Hi!
I'm an English Major, and so Shakespeare should be like the one I should consider my idol, no? 🤔🤔🤔

Wrong! 📵

Truth is... I hate the guy cuz -
*grabs mike* 🎤
HE KILLS ALL HIS HEROES OR HEROINES AT THE END AND DOESN'T LET THEM UNITE!WHAT THE HECK!?
😡😡😡😡😡😡😡
Is he like taking out all his anger on his characters or something?
😤😤😤😤😤😤😤
It's the same thing that CVS is currently doing. Separating Abhi and Pragya again and again and again. 😢😢😢😢
.
.
.
.
And yea... Again! 😭😭😭

Anyways, Onwards!!!

"Words in double quotes" - Talking

'Words in single quotes' - Thoughts

(Words in braces) - Telephone conversation.

Chapter 31 - Can't Outrun the Past or the Truth

The only sounds that could be heard in the room was the dripping of the leaky pipe. The rhythm of the drops could be compared to the ticking of a time bomb. The bomb, which right now, was Pragya. They all were shocked by the news, but knew it was a slight itch compared to what Pragya might be going through at that moment. They all waited for Pragya to blow up, overwhelmed by her emotions. After all, it was inevitable.

However, they didn't know that the situation was about to get worse as Bulbul burst into the room. "Di! There you are. Samay called me and told me that you were acting weird. Are you okay? Nothing happened to you, right Di?" Only then did Bulbul look up towards the rest of the occupants in the room. "Di, what are you all doing over here? And why is Prasanth Sir here as well? Di? Di, say something!"

Slowly, Pragya looked up to Bulbul, her eyes looking lost.

"Chutki... Chutki, Samay and Sumit. This is ridiculous, right? I mean they can't be my blood, right? You are my only sibling. Sarla Maa doesn't have any other kid. Then... then..."

Bulbul felt a sense of dread overcome her. 'Did she find out the truth? But how? No one here knows about it. No on-' she gasped and looked at Prasanth. He was the only one other than her who knew the truth.

She felt Pragya pull away from her and turn to Prasanth. "You're lying! It's just a trick of yours to save yourself. How ridiculous can you get? You think we would believe such a lie?!"

Prasanth didn't know what to say and looked at her with pity. On one hand, he wanted to make her believe the truth. But at the same time, he knew that to convince her of the truth, he would also have to reveal the fact that she was an adopted child. Could he do it to her? He looked at Bulbul, trying to show how sorry he was. Bulbul looked away in anger, with her eyes glistening with tears.

Bulbul felt a million of thoughts running through her mind. 'Twenty years...twenty years Maa kept the secret from Pragya di and me, only for it to be revealed in such a way. What am I supposed to tell Di now? The truth, which would break her. Or lie to give her a fake sense of happiness?'

Unknown to her, Purab was looking at her face intently. "You know something, don't you Bulbul?"

Now, as everyone turned to look at Bulbul, she didn't know how to react. She looked at her sister's face to find her looking at her with utmost trust and faith. Bulbul turned to Prasanth. "Why? Why tell her now? Why did you destroy us?"

"I...I'm sorry Bulbul. I wasn't thinking right and...and it just came out." He looked down, ashamed.

"Bulbul, what do you mean? Bul-" Aliyah stopped speaking when she felt Vivek grip her shoulder, signaling her to keep quiet.

Bulbul came near her sister and held her hands. "Di..what he said it's... It's the truth."

Pragya looked at her with disbelief "Bulbul..."

That tiny, broken voice of her sister broke down the barrier keeping Bulbul together. She broke down into tears. "Di, he is right. Samay and Sumit are your real brothers. Your real family. M-Maa adopted you Di. You are her adopted daughter Di. I... I'm not your real sister. I'm your real sister Di!"

Purab wanted to move forward towards Bulbul, seeing her crying uncontrollably. However, he knew that the sisters needed to settle the matter by themselves.

Pragya stumbled back in shock. "And you hid the truth from me? I... I trusted you more than anything. Yet, you did this to me?"

"Di I wanted to tell you. Trust me Di. I only got to know the truth a month ago. Even so, I wanted to rush to you and tell the truth. But I feared losing you Di. I didn't want to lose you Di."

"Maa, Samay, Sumit, you... All of you knew the truth and kept me in the dark about it?"

"Di we had our reasons. Maa and I feared that you would leave us once you knew the truth."

"And what about Samay and Sumit? Why did they lie? Is it because they didn't want me as their sister?"

"No Di! They would never want that. They love you and want to protect you at any cost. That is why they refused to tell you the truth."

Bulbul came and held her by the shoulders. "Di, they live a life where there is danger on every step. That's why they didn't want you to know about them. They thought they would find your enemy and then...then leave forever. So that you can live a normal, safe... happy life. I've seen the pain in their eyes Di. They desperately want to call you their sister, want to hear you calling them bhai. Yet, they keep quiet just for you."

"That doesn't give them the right to keep the truth from me. How could they? How could Maa hide it? How could...how could you hide it, Bulbul?"

Before anyone could anticipate Pragya's move, she rushed out of the room, shutting the door behind her.

Abhi went to open the door, but Pragya locked it from outside so that they couldn't follow her. "Shit! Karan, let's break it. Think your shoulder can take it?"

Karan looked at him in indignation. "Don't insult me. I can break ten of such doors."

"Watch it. That is school property." Prasanth spoke up in reflex. 'Shit. This wasn't the right time. *sigh* Bad habits die hard.'

"You! It's all your fault! If you didn't reveal the truth, Di wouldn't be hurt! She wouldn't blame me or hate Maa!" Bulbul shouted and would have hit Prasanth, if it wasn't for Purab holding her back.

"Wait Bulbul! Stop it. Hitting him won't help in anyway. Besides, Pragya was right. She deserved to know the truth instead of finding out now."

"Purab, why can't you understand!? We didn't want to lose her."

"But you should have known that the truth couldn't be hidden for long. No matter what, you can't outrun your past or the truth. We could only try to hide it, but it would always find a way to reveal itself. That's life." Kriti spoke. From the corner of her eyes, she saw Vivek look at her pointedly. Those words seemed to have some effect on him, although she couldn't guess why.

"Where could Pragya be? Where could she have rushed off too?"

"Di may have gone home to confront Maa. Or she may have gone to the Park. She always goes there whenever she wants to stay alone with her thoughts. She might have called Samay and Sumit there as well."

Abhi and Karan were finally able to break open the door. Abhi straightened up and spoke. "Bulbul, take Aliyah and Kriti with you to your house to find Pragya. Purab, Vivek and Karan, go to the park and search for Pragya and her brothers."

"And what about you bhai?"

"I have some work with Prasanth. You all go." They nodded and left.

"What work does the great Abhishek Mehra have with little old me?"

"Shut it Prasanth." Abhi glared at him. "I want you to contact both Samay and Sumit, and tell them to come to the City Hospital. That's where Pragya would be. I'm sure of it."

"What!? If you knew she would go there, then why did you lie to the rest?!"

"Pragya needs only one person right now and he's there. I don't want the rest to disturb them." saying that he moved out. Before leaving he looked over his shoulder at Prasanth. "Be there after an hour, not early or late than that. I'll call the rest of the gang as well."

Prasanth watched him go with a glare. "First, getting kidnapped by your students. Then, getting lectured by one. What have you been reduced to Prasanth?" He sighed in defeat. "Samay and Sumit are going to have a field day laughing at my misery and will probably never let me live it down. *sigh* Yep, I'm screwed."

#City Hospital#

He struggled hard as his captors held him down. "No! Let me go! Don't kill me! Let go, let go!" However, his cries were ignored. His worst nightmare was coming to life.

"Hold him still. Don't let him escape." spoke the leader. He came near with his weapon, which Shabbir termed 'weapon of death'.

"Let go! Keep that away! No no Nooo!" he screamed.

"You can stop screaming now Shabbir. It's over."

Shabbir slowly opened his eyes. "It's over? I didn't die?" 😱

"It was just a little injection Shabbir. I can't believe a grown up like you is afraid of it, to the extent of calling it 'Weapon of death'! Who does that?" 😑 spoke the doctor. He signaled for the nurses to leave Shabbir as he finished giving him the injection.

"I do!" Shabbir glared at him with all the energy he had. If looks could kill, the doctor would be lying in a pool of his own blood.

The door opened and Pragya silently walked in. "Hey Pragya. Back already?"

"Hey Shabbir." she gave him a small smile. However, it didn't reach her eyes. Shabbir could say that something was wrong.

"If you all are done, could you leave us alone please?"

"Yes. But I have to give you another injection 3 hours later. Don't cause any trouble."

"Oh come on doc. No one would know if you skip one injection. I'll give you a big autograph of mine. Let's cheat once, eh?"

"No use trying to bribe me Mr. Shabbir. I will give you the injection either you want it or not." 😒

Shabbir glared at him. "I swear I'll sue your hospital once I'm out for torturing me with those injections." 😡

The doctor rolled his eyes at his threat. "Whatever. Let's go team."

Pragya and Shabbir were the only ones left. "Pragya, what's wrong?"

She didn't speak anything. She just moved towards him and sat on the chair beside the bed. Her eyes seemed dead to him. The eyes which shone in happiness, twinkled with excitement, sparkled in mischief, glistened with tears...were now completely dead.

Before he could speak, she pulled him into a hug. He closed his eyes, enjoying their closeness.

"Awww...is the lioness becoming a kitty in my love?"

"Shabbir, just hold me. I just... I just need a hug right now. Don't refuse me please."

Shabbir's playful mood disappeared and he held her tightly. "I would never refuse you Pragya. But I can't see you like this either. Tell me what's wrong. I'll make it alright Pragya. You don't have to suffer alone."

His words finally hit home and Pragya broke down crying in his arms. To say he was shocked would be an understatement. The way she was crying, it... It felt like an animal whimpering miserably. He could actually feel the pain inside heart from just seeing her cry. With each whimper, he could feel his own heart breaking. "Pragya, what happened? Just tell me, please. I beg of you."

"All my life, I've... I've been living a lie Shabbir. My whole entire life, I lived thinking I was someone. But it was all fake!"

As Shabbir questioned her more, she eventually told him everything... pouring her heart out to the only one she thought she could trust, the only one she knew who could mend her broken state.

That's how Abhi found them when he reached there an hour later. He looked at them with a knowing look. 'I guess I wasn't wrong.'

Shabbir had pulled Pragya onto the bed and made her sit close to him, while still in his arms. She had cried until she had no tears left and Shabbir let her. He knew that she needed to let it all out. To let all the pain, the sorrow, the hate...all of it, go.

Shabbir signaled Abhi to give them some more time. Abhi nodded and moved out with a nod.

Pragya didn't notice Abhi arriving or leaving, still lost in her own thoughts. Slowly, Shabbir spoke in a soft voice. "Pragya...remember the time you and Vivek almost drowned? Me and Abhi had jumped in to save you both, but ended up drowning ourselves. I still remember how Abhi was about to fall back into the water."

Pragya listened to his words. She didn't know why he was bringing up that incident, but his voice was like a calm lullaby to her.

"At that moment, the only thing that ran through my mind was that I couldn't lose him. I couldn't lose my brother at any cost. I didn't care if my secret got exposed in front of him. I just knew that I had to protect him."

He pulled away from the hug and made her look into his eyes. "I had kept myself away from my family for five years. Five years Pragya. But in that moment, I could have ruined our entire game plan with my actions. However, I just didn't care about the consequences. I only cared for the fact that I didn't want to lose my brother, my family. The fear of losing him was so much that I didn't care what the outcome would be."

He rubbed away the tear stains on her face with a soft smile. "And that's what your family did. Sarla aunty and Bulbul...they just didn't want to lose you no matter what! Their fear was so much that they kept it a secret from you. As for Samay and Sumit...you said Bulbul already explained their reasons, didn't you? I know you must feel devastated knowing that your own brothers had been with you all the time, without your knowledge. So close, yet so far."

"Devastated doesn't even begin to describe how I feel Shabbir."

"You feel the pain now, but think about them. How hard it must have been for them to always see you in front of their eyes and yet...yet, not be able to call you behna, not be able to hear you call them bhai? You tie them Rakhi calling them cousins. Don't you think they longed for you to tie them Rakhi calling them bhai?"

Pragya looked down in thought. She couldn't deny that Shabbir was indeed right. "But I trusted them so much. They are my family and th-"

"Whatever lies they told, whatever things they hid...they all did for your happiness Pragya. The love of a family is the greatest blessing. No family is perfect. We fight, we stop talking to each other, exchange harsh words. But in the end, family is family. They will always be there for each other."

Pragya sniffed and nodded. "I guess you're right. I... I think I should give them a chance to speak."

"That's the Pragya I know. Now only if she could just give me a sweet smile. Although she should comb her hair first as it looks nasty."

Pragya hit him lightly. "Stop joking. I'm in a mid-life crisis right now."

"Aww... But I want a smile for all the senti-talk that you made me talk. Ugh! I think I'm watching too much of sappy daily-soaps now-a-days. I hope I don't become a softy." He shivered at the thought.

Pragya chuckled at his antics. They both looked up as the door opened and Abhi entered, followed by the entire gang, Prasanth and her siblings.

Bulbul, Samay and Sumit looked afraid. It seemed like they feared that she would hate them now. "I don't hate you three. I did for a moment, but not anymore." She stood up and closed the door.

Pragya looked back at them pointedly. "Until now, we all have hidden things from each other, believing it is for the greater good. But none of it... None of it! Had done anything, but broken trust among us, caused us pain, hurt, betrayal and only led to undesirable consequences. Now, I beg to all of you...to everyone here. Please don't hide anything anymore. Just speak the truth."

"We already told you everything we know Pragya. There is nothing that we are hiding. Only ones in doubt are your siblings and Prasanth." spoke Karan.

Samay sighed. "Alright Pragya. We will explain everything." He sat down on a chair and started. "We are not the sons of Sarla aunty's brother. We are Samay Pratap and Sumit Pratap."

Everyone there, except for Bulbul and Pragya, gasped. However, the brothers thought it was just because of them revealing their true names and nothing else. Only if they knew.

Sumit took out a photo from his pocket and handed it to Pragya. "That is Raj Baba and Shikha Maa. Those are your parents and our adoptive parents." He looked at Samay and both let out a small smile. "If Maa or Baba were here right now to hear me say the word 'adopted', they would chide me. They never let us feel like we weren't their kids."

Pragya touched her parents faces on the picture with a smile. "They look beautiful together. And so happy."

Soon, Samay explained everything to Pragya. He told her about how their father died, how she and her mother got lost, how their uncle Shekhar took them away, how they found out about her and why those people were after her.

"So those people are after me for the Pratap treasury?"

"Yes, exactly."

"I can't believe people would go to that extent just for money! If all this trouble is because of that money, then I'll hand it over to them myself! I don't want any of it!"

"It's not only about the money Pragya. There maybe other things that Baba may have hidden there. We can't let them get their hands on it." Sumit pointed out.

Pragya sighed and sat back down on the bed. "I never imagined that I was the only key to such a big fortune. The only thing I ever won in lottery was a 50 rupee coupon. Funny, eh?" She joked, turning to look at Shabbir. However, her smile disappeared when she saw his shocked state. "Shabbir? Shabbir, what happened?"

Bulbul noticed it too and turned to question Purab. However, he was in the same state as he stood there gapping at Samay and Sumit. She turned to Aliyah and she was the same.

As Bulbul looked around, she noticed all of the rest in similar states of shock. "W-what's wrong with all of them?"

"You...you both are Raj Pr-ratap's sons? The Raj Pratap that...that built the Xcaliber chip?" Abhi stuttered out.

At that, Pragya gasped. 'All this time, they were the ones we were searching for? They are the two Pratap sons that I had promised Mr. Mehra to help find? My own brothers!?'

Sumit and Samay nodded, still confused at their reactions. At once they felt arms hold them in place. While Kriti, Karan and Vivek held Samay, Sumit was held in a vice grip by Aliyah and Purab. Pragya and Bulbul held their ears as the rest of them screamed in chorus.

"Finally found you!"

*****************************
To be continued...

If you like this chapter, please consider giving a vote. Thanks!
~ 🌹 Mona 🌹