Never. Call. Me. Apple

Those toe rings weren't just ornaments—they were sacred to Aman, gifted by the most precious person in his life. He had no idea how someone could possibly steal them. They had been protected under the highest level of security. Since that fateful incident, he hadn't laid eyes on them...

But the Nagaraja wasn't finished yet. His expression turned serious as he looked at Aman and completed his sentence softly.

"Aman, not just your toe rings... your Chudamani has been stolen too."

It felt like a bolt of lightning had torn through his chest.

Both the toe rings and the Chudamani—gone.

They weren't just accessories; they were fragments of memory, tokens from a time long gone. But among them, the Chudamani held the most cherished place in his heart. It was the truest symbol of his bond with the one he had loved most deeply.

He looked at the Nagaraja, barely able to whisper a single word, "How?" His voice trembled with sorrow, disbelief, and shock.

The Nagaraja's tone was firm, yet carried a hint of reassurance as he said,

"Aman, we don't know yet. You know better than anyone—your palace is protected with the highest security. And yet… nothing else was taken. Only those two things."

"This king assures you that the thief will be caught very soon. They will be punished with the death sentence as soon as possible. I will ensure that myself."

Aman nodded his head. He was lost in his world. The Nagaraja looked at his dejected face; he hated that his son had to suffer so much pain even with his presence.

There were only a few times in his life when he felt helpless. Even though he was the great emperor of serpents, seeing his children in pain caused him heartfelt pain too.

But he did not know how to comfort someone or show his emotions on his face. He was taught like this from birth. He wanted to take off all the worries and sorrows from his children.

He thought about his husband, who could handle this situation excellently. Alas! His husband was not here...

He spoke in a caring voice, "Don't worry! My child. Your father will bring your toe rings and chudamani back. Take care of yourself."

Aman was extremely distraught over the news, but he still exchanged greetings with the Nagaraja and bid them goodbye.

Aman stood there still. It was very difficult for him to process the news. He was still fretting over it. 'How could this happen? It was not possible!' He thought.

He wanted to shout, 'I want my chudamani and toe rings back! Otherwise, I will burn everything.' But he still had the awareness about his surroundings, so he could not do that.

He punched the wall behind him, blinded with rage. His body, which looked fragile and delicate, was strong like metal.

The plaster and tiles were broken. A hole the same size as a fist was made in the ball.

Tears were glistening in his eyes, but he controlled himself. He felt immense pain thinking that someone had touched his toe rings and chudamani with their dirty hands.

Rage took him over; he angrily tapped the symbol of a black snake coiled around the half moon again.

A girl appeared in front of him. She was a beautiful girl but not a face to stand among the crowd. You could easily forget how she looked after a few days. She had dark brown hair tied in a braid. She was wearing a light black dress with a few gold ornaments.

This girl was a 'sevika'. She was one of the second-ranked servant girls of the Naga royalty. She was in charge of his room. She has been with him since childhood. Her family used to serve Aman's family.

Upon seeing Aman, she immediately folded her hands in a respectful salute, bowed her head low, and said with reverence,

"This humble servant greets Your Highness. Please accept my sincere respects, Your Highness."

Aman didn't acknowledge her greetings. He did not have time for this. He went straight to the point; his voice was low but sounded quite deadly. "How did this happen, Meera? I didn't think I needed to remind you to take care of my things daily."

Meera bowed her head; she was trembling with fear. "We—we... don't know, Your Highness. I, myself, locked the door after cleaning your room... Please show some mercy, Your Highness; this servant doesn't know," she pleaded.

Aman looked at the pleading lady in front of him; he took a deep breath. "That's enough. I am not interested in how it happened, Meera. Not at all. But tell me, how could you let this happen? Don't you know the significance of my toe rings or my chudamani? Or I need to remind you about that too! You foolish girl!

Meera nodded; she was still trembling and stuttered, "I… I… I… do, Your Highness. Show some mercy, Your Highness."

Aman whispered, but his voice sounded deadly, "Okay, I will show you mercy because all of you are or have been loyal to me. So I will give you until tomorrow morning. If any of you can't find my toe rings till tomorrow morning. I will personally behead all of you, including you, Meera, childhood companion or not. Understood?"

Meera nodded her head again and again. Aman cut the connection angrily.

He stood there in the room, motionless. Tears were pouring from his eyes non-stop. He still remembered the day when he gifted them to him. It was their special day. One of the most important days in his life. They were so happy on that day…. If only he could go back in time and live that kind of life again…..

More than fifteen minutes had passed, but he still stood in one place. After some time a servant knocked on the door. He asked, "Sir, the young master's soup is almost prepared. Do you want me to take it to a young master?"

Aman remembered that Mei Wei was sick that day. He still had to take the soup there. He spoke, "No... I will take it myself."

The servant replied, "Right, sir." He went to his work.

Aman wiped his face. He quickly prepared the soup and put it in the bowl. He went to Mei Wei's room with the soup tray in his hands. He was still lost in his world. When he went to Mei Wei's room, he didn't greet him. Mei Wei looked at his red shirt and dark forest green trousers. Strangely, his face was red too. A mischief emerged in Mei Wei's mind. He said in a teasing tone, "Good morning, my apple."

Hearing the word 'apple', Aman's mind went blank. He couldn't think of anything. He smashed the tray on the ground, and it shattered into pieces. His eyes glowed a little; he said through gritted teeth, "Never. Call. Me. Apple. You cannot call me, Apple!!

Mei Wei was shocked. He had never seen his Aman getting angry. Aman was always calm and collected. He even believed that Aman did not know the emotions like getting angry or enraged.

But now he couldn't believe what he was seeing. He called, "A-AMAN!!"

Aman broke out from his daze. He looked around and saw the shattered bowl and soup spilt all over the ground. He looked at the shocked and scared Mei Wei. He realised what he had done. Reality struck him like lightning; he covered his mouth with his hands.

He quickly went to the bed where Mei Wei was lying. He engulfed him in a hug. "I am sorry, my prince. I am sorry. I…I." As he was apologising, he suddenly started crying. Mei Wei could bear anything, but he couldn't see his Aman crying. He hugged him tightly and started comforting him, "Shh...shh…Aman, calm down...calm down... it's nothing. It's nothing. Everything is okay."

Aman shook his head, still crying, "No, no, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have said that to you. I shouldn't be angry at you. I am – I am just... that... please forgive me. It's, it's just…"

Now Aman was almost rambling; Mei Wei felt painful seeing Aman's pitiful state.

But before he could say anything, Aman sprinted out of the room. Mei Wei quickly got up and tried to follow Aman. But he could not find him.

He looked throughout the entire house, but the only place he forgot to search was Aman's room. At last, he remembered about that and went into Aman's room.

He found Aman curled on the bed. It looked like he was sleeping. But there were marks of tears on his beautiful and innocent face.

Mei Wei lay beside him on the bed. He patted Aman's still-damp cheek.

He hugged him and drew circles on Aman's back. He tried to comfort Aman, "Shh...my baby, don't cry. I forgive you. It's nothing; I am not angry at all. I understand there must be some things that frustrate you. You are also a human being, and you need to vent your frustrations."

Mei Wei heard Aman muttering something like, 'Must be punished. Did not want to lose.' At first, he was confused by those words, but then he remembered that Aman may have wanted to get punished because he lost his control at Mei Wei.

Mei Wei said at last, "Okay, if you want your punishment. Here it is. Since I am a sick person and now I am feeling cold as punishment, you have to cuddle with me and make me warm. Acceptable?" he asked.

Aman was asleep, so Mei Wei could not get the answer. But he took the blanket and covered both of them with it. Mei Wei kept saying sweet nothings to him, and after some time, he looked at Aman and saw him sleeping soundly. He called another servant and asked her to clean his room.

Aman was looking cute while sleeping; Mei Wei kissed his head tenderly, "Sleep well, my baby. The one thing I've realised is to never make you angry. You look quite scary when angry." He kissed his nose, then his forehead, and sneakily his lips too. "But it doesn't matter because I will never do something that will make you angry. I will be your good boy. There will always be a smile on your face for the rest of your life, my Aman. I love you. You know, sometimes I think that I am crazy. It has been only two years since you came into my life, but I can't even imagine my life without you. I would rather die than be without you. Even if you do something like this again, I will never be angry with you. You know I am serious; even if you one day kill someone, I will give you a chance to explain. I promise." As he said this, he sneakily kissed Aman again. He hugged him and went to sleep too.

Throughout the entire incident, Mei Wei did not realise that Aman was holding someone's portrait in his bosom while sleeping….

After the noon hour, Aman woke up before Mei Wei, and when he recollected how he behaved with Mei Wei, he felt ashamed. He decided to prepare Mei Wei's favourite food.

****

It was a rather good thing that his toe rings and chudamani were found before the dawn of the next morning. Otherwise, he did not know if he could live with the guilt of losing something so precious to him….

Luo Li came near him and whispered in his ear, "Our prey is coming today. Are you ready?" Aman nodded his head in approval. But when their prey actually came, both of them were surprised...

Kindly read Author's Note for clarifications.