Disclaimer : All the characters written below are imaginary and a work of pure fiction. There is no resemblance to any incident or situation and is written as work of fiction.

Karan turned back to look at the door and exhaled a breath immediately seeing her. Mumma. What? Mumma? He felt his legs and hand tremble as he struggled to breath. He looked at his choco pie who was climbing down the bed and then eventually ran and hugged teja. Karan followed her path not letting his eyes move away from her. His eyes had started to brim with tears and eventually he felt his cheeks turning wet.

Teja saw karan shaking. His hands , lips and everything was shaking. She caressed her hair without shifting her eyes from karan. Was he having a break down? She could clearly see him struggle for breath. She didn't want this. She had gone blank. What was their daughter doing here? With him? How does he know her? What is happening?

Karan didn't even have the strength to stand. Choco pie. His choco pie was his daughter. Their daughter. His little angel. He tried to bite his cheeks to control his shiver.

Teja felt a pull in her heart seeing him like that. Broken. Devastated. As much as she hated him , she loved him too. As much as she wanted him to stay away from her life , she wanted him close to her too. And seeing him like that broke a part of her. Only if it was possible. He had broken every part of her years back.

As if in a trance she knelt down in front of her. "you wanted to meet papa right?" she said blankly.

She nodded with curious eyes.

Teja looked at Karan and pointed at him "he is your papa...."

She had said it. In the moment. Without thinking about the consequences. Without thinking how their daughter will process the sudden information.

She immediately walked towards him and looked at him curiously. Why was he crying and shaking? Little baby was very confused.

"papa...." she said softly.

"baby....my baby....my choco pie...." he gulped his saliva and picked her up immediately and kissed her face thoroughly. "my bacchhaa....my...." he fumbled to search for words and hugged her tightly. "my...." he gulped again. "papa...." he didn't know he could feel this emotion. He felt that when his choco pie called him papa. A feeling so alien. His daughter calling him papa. "my...." he choked and pulled her closer to him.

"say that again...." he pulled back from the hug and cupped her cheeks and said urgently. The urgency in his voice scared teja as he looked at both of them.

To say that choco pie was confused would be an understatement. Say what again?

As if reading her thoughts karan said "call me papa....please...."

"papa...." she said cutely.

And this time it was not silent tears. He was sobbing. He sobbed and hugged her tightly again.

"papa why are you crying?" she frowned tried to wipe his tears away with her little palm. He smiled through his tears and wiped his face properly.

"what's your name?" he asked slowly. What an irony. He was asking his daughter's name.

"choco pie...." she smiled widely. He couldn't help but chuckle at her innocence.

"arushi...." he heard teja say. He looked up at Teja and looked back at his baby.

"karan....what if we have a boy in future?" teja poked him and he frowned. He had his full concentration on the movie and she was laying down on the couch with her head on his lap as he massaged her head subconsciously.

"return...." he said casually.

"arrey but return to whom?" she poked him more , boderline annoyed.

"arrey we will have a girl teja...." he said kissing her palm still not looking away from the screen.

"what if...." before she could complete he cut her off.

"girl teja....i know....and even if we have a boy it's okay....he will be our kid....we will love them equally...." he said softly.

"okay so what will we name our kids?if it is a girl?" she asked softly.

"arushi?" he asked her lovingly. Now he was looking at her. The movie was forgotten.

"yessss....i love the name...." teja said clapping her hands and he smiled widely seeing her like that.

His reverie was broken with her voice.

"papa....why didn't you come to meet me?" she asked sadly. He looked at Teja blankly.

"sorry you had work....i forgot....bua told me...." she said cutely.

"bua?" he frowned looking at her.

Teja got alarmed. This was not supposed to happen. This was not how things were supposed to be. She knew she had to stop her.

"aru....it's late....let's go home?" she said immediately.

"one second...." he said firmly looking at teja and she went quiet immediately. "bua?" he asked again looking at aru.

"haan bua...." she nodded casually.

"whom did you stay with?" he asked fearing to listen to the worst that he could imagine. He knew he was not prepared for this.

"bua uncle dadi dadaji bhaiya...." she counted her fingers and said cutely.

No. No. This cannot be happening. There is something more to it.

He quickly took his phone out and showed the picture of his family to her. It was taken on the day of their wedding and it had all his sisters mom dad brother in law nephews.

"yesssss....dadiiiiiii...." she pointed at his mom on the screen. "i miss her...." she pouted. "mumma can we camera call dadi?" she meant face time.

Karan shook his head with a smile. They knew. And with that fresh tears started to pour out from his eyes and he wiped them quickly.

"karan that woman is outside...." omi came inside the vanity and stopped seeing teja. He smiled at her. Teja smiled back at him. Then looked at karan and aru with a confused look.

"call her in...." karan said in a low voice.

Omi nodded and quickly called the woman inside.

She came inside and looked at teja shocked.

"ma'am i was looking for you....aru baby had fallen down in school so i brought her here...."

"right....by keeping a baby standing in the scorching sun in the middle of the day...." karan got up with aru still in his arms.

"what?" teja looked at him confused.

"you....are fired...." he said with anger dripping in his voice.

"karan wait....you cannot...." before teja could complete her sentence karan cut her.

"I can and I will....enough is enough....whoever she is she is irresponsible and incompetent at her job....and the job concerns my daughter...." he said looking into teja's eyes.

Omi who was standing there confused till now heard the last part and froze in his place.

"this lady was with choco pie in the park yesterday....she was on phone the entire time....choco pie came to me and we had ice cream and this lady didn't even notice us....what if it was not me?what if it was someone with a bad intention?and today she kept her standing in the sun and choco pie was sweating....she was already injured....in pain....hungry and was left alone....mind you alone outside my vanity....this is how her job is done?" he said looking at teja and then looked at the woman. "you can leave now....my staff will deal with your payments and formalities...."

"sir i am sorry...." she said immediately.

"it's okay...." he said calmly. "but even i am sorry....i cannot trust you with my choco pie...." he said and looked at aru and kissed her nose.

Teja felt her breath would stop anytime. She had no idea about all this. She shuddered to even think what could have happened to her aru had karan not been there. She quickly wiped her tears and looked at them.

"baby....we need to go home...." she said her voice still choked at the fear of losing her.

"yaaayyyy....now papa is back....we will stay together....like my friends...." she clapped her hands happily.

Karan gave aru to omi. "there is ice cream in the fridge....give it to her....choco pie....this is omi chachu okay?he will give you the ice cream till them mumma papa will talk okay?"

Omi understood the situation and took her to the other end of the vanity leaving these two alone.

"karan....do not even think about what you are thinking...." teja said angrily.

"what am i thinking?no tell me....what am i thinking....you know everything right?about me?so tell me...." he looked straight into her eyes and crossed his hands across his chest.

The nerve of this guy. She thought. How does he have it in him to look into my eyes after everything.

She looked away and chuckled sarcastically.

"listen....tejasswi....this is not about us anymore....this is about my daughter....our daughter....she wants to stay with us and in no way i am staying away from her....i am being polite....that house is yours too....especially choco pie's....she has the right to stay there....with me....with us....let's not mess up her childhood because of whatever misunderstanding...." before he could complete she gritted her teeth and said

"misunderstanding?how dare you?you still have the guts and nerve to call everything a misunderstanding....oh wait....this is what people does when they do not have an explanation...." she chuckled sarcastically.

"this is what people does when they do have an explanation...." he said looking into her eyes.

"right...." she laughed. "then explain...."

"i would have....4 years back....if you would have let me....but today....i won't....i don't need to...." he said looking straight into her eyes.

"because you don't have one...." she said looking into his eyes. "because you broke me....broke us....you shattered everything...." she fought hard to stop her tears which eventually fell down her cheeks.

"this loop will never end...." he looked away and wiped his own tears. "come home tejasswi....for choco pie....she deserves us both....we are already living a messed up life.... how worse can it get?atleast for our baby we will deal with staying home together...."

Teja knew that he made sense. When she had seen them right after entering the vanity , she had felt her heart full. She didn't remember the last time she had felt like this. Not in these 4 years for sure.
And she wanted this for her aru. She wanted her to get her father's love. And today if this was happening then it must be a sign.

"okay....i will have to pack...." she said looking at him.

"i know....i will drive you two there....send your car away....i am waiting outside...." he took his wallet and keys and moved out.

He reached his car and leaned on the door before opening it. He didn't know what to do. How to process so much. So much. His daughter. His family knowing it. Them shifting together. He took out his phone from his pocket and dialled him.

As soon as he picked up the phone karan didn't even wait for him to say anything.

"pra....i have a daughter....we have a daughter...." he said with his voice choked and sobs coming back.