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The ICU hummed softly — the rhythm of machines filling the heavy silence.

Veeresh sat beside her bed, his elbows resting on his knees, his eyes fixed on the fragile form of Poornima lying motionless beneath layers of white bandages.

Every inch of her — the girl who once glowed with warmth and mischief — was now hidden beneath wounds and wires.

He could barely recognize her, yet his heart whispered the same name again and again — Ruby.

He brushed a trembling hand along her cheek, careful not to disturb the tubes and dressing.

> “You said you’d finish your masters, Ruby,” he murmured, voice low and rough. “You said I have to attend your graduation… and now look at you…”

The words broke mid-sentence. For a man who once ruled empires of crime with an iron heart, his tears fell silently, soaking into her hospital sheet.

> “Please come back to me,” he whispered, his forehead resting against her hand.

“I can’t live without you, Ruby… not anymore. You changed everything — my house, my nights, my damn soul.”

He paused, the ache in his chest deepening with every beep of the heart monitor.

> “I promise you,” his voice hardened, the rage returning beneath the sorrow.

“Whoever did this — Simon, his people, anyone who touched you — I’ll burn their world. I’ll make them beg for mercy that won’t come.”

His hand tightened around hers gently, as if anchoring her back to life.

> “But you… you don’t get to leave me. You’ll open your eyes, you’ll call me idiot for coming late, you’ll make me do push-ups again… and I’ll do them all, Ruby. Just—”

his voice cracked —

“—just open your eyes once.”

He pressed a long kiss to her forehead, lingering there, his breath trembling against her skin.

> “I love you,” he confessed softly, the words raw and broken.

“And that’s my curse now. Because the devil finally learned to love… and she’s the one lying here, fighting for her life.”

He straightened slowly, eyes still glistening but burning with a new, lethal fire.

> “You fight, Ruby. While I keep my promise.”

The guards waiting outside saw the look on his face and knew — war had begun.