"I.. I just. I know that I promised to not replace your wife.. but.. but if we are married and then.. You might feel sad.. I don't know.. I just.." Shreya stammered. She did not actually know how to even express the things in her head. It was chaotic and complicated.

If she was married, she will not be Shreya alone but his wife too.. Wouldn't that count as replacing her? Wouldn't that mean she snatched the title from Samantha.. wouldn't he end up thinking about Samantha every time he sees her as his wife.. She did not want to remain as someone's shadow. She wanted to be in their lives just as Shreya.. she wanted to be part of their lives as Shreya.. rightfully.

But she does not know how to do that!

Only when she started thinking about marriage did she realize, she did not know where was her rightful place in this family.. Charan already has a wife and Akira already has a mother. And there is no correct way for her to fit in.

She felt suffocated when she thought of this..

So, she kept postponing.. she stopped thinking about it. She was afraid to tell Charan about the chaos in her head because somewhere she knew it was because she was possessive and greedy. But she still couldn't get over it on her own.. she wanted to compromise and let it go but she still couldn't even after all this time..

Charan swatted over her forehead as he scolded her sternly, "What nonsense are you thinking about with the big brain of yours?"

Shreya frowned but then sighed leaning over as she said, "I have no idea in all honestly.. I just feel uncomfortable somehow!" It was almost like an itching feeling over her heart she cannot get rid of. She buried her head into the seams of his neck and snuggled in for comfort.

"So, you don't want to marry me?" Charan asked back.

Shreya shook her head instantly looking anxious as she said hurriedly, "I do.."

"And?" Charan asked arching his brows.

"Hey, you will not replace anybody anywhere! I promise.." Charan answered solemnly. He then pulled Shreya away from his embrace and took her face into his hands as he continued, "When you are ready.. when we get married, you will be my wife.. one and only. As hard as it is to accept, Samantha is someone from my past. And she is not coming back. And you are my future.. not just for me. But you are the future for Akira too.. And you will just be Shreya for both of us.. you will not have to replace anyone or compete with anybody's shadow. You are simply Shreya and we love you.."

Shreya did not say anything in reply. She just sat there in a daze for a while.

"One and only.." She mumbled to herself. She liked the way it rolled on her tongue. It felt nice. Unconsciously a smile spread over her lips.

"You want to tell me about the engravings here?" Charan suddenly asked bringing her out of her trance.

Shreya snapped out of her head. Even when she still felt slightly embarrassed, she still looked at Charan straight into his eyes and asked bravely, "What about it?"

She really did not know why something that looked so cool when it was done can become something so embarrassing in retrospect!!?

But she did not show it on her face. But in spite of her embarrassment, she couldn't help be slightly proud too.

"I wouldn't have to bite you to show others that you belong to me anymore!" Shreya beamed suddenly losing the embarrassment.

"Are you really going to stop biting me??" Charan asked looking skeptically at Shreya.

"Of course not!! Let's just say it is additional insurance when I do forget to bite!!" Shreya answered seemingly proud of herself.

Charan just let out a helpless chuckle. He couldn't resist pulling on her cheeks on both sides until they were pink but then she took her face into his hands.

He just stared at her grinning eyes for a few seconds as he softly ??r?ssed over her cheeks before leaning over to give her a kiss over her temples. He really wished he could somehow open his heart to show her how much she means to him.

She still amazes him every single time. He is completely baffled by how much considerate she can be towards him..

After all, even if the major part is her own struggle, knowing Shreya.. she would have come to him straight. So, more than the fact that she was insecure and complicated about marriage, she must also have been afraid of him being sad and remembering things..

After all, he had been married before, and even if the memories are good, happy memories.. once the person leaves you, everything comes back to haunt you regardless. She probably did not want him to go through that..

Because to an extend, she is right.. just the term marriage brought back memories.

But because Shreya was there, he is able to look back at them with a sense of nostalgia rather than melancholy.

When he decided to get married to Shreya, he had already said his goodbyes to Samantha. He will not be able to forget her or get rid of his feelings for her.. but he moved on. Because he knew holding on to Samantha was cruel to Shreya.. he would never do that to Shreya. Not after everything she had done for him.

But he never thought, not only him but Shreya also considered the same and had been holding back for his sake.

"Oh wait.. I forgot something else!!" Shreya suddenly exclaimed getting down from the table. She then went to her drawers and pulled out another jewelry box. She handed it over to Charan beaming.

"Who else are you going to propose to?" Charan asked confused but then his words stopped at his throats when he opened the box and looked into it.