Bihari Assistant for Nri Boss

chapter 16

Rivaan didn’t bother checking the time when he drove to Naina’s apartment. His mind was too chaotic, the thought of her pregnancy consuming every rational thought. He reached her apartment building in the middle of the night, not caring that it was way past normal visiting hours.

He knocked loudly, his frustration and confusion building with every passing second.

“Naina! Naina, open the door!” he shouted, banging on the door repeatedly.

Inside, Naina was fast asleep, finally getting some rest after the long weeks of emotional and physical exhaustion. The loud knocking woke her up, and she groaned in frustration, her tired body protesting as she dragged herself out of bed.

*Who could possibly be knocking at this hour?* she thought, irritated as she approached the door. When she opened it, there stood Rivaan, his face unreadable as usual, but his eyes were dark with an intensity she hadn’t seen before.

"Oye, Mister!" Naina snapped, still groggy from sleep. "I know you’re my boss, but that doesn’t mean you can come to my home in the middle of the night and wake me up like this!"

He stood there, expressionless, staring at her with those piercing eyes. In his deep, angry voice, he cut straight to the point. “Are you pregnant with my baby?”

Naina blinked, her irritation quickly replaced by resignation. She sighed, rubbing her temples, too tired to argue or be defensive. “Yeah, so? Are you really here to ask me this at midnight? You could’ve asked me in the morning.”

Rivaan’s jaw tightened, his frustration evident. “When were you going to tell me?” he asked, his voice edged with anger.

Naina lowered her gaze and muttered, “Maybe never.”

“What did you just say?” he asked, his voice low and tense.

“Nothing,” she replied quickly, collapsing onto the sofa. She was exhausted, both physically and emotionally, and couldn’t bring herself to have this conversation right now. "Can we talk about this in the morning? I'm too tired to think or say anything to you right now."

Rivaan stared at her for a moment, taking in her appearance. She looked worn out, paler than usual, and thinner, like she hadn’t been eating properly. He hadn’t noticed before, but now it hit him how much the pregnancy and everything else must have been weighing on her.

“Okay,” he finally agreed, his tone softer but still firm. “But I’m not leaving you alone tonight.”

Naina was too drained to argue with him. She simply nodded and waved her hand toward the sofa. "Fine. But you’re sleeping on the sofa."

She got up and disappeared into her room for a moment, returning with a pillow and blanket. She handed them to him without a word and walked back to her room, closing the door behind her.

Rivaan lay down on the sofa, trying to sleep but his mind wouldn’t quiet. All he could think about was the baby—*his* baby—and Naina, who had been carrying this burden alone for weeks. He didn’t know what tomorrow would bring, but he knew one thing for sure—he wasn’t going to let her face this alone anymore.