The next day after both Arnav and Neil went for their meeting, Avni, Mishti and Aarav came back. After having their breakfast Kushi hurried Avni to the hospital as it was the day for her monthly check-up. Mishti tagged along as she wants to be with her Angel.

The check-up took most of the afternoon as it was her sixth month of pregnancy and the doctor confirmed that the baby was good and healthy. The baby's heartbeat was strong, Avni became emotional as she always used to, though she saw her baby in every check-up, it still felt like she was seeing it for the first time, it was a picture to behold. That tiny being inside her was the only connection with her past whatever it was, and as always, her happiness was tainted by the emptiness she felt in her heart, the missing part of her heart and life, she hoped that she will find it soon. Mishti was so much delighted to see the baby, she was impatient to play with her angel's daughter or son. She even asked whether she could name the baby for which both Kushi and Avni laughed their hearts out and admired Mishti at the same time for her love towards the baby.

********

Arnav and Neil got back around the middle of the afternoon when they entered Aarav was the first to greet them.

"Hey champ, how are you?" Arnav asked Aarav, "How are your cousins?" He inquired.

"All are fine dad, how about you? I missed you," Aarav replied.

Arnav chuckled and replied, "I missed you too buddy and let me introduce you to my friend, he's Neil Khanna my best friend and he's going to stay here for few days and I hope you don't mind keeping him company." Arnav introduced Neil to Aarav.

"Hello champ, I've heard great things about you, will you be my friend." Neil asked as he extended his hand to Aarav which he shook firmly unlike other kids which surprised Neil, then he could not expect any less from Arnav's upbringing.

"Di, where is Little one and shortcake I want to introduce them to Neil, though Little one already knows him I want to introduce them in a proper way." Arnav asked when he saw Anjali entering the living room.

"She knows me already?" Neil asked Arnav incredulously.

"Yeah, she saw you yesterday when she came to your room while searching for me." Arnav replied with a shrug.

"Oh," was all Neil could reply as his mind was reeling in some other direction. Was she the one he thought Avni and hugged, no that could not be it. It must not have been her, with the shake of his head he pushed that thought aside.

"And where are they Di?" Arnav asked again.

Aarav beat Anjali to it, "Oh, they were kidnapped." he said nonchalantly.

"What!?" Both Arnav and Neil asked at the same time.

"Yeah, mom kidnapped both doll and shortcake." He replied.

"Chote, he's just kidding, you know today is her monthly check-up so, Kushi took her to the hospital." Anjali clarified.

"Thank god Di, he did give me a heart attack." Arnav said and then all the four burst out laughing.

"Wait Di, I'll call and ask how much long it'll take." Arnav said after controlling his laughter.

Arnav dialled Avni's number while Neil and Aarav are sincerely discussing about football and other sports. Avni took the call within third ring "Bhai!" her cheerful voice echoed through the phone.

"Have you finished with the check-up Little one, how much time will it take to complete it," he asked all in one go.

"Yeah Bhai, the check-up was completed and I'll tell you all about it when I reach there and we'll be home within half an hour," she assured him.

"Alright little one come ho...." Before Arnav could complete, he heard Neil saying.

"Arnav you really did a nice job in nurturing him, he's very smart. Though I think it's more from Kushi than from you." Neil teased him with a smile.

Before Arnav was able to come back with a witty remark for Neil, he heard his little one's voice "Bh....bhai.... Ne...."

"Little one! what happened?" He asked panic evident in his voice and this caught the other's attention.

"Little one.... little one...." Arnav called out in the phone. He could not understand what is happening with her, there was a lot of commotion and more than two people are ordering around.

"Arnavji, come to hospital fast, she fainted." was all he heard from Kushi before the line went dead.

"Chote! what happened are they alright?" Anjali asked worried.

"Di, little one fainted, I'll go and get them back." Arnav said and was about to go when Anjali interrupted him.

"My goodness! Come let's go!" panic was written all over Anjali's face. "No Di! You stay here, I'll go and check what happened, please Di, I will take you there once I know what the situation is, please." Arnav tried to convince Anjali. "Alright, but call me once you know what happened and also take Tillu with you chote, I don't want you to drive in this state of mind." Though Anjali was reluctant to stay behind, she does not want to leave Aarav alone in the house. "Lord! Nothing should happen to her!" Anjali prayed to all the god out there for Avni's and the child's sake.

"Don't worry Di, I'll go with him." Neil assured and both of them rushed to the car.

Neil insisted on driving as he do agree with Anjali about not wanting to let Arnav drive because he's so worried about the situation. Arnav did not argue as he just wanted to reach the hospital as soon as possible.

*********

When Avni and Kushi were coming from their last check-up, she received a phone call from Arnav, and she picked it up immediately. "Bhai!" she could not hide her excitement in her voice.

"Have you finished with the check-up Little one, how much time will it take to complete it," he had asked.

Avni, know he wants to know everything about the check-up so she assured him " Yeah Bhai, the check-up was completed and I'll tell you all about it when I reach there and we'll be home within half an hour." Avni too, want to show the picture to Arnav. "Alright little one come ho...." But before he could finish, she heard another voice in the background, not simply any other voice but a hauntingly familiar one, the voice that kept her awake most of the nights. The voice that pierced her heart. His voice, as it said "Arnav you really did a nice job in nurturing him, he's very smart though I think it's more from Kushi than from you." She could hear the smile in his voice.

Her head hurt, everything thing was rushing to her mind, flashing before her eyes, every moment of her past, the way he approached her slowly on the cliff and the startlingly handsome face that appeared in her sight before they both fell down from it, and the same face that was anxiously looking at her face as she opened her eyes, the stern yet gentle expression on his face when he taught her self-defence, the caring expression in his eyes when he tended to her wound, that annoyed look in his eyes as he demanded for thank you from her every single time he saw her, the braveness in his face as he saved her life from that wild horse and the enraged face when he stood in front of her own brother who was holding a gun straight at her, that stubborn face when he defended her in front of his own and Dayawanti's whole family, his face which looked drunk yet utterly striking when he dried her hair for her, his brooding yet calm face in their marriage when he came to know that he married her, his arrogant face when he won the auction, his sympathetic and sad face when she revealed her truth, his face brimming with love when he found her in that wretched place of Ragini Pandit, it was always his face that was in front of her every time she was struggling, and his voice the first one in her ears, his voice calling out to her when she was standing with fire in her eyes to kill Dayawanti Mehta, it was the only voice that broke into her frenzy of hate in that moment, "Avni! Avni! You're not a murderer Avni, you're not a murderer" he said taking the weapon from her hand and hugged her to him calming her down, "Happy Birthday Avni" his slowly whispered words in her ear came back to her, "We both are not going to come home, I don't want her to be in a place where she's not respected, what husband would I be, if I can't protect my wife, that too the wife who gave me this new life?", he had protected her fighting his own family in the process, "Avni I chose you, I liked you because I love you, I love you Mrs.Avni Neil Khanna" he had confessed choosing her over everything, even his past love," his eyes filled with love just for her, "You're going to break someone's head with that vase, wow my tigress!" He said his amused voice filled with pride, "I cannot live without you baby, come back to me, I swear I'll not leave you again" he had cried hugging her when he saved her when Ragini pandit has buried her inside the wall in his office, "I want to erase every wound and every bad memory that was given to you from my heart, but the most big one I gave is here, here in your heart, Avni every wound of yours is mine too" the words he said with utmost love for her, his voice was both sincere and filled with pain, "I am ready to be your slave for my entire life, I'll be smiling and laughing with happiness as I live." He made her heart melt with those gentle and love filled words, "I wish I could not just share but take your pain and make them mine Avni so that you could not suffer anymore" he has been her strength when she lost her Neelamaa. "I love you Avni, till the end of my life, till my last breath I'll always love, there's nothing more I aspire than you" he had said his eyes, face and voice all expressing the unconditional love he had for her.

She only manged to whisper "Bh.... Bhai.... Ne...." She dropped her phone and gripped her head with her hands as the pain intensified, she could hear Arnav's distinct voice calling her "Little one, what happened?"

But there was a most dominant voice was calling her inside her head. She heard him call out for her "Avni.... Avni....", "Good morning wifey" his sweet voice reached her. His face full of mischief and a smirk playing along his lips as he teased her "I think you are a maths teacher".

She can't hold it anymore. Kushi came and grabbed her before she blacked out completely and fell on the floor, the other nurses came and took Avni immediately. Kushi picked the phone and informed Arnav "Arnavji, come to hospital fast she fainted" then she disconnected the call immediately and rushed to fetch Dhruv.

********

Arnav was losing his mind right now, no one is picking up his, call not Kushi and not even Dhruv.

Neil can clearly see Arnav's patience getting the better of him, he can see whoever she is, is most important to Arnav and hence he tried to calm him down. "Arnav relax we'll reach there within 15 minutes calm down." He spoke.

"How can I be calm Neil, one moment she was talking to me happily and the next moment Kushi is saying that she fainted," Arnav shot back.

"I can understand your worry Arnav but they are in the hospital and she'll be receiving treatment as we speak" Neil reasoned out.

"She's alone Neil, she doesn't have anyone besides us, I can't let anything happen to her, she may not be my own sister but I always treated her as one, she has a pure soul Neil and she has suffered enough as it is." Arnav said.

Neil could not reply to this as he does not know how. However, he himself is not feeling well, something is bothering him as well, maybe Arnav's worry was affecting him, but it was making Neil restless as if someone close to his heart is calling out to him. He sighed and pushed it aside as he just wanted to support Arnav as of now.

As soon as they reached the hospital Arnav has jumped out of the car and rushed inside. Neil went and parked the car and then went inside. He inquired about where Arnav went and then followed the nurse's direction to reach the room.

While going to the room Kushi came rushing out of the room she looked paler than her usual pale colour also Neil noticed that she is as distressed as Arnav.

"Arnav?" He asked Kushi

"He's inside, please check on him and be with him, I'll be back within a minute, please don't leave him alone," she almost begged and rushed past him to the other side before he could ask any more questions.

He took a deep breath and went near the door. He could hear voices, one was Arnav's and he was clearly arguing about something, but it could not be heard clearly through the door, then there was another voice a steady one, which he assumed to be the doctor's, by the way it sounded. But then there was another one voice it was neither loud nor quiet, it was a female voice and he decided it must be Arnav's little one. That voice was all muffled and he could not make out anything so he decided to go inside, but weirdly enough when he went to push the door open he could feel his heart suddenly racing, it was as if it wanted to jump out and reach for something, he could not fathom any reason as of to why he's feeling this way, the same feeling he experienced in the car came back to him, like someone was calling out to him and making his heart want to reach out as soon as possible, he felt restless, and at the same time the desire to do anything to make his heart feel at ease overwhelmed him, he took a deep breath in order to calm himself down and after a moment of hesitation, he opened the door and froze in his spot.

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I know I'm not being fair but please bear me a little and I'll definitely won't disappoint you.

Do give me your comments and opinions.

Thank you all.