adhura pyaar ┃abhira (3.0)

hide and seek

long chapter ahead, for context abhir doesn't call abhimanyu dadda in this!

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Saying Abhimanyu was nervous was an understatement. He didn't know what compelled his mother to accept the gracious invitation by the Goenkas for Bade Papa's birthday. Things weren't the best in their household, but certain things had cooled down once he informed his family that Akshara wanted to move forward with joint custody, and that Abhir wouldn't be forced to spend time with them if he didn't want too. 

Abhimanyu wasn't taking any risks nor chances with his son, and his happiness came first for him. However, he couldn't completely abandon his mother even though recently he had started to feel the weight of their relationship take a toll on him. He was the one always having to sacrifice for her happiness which only brought more sadness and heartbreak into his own life. 

As the Birlas entered the Goenka Villa, they were greeted by the warm embrace of the Goenkas and the grand decorations that left not an inch of the villa unfurnished. 

After paying his respects to the elders, his eyes sought out his son. He couldn't hide his disappointment once he realized that he wasn't there currently and that he might be with his parents or playing around the house. 

The ushered in and the birla family members spread out to interact with the other guests, meanwhile Abhimanyu could feel his mother lingering behind him with her questioning eyes. She had argued that Akshara wouldn't be any different towards him and that it was probably Abhinav that had convinced her, she had warned him not to hold any hopes. But he had argued against her, saying that he and Akshara had sorted their differences out and that he was confident in her. 

He hung his head before the sound of light footsteps caused his attention to shift upwards and before he knew it, Abhir was running towards him with a bright smile. Abhimanyu wasted no time in kneeling down before engulfing him in a hug, and spinning him around in a hug. 

A feeling of pure content washed over him and after all these years, he had felt that happiness he had once felt with her.  He was hesitant to set him down, as he didn't want to leave him for a second but after a moment of reluctance he set Abhir down. 

"Kaise hain, Junior?" He asks, a wide smile drawn on his face. 

"Sab teek hain, docman!" He answers readily, and Abhimanyu sighed of relief once he noticed that Abhir's previous happiness had returned. 

His son really couldn't live without his mother, Akshara. and he couldn't blame him, it would be a lie if i said he didn't feel physical pain from staying away from her all these years. 

"Hello" Akshara's soft voice came from behind, and he couldn't help the surge of happiness that came with it. She had a smile on her face, but it soon morphed into worry once she saw Manjiri behind the duo. 

She folded her arms in front of Manjiri and greeted her with respect, Akshara had learnt that she had to stop maintaining the emotional relationship she had with her. There was once a time, where Manjiri had supported her and cared for deeply and though some of those feelings might be still there, she couldn't be the only one trying to take a step forward. 

"Thank you, Akshara and I'm very sorry for everything" Manjiri says, shocking the both of them. Abhir was clueless and before anything else happened Abhimanyu called for Roohi to take him and play with the other kids. 

"Mein bhi" Akshara responds, and she can't help it when the ends of her eyes water. Not everything was forgotten nor was it forgived but for the sake of Abhir, it was a start towards a better future. 

Kairav who had his trained on the trio, noticed the glistening tears in his sister's eyes and suddenly become worked up, completely misunderstanding the complete situation.  Kairav still didn't trust Abhimanyu, he felt that he didn't deserve his sister's kidness, invalidating his sister's wrongs. He wasted no time in heading over there and grabbing Abhimanyu's collar, and a gasp was elicited from Manjiri.