The Lion and the Rose

Chapter 66

Raj

How is Siva able to handle Ashwika? She is a walking talking guddown of doubts.

Ashwika was unconscious when I brought her to the Harshavardhan Mansion. Thankfully, except for Rudhran, Jeevitha and their son, others were out of the town. I took Jeevitha's help to order dresses for Ashwika as her luggages got burned in the car blast. Jeevitha helped me in packing things for Ashwika. I ordered and packed clothes for Siva, toiletries, groceries and other necessities for two days.

Ashwika came to consciousness at the doctor's mentioned time but she immediately fell asleep after looking around. The Estate doctor checked her vitals and confirmed that she fell asleep with tiredness. Rudhran returned from the factory after dropping Samarth at Sayleesh's house to stay until Monday. Raghav and his team are staying at a hotel in Coimbatore to check on the Devil's activities and the labour who first started the issue.

When Ashwika woke up fully, all her concerns were on Siva and she was relaxed only after talking to him. But then she started questioning, she kept on asking and didn't stop until the last question before she fainted. After getting out of the tunnel and before getting into the car she asked two questions.

"Do we still have to travel?"

"Where are we now?"

I answered that there is still an hour drive and we are in the compound of Harshavardhan Memorial Crypt, hearing that she immediately fainted. I held her before falling on the ground and made her lie on the back of the car. After getting the groceries and medicines, I parked the car in the crypt compound and entered the mansion through the tunnels.

In one way, it turned out to be good as when I crossed the main gates of the estate and half way through the drive no one noticed that Ashwika was there in the car with me. Within another ten minutes, I'll drive into the forest area and in another twenty minutes, I'll drop her at the forest cabin.

"Anney, namma ippo enga poitu irukom?" I press my foot on the brake and hold Ashwika by her shoulders before she hits the dashboard. (Anna, where are we now?)

"Yen da ippadi ya bayamuruthuva?" She beams at me before giving me an innocent look and moving front to sit on the passenger seat. (You scared me.)

"Neenga ithuku ellam bayapaduvenga nu enakku theriyathu, ney," she giggles as she wears her seat belt. (I didn't know that you would get afraid of hearing my voice.)

Says the one who fainted after hearing the word Memorial Crypt.

"Innum evlo neram ney poganu?" I resumed driving. (How long will it take?)

"Hardly twenty five minutes."

Ashwika looks around and turns towards me, "It seems like a forest."

"Yes it is. We are going to the forest cabin which..." she interrupts me and continues, "Siva and you constructed for him to stay alone?"

"Yes." And before she could ask me another question, I decided to come up with one. "Aama unnoda celebrity crush pathi ellam sollum pothu Siva possessive aagala?" I try to continue from where we left but this time it's going to be me who will be questioning. (Did Siva never get possessive about your celebrity crush list?)

"Nope,as they are just celebrity crushes, he never got possessive of them," she drums on the dashboard as she looks into the dark forest.

"So Siva was your only crush."

"Was. Now he is my boyfriend," She smiles blushingly.

"Ohhh."

"Yeah," she drags, "but he was not my first real life crush."