Chapter 2
Angad Khanna wiped the sweat off his brow, and climbed down the ladder. 'Prateek?' he called out to his son. Walking past the pile of lumber still laying out in the yard, he groaned in frustration, his sharp jaw tightening. "PRATEEK" he yelled. No response. He looked around the property and up at the unfinished house they were building. Pulling his shirt over his well-muscled torso, Angad walked out to the front of the house.
Prateek Khanna sat there, sprawled over the front lawn, engrossed in his notebook, paying absolutely no heed to the world around him. Damn that notebook of his thought Angad. Angad walked over to Prateek until he was towering him.
'Thought I told you to put the pile of lumber away' said Angad, forcing himself to remain calm.
'I'll do it later' Prateek shrugged.
Exasperated Angad pressed on 'Prateek, I told you to do it three hours ago. I've got to get back to the clinic now'. Prateek just shrugged in response, as he got up and walked past Angad. Grabbing his arm, Angad whipped Prateek around to face him. Even at such a young age, Prateek was not a small guy. He was most definitely built like his father, and resembled him in most ways. His personality and stubbornness however, he got from his mother.
Prateek's eyes met Angad's in defiance. There was more than just typical teenaged angst in them. There was hurt, pure painful hurt. Though it had been almost two years since his mother died, Prateek was still mourning her death.
'Prateek' Angad's tone softened. 'I thought we decided to work on this project together, and finish it over the summer, but lately it seems like I'm the only one putting any work into it.'
Prateek scoffed. 'We decided?' Loosening his arm out of Angad's grasp he said, 'Dad, you decided for the both of us. I never wanted to renovate this property. Heck, I don't want anything that would give us a reason to stay here in this damned town any longer'
'Prateek please!' Angad's frustration started rising.
'NO! Don't 'Prateek please' me dad. You know exactly how I feel about this town. You knew exactly how mom felt about this town. Yet you did nothing about it. She was so desperate to leave dad, but you were too selfish to listen to her. It's your fault she's gone. If you hadn't forced us to stay here, she would still be here. IT'S YOUR FAULT' With that, Prateek turned on his heel, clutching his notebook, jogged away onto the main road, ignoring Angad's pleas.
Angad unclenched the fist he'd balled up. It was all he could do to refrain from saying something back to Prateek. Wiping the sweat off his brow, Angad proceeded to lock up the front gate and get into his car. The lumber could wait a day or two.
Angad finally spotted him walking along the side of the road, head bowed. He instantly felt a stab at his heart. Angad had always blamed himself for Mishti's death. He'd never listened to her when she begged that they move back to Atlanta, but he just couldn't get himself to leave. First there was his father-in-law's deteriorating health. Secondly, Angad couldn't make himself leave his hometown. After 13 long years, he'd finally felt like his heart was in the right place. He was back home.
Mishti however couldn't handle the loneliness she felt in Ann Arbor. She began drinking quite heavily. After one such night of heavy drinking, Mishti decided to go find Angad, who was operating an emergency delivery that night. Unfortunately, Mishti never made it to the hospital, but instead ran her car off the road and plummeted it into the small valley.
The sight of Mishti's mangled, burned body still haunted Angad to this day. Angad slowed down his car as he approached Prateek. 'Prateek, please get in' Angad requested. Prateek kept walking, still angry. 'Prateek, I know you're angry at me, but it's a long ways home, so please get in, and I'll drop you home on my way to the clinic.' Finally, Prateek got in, without much of a fuss, and Angad sighed in relief.
'Prateek''Angad started softly. Seeing his son's bloodshot angry eyes made him eat his words. A heart-to-heart can wait; Prateek needed some time to cool off. After dropping Prateek home, Angad went to the clinic. He wasn't being able to concentrate, however, because his mind was distracted. He didn't know why but he had a weird feeling in his heart all of a sudden. It felt like something was about to happen, something big. Brushing is feelings off, he went about his day.
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Kripa arrived at her father's old house, taking in the sight she hardly remembers. Walking up the wooden stairs and unlocked the door. Aside from the air being slightly musty, the house was in mint condition, just as she'd remembered it sixteen years ago. She walked around the house, reminiscing about the past, apprehensive about the future.
About an hour later, Kripa was all settled into her new home, where she'd planned on spending the next few months maybe more. Unless'she thought sighing. After waiting around for nearly two months for Prithvi to come around, Kripa had gotten frustrated and left. Still, somewhere she'd hoped that Prithvi would realize his responsibilities towards her and her child. He was always so caught up with his practice, he often forgot the commitments he'd made to her.
'Don't worry baby' she whispered, placing a tender hand over her slight bump. 'I'll always be here for you. Take care of you. Love you. Forever.' And with that, she drifted off to sleep, reminding herself that she'd made an appointment with Dr. Rajesh Varma first thing tomorrow.
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Anupamaa
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