Rikara Short Stories Collection

Bewitched : Part Sixteen

"Can you speak?" Gauri hesitantly asks Dandi.

"Yes." Dandi croaks.

"Dandi... you have been loyal to us for all these years. Right now, I need your loyalty the most." Om requests him as he stood up and limped towards him.

"I don't know why, I am scared but I am also totally okay with it." Dandi tells him confused

"Okay with what?" Om asks confused.

"About bhabhi being a witch and baba a wizard. Totally fine." Dandi tells them confused.

Om turns to Gauri confused and Gauri points at her stomach with her eyes.

Oh Om mouths and turns to Dandi, "Thank you, so much, Dandi. Please don't tell anyone. They are my life."

In spite of all the bizarre things that happened in the past five minutes, Dandi understood, Om's helplessness and worry for his wife and child, and nods his head. "My family has food on the table because of you, your secret is safe with me."

"Thank you." Om says smiling.

Dandi smiles nervously.

Om moves towards him and hugs him, surprising everyone in the room.

"Why are you still limping?" Gauri asks him curiously.

"It's still paining." Om says shrugging.

"Did you fracture your toe?" Gauri asks curiously.

"No... he took an X-Ray." Jhanvi says and seeing Om's guilty expression, she starts frowning. "You took one right?"

Om shrugs.

"You told me you did!"

"I didn't have time, Mom."

"What could have been more important to you than your health?" Jhanvi asks him irately.

Om slightly looks at Gauri and back at Jhanvi.

Gauri bites her lower lip realizing that he had been trying to find her and that was why he had no time. God! How could he love her so much and still do such a cruel thing to her?

"The doctor told you to get one, right? Get ready, I am coming with you."

"Maybe, the baby didn't know about the fracture because nobody knew." Gauri suggests hesitantly as she started seeing images of her hand covering his toe again. "He might have assumed that the problem was lack of nail and..." Gauri shrugs. "He wants me to cover your toes again."

"You are so lucky, Gauri. You can know his thoughts." Om says smiling as he sat down and stretched his leg for her.

"Only when he wants me to." Gauri says smiling as she covered his toe.

Though, Jhanvi found all this scary, she was determined to not let all that affect her thinking or show it outwardly, as this was her bahu and her pota.

"Okay... try standing up." Gauri says as she stepped back.

Om slowly gets down the bed and put his feet on the floor. When he didn't feel any pain, he gives a little more pressure and no pain.

"It's not paining." Om tells Gauri excitedly.

"Really?" Gauri asks smiling happily. "Thank God." Gauri says excitedly as she thanked God again in her mind. "Maybe because of the fracture it was hurting you so much." Gauri tells him.
"Yes." Om says smiling as he tried tapping his leg.
Seeing there was no pain at all, Gauri smiled happily at Om in relief.