Chapter 19
"Let's go." Siddharth said and they started walking towards the exit. Annika called out to Shivaay and asked him to come with them.
"Why are you asking him to come with us?" Siddharth grumbled and Annika glared at him.
"I drove him here so I should drop him back! And anyways, we are going to the same place so it makes sense." She shrugged.
"But he can afford a cab and-
"Stop it Sid!"
"Okay."
They walked to the car and Annika took the driver's seat and Siddharth sat beside her with Shivaay sitting quietly in the back seat. It was the most uncomfortable he had ever been. Five minutes into the ride Annika's phone rang and Siddharth picked it up on her sign.
"It's Sona." He said and put the phone on speaker.
"Hello?" Annika said and it was Vikram's ecstatic scream that answered.
"I am gonna be a dad! I am gonna be a dad!" He shouted and Annika and Siddharth laughed while Shivaay frowned.
"Yes we know!" Annika laughed and Vikram suddenly stopped.
"What? You know?" He asked in an offended tone and Annika bit her lip.
"Yes. Sona told me. I actually trained her to give you the news! Was it anywhere between the lines of Babe, I know we had decided to plan the next baby and all?" She chuckled and Shivaay shook his head, trying to understand.
"Yes?" Vikram said and Siddharth chuckled as well.
"Yeah, it was my speech! I even enacted that for her!" Annika laughed and she could hear Vikram's whine.
"I don't feel so special anymore!" He said and Annika laughed again. "Okay then, bye." He cut the call in an upset tone and Siddharth put the phone down, still snickering.
"You enacted the speech for her?" He asked and she nodded.
"Yes! She was so nervous! So I prepared a speech for her! Wanna listen?" She asked and he nodded eagerly, crossing his arms. Shivaay sat straight up, listening hard and trying to make sense of the situation while Annika cleared her throat.
"Babe, I know we had decided to plan the next baby but I am pregnant! And I know it is a shock, it was for me too but I really think we are ready to have another kid! Don't you think our child needs a sibling to play with?" She narrated dramatically as Siddharth nodded impressively.
"That was something!" He said and Annika smiled.
"She is not pregnant? She is not pregnant? What is happening? Why is my life so unpredictable these days? She was just acting! Why did I think that- Oh God, I am so dumb! I am so freaking stupid!" Shivaay thought and thought, his head hurting. "And I took a punch for her! No! I took three punches for her, just because I did not want to jeopardize her relationship at such a fragile moment and she turns out be in not a fragile moment? What the hell? Now I will teach this Siddharth that- no, no, no! Don't think like that Shivaay! So what if she is not pregnant? She is still his girlfriend, still the mother of their daughter! Pregnant or not, you are not to ruin her relationship! Get your head straight!"
"Shivaay, are you alright?" Annika suddenly asked and he looked up.
"What?" He mumbled and shook his head lightly.
"You were mumbling something? Get your head straight or somewhat?" Annika asked with a frown and Siddharth chuckled.
"He should do that!" He snickered and Annika looked at him angrily.
"No, no! Nothing." He said, clearing his throat and looking out of the window, trying to focus on the moving cars.
They soon reached the resort and Annika gave the car to the valet. They were walking to the entrance when Vikram came.
"You are back! I was just going to call you." He said and Shivaay left them to be with his thoughts.
"What happened?" Siddharth asked.
"Mrs Taylor called, Annika." He said and Annika's legs faltered.
"What?" She said, her heart's pace quickened.
"She wants to visit you today." He said and Annika breathed slowly.
"Tod..today? But she was going to...to come next m..month? Why...why is she coming so...so early?" She said slowly and Vikram held her shoulders, guiding her to the lounge area.
"Relax Annika, she just wants to visit you! And she was going to anyways, right?" Siddharth said and Annika shook her head.
"No! She is coming a month early! Why? Oh my God, something is wrong! She is going to take my daughter away, I know it! I fee-
"Annika! Stop it! Why do you even think that's going to happen?" Vikram asked and Annika breathed heavily.
"Bec..because why would she co..come so early then, huh? Why?" She asked in a scared tone and Vikram sighed.
"I will tell you why. She is coming earlier because she has to suddenly go out of country tomorrow, for personal reasons, okay? And she won't be back for two months, that's why she wants to visit you today." He explained and Annika gulped slowly.
"What? She...she told you that?" She asked and Vikram nodded.
"Yes." He said.
"But..but why did she...she call you? Why didn't she call me?" She asked again.
"Because meetings like this should be confirmed with the lawyer first. And I am your lawyer so she called me. Okay?" He explained slowly again and she nodded, mumbling an okay.
"So, you ready to meet her? Should I tell her to come here?" Vikram asked and Annika shook her head.
"No, no! Why here?" She said and Siddharth clicked his finger.
"Why not here? If she visits here, she can see how much fun we all are having here! Like a family! Although we are not having so much fun because your ex-husband suddenly showed up but I got to punch him three times till he bled through his nose but she doesn't have to know this!" He grumbled and Vikram looked at him with wide eyes.
"You punched her ex? What? When?" He asked and Annika sighed.
"Yes! It was great, I-
"Guys! Focus! You can talk about my ex when I am not around, okay?" She said with a tight smile.
"Okay." They said in a united tone.
"I will call Mrs Taylor and tell her to come here, you guys get everyone ready, okay?" Vikram said and took out his phone.
"Vikram!" Annika said and he looked at her. "Congratulations papa-to-be!" She giggled and he broke into a huge grin, hugging her.
"Thank you darling!" He said excitedly. "And, that was a great speech. Took me by surprise but it worked!" He chuckled.
"Bhai! Congratulations!" Siddharth said as well and hugged his brother. "I am going to a chachu again! It feels surreal!"
"Where's Sona?" Annika asked.
"She is in the restaurant with the kids." Vikram said and Annika gasped.
"Oh no! I forgot the kids were in the restaurant when Siddharth and Shivaay were fighting!" She said in an alarmed tone.
"Heyy! Siddharth and Shivaay were fighting? He wasn't fighting, he was getting punched!" Siddharrth grumbled and Annika glared at him.
"You didn't forget them; they came back to us a minute later." Vikram said.
"Oh my God, I am such a bad mother, I forgot my kids in a public place!" She said and Siddharth rolled his eyes.
"Annika, Vikram and Sona were one feet away from them. That is, thirty centimetres. Will you chill?" Siddharth said in an exasperated tone.
"Go and get yourselves ready, I am calling Mrs Taylor and she would be here soon." Vikram said and Siddharth pulled Annika towards the restaurant.
"Mumma!" Shivi screamed as soon as she saw her mother and ran towards her. "How was your meeting?" She asked and Annika giggled.
"It was great, thank you!" She said and took her in her arms.
"I mished you Mumma!" Shivi said, hugging her mother tightly and Annika sighed.
"I am sorry sweet, I missed you too!" She said and Shivi looked at her.
"Why sorry Mumma? Did you do shumthing bad?" She asked and Annika nodded.
"Yes. I left you alone." She said and Shivi frowned.
"Alone? I was not alone Mumma! Sona Maa was here, Viks was here and Aryan was here too! I was not alone!" She said in a happy tone and Annika smiled and walked towards the seat where Sonakshi and Aryan were sitting, Aryan playing with the remnants of what looked like a piece of pie on his plate and Shivi's empty plate with sides of a French toast pulled off.
"Yes, I know but I was not here." Annika said and sat down with Shivi.
"Because you have to work a lot na? But it's okay. Everyone works! Sona Maa does and Viks does and Sid also does. You know my friend Misha? Her Mom works a lot too, even at nights! So it is okay!" She said and pulled her mother's cheeks. "Mumma, you are so cute, I love your chiks!"
Annika laughed loudly and bit her lip. "It's cheeks, not chiks. Chicks are-
"Hen babies, I know!" Shivi said quickly and Annika nodded, clearing her throat.
"Shivi, you remember Mrs Taylor?" She asked and looked at Sona, who nodded and assured her to go on.
"Yes Mumma, she was there when I lived in the big building!" Shivi replied and Annika nodded.
"Yes. She is coming to visit us today." She said and Shivi looked at her.
"Why?"She asked softly and Annika smiled slowly.
"She wants to-
"Is she going to take me away?" She said innocently, her nose suddenly red. "Is she going to take me away from you? I don't wanna leave you! I don't wanna go! Mumma! Please, I promise, I will drink my milk and I will not make you angry and I will do what you say! I don't want to leave you Mumma, I love you! Mumma, I love you so much!" She cried, long trails of tears leaving her eyes, her cheeks and nose bright pink and Annika shook her head quickly, wiping her tears, her heart shattering into a million pieces looking at her daughter's tears.
"No, no sweety, she is not going to take you away from me! No one is going to take you away from me; I will never ever let that happen!" She said, her own voice thick with emotions and Shivi sniffed.
"Pinky promise?" She said and held up her pinky finger.
"Pinky promise." Annika said and locked her little finger to her daughter's.