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"Who is your mother?" Shivansh stopped dead on his track when he heard the question.
He was a very famous person. Everything about him fascinated people. It was not hidden from people how Shivansh met Prithviraj. Everybody was stunned and curious when the news of their monarch possibly having a child spread like fire. More than anything, people were curious about Shivansh's mother.
Who was the lady who managed to lure their monarch?
Why did she hide the boy for sixteen long years?
Where is the lady now?
Was their future monarch a baby out of wedlock?
Though everybody seemed curious, nobody was courageous enough to voice out their questions. But as they say, curiosity wins every other emotion. Even when the question was not really malicious, it sounded insulting to Shivansh.
"Nobody knew about your existence until a few weeks ago. Where were you all this time?" His classmate, Daksh, asked him.
Shivansh turned around, his heart pounding inside his chest as he looked at the boy. The genuine curiosity and lack of malicious intent angered the boy even more. Why were people so interested in other's life?
"It's a personal matter. I can't give away my personal information, Daksh. It's confidential." Shivansh answered as politely as he could. But one could easily sense the change in his behavior.
The way his entire body tensed at the mention of his mother and how he closed the topic curtly didn't miss their eyes.
"Is it a personal matter or a shameful matter you're trying to avoid?" A new voice asked Shivansh.
Anger filled in his veins as he turned around and glared at the boy who was staring back at him with similar rage. A part of Shivansh wanted to fight with the offender. His birth was celebrated. His parents were deeply in love when he was born. Though his father was single in this universe, he wasn't born out of wedlock in his world.
Shivansh had no words that could explain his situation. He could fight with the boy but he had nothing to fight with words. So, he did something that worked in his favor effectively.
"What? Why are you staring at me like that? We should know about the boy who will become our future King. It's not like I asked you something out of the world. It's just a simple question. Who is your mother?" Daksh tried pulling his friend back, but the boy had already done enough damage to be controlled now.
Shivansh smiled bitterly at the boy.
"I see, you are quite concerned for the future of our country.... Mihir. But like I said anything about me is quite confidential. But there is no law or rule above the King. I'll let His Highness know your concern about my birth-mother. I am sure he will answer every question you have for my mother. He will definitely tell you if my birth was a personal matter or a shameful act." Shivansh threatened openly, looking at the name-tag on the boy's shirt.
Mihir visibly shrank back in fear. He didn't expect Shivansh to directly involve his father. He expected the prince to get self-conscious, or at least look ashamed. He was expecting Shivansh to hit him with aggression, but the prince didn't do any of those things.
"Have a happy day while you can, Mihir and Daksh." Shivansh continued, his eyes shifting from Mihir to a scared Daksh, who was genuinely just curious. Daksh tried running after Shivansh when the malicious eyes of the prince stayed on him for half a minute before he walked out of the classroom.
But Shivansh was long gone and the guards who were waiting outside the school didn't let Daksh meet him.
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Shivansh was in a sour mood after he came home. He was seething in anger. There was one thing about the boy that he found it hard to control, almost impossible. Containing his anger. Back in the school, he handled himself quite well. He didn't lose his cool, he didn't throw a fist in anger and didn't get intimidated by them. But the anger that wanted to explode on Mihir and Daksh was still burning inside him.
He snapped at everybody he met that day. Be it the house staff, kitchen staff or his personal bodyguard. Suddenly everybody knew they had to stay away from the little master who was in terrible mood since afternoon.
He refused to eat anything when the kitchen staff brought him food. And when they tried convincing him more than once, his anger exploded on them as well. None of them saw Shivansh behaving like this. They have been living with the boy for more than two weeks now but the boy never misbehaved with any of them. If anything, he was very respectful.
"His Highness won't appreciate you skipping your food, little master. At least have a fruit bowl." The head chef tried convincing him but Shivansh shook his head.
"I am not hungry." Was all the boy said. But the kitchen staff had strict instructions from their King on their prince's diet-chart.
"At least, have a smoothie or a hot cocoa if you are willing to eat anything—"
"Please, I am not hungry. Mujhe kuch chahiye hoga toh main khud le lunga." Shivansh tried being as polite as he could when all he wanted to do was yell at her.
"I am not allowed to let you roam empty stomach..."
"The hell does this mean? You are not allowed to let me roam empty stomach? So you are just going to stuff me with food despite me telling you repeatedly that I am not hungry? I am my own person, Ma'am. I have a stomach and a very well functioning brain that gives me a signal when I get hungry. So, I will eat when I want to. Do hell with the orders you received!" Shivansh bellowed, his voice increased dangerously, making the head chef flinch back.
The raging eyes of the young teenager were burning with anger. He wasn't guilty for yelling. Not yet. He was still in the moment where Daksh asked him about his mother, and Mihir questioned his birth. The destructive anger was now making itself known, though on a wrong victim.
"Shivansh!"
Prithviraj was stunned to hear his kid misbehaving with his staff. But what surprised him more was the look on the boy's face. When Shivansh turned around, his burning gaze didn't lower in remorse. If anything, he was getting more angry. The more he tried suppressing himself, the more angry he felt. The boy had no idea how to control the rage that was taking power over him.
"Mrs. Shah, I'm sorry but can you please clear the corridor? I'll let you know when I'll need assistance from you and your staff." Prithviraj controlled his anger as he turned around and looked at his staff, who immediately bowed her head in respect and left the room as instructed and cleared the corridor.
"What was that, Shivansh?" The monarch asked the boy sharply as soon as Mrs. Shah left their room.
He couldn't believe his eyes and ears. He had witnessed his son losing his temper every now and then but this, he had never seen the boy like this. Even when he lost his temper, he would rarely take it out on anyone. He never misbehaved with the staff before.
"Did you order them to not listen to me if I say I am not hungry, Baba? I am sixteen, not six! I know when I get hungry. I understand my needs. But if someday I am not hungry, your staff can't force the food down my throat. How does this even make sense?" Shivansh asked him in return, his voice increased in a way that made the monarch's eyes darken.
Prithviraj never yelled at the boy. Even when he had to reprimand the boy, his voice never crossed a decibel that could make the boy feel upset. He was very particular about not raising your voice at the other person. But when Shivansh almost shouted, that was a red line for him.
"Did they not give you time when you told them you were not hungry?" Prithviraj asked him calmly, and Shivansh scoffed in answer.
"If you mean coming in the room with a tray of food or drinks every hour is equivalent to giving me time, then yes, they really gave me a good time to grow my appetite!" The boy snapped, looking away.
"They were following my order, Ansh. Who gave you the right to disrespect them when all they were doing was looking after you? Let me warn you for the last time, Shivansh. They are my staff. They work for me, giving their everything to me and the royal palace, be it their loyalties, their personal lives, or their time. Never let this repeat. Ever. I don't care how angry you are, how bad your mood is, you won't let your anger out on them. They are not our slaves!"
Prithviraj didn't shout. He didn't have to. The monarch conveyed his anger well by his sharp words. Shivansh almost flinched back. He was angry. He didn't know how to get rid of his emotions. His eyes lowered on their own when his father walked in front of him and lifted his face up. His fingers stayed firm on his chin.
"Look at me." The firm order was so powerful that he was compelled to obey. He looked at his father, silently and Prithviraj saw the anger in the kid's eyes. The kid's face gave away nothing but the anger. Other than that, his face was expressionless.
"What's wrong?" Prithviraj asked him softly, grasping his shoulders as he made the kid sit on the bed and crouched down in front of him. His hands slipped down to hold his kid's palms. "Something is wrong, kyu? You don't behave like this."
Shivansh let out a chuckle at the statement. He doesn't behave like this? The monarch thinks this is not normal when he behaved like this for his entire life. He had toned down his anger a lot. But it's not easy to change your habits overnight. A little trigger, and he was back to square one.
"This is how I behaved, Baba. Always. And nothing's wrong. Can't a person get angry after getting pestered every hour?" Shivansh asked him, pulling his hands away from his father's warm hold.
Prithviraj's jaw clenched when he saw the boy standing up from the bed. He was fast on his feed to jerk open the door. It didn't take him long to understand what the boy intended to do. He was walking out of the conversation. He was running away like he did the evening he teleported here. That was Shivansh Agnihotri from earth, a boy know ran out of the conversation when he had no argument in his favor.
But before he could have run out, Prithviraj gripped his forearm and pulled him back.
"You are not running out of the conversation. You are not running away again." Prithviraj gritted out as calmly as he could. But that only fueled the kid's anger.
"I can if I wish to. And I am done with the conversation." Shivansh said, looking into his father's eyes.
"We are not done yet. Not until you tell me what's wrong with you." The monarch was trying hard to not lose his patience and lash out at the boy. He was not used to deal with a troubled teenager before.
"There's nothing wrong with me! Kitni baar aur bolu?" Shivansh shouted, taking a step back. His eyes were now burning. They were begging to let the tears loose, something the boy was holding back stubbornly.
"There is nothing wrong with me. Itni si baat ko kyu badha rahe ho aap? I was not hungry and your staff kept pestering me. That's done. Mujhe aur baat nahi karni." The boy continued, turning around to leave and Prithviraj's patience snapped.
The very last bit of his patience, the thin thread broke. Without a single warning, he grabbed the boy's arm, taking him by surprise and started dragging him out of their room. He wants to run out of a conversation without explaining himself? Fine!
"Kya kar rahe ho aap yeh?" Shivansh asked him, panicking for the first time.
Prithviraj glared at him but didn't answer him. The boy looked confused and slightly scared at the change in his father's demeanor as Prithviraj kept dragging him out of the royal palace. He was initially planning to run out of the palace to keep himself from exploding, but not like this.
The monarch stopped when they reached the backyard and roughly withdrew his arm back. He snapped his eyes at the guards present there and that was all they needed to leave them alone. Shivansh looked at the now empty backyard and his father who was standing in front of him. Unlike before, his father looked dangerously scary right now. His cold eyes made him shiver.
"You love walking out of the conversation, don't you? You absolutely love running away from your faults, instead of owning them. Then let me give you something you adore so much." Prithviraj's voice had an edge to it.
Shivansh looked at his father hesitantly, not understanding what he meant and why they were in the backyard. He was angry, really angry but this.... he didn't expect his father to behave like this. This was not how things went when he fought with his father, shouted at him and ran out of the house. His father always pleaded with him. But the monarch was not running after him, pacifying him to talk it out. No.
"You love running, don't you? Start running then, sweetheart. And mind you, you don't get to stop until I say so. Start now." Prithviraj ordered him, sitting on the bench and waved his hand to make the boy oblige.
But Shivansh stood there silently, not moving an inch. The monarch's eyes turned icy. He picked up a branch that was lying on the ground. Much to the boy's dislike, it was thick and long. Unwillingly, he took two steps back.
"Run, Shivansh. Don't make me encourage you." The quite warning encouraged the boy enough to remove the shirt he was wearing over his t-shirt before starting to run.
Prithviraj silently observed his child. When the boy began running, he was running normally. But after a minute or so, his speed increased. It was like he was burning his rage while running. He looked at the setting sun and sighed. This is not how he expected to spend his evening. He was thinking of having a good time with his child, and that was the reason he came to their room for a tea break. He was surprised to find Shivansh yelling at his staff.
That's when his patience snapped.
They were his staff. Nobody gets to misbehave with them. Not even his child.
Shivansh stopped for a second to take deep breaths. After running like demons were chasing him, he was out of breath. He bent down, holding his knees. His forehead was coated with sweat. Prithviraj felt bad for the kid. He looked physically exhausted.
But when Shivansh didn't look at his father, didn't apologize, or at least have a guilty face, his jaw ticked in anger.
"Continue, Shivansh. Don't stop." Prithviraj's voice boomed in the empty ground. Shivansh looked at his father, who slammed the branch on the ground as if warning him to continue.
Shivansh looked at the monarch silently, waiting for him to melt like he always does. But when he saw his father's eyes darkening at the non-compliance, he cursed himself and continued running.
After a couple more laps, he couldn't take it anymore. He didn't eat anything in school. He didn't have any appetite left when he reached home and his overthinking and anger were sucking on the little energy he was left with. And then his father came out with a new punishment. He was completely exhausted now.
When he stopped, he was breathing heavily. His hair felt sticky with sweat. With exhaustion, his body threw out the anger, rage and hatred he was holding onto so tightly. Tears burned his eyes as he felt his body growing weak from mental exhaustion.
"I'm sorry, Baba." Shivansh choked out, dashing towards his father who was already walking to him.
Prithviraj swallowed back the pain he felt when Shivansh looked at him miserably and hugged the kid close to his chest. He didn't care the boy was sweating badly or the sweat was spoiling his clothes. He didn't care about anything.
"I am really sorry. I didn't mean to talk to you or anyone in that tone. I was... I lost control. I am sorry." Shivansh cried out his apologies in the monarch's chest. His face was buried in the older man's chest, not even looking up.
He was so exhausted. Physically, mentally and emotionally.
The fact that he had nothing to prove about his birth mother made him feel sad. Prithviraj gently rubbed his back, planting a soft kiss on his hair as he sat down on the bench and pulled him in between his legs and held him as long as the kid desired to be held.
Prithviraj realized what the kid meant when he said that he hurt his father every time he lost control. And seeing him like this, the monarch was sure he lashed out on his father every other day in past. The realization didn't settle well with him.
But the kid never misbehaved like this until that moment. Shivansh was really trying hard to rectify his mistakes. The kid was working hard on his shortcomings but he didn't know how to deal with immense rage. He doesn't know how to get rid of his anger when it starts becoming painful.
"Bas, kitna royega? It's okay." Prithviraj gently shushed, kissing his forehead. He lifted a bottle of water he messaged the bodyguard to leave when the kid was running, and held it close to Shivansh's mouth.
"Have some water. Aaram se." The monarch urged the boy to have some water. And the kid obeyed. He was thirsty.
Prithviraj removed his handkerchief from the pocket of his trousers and started wiping the sweat off the kid's face. Shivansh looked away the moment his eyes met his father's gaze. The man didn't look angry or disappointed anymore, if anything he looked concerned. The gentle look in the monarch's eyes made the kid guilty.
And there it was— the remorse. The monarch was trying to find guilt in his child's eyes the moment he witnessed him lashing out at their chef. When he didn't find the guilt, he knew he had to get rid of the boy's anger first. His rage was hiding all other emotions like a blanket.
The monarch knew it by experience that exhaustion leaves no energy. And to talk to the kid, he needed the boy calm. And he found no other way to get rid of his anger. Running seemed like his only option. As expected, his anger dissolved into the sweat and left his body as he kept running and exhaustion started taking over him.
And if there was anything that increases with exhaustion, it is the need to cry.
"Bas, bas, you're okay. You're not alone, beta." Prithviraj assured him, and Shivansh bit his lip to keep himself from crying once again.
He rested his head in the crook of his father's neck and hid his face there. The more he looked into the monarch's eyes, the more he wished to cry. The King wrapped his arms around the boy and held him once again.
With Shivansh, he needed to spare more time comforting the kid. Every time he scolded Shivansh, the boy found it hard to let go of it himself. He needed to be held. Maybe it was because he was not used to the chastising, or maybe because Prithviraj made it a habit to comfort the kid that he was now getting used to this routine.
"Kamre main baat kare?" Prithviraj asked him after a minute, and the kid shook his head.
He didn't want to get scolded anymore. He didn't have the capacity to get rebuked. He was too tired. And the moment they are in the privacy of their room, he knew he will get scolded.
The monarch was not stupid. He understood why the kid refused to go to their room despite being so tired. But he needed to talk. Something was troubling the boy and he won't ignore it.
"I don't need a room to scold you, Ansh. Main vo yaha bhi kar sakta hu." Prithviraj said after a pregnant pause. The kid just bit his tongue in response.
Of course, all he needs to do is order the guards and they will be alone anywhere His Highness wants. The monarch smiled when Shivansh tilted his face so that he could see his father's face was still in the safety of his father's arms.
"But you look too tired to stay out now. And you need to eat. What was the last thing you had?" The monarch asked his child, who realized that he can save himself from the fiasco he created but how can he save himself when little things?
When he didn't answer, Prithviraj tapped his back and raised his eyebrows in question. Too intimidating for his liking.
"Breakfast." The boy mumbled softly, and the monarch stared at him silently before getting up and pulling the boy on his feet.
"Idiot! Come inside, you are eating right now. I don't care if you are hungry or not. Gussa hone pe khana kon chodta hai? Do you wish to pass out now?" Prithviraj scolded him all the way inside the mansion.
"You made me run on empty stomach. Maa would have made you sleep outside for this." Shivansh said, glaring at his father. The monarch snorted in answer.
"She would have thrown you out for skipping meals too. Guess, we both would have slept outside." Prithviraj retorted back, pushing the kid on the chair as soon as they entered in the kitchen.
"Like hell I would sleep outside with you after you made me run like that— ouch. Why do you keep hitting me?" Shivansh glared at his father who whacked him, not so harshly.
"Don't cuss." The monarch warned him as he walked away from him to talk to the kitchen staff.
"I wasn't cussing. Hell is not a cuss—" Shivansh trailed off when he looked at the elderly woman who immediately started cooking after getting instructions from her King.
He remembered how the old lady flinched back when he shouted on her. Why can't he control his anger? Why does he always end up hurting people around him? He really didn't deserve the love and care they kept showering on him.
Prithviraj turned around to school the kid about cussing. He was about to scold him that no matter what, a cuss word is cuss word, be it a small word or a very vulgar word. But he stopped when he saw the kid walking to their kitchen staff with small steps. The guilt in his eyes told the monarch what the kid was upto.
"Kaki," Shivansh gently called out the old lady, who looked up, startled. The boy looked much calmer now. He wasn't raging anymore.
"Bhukh lag gayi aapko? I'll be with your food on the table in a few minutes." The head chef said with a smile and the guilt widened inside his heart.
"I am sorry, Kaki." Shivansh apologized, smiling nervously at the older lady. The head chef looked at the boy shocked.
"Ji?"
"I am sorry. You were just looking after me and I— I lashed out at you. Trust me, it was not your fault. Maine bas apna gussa aap par utar diya. And I am really sorry for this. Aage se nahi hoga." Shivansh apologized honestly.
Prithviraj heard those words so many times in the past couple of weeks that it almost made him scoff. Aage se nahi hoga. And he ends up doing the same thing. Though it's never intentional. But he lost control of himself so often that it just made the monarch shake his head in disbelief. But he trusted the boy to behave himself as much as he could.
"It's okay, little Master. But khane pe gussa nahi utarte." The old lady gently explained him, and the boy nodded his head.
"Aur dusro pe bhi nahi." Prithviraj added from behind, and Shivansh smiled apologetically at him.
He knew he was forgiven.
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"What's wrong, Ansh?" Prithviraj asked him once they were alone in their room.
When Shivansh kept his mouth shut, the monarch sighed and pulled himself up from the bed and sat down beside the kid. Shivansh looked at his father with raised eyebrows.
"Yaad hai, you said something to me on the day we went to the beach. Mere sabse bade yaar ho aap. Do you remember? So, let's forget for a moment that I am your father. What did that old, grumpy father of yours did, buddy?" Prithviraj asked him, making Shivansh almost chuckle at how silly his father sounded.
"What? Did you— did you just call yourself old and grumpy, Baba?" Shivansh asked him, and Prithviraj shook his head.
"I called your father old and grumpy. Ek number ka khadoos insaan hai tera baap, nahi? But I am your best friend. Tell me, what did that old, grumpy and arrogant monarch do?" Prithviraj asked him, and the kid couldn't hold anymore. He burst out laughing.
This was so silly.
"Kyu? Will you teach my old man a lesson?" Shivansh asked him, and Prithviraj hummed in answer.
"If that old and grumpy monarch troubled my best-friend enough to make him so angry, why not?" Prithviraj answered, and Shivansh shook his head in answer.
How did he never realize how silly his father was?
"He did make me run until I couldn't even stand for a minute without passing out, but he can never make me lose my temper like that. If anything I hurt him. Do you think my Baba will forgive me? Shaant ho gaya hoga unka gussa?" He asked the monarch, who wrapped an arm around the kid and placed his head on his lap.
"From what I heard he is no longer angry with you." Prithviraj said, looking tenderly in the kid's eyes and Shivansh looked away immediately.
Now that he was not angry, holding his father's gaze was hard. He was guilty.
"Kuch hua tha na? Bata toh, bachcha. Something is troubling you. What is it?" Prithviraj asked him once again, and Shivansh sat up straight.
"If I tell you, you will get really angry, Baba." Shivansh warned him, and Prithviraj sighed.
"I promise tujhpe aur gussa—"
"Mujhpe nahi. You will be angry at someone else." Shivansh interrupted him, and the monarch's eyes darkened.
"Who hurt you?" The King asked him calmly. It was too calm for someone who was so protective of his little child.
"Who hurt you, Ansh?" Prithviraj asked him again, and this time Shivansh spilled everything.
To say, Prithviraj was angry would be an understatement. He was furious. What Mihir did was straight away bullying. But he was proud of his child. The boy handled it really gracefully. But something was still troubling him.
"Though I wouldn't have preferred you to involve in a physical fight, but muh kyu nahi todke aaya tu uska?" Prithviraj asked him, and Shivansh stared at him silently.
One, he doesn't know how to fight. He would have ended up getting beaten inside. And two, he didn't want to create a bigger scene by reacting to Mihir's vulgar words.
"I don't care who the heck your father is, Ansh. Somebody bullies you, fight back. I never want my child to endure any kind of bullying or abuse just because you didn't wish to tarnish my name." Prithviraj spoke firmly, holding the kid by his shoulders.
Shivansh nodded his head. He wasn't planning to let anyone bully him either.
"And this better be the last time you lash out at someone who did nothing to deserve your anger, Ansh. Prince or no prince, you won't misbehave with our staff. They give us their loyalty and spend their entire lives for us, expecting just one thing from us. Respect. Next time, I see you misbehaving with them or using them as your punching bag to relieve your anger, you can expect the worst from me." Prithviraj warned him firmly. His sharp words had the boy look down.
His father is one scary one when he wants to be.
"Aage se nahi karunga, Baba. Sorry." Shivansh apologized, and the monarch shook his head.
"And come to me when things like this happen. I don't care how silly things are to you, I want my child to come to me. Be it your first crush, a mess you created, or a plan you made. I don't care. Don't bottle up your anger like this. It never ends up nicely." The monarch continued, gently cupping the boy's face in his palms and smiled gently at him.
"You are my child, Ansh. There is nothing in this world I would choose instead of you. Be it my throne or my pride. You always come first. Mera bachcha hai tu, Ansh. Nothing matters to me more than you. Always remember that." Prithviraj promised him, kissing his forehead.
"Nothing matters to me more than you either, Baba." Shivansh said after a while, making the monarch smile. His heart warmed at the words.
It felt good to hear such words coming out of your kid's mouth. And monarch felt like the luckiest man alive.
So, let's be real. How many of you have fought or behaved like Ansh with your parents, at least, once in their life?
Don't hate my little bean. Boy is struggling hard to change himself :(