Not A Simple Engineer Boy!

H' & Forty Five: Murugan Thunai (Part 7)

"Anna, please, at least listen to them.", Sivan Shanmugam- Krithika's youngest uncle- pleaded as he tapped on the door of his brother's bedroom.

After they had finished their tea, Xavier and his friends had been instructed to sit in the living room. They had been informed that the Shanmugam trio, the men of their house, had gone to discuss a business deal and might have returned home by midday. All of them had sat patiently, awaiting their return.

Krithika's aunts had kept feeding them with too many delicacies and Farhan had joked, "Are you ladies planning to poison us, should I be aware of any Tamil version of Jolly Joseph?"

Balamurugan- Krithika's first cousin- had returned after his boxing practice to find the living room crowded with guests. Subsequently, he had locked himself in his room, which had reminded Satya of her husband and she had smiled.

Krithika had been silently sitting in the corner of the room with Preethi- who had animatedly chatted about her development in Carnatic singing. Her eyes had met Xavier's once and she had blushed as if it had been their first meeting.

Karthik had positioned himself beside Xavier, conversing with all but Farhan. Farhan had teased, "Kid, you're not still harboring resentment toward me, are you?", to which Karthik had retorted, "I'm just being respectful. Wasn't that what you demanded before?", this banter had elicited chuckles from Krishna and Satya.

As anticipated, when Shanmugam's sons had arrived and had become aware of the eldest child's love story, Ashok Shanmugam had burst into a loud outcry. He had left the room to lock himself in his bedroom, causing his brothers and other family members to follow him.

Krishna had advised the others to remain silent and refrain from getting involved in their disputes. He had stated, "Let him come and address to us; he must respect us."

Farhan had shrugged, "Anyway, I am not gonna beg to that bloke."

--

Vinoth Shanmugam- older than Sivan- let out a sigh. "Anna?" he attempted to soothe his brother, though he knew his efforts were futile.

"She's such a disgrace to our family!", Ashok yelled, "I had told you all, she'll be our downfall."

"Neenge velliye vange, naange porumaya pesalam...", Saranya requested her husband to step out of the room and engage in a patient conversation with them.

Ashok snarled, "Yella unnale than!", he blamed her for causing all the chaos, "You didn't raise her properly!"

Krithika screamed, "What do you want from me!?"

Saranya's head snapped to see Krithika calmly looking at her as she slowly walked in the corridor, closer to her father's room, "Appa, tell me, I am curious to know what you expect from me?"

They heard the door opening and Ashok emerged, "Get out of this house with all your vermins!"

"Why?", she demanded, "And they aren't vermins."

"How dare you argue with me?", he yelled, "Being a whore to a Christian man and--"

"Enough!", Saranya screamed, "That's the limit, Ashok!"

No one had ever witnessed Saranya raising her voice, let alone yelling; in fact, nobody had ever seen her speak in a raised tone to her husband. Her actions silenced everyone including Ashok, who bowed his head.

"I've endured twenty-six years of marriage, patiently waiting for the day you'll cease being stupidly selfish. Twenty-six years, Ashok," she gazed at him intently. "Take a good look at my face, Ashok. I doubt the marble flooring is more captivating."