The Broken Family

19

Cafe (Rikara)

Gauri entered the roadside café with a sweet smile and it wasn't because she was going to meet her ex-husband, it was because of the café. She just can't wait to devour the cookies and a cup of latte.

The sweet aroma of freshly baked bread and coffe filled her nostrils, she always considered the aroma of the coffe as a new beginning. She noticed Omkara sitting in the furthest corner of the café shaking his legs and biting his lips, an act he does whenever he is anxious.

Gauri cleared her throat to make her presence visible and Omkara looked at her in surprise for a second before gesturing her to sit. Gauri could feel his eyes on her attire and she felt a little conscious of herself but shake off her thoughts.

It was the first time Omkara saw Gauri in her formal office clothes. She always used to wear traditional outfits and her own sets of signature bangles but now it was substituted with a Tank Anglaise watch. Her posture screamed her elegance.

"So tell me the matter?" Gauri said as she sipped her coffee. Omkara looked on wide eyed as the woman in front of him who was always so sweet to him talked to him liked ignoring him.she does even remember him, right? Omkara thought to himself like a stupid. She had a professional tone and look which made him more anxious.

"Gauri, our kids...marriage..." Omkara wasn't sure if he wanted to reveal about his kids 10-day home stay in Goa. He is already on her black-list and now he doesn't want his kids in it too. "You don't have to stammer, Omkara. I already know about the kids antics with you and your family in Goa and their 10-days secret stay too" Gauri said with a smile as Omkara looked on at her with his mouth-wide open.

Restuarant (Ruvya)

"Why aren't you even touching your food? Are you again on a diet?" Bhavya asked as she ate her food and check whether her daughter had her share of food too. "Ruvy, eat veggies too otherwise no ice-cream" Bhavya scolded her daughter who scrunched her nose thinking of ways to escape eating the bland vegetables.

Rudr looked on shocked as Bhavya sat there looking at him like he was a distant friend of her. "Bhavya, I wanted to talk to you about our..." Rudr looked at his plate and left the word incomplete. He doesn't want to discuss something like that in front of his child. His daughter was benevolent enough to smile at him and accept a kiss on her cheeks by her father, he doesn't want to lose that.

"Ruvy, why don't you play in the slide while I talk with your dad?" Ruvy was apprehensive about the idea but nodded her head seeing the various slides and swings inside the hotel.

"I know you want to talk about our marriage but Rudr there is no relationship between us anymore" Bhavya said in a calm tone to the shocked Rudr. 'Well she was a cop and she knew why would he call her to a hotel to talk while her Gauri did was called to a restaurant by Omkara. She wondered what might be the condition of her Gauri didi?'

Cafe (Rikara)

Omkara sat in silence while Gauri devoured her chocolate pastry piece. Did she even ignore his whole presence? "How did you know?" Omkara asked gaining her attention to him away from the piece of food.

"Sid and Abhi might have hid about their stay while they were with you but they told me all the truth the moment we all reached the hotel in Goa" Gauri said as she remembered the guilt-ridden face of her children, Sid even had a layer of tears but truth to be told she wasn't angry with them but she was glad that they confessed the truth.

"I am not mad at anyone Omkara!" she said seeing his frown. "It's been more than a decade and I have moved on from being a naïve girl. I have two kids and a supportive family. It will be so stupid of me if I prevent my kids from seeing their father" Gauri said in a matter-of-fact tone. "Gauri...about us?" Omkara said unsure of his words. Damn! He was an artist and a man of few words but he could define his feelings through a shayari of his but now for an hour he is unable to voice out his mind.

Restaurant (Ruvya)

"Bhavya, I know it's my fault that our marriage failed but I need us to give it another chance for our kid Bhavya" Bhavya shook her head negatively without even caring the pool of tears in his eyes. "No Rudr! It was a fault of both of us" she said taking his hands in hers. "There was no faith as base in our relationship so when a wind flew by it just broke down" she ended with a sigh remembering her broken marriage. "Regarding our daughter, she will have her Dad and Mom but I don't want you back" Bhavya said as she gave him a firm smile. He nodded his head as their daughter came back to them to talk about their adventurous ride in the slide.

Cafe (Rikara)

"Omkara, I don't want another relationship with you. In the past I was the one who always fought for non-existing relationship and I don't want that to happen again. Sid and Abhi will have both his mumma and Dad but we can't be together" Gauri said as she looked right into his eyes. "But Gauri, I know what a broken relationship does to a kid, I was a victim myself" Omkara said as he remembered the misery he went because of his parent's relationship.

"Omkara, you are not like your father and I am not like your mother. We will teach our kids the value of relationship and the love we have for them but I just can't be with you again. You have hurt me a lot but I can't give you the permission to hurt me again" Gauri said as a shade of vulnerability shone in her eyes before it was replaced by determination.

At that moment he understood that he lost her.