"I... I thought he(Chirag) was a good man and I didn't want you to commit a sin by killing an innocent... I should have trusted you and your judgment. This is no excuse but...", Amruta trailed before Abhyansh cut her off...

"You are right, there is no excuse for what you did, you ruined me and I wouldn't forgive you ever... Don't keep up your hopes", Abhyansh said coldly...

"I just want you to be my son again... I don't expect you to forgive me, just give my A.. Abhi back... I beg you", Amruta sobbed but it couldn't break the beast's cold resolve. The wounds given by his mother weren't healed, they would never heal.

"So that you can betray him again?", Abhyansh asked sharply, the hatred in his eyes and sharpness in his tone caused her to break down...

"I... I am so sorry... I am sorry... I am dying with this guilt already... I would never be forgiven for my sins... But pl... Abhi...", she hiccupped, loud sobs and sharp breaths followed. Abhyansh realized her condition and took a step forward to help her but before that, she lost consciousness. He lifted her up and laid her on the large couch. He took off her sandals and started rubbing her feet. His mother had a tendency to lose her consciousness when extreme worry or deep emotional agony hits her.

But the frequency of its occurrence is rare, the last time it happened was during his sister's death and then when he announced she was no longer his mother. In all these years, despite her agony and pain, she didn't suffer with this conditionas if she knew her elder son wasn't there for her to take care of her and now she gave in to her body as she knew he would take care of her.

After rubbing her feet for some more time, she slowly opened her eyes, he quickly got up and got her some water which she accepted gladly.

"I am fine", she told him, understanding his worry.

'I don't care' the harsh reply was at the tip of his tongue but he bit back as he wouldn't lie no matter the circumstances. The only time he did was for Bhairav.

The truth is he cared for his mother's well-being. Despite her betrayal, he still loved her.

"Abhyansh...", Amruta started but he shook his head, he couldn't deal with this pain anymore, but he wanted to say what he and his wife decided.

"Forgiving you wasn't an option, but yes, we could work on our relationship...", he said, Amruta's eyes widened with surprise...

"I won't ask you to forgive me, this is my punishment, to bear my son's hatred for life, but promise me one thing, think of it as my last wish Abh...Abhi...", Amruta asked, she was scared to call him 'Abhi' but when he didn't interrupt her she was overwhelmed with happiness and continued... "Before I take my last breath, If our relationship doesn't improve to a stage where you could call me 'Ma' again, then after my death, instead of whispering 'Narayana Mantra' in my ear, call me 'Ma', My soul will rest in peace then", She said, his heart ached to hear her, no matter how many complaints he had against his mother, he wasn't ready to lose her to death. Her talking about all these things didn't go well with him, that too the casual smile on her face irked him more. Did his mother really think that he would never call her 'Ma' again before her last breath? Yes, he didn'taddress her in the past 2 decades, but that doesn't mean he wouldn't do it ever...

"Ma...Don't talk nonsense... I made myself very clear, You will have to stay alive for decades to come, to bear all my anger, that's your punishment for your betrayal", Abhyansh said coldly, but Amruta's world stuck at that one word. "Now, get up and leave", he said and walked back to his chair, resuming his work, it took Amruta 10 minutes to get out of her reverie of thoughts and happy tears, that's when she got up and left her son's study. She knew things wouldn't turn better so easily, she knew it might take years to get back to the relationship they had back then, but now she decided to wait patiently. Her elder son called her 'Ma' after almost 2 decades, she completely lost hope but it happened, she now doesn't want anything for herself, she just wished happiness for her children and daughters-in-law and the next generation.

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"You are not bluffing me, are you ?", Isha asked for the nth time earning a glare from her husband, Veera sat beside Isha while Sharah was beside Abhyansh but looking at his Rani sa.

"What do you mean by bluffing? Have I ever done that ?", he asked her sharply

"No, but it's hard to believe, but I'm very happy", Isha said, hugging his forearm, unable to control her happiness.

"Yes, but don't expect me to do this regularly...", he said but she looked around ignoring his words... "I'm serious Isha, Don't you dare force me to call her 'Ma' or behave in a certain way", Abhyansh told her strictly but his tone didn't go well with his pet friends, who were now whipped for their 'Rani sa', they growled in protest but with one glare from Abhyansh, they chickened out, and Isha didn't like her husband silencing 'Sharah' and 'Veera'.

"Can anyone force you? With that personality ?", She mocked him...

"Yes, you do, not once but always, so warning you... Now let's go, time for dinner... Sharah, Veera, go inside", Abhyansh said, they reluctantly got up when their queen stood silently instead of protesting her husband's order. They went into their habitats after getting their mandatory hug from their 'Rani sa'. Abhyansh narrowed his eyes at them as they didn't approach him and he understood they were upset with him.

"Really? You made them 'Dramabaaz' just like you...", Abhyansh huffed and walked away, Isha giggled at her husband's pissed face.

"Such a brooding man you are Ansh...", she said following behind.

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Days passed, Isha and Ranveer asked Abhyansh many times what he was planning, but he stayed tight-lipped, and Rajmata too stayed put on his order.

"Sleep early today, no movie... You need to wake up early tomorrow", he said

"So, you are not going to tell me even now ", she tried for one last time...

"You'll know soon, just a few hours...", he said kissing her forehead. She sighed and adjusted herself on his chest intertwining her legs with his.

"You started showing up... Isn't this position uncomfortable to you bacha ?", he asked her softly, she shook her head, kissing his bare chest.

"I want to sleep on you till I can, it would get difficult for me to even turn in the later months, so for now, let me sleep on you", she muttered, nuzzling her head into his neck. He took a sharpintake of breath but controlled his inner beast. He slowly ruffled her hair and soon she fell asleep.