Love Lasts Forever (30 page)

             
‘Please, can I see Aisha?’

             
He hesitates for a moment. ‘OK, come in,’ he offers and moves aside.

             
I settle on the L-shaped sofa in the living room. Memories of that day when Priyank had caught us came rushing back. We were so much in love those days and life seemed just the perfect place to be in. And now, everything had changed. Only if Aisha could give me one last chance, I’ll restore the old times. I’ll become the best husband in the world, the most caring and supportive husband, even better than Captain.

             
Aisha emerges slowly from her bedroom. With a loose Nike pajama and a sky blue top she looks even more beautiful than the first time I saw her.

             
‘Hi there,’ I say and rise on my feet slowly. I do realize hugging her wouldn’t be a good idea now.

             
Her face is expressionless. She definitely doesn’t look pleased to see me here.

‘
Hmm…so what brings you to Mumbai after a year?’

She crosses
her arms against her chest, and leans against the wall beside her.

             
‘Can I give you a hug?’

             
‘No, not at all,’ she says and then looks away. ‘It took one year for you to realize that you have a wife.’

             
‘Aisha, I’m sorry, really sorry, you know my sh-’

             
‘Just get the hell out of here Ronit!’ she says stretching her arms and nodding toward the door.

             
‘At least let me say what I have to.’

             
‘I don’t care what you have to say, Ronit.’ She took a step forward. ‘When I needed you, you weren’t even there and now you have suddenly realized you need me. Where were you all this while, huh?’

             
‘Aisha, my ship got hijacked.’

             
‘Oh,’ she says, biting her lower lip. ‘Really?’

             
‘You think I would lie about a thing like that, Aisha,’ I say and walk toward her. ‘We were under their captivity for more that eleven months. In fact I returned India this morning. Don’t you see my condition?’ I point toward my beard and hair.

             
‘Why couldn’t you at least call?’ she says and retracts back.

             
‘The pirates never allowed us to, Aisha. Only my mom knew about it but you guys don’t even…never mind.’

I
move closer again and hold her shoulders. Priyank dawdles a few metres away from us to monitor our conversation. Perhaps he thinks the hooligan in me would harm his sister.

Aisha stands
motionless and doesn’t let go off my arm. We glance at each other occasionally feeling the awkwardness of the situation.

‘So?
What now Ronit? Why are you here?’

‘I love you Aisha, I really do. I’m so, so sorry for what I did to you. Being away from you in the last year has made me realize how much you mean to me. Can you give me one last chance to
improve my mistakes?’

She doesn’t reply. Instead she walks away from me
across the hall toward the couch. She sits on it and buries her face in her hands.

‘W
hy?’ she says, looking at me. ‘Why should I give you another chance? You left me when I needed you the most.’

             
‘Because I have changed, Aisha.’ I walk toward her. ‘And because things have changed. I spoke to mom and Priya has moved out as well. Things have finally settled in her family. She won’t trouble you anymore.’

             
‘So?’

             
I drop to my knees and place my hands on her laps. ‘Come on Aisha, you know I love you so much.’

Priyank sneers at me
from behind her.
Why can’t he leave us alone?

‘
Please forgive me Aisha.’

             
‘Why…why should I forgive you?’

I close my eyes and remember something.
‘Because I love you a lot and I’ll become exactly what you want me to become Aisha,’ I say. ‘I’ll be a caring, supportive, and loving husband who doesn’t buy you gold biscuits so it can be a FAIR INVESTMENT for me. Instead I’ll shower gifts on you and flatter you with a lot of surprises. I’ll be courteous and polite, would love you, and be kind like I was before marriage. I’ll be sensitive and listen to your problems attentively and then solve it and not give you the crap that I won’t interfere in you women. I’ll spend maximum time with you and next time my sister is rude to you, I’ll stand by you.’

Thankfully,
this time the tune of ‘stand by me’ didn’t play in my mind.

‘I’ll respect you, your feelings and your desires
, and then fulfill each one of them. I will understand the sacrifices you have made for me by leaving your family. I’ll be a good friend, a good companion, and most importantly a man. I’ll be a good listener, be warm, sympathetic, attentive, funny, tender, tolerant, understanding, courageous, dependable.’

Neither did
‘Rahul Dravid’ come to my mind.

‘I’ll be passionate, compassionate and honest. I’ll help you in the kitchen and not merely order what I want to eat. And after my meals, I’ll pick up my own dishes and keep them in the sink not before spraying some water over them. I won’t put my wet towel on the bed and certainly not on the floor. My shoes would lie neatly in the shoe rack and the socks
would go in the laundry. I will not throw my clothes on the bed and expect you or my mother to put it in the wardrobe for me. I’ll eat whatever you cook for me, enjoy it and then compliment you for it, as at least you are trying.

‘
You can wake up any time in the morning, take a shower when you want, wear any clothes in the house. Other than that I will compliment you frequently as I did before marriage and not give you any stress.’

She stares
at me and her mouth is wide open. ‘You remembered all that I said?’

Priyank
comes forward, his face puckered in contempt, and sits beside her.

‘
Yes Aisha, I remember each and every word.’

Slowly a faint smile forms at the corner of her lips.

I hold her hand and smile back. ‘Would you please come home with me?’

Much to my chagrin
, she hesitates. She looks at Priyank who offers a shrug in return.

‘Pleas
e Aisha give me one last chance, I’ll do anything you want me to.’

‘Anything?’
she eyes me skeptically and then looks at Priyank.

I nod.

Oh God, I have a bad feeling about this.

Rightly so, half an
hour later, Aisha and Priyank are shoving up a gel inside me, of course, from behind. They tell me it’s a mixture of garlic, red chilies, and pepper.

The next instant
I scream my lungs out and wriggle in pain on the floor. My butt is burning and I have never experienced such excruciating pain in my life.

             
Oh, I hate Joe Singh. I hate that bastard. Why the hell did he invent this stupid game?

             
One piece of advice, though. Please, never, ever try this at home!

EPILOGUE

A year has passed and
Captain’s words have never left my mind.

It’s not too hard to keep a woman happy. All they want is our love, care, support, and apparently a good ear.

             
It took me almost a year under the captivity of pirates, and the story of a lifetime to understand that, but still, as they say, better late than never.

We’re more in love with each other than ever before. Thankfully m
y sister Priya is back with her husband, and peace is restored both in her and our home. I spend enough time with Aisha and I never hang out with my friends or cousins alone. Few days back I asked her to celebrate our wedding anniversaries quarterly and she was thrilled.

‘Where do you get such wonderful ideas from?’ she asked me.

I smiled and replied, ‘Well, I’m a romantic, what can I say?’

She loves surprises and I love surprising her with gifts
, and of course, flowers. Captain was right - there is an unimaginable affinity between women and flowers. The hug that I get in return and the geniality that follows for the next few days makes the effort worthwhile a ten times over. 

             
Oh yeah, and did I tell you about Priyank?

             
She got, I mean, he got married last month. No, seriously. Though the woman (yes woman) he got married to is – well, how do I put it – strange. She looks…manly, if you know what I mean. On his marriage day, my handsome brother-in-law appeared…scared. God bless that idiot.

             
And Joe Singh is getting married to that Chinese…whatever. He’s madly in love with her, he tells me whenever we meet, and cannot imagine his life without her. Last when we met he told me he’s writing a book from all his experiences,
How to keep your woman happy – and stop that blah, blah, blah.

             
I am
never
going to read it.

Now,
I am in Mumbai and we are on our way toward Captain’s house in Andheri. I want Aisha to meet Captain and vice-versa. Moreover I want to see a picture of Shikha Mam – the woman who reaffirmed my belief in love without even meeting me.

And
yeah, there’s another thing I must tell you. I’ve realized now that love can definitely last forever, even if you marry your love.

*****