Part 9 Prince

Arvind's lips uttered the name Amrita unknowingly... but inaudibly. He was shocked to the core by the photo. His hands shivered, and his eyes teared up. How did Amrita's photo come into Arnav's purse? What was the connection between them? Who was Amrita to Arnav? Why did he keep this photo? He felt dizzy. Holding his head, he struggled to stand. The purse slipped from Arnav's hand.

"Uncle... what happened to you? Uncle..." Khushi shouted.

Arnav, who went to meet Arvind, didn't find him in his room. He silently left the place before Ratna saw him. he heard Khushi shouting. He rushed downstairs. He saw Khushi holding Arvind. He hurried to them and helped Khushi.

"What happened, sir?"

Arvind looked at him with an unnamed expression. Arnav looked at Khushi, unable to understand his turmoil.

"Are you all right, sir?" Arnav asked.

Arvind started at him. Arnav frowned. He looked at him like, what happened to him? She nodded her head from left to right.

"Come, sir. I will take you to your room" Arnav supportively took him to his room.

Arvind was looking at Arnav's face in his room. He made him sit on the bed. Ratna saw them and ran to Arnav.

"Have you again come? I know you can't be without seeing me. After all, you are my son."

"Yes, I'm your son..." Arnav smiled.

Arvind gulped down hard.

"Khushi, bring water"

Khushi poured water into a glass and handed it to Arvind. He drank it, looking at Arnav. Arnav felt it weird.

Arvind gestured for him to sit next to him. That made Arnav and Khushi stun.

"It's ok, sir. I will stand..."

"I... I didn't ask you anything about you... could you tell me about you?"

Khushi became nervous. What if Arnav told him about where he was? She slowly came behind Arvind and signalled him not to say to him about it. Arnav looked at her. Khushi pleaded through her eyes not to tell him anything. Arnav blinked his eyes, and Khushi sighed in relief. Arnav smiled inwardly.

"I completed my masters in Gorakhpur..."

"Your parents?"

Arnav was stuck.

"My mother raised me..."

"Father?"

"I don't know where he is. He left us long ago."

"Don't you know about him?"

Arnav nodded no.

"Didn't your mother tell you anything about him?"

Arnav again nodded no.

"Their names?"

"My mother's name is Amrita... my mother didn't tell me my father's name."

He extended his purse to Arnav.

"Who was the woman in the photo?"

"My mother"

Arvind felt like choking. It was clear that Amrita was his mother.

"Don't mistake me... your father..."

Cutting him,

"I'm sorry, sir. I'm not interested in talking about him. The man who ran, leaving me and my mother, doesn't deserve to be called as a father. I don't want to give the honour to the man because I hate him from the bottom of my heart. There is no space for him in my heart to the heartless man... excuse me, sir..." Arnav left the place angrily.

Khushi stood shockingly because no one had the guts to talk to Arvind like that. She looked at him, who was staring at the pathway. She slowly skimmed from there.

Arvind bowed down. A few drops of tears slipped from his eyes. He was the unluckiest person in the world. He loved a girl. He got married to her. She got pregnant with his child. His father hit her and threw her into a river. He thought she was dead. His father forcefully got married to Ratna by threatening him. It took him a few years to accept Ratna as his wife, who was not blessed with a child. Their family had only one heir so far. His first wife got the chance already. That was why Ratna could not blessed with a child, he supposed.

His village would not allow any stranger, especially when they were BAD. Still, a young man entered their village...mistakenly. His mentally disordered wife called him her son. He thought it was a coincidence, but it was not. Anything that would happen in their village would not be a coincidence. Everything had its reason. So was Arnav's arrival.

Arnav was HIS son. He and Amrita's son. That was why he reached the right place. Still, he was unlucky and could not call his son in the open. Arnav hated his father. He didn't even know his father's name.

Arvind knew why Amrita had not told Arnav about him. She didn't want to create problems in his and Arnav's lives. She should have feared his father, who threw her into the river. She was not wrong, though. His father would have killed Arnav if he had known about him.

He didn't know whether to tell Arnav the truth, who was extremely angry with his father. It didn't seem a good idea to tell him the truth immediately. He was scared to see Arnav's wrath. He would hate him if he got to know he was his father. He might leave this village in anger. It would not happen. Arnav was his son... the only heir of his clan... Prince of his palace...! He should be here. Arvind concluded what to do.

In the meanwhile,

Khushi came searching for Arnav. She saw him standing near the same window. She came to him.

"Why are you so angry with your father, Arnavji?"

"I hate that man. Because of him, my mother struggled in life. I went to reform school. Our life became hard... do you know how I faced my life?"

"Did he really run, leaving your mother?"

Arnav removed the letter his mother wrote him and gave it to her. Khushi looked at him, as the letter was in Hindi.

"I don't know how to read Hindi," She said.

Arnav told her the content of the letter.

"That means you belong to a Royal family?"

"As per my mother's letter, yes, but I know nothing about my father's family..."

"Can't you ask your mother's cousin who searched for your father?"

"He is no more..."

Khushi sighed.

"According to your mother's letter, your father didn't know you were alive. He would have thought your mother was dead. Then why are you angry with him?"

"He loved my mother. Why should he fall in love if he had no guts to handle his arrogant father? Why the hell did he love her if he was not capable of protecting the girl he loved? He hid the truth that he belonged to a Royal family. Why did he do that? She might not have accepted his proposal if he had told my mother the truth. She would have married a simple man and lived her life happily."

"But, you would not have been born if your mother married someone other than your father.'

Arnav frowned.

"It's a fate; that's why you took birth. It happened because it had to... Your mother and father are just tools in the process of bringing you to this world. Your birth would have a reason."

Arnav chuckled.

"What reason does a poor man like me have?"

"You are not a poor man but a Royal heir...! Your father may find you in some days..."

Arnav rolled his eyes.

"Mark my words... something will happen in your life. That's why you ended up in this village."

"You talk nicely..."

"Some questions have no answer, Arnav sir... Look at me. Why should I take birth? Why should I end up serving the arrogant girls in this village?"

"Oh, yeah... I have forgotten our mission. Let's go..."

"Arnav sir... please, don't."

Arnav looked at her sharply. Clutching her hand, he dragged her to Arvind's room.

Arvind saw them and stood up.

"I want to talk to you about something important, sir", Arnav said.

Arvind looked at Khushi and then Arnav.

"Tell me, Arnav, what do you want to tell me?"

"Who is Khushi in this palace?"

"Means?"

"Is she a servant?"

"Not at all... she is not a servant but like my daughter."

"Will you let your daughter serve your relatives?

Arvind looked at Khushi, who was bowing down and squeezing her hands. Arnav's next stance shocked Arvind.

"Khushi decided to leave this palace forever..."

Arvind looked at Khushi, who closed her eyes tightly and looked down.

To be continued...