In the days that followed, Chaitanya fully cooperated with his treatment. However, he always made sure Anvitha was by his side during the sessions. The physiotherapist came, examined his bones, and later gave him some exercises. Anvitha assisted Chaitanya with all of them.
Whenever she applied medicine and massaged his legs, or wiped down his body, he would sit as if he were floating in heaven.
As he had mentioned before, his grandfather brought a legal document stating that Anvitha would now be part of the hospital's management. But when she read it, she was shocked to see the name "Aadhira" instead of her own. She looked at the elder man in surprise, and he signaled her with his eyes to remain quiet, so she stayed silent.
Chaitanya read and signed the document. It had been nearly ten days since Anvitha had returned to her home. Every morning, she would be with Chaitanya. Once he fell asleep in the afternoon, she would go on hospital rounds with the elder man.
During one such round, he said, "You were scared seeing Aadhira's name in the document, weren't you? Just wait for a while… once Chaitanya is fully recovered, you can tell him the truth and we'll prepare a new document in your name—Anvitha."
"No need, grandfather. This belongs to Aadhira. Let it stay that way," she replied.
The elder introduced her to everyone at the hospital as his daughter-in-law. Hence, all the staff treated her with great respect. It was a new experience for her.
After feeding Chaitanya and spending some time talking to him, she would play a little with the child and then return to her room on that floor, where she would sleep with the child.
This had been her routine for the past ten days. One day, she received a call—Vijayan said he was coming to see her.
"Hey Anvitha! What's up with you? You haven't called me even once? Even when I call, you don't answer. I need to see you," he said.
Yes, what he said was true. For almost ten days, she had been ignoring his calls. Left with no choice, she finally answered today.
She felt guilty about what she had to tell him. But not wanting to deceive someone who trusted her, she spoke to him this time.
"It's nothing, Vijayan. I've just been really busy here," she said hesitantly.
"Yeah, right! I don't like the way you're behaving lately. You don't call, you don't even open my WhatsApp messages. I don't know what's wrong with you. I am coming to Chennai in two days," he declared.
"No, Vijayan, you won't be able to meet me now. Listen… I'll come to Kumbakonam in about ten days. We can talk there," she said.
"No, Anvitha… I have work in Chennai. I must come. I'll see you while I'm there. It's still the same house address, right? I'll be there in two days," he said, cutting the call before she could respond further.
She knew he was angry. That's when it struck her—it had already been ten days since she left home. She decided to talk to the elder man and see if she could start staying at her own house at night.
When she entered his room after rounds, she found the elder man pacing tensely. Seeing her, he asked, "Hey… Did Chaitanya not know Aadhira was pregnant?"
She shook her head to indicate he didn't know.
"Then we've made a big mistake," he said anxiously.
"What happened, Grandpa?" she asked.
"You know the physiotherapist Akhila, right? She often plays with Athvaith before seeing Chaitanya. Today, after playing, she went to Chaitanya and told him that Athvaith is very smart and crazy about cars—just like his mother."
"She didn't say anything else about Athvaith, but after she left, he called me in and asked if what she said was true. I had no choice but to tell him about Athvaith."
"He got very angry, child. He refused to believe Athvaith was his son. He asked me to bring the child, played with him for a bit… and now he wants to see you too. He asked for you after the rounds," the elder man said worriedly.
Hearing this, fear crept into her. What is he going to ask me? How will I prove Aadhira didn't tell him about the pregnancy? she thought as she stood silently before Chaitanya.
Chaitanya looked at her sternly. She stayed at a distance, beyond his reach, watching him anxiously. Seeing her like that, he smiled inwardly. Look at this witch, standing there as if hiding a whole pumpkin in her plate. Acting all innocent in front of me, he thought.
She slowly lifted her head to meet his gaze, but couldn't handle the intensity in his eyes. She bit her lip and lowered her head in silence.
Chaitanya suddenly felt a desire to make those lips blush again.
"Hey, I want to ask you something. Will you answer me?" he asked.
She remained silent.
"Do you even have any sense?" he asked. At that, she looked up and glared at him.
"What are you glaring at, witch! Does glaring erase the mistake? You're educated, right? You carried my child and told me to stay away from you. You left without saying a word about the baby! What would your parents have thought? Didn't you at least tell them the truth—that I'm the child's father?" he asked, trying to hold back his anger.
Anvitha remembered Aadhira had never told them the truth. The question hit her like an arrow. She remained silent.
"Answer me, witch! Do your parents know I'm the father of the child or not?" he asked.
She shook her head to say no. "Where are they now?" he asked.
"They've passed away," she replied and tried to end the conversation there.
He closed his eyes tightly and clenched his fists. After a couple of minutes, he opened his eyes and snapped at her.
"Aren't you ashamed of all this, Aadhira? Fine, you left me… but after the baby was born, couldn't you have said something? If you had, no matter how stubborn you were, I would have begged you and married you. You raised my child for over two years without a father! And you think that's okay?" he asked.
She had no answer. She stood silently.
"There's only one thing I can't understand, Aadhira… You rejected me, but why did you keep the child? I really don't get it," he said, looking away in thought.
Hearing that, the same question echoed in her own mind. Yes, I don't know either. Why did my sister, who rejected you, keep this child? she wondered.
The room was silent—so quiet you could hear a pin drop. He waited for her answer. Then he extended his hands and pulled her toward him.
As she held his hands, he pulled her close and hugged her tightly.
"From now on, don't worry about anything. You've suffered enough. I'm here for everything. I don't know why you did all this… but one thing is clear—we shouldn't postpone our wedding any longer," he said.
"What… wedding?" she asked, looking up at him. He playfully knocked her on the head.
"Of course! You're carrying my 2.5-year-old child in your arms. You think I'll let you go without marrying you? I don't know when my legs will fully recover—but they will. And until then, I won't let you or our child be alone even for a moment," he said firmly.