In Neil's Cabin, Birla Constructions:
Rohan could clearly see that Neil has reached his breaking point. Even though, he has been putting up a strong face and getting involved in the conversation, Rohan could see how lost Neil was. He looked too drained to his liking, and he knew he had to make him speak as soon as the meeting is done.
Neil and suppressed emotions never got along well. The boy behaved stupid, and all the logics go for a toss when he is in that state. Unresolved conflicts always made Neil react in a way that he will eventually end up regretting.
The past 8 years was a vivid example, and he wasn't ready to let him suffer for 8 days more. No mistake is worth repeating and definitely not when the loss and suffering is so humongous. Rohan acted on his feet and Divyanka could read the gesture.
Divyanka also stood up. She understood that it was time she let the boys handle themselves after such a revelation. She was about to walk out when Rohan and Neil said "Thank You/Thanks" at once. She smiled but schooled her expression by the time she turned back.
"One last thing, yeh Stockholm Syndrome ki cycle ko todna bahut complicated process hain. It won't be linear. Bahut ups and downs honge. It's important that you try to understand and provide support to Dr.Birla. He will need you more than ever.
So, dish him some kindness and empathy. Sirf aap logon ko hi nahi, unhe bhi apne aap ke saath kind hona padega, forgiving hona padega. Jahan tak mujhe pata hain, wohi sabse zyada mushkil hoga.
Aur tum donon ko hi iss baat ka khayal rakhna padega. Make sure he isn't shouldering too much blame. He needs to be empathetic towards his own self. You have a long battle at hand boys, be prepared."
She gave her 2 cents and made a move from there, leaving the boys to cope with the newfound information.
The moment she was out of sight, Rohan pulled Neil to his chest. Neil was his baby brother and more times than not, Rohan successfully shielded him from Abhimanyu's anger and to some extent, even Abhimanyu's hurt.
But today, when all of it was revealed that way, he couldn't do much to shield him from the man's pain whom Neil considered his father. Neil let his tears trickle down which he had been holding back for so long.
Divyanka's words shattered him. He couldn't push away the flashes of all the incidents that came knocking at him when he blamed his Bhaiyya for being unreasonably kind and understanding to Akshara.
Berating his Bhaiyya was already a huge cross for him no matter how accommodating Abhimanyu was. No matter how essential that was. It was a huge no for Neil even then. But knowing that he was being unfairly harsh towards his Bhaiyya for something that wasn't even in his control broke Neil.
Rohan waited for Neil to sober up, but he didn't. So, he pulled back and made Neil look up. He wiped the tears off and spoke gently,
"Neil! Kya hogaya? Kyun itna pareshan hain tu? Share it with me. Apne andar mat dabake rakh." Rohan's voice was very soft. Neil looked at him with his blue eyes radiating innocence and pain at the same time.
"Neil! Kuch bolo na. Aise chup mat reh." Rohan encouraged him to speak. Neil shook his head like a child. Rohan instantly cupped his face and gestured him to speak up.
"Main bahut bura hoon Bhai" Neil slipped it out in a tone that was laced in anger.
Rohan knew who that anger was directed at. He knew he had to do something quick to get things under control. Neil taking a guilt trip was definitely not the need of the hour.
"Neil! Dekh meri taraf" Rohan's voice was firm and Neil obliged.
"Tu bilkul bura nahi hain. Tu bahut acha Bhai hain, Beta hain aur bahut pyaara Chachu hain. Samjha?" Rohan's tone was very firm leaving no room for arguments.
"Dekh. Mujhe pata hain tu kya soch raha hain. Main bhi wahi soch raha hoon. Trust me. Hum donon hi hain jinhone Bhai ko sunadiya is maamle mein aur unse chid gaye. I share the same guilt Neil." Rohan expressed his turmoil.
"Phir aap kaise handle kar rahe ho Bhai? Mujhe toh itna gussa aa raha hain ki main kya bataun. I feel like bashing myself up." Neil seethed and got up, but Rohan pushed him back.
"Thoda practically socho Neil. Humein tab koi idea nahi tha is bare mein. Hamari jagah hum sahi the. Humein aise hi react karna chahiye tha warna woh guilt mein doobte jaate." Rohan defended their actions.
"Kya bol rahe ho aap? Maine bahut kuch suna diya Bhai ko. It's not ok." Neil argued.
"That was our best shot Neil. Agar hum gussa karke unhe nahi samjhate toh aaj yeh therapy bhi nahi hota aur humein pata bhi nahi chalta unke behaviour ke peeche ka reason. Kuch positive toh nikla na us se." Rohan argued back.
"But itna rude hone ki koi zarurat nahi thi. Woh itne pareshan the, unhe koi idea nahi tha ki kyun aise kar rahe hain woh aur main unpe baras pada. Ek baar nahi. Baar baar. That's a redline for me." Neil raised his voice and spoke.
"Hamara irada sahi tha aur tareeka galat. Humein aur patiently behave karna chahiye tha. I agree but us waqt jo sahi laga humein humnein kiya. We didn't know any better Neil. Jaanke thodi hurt karenge." Rohan explained for the nth time.
"But that doesn't give us, especially me the license to behave the way I did with Bhai." Neil declared. Rohan gave Neil an incredulous look. He whacked Neil and said,
"You did have the right you idiot. You always did. Bhai ne khud woh right tujhe diya. Don't question his judgement when it comes to you." Rohan raised his voice too.
"According to you, jo humnein ki woh badtameezi hain. But kya tujhe lagta hain Bhai badtameezi tolerate karenge?" Rohan pointed out and Neil looked on. Rohan waited until Neil recovered and shook his head in a No.
"Agar unhe humari approach se, tareeke se problem hoti toh Divyanka ko yeh nahi bolte ki Akshara ke maamle mein woh sirf humein trust karte hain to make the right call." Rohan made Neil see the bigger picture and Neil looked down. Rohan's eyes blazed.
Yeh acha hain. Akal aa gayi toh neeche dekhne lag jao. Koi kya hi kahega aise mein. Aisi shakal dekh ke toh koi bhi pighal jaye. Nahin?" Rohan scoffed, going against his better judgement.
That was because Rohan was vulnerable too. Neil wouldn't have taken half the liberties he took over the years and that was a pain point to Rohan too. But he was trying to be practical about it and trying to look at the silver lining.
That is Abhimanyu's decision to embark on a journey of healing. It was a result of their collected effort. He wanted Neil to see it too. He was fed up of dealing with misplaced guilt. But when Neil wiped his eyes and looked at him just because he taunted, Rohan's heart melted.
Rohan gentled his tone, "Jo sahi kiya hain zindagi mein unkeliye regret mat kar. Regret karne ke kam wajah nahi hain hamare paas waise bhi. Don't be stupid enough to add this one to that list." Rohan firmly told and looked away as the hurt in Neil's eyes pinched him.
Silence prevailed.
"Main unka acha Bacha hoon na.... I am not a bad son na Bhai?" Neil questioned and Rohan calmed down as soon as he heard that. He turned around, faced him and cupped his cheek lovingly.
"Tu unka Bacha hain aur bahut lucky hain ki woh tujhse itna pyaar karte hain. Itna trust karte hain. Per tu bhi kam nahi hain. Bahut acha Bacha hain aur unse bahut zyada pyaar karta hain. Tu bura Beta ho hi nahi sakta. Hmm!" Rohan assured Neil.
"Tab humein pata nahi tha baat kya hain. Isliye waise react kiya. Ab humein pata hain na. Abki baar bahut pyaar se, patiently samjhayenge. Without losing our cool or blaming him. Let's make a pact. Chalo." Rohan pushed him and they ended up making a pact.
"Ghar chalte hain na Bhai. Mujhe Bhai se milna hain abhi." Neil whined.
"Chalo. Mujhe bhi Hospital jaana hain." Rohan said that they both left for Birla house. Rohan's car was parked there because both came together for the meeting. After dropping Neil off, Rohan told him,
"Drop the guilt, Bhai ke paas jaa aur pamper karwa ache se. Yaad rakhna. Hum abhi unhe kuch nahi bata sakte. Let Divyanka break it to him. So zaban sambhal ke." He warned and Neil agreed.
The Birla House:
As soon as he entered the house, Neil beelined towards Abhimanyu who was on a call and hugged him from behind. Abhimanyu stilled for a second when he felt Neil's agitation in the way he latched on to him. The call was too important to hang up at once.
So, he went on with it and let Neil hold on. Once he was done, he turned in the hug and gathered Neil in his arms and brought him as close to his heart as possible. Neil didn't hold on tight. He let loose and Abhimanyu supported his weight. Neil just wanted to feel carefree.
Abhimanyu could see how drained out Neil was and wanted to talk to him immediately, but he doubted if Neil would be in a state to respond. He looked famished.
"Bacha! Jaake fresh hoja. Main dinner leke aata hoon tere room main. Khake sojaa. Main khiladunga aur sula bhi dunga. Tujhe kuch karne ki zarurat nahi hain. Bas change karle. Hmm!" Abhimanyu coaxed Neil and he obliged.
Neil was yet to let a syllable out of his mouth which worried Abhimanyu.
Roohi had gone over to Soha's place for the night out because she wanted to spend as much time as she could with Soha before leaving for Mumbai. Her friends were going to come over and all of them were going to hang out for some time.
Mrs.Dixit very gracefully arranged for all this and seeked his permission. He had to agree to such a sweet gesture, and he did. Abhir had his cricket practice today and by the time he came back, he was done for the day.
Manjari and Harsh wanted to skip their date plans but Abhimanyu forced them to go. With Manjari staying back in Mumbai with Roohi, they will hardly get enough time. He wanted them to spend some quality time before the reality show circus began.
Abhimanyu had just fed Abhir and made him sleep when he got the call from one of their biggest vendors regarding a supply issue. Rohan wasn't attending their calls, so they were diverted to him, and he was busy sorting things out.
That is exactly when Neil walked, and his entire demeanor put him at unease. The house help got him Neil's food in a plate, and he walked up to tend to his tired son. Neil was going on with everything just mechanically when Abhimanyu walked in with his food.
He went to his father, moved the plate out of his way and again hugged to him. Neil was feeling very clingy and keeping things from his Bhaiyya wasn't helping him either. Abhimanyu's heart raced. He knew that something was off with his child.
He tried pulling back but Neil didn't let him. Abhimanyu carefully walked towards the bed with Neil clinging to him like old times. Neil too walked back in sync with his Bhaiyya. Abhimanyu bent to keep the plate aside and then forcefully parted with Neil.
"Bhai!" Neil whined as soon as he did that, and Abhimanyu sighed in relief.
"Kya hogaya Beta? Itna chup chup sa kyun hain? Daradiya tune mujhe." Abhimanyu mock chided him, and Neil pouted.
"Yeh cute shakalein baad mein bana. Zarurat nahi hain abhi. Nahi daant raha main. Abhi tu bas khale. Waise lunch kiya tune?" He asked as he grabbed the plate of food and Neil looked away to avoid the glare, he was sure to receive.
"Kyun nahi khaya? Aisa kaunsa kaam aagaya tujhe?" Abhimanyu fed him while enquiring about the lunch.
Now how on earth will Neil tell him why he skipped his meal. Ever since, Rohan informed him about the impending meeting, he just couldn't get himself to eat anything. Another reason why he was so drained out. So, Neil didn't answer. Instead, he silently gobbled on the food.
"Aaram se khao Bacha. Why are you gulping your food? Chew properly." Abhimanyu was guiding Neil like he used to do when Neil was 5. That was how his Bhaiyya is. So attentive and concerned.
Neil's eyes misted but he blinked back his tears. If he cried now, he wouldn't be able to hide anything from his Bhaiyya. So, he finished his food like a good boy just the way Abhimanyu has instructed him. Abhimanyu was about to get up when Neil held his hand.
"Yeh rakh ke aa raha hoon bas." He said and came back in record time. That brought a smile on Neil's face and in turn on Abhimanyu's face.
"Main aapke godh mein sar rakh ke sojaun?" He asked so cutely that Abhimanyu's heart filled with warmth. No matter how much Neil grew up, he would always be his child. That realization made him happy.
"Poochne ki zarurat hain?" He smiled and sat back comfortably. Neil placed his head in Abhimanyu's lap wordlessly.
Abhimanyu kept running his fingers in Neil's hair and soon Neil dozed off. Even Abhimanyu slept in that position with Neil holding on to him like his dear life.
What's your take on Neil and Rohan's conversation?
How did you find Abhimanyu and Neil?
Was Neil pampered enough?
Will Neil manage to keep it from Abhimanyu, or will he be the one who will break it to his brother?
Well! Let's wait and see.