The ring was staring at his face like it was mocking his entire existence. Suddenly he felt like he mattered very little in her life. That sudden feeling of dwarfness extinguished that little flame of hope that was burning in his heart. But he didn't flinch, neither did he let his emotions reflect on his face. He sat there next to her with his face all steady and calm.

He took her hand and started caressing her. He ran his thumb and then lifted her hand with both his hands and said,

"Just open your eyes once for God's sake and just say my name once. Please, that's all I want. I can't see you like this Akira".

He then brought her hand close to his mouth and softly kissed her.

"Can you just let her rest peacefully?", Vikram asked with irritation dripping from his voice.

Raymond didn't say a word but just gave him a look, which was enough to turn him into ashes.

Vikram saw him looking at him with nothing but anger, rage, and contempt so he retorted back,

"And why would you think that she will take your name when she gets up?"

He said and folded his hands in the front.

"So you think she will take your name?", Raymond asked.

"Of course she will. We have stood the test of time. I was there with her when there was no one to stand with her. I am like family to her Raymond and I think you must have heard that blood runs thicker", Vikram said and smirked.

"Yeah just like shrewdness runs in the blood of both you and your mother?", Raymond asked.

"That was below the belt and you know it", Vikram said and got up from the bed all angry and frustrated and went to his desk to drink water to calm himself down.

Then he turned back and looked towards Raymond and spoke calmly,

"Now listen to me very carefully because I am telling you this for your own good".

"I am all ears", Raymond said and looked at Vikram, dedicating his full attention.

"Your life is already in a struggle. You not only have to take care of your startup but also you have to take care of people who are after you. You might go bankrupt within a couple of days for you don't know what force is hell-bent to make you eat dust. So don't you think it's better that she stays with me? She stays happy and comfortable when she is with me. Do you remember the glow on her face when she shared the first dance with me? I bet you do".

"She has already faced so many hardships in her life. Why do you want to make her life even more dreadful and painful? I know you like her a lot and you want to keep her happy, but think about it realistically. Does it make sense for you to drag a girl into the turmoils of your life? She hasn't even completed her college. It's her age to make new friends and enjoy but all that you have given her is tears and nothing else."

Raymond, who was patiently listening to Vikram's rant till now got up and walked towards him silently and then stood at level with him and then looked directly into his eyes and said,

"First, I don't like her, I love her, with all my heart. There is a difference between these two terms. So don't try to belittle my love by using the term LIKE".

"Second, I am capable enough to shield her from any sort of obstacle that comes in my way because I will be the one facing them. I will never use her as a shield to solve my problems unlike you."

"Third, try to look deep inside your heart and tell me if you haven't seen her happy with me. Do you even know why she was excited to come to the Gala with you?", Raymond said and smirked.

"She was happy because she wanted badly to dance with me".

"You just got lucky with the numbers !!!", Vikram retorted.

Raymond smiled and asked,

"You think so?"

His grin became even smugger and he said,

"And finally, I already know about these so-called unknown forces that you are talking about. They snatched away my Singapore deal, but so what? I bounced back and no matter how hard they hit, no matter whether they make me bankrupt or not, I will rise. Because that's who I am Vikram Shah. I am the maker of my own destiny and no force in the entire world can stop me from living my dreams. And this girl here is the queen of my dreams. She was born to reign over me and she will herself prove that to you because I have that much faith in my love".

"And one more thing, just because my love doesn't boast doesn't mean that it's intensity is any less and being a postgraduate yourself, you must be aware that time isn't the measuring unit of intensity. I might have come later in her life, but that doesn't mean my love is lesser than yours".

Vikram had no answer.

"Mmmm..."

They heard her faint sound and they both rushed towards the bed and each of them immediately held one of her hands, like she was a trophy they both wanted to claim. Vikram immediately started caressing her hand so that she didn't feel the pain of the cannula.

But then Raymond got up all of a sudden and went to Vikram's desk and got the glass of water and came back to her.

Her lips which had been all chapped by now moved a bit.

"Maa... Maverik...."

"Who is Maverick?", Vikram asked looking at Raymond. He was surprised to hear her taking some random name. He was expecting her to call his name first.

Raymond didn't answer but the sweet smile of victory was clear on his face.

She blabbered something again. It seemed like she was trying to tell something but her voice was very faint.

Then she spoke again, but this time more clearly,

"Maa... Maverik... Water !!!"

And then she opened her eyes and looked towards her left side first and saw her Maverick sitting next to her, holding a glass of water like she pleased.