Part 8
It was a whole new era. Life had never been busier, happier, messier for Arohi. Being a mother was a painful job, as Arohi would discover. The older the child grew the more it hurt. But this pain was counteracted by such a strong force of love and affection for the child, everything seemed to be worth it. She could do anything for her son. There were days of course, when Siddharth wouldn't stop crying or refused to eat. To add to it there was always this underlying worry that her son wouldn't grow up to be as socially efficient as he would have expected to be.
They tried their best, they tried everything they could, doctors, psychiatrists, speech therapists. If she was fair to herself, she knew Arjun was a lot more worried about Siddharth than she was. It didn't mean she didn't love her son as much as her husband did. She loved him just the way he was, she would have loved to hear him annoy her with his little questions like the other children did. But he was something no other child could ever be, he was her child with the only man she had ever loved. Every time she looked at her son, it made her love Arjun even more.
She was in no illusion that this feeling was reciprocated by her other half. She knew it troubled him to see their son like this. It made him angry, he would blame himself, he would always blame himself for everything that happened. He was so worried about Siddharth that he almost didn't care about everything that was happening around them.
She couldn't remember the last time they sat together and talked about something pleasant. She couldn't remember the last time he looked at her the way he used to. She'd forgotten the taste of his lips when they were unadulterated by all the darkness he had gathered in his heart. She couldn't remember the last time they made love like they used to before. And how she missed it.
Arohi always knew Arjun to be a complex character, she knew life wouldn't be a straight line if she married him. But it had never, not even in her wildest dream, made her question her love and marriage with Arjun. It was him, it was only him, it was always him. With this acceptance comes a strength, a courage to fight it all, fight everything that came between them, and make it last forever.
Only this time, the thing that was coming between them was Arjun himself.
---xx---
"make it stop Arohi, please make it go away" he softly whispered into her ears as they lay on their bed, his hand softly wrapped around her waist after their brief but passionate shower of love.
She turned to face him, " you have got to let it go my love. You have got to know that it's okay.."..
"but it's not okay Arohi. Can you not see ? It's not okay. I can't see him like that, it kills me. He hasn't learnt to say a word in the past year".
suddenly aware of the fact that the wetness she felt on her neck was not from sweat but his tears, Arohi felt helpless. "Arjun, would you have loved him more than you do now if he he could talk more", she asked him knowing the answer, hoping he knew it too.
"Arohi. you know I love him more than anything", he stiffened feeling abit hurt that she would question his love and continued with a cold tone " how can you ask me such a thing.. , you think I don't love..."
She cut him off mid-sentence, suddenly setting herself free from his embrace, fully aware of the anger and hurt that was rushing to her brain, "if so why does it bother you that he doesn't speak. He isn't mute Arjun, his speech development is just abit slow.. Stop feeling sorry for yourself and your son every single day.. If you, his dad, can't love him and accept him the way he is, how can you expect anyone else to ever treat him as an equal? how can you expect them to not gawk and stare at him like he's a mutant when you yourself feel pity for him everyday. He isn't a freak Arjun so stop behaving like we gave birth to a retard with three eyes and no limbs."
She had had enough. She loved Arjun , there was no doubt about that. She loved him through his mood swings, she loved him when he chose to shut himself off from her completely, she loved him even when he had given her every reason to make her believe that he didnt love her anymore...
He stared at her in disbelief. Disbelief in himself. 
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
Anupamaa
