Parthu said much to my annoyance.

He eyed me and I glared at him to which he just winked at me.

'Believe me', he mouthed and walked behind Dad. They both entered the room for privacy.

I stared at the closed door in distant thoughts. He will definitely impress him. He better be.

"Don't worry Kanz dear. They will be okay ",Mom said.

"How are you Kryz? ",Mom asked Kryz to which Kryz hugged my mom tight, mumbling a 'fine; just missed you' while doing so.

"I am glad that you supported Kanz when we were not with her. Thank you Kryz ",Mom said, her voice filled with gratitude.

"Aunty, it's nothing much. She was the one who took care of me", Kryz said with a chuckle.

"Um-- no. Those words show me as a useless badass. I took care of her too ",Kryz added.

"But I still feel sad that you didn't come to see us. You should have come back, no matter what ",Mom said.

I thought the same. Maybe if I went to them, I would have felt very safe. But what's done is done!

"I am sorry Mom. It was a weak, stupid move ",I apologized to her to which she kissed my forehead softly.

"Are you that boy's friend? ",Mom asked Theo, Andy and Harry.

"Yup aunty. But we are Kanz's friends too ",Andy said.

"Good to hear ",she smiled at them.

"How about you fill up all that amazing fun you had all these days? ",Mom asked me to which I gladly agreed.

"Where is the bedroom? ",Mom asked and I showed her the way.

"Sorry for cutting the night ",I apologized to which they glared at me.

"Just spend your time with your mom. We can have another night together. By the way I am tired from all the coaching work ",Harry said.

"Yass; very tired! ", Andy supported his words.

"Cool! My beauty sleep is calling me. So, Andy just drop me home and do whatever you want to do with Kryz ",Theo said, making everyone laugh.

"How about a romantic candlelight dinner? ",Harry asked Chloe to which she blushed furiously and asked him to shut up. Cute couple!

Everyone bid their bye and walked out.

I smiled at them and walked back to the room.

"I still feel like I am in a dream. I can't believe that you are here Mom. I am in cloud-nine right now. "

"Don't feel nervous Kansha. I know that deep down you are thinking about what your Dad and boyfriend are speaking to each other. Your dad will be just warning him. This love is yours. And it's only your decision to take. We can't come inside it. I will support you with every decision you take. But I hope that you will think thoroughly before taking your most important decision in your life. That love will be the only one which will stick with you till the end. So think wisely", Mom advised me.

"Yes Miss. Advice Queen! I get it ",I said and laid on the bed with my head on her lap; just like those old times and started talking about how I lived and what I experienced. And my mom listened to me with full concentration.

********

"This isn't funny Kansha", Parthu pouted, making him more cute.

I tried to scare him in the darkness when he went to take candles from the cupboard.

I and Parthu are sitting on the balcony of Parthu's house now. A wholesome dinner with my family with Parth and Kate as inclusion went pretty good after the long two hours private talk between Dad and Parthu. Dad was back to his jovial character which seemed like Parthu had convinced my Dad pretty well.

"I am glad that they didn't find you when I-- I um-- broke your heart. They would have never allowed me to see you and I deserve it but I will never be able to live with the fact that I screwed everything up ",Parthu said with hate within himself.

"Hey! Everything is in the past. Just think about how I rejected all your advances towards me and made you a laughing stock in front of all by rejecting you bluntly ",I said trying to comfort him.

"I deserved that Kansha. But you didn't deserve it. Even now you are defending me rather than shouting at me for hurting you", Parthu said furiously, pouring out his emotions.

I thought he handled everything perfectly but it seems Dad had done pretty well.

"What did my Dad say? ",I asked him seriously.

"He told the truth. I am not worthy of you Kansha. You are too precious; too soft-hearted to forgive my sins; too naive to fall for me; too pure to allow me to love you. You are an ange-- ", I slapped him.

He looked at me shocked.

"Are you in your right senses? Do you understand what you are saying? Why are you spluttering nonsense? Are you going to break up with me? ",I asked, more like shouting at him, hitting his chest.

"Kansha-- I ",he started but I stopped him.

"I will kill you with my bare hands even if you think about leaving me even for a second", I clutched his collar and pulled him close.

"You understand? ",I whispered.

"Yes ",he said back.

I kissed him deeply, clutching him tight, in fear of him changing his thoughts of me. I poured all my emotions in it. He gripped me tight and kissed me back with the same passion as mine.

He carried me and placed me on the bench and kneeled down in front of me.

"What ar-- " but he shushed me.

"I would never ever even dream for a nanosecond of me leaving you. What I expressed was the facts that all people will point out at us. And I hate it because I was the sole purpose of it. If I hadn't accepted the dare... if I had stopped her from exposing it.... if I had realized the love for you earlier.... There are so many ifs but nothing can be changed now with all these ifs in my mind. Your dad loves you very much. He made me realize how fucked up I am. "

"Pa-- "

"Shh! Let me finish it. "

"He shouted at me for hurting you. He said that he was proud of you; the way you handled everything. He also made me realize how much I love you. All the negative thoughts arose in my mind but I can never live without you. I spoke for myself. I spoke for us. I spoke for the beautiful bond we have. He was a little shocked by my open thoughts. He then said that if I am not the one for you, then no one can be; because that was how much I love you in a twisted way from the very first moment I met you. He warned me not to repeat the same mistakes again. I am glad he accepted us Kansha. He. accepted. our. relationship. ",Parth said.

I was a little worried that Dad would hate him. Now I am glad that he didn't.

"That's really great ",I cheered happily.

"I-- I need to show you something. Come with me ",he said, taking my hands in his. Soon we reached his bedroom.

"Tada ",he exclaimed suddenly.

And then showed it to me.

No. This is not what I think!

How come? No.

This is not mine.

I-- I threw it away. How can he have it?

"P-Parthu--- how come? ",I said, tears filled in my eyes.

Miss. Hannah, the doll I made him to buy me while I was drunk was in his hands right now.

I had thrown it outside the window, the night I was crushed with my love.

"That night-- I came to your house. After I spoke with Andy, I couldn't control myself from missing you. I felt the urge to see you. I tried my best to control the urge but it became worse. So, I came to your house but I didn't have the guts to see you in the eye. Even though I thought that you were the bad one in my mind, I still couldn't digest it. I stood near your window. At one moment, I heard the harsh sound of the windows being opened. Before I could hide, I saw you throwing something away; your face was so dull and sad. I heard the 'I hate you' which you meant deeply. Something stirred in me seeing your crying face. Before I could say something, you disappeared. I then walked slowly towards the thing you threw away. It was Miss. Hannah. It deeply hurt me to see that you had thrown one of our beautiful memories away. But now I understand that I hurt you that much for you to throw it away. Anger urged in me at that time; but I didn't have the guts to throw it away. So, I took Miss. Hannah and kept it with me. And I am glad that I did something right at that time. So, do you still want Miss. Hannah? ",he asked me.

I still can't believe that Miss. Hannah is fine. I used to feel sad whenever the memory of that doll came. I wished that I hadn't thrown the doll away that night. But since I couldn't change that fact, I accepted it sadly. But looking at her in front of me made me emotional. He still had the thought of keeping it; a memory of mine with him.

"Yes ",I said and took it from him and hugged her tight.

"Well, you could appreciate the saver a little more ",Parthu said beside me.

"Thank you Parthu. This means a lot ",I said and pecked his cheeks softly.

We both walked hand-in- hand and reached the balcony again and sat down on the bench. I laid my head on his shoulder, feeling the cool breeze and the calm, comfortable silence between us.

"Are you not curious? ",I asked him suddenly.

"Curious about what? "

"About the reason why I hid my identity? "

"I am. "

"Then why do I feel like you are not curious? "

"I was hoping for you to say to me on your own when you were ready", Parthu said simply.

"Before saying that, I need you to answer me honestly ",I demanded.

"Ask me Madam. "

"Don't you ever miss your father? ",I asked him, looking straight in his eyes.

He was a little taken about by my question.

"Parthu! Only the truth ",I demanded.

"I--- I am used to it. "

"Why don't you try again? "

"Kansha-- this is ridiculous. Everything doesn't change if I go and speak with him. And I don't think it will work ",he said frustrated.

"You are right. Everything doesn't change but something may change. Don't you wish to have a bond with your Dad? And how will you know whether it will work or not if you didn't even try a little bit? You should try to speak with Uncle John too. He is grieving for leaving you alone. I am not pointing out that what they did to you was right. It was really very wrong to abandon a child who lost his mother. But above all the logic, they are still your father and uncle. You should leave the grudge, pain, grief, sorrow. You should let it out. I will always be there for you. Don't feel embarrassed to express yourself. I won't ever judge you. You can be yourself. You need not hide Parthu. "

There was a moment of silence.

His eyes welled up!

"I-- I badly miss them. Each and everyday, a small part of me wishes to be with them like a normal family but that only brought misery to me. Un--uncle John used to pluck the Jambakka (Java apple) fruit from the tree for me.

But he stopped doing it after Mom was gone. Dad used to help me with my tie but he stopped doing it after Mom was gone; he even stopped visiting me. It was a must one that everyone should have dinner together except for the days when Dad goes for business trips. But after Mom's death, Dad was always traveling. At the start, I used to call him but he replies vaguely and cuts the call soon. And slowly I was fed up with it and I didn't call him. He didn't miss me and called me back which hurted me badly. And my life went that way. Even if I had the money I needed, I had no happiness in the house I lived in. It was hollow with no life in it. If Andy and Theo didn't come into my life, I don't know where I would be now. I am really glad and proud to have them with me--- um-- Don't tell them that I said it-- then they will make me the laughing stock ",he chuckled wiping his tears.

"I am really proud of you Parthu. I love you! With you I feel complete and whole. If you were a good boy back then, then I wouldn't have met you. Even if we had met, you would have been committed to a very beautiful, intelligent girl long before I came into picture. And I am greedy enough to wish that it didn't happen ",I said to which Parthu chuckled.

"Even if I had been a goodie boy as you say, I would have still fallen in love with you in one way or another. You are my heart. And you are the one, the only one made for me ",he confessed, making me melt with his emotional words.

"How come every word that comes from your mouth affects me a lot? ",I asked him, transfixed.

"Well, I am glad that the feeling is both ways ",he tucked my hair strand behind my ear while saying so.

"So, I am ready to talk about my family. I hope you will keep it a secret from outsiders. "

"Does that mean I can say it to Andy and Theo? ",he asked puzzled.

"Yup! They are my friends too. And they need to know about it too. Kryz said that she would say it for me. She would say to Harry and Chloe too. I just need to say to Neil too. "

"Even though Neil is committed, I still feel a little jealous of him ",Parth said with a gruff face.

"Come on Parthu, you know that I love you. "

"Can't help it ",he said, shaking his head.

"So, tell me ",he asked finally.

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Hello guys!! I am back with an update. I guess the story will be over in two or three chapters at most!!

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With Love,

S. M. Skyler.