Chapter 3: An Orphan's Bastard
1658 Words
Chapter 3: An Orphan's Bastard
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' ... Some waits do not measure time… they measure how much a heart can endure before it breaks... '
The waiting had stretched longer than it should have.
Three days of the same corridor, the same chair, the same sound of machines echoing faintly through the walls, reminding them that time was moving— even when it felt like it wasn’t.
Vedika Shah, Myra’s paternal aunt— someone she had lived with until just three years ago, before moving to another city to build a life of her own— hadn’t left the hospital.
Not really.
Even when she closed her eyes, even when she leaned back for a moment, her mind never left that room.
Beside her sat Umang, her youngest son, quieter than usual, his usual playful nature replaced by a stillness that didn’t belong to him. His eyes drifted again and again toward the ICU door, as if expecting it to open, as if hoping something would change.
His favourite cousin and partner in crime— Myra, hadn’t woken up. Not once.
The doctors had said the same thing each time they were asked.
" We are monitoring her. "
" Her vitals are stable. "
" We cannot say when she will regain consciousness. "
Minutes had turned into hours. And hours had turned into days. Maybe longer.
No certainty.
Only waiting.
Vedika had already informed Anirudh Vaidhya— Myra’s father.
There had been no questions.
No panic.
No hesitation.
Just silence on the other end— heavy, controlled, and far more unsettling than any reaction could have been.
He would come. And he did.
" Speak of the devil father, and he shall arrive. " Umang murmured under his breath beside Vedika.
Vedika shot him a quick look before slapping his arm.
" This isn’t the time, Umang, " She whispered sharply, though the tension in her voice carried more worry than anger.
" I know you don’t like your uncle, but not now. Behave yourself. "
From a very early age, Umang had never liked his uncle, Anirudh.
Only three years younger than Myra, he had grown up closely enough to see it all— the way Anirudh treated Myra, the way he had always resented her for being a girl, for not being the son he had wanted to carry forward his business empire.
The sound of footsteps broke the stillness of the corridor— firm, measured, unhurried— echoing against the cold hospital walls as they drew closer.
Vedika stood.
Umang followed, straightening slightly as they approached, his usual easy posture replaced with a stiffness that didn’t belong to him. " Don't tell him the whole trusth." Umang said to his mother.
" I can't do that. " Vedika repiled.
Umang eyes flickering between the adults, sensing the shift, sensing that something far heavier than he understood had just entered the room.
For a moment, no one spoke.
No greetings.
No questions.
Just the weight of what had already happened, settling heavily between them, unspoken yet understood.
Anirudh’s gaze shifted to the ICU door before returning to Vedika.
" Bhai… " Vedika said softly, her voice breaking just slightly as she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him.
(Bhai - brother)
For a brief second, he didn’t respond.
Then his hand moved, resting lightly on her back— formal, controlled, yet enough to acknowledge the moment.
" How is she? " Anirudh asked, his voice steady, almost too steady.
Before Vedika could answer, Meera— Myra’s mother, stepped forward and pulled her into a tight embrace, her grip tightening as if holding onto Vedika might somehow steady her.
" My Mimi… " Meera cried, her voice trembling, breaking with every word as the reality of it all crashed over her.
" Shhh… bhabhi… you know our Mimi is a tough little fighter, right? " Vedika said softly, her voice gentle, steadying, even as a faint tremor lingered beneath it.
(Bhabhi - sister in law)
" Shhh... "
Vedika closed her eyes for a moment, one hand gently coming up to hold Meera, offering what little comfort she could.
She exhaled slowly before speaking.
" She’s still in a coma. It’s been three days. The doctors say her vitals are stable… but they don’t know when she’ll wake up. It could be hours… days… even longer. "
Anirudh absorbed it without any visible reaction, his expression remaining unchanged, as if the words had not reached him— or as if he had simply chosen not to show it.
Then—
" There’s something else, " Vedika added, her voice quieter now, careful.
That was enough.
Anirudh's attention sharpened instantly, his gaze settling on her with a quiet intensity that demanded more.
" What? "
Vedika held his gaze, steady despite the weight of what she was about to say.
" Myra... "
" ...Myra is pregnant. "
The silence was heavy, like grief settling into the room before anyone had the strength to name it.
Meera stiffened beside him, her brows pulling together as the words settled, confusion and shock flashing across her face.
" Wh— what are you saying, Vedika? " she asked, her voice trembling, disbelief evident in every word.
Anirudh didn’t speak.
But something in his expression shifted— something colder, harder, more controlled.
" How? "
The question was sharp, carrying no trace of confusion— only pure, unfiltered accusation.
Vedika didn’t step back.
" She wasn’t alone in the car when the accident happened, " She said steadily.
" There was someone with her. His name is Noah. "
The name hung there.
Unfamiliar.
Unwelcome.
" They were together, " Vedika continued, her voice quieter now. " For quite some time. "
Anirudh’s jaw tightened, a subtle shift that didn’t go unnoticed.
" And where is he now? "
Vedika’s voice broke, just slightly, as if even saying it out loud required effort.
" He- He was in the car with her. "
A pause followed— longer this time, heavier, as if the weight of what was coming next settled in before the words did.
" Unfortunately… he didn’t survive. "
The words didn’t come out harshly.
They came quiet.
Measured.
Meera looked away, her expression tightening as the words settled in, processing it slower, heavier, as if each detail was sinking in one by one.
Anirudh didn’t move. He didn’t react outwardly. But the silence around him grew sharper, more defined, as if something unseen had shifted.
" They were in love, " Vedika added, her voice low now, softer, almost reflective. " He was… a really good person. "
A brief pause.
" But he couldn’t survive the fire. "
Another silence followed— deeper this time, heavier, carrying more than just words.
" Which means, " Anirudh said slowly, his voice controlled, precise, " my daughter is pregnant with a dead man’s child. "
Vedika didn’t respond.
Because there was nothing to correct.
Nothing to soften.
Nothing to change.
The truth had already been said.
" How is his family holding up? " Meera asked, her voice quieter now, fragile, as if she was trying to hold onto something human in the middle of it all.
A brief pause followed.
" Aunty… Noah didn’t have any family, " Umang spoke this time, his voice steady but subdued. " He was an orphan. But his friends are handling everything— the funeral, the police formalities. "
" Good. "
Anirudh’s expression changed— subtly, but enough. Something colder settled in, something decisive.
" Then we need to get rid of that bastard my stupid daughter is carrying. "
" Bhai, no—! " Vedika stepped forward immediately, her voice firm despite the tremor beneath it. " We can’t do that to her. "
Anirudh’s gaze snapped toward her.
" You, out of all people, should be the last one speaking, " He said, his voice low but cutting.
" You knew all of this, didn’t you? And you chose to stay silent. "
A step closer.
" You let my daughter fall for— " He paused, the word heavy with disdain, " —some mediocre… orphan. "
The anger wasn’t loud. It was controlled and that made it worse.
" Uncle… it’s still Myra’s decision to make, " Umang said, his voice steady, even though the tension around him pressed in from all sides.
Anirudh turned toward him slowly.
" Your mother took Myra with her, saying she would raise her like her own, " He said, each word measured, deliberate. " And this is what she gives back? A daughter lying in a coma… carrying some orphan’s bastard? "
Anirudh's jaw tightened, the restraint in his voice barely holding.
" A bl*ody mistake. "
A pause.
Vedika just stood there, frozen under the charges her older brother had laid upon her.
" Tell me, how am I supposed to face the world with that? " Anirudh asked, his voice edged with anger, his gaze fixed on his twenty-four year old nephew, as if demanding an answer that didn’t exist.
Silence followed— heavy, uncomfortable, stretching between them like something fragile that could shatter at any moment.
No one spoke.
No one dared to.
Then, without a flicker of hesitation— Anirudh said, " It’s good that he died. "
The words landed cold.
Unforgiving.
Umang stiffened slightly, standing beside his mother, whose breath caught at the words.
Meera lowered her gaze, her fingers tightening around the edge of her clothes, as if she needed something to hold onto to keep herself from falling apart.
" Now… move out of my way. "
Without another word, Anirudh turned away, his steps as steady as before, as if the decision had already been made long before he spoke it aloud.
" I need to see the doctor. "
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