Aayna’s arms trembled as she cradled the newborn. The room was silent, except for the soft whimpering of the child... and the louder sobs choking out of her.
She pressed him closer, tears falling onto his tiny cheeks.
Her body was sore. Her chest felt like it was on fire.
"Shhh... please, baby... please don't cry," she whispered brokenly.
"I’m trying—I really am. Mama’s trying."
The baby’s lips searched again, hungry, desperate. Her hands shook as she adjusted the cloth, helping him latch.
She gasped—her head fell back.
Tears burst from her eyes.
“Ahh—God… it hurts,” she cried out, clutching the edge of the bed.
“My nipples... they’re raw. Tender. I can’t…”
She wanted to scream. Not at the child. Not at the pain.
But at him.
At the man standing in the corner of the room.
Rudra.
Silent. Watching.
As always.
His fists clenched as her words shattered him.
He didn’t move for a second. Just stared at her—at her swollen eyes, her trembling frame, the way she tried so hard to be strong. To feed. To care.
Despite everything.
She pointed to the baby.
He stepped forward, slowly.
“I’ll get ice,” he said quietly.
She didn’t stop him.
When he returned, he knelt beside her.
She tried to back away.
But her hands were full. Her arms ached. Her body barely able to move.
“Let me,” he said, voice rough with emotion. “Please.”
She didn’t say anything.
Gently, he wrapped an ice cube in soft cotton and, with shaking hands, pressed it lightly against the side of her breast—not touching her, only helping relieve the pain.
She flinched.
Then froze.
And then she just cried. Silently. Bitterly.
“Why are you helping me?” she choked. “Why now? You ruined me. You took everything. You…”
Her words cracked.
“I never wanted this!” she screamed. “I wanted my college. My life. I wanted my freedom! Not a child. Not you.”
Rudra closed his eyes.
But he didn’t stop. He kept cooling her skin, kept tending to her pain like he could erase the months of torment.
She suddenly looked down at the baby again. Her eyes softened. Her fingers brushed his cheek.
“He’s… innocent,” she whispered. “He didn’t ask to be born from hate.”
Her lips trembled again.
“I want to name him.”
Rudra’s eyes opened, slowly. He watched her.
“I want him to have strength,” she said. “I want him to grow up fearless. Loved. And nothing like his—”
She paused, then exhaled.
“His name is Veeranshu,” she said softly.
Rudra swallowed hard. The ice cube melted between his fingers.
“I’ll remember that,” he whispered.
She looked away.
“You better.”
---
YOU ARE READING
Only His✔️
RomanceI thought monsters lived in nightmares. Then I met him. Rudra is powerful, feared, and impossible to defy. When he took me into his mansion, I thought it was to save me. I was wrong. His kindness hides chains. His touch burns like fire and freezes l...
