Yuvaan unlocked the door while holding her hand, and they both stepped inside.

"Now, you'll rest and take all your medicines on time. You've been neglecting your health enough already," he scolded, pouting.

Ruhi glared at him.

"I should be the one scolding you. Just look at your arms! Who told you to play the hero?"

She gave him an exasperated look, and Yuvaan shook his head, knowing he would never win an argument with her.

"Alright, my mother! You win!"

"Not your mother. Your baby's mother!" she declared smartly, poking her tongue out at him.

He glared at her before chuckling at her childishness.

Talking to each other, they stepped into the living room.

"Yuvaan!"

Ruhi's voice made him look at her, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion. He followed her gaze and was taken aback by the sight of the people standing before them.

His confusion quickly gave way to a smile as he saw his beloved elder brother stepping towards him.

His eyes filled with tears, and his heart grew heavy with emotion. After an entire year, he was finally seeing his brother again.

Ruhi released his hand, feeling that she should let him reunite with his family, who had suddenly appeared before them.

"Bhai!"

Yuvaan's voice trembled, and the very next moment, he rushed forward, practically throwing himself into his brother's arms.

He began sobbing like a child, overwhelmed by the warmth and comfort of the embrace.

"How are you, Yuvi?"

The words came from Avinash's mouth, making his younger brother tighten his grip around him. It was enough to show just how much Yuvaan had missed them.

"I missed you, Bhai! I'm sorry for leaving you all behind and coming here."

He cried as he finally pulled away from the hug.

Avinash patted his cheek and wiped away his tears. Looking at his handsome younger brother, he noticed how pale he had become. The charm he had once possessed seemed to have faded.

Of course, everything that had happened had broken his little baby brother.

His gaze fell on Yuvaan's injured arm, and concern filled his heart. He immediately took hold of it, handling it with utmost tenderness and care.

"How did this happen?"

"You weren't there to look after me. If you had been there, you would've taken care of me and never let anything happen to me."

Yuvaan chuckled, earning a sharp glare from his brother.

"I'll beat you up!"

"Go ahead. Beat me!" Yuvaan joked, making Avinash smile.

"Yuvaan!"

He turned around and saw his mother.

Happiness filled his heart as he rushed towards her and pulled her into a tight hug.

"How are you, my child?"

"I'm fine, Mom. How are you? Is your health alright now?"

His concern made his mother emotional, but she controlled herself and looked at his wound.

Although it hurt like hell, Yuvaan smiled at her and shook his head, assuring her that it wasn't painful.

"Don't cry, Mom. Look, I'm perfectly fine. It's just a small cut. It'll heal soon."

She caressed his hair and kissed his forehead.

Her heart had ached to see her son, and now, at last, she was standing beside him, holding him close and showering him with love.

But she was also afraid of the storm that awaited them.

Her eyes travelled towards her husband, who was fuming with anger.

Yuvaan then moved towards his sister-in-law and hugged her. Roshni welcomed her younger brother with the same warmth and affection.

"How are you and Arohi, Bhabhi? Can she talk now? Did you tell her about me? I'm sure Ayush must have told her. Just wait and watch how I'm going to make Arohi my fan, just like I made Ayush!"

He laughed, remembering the old days when he used to live with them.

He could still picture his sister-in-law chasing after him with different things because of his mischievous behaviour. He remembered her sweet gestures, her affectionate scoldings, and all the love she had showered upon him.

Finally, his feet carried him towards the person who had been standing apart from everyone else.

He noticed the expressions on his brother's, mother's, and sister-in-law's faces, and concern began to creep into his heart.

Then his gaze shifted towards Ruhi, who was still standing at a distance, looking nervous.

He took a deep breath and walked towards her.

"Come!"

Ruhi tried to refuse, but Yuvaan gently pulled her along with him.

"I'm sorry, Papa. Please forgive me. Won't you talk to me? Alright, if you're angry with me and don't want to talk to me, then at least talk to your grandchild once."

Yuvaan's face lit up with a hopeful smile, wishing that mentioning his grandchild might soften his father's heart.

"Papa... please, just look at me once. I know you're very angry with me. I didn't tell anyone anything. Not about Ruhi, not about our baby, and not even about our marriage—"

The words had barely left his mouth when a tight slap landed on his cheek.

A sharp, stinging pain spread across his face, and the force of the blow made him stagger to the other side.

"Shekhar!"

"Papa!"

Archana and Avinash both stepped forward, but they froze under his furious glare.

Ruhi grabbed her husband's bicep, shocked by what his father had just done.

"Yuvaan!"

Her barely audible whisper brought him out of his trance. He swallowed his tears, straightened himself, and gently patted the hand resting on his arm.

His reddened eyes lifted towards his father, who had just slapped him. He couldn't understand why.

"Pa—"

"Your father is dead! Don't you dare call me that again!"

Yuvaan flinched at his father's tone, but he tried to remain strong for Ruhi, who was already frightened by the man's anger.

"I thought that, no matter what, this boy had some values and a sense of shame. I thought he understood what was right and what was wrong. But today, he has proved me wrong. He cannot possibly be my blood. After doing something so shameful, he still has the audacity to stand before me and expect my support!"

Shekhar exploded, letting his rage spill into his harsh words.

"Papa, what are you saying? At least let Yuvi explain himself. You can't accuse him of anything without knowing the whole truth!"

Avinash spoke up, but his words had no effect on their father.

"You stayed away from your home and family, using work as an excuse to do all this? With this girl? I'm ashamed even to speak about it, yet you weren't ashamed to do it! Is this what your mother and I taught you? First, you divorced Avni. You married her against our wishes, too! Fine, we accepted that. But what is this now? You entered into an illicit relationship, and now there's this illegitimate child—"

"Papa!!"

Yuvaan's voice rose the moment his father uttered those words.

Ruhi's heart shattered into pieces as she felt her dream being torn apart before her eyes.

"Now you're raising your voice against your own father? You're nothing but a disgrace to this family!"

"Enough, Papa! You've said enough, and I've listened to more than I can bear! I haven't done anything shameful that should make you feel embarrassed. And how could you call my baby illegitimate? How could you?! He's my child, your grandchild! How can you say such things about him? Ruhi is my wife. How could you say anything like that about her?"

Yuvaan was stunned by his father's behaviour. How could he?

He had never heard his father speak to anyone in such a tone. How could he harbour so much hatred? And all of it was directed at his unborn child and Ruhi!

"First, you declared your love for Avni and fought with everyone for her. When she betrayed you, you left her. And now, you're doing all this for a girl who's only using you for your money? Today, you're arguing with your own father for her? And what child are you talking about? I will never accept this baby or this girl into my family!"

Ruhi began feeling dizzy. Her head spun, and she clutched Yuvaan's arm tightly. Her eyes filled with tears, and she couldn't bring herself to say anything.

"Ruhi!"

Yuvaan immediately held her by the waist and pulled her closer.

"Ruhi, are you alright? Come on, let's go inside. You need to rest. Your health will suffer if you keep standing here."

He wiped her tears, shaking his head as he tried to offer her a reassuring smile.

"Let them say whatever they want! Neither is my baby illegitimate, nor is our relationship wrong. I am the father of my child and Ruhi's husband. Ruhi isn't an orphan. She has a family too, and I'm her family. You have no right to question her dignity!"

His throat tightened with emotion, and tears streamed down his face.

"Yuvi?!"

His attention shifted as he saw his sister-in-law approaching them.

"I'm taking her inside," She said, as wiping away his tears he gestured for Ruhi to go ahead.

Avinash approached his younger brother while their mother went towards Shekhar.

"What are you saying? Please don't do this. You trust Avni's words, but you refuse to believe your own son? How can you do this to him?"

Archana tried to reason with her husband.

"From this very moment, that boy is no longer my son. He is dead to me, and I am dead to him. I have only one son, and that is Avinash. He chose that girl over his own father. Fine! I won't say anything more to him. But the day that girl betrays him and walks away, he had better not come back to any of us!"

Shekhar's words hurt his son deeply, but Yuvaan, being as stubborn as he was, refused to show it.

"You can say whatever you want to me, but if you say anything against Ruhi or my unborn child, I won't tolerate it!" He warned his father in the same firm tone.

Shekhar raised his hand, but before he could do anything, Archana stepped forward, shielding her son.

"Let's stop this, Papa," Avinash tried to reason with him.

"If you want to take his side, then you can leave my house too. I don't need anyone!" His statement left them shocked. Shekhar turned and stormed out of the house.

Archana looked helplessly at her son, but in the end, she had no choice but to run after her husband.

"Bhai! Please leave with Bhabhi. This is between me and him. I don't want to drag you into this."

Yuvaan pleaded with a heavy heart, gently pushing his brother away.

Avinash grabbed his hand, but Yuvaan pulled it free.

"You have my word, Bhai! Please, go!"

He deliberately said those words to hurt his brother, but he was unaware that Avinash already understood what he was trying to do.

Still helpless, Avinash called his wife and left the house.

Leaving Yuvaan and Ruhi alone with their shattered dreams...

⋇⋆✦⋆⋇

TWO MONTHS LATER...

Ruhi was pulled out of her thoughts as two strong arms wrapped around her from behind.

"Good morning, love!"

"Good morning!"

She greeted him in return and pressed her lips against his cheek.

Her eyes sparkled as she looked at the handsome face of her sweet husband, who always made her mornings brighter.

She felt blessed to have him in her life.

But, at the same time, she couldn't help feeling that he was the unlucky one. After all, she believed that her arrival in his life had cost him everything.

She always felt guilty knowing that he was separated from his family because of her. However, she no longer voiced those thoughts, knowing the consequences of doing so.

The last time she had brought it up, he had become furious and had been hurt by her words.

She shook those thoughts away and focused on him, who was now playing with her hair.

"Mmm... What are you doing?" she asked, turning towards him and circling her arms around his neck.

"Loving my wife."

"Oh, really? Well, Ruhi isn't in the mood to love anyone right now. So you'd better stay away, Mr. Husband!"

She pushed him playfully and got up, slipping her feet into her slippers.

Yuvaan smirked and followed her.

"You know I can catch you in a second. But you can still try running if you want."

Ruhi turned towards him and grabbed the neckline of his T-shirt.

"You have no choice but to catch me! Don't you dare leave me anywhere!"

Yuvaan's smirk melted into a joyful smile. He slipped both arms around his beloved's waist and pulled her closer.

Their foreheads touched as he brushed his nose against hers, his lips lightly grazing hers as he teased her.

Ruhi blushed deeply. No matter how bold she tried to act or how confidently she carried herself, even his smallest gesture was enough to turn her cheeks red.

She kissed his collarbone and smiled, resting her head against his chest.

Yuvaan embraced her too, resting one palm on her baby bump.

The very presence of their little one filled them with happiness. Soon, their home would be filled with their baby's cries, giggles, and the sounds of toys.

It was the ninth month, and Ruhi was heavily pregnant. Her due date was just five days away, but to the overexcited father, those five days felt like five weeks.

She suddenly giggled, remembering just how excited he was. He had bought everything for their baby even before the birth.

"Why are you laughing?" he asked, tilting his head towards her.

She pulled back and giggled even more.

"I'm thinking about our baby. He'll be shocked when he sees how his overexcited father has filled the entire room with toys!"

Yuvaan made a grumpy face and shrugged, ruffling his hair.

"What do you know about excitement? This is nothing! Just let my baby arrive, and then you'll see how many more toys I'll buy for him. You know what? I should buy that baby walker tomorrow. As soon as our baby grows a little, we'll teach him how to walk. Then I'll take him to all kinds of shops, and whichever toy he touches, I'll buy it for him!"

Ruhi facepalmed as he once again launched into his illogical fantasies.

"Yuvaan, why don't you just admit our baby into a good school tomorrow?"

"Yes, that's a good idea too! Let's do that—"

He stopped mid-sentence, finally realising what she had said and how quickly he had agreed.

Ruhi burst out laughing, making him give her an unimpressed look.

"Don't underestimate me! I just don't know whether it'll be a baby girl or a baby boy. Otherwise, I would've done that too!"

"Stopppp!!!" Ruhi yelled, covering her ears, which finally silenced him.

Yuvaan pouted cutely, but she didn't melt. Instead, she glared at him.

"It's my fault for even trying to argue with this overexcited father! There's just no hope for you. Please don't go crazy before the baby arrives. Otherwise, my child will say, 'My father went mad just from dreaming too much!'"

He chuckled but quickly sealed his lips under her glare.

She turned away, crossing her arms over her chest, annoyed that he had ignored her.

Yuvaan shook his head and approached her, wrapping his arms around her from behind.

"I love you! Let's go somewhere. It's been so long since we've gone out. It'll make you feel better too." She smiled and nodded.

"But what if I start having labour pains?" she asked innocently.

Yuvaan smiled and nuzzled her neck with his long nose. "Your husband will be right there with you."

She shook her head and kissed his cheek.

They both had breakfast, and after getting ready for the day, they decided to go out. It had been so long since they'd gone anywhere together, owing to her poor health and his work.

. . . . . . . . . . . . .