He sat there on the floor, unable to believe that such a thing happened to him. The confession that his heart was yearning to listen to was brought to him all decorated in a platter, but the thing was it had been destroyed into a mulch. Even though he heard her say those three golden words, it pinched his heart and pierced through his very soul.

His heart was broken into pieces and he wasn't even sure if he would ever be able to mend it back.

He couldn't gather up even a single bit of courage to get up. He didn't even possess a morsel of strength to imagine a life without her. In just past few days, she had become his lifeline and without her, he had no idea how he could survive.

He was lost in his thought when he heard a knock on the door and heard David's voice.

"Come in !!!", he said.

David entered the room and saw Raymond sitting miserably on the floor. He had seen Akira leaving his room and he understood what was going through his heart.

He stood at a distance from him without saying anything and waited for him to get up and brace himself before he spoke anything.

Raymond looked at David and asked,

"At least tell me you have something good for me?"

David reluctantly took out an envelope from his pocket and placed it on the desk and said,

"That's the report. I personally picked it up from Dr. Brook's office".

"And everything has been taken care of?", he asked.

"Yes, everything is clear. No traces left", he said and was about to leave.

But then he turned back again and said,

"I am in no position to comment anything about your personal matter. But this is something I guess you should read", he said and handed a few torn and crumpled pages to Raymond.

"What is this?", Raymond asked in surprise and then saw the handwriting and immediately understood.

"Umm... she tore and threw them, but I think it was paramount that you know how much you meant to her", he said and left the room.

Raymond looked at those crumpled pages and her handwriting. Her beautiful cursive writing and the mistakes that she had scribbled and drew huge stars to hide them up brought nothing but insurmountable pain to his heart. He carefully folded those papers and placed it in his jacket and went to his table to check the Pre-natal Parental DNA test results.

He could read just one word.

"AFFIRMATIVE"

He felt like he had been struck by lightning.

He couldn't understand how to react to it. He wanted to have this child so bad and now that it was proven to be his own, instead of being happy he was strangely upset. He felt like he was enclosed within a cage and he had no way to escape. He screamed at the top of his lungs and then threw all the stuff that was on the table.

A minute later when calmed down, he picked his phone and called Katherine,

"Hey, Ray, what happened? Everything ok?", she asked all concerened.

"I am finished, Kat !!! It's my child. Why am I being so selfish to an unborn kid Kat? What is wrong with me?", Raymond said and chugged a pail of pain searing through his heart.

"DNA results are out?", she asked.

"Yeah!!! Got them just now", Raymond said.

"I do not understand Raymond. How can it be your child? I had myself seen the abortion report with my own eyes. Did she lie to us back then? I don't get it", Katherine asked.

"As I said, I do not seek reasons to shrug away my responsibilities", Raymond said.

Katherine didn't speak a word for a moment. Then she asked.

"Does Akira know about the test results?"

"She never even doubted or questioned me, Kat. Not even once. She didn't ask for any reason. I guess I have lost her forever Kat. She has walked out of my life to make me happy. How do I tell her that I am not happy Kat? How do I tell her?", Raymond said and lost all his composure.

He slumped on the chair and couldn't say anything else.

"Let me do the talking now. You focus on your work and your baby Ray. No matter what you are still the baby's father. I will figure out how to deal with Scarlett. You leave that up to me", Katherine said.

"Kat !!!", Raymond said and stopped.

"I can't breathe without her", Raymond said and Katherine could sense that he was already on the verge of breaking.

"You are not going to lose her Ray. I am not going to let that happen. Just give me some time", Katherine said and her mind immediately started rummaging through ways to get the evil witch out of Raymond's life.

He kept the call and stared at the Paternity test report and then tore it into pieces and threw it in the dustbin.

He was just a thread away from losing his sanity and that thread was lying in his pocket. He took out the pages from Akira's dairy and started reading them one by one.

YOU and I

___________

I tiptoed, you flipped and make me turn round and round,

Your hand touched me in places,

My heart moaned but I tried hard to make no sound.

Your touch oh, so gentle made my heart melt like a candle,

When your lips inched closer, I wanted you to to stop.

God only knows it was too tempting to handle...

Today we danced like there was no tomorrow.

[Then he read a couple more pages and moved to the last one]

DO PARALLEL ROADS MEET?

___________

You were the unicorn and I was the damsel in distress,

Our lives so different, like two parallel roads in sheer anonymity,

It felt like we could never cross each others path,

But you kissed me and said- Oh yes baby, we do in INFINITY.

Today we kissed ..... :)

I melted in his arms and it felt like he was mine to be with since ages. You know sometimes you just meet someone special and you just know at that instant that you are just meant to be his? I guess I have found my special someone and I do not intend to leave him until death tries to drive us apart.

He read her pages and could feel how she had bared her soul. He recollected every single breath of hers that he had felt on his skin. Every single strand of her hair that tingled and stoked his face. He remember how right he felt when she was in his arms and then he spoke in dispair,

"You had promised Akira!!!"

"You had promised to never leave me".