Thrones of Thakurs

❉ XI ❉

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Target- 50 votes

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»»-----　Pratyush　-----««

The leather couch in the VVIP ward creaked under Pratyush's weight as he shifted,his doctor instincts told him her vitals were stable, but his heart raced every time she stirred in her sleep.

Through the window, Mumbai's skyline sparkled like scattered diamonds against the velvet night, but his eyes kept returning to Niharika's pale form on the hospital bed.

She lay on the bed in front of him, an IV drip attached to her hand, slowly injecting saline water into her veins.

When she had broken down in tears and passed out, Pratyush had brought her here. Her glucose levels were low, along with signs of dehydration.

He massaged his temples, leaning his head back against the headrest, staring at the blank white ceiling.

As he closed his eyes, Niharika's tear-streaked face flashed before him, asking why he had shattered her life. Her voice, broken and pained, echoed in his ears.Trapping him in guilt to a decision which he hadn't taken deliberately.

He had refused to marry her, yet he'd received a call from her mother, asking him to meet.

And when he did, she'd laid the proposal out in front of him.

"I got a call from Prithviraj Thakur," her mother had said. "And I want you two to get married as soon as possible." Her words confused him; he couldn't understand why she'd want this marriage to happen.

His uncle's reason was clear-it was all for the company. But what was her mother's reason? He couldn't help but wonder if money was a factor.

If her daughter married into the Thakur family, she'd never face financial problems again.

"I'm not marrying your daughter," Pratyush had stated firmly, wanting to end the conversation.

"You have to," she interjected, almost pleading. His irritation rose, but he held it back.

She was the same age as his mother, and he didn't want to say something disrespectful.

"Mrs. Bansal, this isn't a game. If you're afraid of my uncle, I assure you, nothing will happen. The photos will be deleted from the internet too," he said, trying to make her understand.

"And there is nothing..." He closed his eyes, struggling with the words. "Nothing between your daughter and me."

She looked at him, her eyes filling with tears that threatened to fall, though her demeanor remained calm and composed.

"I know, but..." Her voice broke slightly. "I want to make sure my daughter is in safe hands when I'm not here."

Pratyush furrowed his brows, not fully understanding what she meant.

"I have cancer," she confessed, fighting to hold back her tears. "Six months"she stared in blank"I have very less time to live."

Her voice trembled as she spoke, tears finally trailing down her pale, hollow cheeks.

"There's no one else to take care of Niharika. When I got the call proposing her marriage with you, I felt hope..."

"Please..." she pleaded, her voice cracking as she joined her hands in front of him.

"I can't leave her in this world alone. She's too naive, too innocent for it. Please...".She knelt before him, her eyes pleading.

Pratyush was overwhelmed. As a doctor, he had heard many stories of illness and witnessed death countless times.