“Who will get an attack?” Kiara’s entry had them alert. Pushing her phone back into her pocket, she came towards them with stressed eyebrows. Leo and Maya zipped up their mouth, staring at each other. Exhaling a breath of silence, Leo licked his lips before replying.“Ma’am… it would stress her knowing his condition!” He said with a blank gaze projected toward his boss.Maya nodded when Kiara frowned. “He is right. Leena Aunty must be already grieving today; it’s not a good idea to inform her yet about him.” With her tone serious, she pressed her lips together.Kiara got their intention clear. Her gaze softened. She nodded in response, but a question again resurfaced in her mind.Sneaking a look at Leo, she asked Maya in a low voice. “But what’s so special today? I mean, I get it if you don’t want to tell me…” She fidgeted with her fingers and shrugged her shoulders to make the question look easy.“Kiara, if you’re getting upset over his labeling, then please don’t. Leo has always bee
“Thank you so much for saving them, Kiara. First Aunty, then Viaan… you are a true savior. We can never forget the favor you do to us!” Kiara heard Maya continue with her words full of gratitude and nodded in response.The words warmed Kiara’s heart. Nobody has ever made her feel so important. Looking at Maya with expressive eyes, she said.“You don’t have to thank me again, Maya. I did what any human would do.” She shifted forward, catching Maya’s hand in hers. “Thus it was nothing like favors and all!”The compassion in her eyes and warmth in her tone told Maya how good of a person Kiara was. She smiled slowly and shook her head.“You know, Kia — I can call you Kia, right?” Maya paused to get confirmation.The doubtful tone of hers made Kiara chuckle. She blinked her eyes with that little nod.“Great. So you know, Kia, I’ve been a part of their life for the last four years only, but the love I received from Aunty Leena and Viaan makes me think I know them for a lifetime.” Maya let o
‘Baby doll…’ The words echoed in her ear, setting shivers down her spine.That spine-chilling moment revolved in her mind, taking her down memory lane.Kiara squeezed her eyes shut, setting her jaws together. Her fingers balled up into steel fists. The scaring moment of their lecherous laughter roared in her ears again. Nails dug harder into her soft skin, and teeth sank into the soft flesh of her lips; Kiara shivered at the remnants of that evening… of those boys.Screeching her chair backward, Maya jumped from her seat and rushed to her. She was quick enough to notice the psychological changes in Kiara’s body language.“Kia… Kia…” she called out loud, shaking her shoulders to break her trance.The lady had an accurate idea of what must have triggered such a terror-filled response in her.Kiara trembled, panting hard. She bit her lips harder, trying to control the fear. Unfortunately, the girl was failing unconditionally.“Kia… please calm down… look at me, girl, calm down!” Maya squ
“Urrghhh…”Viaan moaned, trying to lift his head. It felt heavy to even open his eyes, still… he tried and raised his lashes. The medical room had basic lighting since the patient was sleeping, but it was enough for anyone to look clearly at everything. Viaan tried once again and opened his eyes.The scene in front of him was blurry, thus he couldn’t focus outright. He could feel his nerves pulsating hard.“God…” His fingers pressed against the throbbing nerve of his temples and he blinked a few times to have a clear vision.The moment he noticed the surrounding, his brows knitted in confusion. He couldn’t recognize the place and that panicked him.His eyes immediately roamed across the room to scrutinize the place for any supposed danger. Except for the white walls, chairs, a small table, and a few more basic things in a medical room, he didn’t see anything. Since no one was present in his room, he panicked and raised his head to turn around, but the very next moment his head banged
“What?” Viaan’s eyes snapped at him and then at Kiara when Leo revealed it. A flinching sound then echoed when he yelped again in pain. He tried to get up but failed miserably.“Ahh…” The back of his head throbbed at the sudden loss of support.“Mr. Adams…” Kiara shouted, instinctively. Her eyes widened at his pain, and she flinched like it was her pain. All three of them noted that except herself. She even stepped forward absentmindedly and scolded the man for his carelessness. “Why are you getting up when your head is hurting?”Utterly concerned words and her tone gained her three pairs of curious views. She was still aloof and glaring at Viaan, waiting for his answer.A blanket of silence wrapped around the room. Viaan’s eyes darted to Leo, who was suppressing the smirk by biting his inner cheeks. Meanwhile, Maya stared at Kiara with amusement swirling in her eyes. She next looked at Viaan and smiled mischievously.The man knew he was so in trouble after today’s episode. Clearing h
“First Maa, then uncle James, now Maya. All of them who I call my family know her. Why is everything getting more complicated, man?” Viaan sighed, rubbing his face with both of his palms.Sitting against the bedpost, he tried to figure out the sudden chaos his life had brought to him.A few hours ago, Leo told him everything about his unconscious state and how Kiara helped him reach the medical facility. Not feeding his emotions too much, he ignored the sudden rise in his heartbeat when Leo mentioned how Kiara was worried about him.And he had noticed it personally a few hours ago. Her presence… her concerns. Everything stirred something inside him.Then came another bomb on his explosion-prone story, in the form of the revelation that Maya and Kiara had become friends back in his house. To say it shocked him would be an understatement. Viaan was gobsmacked, with his eyes popped out and jaws touching the floor. Astonishment was the only state of reality he was living for a month now.
Viaan and Leo snapped their heads hearing a third person’s voice. They exhaled in relief the very next moment. Half of the tension present in the room subsided just by looking at him standing on the threshold.“Ryan…” Viaan breathed out, biting his lip. His haywire mind found some peace, having his friend-cum-brother by his side finally.Leo helped him get up as he was still feeling dizzy and the next moment, he was enveloped in the humble embrace of brotherhood.Ryan took two long strides and hugged him. His mind was finally at peace, seeing his best friend standing in a stable health condition. Only he knew how he spent these hours while coming back.“How are you feeling now?” Stepping back from the hug, Ryan asked, holding Viaan’s arms.“Better!” The man nodded his head positively, understanding his friend’s concerns. The unfortunate day added some more scary moments to their lives.“I was so worried you were not responding and then your phone died then Leo said you were missing…”
“Perhaps,” Kiara heard herself muttering the words with a fuzzy thought surrounding her sane mind. She had no idea why such a reply came out of her consciousness. She was not lying, though; neither to herself nor her close ones. Her eyes focused down, and she bit her lips, controlling her overwhelming emotions.“Kia…” Rachel whisper-yelled, astonished at the scene. Staring at her friend, who was lost in her thought, she couldn’t believe it was the same Kiara who was crying because of that man’s cruelty a fortnight back.“I don’t know anything, Rach, please don’t ask me anything.” Sniffing softly, Kiara pleaded. “I don’t know why I am feeling so… I don’t know why my eyes are welling up at the thoughts of anything happening to him. I…” She paused, letting out another soft cry. She kept her face in her hands, letting her emotions fall freely into her own embrace.Rachel extended her hands and hugged her friend, consoling the emotional girl. That was the only thing she found best to do at
Writer’s POV:-Mr. Moore wiped the sweat off his forehead while waiting for the call to be received.“Hello!” The reply came as soon as the call was received.“I have done my work. Now give me my thing back!” He said over the call.“I am impressed with your quickness, Mr. Moore.” a masculine heavy voice was heard from the other side. “I thought you would still take a few more days. But no. You proved why this is priceless to you. Excellent, old man.” With a dark chuckle, the man added. The words were more like a mocking of Mr. Moore’s efforts, and that made the elderly man clench his fingers.Mr. Moore’s entire body shook with rage. At that moment, he wanted nothing but to thrash everything around. To get the man in a chokehold and punch him straight across the face for making him dance on his fingers. However, the helplessness of the situation had him holding from behind. He can’t act repulsive. Not at this stage when he is so close to the one thing that he has been finding for sever
Viaan’s POV:-I helped Maa get down from the car, supporting her gently as she stepped onto the gravel path. As soon as her eyes fell on the scene in front of us, she froze. Her fingers tightened around my palm, clutching mine with a grip that spoke volumes.“Viaan, this…” She began, her voice trailing off as disbelief washed over her.Not believing what she saw, she was struggling to find the right set of words. Her lips wobbled putting an impromptu pause. She looked back at me, her gaze searching for confirmation, her body trembling slightly.That was my cue to confirm her doubts.With pride and emotions lacing my own voice, I squeezed her shoulders and nodded. “Paradis d’Amour, Maa. Our dream.” I announced, taking my mother in a half hug from sideways, holding onto her as tightly as I could.She averted her gaze back to the property. With a dip in her brows, she looked at me once again, “Huh?”I knew, I knew she was getting the meaning of my words but the yearning self of hers want
Writer’s POV:-“Where are you taking us, Viaan? At least tell me now.” Leena asked for the nth time, getting annoyed at her son’s silence over the matter.Viaan, like the previous times, smiled mischievously and answered without looking back. “Patience, Maa, patience. You’ll come to know soon.”Leena scoffed audibly, narrowing her eyes at her son’s mischief, and scolded him lightly. “That ‘soon’ of yours has not come since the last three and a half hours of our journey. How long more would you keep it a secret?” Her eyes wrinkled at the corners while her nose flared in annoyance.Her anger didn’t seem to affect Viaan a bit as the man chuckled loudly. “As I said, it is a surprise, Maa. I’m not telling you to spoil the fun already.” He refused to reveal, making his mother smack his arms from the backseat.“You have become too naughty these days.” She said through her gritted teeth, only to get a burst of hearty laughter from her son.Huffing, she crossed her hands across her chest and s
Writer’s POV:-“Thank you so much, Guys.” An emotional Viaan expressed his gratitude to the two of the constant pillars of his life.Receiving brotherly pats on his back as a response, he reluctantly broke the hug. His dull face was uplifted with the pure essence of their support throughout his life.“You —” Ryan started to speak, but then his eyes narrowed as he studied Viaan’s features more closely. “Were you crying, Viaan?” His eyes scanned Viaan’s face with concern.On cue, Leo also took a closer look. “Yeah, you look off!” He exclaimed, pointing out the obvious signs of distress.Viaan stilled. His smile dropped into a thin line. Immediately, he averted his eyes away from them and looked everywhere around.How come Ryan observed that? His shoulders tensed once again.“No. Why would I cry?” He chuckled nervously shrugging his shoulders, not wanting them to read his face further.“Then why are your eyes red and moist?” Ryan scoffed, narrowing his eyes. “Don’t lie through your teeth
Back in the present time, The PenthouseViaan’s POV, :Looking at the keys, I fisted them tightly. I was in my penthouse where I had come just an hour ago to get freshened up. Last night, I had to lie to Kia and Maa as I had spent entire hours in planning for the surprise for Maa. Then this morning the leftover documentation took my time while I also went to check for last-minute preparations. I just happened to come here one hour ago as I can’t go directly to home. And as soon as I came here, the first thing I did was to call Maa. She deserves the surprise the most.All through this while, I also kept myself reassured that this was not a dream anymore but a reality.A beautiful reality.A certain kind of peace filled my heart. I felt the cores of my eyes moistening up. Our dream was finally completed.“Paradis d’Amour is finally ours, Papa. I completed your and Maa’s dreams.” My voice choked with emotions as I looked at the picture frame on my desk while placing the keys reverently b
Writer’s POV:-“Did Viaan tell when will he come?” Leena asked Kiara who was serving her breakfast.Her hands stopped in the air and she raised her head to her mother-in-law. “No, Maa. He had just dropped the text last night that he wouldn’t be coming home tonight as he had an urgent meeting and some important work. So, he is perhaps staying at the penthouse itself.” Kiara sighed, continuing to fill Leena’s plate.Leena nodded recalling the text Kiara showed her last night. Viaan had specifically mentioned to tell Leena about it, he himself didn’t text her thinking she must be asleep by then.It was around eleven in the morning. Both the ladies were having a late breakfast today, as Kiara was nauseous and not feeling good this morning; thus she had delayed her meal.Although Leena had something light earlier as she had to have medicines as well, she still joined Kiara in the late meal.It was Leena’s assistance that she was even eating, lest she was all ready to ditch the breakfast to
Writer’s POV:-“And the man said that Mr. Adams is ready to meet at the earliest possible date,” Daniel revealed, sounding serious and firm.Hunter sat straight with a jerk, his brows dipping in. “How come he agreed this early? Didn’t he and his lawyer want time?” The question triggered his mind, he inquired in a disbelieving tone.The frown went deeper on his face; his eyeballs moving constantly as he tried to figure out Viaan’s step. One thing was crystal clear neither Viaan nor his lawyer saw this proposal as a simple invitation to get rid of legal troubles. Hence it was very much acceptable for his rival to seek time to agree or even deny.That’s why, even when this frustrated Hunter, he was ready for any secret investigation Viaan did on him. But little did he expect, that his acceptance would come this early and fast.He heard Daniel huffing from the other end and came out of his thoughts. “I have no idea, Sir. But if they are ready then why not proceed? This was the plan after
Writer’s POV:-“Kia, calm down. Ryan said that he won’t reveal anything to Viaan.” Sophie tried to calm her down, but the girl was far from calming down.A ready havoc was created in her mind and heart and she had no idea how to deal with it.“But he didn’t even give me any time, Soph. All he allowed me is tonight.” Kiara retorted, holding her breath in apprehension.She can hear her heart pounding in her ears, and sweat beads adorning her temples even after the decreased temperature of AC.Her words followed a silence before Sophie sighed audibly. “You have taken more than you should, Kia. You can’t avoid it any longer. Dr. Ryan was right when he said the more delay you are making the harder it would be to make Viaan understand.” Sophie indirectly quoted Ryan’s words from the last evening.“Out of all people, you should be understanding my dilemma, Soph.” Kiara clicked her tongue, getting annoyed at not finding any solution. “I didn’t wait for Tyler to just wake up, but I needed to k
Writer’s POV:-“Not only this but also the fact that Aaron is Tyler and Sophie’s son!” Ryan’s voice was steady, but there was a hint of solemnity in his tone.As Ryan dropped the bombshell, Kiara and Sophie froze, their eyes widening in shock. The words hung in the air, heavy with the weight of the revelation.A revelation that Kiara least expected today.The room fell into a stunned silence. The only thing audible at that moment was the ticking of the clock and the lazy evening wind coming through the open windows of Ryan’s cabin.With a composed face, Ryan watched the two women in front of him, trying hard to digest the truth he just disclosed.He knew this was going to be their reaction once her tells them the truth, but still watching them doing so, made him amused.Did they really think they would keep this massive truth away from him?Did they seriously think he wasn’t going to find it out, ever? He was a doctor, for God’s sake. It was impossible for this truth to be a secret fr