Apple Nowadays, Keeps the Doctors Away
Life had settled onto a routine. Ridhima was back from the States after acquiring her fancy degree in Obstetrics and Gynaecology along with Maternal and Fetal Medicine making her a one of a kind surgeon. There weren't a lot of people in India who practiced in a field like this and Sanjeevani was proud to have her back. Dr. Shashank Gupta was the proudest father of the super-talented daughter of his. The sheer determination and hard-work from her little princess had made her such a successful doctor and not to mention, her extremely supportive and encouraging husband has led her to such great heights. And he couldn't keep himself from bragging about Armaan to anyone and everyone he meets. He had proved to be such an amazing surgeon that he had cured tumors and nuerological disorders that so many surgeons couldn't. There were people flying to Sanjeevani every now and then from all across the country for Armaan's expertise with the Brain and Ridhima's proficiency with the womb. And so, with the increasing name and fame, Armaan and Ridhima wanted nothing more. Or maybe they did'
On a late Sunday morning, Armaan was found busy just standing in the middle of his room with his iPad in his hand clad in nothing but his boxers. Apparently, he was walking to his wardrobe to get himself a shirt to put on but had unconsciously stopped in between staring into his iPad trying to study his case. And yes, it was okay if you call Armaan an iAddict who was addicted to anything and everything Apple produced and his latest object of fascination was his iPad 2 which Ridhima had got for him from the US. He perpetually lived in his iPad and used it proficiently form studying his cases and the related research related to it, played games on it in his free time, watched news on it, etc. And Ridhima could only curse herself for bringing that ass of a thing into their life because like today, Mr. Mallik would just randomly stop whatever he was doing and get lost into his iWorld with his iPad. Sometimes, she wondered if he was happy to have her back after so long or the iPad! But anyway, he was a sight to watch, and that too a delicious one with only his Black Batman boxers with a slightly red nose and occasional sniffs due to the cold he caught last night.
Ridhima-Armaan Mallik. I will confiscate your iPad if you don't put it down this moment. And if you're playing a game on it, it's going out of the window.
Armaan had, by now, gotten extremely used to this lecture and hence, it made no difference to him whatsoever.
Armaan- I'm studying a case Basket...
Ridhima-Do that later and first have your coffee and breakfast so you can take your medicine then... Kal raat se you're sniffing and sneezing. Treat it before it gets worse.
Armaan-Hmmm...
He had certainly missed everything what Ridhima had told him and just 'hmmm'ed to anything she had said...
Ridhima-Armaan... are you even listening?
Armaan-Hmmm...
Ridhima was now at her wits end. She certainly couldn't take this behaviour from him anymore. How careless can one get? And how dare he not listen to her?
She strode across the room and smacked him hard on his butt and snatched the iPad out of his hold.
Armaan-Ouch... And Basket, give me that back now. I really have to study that. Please.
Ridhima-No... First eat...
The look on her face displayed complete annoyance and Armaan was smart enough to not provoke her anymore for his own living and existence.
Armaan-Fine...
He went to get his breakfast and gulped it down without any complaints.
Armaan-Now can I have it back?
Ridhima-Medicines... Now...
Armaan-Whats the problem Basket? Stop nagging me so much... Isse toh you were better off in US only.
Ridhima-Yeah... I was really better off there. At least, I didn't have a baby to take care of.
Armaan-Oh please... I'm not a baby... You're the one who wants to be the mom all the time. Mujhpe itna boss kar rahi ho toh I don't know mere baccho ko kitna atychaar sehna padega.
Ridhima-Excuse me, woh mere bacche bhi honge aur they'll be nice and well-mannered, unlike you. Unhe yeh sab kehne ki zaroorat bhi nahi padegi.
Armaan-We'll see...
Ridhima-Yes, we will see... Aur waise bhi, tum bacche tab paida karoge jab is iPad se fursat milegi tumhe...
With that she handed him his iPad roughly and walked out of the room with his empty plate and his mug of coffee.
She went into the kitchen and started her usual chores which were of course with a lot of frustration and banging of vessels and making a lot of noise. She couldn't believe he was fighting with her because of a freaking iPad. That ass of a gadget. That's what technology does to men. She was making plans of how she was going to add so much salt and spices in his food and make him sit in the loo for the whole day with loose motions. Arrgh! She was so so so mad at him. The whole week the two of them are extremely busy with their chaotic schedules and the small little weekend they get to spend with each other is spent on/with the iPad. What was she to do with this guy! And after all that, she will be the one who'll be blamed for the lack of sexual interaction.
Ridhima- I don't care anymore... If he doesn't want to spend time with me, nor do I.
She'll just make a plan of her own and leave him alone on a Sunday with his iPad. She instantly called the girls and planned a shopping trip. However, unfortunately, none of them could apparently accompany her as they all had prior plans. But she was determined to not let Armaan have his way today. So what if no one came. She could very well go shopping on her own and also made sure, she spent his money for everything. Yeah, that was an awesome idea. She was going to do exactly that. Hence, Ridhima cooked food and left it on the table for Armaan and proceded to get ready to go out. She entered their room to find Armaan nowhere. But she didn't care. She just picked her stuff from her wardrobe and went into the washroom to shower and that's where she saw Armaan just out of his shower who was busy shaving. She paid no heed to him and went in for a shower shutting the cubicle behind her and if that was not enough, she made sure she drew the curtains as well.
Armaan was pretty surprised with this. That cubicle door or the curtains were barely ever used by them. What happened suddenly? They sure did have an argument earlier during the day but it was a normal, usual one. They had the iPad arguments everyday so why was she so mad today. Anyway, he'll deal with her once she's out of her shower. He knew she hated anybody spoling her showers.
After a long, refreshing shower, she came out and witnessed the one sight she detested the most and that is Armaan with his iPad. God what is with that thing anyway? She would have probably murdered Steve Jobs if he was still alive or rather bringing him back to life and murdering him again seemed even more appealing to her right now. It was almost half an hour since he had a bath and still his hair were wet and he hasn't bothered to dry them inspite of having cold. Oh, of course, why would he think about drying his hair, since his brain has found a permanent location in the iPad.
But she had decided that she wasn't going to waste a single grey cell of hers behind that thing which sounds like a technological version of a sanitary napkin. Seriously, didn't that guy find anything else to name that thing? And she involuntarily picked up a towel and started drying his hair. As usual, he started cribbing as his view to the iPad got disrupted but she didn't care one bit, nor did she react. Once she was done, she got dressed and walked out of the house without saying a word. And to say Armaan was confused was an understatement. He was flabbergasted that he didn't realize when the iPad was going to slip out of his hands. Thank God he caught it in time.
Armaan could not comprehend with her behaviour one bit. What happened to her so suddenly? She was her perfectly normal, cribbing self till morning. Did anyone say anything to her? He went down and checked the landline's call history and apparently, she had spoken to Nikki, Muskaan and Anjali and where had she gone? Then he caught sight of the food kept on the table for him. What was wrong with her really? If she was so mad at him, she would have never cooked food for him. Then, he saw a post it which stuck on the refridgerator saying:
Hi,
Please find the food placed on the table for you. Kindly help yourself if the iPad doesn't help you fill your stomach and please don't wait for me for lunch. I'm out shopping.
Thanks & Regards,
Ridhima Mallik
P.S. - Thank you for your credit card.
Armaan couldn't help but smile at this note. Now, all the calls to Nikki, Muskaan and Anjali make sense, the girls must have made a shopping plan and her ignoring him must be a new technique of hers to irritate him. And so, he decided to patiently wait for her and pray she doesn't blow off his credit card out of revenge or anger. She could be such a kid sometimes. More like a teenager. God, how much he had missed her when she was in US. And he couldn't be happier to have her back but then, he had to keep his feelings at bay. He didn't want to tell her what he went through without her because if he knew her well, she would get into her shell again and blame herself for it. And so, in a quest to hide his feelings and not blurt them out, he needed a good plan of action to follow or he would have probably broken down in front of her in the overwhelming feeling of just having her back again would have landed up making her so guilty. And he didn't need a reason to distract himself as she had just brought it along with her- the super iPad. And hence, he had purposely gotten himself so much into it that it had started irritating her to no end. And that was somehow helping him, the feeling of her being around was slowly sinking in and he had managed to shred off all those memories and insecurities in the meanwhile. He had to admit, that this wasn't that a difficult task as he had imagined it to be earlier as he didn't really have to pretend to be engrossed in his iPad. It was genuinely an amazing piece of technology. It just proved to be a major distraction and in this case, an extremely needed distraction. But he knew he had to stop his iPad stunt now. It was probably back-firing now. This was the first holiday Ridhima decided to leave him by himself after she came back. Maybe she was getting really mad now. He knew she needed attention all the time and especially, from him. And if he knew her well, she had probably cursed his iPad along with all the other gadgets Apple ever produced. He decided to call her and pester her a little. But she didn't answer his call. He called her again a few times but when again, she didn't answer, he got worried. He called Muskaan, Anjali and Nikki to confirm if she was safe but when all of them said, they had not accompanied her in the first place, he got extremely restless. Where was she? Was she safe? He had to find her as soon as possible and why was she alone? She always dragged him along with her.
Ridhima was tired now. She had gone through all the shops and couldn't manage to like anything good enough to buy except those amazing and a very expensive pair of hot blue pumps which she could effectively use to hit Armaan with. But now, she was tired with all the walking and she really needed to sit and eat something. Hence, she settled at a small cozy corner of Costa Coffee with a book to read and her usual cappuccino and a chocolate doughnut. As much as she tried, she couldn't concentrate on reading the book and her thoughts kept drifting to Armaan every now and then. Her head had cooled down eventually and she was trying to figure out what the hell was exactly wrong between the two of them. The iPad obviously. But then, she knew that was not the real reason. But she couldn't think of any. Ever since she had come back home, Armaan was different. Like he had changed. No. Maybe he hadn't changed. But there was something peculiarly odd about him. He didn't give her the kind of attention he used to before she left. Like he didn't make her feel all important like he used to. She knew it was unreasonable and too demanding to ask for and get so much attention all the time but then, she was used to it. Ever since she's gotten to even know Armaan, he had always treated her in a special manner. Like the whole world was on a different side for him and she was on a different side. And nowadays, he treated her like everyone else. He definitely wasn't ignoring her. He had learnt that from the past. But there was something different in a not-so-good way. But she couldn't pin-point the reason. But she had started feeling really low due to his constant non-chalance. It made her feel so... so... clingy or needy. Like only she needed him and not the other way round. She kept ignoring the feeling and kept making herself believe it was nothing and she was over-reading into the matter. But she knew this feeling. She felt like this all the time when she was away from home, away from Armaan. Back in the US, this constant feeling had nagged her throughout, inspite of Armaan being there on the phone, chat, skype all the time. It was just different with all the modes of communication and it was different when she was with him in person. All these modes of communication only helped temperorily but at the back of her mind, there was this constant annoying feeling about how they were so far apart. And she hated feeling like that. It always kept her low on holidays and especially, every night, when she was about to sleep. But then, she had a hope to look forward to. She knew she was going to be with him at the end of those three months. She had that ray of hope which she caught on to. But then, it wasn't the same as she had expected it to be when she returned. Armaan was not the same. Though, she was definitely more relaxed being physically close to him but it still felt like they were mentally apart. And that, continuously made her feel the same way she felt when she was there like it was so dark, gloomy and lonely... And it only depressed her by the day. She had tried talking to him and fought with him over his iPad numerous times. She tried telling him that she needs his attention only to see him paying no heed to it. She was really disturbed with these turn of events and the worst part was that she couldn't even discuss it with anyone. All her friends had apparently 'moved on' a little too much while she was still stuck there. Muskaan was expecting and was 2 months pregnant and Anjali and Nikki were planning a baby. And as far as she and Armaan were concerned, they hadn't even thought about it yet. Why was her life stuck at a crossroad? But she didn't care about that right now. She wanted her Armaan back and take these thoughts and feelings away from her. She hated being lonely like this. But what could she do? Should she talk to Armaan about it?
Armaan- There you are! God Ridhima... Where the hell have you been? Aise koi akela kahiin jaata hai kya? I was so worried.
Ridhima- Why were you worried? I left a note for you. I would have come back.
Armaan-Basket, you didn't tell me you were going alone. Ek baar bola toh hota. I would have come along with you na. You didn't have to go all by yourself like this.
Ridhima- What did you want me to tell you? WHY did you want me to tell you? So that you could ignore me again. I can't force you to spend time with me, can I?
Armaan-Ridhima... Kya hua? Wait... Lets go out somewhere and then we'll talk.
He went to the counter and paid for her coffee and they both headed out.
Armaan noticed her walking quietly looking down. He noticed she had a shopping bag from 'Zaara'. So she wasn't lying when she said she was going shopping. But what was surprising was that she went alone. He took the bag from her hand and put an arm around her trying to give her a hug. She abruptly stopped in her track and hugged him back completely.
Armaan-Ridhima... Kya Hua?
Ridhima- Nothing. Just hold me tight. I need a hug.
Armaan put his hands around her and just held her tight. He knew something was troubling her and he maybe knew the reason too. But he wasn't sure, and now he knew Ridhima was about to come clean and tell him what was troubling her. But for now, he just let her be.
Armaan was patiently waiting for Ridhima to say something. But now, she was testing his patience. They had walked down to their car and had driven upto a sea-face to sit by the ocean. In the meanwhile, she still hadn't spoken a word. All she did was kept him close to her with an arm around his waist and not letting him move even an inch apart.
Armaan-Ridhima... What happened? Please talk to me. I know you're mad at me because of the iPad thing. But then we fight about that everyday na? Aaj achanak se itna gussa kaise aa gaya that you went off alone on your own and that too on a Sunday.
Ridhima- I didn't want to bother or disturb you.
Armaan- Pagal ho kya? Have you lost it? When did you start bothering and disturbing me?
She didn't say anything to that.
Armaan-Ridhima... Basket... Please talk to me. Kya hua? Tum kabse aise ajeeb se baat kar rahi ho?
Ridhima- I don't like this Armaan.
Armaan- What? What don't you like Basket?
Ridhima- Things changing. Things are changing between us. Isiliye, I didn't want to go abroad. Nothing is the same. Like it used to be before I went. Shayad tumhe mere bina rehne ki aadat pad gayi hai. And I don't like that. I thought once I was back, all my lonliness will go away. I knew that you would not have left me alone even for a moment. But it's nothing like that. I feel lonelier than ever. You've stopped communicating with me at all. Jab free hote ho, all you can see is your iPad. And I refuse to believe you're so addicted to it that you don't think about me at all. I don't know why are you distancing yourself from me but I am used to undivided attention from you and it pricks me to not get that from you. And I know it's unfair and extremely demanding to expect that from you all the time. But I'm sorry. You've always given me that attention and I refuse to let that change and so you have to get back to giving me the attention I need. Because I don't have anyone in this whole wide world to make me half as special and needed as you do. Not Mumma, not Pa, none of my closest friends, just no one. I was never a priority in anyone's life before you. Mumma, Papa and Di always looked after what I need and what I love. But that was different from what you looked after me. Call me selfish or whatever you want, but you cannot treat me the same way you treat others. I am different to you than the rest of the world is. What we share is completely different to what you with anyone else in the world. Even if it is with your stupid iPad.
Armaan was shocked as well as extremely amused at what she just said. He, somewhere deep down knew what was wrong, but the way she had expressed it to him was extremely shocking. He didn't know his lack of concern or 'attention' as she calls it would affect her so much and also that she was so possessive about it. He always had this nagging feeling that she didn't like him hovering around her all the time and he often tested her patience with that. That was the precise reason he had chosen to not let her know about those stupid overwhelming feelings he felt when she got back. He didn't want to scare her away by thinking he was mad or over- excited or super relieved with her return. He probably thought she would think he was crazy or obssessed or something if she got to know how he felt when he saw her first at the airport when he had gone to receive her back, how he had stared at her for nights after she slept holding her close, how he watched her from the OR gallery everytime she operated, and how she ran around the house to get it settled and working once she was back. Three months apart had torn him apart so bad that he just wanted to make sure and make himself believe that she was back and that she was back for good. But later, he did realize that he had to stop all of that before she noticed or caught him doing any of the above. He had to divert himself. And the iPad had proved to be a blessing in disguise for the same.
Ridhima- I know you think I'm obsessed and a very possessive and a selfish wife but I don't care. That's the way I am and I cannot share you or your love or your attention with anybody.
Armaan could now, no more listen to her screaming and yelling at him. He was now sure that she was as mad and bizarre as he was and he couldn't help but be ecstatic with that piece of knowledge. He immediately pulled her closer and kissed her then and there with all the love, obsession, happiness and exhilaration.
Armaan- You have no clue how happy you have made me today. And I wasn't giving you all the 'so-called-attention' because I thought you didn't like it. Didn't you always keep telling me about how cheesy I get with you all the time and how you don't like all the PDA? Forget that, I thought you'll run away if I show you how possessive and obsessed I am with you. So much that I actually felt like telling you that now, I don't want to give all the importance to our career or be bothered about doing the right thing and I just want to be with you forever. I don't have an inclination to grow anymore if I have to stay apart from you. Because, today, all I know is that I want to be with you, no matter what. I don't know if you want the same as I do. And I shouldn't express all this to you because maybe you don't want the samething in life as me and I didn't want to influence you in anyway. It took me a few days to even believe you were back and once, that started sinking in, all these feelings and thoughts were coming to surface and I didn't want to blurt them out. I was just distracting myself with the iPad. I didn't mean to ignore you. I'm sorry. And I promise to never ever let my attention get diverted from you even for a second because that's not possible. You're on the back of my mind all the time. I love you. Every cell in my body loves you.
Ridhima smiled at what she heard. This is what her Armaan did to her. This is how he brought those butterflies in her tummy. This is how he made her feel so special. Like she was the only woman on earth and nothing else mattered to him even remotely.
Ridhima-I love you too. So much...
The revelation had been so relieving, so heart-warming and had a charismatic feeling of being free and belonging to each other at the same time. They loved this part of their relationship when they climb up a step of maturity in their relationship or step down to being kids again. But at the end of the day, it only made their relationship stronger. They continued to be in each others arms for a little longer when Armaan suddenly thought of something.
Armaan- Basket... Let's have a baby...
Ridhima- What?
Armaan- Yeah... I think we should plan a baby now. Everything else is pretty much settled now. And our baby will make me believe what we share is real as well as so magical.
Ridhima- Are you sure? Are you ready for it?
Armaan-Yes, I am. I want us to give life to someone. Our love to give life to someone. But only if you're ready. We can wait if you need time.
Ridhima- I'm ready Armaan but you have to promise me that the baby and I will hold equal importance in your life. Because, either way, it'll hurt me to see anyone of us being neglected.
Armaan- I promise.
She smiled and hugged him again while he pecked her nose a couple of times.
Ridhima- Come... lets go home now...
Armaan- Yes... Let's go make a baby... Our baby...
He picked her up in his arms and carried her to the car to enter a new phase of life...
Ridhima- Armaan, by the way, how did you know where I was? I mean, how did you find me?
Armaan- Oh, that was simple, one of the applications on my iPad is synced with the GPS of your car. I knew exactly where you were...
Ridhima-Oh My God! There you go again with your iPad. I'm going to set Apple on fire one day.
Tell me how it was!😳😉
