Arjun stirred in his sleep. Tender strokes on his scalp were soothing him and pulled him back to sleep.
He turned over to find himself sleeping on the bed. He slowly opened his eyes to find his wife smiling at him.
He sighed deeply and sat up to lean his back on the headboard.
"Hungry?" Mitra asked pushing his unruly hair back from his forehead.
He grabbed her hand gently and kissed the inner of her palm.
"I am sorry, Mitra!" His voice was troubled.
"For what?" She asked surprised.
"It's just the third day of our wedding and you had to go through so much."
Mitra looked him in his eyes.
"You too, went through a lot, Arjun. And you deserve none of that. I hope you understand that too."
Arjun looked away. "I can't help it."
"Yes, you can." She replied without a beat.
Arjun pursed his lips and looked at her with furrowed eyebrows. He knew what she had to offer.
She entangled their fingers and kissed his upturned palm.
"You were so carefree, Arjun. Yes, you were missing a vital part of your life, but you still were happy. I always knew, you missed your family. But I could still say that you were not compelled to do something that you didn't wish to. You were yourself, and no one judged you for that."
Arjun blinked at her and gulped hard. He knew she was right and he had no words to contradict her. He rubbed his toes on each other to distract himself.
Mitra tightened her enclasped fingers.
"Come back with me, Arjun."
Arjun did not raise his eyes to look at her. He knew it was a lost case. He did not anymore know what he wanted and what was good for him. He knew Mitra was right, but he also knew, his father would not let him go easily. Being an orthodox family, Mitra was expected to stay with his family in Mumbai. But he could understand that Mitra had a huge business to run, along with her father.
Mitra waited for him to respond, but he was lost in his own thoughts. She gently cupped his face and turned him to look at her.
"It's time for me to leave. Come with me. Let the things settle down. I am sure, they will accept you with a happy heart when you decide to come back. Everyone is emotionally troubled now. Give them some time to cool down. You can always come back... Whenever you want."
Arjun blinked at her. His features turned hard.
"It's not easy, Mitra. In fact, they would want you to stay too. They... You know..."
Arjun found himself unprepared to break the fact that she too was expected to stay with her in-laws, like in every Indian family.
Mitra blinked at him. She pursed her lips for a moment and waited for him to continue. But, soon she realized that he would not say more. She entangled their hands and Arjun was taken aback.
"Why don't you take a nice warm shower? Lunch is ready. I will give a head massage, it will help you to sleep and fight off the fatigue. You still look tired."
Arjun blinked at her retreating figure with sinking heart as she left without letting him reply. He sighed and dragged himself to the bathroom.
When Mitra came back to the room, Arjun was in a clean pair of sleeveless vest and lounge shorts. He was settled on the sofa with a faraway look focused on the wall in front of him.
She sat beside him and he looked at her and then at the food in the tray.
She smiled when he unconsciously licked his lips.
"Why did you bring it here? I will eat with everyone." He said, tearing his eyes from the food.
"Bansi went to her college, your father and Samrat are at the office and your mother was waiting for you to wake up, but have seen what time it is now? It's almost three. I made her eat and now she is resting in her room. That leaves you and me."
Arjun parted his lips in surprise.
"You did not eat?"
Mitra did not grace the question with an answer, instead, she made a morsel with a piece of roti dipped in the curry and raised it to his lips. He was obliged to open his mouth and eat.
"Now don't throw tantrums, Arjun. Eat, or I will really pack you in my make up box and take you back." She threatened.
That made him chuckle. An imaginary scene, where her dainty figure was trying to fold his tall and rough body to fit in her tiny make up box, flashed in front of him and he laughed. But Mitra threw a death glare and he instantly went silent. She could be scary when she wanted to. She knew how to make him tow the line.
Arjun too fed her from the same plate and while they were eating in silence, Mitra could not help but ask, "what were you thinking when I came? You looked lost."
Arjun's hand froze midair, momentarily, before he composed himself.
"Nothing much, I was just thinking about how much things have changed, since I left."
"What do you mean? What changed?" She asked, chewing leisurely.
Arjun filled a spoon full of curry and licked on it.
"Like this room. It was never my room. I shared a room with Samrat."
Mitra could feel like there was something more than just that.
"And?" She probbed.
Arjun did not look back at her, which was enough for her to know that he was finding words to put the things in a easier way.
"You know... That night, when I... I mean... I brought Veena here, she was staying here."
Mitra licked on her finger thoughtfully and held his gaze.
"How do you know? Weren't you staying at the outhouse?"
Arjun nodded without looking at her.
"I was, but, then... I... You know... She asked for annulment. And... I went to..."
"Threaten her?" Mitra completed for him.
Arjun did not grace her with an answer and was ashamed of the act.
Mitra kept her steady gaze on his face while she put a morsel in her mouth.
Arjun finally looked up when she did not reply.
"So, this is a guest room." Mitra's cold voice was void of any emotion.
Arjun could not contemplate what she meant by the coldness.
That night when everyone gathered for the dinner, the silence was cutting deep.
Arjun looked at his sister, who had a twinkle in her eyes. Her chirpy self instantly went cold with a single warning glare from her father. She gave a sad smile and focused on her food.
"You will be coming to the office from tomorrow. Samrat will show you around and then you can start. We will leave at sharp 9, after breakfast." Aniket suddenly announced, in a no nonsense tone.
Arjun looked at his father and then at his wife, who did not bother to acknowledge.
"Dad, actually, Mitra has an early morning flight tomorrow. I will drop her to the airport and then meet you at the office. Would that be fine?"
Aniket furrowed his eyebrows.
"Flight? Where is she going?"
This time, Mitra thought it was necessary to intervene.
"I am going back to Lucknow. But, I will try to come back here often. Probably, every alternate weekend."
Aniket and Sapna were taken aback by the new information.
"What arrangement is this?"
"This is necessary, I have a business to run in Lucknow." Mitra explained.
Aniket clenched his jaw and dropped his spoon.
"Don't you think, it is necessary for a husband and wife to stay together after marriage?"
Mitra nodded wholeheartedly.
"I do. It's absolutely necessary."
Aniket hummed in satisfaction.
"So, you stay where Arjun is."
Arjun closed his eyes in defeat. He did not want anymore complications in his life.
"Right. So, Arjun, pack your bags. You are coming with me tomorrow." Mitra announced.
Arjun knew, Mitra would say something like that, so, he did not dare to look up from his plate. But Aniket lost his cool.
"By husband, I do not mean only him. A girl stays with the in-laws after marriage. That is expected from you too." He said, trying to control his temper.
The environment at the dinner table suddenly changed. There was thick tension and no one knew if this would escalate into a new storm.
But Mitra gave a sweet smile.
"I think you are right. I should be staying with my in-laws. But you see, we have a little problem here. You are still faraway from accepting him as your son."
Aniket's jaw dropped at her words.
Mitra stood up to her full height and picked up her empty plate. She looked at her father-in-law, squarely.
"The day you accept him as your son, I will accept you as my in-laws."
Arjun could not help but look at her with wide eyes. His eyes had unknown emotions swirling in them. Aniket looked at his son and found a vulnerable child peeping in from his rugged features.
That small child now relied on the woman who walked out of the dining room, gracefully.
Arjun looked at his father, only to find him already analyzing him. He looked down and silently gulped down the food and washed it down with a glass of water.
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Another chapter up.
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