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63. Prince Anshuman (Last)

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This is the final chapter of the book. I will publish the EPILOGUE only after the target of this chapter and the last few chapters are completed. So, if you haven't voted for the chapter yet, go and vote now!

Anirudh's POV

Home.

That was what I felt in that moment as I lay there, watching my wife sleep peacefully beside me, with our newborn son nestled between us. I gently caressed her hair, my gaze fixed on Tara’s face. She looked utterly exhausted, the toll of childbirth etched into her delicate features. And yet, even in her weariness, she looked serene… beautiful.

I couldn’t help but admire the little family we had created. A family I had almost lost.

The memory of the battlefield was still fresh in my mind, the sharp, searing pain of a blade plunging into my already wounded stomach. For a fleeting moment, I truly believed it was the end. I thought I would never open my eyes again. That I would never get to see Tara’s face one more time. Never hear her voice. Never hold our son in my arms or give him a father’s love.

But giving up was never an option. Not when I had made her a promise, that I would return to her no matter what. That I would always come back home.

The last thing I remembered before losing consciousness was Abhimanyu’s enraged roar as he struck down the man who had stabbed me. When I awoke, I was in a tent, the familiar voice of our physician urging me to stay still. We had taken physicians with us into the warzone so our injured soldiers could be treated immediately. That foresight had saved me.

As soon as I woke up, I got to know that I was unconscious from last ten hours. At that moment the only thought in my mind was of Tara. I knew when I woke up that something was wrong, she was not okay. So, without any delay I came to our palace even though I was in pain. But the thought of something happening to Tara was heart wrenching.

And I was right, Tara had been in labor for twelve agonizing hours by the time I reached the palace. My heart clenched when I learned that she had refused to give birth until I returned. She was waiting for me… even through the pain. That fierce, stubborn love, it was so her.

I shuddered to think what could have happened if I hadn’t made it in time. The thought alone sent a chill down my spine. I didn’t even want to imagine a world where I had lost her or our son.

A tear slipped down my cheek, and I quickly wiped it away. My gaze returned to the two of them, my home, my heart, my entire world.

A soft whimper escaped our son’s lips as he stirred in his sleep, his tiny face scrunching up like he was about to cry. I gently scooped him into my arms, holding him close, whispering sweet nothings into his ear. He relaxed almost instantly, curling into my chest with a trust that melted my soul. I rocked him slowly, in rhythm with his breathing, until he slipped back into a peaceful slumber.

After a while, I laid him carefully between us, his tiny body safe and warm beside his mother. I pressed a kiss to the top of his soft head, then to Tara’s forehead. She didn’t stir, still lost in the rest she so desperately needed.

Finally, I lay back down, cradling them both in my arms. My eyes never left them, even as sleep pulled me under. I didn’t know when exactly I drifted off but I did, with a full heart, wrapped in the love of my family.

                             •

I walked briskly toward the area where our son's naming ceremony was about to take place. It had been a month since his birth, and also a month since the war had ended.