"Mumma, take a picture," Dhruv ordered as he sat on the driver's seat and pretended to drive.
Dhvani shook her head at his antics and began clicking his pictures.
"Show me!" He demanded.
She rolled her eyes and showed him the pictures.
"Take another one."
"Dhruv, that's enough!" She tried to pull him out of the seat. "We are getting late."
"It's fine," Shaurya said as he patiently sat on the passenger side. "I don't have anywhere to be."
"Are you sure you are not tired after entertaining guests all night?" She asked with feigned sweetness.
Shaurya's whose attention was focused on Dhruv, didn't register her tuant at first. He looked up at her, and with the same feigned sweetness, he replied. "Thank you so much for worrying about me, Dhvani. But I think I'll be okay."
Dhvani's fake smile dissapeared, and she huffed. "I am not worried about you." She clarified.
"Aren't you?" He continued his teasing. "It looks like you are."
Even after all these years, Shaurya still managed to get a rise out of her. Stomping her foot in annoyance, she turned to her son, who was playing with the radio. "Dhruv, what are you doing?"
"Mumma, look," Dhruv said, turning the volume to the loudest setting.
"Dhruv!" Dhvani admonished and turned down the radio. "Get off right now. Otherwise, there'll be no ice cream." She warned.
"There is no need for you to yell at him like that," Shaurya whispered when Dhruv pouted and got into the passenger seat.
"Don't tell me how to raise my child." She snarled. "I have been raising him by myself, and I know how to talk to him and take care of him."
"Whose fault is that you raised him by yourself?" Shaurya retorted.
"You know what, Shaurya?" Dhvani took a deep breath in. "I don't want to talk to you because you have no maturity at all. All you want to do is accuse other people for your failures. You never want to accept your fault."
He scoffed in disbelief. "I-"
"And you bought a red car? Seriously?" Dhvani said in irritation as she went to open the back seat of the vehicle.
"What's wrong with red?" He asked with a frown. "It is a beauty. One of a kind."
"It is too flashy. Something a little more sober, like white or black would have been better."
"That's boring." He said with a slight rolling of his eyes.
"Whatever. It is your car. Who am I to say anything."
"Are you ever happy with anything I do?"
○▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎○
Dhruv placed his hands and stuck his face on the glass as he stared outside the window.
"Dhruv. Baby, what are you doing?" Dhvani asked with a sigh. "You are dirtying the car."
"It's okay," Shaurya said dismissively.
Dhvani narrowed her eyes and shot daggers at Shaurya, and he just shrugged his shoulders as he looked at her through the rearview mirror. If this was his idea of parenting, they were going to have a problem.
"Where do you want to go for ice cream?" Shaurya asked Dhruv.
"Ice palace!" Dhruv squealed. "It's mumma and my favourite. Right, mumma?"
Dhvani nodded and reached over to squeeze his cheeks because he looked so adorable.
Shaurya looked up at her, and she gave him the address.
Dhvani's phone ringing interrupted Dhruv's narration of the Doremon's latest episode.
"Hi, Rajveer," Dhvani answered the phone with a little annoyance.
Shaurya's ears perked up as soon as he heard the name. Dhvani seemed to be discussing something work-related with him and then suddenly, she smiled much to his frustration.
"Just a second." She said to Rajveer and looked at Dhruv. "It's Rajveer Uncle. He is asking what you want for your birthday."
Dhruv's eyes lit up in excitement, and he extended his hand for the phone. "I'll tell Rajveer Uncle what I want."
Shaurya felt a pang of pain and jealousy at the relationship Dhruv shared with Rajveer.
"A PS 4!" Dhruv said to Rajveer.
Dhvani snatched the phone out of Dhruv's hand. "Hello, Rajveer. Sorry! You don't need to buy him a PS4. You know how he is." She gave Dhruv a stern glance while he continued to give her the cold shoulder.
"Can I give you a call later?" She asked Rajveer.
"Dhruv," she said as soon as she hung up the call. "How many times have I told you not to ask people for expensive gifts like these."
"But now, what am I going to play with my Papa?" He asked in exasperation.
Shaurya, who had been frowning as soon as Dhvani answered Rajveer's call, broke out into a huge grin. His son didn't want Rajveer; he wanted him, his father. As immature the thought appeared, the idea of standing in front of Rajveer and thumping his chest seemed great.
Dhvani rolled her eyes and bit back a smile. "Men." She mumbled.
○▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎○
"Dhruv, wait for me," Dhvani yelled, but he had already run away in the direction of the Ice palace.
"Are you not coming?" She asked Shaurya, who did not attempt to get out of the vehicle.
"No, can you maybe... you know." He squirmed in his seat and cleared his throat uncomfortably.
It took her a few moments to realize what he was trying to say. She needed to remember that this wasn't the same Shaurya, who she would share pao bhaji from a street-side vendor. This was Shaurya Gupta, the cricketer. The man with millions of fans. "Fine."
"I'll give you some cash." He said as he reached for his wallet, but she shook her head. "It's my treat."
Shaurya was always grateful for all the love and admiration his fans had given him over the years, but right now, for a few moments, he wished no one would recognize him. He wanted to stand next to his son and share the ice cream in the restaurant like a normal family without fear of being photographed or be encircled and crushed by the crowd.
Soon Dhvani and Dhruv returned with icecream. He smiled as he watched the mother son interact. It appeared that Dhruv was demanding Dhvani pick him up, but she shook her head and forced him to walk.
Dhvani got into the passenger side of the vehicle and helped Dhruv into her lap.
"They didn't have blackcurrant." She informed as Dhruv gave Shaurya his butterscotch icecream.
"That's okay," Shaurya said and took the ice cream with a smile. "Where's your icecream?" He asked Dhvani.
"He won't finish the entire thing." She mouthed to Shaurya.
"I heard that!" Dhruv said and threw his mother a dirty glare. "I am going to finish everything."
"Okay." She laughed and wrapped her arms around Dhruv. "But you'll give Mumma one bite, right?"
"No," Dhruv shook his head. "Shaurya, you give Mumma some of your ice cream."
Shaurya and Dhvani looked at each other for a fleeting moment, remembering all the moments where they would share an ice cream because they were trying to save money.
"Mumma!" Dhruv pouted. "I am so full." He said as he handed Dhvani his ice cream.
Dhvani shook her head and took the ice cream from his hand. "This is why I was telling you not to get three scoops. You barely even finished one." She reprimanded, but like most children his age, he paid no attention to his mother.
Dhruv climbed out of Dhvani's lap and crawled over to the back seat and began jumping.
"Dhruv, Shaurya is never going to give you a ride in his car ever again if you keep doing this," Dhvani said angrily. She looked over to Shaurya for his support, but he was looking at Dhruv with such pride and love that she wouldn't be surprised if he bought Dhruv a thousand cars so he could jump on each of seats and not get tired of jumping on the same car seat twice.
Great! Now she was always going to be the strict and annoying parent.
Author's note: I hope you guys enjoyed reading the chapter. Please do vote and comment if you guys did.
I know many of you guys are waiting for the big showdown, but I wanted it to have it's own chapter. Till next time.❤❤