Divya
I clutched my feet to my chest and closed my eyes trying to get a sense of what happened today. What did I do to get myself onto a plane to North Carolina with a stranger? I wanted to get away from Jay and my family so desperately that I did this.
Where did I go wrong? Did I ruin my life with this decision?
I still remember the day I met Jay like it happened yesterday.
"Divya! Dad got selected this guy for you. Your dad says he is the best and would like you to marry him." My mom told me while I was getting ready to go to the hospital for my shift.
I'm a doctor at the AMG hospitals in Hyderabad. It feels so good to say that. It was really hard for me to get to this point in my life and my father wants to snatch this away from me.
"Amma, it's been a month since I started working and you started all this. Let me work for a year and then we will think about my marriage." I told her calmly applying kajal.
I did my MBBS and PG in Bangalore and moved back home 2 months back. Raghu thatha used to work at AMG which is a prestigious hospital, he recommended me and I went in for a job interview and got the job.
"I got married when I was 16, you are 24 now. Just look at the guy and meet him." My mom told me and placed the picture on my dresser.
"Voice out your opinion before your dad forces you. I won't be able to help you then." She said with worry and left to serve breakfast for my father.
That's my mother for you, she doesn't agree with my father, but still obeys him. I don't understand why she is a human she has her own rights. I told her to quit listening to my father and act on her own, but she shrugs me off every single time.
"I don't want to marry this early," I told my dad who was eating his food, and placed the guy's picture beside him.
I settled opposite him and started serving myself some idly.
"You're 24 and Jay will meet you at the hospital after your shift." He said nonchalantly like he knew I was going to say that.
"I won't meet him! I need some time. I started my career one month back, I want to work some more before I get married." I tried to reason with him.
"You can work after marriage if Jay is okay with it. Don't make me force you. Meet him and impress him. He is the only son of RR enterprises. It's your luck that he is interested in you." He said to me like my opinion didn't matter and I had to marry this Jay.
"This is the reason I told you to not send her to school. She is talking back at you. You should've let her stay at home." My grandma said coming into the dining room.
"Education is a basic right and stop interfering in my life," I said to her and left the house without eating anything ignoring my mother who was calling me.
I hate this gender bias, just because I'm a girl doesn't mean that my life is to serve others. I wish people could see this. I hate my grandma when it comes to things like this. What's wrong with my grandma, isn't she a woman too? People like her are never going to change. They did the same thing to Sharmila Akka, thank goodness her husband Ravi is a really nice guy.
The driver dropped me at the hospital and I started working. I looked at a child who fell while playing and an old man in pain.
Vineela is the head of the emergency department. I like the emergency ward because you have to be a master in everything, unlike other departments. I love this hospital, I feel proud of myself every single time I see myself in this white coat.
I don't have many friends here. Charan, Sadhana, and Ritesh are the other doctors in the emergency ward.
Buzz... Buzz...
My phone buzzed breaking my chain of thoughts I looked at it and there was a message from an Unknown number
Hey! Your father said you didn't have breakfast, can we meet for a brunch? ~Jay
My fingers went cold with anxiety after seeing that message. Should I feel sad that my father is forcing me or should I feel better that this Jay is better than my dad? He looks understanding maybe I should talk to him. I sighed, pushed all my thoughts back, and texted him back.
Hey back! Sure, how about the AMG's cafe? ~Divya
Okay, see you in 15 ~Jay
I went to nurse Mala and told her that I will be going out for lunch and redirecting all my patients to other doctors in the meantime.
I went to the cafeteria and got myself a cup of filter coffee and sat there waiting for him. Filter coffee is the best kind of coffee one can ever get. I felt someone in front of me and lifted my head. He looked almost 6 feet, with deep and dark eyes, he had this mysterious aura around him. He was wearing a blue suit with a white shirt on the inside. He looked like those Abercrombie models.
He adjusted his throat to grab my attention and I stood up and said.
"Hi! I'm Divya." With a smile on my face.
"I'm Jay, Stop staring at me your beautiful eyes might get hurt." He said and sat in front of me.
My face went all red and my stomach did somersaults hearing the first guy flirting with me.
"I don't want to get married so early in life, I started my career a month back. So can you tell my dad no for this marriage?" I pleaded with my eyes.
There was a hint of anger on his face but he covered it up with a smile and said
"You can work after marriage too. And I'm not a going to say no." He said looking into my eyes.
"Why? Marriage is too big of a responsibility for me right now. Please understand me." I asked him in a desperate voice.
"I like you and I will marry you." He said in a deep voice. I couldn't understand what I did to get myself into this situation.
"You don't even know me, what if I am a psychopath?" I asked him and he chuckled at my question making me angry.
"You know what you are a psycho.." before I could complete my sentence we were interrupted by Charan and Ritesh.
"Hey Divya, what are you doing so early here? You never come with us when I ask." He asked me giving me a stinky eye.
Charan is the kind of guy who is friends with everyone. He has a happy personality and talks to everyone without any hesitation, unlike Ritesh.
I just smiled at him not knowing what to tell him.
"Hi, I'm Jay Rana Ramesh. Divya's Fiancé." Jay introduced himself to Charan and Ritesh.
I was completely shocked would be an understatement.
" Rana Ramesh as in RR Enterprises," Ritesh asked Jay and Jay nodded with an arrogant smirk on his face.
Jay got a call and left after kissing me on my cheek in front of my colleagues.
I felt giddy at that time because no one kissed me on my cheek till now. Now that I think about this Jay was never a normal guy. He always did what he wanted. I wish I saw it at that time. I wish I realized that earlier and stopped myself from marrying him.
"Divya, Why are you crying? Are you okay?" Andrew asked me with worry.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry that you had to cut your trip short because of me." I apologized to him.
He shouldn't be helping me, who is he to help me? Yet here he is by my side helping like I'm his family. I wish my family and friends were as supportive as Amaya.
"Amy's family is my family. And don't worry Divya everything is going to be fine." He said looking into my eyes and assuring me.
"I don't know what I'm doing. What if I made a wrong decision?" I asked him not able to hold my emotional pile of pain.
"Stop second-guessing yourself. Okay, I will ask you a series of questions and if you still think you shouldn't have done this we will go back to India from London." He said and I nodded.
"Were you happy in the relationship you were in?" He asked
Happy with Jay? Some days, he used to ignore me like a fly on the wall, and then I was worse than trash.
Andrew waved his hands in front of me to get my attention.
"This is a rapid-fire okay? Stop thinking." He said and looked waiting for an answer.
"I was 2% happy," I told him truthfully.
"Would like to live the life you had again?" He questioned
"No! I don't want anyone to have my life." I quickly answered.
"Did you ever think about getting away from all this?" He asked me.
"Yeah! I passed my threshold of holding me trying myself to push into this relationship." I told him.
"There you go Divya, you were not happy and wouldn't wanna live the same life again. So, the decision you made is correct." He told me and held my hand for assurance.
I smiled at him, Andrew is a warm person. He helped me figure it out in minutes. I should stop overthinking. I feel like I can share anything with him and he won't judge me. I don't know if it's because he is a stranger or he has that vibe.
"Thank you! I was feeling hopeless and I felt that I ruined all the image and status my parents had by running away." I said to him.
"Image and Status depend on the person's view, if they think that society has higher importance than their own child, it's their loss. And Don't thank me. I will always be here for you whenever you wanna share something." He told me and I remembered something I had to share with Amaya before we left but I didn't have the courage to.
"Can I tell you something? I thought of saying it every one today but I didn't have the guts. I don't know what everyone will think of me, but I have to tell this before it starts showing.
I am pregnant." I told him and looked at him to see his expression.
I analyzed his white face, the first expression was shock and then happiness. There was no pity or disgust or anything. I wonder what he is thinking? Is he thinking that I made a mistake by taking away my child from his father?
"Congrats Divya. I... sorry we will protect and look after this child." He said and gave me a hug.
"You don't think that I'm separating a kid and their family?" I asked him. That's the only question in my mind. What if I'm being selfish?
"No! I support your decision. You want to give your child a better life. If it's running away from all the bad things in life so be it. I will be here all the time don't worry." He assured me by brushing the tears off my face.
"Stop worrying about the past. Now you have to be strong for the baby too. We should start applying for colleges so you continue your education there and get a job. Think about the baby and how you are going to provide a better life. Move on Divya. The past you had is not worth dwelling on." He said and it gave me a great deal of confidence.
I should think about my child. My child is my number one priority. I will do everything to protect my baby from that monster.
"Can you help me?" I asked him as I don't know anyone there except for Amaya.
"You don't have to ask." He said smiling.
How can a person be so nice? Why did my father find a Jay in a world with Andrew and Jameson?
"Amy's going to be so excited. She loves Z, you know Zeehan right?" He questioned me.
"Yeah, Ananya's son. I saw him on the video call." I answered looking at him.
I have to take care of my child. This is my decision and I will do whatever I can to protect him.
"Okay let me tell you about all the people you are going to meet after we reach." He said trying to help me get comfortable.
"Shaurya and Ana." He started saying but I cut him off saying
"Met them already. Shaurya's dad is my mentor. Shaurya is warm and comforting while Ana is the sweetest person you will ever meet." I told him my view on them.
"Fine, Vasudha Aunty and Harish Uncle. Vasudha Aunty makes the best Indian food, she gives off those positive vibes and always has an optimistic view on everything while Harish Uncle is strict but sweet at the same time." He said with a thoughtful look.
Amaya is my cousin but I never met her aunt or uncle. I nodded at him to continue hoping to get to know them better.
"Arjun and Dru. Arjun is a pro football player, Easy to talk to, and cool. Dru is this little brother who always gets what he wants, and they give him everything, perks of being the last child I guess. The only common thing is they both love Amy like crazy." He said with a glint in his eyes.
"I saw Arjun when he was 10. He never left Amaya's hand that day." I told him remembering my past days.
"Let me tell you something. Swear on your life that you won't bring this up again." He said showing me his hand with mischief and happiness in his eyes. I put my hand in his and he held it while telling me the story.
"When Jameson broke up with Amy, she left for California. Arjun and Dru came in one evening and trashed Jamie's office. Arjun gave Jameson a solid punch in the stomach for hurting her. He yelled at Jamie saying that if he comes near Amaya again he will chop Jameson into pieces and feed it dogs." He said holding his laughter.
I laughed looking at him. He is laughing wholeheartedly there are tears in his eyes. And his dimples just bring his beauty to another level.
"Divya... Divya" Andrew shook his hand in front of me to gain my attention. Andrew calls me Divya but it sounds like div-yuh.
"I told you not to worry. Everyone there is awesome and I will be there for you and the baby in every step." He said comforting me while I prepared myself to start a new life with my unborn child.
I'm going to try to be the best mom I could ever be. I will never let my child near all those people who hurt me. I will protect my child with my life and make sure he or she doesn't have any problems. I hope it's a she though, I would really love a girl child.
That was the end of chapter 3
How was it, guys? Hope you enjoyed it. I know this is a cliche plot. But trust me it's not. Please continue reading it and you will now.
Anyhoo let me know about the grammatical errors and typos.
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Love,
Sneha