CHAPTER 248: CHAPTER-248

Kaya’s glare sharpened, her lips pressing into a hard line. Veer, unfazed, only flashed her a cheeky smile in return, the kind that usually melted hearts. But Kaya’s eyes filled with disgust, and he knew it wasn’t working this time.

That was when Veer’s father stepped in, seizing the moment with venom.

"Ha! I have never seen a shameless woman like you. Living in this house, eating his food, breathing his air, without even an ounce of gratitude. Shameless! Tell me, did you learn it from your mother or your father? Hah! What kind of people must they be, to raise a woman like you?"

His words were a blade, meant to cut her pride and push her into anger—drive her out of Veer’s life with her own rage. He wanted the fight. He wanted her to storm away.

But he had underestimated Kaya.

She didn’t flare up. She didn’t shout back. Instead, she tilted her head slightly, as though considering his words. Her fingers brushed her chin, her expression strangely thoughtful. And then she spoke, calm, measured, and unsettling.

"Well... you’re right. They are quite shameless people. Even I agree with that."

For a second, silence swallowed the room. Veer’s father stared at her, bewildered. His insult had bounced back like a blade turned against its master.

What kind of child... admits that? Doesn’t defend their parents—even in front of strangers?

Kaya suddenly stepped forward, her eyes narrowing as she closed the distance until only a handspan separated her from Veer’s father. Her voice was flat, almost casual, but the chill beneath it was enough to pierce bone.

"Listen, mister. Whatever you have to say—take it outside. Stop disturbing my rest."

Without sparing him another glance, she turned toward Veer.

"And you—take all this garbage out."

Her finger flicked toward the corner, where a pile of dry leaves had been swept together.

"Yes, yes," Veer answered quickly, almost tripping over his own eagerness. He hurried to obey, grabbing both his father and the bundle as if they were one and the same.

Veer’s father was still frozen, stunned into silence. He hadn’t even gathered his breath to respond when Veer clasped his wrist firmly, tugging him toward the door without resistance. In an instant, both man and mess were gone.

Kaya stood there, watching their retreating backs. Her usual mask of indifference faltered, and for the first time, something unfamiliar clouded her eyes. Confusion. An ache she couldn’t name.

Why?

Why did he care for her so much?

In the few days she had spent under the same roof with Veer, one truth had become undeniable: this man loved her. Deeply. Desperately. And it was not a lie. She had seen it herself—the terror in his face when she had nearly died from the snake’s bite, the way his hands had trembled as if her life was his own.

Kaya had never known love like that. Unconditional. Relentless. It unsettled her.

Even this house—humble as it was—felt more peaceful than the one she had built with her own hands in her world, the so-called "home" she had fought to preserve. More peaceful than her real home.

Her lips parted slightly, but no words came. Instead, she sat there in silence, her chest tightening with something she could not yet understand.

This person... this Veer...

He had turned her life upside down. Made it chaotic, maddening, strangely warm.

And for the first time in years, Kaya did not know how to react.

.

.

.

"AHHHHHH...OUCH OUCH OUCH"

Veer let out a scream so sharp it startled the birds overhead into flight.

Inside the house.

Kaya shot him a glare, her voice sharp with irritation.

"What the hell are you overreacting for?"

Tears welled in Veer’s amber eyes as he jabbed a trembling finger at the thorny fruit scattered on the ground.

"Overreacting? Me? Me? You told me to bring this cursed thing and break it open—and I did! Look at my hand!"

His palm was a bloody pincushion, tiny thorns buried everywhere. Kaya, lips pressed thin, sat beside him with a metal needle, plucking them out one by one.

She clicked her tongue, her annoyance barely contained.

"Then who the hell told you to break it with your hand? I said use a stone. Or something."

Veer gawked at her, face twisted with betrayal.

"But you didn’t specify!"

Kaya’s eyes rolled so hard it was a wonder they didn’t stick.

"Well, forgive me for assuming you had common sense."

Veer’s mouth fell open at her words.

"Common sense?" he repeated, his voice cracking as though she had stabbed him instead of a fruit. "Woman, do you not see? I am dying here!"

Kaya ignored his theatrics, calmly plucking another thorn out of his skin.

"Dying? If you can still shout this much, you’re very much alive."

"Alive but scarred for life!" Veer clutched his chest with his free hand, throwing his head back dramatically. "Who will want me now, huh? My beautiful hands are ruined!"

Kaya paused, her gaze narrowing at his over-acted despair. With a dry tone, she said,

"Don’t worry. No one wanted you even before this."

That shut him up—only for a second. Then he gasped in exaggerated horror, pointing at her.

"You—! You ruthless woman!"

Before he could go on, a sharp chirp cut through the air. Both of them turned their heads. The sparrow was hopping on the fence post, glaring at them with puffed-up feathers as if he were the judge of their nonsense.

Kaya muttered under her breath,

"Great. Now even the sparrow has complaints."

After Kaya finished pulling out the last thorn, wrapping Veer’s hand with a strip of cloth, she let out a long sigh. Her gaze drifted back to the ground, where the spiky fruits still lay scattered.

She crouched down and picked one up, rolling it in her palm.

Kaya sighed helplessly as her eyes fell on the ground, scattered with those thorny fruits. She didn’t even know the exact name of this fruit, but she had seen it online before coming to this world—people breaking it open, finding brown seed-like things inside, slicing them, frying them in oil, then boiling them with salt. Everyone in the videos swore it tasted sweet.