PUNARVIVAAH - ARRANGED TO LOVE (L&M #3) [COMPLETED]

SHOT 51

Third person's pov!

"Damn it.." He muttered under his breath and playfully glared at his daughter who was happily clapping her hands.

He decided to make a video call to Vaiga. Taking out his phone, he dialled her number, praying she wasn't in class. As the phone rang, he felt a pang of guilt for disturbing her at college, but he was out of options.

Vaiga was in the college canteen, just about to have lunch when her phone buzzed. Seeing Abhay's name on the screen, she felt a mix of surprise and concern. She quickly picked up her tray and hurried out of the canteen, finding a deserted corridor to answer the call.

When Vaiga appeared on the screen, her face was flushed, and she was breathing heavily from running.

"Vaiga, are you okay?" Abhay frowned, seeing her like that.

"I am fine," she said, catching her breath. "What's going on? Is Kriti okay?"

"Kriti!" Abhay exclaimed, "She isn't eating anything. Her attention is all over the place except for me. No matter what I say, she is simply ignoring me."

Abhay was complaining like a school kid and Vaiga tried hard not to smile at his grumpy face.

"Ga Ga..." Kriti squealed in happiness seeing Vaiga's face on the screen. Her eyes brightened up, and she babbled excitedly, raising her hand as if asking to be picked up from the highchair. Vaiga's face dimmed when she saw that. She craved to pick up her baby, but she was kilometres away.

"Kriti... my baby," Vaiga cooed through the phone, her voice filled with longing. Kriti's face lit up at the sound of her mother's voice, her little hand still reaching out.

"Let me talk to her. You can feed her then." Vaiga said, looking at Abhay.

"Okay," Abhay said with relief, positioning the phone so Vaiga could see Kriti clearly.

Vaiga started telling a story, her voice soothing and animated.

"Once upon a time, there was a little bunny named Binky. Binky loved to hop around the meadow, looking for the juiciest carrots..."

Kriti's attention was immediately captured by Vaiga's voice. She stopped squirming and focused on the story. Taking advantage of the distraction, Abhay quickly scooped some food and brought it to her mouth. Kriti, engrossed in the Vaiga's soothing voice rather than the story, opened her mouth, allowing him to feed her.

Abhay continued to feed her, spoonful by spoonful, while Vaiga kept up the story.

"Binky's best friend was a tiny mouse named Momo. They would play together all day long..."

Kriti's eyes were wide with wonder, listening intently. Abhay was amazed at how effective Vaiga's storytelling was. He managed to feed Kriti most of her lunch, and by the time she started to lose interest, she was almost done.

"Thank you, Vaiga," Abhay said, with genuine gratitude in his voice.

"No problem," Vaiga replied with a smile. "Call me if you need anything else."

Abhay ended the call, and Kriti immediately noticed. Her happy babbles turned into a fierce glare, and she pointed at his phone, angrily babbling as if demanding to see Vaiga again.

Abhay couldn't help but chuckle, tears forming in his eyes.

He couldn't believe the progress he had made with Kriti. It was unbelievable even for him. Like Mithran once said, he had been merely an accessory in this house in Kriti's eyes. But now, she had started recognizing him, and he had become a constant in her life.