Love after Marriage (20 page)

She gently nodded and moved away.

There was a lot of pain hidden in her. Their marriage had taken a toll on her, and now with her babuji’s death, she felt very lonely and broken. She appeared to be happy, but she struggled internally. She felt burdened; her chest was heavy! Only he saw it, and it was very unfortunate nobody else in the house noticed this.

She was very close to Kusum didi, but now that she was a member of this family, Roshni felt distanced from her too. Oh, how Deepak wished she would confide in him, how he wished she found him trustworthy enough to share her feelings and pain. She probably needed a shoulder to rest on, a friend and a confidant who she could rely on and download all her pain and sorrow, and he was not able to provide this yet. He was disheartened for not providing this solace. What could he do to have her believe him? What could he do for her to respect him?

Roshni, too, remembered Deepak holding her, hugging her and other romantic moments. His gaze, his smile, his physical proximity, she could not lie to herself; she certainly enjoyed those moments, but doubt haunted her. Did he do all this to show other people, or was this all genuine? There was no way she knew the answers to these questions at this time; she had to wait and watch.

The few days he spent with her were not sufficient for her to observe him closely or believe that these feelings he exhibited were genuine.

~ ~ ~

The next morning was Sunday, and they all discussed the party the previous night as they had chai at the dining table. It was about 7 a.m., and Roshni was ready to leave with Rahim chacha when Deepak asked her if he could accompany her. Roshni informed him that she was going to Babuji’s house and that he should relax at home because of his flight later that day. Deepak insisted, and Roshni had no choice but to agree.

They arrived at Babuji’s house, and Ravi and Geeta were waiting for her. They got to their job of cleaning with directions from Rahim chacha, and Roshni went to her babuji’s room and came closer to his picture that rested on the table next to the bed. She stared at his picture and conversed with him mentally, tears in her eyes. How she missed him only she could tell.

Deepak watched her but did not want to disturb her; it was important for her to download and make her chest lighter. He was there if she needed him. He respected her feelings, and she certainly appreciated this quality in Deepak.

After a few minutes, she felt his presence behind her. She turned around, “Deepak, I had to come here.” She looked at Babuji’s picture. “Especially after my birthday yesterday.” She faced him again. “Deepak, I miss him a lot; he was everything for me.” She could not control her tears and wept.

Deepak came closer and gently pulled her towards him and hugged her, giving her the comfort she needed. She was lost for some time in his embrace; she rested her head on his chest and cried. She needed this, and Deepak patiently comforted her.

She came to her senses after a few minutes and noticed she was in his embrace. She wiped her tears and moved away. “I was taken away with Babuji’s memories. I’m really sorry!”

“It’s okay, Roshni, no worries. I am here for you always,” he said.

Roshni popped her head high, staring at him. “No, not always.”

Deepak ignored her comment. He did not want to get into an argument. He changed the subject. “Roshni, have you thought of either renting this place or selling it?”

“Yes, and I don’t want to do either of them. Sashank bhaiya also talked to me about it.”

“Why not?”

“Deepak, I need a place to stay after December 14
^th
. Where else would I go?” She paused and continued, “Moreover, this house carries a lot of my childhood memories, and I want to come back to live here after our arrangement ends.”

Deepak was dumbstruck. She still intended to stick to their agreement. He quietly listened to her without any reaction. He was determined in his goal, and she was not coming back to this house!

Roshni gave instructions to Rahim chacha, Ravi and Geeta, and then she and Deepak left. They were pretty quiet on their way back.

~ ~ ~

Kusum and Kaki had prepared brunch, so Deepak ate before leaving for the airport. All the family was at the dining table, eating and keeping Deepak company. It was a very joyful atmosphere at the table. The steam from the containers of food spread the aroma of spices. As the family tasted the parathas and rajma, the ‘mmms and aahs’ continued, and they thanked Kaki and Kusum for such wonderful-tasting dishes.

Sashank initiated the conversation. “Deepak, what time is your flight?”

“It is at three.”

“Roshni bete, I just remembered, didn’t you say you had to go to Bangalore as well?” asked Sashank.

Deepak turned to Roshni and was stunned. She had never mentioned this to him.

Roshni was put on the spot. Yes, she was supposed to go to the same conference, but she’d changed the plans after hearing Deepak would be there. She gathered herself. “Yes, bhaiya, I was supposed to go, but that got cancelled. I may have to go later.”

“Oh, okay.”

“Deepak, you return on Thursday, right?”

“Yes, bhaiya.”

“Roshni, why don’t you take Thursday and Friday off. Deepak has to leave on Sunday, and you can spend a couple of days together. What do you say, Deepak?” suggested Sashank.

Deepak thanked Sashank for this suggestion. “Great idea, bhaiya.” He looked at Roshni. “Roshni, can you take a couple of days’ vacation? Let’s go somewhere.”

“No, I cannot take any time off. The prototype design we are working on is scheduled to be released next week.”

“Do you have a day in mind for the release? Can you release it Thursday so we can leave Thursday evening or even Friday morning?”

“No, I cannot leave the team. Deepak, I will have to stay here.”

Kusum brought hot parathas and served them to Deepak and Roshni and joined the family at the table for brunch. She was aware Roshni had been working long hours for the last few weeks, so she also concurred with Sashank that Roshni should take some time off.

Deepak asked her again. He knew she was avoiding his company, and he needed to persuade her. He was very pleased everybody in the family was pressuring her. After some discussion, Roshni finally agreed to take Friday off. Deepak smiled and thanked her; he was happy.

Deepak went to his room to get his luggage, and he suspected that Roshni was not coming to the airport. “Roshni, are you coming to the airport?”

“I was not planning on coming,” was her reply.

Deepak was not happy about this but did not force her.

When she went downstairs, Sashank was waiting for Deepak in the family room and asked her, “Roshni bete, are you ready?”

Roshni was startled. “Ready for what?”

“Are you not coming to the airport?”

Deepak overheard this as he brought his luggage downstairs and was delighted that Sashank bhaiya asked Roshni to come with them.

“I was not planning on it. I think you can drop him off,” Roshni replied.

At this time, Kusum came into the family room. “Roshni, come, let’s go. I can keep your bhaiya company, and you can keep Deepak company.” She asked Sashank if it was okay for her to join them, and Sashank happily agreed.

Deepak was glad; he had no words to thank bhaiya and bhabhi.

Roshni had no option but to go to the airport.

Roshni and Deepak sat in the back, and Kusum was in the passenger seat. Sashank and Kusum talked about various topics while Roshni and Deepak listened to their conversation. Deepak enjoyed watching Sashank bhaiya – how much he cared for and loved his wife.

Roshni and Deepak glanced at each other occasionally and smiled. Kusum watched all this and turned around. “Do you have anything to talk about or not? You have been sitting so quietly.”

“We are listening to the wonderful conversation between you two. We are enjoying it,” replied Deepak.

Roshni looked at him and concurred.

They arrived at the airport, and Deepak unloaded the luggage. Deepak bid good-bye to Sashank bhaiya and bhabhi and then came closer to Roshni. “Roshni, I look forward to spending Friday with you. Please remember to take that day off,” Deepak reminded Roshni.

Roshni nodded and agreed to take the day off.

“Good luck with your design release. I hope all goes well.”

“I think it will. Our team has put in a lot of effort, and all testing so far looks good. I am confident! But yes, it is better to be cautious and hope all goes well. If not, I will have to work on Friday,” she said sarcastically and winked at Deepak.

“Well, then let’s really hope all goes well.”

As he talked, he moved closer and whispered in her ear, “Roshni, can I hug you?”

Roshni was embarrassed. First of all, why was he being so romantic, and secondly, for him to hug her in front of Sashank bhaiya and bhabhi. Oh no! He had done a lot of hugging in the last couple of days and now again…she was not ready.

Before she could reply, he pulled her closer to him with his hands around her waist. She felt uneasy, and trying to pull herself away, she whispered into his ear, “Deepak, what are you doing? Everybody is looking at us. Please let me go.”

“So what? Let them look. I am hugging my wife!” He tightened his grip around her.

“Yeah, your wife,” she whispered sarcastically. “I am not your wife. Let me go.”

Deepak finally let her go. He bid her good-bye and entered the airport to board the Bangalore flight.

Chapter 16

Bangalore Conference

Deepak arrived in Bangalore and was welcomed by the company sponsoring the event. He was taken to a beautiful five-star hotel, which also happened to be the venue for the training and conference. He checked in and called Roshni to let her know he arrived safely. She was not available to pick up the phone so he left a message.

There was a banquet planned for that evening to meet and greet the guests, so he changed into formal clothes and left for the banquet hall. The VP of R & D and marketing director of the sponsoring company welcomed him and other guests. Deepak approached the area for a soft drink, and he was stunned to see Sanjay, and Sanjay was shocked to see Deepak as well.

Both of them shook hands and greeted each other.

“Sanjay, so good to see you here.”

“Deepak, what are you doing here? Does Roshni know you were coming here?” he asked.

“Yes, she is aware of this trip, but I don’t think she knew it was this meeting.”

Sanjay quickly looked at the agenda and noticed that Deepak was the guest speaker and also the trainer for this new technology and software. He continued, “It is sad she could not come. I wish she did; this would have been a great opportunity for you both to spend time together.”

“Was Roshni supposed to be here?”

“She was. Roshni cancelled this trip because you were in Mumbai. All changes were made yesterday morning,” Sanjay replied.

“What!” exclaimed Deepak.

“Yes, yesterday morning she talked me into coming to this meeting while she stayed in Mumbai, managing the project.”

Deepak was not happy with Roshni for manipulating this. He was disappointed that she was not there with him. More importantly, this training would have really helped her, especially after she came to the US. Very unfortunate indeed! He decided to call her later to find out why she did what she did. It was apparent he was angry at her.

After all the introductions were made and as the evening meet and greet went on, Deepak found out that one other guest speaker was not able to arrive until Tuesday due to a personal emergency. Deepak reviewed the agenda and met with the organizer for any flexibility to alter the schedule since the other speaker was arriving later than planned.

After reviewing several options, it was decided that Deepak could do his training and presentation Monday through Wednesday. Deepak was very excited because this would give him an opportunity to spend one extra day with Roshni. The revised agenda was announced to the delegates, and he changed his flight reservations to leave Bangalore on Wednesday evening.

Deepak went to his room and could not wait to talk to Roshni. It was 9 p.m., and he called Roshni on her cell phone. No response. He tried a few times, and she did not answer the phone, and he became furious. After several attempts, he was finally able to talk to her.

“Roshni, why are you not picking up the phone?”

Roshni sensed he was very anxious. “Excuse me, I was in the bathroom.”

“You know I met Sanjay here,” he said. He could not wait any longer to vent it out.

“Very good, I forgot to tell you he was attending the training.”

“Yeah, you changed all the plans yesterday morning, didn’t you?”

Roshni was quiet for some time. She suspected Sanjay had conveyed all the details to Deepak.

“Roshni, I am talking to you,” he said with a raised voice.

“Why are you talking so loudly? Where are you?”

“In my room,” he replied.

Roshni sighed. At least he was not in a public place.

“Roshni, why did you change your plans?”

“Because you were going.”

“So?”

“So…I did not want to be at the same place with you,” she replied.

“What?” he yelled.

Roshni was calm. “Deepak, calm down, please.” She continued after a pause, “As per our agreement, I should be avoiding you as much as possible. Unfortunately, I could not avoid you here because we also agreed to act as husband and wife in front of our family, so we had no other option.”

“Roshni, forget about the agreement. Do you know you missed a golden opportunity with the training I was doing here with this new software?”

“Yes, I am aware, but at certain times we have to set our priorities straight, and that is what I did,” she replied to the point, very direct.

Deepak knew her enough to believe she would not compromise in this matter. It was better to let her go now and deal with it when he returned to Mumbai. The new agenda was in front of Deepak, but he decided not to share it with her. He was worried she would change her plans on him.

Roshni was aware he was upset because of her change in plans but decided not to argue with him anymore. Both of them abruptly said good-bye to each other and hung up.