Author's narrative
Amayra became the center of attention in the dinning room, as soon as Vihaan asked this question. Abhimanyu's eyes were narrowed in suspicion and Adhiraj's gaze sharpened. Zaira was worried about Amayra and so was everyone else.
"Amayra?"
"Huh?" Amayra muttered, perplexed.
"Where did you get that bruise from?" Vihaan repeated.
Amayra stuttered before forming a proper sentence, "I fell."
Vihaan's gaze turned disappointed as he caught her lying straight on his face, "Show me."
Amayra hesitantly pulled her sleeve revealing the big bruise there. "You think I'll believe that lie?" Vihaan asked her.
Amayra bowed her head, embarrassed, "I'm sorry Bhai."
"What happened Amayra?" Her mother asked, softly.
Amayra reluctantly explained the events that led her to get a bruise, and the atmosphere turned tense.
"Amayra, you should tell us whenever someone is bothering you," Arhaan says gently. However, she could see his hurt.
Tears filled her eyes as she heard him. Arhaan never really stays home because he has started his own business and is busy with it. She knows literally nothing about him and the amount of time they spend together is almost none. She has great respect for him and disappointing him and Abhimanyu was like disappointing her parents.
"I'm sorry," she spoke quietly.
Armaan rubbed her hand under the table, "It's Alright."
"I'm not mad Amayra, but you need to tell us whenever something is not right," Arhaan spoke softly.
"Myra, we're always there for you. Remember that," Adhiraj spoke smilingly.
Only the devil knew that he was planning a murder right now.
Vivaan stayed quiet, although he knew he'll surely teach the teacher a lesson and a lot of threats are going to spewed tomorrow for everyone. Kabir was fuming, and so was Aarav and Sameer.
"Hey cutie, would you like to go out with me after dinner?" Karan asked.
It seemed like they never really spent time. It won't be surprising if she forgot about him. She's upset today, so maybe, taking her out won't be a bad idea.
"Okay," Amayra smiled a little.
Vihaan treated her bruise and his fists clenched at the thought of someone hurting her.
Everything went back to normal, but for Amayra, it wasn't. She tried looking at Abhimanyu but he didn't even glance at her once. She was feeling upset about his behavior because, let's be honest, he was never mad at her.
"Bhai," she whispered quietly.
"Are you mad at me?" She asked him, once everyone was settled in the living room.
Abhimanyu looked at her emotionlessly and Amayra felt her heart squeezing. She isn't used to this behavior.
"I'm not important enough for you, Amayra. Isn't it?" He asked her calmly.
"What? No!" She squeaked. Tears were forming in her eyes.
"Let's talk tomorrow, Alright?" He averted his eyes indifferently.
Abhimanyu was clearly hurt.
No matter how much he tries, Amayra never shared her problems with him. With how much he proved himself time to time, the least he deserves is her to trust him with her problems.
Looks like he failed.
***
"You seem a bit off," Karan comments quietly.
"No, it's nothing," Amayra forced a smile.
"Don't lie Amayra," Karan sighed as he leaned back on the bench.
They were sitting inside a park with a fountain right in front of them. The moonlight illuminates the whole area, casting a warm glow.
"Abhimanyu Bhai is upset with me," she whispered.
Karan looked at Amayra, who was looking like a sad kitten and said, "He could never be mad at you, Amayra."
"Just go and talk to him. I'm sure he'll be working the whole night," he advises.
Amayra slowly nodded her head and leaned onto Karan's shoulder, "Thankyou so much."
Karan smiles at her and pecks her head, "Anytime little one."
Amayra smiles to herself and closed her eyes, "Can you tell me about our childhood?"
Karan hummed, "When you were born, the whole family was really ecstatic. Uncle Adhiraj was a workaholic, but ever since you came, he stayed home more. Everyone used to pamper you very much and anything you wanted, you got. Abhimanyu Bhai was an introvert but he came out of his shell after you were born. You know, once, you had a fever and Uncle Adhiraj almost passed out after checking your temperature," he chuckled. He continued telling her stories about their lives and Amayra listened carefully.
A sad smile came across her lips as she realized that her life could have been so much better if was to stay with her family from the beginning.
After half an hour, they finally returned home. Karan bid her goodnight and dropped her till her room was not went away.
Amayra looked at the closed door opposite to her room and decided to knock. A faint voice permitted her entrance and she went inside.
Abhimanyu looks up from his laptop and saw Amayra standing in front of his bed.
"Do you need something?" He asked her, looking back at his laptop.
His formal tone hurt her.
"Why are you mad at me?" She asked him, licking her lips nervously.
Abhimanyu raised his eyebrows and said, "We'll talk tomorrow."
His dismissal hurt her more.
"Please," her teary eyes melted him completely and his eyes softened.
"No, please Bhai. I-I was scared, and I didn't want to bother you with my problems because you were working so hard and I was just being a baby about everything. My teachers handled it so I thought I shouldn't disturb you because you're already very stressed and Dad is too. And I'll feel bad if something bad happens to anyone because of me," she rambled, which was very amusing and adorable to Abhimanyu.
This was the most he had heard her say.
"Come here," Abhimanyu patted his bed.
Amayra followed timidly, sitting beside him. Abhimanyu pulled her in front of him and cupped her cheeks tenderly.
"First of all, you will never disturb me or Dad anytime. Secondly, you were not being a baby and it's okay to tell us anything you want. It doesn't need to be a problem, you can share your day with us like you do with Mom. You don't need to be scared because we're always behind you, and with you. Never feel bad for someone who deserves it, understand?" He spoke gently.
Amayra nodded with a smile and hugged him, "I'm sorry for being a coward."
Abhimanyu wrapped his arms around her protectively and said, "You're not a coward, princess. You're a fighter, and this Lucifer here is ready to burn the world for you."
"Lucifer?" She mumbled.
"People call me Lucifer, baby. And for you, I'll live up to my name," he said with a smirk.
Amayra giggles and hugged him, and Abhimanyu layed down with her on his bed, keeping the laptop away. Amayra fell in a slumber soon enough, but Abhimanyu was awake.
What Amayra didn't knew that her eldest brother is not a normal businessman. When he was away in Italy for years, he had learned to both defend himself and attack brutally. Soon after he left India, his five friends followed suit and together, they built two of the world's most successful companies and a notorious group.
These six friends together created a havoc worldwide and in the underground. They were known to work secretively, effectively, quickly and stealthily.
They created a database that contained every data available in the underworld and were known to have the entire underworld on their fingertips.
They weren't drug dealers or kidnappers.
Amayra's kidnapping was the fuel to the burning fire inside Abhimanyu's heart. He swore that he'll never let anyone suffer again. He and his friends rescued many children and women from various kidnappers and sex rackets. They swore to end human trafficking and they still work on it till date.
When Amayra was kidnapped, there was a letter in her room, stating that she was going to be sold in a sex racket. That lead Abhimanyu to tear apart these groups but he could never find her. Nonetheless, various people were rescued, despite his failure.
He was then, regarded as the Lucifer in the underworld. A fallen angel, who made inhumane people rot in his own hell.
And the Lucifer finally has his Princess.
The next day, Armaan and Ahaan were sitting on the couch together with Amayra and watching a movie. It was Sunday, and tomorrow, Amayra has to go back to the school and face her self-proclaimed cousin.
"Do you guys know Mr. Rajput?"
Amayra asks, looking at the twins, who nodded their heads.
"Why are you asking though? Do you like him or something?" Ahaan wiggled his eyebrows.
"Heck no! You like him?!" Armaan exclaimed in disbelief.
Amayra grimaced at the thought of actually having a crush on her teacher, more specifically, her potential cousin.
"No stupid! I'm asking because he helped me yesterday," she made an unbelievable excuse, but the twins bought it.
Armaan huffed, "Yeah, he's our History professor. Pretty stern to be honest. " Amayra looked deep in her thoughts as she subconsciously rubbed her wrist. Knowing she wasn't going to get any answers from them, she decided to approach her new buddy, Karan.
"Hey Karan Bhai!" She spoke.
Karan, who was just back from the office was startled, "Yeah?"
Amayra looked down shyly, "Can we talk?" Karan nodded and welcomed her inside the room, "Come in." Amayra was quick to question him, knowing she didn't need to engage him in small talks. He is always more than happy to help.
"Do you know professor Rajput?" She asked him curiously.
"Are you talking about Veer Bhai? Yeah, he's family," Karan's eyes lit up in recognition.
"Family," Amayra sported a confused expression.
Karan nods, "Yeah, he's your maternal cousin."
Amayra tilts her head, "But he's not a Mehra?"
Karan chuckled lightly, "He's your mother's sister's son, silly. Aunt Zaira has two brothers and a sister. Veer Bhai and Vikram's mother is your maternal aunt."
Amayra's eyes widened in realization, which Karan found adorable.
"I got it! So, why'd my maternal uncles and aunt not visit me?" She frowned.
Karan smiled, "You were hurt, cutie. Uncle Adhiraj specially told everyone to wait for you to be comfortable enough."
Amayra was touched with the gesture. She remembers meeting her maternal uncles the day she entered the office for the first time, but she was too sleepy to understand.
Without any more questions, she ran away to her room, making Karan chuckle.
"Hey! How did you know about him?!"
His question was unanswered though
Amayra decided, that today, she was going to sleep with her parents. She knocks on their bedroom door, waiting for a response.
Zaira was surprised when she saw Amayra standing by the door, "Hello Myra, do you need anything?"
Amayra shyly tucks her hair behind her ear, making Zaira melt.
"Can I sleep with you?" She asked and Zaira smiled, "Of course!" She has been waiting for her to do that. When Amayra was a baby, she used to sleep with them. But the happiness was short lived as she was taken. Now, when Amayra was herself suggesting that, Zaira was more than ready to take her daughter in.
Zaira helped Amayra settle on the bed and tucked her in. Adhiraj was in the washroom. As soon as Amayra heard the washroom door opening, she hid under the duvet giggling. Zaira chuckled and helped her hide and due to Amayra's tiny frame, she wasn't too visible.
Adhiraj walked towards the bed and laid down, covering himself with the long duvet. Amayra giggles silently as she looked at Adhiraj's frame lying underneath the duvet.
"Did you check on the kids?" Adhiraj asked Zaira who nodded her head.
He hummed, "Amayra's good right?"
Zaira nodded again, biting her lips.
Adhiraj looked at Zaira passionately, which causes the latter's eyes to widen.
"How much I want to kis---" Adhiraj yelped suddenly, surprised. Zaira, whose eyes were wide like saucers, laughed as she realized what just happened.
Adhiraj lifted the duvet and peeked inside, only to catch the small form of his daughter giggling adorably at the sight of him. His eyes shone with amusement as he suddenly lifted her in his arms after throwing the duvet off her.
Amayra squeals at the action and giggles, making her mother smile warmly.
"You cheeky little rabbit," Adhiraj glares playfully at her and she bursts into a fit of giggles again.
She struggles against his grip a little and then leaned forward, looking at Adhiraj with mischief, "Hey Papa."
Adhiraj chuckled at her and feigned anger, "I'm mad." Amayra widened her eyes dramatically and placed a chaste kiss on his cheek.
Adhiraj smiled in amusement and asked her, "You're going to sleep with us?" Amayra nodded her head excitedly. Adhiraj smiles at his daughter and laid down, pulling her into his arms.
And that's how they slipped into a slumber that was the most peaceful they ever had since years.
The next day, everyone was munching on their breakfast, pretty ready for a good Monday morning. The high schoolers were neutral, whereas as the university students were grumbling every five minutes. Prithviraj sipped his tea indifferently, while his wife scolded their grandchildren for littering their food. The elder children were completely unfazed by the drama and peacefully had their meal.
"Stop grumbling," Adhiraj points strictly.
Silence echoed stronger than the noise, and everything finally felt peaceful. Adhiraj and Mihir looked like they'd kill anyone who even breathed audibly.
"Papa," Amayra mumbled, looking at him. Adhiraj looked down at her, his gaze turning gentle. "Yes?" He asked her. "Why did you not let my maternal family meet me?" She asked pouting.
Adhiraj was speechless.
"I thought you needed time. Do you want to meet them?" He asked her. Amayra nodded gleefully, "I don't want people popping out of nowhere and telling me that I'm their cousin," she huffed at last.
"Who was that?" Abhimanyu asks her. Amayra turned to look at him and shrugged, "Mr. Rajput, my homeroom teacher." Everyone's eyes shot up at that.
"Veer's back? You didn't tell us?" Rishabh asked Abhimanyu. Abhimanyu's eyebrows scrunched a little but he composed himself, "I didn't knew either," he shrugged it off casually.
"He's your best friend?" Vihaan asked incredulously. Abhimanyu shot him an unimpressive look, "He's my friend, not my child. If he decides to come back and not tell me, that isn't my problem. I'm not supposed to spy on him, right? Instead of questioning me about my validation of a friend, question him."
Abhimanyu's words silenced Vihaan as he nodded thoughtfully.
"You didn't knew? You are like, almost always at the Rajput mansion?" Shyam asks Dhruv. Dhruv shook his head and says pointedly, "He never came back there."
Adhiraj silenced everyone before saying, "Let's get everyone to gather together this weekend. It's high time Amayra meets her maternal family."
An update at 4:02 am that's crazy but but I guess most of the people here aren't too surprised by it. Insomnia sucks very much...
Enjoy your chapter guys!