Born With A Curse

**Chapter 20: The Truth Revealed**

Her father nodded solemnly. “**Yes, my love. It’s about your mother. And about you. But most importantly, it’s about this idea you’ve carried—that you were born under a curse. Meera, you are not cursed. You were never cursed.**”

As soon as the words left his mouth, Meera broke. The dam she had so carefully built within herself shattered, and she sobbed into her father’s chest. She clung to him as if holding on would make everything right again.

“**But Papa,**” she wept, “**our family says I am. They say I’m the reason Mom is gone, the reason you had that accident on my birthday. How can I not believe them? How can you say I’m not cursed when everything I love gets taken away from me?**”

Mr. Waller felt her pain deeply, but he pulled back gently, lifting her chin so that she met his gaze. “**No, Meera. What happened to your mother was tragic, but it wasn’t your fault. You were just a baby—how could you possibly be to blame for something like that?**”

Meera shook her head, tears streaming down her face. “**But it wasn’t just her. You were hurt too, Papa. On my seventh birthday, you had that accident. They said it was because of me. That I brought bad luck.**”

She had lived her entire life believing that everything bad in her family’s history had been tied to her, that she was a harbinger of misfortune. The guilt of her mother’s death and her father’s accident had trapped her in a cage of loneliness, even pushing her away from Reyansh. She had begun to think that anyone she loved would meet a cruel fate.

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**Chapter 21: The Story That Changes Everything**

Mr. Waller’s heart ached as he watched his daughter struggle with this pain. He realized now how deeply those poisonous words from their family had seeped into her mind, poisoning her spirit. He decided it was time to show her the truth.

“**Come, Meera. Let’s go to the beach,**” he said softly, offering her his hand. “**I want to tell you something—something you need to hear.**”

Though she was hesitant, Meera took her father’s hand, and together they walked outside, where the rain had stopped. The air was cool, the scent of damp earth and flowers surrounding them as they strolled through the garden. They walked slowly, the sound of their footsteps and the occasional rustle of leaves the only noise between them.

Finally, Mr. Waller began.

“**You were born on a cold January night, just like today,**” he said, his voice filled with the weight of memory. “**Your mother, Mrs. Waller, loved you from the moment she knew she was carrying you. She was so full of hope, so excited to welcome you into our lives. But… complications arose. It was a difficult birth, and in the end, we lost her.**”

Meera listened, her heart pounding, the familiar story of her birth unraveling once again.

“**But, Meera, what our family has told you is wrong. You were never to blame for your mother’s death. The doctors did everything they could, but it was beyond their control. She fought as hard as she could to bring you into this world, and her last words to me were filled with love for you. She wanted you to live a life free of guilt and pain.**”

Meera’s breath hitched. “**She said that?**”

“**Yes, my dear. She believed in you. She saw you as a gift, not a curse.**”

They continued walking, the silence between them now filled with understanding rather than tension. Mr. Waller squeezed her hand.

“**As for my accident on your birthday, that was nothing more than a coincidence. I was rushing home because I wanted to surprise you. The accident was my fault, not yours. You’ve been shouldering a burden that was never yours to bear.**”

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