Chapter 11: The Silent Storm

Back at the Agastya mansion, the once vibrant estate was unusually quiet. Dhruvansh had returned from the Chauhan house long before his parents and immediately shut himself in his room. The other kids from the orphanage, who had witnessed the bullying and the ensuing confrontation, followed him back with heavy hearts. No one said anything on the ride home. They could all feel the weight of Dhruvansh's pain, a storm brewing inside him that they were powerless to stop.

The large estate, normally filled with laughter and the joyful sounds of children, was now blanketed in a suffocating tension. The younger kids, sensing the shift in mood, remained quiet, glancing nervously at the older ones for reassurance. The caretakers, too, moved about the house cautiously, casting worried looks in the direction of Dhruvansh's room.

Inside his room, Dhruvansh sat on the edge of his bed, staring blankly at the wall. His mind was a mess of tangled thoughts, each one sharper than the last. He had always been aware of a certain distance between himself and his parents, a nagging question in the back of his mind about his origins. But tonight, everything had come crashing down around him. The truth that had been hinted at, the one he had tried to ignore, had been confirmed in the most brutal way.

You're an orphan.

The words from the rich kids at the party echoed in his mind, each repetition like a hammer blow to his chest. He clenched his fists, the memory of his fists crashing into the smug face of that Kumar boy still fresh. The satisfaction of landing those punches had been brief, replaced quickly by an overwhelming sense of confusion and anger. It wasn't just the kids at the party—it was everything. The lies, the half-truths, the secret that had been kept from him.

He wasn't truly an Agastya. He wasn't Karna's son. Not by blood. No matter how much they tried to tell him otherwise, he knew now. He had always known, deep down. He was just a stray, taken in out of pity. A charity case.

He glanced down at his wrist, where Eye sat quietly in its sleek, metallic form. The AI had been silent since the incident at the party, only speaking when it detected his elevated stress levels.

"Dhruvansh, your heart rate is elevated again. Would you like me to initiate a calming protocol?" Eye's soft voice chimed in, breaking the silence in his room.

"Not now, Eye," he muttered, his voice hoarse with frustration.

The door to his room creaked open slightly, and a familiar voice called softly, "Dhruvansh? Can I come in?"

It was Siya, one of the older girls from the orphanage. She was the closest thing Dhruvansh had to a real sister. She was always there for him, understanding him in ways even Karna and Devi couldn't. Without waiting for an answer, Siya stepped inside, her usual cheerful expression replaced by concern.

"You okay?" she asked, though she already knew the answer.

He didn't respond immediately, his jaw tightening as he turned his head away from her. "What do you think?" he muttered.

Siya sighed and sat down on the edge of his bed, keeping a respectful distance between them. "I'm not going to pretend I know what you're feeling right now," she began, her voice soft but steady. "But I know you, Dhruvansh. And I know you're angry. Not just at those kids… but at all of us."

Dhruvansh scoffed, still not looking at her. "You don't know anything, Siya. You don't know what it feels like to be lied to your whole life."

"I may not know everything," she said, undeterred, "but I do know that Karna and Devi love you. We all do."

He finally turned to face her, his eyes hard. "Love me? They didn't even have the guts to tell me the truth. That I'm just some kid they picked up off the streets."

"That's not true, and you know it," Siya replied, her voice tinged with frustration. "Karna and Devi raised you as their own. Blood doesn't make a family, Dhruvansh."

"Maybe not," he said, his voice growing bitter, "but it sure as hell makes you feel like you belong somewhere. And right now, I don't belong anywhere."

Siya's eyes softened as she looked at him. "You belong here, with us. You've always belonged here. Whether you're their biological son or not, you're still an Agastya. And nothing—nothing—changes that."

He clenched his fists again, trying to keep the emotions from boiling over. "It changes everything, Siya. I'm not their son. I'm just… some orphan."

She shook her head, her voice firm. "You're not 'just some orphan.' You're Dhruvansh Agastya, and you've got a family here that loves you. You're my brother, no matter what."

For a moment, her words hung in the air between them, and Dhruvansh felt the tightness in his chest loosen just a fraction. But the bitterness still lingered, heavy and oppressive. "You don't get it, Siya. You've always known where you came from. I don't even know who my real parents are. And now I'm supposed to just accept that I'll never know?"

Siya's eyes flickered with sympathy. "Maybe you won't know. But maybe… maybe it's not about where you came from. Maybe it's about where you're going."

Before he could spiral any further, there was a knock on the door, firmer this time. The door swung open to reveal Karna, standing in the doorway, his face drawn with fatigue but his eyes sharp with determination.

"We need to talk," Karna said quietly, his voice softer than usual.

Dhruvansh tensed, looking at his father—or rather, the man he had called 'father' his whole life. He didn't want to talk. Not now. Not after everything that had happened. But something in Karna's expression told him that this wasn't a conversation he could avoid.

Siya stood up, glancing between the two of them. "I'll leave you both to it," she said softly, giving Dhruvansh's shoulder a gentle squeeze before slipping out of the room.

Karna stepped inside and closed the door behind him. He stood there for a moment, as if unsure of how to begin. Dhruvansh avoided looking at him, the tension in the room thick enough to cut with a knife.

"I know you're angry," Karna finally said, his voice low. "And you have every right to be."

Dhruvansh let out a harsh laugh, shaking his head. "You don't get it."

Karna's gaze softened as he stepped closer. "Maybe I don't. But I want to. I want to help you, Dhruvansh."

"Help me?" Dhruvansh snapped, his voice rising. "You've already done enough. You lied to me. All of you. You let me believe I was your son when I wasn't."

Karna flinched at the accusation but stood his ground. "We didn't lie. We never told you because we didn't want you to feel different. You are our son, Dhruvansh. You've always been our son, even if you don't share our blood."

"Stop saying that!" Dhruvansh shouted, his emotions spilling over. "I'm not your son. I'm just some kid you picked up. An orphan."

Karna's face tightened with pain, but he didn't back down. "You are not just some orphan. You are a part of this family, Dhruvansh. Whether you believe it or not, that's the truth. We love you, and nothing—nothing—will ever change that."

For a long moment, the room was silent, the air thick with unresolved tension. Dhruvansh looked down, his fists clenched tightly at his sides. His mind was spinning, caught between anger and confusion, between the love he had always known and the bitter truth he had just learned.

"I know you're hurt," Karna continued, his voice steady but filled with emotion. "I know this is a lot to process. But we didn't keep the truth from you to hurt you. We did it because we love you, and we wanted to protect you."

Dhruvansh's jaw clenched as he fought back the tears that threatened to spill over. "Protect me from what? The truth?"

Karna took a deep breath, stepping closer. "From the pain of knowing that your birth parents aren't here to explain themselves. From the questions that have no answers. We didn't want you to feel like you were abandoned. Because you weren't. We chose you, Dhruvansh. We chose to love you."

The words hit Dhruvansh harder than he expected. He had spent so long feeling like an outsider, like he didn't truly belong. But hearing Karna say those words, seeing the emotion in his eyes—it was hard to hold onto the anger.

Karna reached out, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You are our son. Period. Nothing and I say nothing in this world can change this. We're a family. And not just 3 of us the kids, your siblings they are also our children, we all are family and will always be."

For a moment, Dhruvansh didn't move. But then, slowly, he nodded, his defenses starting to crack. He wasn't ready to forgive, not yet. But maybe… maybe he didn't have to figure it all out right now.

As Karna pulled him into a quiet embrace, Dhruvansh allowed himself to relax, just a little. Maybe it was okay to not have all the answers. Maybe it was enough, for now, to know that he wasn't alone.