Thanks to all for voting and commenting on the previous part.
One month later
Gauri was watching Preethi and Humar enacting a funny incident that happened at the mall with a small smile on her face. As they finished, she laughs out loud happily.
"Oh Shit! It's time. I gotta go." Humar says checking her watch.
"Drop me on the way." Preethi tells her and they both leave quickly leaving Gauri and Priyanka alone in the coffee shop.
"How long are you going to keep this?" Priyanka asks her.
"Keep what?" Gauri asks her as she started gathering her bags to leave.
"This act of yours that you are happy without my brother."
"I am not putting up any act, Prinku. I just want to move on." Gauri replies.
"One of you has to compromise, Gauri." Priyanka tells her as she grabs her bag and walks out with Gauri.
"How can I live with him without marriage?"
"You know what he went through when he was small."
"That doesn't mean our marriage will break. Doesn't he trust me?" Gauri asks her hurt.
"He trusts you, Gauri but his believes of all these years are not easy to overcome."
"What about my believes?" Gauri asks her.
"Gauri... babes... I know what you are saying but my brother..."
"I love him, Prinku but I can't do this." Gauri tells her helplessly and walks away.
Priyanka watches Gauri walk away sadly. Tired she decides to go back home.
Gauri walks into her room tired and closes the door behind her. every time she entered her room, she remembers the time spend with Om here. they had been so madly in love, they were so happy then why suddenly everything had to change? Why couldn't they have that conversation a day later? Or never? Gauri thought sadly as she closed her eyes fighting her tears. She shouldn't cry. Crying eases pain and her pain was the only thing that was connecting her to Om. She takes deep breath trying to calm herself. Tired she falls on the bed too drained to even fall asleep.
Gauri closes her eyes sadly hearing the phone ring. She fights her urge to pick up the call finally giving up she picks up.
"Please stop doing this to me, Om." Gauri pleads him as she picked the call.
"I can't take this anymore, Gauri." Om tells her drunkenly.
In the last one month, every time he got drunk, he would call her.
"Please Om. We want different things from life."
"But we want each other too, right Gauri?" Om asks her sadly.
"I can't live with you without marriage."
"Why is marriage so important to you?"
"Because it is, Om. I want to marry you."
"I am scared to lose you, Gauri. I am scared of marriage. Please be with me."
"Stop calling me, Om. I'll block your number."
"You are all I have Gauri. There is no meaning to my life without you. Nothing feels good."
Gauri gulps the lump that was forming in her throat.
"I love you so much, Gauri. I have never loved anyone as much as I love you. I know, you don't love me as much as I love you. There are more important people than me in your life... but please don't leave me, Gauri." Om pleads as his voice broke.
"Om..."
"I can't sleep at night, Gauri. I can't work. I can't even talk to Prinku. I just want you by my side. Please come back to me." He begs her.
"I can't come, Om." Gauri whispers to him as she fought her tears.
"I lay awake at night, Gauri. I start feeling like giving up. Life is not worth living without you."
"Om what are you saying?" Gauri asks in panic as her heart slammed against her chest.
"I hate myself, Gauri. I hate myself because I don't have the courage to marry you. I feel like killing myself."
"Om please... don't ever think like that. Please promise me that you would stop thinking like that." Gauri pleads him in panic.
"I have no one, Gauri."
"You have Prinku."
"She is going to go with Ranveer one day."
"Om, I am here." Gauri softly reminds him.
"Please come back to me, Gauri."
"I can't, Om." Gauri replies as a sob broke out of her.
"Please don't cry, Gauri. Every drop that falls from your eyes burns me, Gauri."
"Please move on, Om."
"I tried, Gauri. Sultan told me to hook up with some girl."
Gauri's heart breaks hearing that. She couldn't even think of him with some other girl.
"But I couldn't even look at her, Gauri. I don't want any girl. I just want you."
Gauri closes her eyes in relief. "Om, where are you now?"
"Home."
"You are home?"
"Yes, you open the balcony door. I'll come in."
"You are here?" Gauri asks in panic as she ran towards the window.
"Where else would I be, Gauri?" Om asks her confused.
Gauri sees Om's car and he drunkenly lying on top of his car as he spoke on the phone.
"What are you doing here, Om?" Gauri asks him worried.
"You are the center of my universe, Gauri." Om says drunkenly. "I revolve around you."
"Please go home, Om."
"You don't want me anymore, Gauri?" Om asks her sadly as he looked up at her window.
"Please Om... if Mama sees you."
"I'll go, Gauri. I don't want you to be in trouble because of me. You know why?" He asks her drunkenly.
"Because you love me." Gauri replies as she watched him get off the car bonnet.
"So so much." Om tells her.
Gauri sees him about to fall down and she screams in panic, "Om!"
"Haan Gauri?" Om asks as he got back up on his feet.
"Wait... I'll take you home."
"You will come with me?" Om asks her hopefully.
"No... I'll drop you home and come back."
"If you are not going to be with me then don't come."
"Please Om. You are drunk. You shouldn't drive now." Gauri pleads as she slowly climbed down the balcony.
"No!" Om says stubbornly.
Gauri ignores that and quickly climb onto the wall and jump down.
"Gauri?" Om says in surprise as she fell down in front of him like a mannah from heaven.
"Om get in the car. I'll drop you home." Gauri quickly says as she held his hand and led him towards the other side of the car.
"No." Om says stubbornly as he flicked her hand away from his.
"Please Om."
"I watched you walk away from me once, Gauri." Om says as tears fell from his eyes as he put up a finger. "I can't watch you walk away from me one more time. I'll just die, Gauri."
"Please Om. Let me drop you. Please I am begging you." Gauri pleads him.
Seeing her so upset Om says, "Okay, Gauri. You drop me home but don't be sad... okay?"
Gauri nods her head and quickly puts him in the car.
"Can I kiss you, Gauri?"
"Please Om, no."
"Before I never had to ask you and you used to like my kisses too." Om whispers as he looked down like a kid.
Unable to control herself, Gauri holds his hand and squeezes it tight. Om holds her hand back and smiles at her happily.
The whole drive, she had to drive on first gear because he wouldn't leave her hand.
Gauri rings the bell as she held Om who was slouching over her. he was on the verge of passing out. Priyanka opens the door and sees Gauri and Om.
"Oh God." Priyanka says in worry as she held Om along with Gauri and took him to his bedroom. They put him on the bed.
"Gauri..."
"Hmmm?"
"I think I am going to sleep now."
"You sleep." Gauri tells him as she gently caressed his hair.
"Please be here when I wake up." Om pleads her.
Gauri helplessly looks at Priyanka.
"Love yo..." he sleeps off.
Gauri gets up and walks out, Priyanka follows her out.
"Please keep an eye on him."
Priyanka nods in reply. "Please Gauri, I can't see my brother like this."
"Even I can't but I can't help it." Gauri tells her helplessly.
"You are the only one who can help him. You are the only one who matters to him. Please think from his side. Think of what he has been through."
"I am going." Gauri replies unable to say anything else.
"I'll drop you home." Priyanka replies as she grabbed the car key which Gauri had left on the table.
"No... no... you stay here and keep an eye on him."
"How will you go?" Priyanka asks her frowning.
"I will go somehow. You keep an eye on him. Don't let him out of your sight." Gauri tells her worriedly remembering what Om had mentioned about the new suicide tendency.
"Why?" Priyanka asks her frowning.
"Just don't let him out of your sight."
"What are you not telling me, Gauri?"
"He is a little depressed and he is having unwanted thoughts." Gauri says unable to even say it.
"Oh God! What have you done to him, Gauri?" Priyanka asks her as tears filled her eyes.
"I'll just go." Gauri says unable to answer her.
"Take the car."
"It's okay. I'll manage."
What have you done to him?
Think of what he has been through.
Priyanka's words kept ringing in her ears as she walked towards her house. Remembering Om's condition her eyes filled with tears.
Was I really wrong in insisting on marriage? Why couldn't Om just trust me and marry me. How could he think that our love would fade one day? Was our love so feeble? Why can't he take a chance and be with me? Why can't he understand that how important marriage is to me? Why can't he understand me and my feelings?
Gauri stops in shock as the part of her that loved Om so deeply asked her a question; Did you try to understand him and his feelings?
Gauri's eyes fill with tears as she finally realized that she had been thinking about herself and her mother, not about Om's feelings.
Oh God! Why didn't I think of him? I kept blaming him and I never thought of his reasoning. He had been raised in middle of warring parents. All he had seen of marriage was theirs. Was it any wonder that he had no faith in marriage? He had been scarred from childhood but still he had opened his heart to me, to love me. He had been so open about what I meant to him, he had never hidden that his life was me then how did I forget that? He just had Priyanka and me. his parents were not truly his because they gave him more pain than joy. Like he said, one day Priyanka would make a life of her own and she would go away busy with her life. My Om would be alone. I am truly all he has. Oh God! why didn't I think of that? Why did I forget how insecure he is? That somewhere in him there is still that small boy who is scared of his parents' fights? Who wanted to escape and run away? How did I not realize his feelings, insecurities and fears? Why did I just abandon him at the first sight of trouble? Making his believes on marriage all the stronger. Why didn't I stay back and try to make him understand? Why didn't I stay with him and continued to love him and explain to him and show him that marriage wouldn't be the end of us? Why didn't I give him and us a chance? Why did I let go so easily? Why didn't I show any patience and trust on him?
"Mama." Gauri calls her mother as she walked into her room hesitantly.
"You are awake so early, Gauri?" Pinky asks her smiling. "Come here."
"Mama, I wanted to talk to you." Gauri hesitantly tells her.
"Tell me. What is it that is troubling you all these days? You don't even talk to me." Pinky says as she cupped her face lovingly.
"Mama... I love someone." Gauri nervously tells her.
Pinky smiles at her lovingly. "You did hint that. Tell me about him."
"I love him a lot, Mama." Gauri tells her as tears fell from her eyes.
"Does he love you?" Pinky asks worried seeing her tears.
"More than I could tell you."
Pinky smiles in relief. "Then what is the problem?"
"He is so hurt, Mama. If I am not with him then he will... I am worried, Mama. He won't be able to live without me."
"What is the problem, Gauri? You can marry whoever you want. His religion, his social status, his nationality, nothing matters to me. All that matters to me is that he will keep you happy."
"He will, Mama. He is so crazy about me, Mama. He will give me all the happiness in the world."
"Then what more do I want from him? You can marry him, Gauri. Ask him to come and meet me with his family." Pinky tells her smiling.
"He doesn't believe in marriage, Mama." Gauri tells her scared.
"What?" Pinky asks in shock as she moved back.
"Please Mama... Can I live with him without marrying him? Please Mama."
Pinky looks at Gauri in shock trying to digest what she had said.
"Please Mama. Let me go to him."
Pinky furiously slaps Gauri as tears fell from her eyes.
Om was holding his head and staring at his coffee as the medicine took effect and the headache reduced.
"What is happening with you, Om?" Priyanka asks him as she sat next to him.
Om doesn't say anything as he remained silent.
"Did you bring me to India to see this?" Priyanka asks him sadly.
"How could you think of killing yourself?"
Om looks up at her in shock.
"It was just the thought, Prinku. I would never hurt you and Gauri by doing something like that." Om honestly tells her as he looked down at his cup. "Trust me. The thought just haunts me but I know that would hurt Gauri and you the most. I won't do it."
Priyanka sighs in relief. "I can't see you like this, Om."
"I am sorry, Prinku. I know I am hurting you but... I can't..."
"I am getting worried for her too."
Om looks up at her in worry, "She is alright, right?"
"You are at least venting out your pain. She is just holding everything in. she doesn't cry or is not willing to talk about it. She has lost weight and dark circles. She doesn't sleep at night and she is looking so lost and sad. I am worried that something will happen to her."
Om furiously grabs his phone, "What the hell does she think of herself? Can't she look after herself properly?"
Priyanka snatches his phone away from. "You love her so much then why don't you just marry her?"
"Prinku, you are asking me this? You have seen Mom and Dad."
"But neither are you Dad or she Mom."
"Every marriage is the same."
"No, Om. It is not."
"Please understand, Prinku. I can't lose her. Marriage would bring out the worst in us. We are going to have fights and lose each other."
"You already lost her, Om." Priyanka tells him in shock.
Om gulps as he looks away in pain.
"What are you fighting for? You lost her."
When Om remains silent, she continues as she held his hand lovingly, "neither of you are happy, Om. So for what happiness are you fighting for? You already lost her and neither of you are happy then why are you scared of fights that might or might not happen? Is it really worth it? Is it more important than Gauri?"
"Nothing is more important than her to me."
"Then give her what she wants."
"What if we fight and the children... how can I do that to our children?" Om asks her helplessly.
"Then don't do it. You both fight all you want but fight to be together. If she makes mistakes you learn to forgive her and when you make mistakes she will forgive you. Whatever happens you make sure that what happened to our family doesn't happen to you both. You both have fights, right?"
Om nods his head.
"But you have worked it out. Like that you will work it out. You already lost her, now take a chance and be with her, Om."
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- Lazy