To write this story, I have read so many articles written by cancer survivors upto the point that i became paranoid. Now whenever i feel a pain, the first thing that comes in my mind is cancer.

So point out any mistakes if you are from this field.

No proof reading

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"Arnav, we can't abort our baby like that." Khushi told him as soon as they reached home.

"Khushi your health is important than our baby." He argued.

"Arnav, if we lose our baby now there is no guarantee that we could have a baby in the future. I cant kill our baby Arnav." She said holding his hand.

"Khushi try to understand what I'm saying. I want you in my life, I'm okay even if we don't have a baby. I just want you in my life, to share my life with you."

"Arnav, you are not..." She tried to make him understand her point and he suddenly lost his coolness.

"What do you expect me to do then? Sit here and watch this baby snatching you away from me? I married you because i wanted to spend my life with you not to become a widower who would hate the child." He shouted pulling her closer by her shoulder. Her eyes started to get pooled by tears. He loosen his grip and turned away breaking down in front of her, holding her hand.

"Khushi, please don't do this to me. I want you Khushi. I want you in my life." For her it hurt seeing him like that. He is her strength, the one who supported her in every decisions and encouraged her. There were times when they struggled to meet the two ends, all that time he was the one who cheered her up and took her worries away. So the scene in front of her shook her to the core. She can't tolerate seeing him breaking down like that. She sat there staring at him and pulled her hands from his grip.

"I need time... It's hard..." Her inner turmoil made her stammer.

"We don't have enough time Khushi. You have to make a decision." He told her and she nodded her head. Throughout that day, they spend their time separately thinking about their future.

Khushi sat in front of her devimaiyya with teary eyes.

"Why are you doing this to me? Why you made me fell in love with him if you knew that he is going to suffer along with me? From the time he married me, I have never seen him resting for a day. Why can't you spare him from all these heartbreak? All these years, I had kept my faith on you and you could have shown some mercy on him atleast. Was our love a crime? Is that why you are punishing our baby? Hey devimaiyya, please spare him and our baby from all these, give me whatever punishment you want me to." She questioned her God as she placed her hand over her stomach.

Meanwhile, Arnav did namaz seeking blessings for his wife and asking for strength to go through the trial he have in front of him. He knew that he have to be strong for his wife, he can't be weak in front of her. Once he done with his prayers, he went to check on Khushi who have fell asleep on the table.

He saw her cheeks stained with tear. He lifted her and made her lie on the bed. He placed a kiss on her forehead and stared at her tummy.

He placed his hand over her tummy and lightly whispered.

"I'm sorry, please don't hate me." He apologized to his baby whom he consider as a threat. He sat beside her holding her hand. When he first met her he felt a connection with her. As they become friends, he started to fell for her. Then their marriage happened all of a sudden. There were days when he felt disappointed when he was unable to fulfill her small wishes and promises.

All used to vanish away with her smile and assurance. She have always tolerated and understood the mistakes he have done. Past two years were beautiful with her presence in his life and he wanted that throughout his life.

After a few hours, Arnav called Khushi to have dinner. They returned back to their room and laid down next to each other. There were facing eachother with their fingers entwined.

"Arnav, we can't abort our baby like that. What if our baby have a chance?"

"It's not about our baby Khushi."

"Arnav, can we decide about this after considering a second opinion? We should consult my oncologist for that." She suggested.

"Okay we will do that, but you have to promise me that you will not put yourself in harm if the doctor ask you to terminate the pregnancy." She nodded her head as tears rolled down from her eyes.

"I know it's hard Khushi. Trust me, I too feel the same but we don't have any other option." He said pulling her closer and wrapping his arms around her. Both of have a hard time to sleep.

"Are you awake?" Arnav asked after sometime.

"Yes." She felt his hand on her bare stomach. She placed her hand over his hand and looked at him.

"This day ought to be the happiest day, but I'm sorry for making you cry like that." He said to her.

"No, you didn't made me cry. I'm just sad that our life turned like this. I should be sorry for putting you through this." She replied.

"You didn't done anything Khushi. Let's just hope for the best. Will our baby hate me for this?" He asked her. She shook her head and cupped his face.

"No, our baby won't. He can understand what his father is going though." They both got teary and he placed a kiss on her forehead.

"I love you a lot Khushi." He said burying his face on the crook of her neck.

"I love you too." She hugged him and they slowly fell asleep after few hours.

Next day, Arnav took Khushi to her previous oncologist.

"Mrs. Khushi, I have read your reports. Regarding what you asked me, the termination of this pregnancy depends upon the growth of your cancer cells. So in this case, you don't have to terminate the pregnancy." Dr. Shekhar told both of them which mad me them smile.

"Will both of them be okay?" Arnav asked the doctor.

"Yes Mr. Arnav, the cancer treatment procedure is the same but we have to do it without harming your baby. To stop the spreading of cancer, first we have to do a mastectomy. That will put both of them in a safe zone. If you are willing to do the mastectomy we can conduct it once she completes her first trimester." Doctor told both of them. Arnav held her hand and squeezed lightly.

- Breast Removal Surgery)

"What about chemotherapy and radiation?" Khushi asked the doctor.

"We can carry out chemo after the mastectomy if you opt for that. At this stage, we can't give radiation. It will be given after delivery."

"Our baby will be fine, won't he?" Khushi asked the doctor.

"Yes, we will administrate only a few chemo drugs which will be safe for the baby. Don't worry about that." Khushi smiled with teary eyes and looked at Arnav hearing that.

"You have to come to checkup after two weeks. For now I will refer you to gynaecologist." The doctor told them and gave them medicines.

"Mr. Arnav, can I talk to you alone?" The doctor asked him and Arnav looked at Khushi.

"I will wait outside, don't worry." She squeezed his hand and walked outside.

"Is there any problem?" Arnav asked sitting on the chair.

"No, it's just some precautions. Pregnancy at this time is complicated. You have to be careful. I don't agree that cancer can be cured only with medicines. The attitude and mentality of the patients paly a part in it. A baby will urge her to fight against it. So you need to be careful. Yours and your family support is need in this stage. It plays a great role. You have to make sure that she eat enough food for the baby. Try to make her eat healthy now, because once chemo starts she will loss interest in food. Make sure that she won't lift heavy objects and keep her stress free." The doctor instructed and Arnav exited from there.

"What did the doctor told you?" Khushi asked him.

"She asked me to pamper my wife and baby." He said holding her hand.

"Are you sure? You are not hiding anything, aren't you?"

"God promise. Now come with me let's go and see the gynaecologist." They walked towards the other ward.

They reached home after the checkup. Throughout their journey to home, they had a small smile on their face. Arnav paid the taxi and they entered the house. He engulfed her in a hug placing his chin on her shoulder.

"God is with us Khushi. You and our baby will be fine." He said to her and cupped her face. He planted kisses on her face and placed his hand over her stomach.

"Please be strong for your Ammi." He said making her smile.

"I'm glad that our baby will be with you even if I'm not here."

"Why? Are you planning to divorce me? You know, I will make sure that you won't get a divorce at all." His answer made her smile and teary.

"Arnav, I never asked you this. Are you okay with this baby? It happened all of a sudden."

"I love to have a little version of Khushi who will be just like her ammi." He know how to make her feel good.

"But I want a little Arnav who will be a xerox copy of his papa."

"We can find it out when the baby arrives." He tucked a few strands of hair behind her ears.

"Khushi, the doctor told me that both of you will be fine. So don't worry about anything. We will kick out this cancer and live happily. I'm in it with you." He said to her and she hugged him tightly.

"Yes, we will kick out this cancer and live happily. Just like the way we wanted." She said and he lifted her and took her to their bedroom.

"Sleep for sometime Khushi."

"Lie down with me Arnav." She said making place for him. He lie down next to her and placed his hand on her bare stomach, lightly stroking her skin as if he is stroking the baby.

"Khushi, are you okay with the surgery? We haven't talked about it." He asked her.

"This is the only way Arnav, it feel like bitter sweet. This will give us a chance but i won't be able to feed our baby. I wouldn't able to experience the joy of feeding our baby. They are a part of motherhood, aren't they?" She queried.

"Yes, they are but it's not everything. Our baby will have her mother with her, i only want that."

"Arnav you will continue to love me, won't you?" The question which evolved from her insecurities came out.

"Why did you ask something like this?"

"Once my treatment starts, I won't be the same Khushi you have fell in love with. I don't know if you would love me at that time." He wiped away her tears and placed a kiss on her forehead.

"Nothing is going to change. You will be the same girl with whom I fell in love. The one who will carrying our baby, the one who fighting for three of us. That will only make me love you more than what I do now." She smiled and hugged him tight.

"Khushi our baby is feeling sleepy and here you are planning to keep her awake by crying buckets of tears." He teased after a few minutes once her sob got subdued. For a moment she forgot everything and looked up at him.

"How do you know that?" She asked.

"That a secret between us. Now our baby want ammi to sleep. You better obey her Khushi." He stroked her cheek and lightly patted on her shoulder. She snuggled onto his arms and slept peacefully.

From that day Arnav made sure that she follow the instructions given by the doctors and have her medicines on time. They have decided that she will be resigning her job a week prior to her surgery. He applied for loans to raise fund for the hospital expenses. He informed his siblings about the situation and they were very supportive of them. His brother gave him one of his two cars owing to the situation. His elder sister Amira also asked him to call her whenever they need. Amira and Parveen (wife of Hisham) brought them sweets and spend a day with them to celebrate the upcoming baby. Khushi really loved the fact that they supported her and promised to be a there for them.

Arnav realised how blessed he is to have his elder siblings who stood with him and his wife. Because of his mother's I'll health, he didn't inform her about the pregnancy and cancer.

Her surgery is scheduled to happen after 5 weeks. Arnav arranged a taxi for Khushi to travel. He wasn't ready to leave Khushi alone at home when he had night shifts. He was thinking about taking a long leave when Khushi found a solution for that. So when he leaves for night shift, a girl from her next door used to stay with her.

Khushi noticed how Arnav is glued to his phone whenever she wake up from sleep. As soon as he saw her, he used to put her phone back. This made her suspicious as her hormones along with insecurities played a major role in it.

'Is he having an affair? Khushi, how can you say that? Don't you know how much he loves you? Then why is he doing this? What is he hiding in his phone?' She asked herself and decided to find it.

One day she took his phone and started her investigation. What she found in his phone left her overwhelmed. His gallery and browsing history were filled with articles and blogs of cancer survivors. There were few pages he bookmarked, few images he downloaded, all those stuffs were related to breast cancer. When Arnav entered the room he found Khushi sitting on the bed with his phone on her hand while tears flow down from her eyes.

"Khushi are you okay?" He asked with concern and moved next to her. She shook her head and hugged him by waist

"What happened? Why are you crying?"

"I'm really sorry Arnav. I'm ashamed of myself for thinking like that."

"What happened Khushi?"

"I thought that you were having an affair."

"What the!! Why made you think like that?" He queried.

"You behaved like you have some secrets in the phone and i couldn't help myself from thinking all that. When I was under treatment, there were women whose got abandon by their partners. All that took a troll on me."

"So you checked my phone to find out my non existing affair?"

"Yes, but this is full of things related to cancer. Why didn't you ask me all these?"

"Because I dont want you to recall all those stuffs. Don't stress yourself much because our baby don't like it. I read this to make you comfortable. The journey in front of us is not an easy one and I wanted to help you as much as I can."

"Just be with me like this, then I'm ready to go through everything." He pulled her in a hug and strokes her head.

"Always." He promised her and they disentangled from the hug.

"Khushi, let's forget about everything and concentrate on three of us." He said placing his hand over her stomach.

"I want to pamper you like any husband will pamper their pregnant wife, i wanted you to have everything you crave for, i wanted to take you to places you want to be, i wanted to make you smile and laugh, i wanted us to enjoy this pregnancy to the fullest in this one month." He told her and she knew why he wants that. Once her treatment starts, she won't be able to do all these things because of the side effects of chemotherapy.

"Yes, we will do that." Tears rolled down from their eyes as they smiled at eachother.

From next day on wards, they went for small dates. He made sure that she eat healthy along with fulfilling her cravings. He would tease her how he is going to pair up with his daughter and drive her crazy with their antics. They just enjoyed that one month like any other expecting couples.

Two weeks prior to her surgery he went to see her parents to let them know about her condition, but they weren't at home. He got to know that her parents went for a pilgrimage and will be back after a month. Then he went to her sister Anandi's house. He reached Singhania mansion only to get humiliated by Anandi's in laws. He left without saying much when she heard someone calling him when he was about to start his bike.

"Hai, I'm Keerti. Sorry on behalf of my grandmother." A teenage girl asked him.

"That's okay."

"Khushi jiji's sister is married to my youngest chachu. How's Khushi jiji?" She asked him.

"She is good, we are expecting a baby. I wanted to convey that to her sister. Do you know where Anandiji and her husband lives?"

"Yeah, I know." Saying this she gave him the address.

"Convey my regards to Khushi jiji." Keerti said with a wide smile and he nodded his head.

Arnav looked at the address and the hiuse in front of him. He press the calling bell and waited for someone to open it.

"You?" Anandi asked as soon as she saw Arnav standing in front of her door step. She have seen him when they went for shopping.

"I'm Arnav Shahzad Rahman. Khushi's..."

"I know you." Anandi said and invited him.

"Anandi, who is..." Sidharth stopped his words as he saw Arnav sitting in front of him.

"I wasn't expecting you. I mean it's a surprise." He said walking towards Arnav who wasn't expecting a favourable reaction from him.

"I'm Arnav Shahzad Rahman, Khushi's husband and I want to talk with you." He told them. Sidharth looked at Anandi and she sat beside him not knowing the reason for her brother in law's arrival.

"I knew that you all are against our marriage. It's okay if you can't accept me but she don't deserves to be treated like that by her family. I don't want to stretch this talk. Khushi is pregnant and on first stage of breast cancer. I wanted you to visit her before her surgery which is scheduled to be held after two weeks. She will feel better if you visit her once." Arnav told them and waited for their reaction. Within a few seconds he heard the sobbing sound of Anandi. He looked at ten couple in front of him. Sidharth placed his hand over Anandi and lightly squeezed her hand.

"We will visit you both soon." The reply he got from Sidharth wasn't the one he was expecting. He seems to be a person who is very mature and very reserved.

"Thanks you." Arnav told him.

"How is Khushi and her baby?" Anandi asked about her sister.

"Both of them are fine. The doctor confirmed us that the treatment won't harm our baby. Hmm,i went to talk to your parents but they weren't there. I would like to talk to them when they will be back." Arnav enquired.

"I will let you know about it."

"Ji, thanks. I should be going now."

"Wait, at least go after having a tea."

"I would have, but Khushi will be waiting for me. This is my address." He gave them their address and phone number before leaving from there.

"My Khushi...don't know why God is punishing her like this." Anandi said leaning into her husband's shoulder.

"Your sister is lucky to I have him. He is a good man. I should thank him for making me realise my mistake." Sidharth said about Arnav who seems to be ten years younger than him. Anandi looked at her husband and hugged him understanding what he meant.

Two months back,

Anandi and children came to gupta house to stay for a few days. She had seen Khushi and Arnav in a mall two weeks back.

"Amma, I saw Khushi two weeks back in a mall." Anandi told her mom.

"Hmm, how is she?" Garima asked her but soon got interrupted by Shashi.

"Nobody will say anything about her." He roared.

"Babuji, it's been two years since she got married. Why can't you accept her? What crime did she done to punish her like that?" Anandi asked her father.

"She married someone who we were against. That's her crime. I only have a daughter who is happily married in her life." Shashi announced proudly.