Flashback:

"You can go in now." Rishabh's mother said politely, nodding her little towards Yahvi.

She felt a tug at her heart when she was asked to get inside. How is she going to behave with him? What will she say to him? How was she supposed to act in a situation like this? Thousands of questions were roaming in her mind and unknowingly her hands were clutching her hair tightly.

"Child." A pair of hands covered her own and as she lifted her gaze it was only to see Rishabh's mother, Ruchi Khurana looking at her with concern.

Her thumb swiped across Yahvi's soft cheeks making her realize she had been crying. She caressed Yahvi's hair for a couple of times before making her look at her.

"You know, I believe you're strong. Strong because you came the exact moment you got to know about Rishabh's health and didn't avoided it like others. I- It was really hard for me and Rishabh's dad to ignite a hope in him. The doctor said his cancer is in the first stage and this can be cured with the chemotherapies because it still hasn't spread much. But I know, more than that, it requires him to be strong from inside. He has lost his hope thinking he will die soon. He needs hope and tell me one thing, when he'll see his princess all sad and crying, would this make the situation any better?" His mother said hoarsely, still caressing Yahvi's hair from time to time.

This woman was surely strong. Yahvi felt how lucky Rishabh was to have such parents and she felt angry knowing how a guy like Rishabh was feeling all this. Lost his hope? There was no way Rishabh would ever feel or say this.

"I am scared to meet him. I don't even know what I am going to say him. I am sorry, would that work? Or should I ask him how he is feeling?" She asked Ruchi Khurana who looked at the young girl with a soft smile.

"If you'll just sit beside him without saying anything, it would be enough. For him." Ruchi ended with a mere nod making Yahvi look at her hesitantly.

"Really?" She asked, just to get a confirmation.

"Yes. Now go and make him eat this. It's time for his lunch." Ruchi said patting her head as a gesture to walk forward.

"Thank you." Yahvi said, looking at her sideways when she was walking to the door of his private room in the hospital.

"Y-Yahvi!" Ruchi Khurana's hesitant voice reached her ears when she was about to open the door to his room.

"Yes?" She asked in confusion, turning back once again.

"H-He might behave distant with you too. But please don't take it by your h-heart. He is really in pain." His mother let out the words, painfully herself on the verge of tears.

Yahvi merely nodded her head before taking a huge breath and swinging the door open. She stepped inside slowly and steadily as if she was scared to meet her saviour. For the first time she was hesitant to meet her knight in shining armor.

Her brown orbs landed on the person she was craving to see and talk to since 6 months. He was laying on the hospital bed, eyes closed and in a stiff posture unlike those times when she found him sleeping on the college's benches like a log. She would even sit on him but he would not get affected at all and would continue to sleep.

But this time, his eyes snapped open as he heard the door to his room open.

His captivating brown eyes met her glistening brown ones.

And her heart pierced as she noticed the shine missing in those. There was zero mischievous in his eyes unlike previously. They were empty of any emotion. They were just plainly void.

"Yahvi?" Came his hoarse voice, full of disbelief.

And she felt heartbroken.

Yahvi instead of Princess.

That only meant she was not his princess anymore.

It was hard for her not to cry right here. She needed to be strong.

"Rishabh." Wiping the only tear that left her eye, she walked towards him with a slow and steady pace.

Their eyes were connected the whole time. She kept looking at him whose body was connected with wires,a big bandage on his chest, fingeres connected with those weird type of machines. The beep sound had irritated her under a minute and she couldn't even imagine what he must be feeling.

"How are you?" She asked in a soft voice, sitting on the stool beside his bed.

He had his gaze stuck on her intently.

His facial hair had grown a lot than before. And no matter how much she tried, she just couldn't ignore his bald head. The favourite thing about him for her was his hair and there was no sight of them.

Things had changed immensely.

"What are you doing here?" His jaw was clenched as he asked her, ignoring to answer the question she'd asked.

His hoarse voice was a lot hard to ignore too.

"I-I came to see you. I m-missed you Rishabh." She whispered while looking at the IV connected to his left hand.

"You have seen me. You can leave now." He muttered harshly, turning his face away from her.

"Rish-"

"I said leave!" He yelled, looking at her with red eyes.

Who would tell her that he was ashamed to let her see him in this condition? He looked nothing like he used to. It made his heart clench in anger.

Who would tell her that he too craved since 6 months to see her but wasn't in a condition to do so?

"I won't leave. I've had enough of your tantrums to not to see me. Now whether you like it or not, I will be sitting here only. Beside you." She too voiced out in a firm tone, her expression turning stern.

"What do you want to see? You want to make me remember how ill I am? How I will not be the same as before ever. How I might even die-"

"I dare you to complete that sentence Rishabh." She warned, stopping him from saying any further.

He closed his eyes in frustration, rubbing his other hand all over his face and released a breath after long long silence. He just got back to his previous posture. His body was stiff as he had his gaze fixated straight ahead. And Yahvi just kept sitting beside him.

"R-Rishabh, please eat this. Aunty sent this for-" She couldn't complete her sentence as he'd already taken the bite that was forwarded by her in her small hands.

He kept on eating silently.

And again, there was no one to tell her that how he would skip his meals everytime and would not eat whenever his mother would ask him to. This time, he just ate. Because it was her.

In between her eyes wandered to the three photo frames kept on the table beside the bed. One had his photo with his parents where he was smiling brightly, each arm wrapped around his parent's shoulder. He looked very different in it was her realization.

The next photo made her eyes glisten with tears. It was the photo Hardik clicked on the last day of Rishabh and him in the college. Yahvi was crying hysterically, face buried in Rishabh's chest while he was calming her down ever so softly and calmly. She really missed their moments was her realization.

The last photo frame was kept down, the photo underside of it. She forwarded her hands to lift it up and her eyes fell into the photo to notice it was their college group's photo. They were the perfect group of 7 friends.

And the very next moment, the photo frame was snatched from her hands and thrown on the hospital floor with immense force causing it to shatter with a loud sound, all done by him.

Yahvi looked at him wide eyed who had his jaw and fist clenched, eyes shut tightly as if he was controlling himself.

"Rishabh..." Mumbling this in shock, she wrapped her arms around his figure who in return buried his face in her chest, wrapping his arms around her tightly, and as soon as she heard a sniffle coming from him, it became the hardest for her not to break into a sob.

How much their lives and relationships had changed, she couldn't help but to wonder.

Flashback ends.

//////////

"Yahvi..."

"Yahvi..."

A distance voice was heard but there was no response.

A tired Rishabh, while rubbing his eyes half sleepily walked to the lobby of their flat from their bedroom and upon noticing her sitting on the kitchen's countertop, all his sleep went away.

"Princess! Do you know how worried I was not seeing you beside me? Why are you sitting here 2 in the midnight?" His husky, morning voice reached up her ears as she munched on the cookies and cream flavored ice cream directly from the tub.

"Huh? Call me that again." She asked, placing a hand on her heart all flabbergasted.

"Call you what Princess?" He asked confused, not realizing he had actually spoken that again.

And she just broke down due to happiness. This guy always does things at the worst of the times.

"You always make me cry in the night." She hit him on his bare chest with her small fists, sobs increasing second by second.

He knew very well how bad her mood swings are and will going to be.

Also, whatever emotions and up and downs they were going through, didn't make it any easier.

Letting out a huge sigh, he took the icecream tub from her hand and placed it back in the freezer and then lifted her in his arms, to which she buried her face in his neck, clinging onto him like a baby.

Walking towards the lounge, he sat them on the sofa, with her still in his arms and made her look at him who still was in a sulking mode with a pout.

"What happened?" He asked softly, grazing her soft cheek with the pad of his thumb.

"You made me cry." She whispered in between, playing with the wedding ring in his finger that only she made him wear this.

"How so?" He asked, smiling a little knowing how his pregnant little wife had mood swings.

"You called me Princess after so long Rish." She cried happily, hugging him while burying her face in his chest.

He stilled for a moment as he grasped her words. But as the reality and what situation he was now in, flashed in front of his eyes, that was basically their wedding day, he relaxed and went back to hugging her.

"I love you." She whispered in his neck.

"I love you too Princess. I love you so much." He mumbled and a sob escaped her lips, full of happiness, mood swings taking up every emotion of hers.

"Why did you have to make me wait for so many years to hear this?" She asked looking at him with her big glistening eyes.

"What was I supposed to do Yahvi? The very moment I decided to make you mine, I was showered with such a news no one would want to hear for them." He voiced out, running a hand over his face.

"I lost hope in this whole process of chemotherapies. Those pain made me numb and if felt as if there was no need for me to stay alive. Dying felt better than this."

As soon as he said this, she placed her palm on his mouth stopping him from saying anything ill ahead to this.

"And why shouldn't I be shocked and angry at you knowing you agreed to spend the rest of your life with me? You deserved the best princess which I clearly am not. I won't be the partner you deserve. You need someone healthy-"

"Stop it Rish! It has been more than 1 and a half years since you're free of cancer. When the doctors have clearly said that you're free of it then why do you keep saying you aren't healthy. And you say that I deserve the best? Then let me tell you Rishabh Khurana, you are the best." She ended in a firm note making Rishabh smile at the petite woman in his arms.

She looked in his eyes only to find them soft as ever, filled with warmth and care that were looking at her lovingly. Her own eyes were shining in the moonlight, it being almost darkness here and sne sniffled like a cute baby, making a small chuckle escape his mouth.

His princess will never change.

"Rish..." She mumbled mischievously after moments of silence, playing with the ring in his finger making him hum in response.

"Your wife wants some action." She whispered in his ears, biting on his earlobe sensually.

She noticed him releasing a wavered breath as she was completely sitting in his lap, him making her feel protected and safe.

"Dammit Yahvi. You know you're pregnant and yet you're doing this." He grumbled in frustration.

His lips trailed down kisses on her neck where there were already marks, his marks, from their previous sessions and he only bit on those again as he noticed them fading.

"The doctor said it's fine. We can do it." She blushed while saying this, almost hiding her face in her black locks.

"What's better than this?" He winked causing her to giggle and soon it was replaced by a shriek as he had hoisted her in his arms, running back to the bedroom and only they know how they managed to get rid of their clothes in this hurry.

//////////

Flashback:

Her face was scrunched up as she walked through the corridors of massive hospital, clutching the bag in her hanging around her shoulders as she'd directly come from her office to meet him just like daily.

Soon she reached the door to his private room and as she was about to swing it open, his voice that was heard clearly from inside stopped her in the process.

"Mom, how long will she keep coming here? Doesn't she understands that I don't need her? She should focus on her life instead of wasting on mine." His harsh words were heard and she let out a small smile in return.

The only thing he had been doing since 8 months was snapping at Yahvi from time to time or complaining about her to his mother.

Or sometimes it would be him laying down with his head in her lap and Yahvi calming him down with her words and forehead kisses.

This time, it was the prior one where he must be angry about something or the other and was taking that out with Yahvi as a source.

And all of a sudden she remembered that today was the day when Rishabh's doctors are going to tell the decision about his health. While spending a hectic day in the office, she'd totally forgotten about this.

"You only tell me Rishabh, would you like if I will stop visiting you and taking care of you? She's no less than a family." Ruchi Khurana, his mother's voice was heard making her smile even more.

Ruchi Khurana and Yahvi had bonded amazingly in these 8 months of Rishabh's treatment. It would be two of them sitting on the hospital chairs for hours and hours while Rishabh would having his chemotherapy.

She would be the one handling his needs in hospital and its formalities since Rishabh was a single child and had only his mother as his father had to run a family by going to work.

She had become a part of this small family in this whole time period and Ruchi Khurana was more than glad knowing her son had such an amazing girl in his life.

"Then why isn't she here already? It's 7 and she usually comes by 6 or at maximum 6:30. What if something happened to her? I should go and check." His rambling was again heard from inside making a giddy feeling appear in her stomach.

He cares for her a lot. There's no doubt in that.

"Rish!" She shouted while getting inside and Ruchi looked up with a big grin that this pakcet of happiness had finally arrived.

"My child, you sit with for sometime. I need to do something okay?" Ruchi said, trying to get out of the room as soon as possible so that the two get some privacy.

Yahvi nodded her head while giving her a hug and soon Ruchi left the room, leaving the two all alone.

"How are you feeling today Rish?" She asked taking a seat on the stool beside his bed like she has the habit of.

"Alright." He muttered, still with a distant look in his eyes making her frown.

"W-Where are those wires?" She hesitantly questioned who finally looked at her, his breath hitching noticing how fresh and vibrant she looked.

Damn, he wanted to hold her so bad in his arms and crush her completely seeing how little she is as compared to him. He wanted to lift her in his arms to roam in the city late in the night like they used to for late night ice cream sessions.

And lastly what he wanted to do was make sweet love to her like she deserved. She deserve all love of the world and he was the one who wanted to shower her with.

He wanted only his name attached with hers. No one else's like he had been listening his mother and Yahvi talk about the proposals she was receiving from different families for marriage.

He always had a hard time controlling his anger whenever the topic of Yahvi's marriage is picked upon.

"The doctors and nurses came this afternoon to remove these. They must've stopped working as it has been so long with them attached on me. Maybe they decided to replace them." He shrugged at the very end making Yahvi still for a moment realizing how casually he was trying to take in the changes happening these days.

"And what if they are removed for permanently Rish?" She asked passing him a smile which she didn't return.

"What have you brought today Yahvi?" He questioned, changing the topic like he has formed the habit of.

"Today you are about to get the bestest thing you could ever have. Yahvi Kapoor's dose of love and care." She laughed while he gave a look of disbelief.

"Love and care? You think I deserve that Yahvi? Why don't you shower it on someone you think would be a part of your life in future?" He asked with a small and sarcastic laugh.

"I am giving it to the person who I want to be in my life." She smiled, now taking a seat beside him on the bed who was laying down.

"Who is it?" His hoarse voice came, as he clenched his fist.

"You. Only you." Came her soft whisper and he glanced at her who was this time looking out of the window.

The only reason she couldn't meet his eyes was because she felt scared of response this very time.

"Rish- I -I lov-"

The door of the hospital room swinged open and a team of two doctors and two nurses stepped in and following them was Rishabh's mother who had tears in her eyes making Yahvi panic but she just gave her a comforting nod.

"Congratulations Mr. Rishabh." The head doctor said with a nod towards him.

Rishabh only gave him a look full of confusion.

"You have beated cancer, my boy! You did it and now you're free of it." The doctor announced with a big smile and Ruchi Khurana let out a sob of happiness, engulfing her son in a hug.

"I- I b-beated ca-ncer? I- I am o-okay now?" He stuttered like a small child as if he couldn't believe a single thing that was happening.

Yahvj finally saw something flash in his eyes. It was hope. Hope that he would survive.

"Yes! Cheer up my boy! You have been nothing but brave all these months and its time for you to celebrate." The doctor said and the others clapped their hands loudly as a sign for his bravery and Yahvi too didn't waste any moment to join them, her eyes glistening with tears of happiness.

Ruchi Khurana kept hugging him, thankful of the saviour up above in the sky and the doctors soon left the room, reminding him to have a talk with them when they're done.

In between their eyes met and she lowered her head down so he couldn't see the tears in her eyes. She didn't want him to be disappointed.

Soon Ruchi Khurana had to leave the room as the doctors had called for some kind of further formalities.

Yahvi felt someone lifting her chin and soon her teary brown eyes met his who had just leaked a single drop of tear and the very next moment a sob broke out her mouth and she launched herself on him, hugging the daylights out.

He too wrapped his arms around her, crushing her small form like he wanted to do since so long because of his habit in college time and she let out a giggle just as she used to.

She kept of crying and crying and he kept on murmuring soothing words to him. She kept on thanking God while he kept on thanking three people. His father, mother and his jaan, Yahvi.

She believed in him, his mother believed in him. And just as they wanted, he was free of everything like he should've been always. Now they only prayed that they needed their old Rishabh back. One that would light up their lives with just one of his mischievous grins and some regular teasing.

Flashback ends.

******

He said it! He finally said it that he loves her!🥺🤧❤

○How was the chapter readers?

○So, our dear Rishabh is out of danger and completely free of cancer. His reasons also seem genuine of what he told Yahvi about his insecurities. What do you people think?