Ram grabbed a flute of champagne from the bar counter and made his way ahead. Vikrant and Sara's engagement party was going on in full swing. They were busy getting their pictures clicked by the photographer Ram had appointed. Vikrant was dressed in a cream-coloured sherwani while Sara was in a baby pink lehenga. Ram's blood boiled on seeing Sara. Her sister and their family were responsible for his collective ruin. He had lost his two closest family members, courtesy of the Soods.
Ram's grip on the champagne flute tightened further upon seeing Priya. She was dressed in a navy blue saree with detailed embroidery work. She'd left her hair open. A long time ago, he would've liked it that way. Not anymore. Now, he felt like chopping it all off. She was wearing her nuptial chain. Upon its sight, Ram's anger sparked further. She had no right to insult their relationship like that. He abhorred her name and her existence. The champagne glass in Ram's hand smashed into several pieces. A few glass shards pierced his palm but his face remained impassive. Priya watched him uncomfortably from a distance. She glanced at his hand and let out an inaudible gasp. She recovered quickly and looked away from him, pretending to be engrossed in the engagement party.
Maitri stood beside Neeraj, caressing her baby bump. Priya approached her and whispered, "Maitri, you've made sure Pihu is fast asleep right?" Maitri nodded and replied, "Yes Di. I sang her a lullaby and put her to sleep. Haathi, ghoode aur gadhe, teeno bechke soyi hai Pihu." Priya felt a sense of relief upon Maitri's assurance. She couldn't risk Ram running into Pihu and finding out they're related. It wouldn't end well for her. Priya excused herself and went in the direction of the restroom.
Ram has witnessed the hushed whispers between Priya and Maitri. He assumed it was something about the engagement party. Perhaps one of the rings was lost. Wouldn't that be some wonderful news for him? Ram had tried his level best to break off Vikrant and Sara's engagement. He even involved Ishaan, hoping that would be enough to end this sham of an engagement. But, alas! Ishaan had come around to the idea of their wedding after spending some time with Vikrant. Ram had felt incredibly guilty for involving Ishaan in this mess. He made a mental note to apologise to him later.
Ram was about to grab another glass of champagne when he felt a tug on his trousers. He looked down to see a girl - aged around 5-6 - smirking at him. She was dressed in Mickey Mouse pyjamas and princess slippers. Her eyes were a sparkling blue with hints of green. It reminded him of his own eyes. "Promise breaker," she called him. Her face registered in his head. She was the same kid he'd met at the shopping complex a few days ago. The same kid who he fought with over a cupcake. The same kid who'd saved him from Angeera.
Ram crouched to her level and flicked her nose. "Overdramatic ladki. For a cupcake, you faked an asthma attack? Not bad," Ram remarked. Pihu giggled at his remark. "How'd you get to know I was faking it?" she inquired. Ram gave her a tight-lipped smile and said, "Well, I could see it in your eyes." Pihu put her hands on her hips and said, "There's no reason to be so filmy, promise-breaker." Ram laughed at her comment. "Okay fine. I had come back to check on you but you had already left. A woman who had witnessed all of this told me were faking it. You had narrated this to your mother," Ram explained to her. Pihu bobbed her head in affirmation. "Well, you had promised me a cupcake. And you tried to break it. I had to teach you a lesson."
Ram laughed heartily at her statement. He couldn't remember that last time he'd laughed so openly. Everything went downhill after Shivina's death. And once again, he ended up alone. But, the only difference was this time, he was angrier and bitter. Hate for the woman he once claimed to love had consumed him. She'd destroyed him and his family in a flash. She'd claimed to have cheated on him with Krish. And his stepmom's words only confirmed it.
"You can stop calling me promise-breaker. Call me RK," Ram forwarded his hand toward her and gave her a charming smile. Pihu shook his hand and replied, "RK? Okay. And you should stop calling me overdramatic ladki. My name is Pihu."
Ram looked at her. She was dressed in her nightclothes, which he found really odd. Why would someone dress their kids in pyjamas for an engagement party? 'Probably the kid got exhausted and had to be put to sleep,' Ram thought. That was the only viable explanation. "Did my Mumma invite you for the engagement party?" Pihu asked innocently. Ram's eyebrows scrunched up in confusion. "Your Mumma? No, this is my friend, Vikrant's engagement party," Ram answered. "Oh wow! So, your friend and my maasi are getting engaged. Yay!" Pihu exclaimed. 'Maasi?' Ram thought. Did Maitri have a kid that he did not know about? No, that would be absurd. Then, Sandy? Sheesh, Sandy avoided boys at all costs.
Before Ram could contemplate further, Pihu exclaimed a loud 'Mumma' and ran off behind him. He stood up and turned around and what he saw made his heart drop and blood turn cold.
Pihu ran off in Priya's direction and hugged her. She then whispered something to her mother and dragged her in Ram's direction. They stood face-to-face with Pihu in between.
"Mumma, this is the cupcake uncle I was telling you about. I met him at the mall a few days ago. He told me to call him RK. So, Mumma, this is RK," she said to Priya. She then faced Ram and said, "And RK, this is my Mumma, Ms Sood."
One look at Priya's panicky face and Ram had pieced together everything. Ram was too shocked to speak anything. He looked at Pihu and those eyes looked strikingly familiar. He now knew why. She was his daughter. His blood. A part of him. The part that he was robbed of for what, Five? Six years? He clenched his jaw in anger and glanced hard at Priya.
Priya stood dumbfounded. She seemed to be at a loss for words. All her efforts to keep Pihu away from Ram had washed away in vain. It barely took her a second to start panicking.
Ram, on the other hand, was in awe of Pihu. He looked at her like she meant the world to him. She definitely did. He crouched to her level. He couldn't believe his own eyes. He was a father. He had a daughter. He caressed her cheek and tears flowed from his eyes.
Pihu creased her forehead in confusion. "RK, why are you crying? If it's about the cupcake, I'll get you another one." she said. She wiped the tears from his eyes. Ram was so overwhelmed that he took her in a bone-crushing hug. The tears didn't stop. Pihu caressed his hair and said, "You have nice hair. Soft, soft." Ram chuckled at her remark. He cupped her cheeks and said, "And you have nice cheeks. Also soft, soft." Pihu's giggle broke down all the walls of insecurities he had built. She'd managed to bring back the laughing Ram again. He took her hands in his and kissed the inside of her palm and whispered an inaudible 'I love you.'
