HER SAFE PLACE

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Rocky's POV

The cold walls of the courthouse seemed to press in on me as I stood there, staring down at the document in my hands. Marriage. The word felt so hollow in this moment, like it didn't carry the same weight it should. I glanced sideways at Shivangi, who was standing beside me, her face pale and emotionless. She had agreed to this, but it wasn't the kind of marriage anyone would dream of.

A contract. That's what this was. No love, no physical connection, no intimacy-nothing. It was purely for the child. Shivangi had made that clear from the beginning. She had been so adamant, so determined to set these boundaries.

"I'll marry you, but there will be nothing between us," she had said, her voice sharp, leaving no room for argument. "You can date whoever you want, Rocky. I don't care. This marriage is just for my child's future."

Hearing her say those words had torn something inside me, but I knew better than to fight it. I knew she wasn't ready for anything more. Not after everything she had been through. Pushing her would only make her retreat further, and I couldn't risk that. I couldn't lose her, not now.

So, I had agreed. I had nodded, signing away what should've been a meaningful moment, accepting the terms that felt more like a business deal than a marriage. I didn't care about dating anyone else. That wasn't what this was about. All I wanted was her-just her, by my side. Nothing more, nothing less.

As the judge's words echoed through the courtroom, officially binding us together, my thoughts drifted back to how we ended up here. Shivangi, after that evening when I asked her to marry me, she agreed for it. A marriage on her terms. It wasn't the kind of marriage I'd ever imagined for myself, but when it came to her, I was willing to accept anything.

Because I knew, deep down, that I could make her comfortable with me, in time. I didn't need her to love me right now, and I definitely didn't need the physical aspect of marriage. I just wanted her to feel safe. I wanted her to know that she wasn't alone, that I would be here for her, no matter what.

I glanced at Shivangi again. Her eyes were cast down, avoiding mine, her hands clenching the edges of her saree tightly. She wasn't ready for this-any of it. But she was doing it for the baby, for the future. And I couldn't blame her. After everything she had been through, it was a miracle she was even standing here. That bastard-her ex-husband had ruined so much for her, and her parents had abandoned her when she needed them the most. The scars ran deep, and I could see them in every hesitant glance, every guarded movement.

But I wasn't in this for me. I wasn't marrying her because I wanted something from her. I wasn't expecting love or affection, or anything physical. I just wanted her to be okay. I wanted her to trust me enough to know that I would never hurt her the way she had been hurt before. And if it took years for her to feel that trust, I would wait. I would wait for as long as it took because she was worth it.

Shivangi shifted beside me, and I could see the tension in her shoulders, the way she was bracing herself for something she didn't want to face. She was scared, and I knew that. But I also knew that in time, things would change. Maybe not tomorrow, maybe not even next year, but someday, she'd see that I wasn't going anywhere. She'd realize that she didn't need to keep building these walls between us.

The judge cleared his throat, pulling me back to the present moment. "You may now sign the marriage certificate."

With a deep breath, I stepped forward, the pen heavy in my hand. This was it. The start of something neither of us fully understood yet. I scribbled my name on the paper, sealing the contract that wasn't about love but about something far more complicated. Something that, in time, I hoped would grow into something real.