Anchored Tempest - Page 25

Gosh, I feel so bad for Mrunal. I can only imagine how it feels to have to start sharing your kid after 10 years of going it alone. 😭 I don’t even want to share my car with someone.

Mendy is a sweetheart ❤️. Really glad Atty is pushing her out of her comfort zone slowly but surely 🤗

I am sure Atty would treat Mrunalini even better when he actually comes to know where she comes from and how unwanted she has felt throughout her life until Dhru.

So far Lynn has not been very sympathetic towards Mru. She needs to put herself in her shoes for once. Mendy does that so effortlessly.

Atty is trying to be patient. But he will wait only so long for Jai to be told. He wants to start being a dad and that can only happen when Jai is told.

10 & 10

She tagged along as they walked two blocks to the building with the pool and gym

Jaidrith was slowly becoming familiar with Ira and Iris

Iris decided she only wanted to hold Jaidrith’s finger

Causing him to turn bright red with embarrassment

“She is a baby” Mrunal whispered when he refused

“No she is not she is big” Jai couldn’t say she is not 1 year old

“She is not even 5 babe” she begged

“Arey mera hand hold karega Iris” Mendy butt in

“HO HIS HANDDD” Iris screamed

“Is he your boyfriend?” Ira mocked

She was 7 so obviously she knew everything

That was it Jaidrith refused completely

Mendy scolded Ira

Aatreya was uncontrollable, he laughed until he teared up

Mrunal gently held Iris’s tiny soft hand and gripped Jai’s pinky on his good hand

“Good?”

Iris was so so happy

Jai acted like she didn’t exist which was fine

“Thanks for bringing him” Aatreya said softly as Mendy took Lynn’s call while walking

“That’s OK”

“Are you going to tell him soon?” he coaxed

“I don’t know when” she dodged

“I can be at your place or we can do it in mine”

“I can bring him whenever you want to see him” she offered in exchange

“That’s great, thank you for that… but I want to spend time with him too”

He smiled as an afterthought

They looked great together Mendy realized walking behind them

But only one person shared his opinion which was his friend Atty

She really didn’t even see Aatreya…

“Do you dig her still?” Mendy asked him when those two were alone near the pool

“Do u want the truth or a BS?” Aatreya’s eyes twinkled

“Chal jhooth”

“Cant stand her”

The men laughed together

“I mean she is not even the person I met her, I mean absolutely not, this is someone I do not know” Atty was all serious now

Mendy nodded gazing at Mrunalini sitting on a deck chair helping Ira untangle a bucket and a scoop near a kiddie pool

“She sounds like a 5 year old, her logic is off she sounds crazy sometimes” Atty spoke agonized

“Kya baat bol raha hai dude”

Lynn had hinted that he had yelled at Lynn for it

“she is obsessively protective about him”

“Hmm”

“Physically do I desire her?” “Probabbly a notch or two or 10 over what I felt 10 years ago” he ran his fingers through his hair smiling sheepishly

“Are ur parents visiting?”

“Hmm.. Pa is furious still but he is talking to me now”

“Think about them dude… you WANTED to find her, they didn’t really want a fully grown grandkid mann!!”

Atty nodded somberly

“This whole thing is pretty unbelievable man

“U are telling me?”

“I mean you wanted to know just like many do…. About that one night you had with that person… u go on to look for her, you find her and you find YOUR CHILD”

“Hahaha” Atty was able to laugh about it… though he was totally not sure where he wud go from here

“Imagine what her parents must be feeling”

“I never thought of that”

“Talk man… ask her… meet her parents, I can go with you… mere jaisa perfect hai nei boss tu, but mein guarantee dega ki tu OK OK hei” Mendy laughed

“hahaha”

“Apan jaisa ek piece hei” Mendy was rather proud

“They wouldn’t want ME they would want u”

“Ek beachside villa lene ka hai Lynn ke liye” he sighed “Yaha pe Holy Cross Catholic Church ke aas paas”

“I cant afford it, neither can my Dad, you need to figure out another Dad to latch on to” Atty laughed

“We better go to the kids” Atty muttered

“Door se ogle karke thak gela hei?” Mendy winked

“Somewhat”

“The blue eyes mann!! Kidhar pakda rey tu? I think Lynn’s jealousy is only of the blue eyes she is not able to articulate it”

Aatreya laughed

“I watched it under moonlight ten years ago”

“mannn” Mendy gasped

“the kid got the same eyes” Aatreya exclaimed

“Did she tell him u are the Dad?”

“Not yet”

“F---”

“Yep”

“I am forcing it out of her”

“Bhaag gaya beta leke to?”

“She shouldn’t” Aatreya worried

They got to the 3 kids and Mrunalini

“We have to go, I have to work we can take a cab” she stood up nervously rubbing her palms on her jeans

“Nahi mere ko bhi jaane ka hei”

“thanks”

“Main gaadi leke aata hai idhar?”

“No we can walk with you” Mrunal promised

She really had nothingt o say to Aatreya

“I had some things for the kids at home” Aatreya nodded

“He really cant eat anything”

I actually texted the Doc you pointed me to, the snacks align with his acceptable food category” Aatreya tried not to be irritated

Mendy knew he was livid

So off they went with a giant bag of fruit treats and other besan snacks and crunchies

Ira and Iris got candy and cookies

“We can talk some afternoon if you like at a coffee shop?” he offered

Mendy pretended to buckle the kids in

“He cannot stay overnight, he wont” she claimed

“You need to tell him who I am first”

“Umm”

“Maybe before the next weekend?”

“Uh”

“I can tell him next weekend” he said firmly

“IS THIS WATER GUN FOR ME?” jaidrith screamed with joy peeking out the back seat

“Hmm.. may be not” Aatreya teased trying to grab from him

Jai snuck it back and tried to raise the window glass

Aatreya pretended to want it more, banged on the window as the girls and his son giggled away

Aatreya begged and pleaded, Mendy watched amused

Mrunalini was not amused

Atty, I get your eagerness but you need to find out about Mrinalini and understand her first to know why she is the way she is. Only then will her insecurities start fading… Trying to force take the kid will only push her more into the hellhole 😓

Ahh 😌

Not sure who to sympathise more with 🙄.

Atty appears super nice guy.

Mrunalini is holding on her past too close to herself and not ready to accept that something good can happen to her too.
Atty will have to put in lot of efforts. But before he realises he needs to do that he would have to know about Mrunalini’s background and her deep rooted insecurities.

Shouldn’t Atty already realise that something is wrong with Mrunalini’s side of family.

He had never ever seen anyone by her side including the day she shifted.

Which should be suspicious. Normally your friends and family are around for such huge changes.

Jai is bonding well with Atty. A little too well to the discomfort of Mru. Jai never had a father figure even, let alone a father. He stands to benefit a lot from this. Mru is not ready to see that yet.

Ice breaker☺️

Aatreya’s sister Apurva and Mihir Bhat were getting to Mumbai tomorrow to SEE Jai

While Mrunalini went to daily therapy the following week to make sense of it all

Sameena was finishing up college she had to focus on thesis, she wanted to “let Mrunal off easy”, about taking a 3 month break

Zaira had instructed her to spend some extra time before letting Mrunal know she needed to find another therapist permanently or until Sameena was willing to “see” Mrunal in the evenings on a retainer after she took up a job

Plus Mrunal was a troubled soul, she needed some heavy duty counseling, Sameena’s education and training did not enable her to do that

“It has started, you know, he wants to see him every day of the week, every day of the weekend. I don’t have my son anymore, everything I do I think about when the doorbell will ring when the phone will buzz so he can see the child”

Mrunal could not fathom how anyone would obsesses over a child they did not even know they had until two weeks ago

“How is Jai taking it all?”

“He likes him when he shows cool tricks of making smiley faces with darts on the wall”

Mrunal could not think of any thing else, too preoccupied with worry about her child slipping away

“There is no medium that I know of, I HAVE to have the bathroom checked out” she twisted her fingers into a knot

“Toilet you mean?” Sameena gently corrected her

“Hmm” Mrunal nodded

“How could she sell me a haunted flat?” she began to cry

“Sshhhh shhhh” sameena scooted close and hugged her tight

“As if I didn’t have enough to worry about”

“Just have a plumber or electrician look at it?”

“I have had TWO” Mrunal explained

“There has to be something Mrunal”

“I don’t think this man even cares I am dealing with such a big issue, every morning every night “can I see him “Can I see him?” Can I see him” Mrunal was so irritated she had to get up and start pacing the room as usual

“How many times?” Sameena was truly shocked

“I will show you” she unlocked her phone and placed it on Sameena’s lap

Actually Sameena found TWO texts asking for visitation

“Mrunal, you have always done the right thing” “U kept the baby” “U didn’t let your parents’ indifference show in your own behavior to your child” “You didn’t expect your parents assistance to raise him” “Yes you lived in ur Dad’s flat, but u know… and then (quickly moving on to topics that were really positive again) Now u have a place, you are looking for the best schools for him, you are coaxing him to play with Ulhas and Utkarsh, you didn’t even fight with Kriti? Sahasre?, you easily gave in for the DNA test”

Mrunal looked visibly calm

She turned around and went back and sat on the couch opp Sameena

“But it has to stop right? He has proven it, aur kya chahiye?”

Sameena squirmed, this is where Mrunal became adamant and uncompromising and petulant, like a 5 year old, completely unwilling o accept facts

Its like how she cut off Amruta without letting her know how she has been hurt, or cut off Sagar Ghatge

When she didn’t want to deal with something, Mrunalini just ran away Sameena believed,

“U shud at least explain to him why you don’t want o share”

“Oh I have told him a 100 ways “Let go you know of him you have seen him, but he keeps wanting more”

“Its his child too” Sameena whispered

“He is the LITERALLY the only person I have” she wept, and wept

“Shhhh shhhh… u are going to be fine…”

“the way he plays these games with him he just makes Dhru laugh so much” Mrunal revealed another nugget of Aatreya’s interaction, after “Oh he only makes smiley faces with darts”

“I know it must be hard” Sameena rubbed her back

“Like in ONE week he is a hero, one month my child will be GONE” Mrunal clicked her fingers

“Does he look slimy?”

Mendy had sent pictures from Ira’s Birthday

Aatreya looked dashing Sameena noticed, moss green cargo pants, and a cotton shirt in yellow stripes

“I don’t know… I don’t know how con artists look?” Mrunal shrugged

Sameena looked at her in shock

This woman had not paid any attention to how handsome Aatreya’s was

“He is hot” Sameena giggled

“You like older men because you are 20” Mrunal rolled her eyes

“HE IS NOT OLDER… that’s like saying YOU are a older woman” Sameena laughed hysterically

“I am the mother of a 10 year old I AM OLDER” Mrunal nodded carelessly

Sameena realized she was now asexual, or saw herself as one

She had told Sameena honestly that she “didn’t feel like dating, wasn’t attracted to anyone, being in a relationship was a waste of time, Jai is her life now. “Ive seen it all” (THIS! After a ONE ONE night stand)

“Mrunal… do u really not notice Aatreya?”

Mrunal stared into outer space she observed

She climbed back into earth looked at Sameena confused

“No? What do u see?” she asked suspiciously

“He is SO goodlooking and charming”

“Like I said…”

Sameena cut her off

“I get it Mrunal… he is pretty cute is what I am saying” “That jaw could cut ice”

“I cant sleep with him in exchange for him leaving Jai alone” Mrunal blurted, Sameena cracked up

Sameena realized Mrunal needed serious help

“I know that’s not our topic today, but I think you should start dating, it will help you loosen up”

“I have everything I need to “relax” Mrunal winked

“(s--)Toys are not human Mrunal”

“Humans are not TOYS, to be passed around” Mrunal went back to her Jai fixation

“Just try it for my sake”

“I don’t have time… who will watch Jai on date night? I cant take him to Sai’s she works nights”

They talked about “boys” and men, the rest of the session

Mrunal was in a better mood when they arrived home that night after the session

Therapy helped her a LOT

Until the doorbell rang around 9ish

It was Aatreya

He looked like he was in “banker clothes”

He handed her a paper bag with Jaidrith’s loafers, he had taken them off to wade in the pool and wore flip flops to return, and left them in his Khar east apartment, he had stopped by to have dinner at mendy’s next door/society

“Thanks” Mrunal reached nervously

She noticed his jaw could indeed cut ice…