TejRan : What Love Feels Like

Part-14

Disclaimer : All the characters written below are imaginary and a work of pure fiction. There is no resemblance to any incident or situation and is written as work of fiction.

Teja drove back home from their favorite cake shop. It was a sunday and it was her sunny's birthday. She had gone to the temple like every year and had gone to buy his favorite cake and picked up a new phone for him and came home.

He had his night shoot so he was not home throughout the night and she had missed celebrating his birthday at 12 o'clock.

She unlocked the door of their apartment , and her face fell immediately.

Everyone was there celebrating his birthday. All their friends , his team and Aru along with karan was having fun and having cake and snacks.

She quickly kept the cake and gifts on the table near the door and went inside with a forced smile.

Omi got up and went to her.

"sorry teja bhai....we all were waiting for you but karan bhai...." he stopped immediately.

"i know...." she gave a soft smile. She knew karan had forced everyone to cut the cake before teja came.

Something in her broke. He had never celebrated his birthday without her.

She could feel her eyes brimming with tears but she quickly masked her expressions and went to everyone happily and served dinner.

Teja was feeding aru when she heard Karan cough. She quickly poured water into a glass and kept it infront of him. He somehow didn't see that Teja had given him a glass and instead he picked up another glass and drank water from there , totally unintentionally. She felt her heart sink.

"so he doesn't want me to be a part of his special day.... she said in her mind and continued to feed aru fighting her tears.

Karan was sitting with their friends with Aru on his lap after dinner and kept stealing glances at her and knew how she was feeling.

Their friends left one by one as the night progressed.

Teja went to the door and picked up the packet from the side table and went to the kitchen.

She took the cake out and kept it in the fridge.

"teja bhai...." omi said from the door of the kitchen.

"haan bhaiya?" she looked back at him.

"let's ask karan bhai to cut this cake?" he asked slowly.

She smiled softly and shook her head.

"that won't be needed....he doesn't need this....not anymore...." she gulped and wiped her tears quickly.

"teja bhai...." he didn't know how to console her.

"i am fine...." she chuckled and gave him the prasad. "have this....and give one to karan....don't tell him i have given...."

And with that she went to their room.

Omi went to the balcony where Aru and karan were sitting and gave the sweets to both of them and had one. Karan gulped. He had heard Omi and Teja's conversation. He didn't meet Omi's eyes and had the prasad.

"Omi sit here with Aru i'll come...." he got up to go to the washroom. Before entering their room he stopped near the door seeing Teja sit on the bed. Her back was facing him. There were four wrapped boxes in a big wooden box and she kept one more box into it.

"like every year this year also your gift goes into this box...." she said in her choked voice looking at his photo by the side table.

Karan closed his eyes. She bought gifts for him every year. He wanted to go to her badly and hug her tightly and wipe her tears but his self respect stopped him from doing so. He couldn't do that to him. He had suffered a lot and he cannot forget everything. He waited for teja to keep the box in the cupboard and went inside the room.

"happy birthday sunny...." she said as she saw him come inside the room.

"thanks...." he said politely and went to the washroom.

If he doesn't want her in his special day , she won't be there and make it uncomfortable for him. And she did that , and she was proud of herself.

She put Aru to sleep by telling her a story and laid down beside her and buried her face into the pillow and cried silently. She didn't want karan to see her cry.

He came out after taking a shower and saw teja and Aru sleeping. He could see teja move slightly and knew that she was crying. He didn't want to lay there so he went out of the house and sat in his car and kept his head on the steering. He felt his eyes tearing up

Omi opened the door and sat next to him.

"what is wrong with you bhai?" he shook karan's shoulder.

"i am hurting her way too much right?"he looked up to Omi and he nodded.

"and you are hurting yourself as well...." he said slowly.

"I have really turned out to be a bad person...." Karan looked away from him.
"i am not like this....i was not like this....i would never do anything to hurt somebody intentionally.... but I don't know what's wrong with me... I just can't take this anymore..." And with that his thread snapped and he let his tears fall in front of Omi.

"bhai what is the point of all this?it's not like you are happy with all this....you will be happy with her and Aru....just imagine how perfect things would be...."

"i cannot forget everything okay?i cannot forget those four years....each night i cried....i had no idea about choco pie....I missed Teja's pregnancy....i wanted to do so much....i had imagined so much....i couldn't see my daughter born....i couldn't see her first step....her first crawl....i couldn't hear her first words....i don't know when she first said mumma papa....all this haunts me and i cannot forget this....even if i try i cannot...." he banged his hand on the steering.

"teja bhai got cake and gifts for you....and that sweet...." before he could finish karan cut him off.

"i know....prasad....i heard you talk in the kitchen...."

"she got the cake with so much expectations....you should have waited for her....we all said we should wait...." omi said slowly.

"i know....that is why i am saying i have become a bad person...." he whispered.