Chapter 15

alina.b

@alina.b

--- Shravan’s POV ---

My heart was racing as I opened the gate. I was going to see her again after five years. I have waited too long. Her garden still looked the same. I smiled as I walked in and Sagar ran into my arms. I hugged him tightly. I missed my little buddy so much. It was hard to live without him and when I heard that they were opening a center in Bhopal, I immediately volunteered to lead the project. I opened my eyes and my Sumo was standing afar on her patio. My heart had yearned to see her again. I stopped in front of her and smiled but she kept looking down. Sagar was jumping with joy and accidentally pushed Sumo into me. She fell into my arms and looked up startled. She quickly moved away and I gave her an amused look as I was expecting more excitement from her. Why was she acting so shy? 

Sagar laughed, “You two are so weird. Aren’t you best friends? Don’t best friends hug when they meet after a long time?” Sumo nervously gripped the edge of her dress and I was a little confused by her behavior. She slowly brought out her arm to shake. Why was she so formal with me? I took her hand and she gasped. The minute I touched her hand, we both felt a tingle go through our bodies similar to when our shoulders touched after the play when we were in school. I slowly asked, “How are you, Sumo?”

She looked down and stuttered, “Fine. You?” She looked the same except for the scars on the side of her face. Sagar had mentioned Sumo's scars but I didn’t know what he meant. I assumed something must have happened on a mission. But, these scars only enhanced her beauty. I noticed that she brought her hair forward. She was trying to hide her scars. My heart sank realizing that her scars ran deeper than the surface of her skin and had shattered her self-confidence. She quietly whispered, “I’ll bring snacks for you. Sit and rest”. She quickly walked back into the house. I was a little disappointed by Sumo’s reaction. I thought she would have been a lot happier to see me. Sagar pulled my arm and asked me to play badminton with him. 

Sagar and I were laughing and enjoying our game when Sumo walked out with snacks and set them on the coffee table. She shook her head and said, “Sagar, he just got here and you’re making him play badminton? Let him rest”. I smiled seeing her concern and told her that I was fine. She asked about my leg and I told her that my strength improved and I could even run and play sports. She beamed with pride but suddenly her smile faded away and she got up to leave. “I...I just remembered I have some work to do. You and Sagar continue eating”.

I grabbed her hand and she stiffened. I softly asked, “Can’t it wait? Please, stay. We have so much to catch up on”. She pulled her hand away and apologized that she had some urgent work. Why was she acting so odd? I broke out of my thoughts as Sagar sat on my lap and gave me a tight hug. He told me that he missed me a lot. He went on to tell me about his school, Bhopal, and how surprised he was to know that I knew Sumo. He told me that Sumo had been restless all week to see me. But, then why is she acting distant now that I am here? 

Sagar and I were talking when suddenly Sumo came out and yelled, “Sagar, what is this?” She waved a white paper in front of his face and his eyes widened with panic. 

Sumo continued yelling at Sagar and he instinctively moved closer to me. I asked, “Sumo, what happened? Why are you yelling at him?”

Her face was red with anger and she replied, “Why don’t you ask him? Actually no, as usual he will spin up some lie. He failed his math test. The teacher asked him to bring it back with my signature. Instead, he didn’t even show it to me and forged my signature on it”. 

I took the paper out of her hand and asked Sagar, “Are you struggling with math, again?” He nodded his head. I caressed his hair and said, “Don’t worry, we’ll figure this out together. But, remember how we talked about that lying was bad? Forging a signature is just as bad. Don’t do it again, okay?”

Suddenly, Sumo snatched the paper out of my hand and said, “This is between me and my son. Stay out of it, Shravan. You are not his father”. Her bitter words cut my heart like glass. 

Sagar angrily yelled back at her, “Don’t talk to him like that! He’s always been there for me...unlike you”. I calmed Sagar down as he was fiercely protective about me. He couldn’t bear hearing anything against me. One time, he got in a fight at school because one of his classmates mocked my prosthetic leg. 

Sumo scoffed, “Is this what you taught him, Shravan? Well, I guess you weren’t any different when you were younger so obviously your disciple will be just like you - reckless, indisciplined, and a liar". What had gotten into her all of a sudden? Sagar yelled back at her for talking to me rudely. Sumo clenched her fist and told Sagar to go inside the house. He was shaking in anger and retorted back that he would not go anywhere. 

I turned to Sagar and rubbed his back. “Buddy, calm down. Please, go inside the house. I need to talk to your mom alone. Why don’t you make me a drawing? I missed your sketches”. He nodded and ran into the house. 

Sumo scoffed, “What magic have you done on him?”

I held Sumo’s hand and softly asked, “What’s wrong? Why are you acting so different?”

She pulled her hand away and said, “I’m different because everything has changed”. I tucked her hair behind her ear and whispered that nothing had changed. Her voice cracked, “Why are you here, Shravan? Do you think that since I’m divorced now, you have a chance with me? Are you using Sagar to get close to me? If that’s your intention, I’ll tell you right now...everything has changed. I don’t love you anymore”.  

Her words were like stabs to my heart. My eyes teared up hearing her accusations. How could she think this way about me? I pulled her close and whispered, “You’re lying. Look into my eyes and tell me that you don’t love me. If it’s true, then why did you write that our love is eternal if it was meant to end in this lifetime?” 

She angrily pushed me away and said, “Don’t touch me. Aren’t you ashamed of yourself? You are married! Did you come here with the intention to make me your mistress? I thought you wanted to keep our relationship untainted?” I yelled back at her angrily and she gasped. I have never raised my voice at her before but this time, she crossed the line. I realized that she was under the perception that I had married Naina which isn’t her fault as she had no way to know that we called off the wedding. But, what hurt me the most is that she disrespected our relationship. Even if I was married, she knows me better than anyone else, so how could she think so lowly about me? I should have told her that I didn’t get married but it didn’t matter so I kept quiet. I pushed past her to walk into the house but she held my hand. “Where are you going, Shravan?”

I clenched through my teeth, “I’m going to say bye to Sagar”. Suddenly, her face changed and her eyes widened with tears. For a split second I saw her true emotions in her eyes. She still loves me but she’s trying to push me away for some reason. “Don’t worry, I’m not leaving Bhopal yet”. She continued staring at me and I looked down to see that she was still holding my hand. I coldly said, “My hand, Suman” and she reluctantly let go of my hand. 

I wiped my tears and put up a smile on my face before I walked into Sagar’s room. He handed me a drawing of us at the train station before he left Mumbai. I praised his drawing and he hugged me. He whispered, “Why did she talk to you like that? She’s so bad”. 

I caressed his hair and said, “No, that’s not true. She’s the most wonderful woman in this world. We’re friends so sometimes we fight. It’s okay, don’t worry about it too much. But, promise me you won’t talk rudely with her again. She’s your mom and you need to respect her”. Sagar nodded and asked if I would come to see him tomorrow. I sighed, “Actually, I can’t come tomorrow but I’ll come the day after and I promise all my time is yours”. He gave me a sad smile and I pulled his cheeks to cheer him up. As I got up to leave, I saw Sumo standing in the doorway with tears in her eyes. She was beyond my understanding. I walked past her without saying a word.

The next day, I met with Naina as she was also visiting Bhopal for work. Over the years, we kept in touch and became good friends. I gave her a side-hug and congratulated her as she was expecting her first baby. We caught up over dinner and then went to the mall as she had to buy something. She was getting tired from walking so I offered her to hold my arm for support. “Naina, you could have just told me what you wanted to buy and I would have gotten it for you. You need to take care of yourself”. She laughed at me and said that I worry too much. As we were shopping, I was shocked to see Suman there. She looked wide-eyed at Naina, who was pregnant and I knew what she was thinking as she looked accusingly at me. I could read her eyes. She thought that Naina and I were having a baby together and that I had still approached her with the intention of having an affair. Do you even know me, Sumo? 

Naina hugged Suman and asked how she was doing. Suman looked at me while talking to Naina and said, “Congratulations on your baby. Have you two thought of a name yet?” 

Naina laughed, “I like the name Karthik but Aman likes the name Kabir. So, we can’t decide”. 

Suman grew confused and asked, “Aman? Who’s that?” 

Naina giggled, “My husband...who else?” Sumo’s eyes grew as she realized the truth. Naina pulled my arm and said, “Nothing would have been possible without Shravan. He convinced my family to let me marry Aman. I was expecting that you and Shravan would be married by now. You two are made for each other”. Suman stood there frozen like a statue but I didn’t react as I didn’t want Naina to know about her misunderstanding. I told Naina that we should get going. As we were leaving, I looked over my shoulder and Suman was lost in her thoughts trying to hold back her tears. I wanted to run to her and console her but I decided that I would talk to her tomorrow. I can’t stay angry at my Sumo forever. 

The next evening, Suman opened the door for me but didn’t look me in the eyes. She was about to call Sagar but I stopped her saying I wanted to talk to her alone. She was fidgeting with her sleeve out of anxiety and whispered, “I’m sorry. I didn’t know you and Naina didn’t get married. I said all those things to you…” 

I sighed, “Don’t feel guilty, it’s okay. You had no way to know that we called off the wedding. But, what hurt me was that you know me better than anyone else and if I was married, do you think I would do something like that? You insulted our relationship, Sumo. Do you even know what you said? You said hurtful things thinking that I’ll hate you and stay away from you but the truth is I can never hate you. If you want to hurt me, insult me but not our relationship. I don’t know why you are trying to hide from me. But, I am just as stubborn as you. The more you push me away, the closer I’ll come. But, if you truly want me to stay away then I won’t show you my face as long as I’m in Bhopal”. I stepped back realizing that I was standing too close to her. She stood there with a blank face and I couldn’t read her expression. I continued talking, “As for Sagar, I didn’t even know he was your son at first. But, please don’t take him away from me. I love him more than my own life”. 

A tear rolled down Sumo’s face and I realized that she was holding back a lot of pain but she wouldn’t talk about it. Sagar came running down when he saw me and Sumo turned around to wipe her tears so he wouldn’t see them. He looked at me with a bright smile and asked, “Coach! Can we get ice cream?” Sumo went into the kitchen without saying anything. I turned my attention back to Sagar and told him that we would first solve his math test and then we would get ice cream. 

When Sagar and I were getting ice cream, I thought back to my conversation with Sumo. Her pained face flashed before my eyes. Did I talk too harshly with her? I bought her favorite orange-flavored ice cream to cheer her up. When we got home, I told Sagar to go give the ice cream to Sumo. She replied with a soft voice, “I don’t eat ice cream”. Sagar shrugged his shoulders at me as he didn’t know what to do. I motioned to him that I’ll take care of it and he went to his room. I leaned on the counter next to Sumo and said, “Brigadier Sumo has learned to lie? Why are you taking your anger out on the ice cream?”

She looked up and said, “I’m not angry. I’m just not in the mood”. 

I sighed, “I’m sorry...I was a bit harsh on you. You were right in your place...you were looking out for Naina because you’ve been through the pain of being cheated on”. 

Sumo gave me a small smile and said, “Don’t apologize. I’m sorry...I should’ve trusted you. I’ll eat the ice cream after dinner”. I placed the ice cream in the freezer for her and she asked, “Shravan, is this much rice enough for you or should I make more?”

I shook my head, “Don’t worry about me. I’ll eat at Bunty’s house”. 

She looked at me and said, “I already made food for you and if you don’t eat it will go to waste”. I nodded and smiled. This girl truly was beyond my understanding. “Go wash your hands and call Sagar down for dinner too”. 

I smiled seeing what she had made for dinner - Rajma Chawal and Seviyan, my favorite dishes. She watched me intently trying to figure out if I liked the food. I took a bite and felt like I was in heaven. She shyly smiled when I praised her cooking. Sagar looked up excitedly and said, “You should cook dinner tomorrow. You know Mom, that he makes the best paneer”. 

I could cook decently but not nearly as good as Sumo. I laughed, “Tomorrow, I’m meeting someone for dinner. But, I will cook for sure this weekend”. 

Sagar grew curious, “Meeting someone for dinner? Like a date?” I noticed Sumo stiffen up and I decided to play along. I nodded even though in reality I was meeting a friend to catch up. Sagar giggled, “I didn’t know you had a girlfriend”. 

I glanced at Sumo who played with her food with creases on her forehead. “Well, she’s not my girlfriend yet. It depends on how the date goes”. I pulled up a picture of a random girl on my phone and told Sagar it was who I was meeting. 

He took the phone out of my hand and showed it to Sumo. “Look Mom, isn’t she really pretty?” Sumo grumbled yes without looking at the picture. I laughed to myself seeing her act jealous. Oh, Sumo what do you have to worry about when every inch of my heart has only your name written on it? Sagar’s eyes grew wide as he asked, “Will you marry her?” I shrugged my shoulders indicating maybe and Suman frowned. Sagar’s face changed and he said, “No! You’re not allowed to marry her because then you’ll have kids of your own and you won’t love me anymore. I can’t share you with anyone else”.

I laughed, “Sagar, you’ll always be my number one. No one can ever replace you”. 

He adamantly said, “Nope! I can’t take any risks! Wait...I have an idea! Why don’t you marry my mom? She’s already your friend. Then we can be a family”. I was taken aback by his suggestion and choked on my food. I started coughing and Suman started rubbing my back. Her eyes were full of concern as she brought a glass of water up to my lips. 

She gently asked, “Better?” and I nodded shyly. She turned to Sagar and said, “Don’t talk while eating”. She looked at me and mumbled, “You too, Shravan...you talk too much”. 

As we finished dinner, Suman passed me a bowl of seviyan and I replied, “Thanks, Sumo”. 

Sagar looked at me and started giggling uncontrollably. “Sumo? What does that mean?” He heard me call Suman as Sumo for the first time so he found it funny.

Sumo turned pink and I answered, “It’s a nickname I gave her...you know Sumo like a sumo wrestler because she’s angry all the time”. Sagar continued laughing and Sumo rolled her eyes at me. Sagar asked me if she was always this way. I sighed and said, “She has changed a bit. My Sumo is hiding from me but I will find her”. She looked at me with big, innocent eyes and I got lost in them again. I promised myself that no matter what, I would not let her go this time.