06| Days
Sithara was sat on the bed dolled up in her black night suit scrolling through her Instagram under the blanket with the air conditioner at a low temperature. Applying toner, serum and night cream had her skin glistening and her lips shining pink. All the skin-care & well-being tik-toks had taken over her head.
Sithara's eyes went up to Arsalan at the clacking as he locked the room behind him before entering in. He was almost half an hour late. After explaining the task to Inaya he had gone up to check on his children.
He walked up to the bed, untying his watch. "I don't appreciate you throwing attitude at me, definitely not when my family is around." He remarked. "I won't tolerate it."
Sithara looked up at him. He had already told her that in the passage. He did not have to repeat. He did not have to use the words like 'my family'. "I'll be careful." She simply accepted, making Arsalan glance at her in surprise. He knew that his woman never yields. "I didn't know that I would have to fake with my shauhar too."
"Sithara." She grinned, seeing him break into his signature smile.
"Arsalan." She spoke his name in the most sweetest way, holding his hand. "Come no??" Arsalan bend over to suckle her lips. "Hmm, just a second." He hummed over her lips.
She kept her phone aside at the side table, shifting to make space for him while he ambled to the closet to put relief spray on his vertebrae. "Do you want me to help???" She questioned.
"I'm good." He laid down and she put her head on his chest without wasting a second. "Sure??" Sithara confirmed and he agreed.
"You are only doing eleven to seven from tomorrow." Sithara did not trust him. He did eat healthy, made his body move in gym yet somehow it was not enough. He needed more care.
"If you say so." Arsalan mumbled, making her raise her eyes on him. She noticed he pulled her on her. She slapped his stomach. "What??" Arsalan exclaimed.
"We are fighting if you over work." She was serious. It was a golden chance for him to balance out his life. She could not let him ruin it by spending all his time in front of the laptop.
"It's not under my control Sithara."
"Says the boss."
"You know quite well what being a boss brings to the table." She rolled her eyes.
"I really wonder what our marriage would have been like if we were agreeable towards each other." She added.
"It's totally unfair for you to even ponder over it." Arsalan argued. "We are always doing what you want ninety-nine percent of the times."
Sithara sarcastically chuckled at that. "You mean me choosing which restaurant to eat at? Our holiday destination? Gifts for children?? Weekends for family gathering hm??"
He loved how she started to get red
as she explained. She was a baby. "Because I'm giving in on where we are buying the land, where we are spending our lockdown at." She was the smartest woman he had ever known yet she would always respond to him with feelings, with her heart on her sleeves.
"That's because I know better." He stopped Sithara to tease her but also before she could elongate the list. She had already penned down the latest heated topics between them. They had already spent quite a few sleepless nights due to them.
"Arsalan. Please Don't." She pointed a finger at him. She was all worked up.
He laughed, squeezing her in his arms and kissing her hair. She was actually getting angrier over the conversation. "Okay, that's because you love me more." He framed it better.
"You'd hate it when I'd not one day." She warned, not meaning it but one never knows what life has to show.
"Are you capable of that??" Arsalan simply retorted, not taking his wife seriously.
"Oh god Arsalan you are so.." She shook her head, biting her lips to curb a smile. She was malang over him & he was aware of it too well. "Meri kadr nahi hai.." (You don't value me.) She softly muttered. He heard it but didn't find it worthy of a reply.
"Aadya and Athiya were watching 'The Summer I Turned Pretty' on ipad." He informed her instead.
"Ahw." Sithara cackled. "Cute."
"It's stupid. I asked them to sleep."
"I'm so excited to see them have this phase."
"Makes me weird." She could hear a father.
"It will be fine, don't worry." She intertwined her hands with his and pecked his knuckles. "Hmm." He thought about it.
"Whose it??" Sithara enquired as her phone rang.
"Why does your mother always have to call this late?" Arsalan grimaced, not touching her phone.
"Because she knows you keep me busy all day." She answered waiting for him to hand over her mobile but he didn't.
"Arsalan give me my phone..she stays up till this late to talk to me."
"No." He curtly responded. "You are not taking this call."
"Arsalan."
"I'm serious."
"It is unbelievable how rude you are towards my family..and I even allow it."
"Really???" He played around. "I thought it's normal to not want to get calls after twelve at night."
"Give me my phone." She ignored his rubbish.
"Choose." Sithara sighed at his audacity and stared at him startled.
"You demanded that I come to bed." Arsalan justified to annoy her further but she threw the blanket from above them at that, ready to walk to get her mobile herself.
Arsalan laughed, holding her back and giving it to her.
"It's not funny." She commented. The call had died.
"Wait for when I do this to your mother." She turned to the other side, dialling her mother's number.
"Relax." He hugged Sithara from behind.
"Hello, Mumma. Kaise ho??" (How are you??) Arsalan closed his eye.
"You didn't come home????" Her mother asked instead.
"I'm sorry, but Arsalan won't like it." She told her honestly neither wanting to give her false hopes nor wanting to boast her husband's ego but he liked her reply, the squeeze on her boob did reflect on that.
"I understand.." Her mother was clearly upset. "I used to choose Papa, you and Shashwat over my mother."
"Mumma don't say that hn." Sithara felt miserable. "I'm really sorry." She felt immensely guilty for making her believe that she might come.
"I'm not complaining. It's being a woman Sithara. I know it." Her mother spoke. "I'm still choosing you, like you are choosing your children."
"I hate it." Sithara's voice broke down. She felt so vulnerable. Being a woman was tough.
"Even the strongest of the women get torn." Her mother brought to her notice and her heart burnt. It was true. It was always the women who had to compromise.
"I'll try to come see you whenever I can." She promised, this time with her whole soul.
Arsalan traced her nipple from over her top to distract and ease her out. He knew it was difficult but he could not help but be selfish too.
@Sithara arsalan: guys im in the car
my children: just 5 mins Abba *click click click from three different angles*
"Love you for this Amma." Aadya commented, serving herself dosa. It was her favorite, especially in the breakfast.
"Amma you are making tacos for me tomorrow." Athiya demanded, her mouth full.
"And Amma I'd love if you decide to not force me to eat." Everybody at the table broke into titters.
"Arryn I have a meeting in an hour and if you don't finish it off I am locking you in the room with me until you do. And First take milk." Sithara rather scolded. Feeding him really got into her nerves.
"Amma. Why do you do this to me?" He dramatically whined, throwing his legs and hands in the air in hope of his grandmother saving him.
"Arryn." Arsalan consoled. "Eat boy. No equipment will help you build your muscles if you don't take your proteins right." He cheered him up the way he liked it. "Football needs muscle power." Arryn looked at him with his tiny suspicious eyes.
He had been interested in Arsalan's gym regime since always. He was inquisitive about every exercise Arsalan followed, the training he undertook, the diet he stuck to, to what he chose to wear to his work out. "Abba, he wants to be an F1 racer now." Athiya joked about his new fantasy.
"I wanna be both." Arryn cockily replied to her.
"Makes eating healthy all the way more important." Arsalan pushed him to take a bite.
"Amma but I don't like strawberry. It's very girly." He complained of the flavor of the milk to evade and distract his parents again.
"Arryn." Sithara rebuked. "Fruits have no gender. And girly is as good as manly." She corrected him. She did not understand where that comment came from.
"Still. I like chocolate better." He told her, playing with the folk and knife in his hand. Sithara sighed, almost losing her shit when Arsalan held her hand to calm her down.
'Arsalan' she mouthed in a pissed off tone. 'I know' he nodded, being able to read her expressions. He knew that Arryn was playing his tricks but Sithara scolding him would only make it worse and him more reluctant. He knew Arryn, he was his father, and they were same, they did what they liked and never did anything on command.
"I'm asking Jamal to bring you chocolate milk. Finish what's on your plate in the meantime okay?" Arsalan talked to him.
"Your son is as demanding and annoying as you." Sithara sat on the chair next to him. "Glad Allah gives you the taste of your own medicine through him hmm."
"Still you can't resist the act of not making another Arsalan hm?" He quietly added and she blushed into a smile.
"Ammi, you sit I'll do it." She got up to help her out.
"Chill, you won't be able to." Daniya chuckled and Sithara instantly felt nauseous as the whiff of the omlet hit her nose when Ammi put it in Arsalan's plate.
"Seems like you two had a very cordial night hn that Bhai is eating eggs publicaly." Daniya made fun, taking a bite from Arsalan's plate.
"Eggs are vegetarian." He defended knowing well that Sithara would pick this up.
"Not according to Amma." Aadya took her mother's side and Daniya laughed.
"I can't believe Sithara still scares Bhai over petty things like these!!" Arsalan felt awkward under his Ammi's gaze.
"He eats what he wants." Sithara answered making Arsalan glare at her. She was really ungrateful. He did minimize his non-veg intake largely only for her still she would hardly recognize his efforts.
"No, it's funny how you two are quarrelling every day even after so many years as if yours is the most arrange-est marriage ever!" Daniya commented.
"And certainly you have not been able to find anything more worth than discussing us." Arsalan shut her up.
"True though." Ammi reminiscently smiled. "It seemed as if madhia and Arsalan could never disagree. They were always in synchronization."
Sithara turned pale hearing her exclamation. She did not see it coming, not in front of her children and definitely not in front of people like Hamza who hated her for no good reason and Inaya who didn't have enough of her backstory to not look at her with judgy eyes.
She reflexively shot daggers at her husband unable to believe that Ammi just that. She was lucky that the children were too busy having a banter that they didn't pay any attention.
Arsalan did not say anything as expected and Daniya tried to cover up by sliding the conversation.
"You didn't take anything??????" Arsalan asked when she began to walk away.
"Yeah." She nodded.
"Then have."
"Fast. Monday."
"So have smoothie."
"Not here. The smell kills me." She left. Arsalan knew she was lying.
"Sithara."
"Ji Ammi??"
"I made this fruit salad for you."
"Ammi thank you but I'll have it later." She took the stairs to her bedroom.
@Sithara 🤍
Sithara collected her bracelets lying on the bedside table to keep them in her jewelry box in the closet. She hit against her husband on turning back.
"Here." Arsalan held a large jar of purple smoothie for her. She took it from him, keeping it next to her laptop.
"I'll drink." She told him, moving away.
"The government has contacted me to lease the hospital for the next six months for Covid-19 patients in the city." Arsalan followed her in.
Sithara looked up at him hearing the information. "The government is going to provide free diagnosis, medicine, and care to people. It's good money to us though but also a commitment to be there throughout for everything. We'll be prioritised over medical supplies but doctors, nurses, ward boys, cleaners, we put them in and make them available." He explained further.
"Bills will be sent to government periodically???" Sithara confirmed.
"Yep." Arsalan was stood against the cupboard. "There are a lot of bidders. We are the first choice. We accept or reject by tomorrow."
"What do you think??" She asked for his opinion.
"A why would you say no the state, B it's noble to be of some help in the crisis. C money." She understood that he was interested.
"I'll mail you the tendor, give me an opinion by evening. Keep this on high priority until we answer the proposal." All of a sudden his tone changed from talking to his wife to his company's general counsel.
Sithara made a note of it but did not utter a word. "Why are you so pleasant this early in the morning?" Arsalan sarcastically enquired.
She glared at him at the taunt. "I'm okay." She replied nonetheless to not build it up.
"Your face says you wanna murder me." He retorted. He was spitting facts.
"I'm not saying anything to you." She asked him to shut up. If she was saving him a drama by not complaining then he should rather take the benefit of it than poke her.
"Okay. We have to live here with them. They'll end up saying things that'll hurt you. You know they do not mean to. So you better not expect me to make up to you on their behalf." Arsalan clarified for once and all. He had no fuck to give to silly family dramas.
"Wow!" Sithara softly mumbled to herself and marched out of his proximity. He did not have to sound so condescending and righteous. Of course she knew how she was to react in principle and she was doing the same. But that did not mean she couldn't be herself even in the private and feel the way she wanted to.
He held her back by her elbow, making her swirl around back to him. She rested her hands on his chest, her dupatta falling off her left shoulder.
"Do you want me to say something? " He gazed into her eyes. They were close, too close to fight.
"Not to me Arsalan." She screeched. "Even I have hundreds of things that can just spill out of my mouth and hurt them. But this does not happen because I care enough not to."
Arsalan did not expect an outburst. "Your family has been nothing but cruel to me. Just because I'm good doesn't mean it has un-done how bitchy they were." And certainly not an accusation on his family this serious. "Madhia's gentleness my foot."
"Language Sithara." Arsalan left her. She over-exaggerated. It was downright disrespectful, insulting. He could not allow her to speak so ill of his family when they have been nothing but loving and warm to her.
"Of course." Her eyes moistened. All of a sudden she did not even know if it was right on her part to say her thoughts out so loud when she lost Arsalan's touch.
But how was she wrong? She was keeping mum, trying to get over it internally and not create a scene but he brought it up.
Sithara retreated and sat on the table to open her laptop and enter the meeting. She was already five minutes late.
She grabbed a tissue to dry her eyes out without smudging her kohl. She hated Arsalan so much. Now, other than feeling sad over how cordial Madhia-Arsalan's marriage was she was also feeling guilty wondering if she crossed a boundary. She knew that Arsalan never accepted her saying anything about his family. And now, she did not want him to judge her & label her discourteous and pretentious. She did not want him to think Madhia was better than her at this too. She did love his family like hers but how was she supposed to explain that it did not mean that they were never ever insensitive towards her.
Arsalan took Sithara's hand in his, noticing her lips wobbling. He knew that those tears signified regret. He understood she did not want this. He too found himself at fault for pushing her too hard.
"I have to attend this." Sithara whimpered. "It won't begin without me." Arsalan curtly reminded her, putting the screen down.
She eased at the realization. She took long breaths to unblock her nose. Arsalan did not say anything but simply traced his thumb over her knuckles.
"Sirf aapke nakhre main aise seh sakta hun." (I can only tolerate your antiques.) Arsalan added after a minute. She glanced at him with teary eyes. He hated what Sithara did to his heart. He was angry at her for how she behaved but here he was, making her feel better about it. He was an entirely different man with her. He loathed entertaining people who did not treat him the way he wanted but with her, he was a subject of her moods.
"Aapko shauq hai nah mujhse naraz hone ka?" (You love being upset with me?)
She wanted to cry louder, she wanted to laugh as it was too cute. "Main nahi thi."
"Really?" He could gaslight her. He was a master at that. But honestly, she did expect him to tell his family to not talk about Madhia in front of her or her children. It made her super uncomfortable.
"Acha chalein. Everybody must be on the call." They were not going into nitty-gritties anymore. It had to be forgotten and forgiven.
"Hmm." He straightened himself, leaving her hand. He did not want to be late.
"I'm gonna be here." Sithara told him, politely asking him to fuck off from the bed room.
"Guys five minutes more, boss at home has kicked me out of the room." Arsalan spoke to his people from behind Sithara, lighting up the mood. It was rare that he did joked around. Everybody's face lit up in surprise. "Let me find myself in a workspace."
"Rubbish." Sithara shyly blushed.
"Varun you give the agenda of the meeting by then.."