I'm moving back into my apartment over the next few days so here's a semi-early, longer update! I've changed many canonical happenings and there are many events that I am ignoring in the story so as usual, keep an open mind! I appreciate all the support and reviews! Nothing makes me happier than knowing that someone enjoys what I put out! And without further ado, presenting the next chapter: family bonding time!

Shaking her head, she moved to pick up her phone, putting the incident out of her mind, and taking the first step to moving on. But 20 minutes later, she got off the call with the moving company, puzzled. What did they mean that they had no scheduled pick up? Her uncle had arranged everything, she had the confirmation number! But they'd said it wasn't showing up in their system. The doorbell rang. What in the world- Had Swayam found out and come back? Was Rey back? Nobody except her was supposed to be home.

"Is my Princess ever going to open the door or do you want me to go back home without her?" Hearing the lovingly familiar voice, she rushed to throw the door open and leaped at her uncle, grabbing him in a vice-like hug.

"Uncle Rishi, what are you doing here? You were supposed to pick me up at the train station back home! How- I mean what- I mean- that movers' company told me something about my confirmation number not being in the system and I was just about to call you and now you're here, but Swayam is in college and he doesn't know about me coming home and please don't tell him, do you want some coffee?" She rushed out an incoherent sentence of jumbled words and sounds that Rishi struggled to decipher. When he finally took a seat on the sofa, he brought his arms around her in a gentle side hug.

"First, I want you to breathe. Second, to answer your questions or the ones I understood anyways- I didn't make a reservation with the movers because I came to pick you up myself which also answers your question about me picking you up. I won't tell Swayam about you coming home but you need to Taani. You're his sister. It's better if he hears it from you rather than someone else. You might be my niece Taani, but you know that we've always thought of you as a daughter and Swayam considers you his real sister. He needs to know when you make big decisions. No matter how old you get, no matter how mature and big you get, you'll always be our own to protect. Please princess, you need to tell him. And I would love some tea, not coffee. Your aunt pumped me full of caffeine before I left and the 12-hour journey barely felt like anything with all that in my system. Maybe brew some green tea? Or some black lemon. You pick." He smiled gently at his young niece.

He knew that she'd been hurt and even the who, why, and when. That's why he allowed her the little whims and independence because she never hid the big things from him. He trusted her more than he trusted Swayam, whose life ambition was to open a dance academy with his friends, with no care of how the family business would function. It was Taani who had persuaded him to let Swayam pursue dance and in turn, had given up her own dreams of running a fashion house and having her own collection so that she could take Swayam's place at the helm of the business.

Well, not anymore. She would no longer take a backseat to those who didn't appreciate her worth. Swayam, Rey, Sharon, the entire dance team. She would intern at one of the best design companies he could contact and she would then take over the fashion sector of Shekhawat Industries, leaving the day to day running to him for the time being. With Swayam showing absolutely no interest in the business whatsoever, the different factions would have to be managed by all of his nieces and nephews. Taani would, of course, be the managing director once she got settled in. He saw her at the very top of the company eventually, owning and managing it. He wanted his child to be happy, and if that meant going behind her back to return her lost passion to her, then so be it. She deserved it after all the bullshit she had put up with from his son and his friends.

A cup was gently placed in front of him, and he looked at her. "Taani, go tell the driver to load all your boxes into the car. We'll set off in an hour."

"Yes uncle"

Instructions passed on and with nothing else to do but wait, she settled down on the sofa next to the man she considered a father. He peered at her over his glasses, getting a good look at her. "Come here, princess." And she scooted over into his hug, letting the tension drain from her body as the familiar feeling of safety and warmth encompassed her. "Taani I know what happened with Rey hurt you. But I also know that you wouldn't be this hurt if you didn't care so much. Often the ones who hurt us the most are the ones who love us the most."

When her reply came in barely a pained whisper, he had to close his eyes and muster up all the strength he had so he could help his child through her pain- "When will it stop aching? Will it ever go away?"

"Taani, child, this is a pain that will take time. Your wound is fresh. It needs to heal and that could take a lot of time and patience." He then continued on with an analogy that would help her, because, in many ways, she was still that 6-year-old he had brought home, scared and cold. "It's like that time you fell off the swing in the park when you were 10. Remember that? You skinned your knee and it bled through Swayam's white handkerchief. It took almost a whole 2 months for it to heal completely. You need to wait and let this wound heal too. I have supported every decision of yours until now and I will continue to do so. And I am proud that you trust me to look after your future." She claimed her place by his side, curling up, and dozing off for the first time in months with a sense of peace.

"Sir? The luggage is loaded. We can leave whenever you're ready."

Rishi shook Taani awake gently and guided her to the car in her half-awake state, promising that she could continue her little nap in the back of the car with him. And with that, they set off, away from what had been the best, the most beautiful and some of the most painful months of her life. She hoped Swayam forgave her and she hoped that she forgave herself one day for hurting Rey and lying to him.