SanDhir FF: Espresso Love (Ch.39 P.111 Dec.02) - Page 53

PART TWENTY ONE - FRENCH ROASTED

"It wasn't in my control Vidushi..." I trailed off, not finding the words in my throat. From the corner of my eyes, I could see her raising her eyebrow. "The first time I left for home was when I decided I'd tell my parents about Randhir. But it turned out that they'd decided to get me married off to that... bas***d without even asking me about it. At first, I let it go because I honestly believed that I could get them to change their minds. Perhaps it was my naivety or my ignorance of how important our family's image is for my parents, but I believed they would realize that Randhir was the right person for me, not anyone else. And especially not Sameer."

She turned to face me for the first time since I spoke, "You always spoke about doing the right thing back in college. What part of leaving Randhir without telling him anything seemed right to you?" Her voice was icy cold, but I didn't feel defensive because I knew this was just her concern for Randhir.

"It felt like the right thing to do back then," but Vidushi scoffed to this. "I know it sounds like I'm just trying to come up with any excuse that would explain my actions. But trust me when I say I just wanted to protect him! He'd been through way too much at that point in time, and I was sure that if I told him about what I was going through at home, he'd be overwhelmed with everything. His studies were already being affected Vidushi! I really couldn't put him through that again, and so I decided to leave."

And for the first time, I heard anger in her voice as she spoke; "And you think running away without any explanation is a solution?"

"Believe it or not, I wasn't running away. I had broken up with him telling him it was for the better before leaving. I didn't give him all the answers because he didn't need to know. Had I told him, it'd be unlike him to allow me to go on with the path I had chosen. Regardless, I went home to convince my parents that I had the right to choose with whom I'd like to spend the rest of my life. But how was I to know that I'd end up in a cascade of emotional blackmail."

"You have always been the one to choose family over anything else. Enough proof of that back in the years you spent at FITE too. So this is clearly nothing unimaginable. But I thought you loved Randhir; I thought you knew just how much you'd be hurting him."

"I know I'm in the wrong, but I did what I could to protect him..." I trailed off. The more I tried to explain myself, the harder it became for me to hold myself together.

She put her hand on my shoulder, "You know how he is Sanyukta... You broke him," her voice just a mere whisper by the end.

I heard Riaan laughing with Parth in the living room and smiled despite the sadness that had engulfed my heart because of the conversation I was having with Vidushi.

--

--

I was trying to understand her point of view as she explained why she left Randhir, but I couldn't.

"That doesn't justify anything Sanyukta," I mentioned.

"That's the last thing I want to do..."

"Saanyuktaa!" Parth screamed. "I'll be right back!" Sanyukta said as she headed to the living room.

I stared out the balcony and thought back to the time we all found out Sanyukta had left.

--

I went to meet Randhir and Parth in their room as we had planned yesterday. The four of us - including Sanyukta - were preparing an introductory briefing for our final project which was going to be our only true assessment of the year. I was assuming she was already in their room and so I rushed out without waiting for her.

Panting by the time I reached their room, I stood at the doorway and knocked. I stood there patiently for minutes, after which I started thumping the door hard. "Open the door guys! What the hell?"

And it had only been a couple of more knocks - or well, almost punches - to the door that I saw Parth coming from the outside. I raised an eyebrow at his dishevelled state. "Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed," I smirked. But he didn't retort as he usually would.

"What's going on?" I said, a little bit of worry creeping into my voice. "Is everything okay? Why is Randhir not opening the door?"

"Sanyukta left..." he murmured. I thought I heard him wrong, "Left for...? She didn't say she had to go somewhere!"

He shook his head, "She's gone Vidushi. She left Randhir."

--

I still remember the shock I had felt at that moment, never having imagined to be in such a situation someday.

--

I rushed to Randhir who was silently sitting at his bed, staring at the wall. It was unusual to see him so quiet and still. I grabbed the bottle of water that Parth had brought and walked over to Randhir, sitting beside him.

"Here, drink this," I handed the bottle to him. "Do you want to talk?"

"Just... please just leave me alone," his voice cracked. It pained my heart to hear the desperation in his voice but I knew better than to invade his space right now. I kissed his forehead, "We're here for you Randhir!" I said as I grabbed Parth's hand and led him away. "We need to give him time," I told Parth as we headed to the campus.

--

"What are you thinking of?" Parth said from behind, snaking his arms around my waist.

"Just some things..." I said a little absentmindedly.

"Did you speak to her?" he prodded cautiously. I turned around and faced him, "A little, yea. But I still have more questions. More things I want to know..."

Just then, Sanyukta came back to the balcony, holding a sleepy Riaan in her arms. It was as if she knew exactly what I was thinking because as soon as our eyes met, she said, "Sameer".

Although I had figured that out as soon as she told me about Sameer, but this still struck me off guard. Had she really moved on that quickly? But I knew this was Sanyukta I was talking about. She couldn't have. I have seen in her eyes, heck - I even see it right now. I know how much she loves Randhir. Then what was all this?

I wasn't even looking at her when she resumed talking. "I agreed to marry Sameer. Of course it was when I had no other option, but nevertheless, it was I who had agreed. In fact, I thought maybe I could spend my life without Randhir. It wasn't as if I wasn't trying, but things got out of hand way too fast. Not only was I not allowed to go back to college, but he even got... abusive..."

I could hear her breathing become shallow, almost as if she was reliving everything again as she spoke. It took her a few more moments, but she continued, "By that time, we had already... you know, consummated our relationship. It didn't feel right, but that was a time where I felt grateful that Sameer was so understanding. I thought he deserved more from our relationship, so I let our relationship go further. But things just went downhill when I brought up going back to FITE."

She settled Riaan down on the couch, his head in her lap. "A lot of things happened, and eventually, I decided to call it off."

I regained my voice finally as I walked over to her, "What about your parents?" I kneeled over and patted Riaan's head. She shook her head as she bit back her tears, her voice cracking, "They don't want anything to do with me or Riaan."

Parth came over and hugged her as her resolve broke, leaving her in tears. I carried Riaan and put him on Parth's bed inside, leaving the door only slightly ajar as to not disturb him.

Signalling Parth to go away for a bit, I took his spot on the couch armrest. "I won't lie to you, I really hated what you put Randhir through. And I guess, all this while, I also knew you must have had a reason too, but it wasn't until now that I realized just how much you had to endure as well. I won't say you're in the right, but I understand now..."

"That's all I could ask from you Vidushi. I want my sassy friend back!" she said, a laugh escaping as she wiped her face.

I kissed her forehead, "You sure about that Sanyukta?" Parth came out of nowhere, carrying a tray with 3 coffee mugs. The rest of the evening was spent just catching up, the previous conversation having been erased from our minds for the while. It was only after she left that I realized what Parth was trying to do this whole time.

Giving it an additional thought, I turned around and smiled, "It's on," leaving a grinning Parth behind.