Chapter 97

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“I cannot imagine losing you, Aparajita”, Veerbhadra confessed the truth with a serene smile playing on his lips. His hazel green eyes that had immense genuineness and purity were fixed at her chocolate brown ones. The crimson hue on her face did not go unnoticed by Veer while the queen blushed hard realizing her importance in his life.

With a smirk, she chortled, “Why Veer? Am I not your arch-nemesis?” Realizing the feelings of the prince for herself, the queen had decided to clear her doubts for once and all. She wanted him to come out clear about his feelings for her so that she could convey her decision of spending her life with him.

“Not at all”, mumbled the prince. “I considered you one but you took my heart", he jabbered.

“When?” she demanded as a coy smile played on her lips. The little girl inside the dignified queen was elated at the confession of the prince. The queen wanted to probe what was going on inside his mind but the seventeen year old girl wanted to trust him once again.

Veerbhadra took a deep breath and admitted, “Aparajita, I admired your beauty in the peaceful forest”, feeling ashamed of intruding her privacy while she had taken the bath in the serene stream of water. He lacked courage to accept his incorrigible deed.

The mighty queen has suddenly turned all shy while Veerbhadra continued, “I adored your strength when you climbed the gopuram of your ancestral temple”, while the queen gaped in surprise realizing that the prince had been following all her moves.

“I loved your selflessness when you saved me from the dacoits”, the prince admitted while the queen remembered their first meeting. Veerbhadra was drowned in guilty when he confessed, “Those dacoits were actually the men from Rajputana army”.

“So, this explains why your golden earrings were dangling in your ears when we had met”, retorted Aparajita with disgust laced in her voice. She was ashamed of herself for having not seen through the web of his lies. At the same time, she was not able to deny the pull of attraction she had towards him.

Veerbhadra nodded in affirmation much to the dismay of the queen bit before she could lash out at him, he revealed, “I was a fool, Aparajita but I loved your determination to protect your people. I knew you felt lively in my company but I am proud of you for keeping your duties above your emotions. The day I planned to go ahead with my conspiracy, I knew I was the unluckiest person who was betraying his love interest.”

With treacherous tears ready to trickle down his face, Veerbhadra concluded, “I had realized that there was nothing more disgraceful than living a life after crumbling the dignity of the woman whom I loved. If it was not my oath, I would perhaps, backed off, Aparajita but yes, I was blinded with greed.”

Aparajita’s breath hitched at the confession. The little girl inside the dignified queen was a blushing mess upon knowing that the man she had fallen for wanted to reciprocate her feelings. She was angry at him for conspiring against her but she could also not deny that if she was healthy and alive, the reason was none other than Veer.

The queen was aware of the fact that everyone made mistakes. She knew Veer had made a mistake to conspire against her but she was acknowledging the fact that she was wrong too. She wondered if she had controlled her emotions and stopped meeting him in the first place, Veerbhadra’s conspiracy would have long been failed without a bloodbath. She was not guilty of her deeds because she had not done anything that was undignified. She was just pondering over the past to forgive the prince. She wanted to start afresh.

On the other hand, Veerbhadra grinned admiring the pinkish hue on her captivating face. He was glad that the queen’s father had supported her when she fought the battle with Shivgarh because he had realized that the paternal support had been her strength when life was going downhill.

“So when I got an opportunity to protect you and redeem my deeds, I plunged in without caring for my life”, Veerbhadra informed with utmost genuineness in his masculine voice that touched Aparajita’s heart.

“Your parents and your friend was worried, Veer. Knowing the fact that Pranathgarh is famous for the poisonous arrows, you should have not played this stunt.” The queen complained though the little girl inside her was over the moon realizing that her Veer loved her.

“Aparajita, I would have died if you were in my state”, stated Veerbhadra pointing at his limbs with sheer disappointment at his decrepitude while Aparajita’s palm involuntarily traveled to his palm giving him the much-needed moral support. Taking a deep breath, he said, “After realizing my mistakes, I felt my parents could only be proud of me if I die as a martyr in a battlefield instead of being a banished royal. I am glad you took me in your shelter and helped me to recover.”

Aparajita blushed realizing that her friend could understand her unsaid feelings of helplessness while he was lying lifelessly in the battlefield. “Get well soon”, she mumbled as butterflies fluttered in her stomach. The simple act of holding palms seemed very intimate to her.

“I don’t want to, Aparajita”, chortled Veer earning a suspicious glare from the queen. “Come on, you won’t feed me when I would recover”, Veerbhadra cackled while the mighty queen turned into a coy one.

“So, what you plan after recovery?” questioned Aparajita immediately changing the topic as she retreated her palm and sighed at the lack of warmth.

“You remember the letter you wrote to my father. You wanted to marry me and rule the kingdoms.” Veerbhadra stated while Aparajita closed her eyes in despair. The letter her father had written on behalf of her had surely protected her dignity but she had never thought of the situation where she would be taunted for her action. She loved her people so much that renouncing her position of a ruler was surely out of question for her even if it meant to stay a spinster throughout her life.

Before Aparajita could protest, Veerbhadra confessed, “I want to be your shadow when you rule the kingdoms. I want to help you when you strive for the betterment of our people. I have full faith in you, Aparajita and I know you will turn out to be amongst the most efficient rulers.”

Having stated his conscious, well-thought-through choice, Veerbhadra looked at her lovingly as he asked her, “Will you marry me when I would stand on my legs?”

With crimson hue covering her milky white skin, Aparajita leaned onto his chest coyly, carefully listening to the blissful tone of his heartbeat and mumbles, “You need to ask permission from my father as per the rituals”.

The little girl inside the young queen was overjoyed at the meaningful apology and an awaited proposal for spending her life with the man she loved. The prince, on the other hand, thanked Lord Shiva for showering his love onto him after all, with the Almighty’s grace, he had not only got a chance to live but also, a lifetime opportunity to spend his life with the woman he loved.

♥️♥️♥️

Hi everyone

So, this is the much-needed confession. 🙈

This couple is ready to give us the couple goals now 😉, I am just waiting for Uday and Nandini now!😍

If things go as per my plan, I guess, I would finish this story in 3-4 chapters. Finally! 😅

I will be back soon, till then, please hit at the ⭐ button and share your views!

Take care 💛

Love you all
💜

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