Sahil kept a pillow on Ayaansh's side so that he won't roll over and fall down and the next minute he was by her side scooping her in his arms.

"Mr. Malhotra, what are you doing? Put me down!" Srishti whisper-yelled dangling her legs but Sahil paid no attention as he walked towards the door.

Just as he reached near the door, it opened and Zevah walked in. She stared at Srishti in Sahil's arms and gave a blank look. What was going on?

"Good that you're here. I'm taking her to have a chat, till then stay with Ayaansh." He literally ordered and walked out without waiting for her reply.

Zevah was still standing there clueless when Ayaansh stirred and turned to other side which caused her to sprint towards the bed. She carefully settled down on the bed and adjusted the pillow properly before smiling down at him.

Outside, as Sahil reached near his car, he set her down and she immediately stepped away from him glaring all the time.

"What do you want, Mr. Malhotra?" She hissed and he sighed looking calm as ever.

"You heard everything." It was a statement and Srishti could only stare at him dumbfounded. How blunt this man can be?

"Yes, I did. And thank god I did or else I would have never known that you wanted Ayaansh only for some property." She spat and he crossed his arms only staring at her.

"So? What wrong did I do, to you and him?" He questioned and she opened her mouth to say something but then closed it when she couldn't find anything.

"I─you could now that you've acquired the property." She stuttered and he raised his eyebrows looking amused.

"What possibly could I do?"

"You can throw me out of Ayaansh's life." She answered and the man didn't even change any expression. She couldn't understand how would he remain so blank.

"Then why would I marry you?" This time she sighed tiredly and leaned on his car.

"I'm scared, Mr. Malhotra. I don't know why you have included me in your life and I don't care about myself but now that I have Ayaansh, I am always terrified that one day you'll have enough of my presence and kick me out. I know you married me for Ayaansh's future and your reputation infront of the whole world but no one knows about me as of yet. You can easily ask me to leave because you don't find me fit to be Ayaansh's mother. I can fight for my baby but you and I, we both know that in the end you'll win because you have the money and power." All the while she continued staring ahead with a lost look and Sahil watched as her eyes brimmed with tears.

"I don't trust you, Mr. Malhotra." She whispered shakily and looked at him only to find him staring at her. It was an intimate moment because the deeper they looked in each other's eyes, the more puzzled she got and the more pain he could see.

"I am not going to take Ayaansh away from you, Srishti. If I had to do that, I would have never married you in the first place. Yes, I agree that I needed a child because my grandfather's will held a condition for me to acquire his property but the more I would look at your protruding belly, the more attached I would feel to him. It is only because of Ayaansh that today I am married to you. For me, he will always come first. My first priority will always be Ayaansh and for his happiness, I'm willing to do anything." The sincerity in his eyes startled Srishti but she knew how much Ayaansh meant to him.

"Now are we going back to the penthouse?" He asked and she contemplated whether she should agree or not.

"What if I don't want to?" She questioned back and he sighed before shrugging his shoulders.

"Then I take Ayaansh with me. You can return whenever you wish to." The way he said it she knew he was going to take Ayaansh back with him.

"Alright, I'll come." She informed and he nodded. Just as she turned to leave, Zevah walked outside with Ayaansh in her arms. He was already awake and looking around for something.

"Look who is here? Mumma and Dadda are both waiting for Ayaansh." Zevah smiled as Ayaansh looked at Srishti and gave a toothless smile. He leaned forward and Srishti smiled before taking him in her arms.

"Aww my baby is awake. Did Zevah scare you?" She teased looking at Zevah who glared at her in return. Ayaansh giggled and all three stared at him amused.

"Let's go." Sahil said and Srishti nodded before giving a nod to Zevah. They left in his car and Zevah walked back inside.

────────

Once they reached the penthouse, Srishti looked at Ayaansh who had no plans of sleeping. Infact he seemed to be in a playful mood.

"Ouch," Srishti winced as Ayaansh pulled her hair and Sahil looked at her. She pouted at him and he traced her pout with his tiny fingers.

"Ba.. Ba.. Ba.. Ba" He babbled and both of them looked at him surprised. It was the second time he was speaking, though gibberish but atleast both of them were present when he spoke.

"Here, give him to me so that you can freshen up." Sahil came forward and Ayaansh automatically leaned towards him. After he took him in his arms, Ayaansh continued to babble now rubbing his hand on Sahil's stubble.

It tickled him and he giggled but didn't stop his movements. He was clearly enjoying it and Sahil only smiled at his son.

Srishti stared at Sahil's smile and felt her own lips curving. His smile had that effect on her. It was beautiful though he didn't show it often but it was only for Ayaansh and she didn't mind that.

When she came out of the bathroom, Sahil had already changed Ayaansh's clothes along with his diaper. He looked tired but that didn't stop him from spending some time with his son.

"You know bud, you're the first one to be this precious in my life. I'm going to give you everything that I couldn't get when I was a kid." The promise seemed to have a deep meaning which made Srishti wonder.

Why did he live alone? Where are his parents? Did he have any siblings? Too many questions but she knew she had no right to ask them.

"Mr. Malhotra," She called out and he looked at her.

"You can freshen up now." She informed and he nodded looking back at Ayaansh and kissing his small fist which was wrapped around his forefinger.

He didn't leave until she was beside Ayaansh and once the bathroom door closed, she sighed and turned to him. Ayaansh hummed with his hand in his mouth while looking up at his mother.

"Why is your father so cold? Why can't he open up? Should I ask him?" At the last question, Ayaansh smiled and Srishti chuckled.

"Why are you so cute?" She cooed taking both his tiny hands in hers and leaning down to peck his nose. He blinked as she did that and kept his hands on both her cheeks.

She kept her face close as he kept kicking his legs and made gurgling noises. Pulling her face closer, his lips landed on her nose and he nibbled on it making her giggle.

She moved back staring at him with all the love, "I love you."

"Do you have to feed him?" Her head whipped in his direction and a blush adorned her face seeing him half naked. What the hell? Why was she blushing?

Ayaansh was rubbing his eyes then clearly tired. She had fed him at the orphanage but it had been more than three hours to that.

She just nodded at him and he simply slipped on his tshirt before walking out and closing the door behind. She stared at the door for a few seconds before Ayaansh's cry took her attention.

She quickly picked him up and settled on the bed to feed him.

────────

Two months passed with the same routine. Everyone's bond with Ayaansh had been strengthening but not their relationships.

Srishti had been seeing a completely different side of Sahil and it intrigued her more as to why was he so cold and aloof with her the others. His emotions would only pour out for Ayaansh and he made no attempts to hide them.

He was a good man, she had concluded just the one who didn't know or didn't want to display his emotions. Maybe he was afraid? Maybe he had been hurt before which caused him to be this closed off? There were too many maybes and she would only know if she asked.

As for Zevah and Aditya, things were complicated and the only person responsible for it was Zevah herself. Aditya was every bit of professional with her and outside work, he wouldn't even spare her a single glance.

It hurt her too much but it was what she had chosen for herself.

Ayaansh was now six months old and he would crawl around everywhere. The first time he had crawled, Srishti had been busy reading a book and Sahil surprisingly was at home but in the bathroom.

Ayaansh got on all fours and located his toy which was a little away. He would wobble but determined to reach his toy he let out a squeal gaining Srishti's attention. Her eyes widened seeing him and she immediately ran to him incase he fell.

Just as he was about to crawl ahead, Sahil stepped out and his eyes fell on Ayaansh. Ayaansh too looked at his father before returning his attention to the toy.

Sahil watched as Srishti stayed behind to hold him but she wasn't going to stop him. Ayaansh gurgled and crawled a little making Srishti ecstatic whereas as she looked at up Sahil, she found him staring at his son in awe.

But the moment turned into a scary one when for Ayaansh as he took his toy and gleed happily sitting on the place before he directed the toy towards his mouth.

"Noooo!" Both yelled scaring him and he looked at his mother with big innocent eyes. His lips trembled and chin wobbled as his eyes filled with tears.

"Aww baby, don't cry." She chuckled and picked him up and Sahil came closer as well.

"I'm so proud of you bud." Sahil wiped his eyes smiling down at him. Seeing his father smiling, Ayaansh smiled back amidst his tears which caused both of them to chuckle.

It seemed like a happy world for Sahil when he was with his son but how long was this happiness going to last?

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