Chapter 4: Claiming What He Threw Away

The night had settled over Bangalore with a comforting chill. The Suryavanshi house stood silent, its corridors dimly lit. Veeresh had returned late from his penthouse, restless and distracted.

He wasn’t sure why he came back here.

Maybe part of him was trying to understand the choices he’d made.

Maybe part of him just wanted to hear her name spoken again.

He didn’t expect to hear what he did.

He had just walked past the old wooden corridor near the pooja room when he heard hushed voices from the living area.

It was his father.

> “I think it’s time we told Poornima to move on.”

There was a long pause. Veeresh stopped in his tracks. His brows furrowed.

> “She’s suffered enough, Lakshmi,” his father added. “Veeresh doesn’t care. We’ve seen that. She’s just working, living alone, and still staying faithful to a man who left her on day one.”

His mother’s soft voice followed, strained with regret.

> “You’re right. I’ll speak to her. Maybe… maybe she should file for divorce. That poor girl. I was angry at first, but now I see it — we destroyed her life.”

Veeresh’s heart clenched.

What the hell was happening?

They were talking about ending it? Telling her to walk away from him?

Something snapped inside him.

He stepped into the room, his voice calm but cold.

> “Don’t make decisions about my marriage without me.”

His parents looked up, startled.

> “Veeresh—”

> “No. Enough,” he interrupted. “Yes, I made mistakes. I left her. I was broken. But that doesn’t mean you get to decide she should move on.”

His mother’s eyes filled with emotion. “Veeresh, she’s still wearing your name silently. She’s alone. She doesn’t deserve—”

> “Sahana is over,” he said sharply. “That chapter is closed. And I don’t want Poornima to go anywhere.”

Silence.

His own voice shocked him. But it was the truth.

Sahana was gone. She had died — or so he thought.

But Poornima was alive. And she had stayed.

Despite his cruelty.

Despite the abandonment.

Despite being his wife only in name.

> “I will handle this,” he said, voice low, determined. “This marriage… it’s not over. I’ll speak to her. Myself.”

And with that, Veeresh turned and walked away, fists clenched, jaw tight, something fierce brewing in his chest.

> He didn’t know how he’d fix it.

He didn’t even know if she’d listen.

But he knew one thing—

He wasn’t going to lose Poornima without a fight.

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