The Unwanted Royal Marriage

48. Stay back, Rohan.

Adhyay's pov

It has been a week. Seven days since Meera disappeared from my life, and each one feels like an eternity. The silence in the house is deafening. I wake up every morning, hoping it's all just some nightmare—a cruel joke—but then I remember, and the weight of it settles over me again.

She's gone.

I haven't been able to stop thinking about her, replaying every moment, every word. Her absence is a wound I can't seem to heal, no matter how hard I try to push it away. Every corner of this mansion feels empty without her. The way she used to laugh, the way she would look at me with those eyes full of warmth. It's all a distant memory now.

I can still hear her voice in my head, her words echoing like a haunting melody: "I will always be with you, even when I'm gone." But how? How is she still with me when I can't even feel her presence anymore? The world feels colder without her. The only thing that keeps me going is the small hope that somehow, in some way, she's still alive.

But I can't help but wonder: Where is she? Why hasn't she come back? She wouldn't leave me. She promised she wouldn't. And yet, here I am—alone, with nothing but the unanswered questions gnawing at me.

I've been trying to hold myself together, for her. For the love we shared. But every night, as I lie awake in bed, I can't help but question if it was all just a dream. Was it all real?

The house has changed since she left. It feels like the air is heavier, like it knows something I don't. The people around me have noticed too. Dhruv keeps telling me to stop drowning myself in alcohol, but I can't help it. The numbness is all I can rely on right now.

Siddharth and the others have been trying to keep me occupied, but I'm just going through the motions. I can't focus on anything else but her. Every time I think about her, it's like a dagger to my chest.

I don't know how much longer I can do this. I don't know how much longer I can pretend everything is okay when inside, I'm dying.

Meera, where are you?

I clench my fists, frustration building within me.

I need to find her. I have to. She can't be gone. Not like this.

I stand up from my chair, the decision clear in my mind. I'll find her. No matter what it takes. I won't rest until she's back where she belongs—by my side.

And this time, I'll make sure no one can take her away from me again.

"Adhyay, we need to talk."

The voices cut through the haze of sorrow that had clouded my mind since Meera's departure. I turned to see Dev and Baba sa standing there, both their faces grim but determined. I had hoped for peace, even for just a moment, but now it seemed the world was intent on pushing me into the next chapter of a life I didn't want to live.

"What, Baba sa?" I muttered, my voice hollow, lacking the strength to hide the exhaustion and despair.

Baba sa took a deep breath before speaking again, his tone heavy with authority yet laced with a quiet concern.

"I want you to take the position. Let's have your coronation."

His words struck like a thunderclap, as if the world had decided for me what my path would be, even when I was too broken to decide for myself. I looked at him, lost for words. The idea of stepping into the role that Meera and I had once dreamt of together felt like a betrayal of everything she had meant to me.

"No, Baba sa," I replied sharply, my voice barely above a whisper, but firm enough to push back. "I don't want it."

Dev stepped forward, his gaze meeting mine with a mixture of frustration and sadness.