CHAPTER-6
Nidhi walked with two cups of tea to the balcony in their hall, where Ashutosh sat with his laptop, typing for his next book. A year into marriage, and Nidhi was as settled in the house, as she was born and brought up at this place. She herself was surprised, how beautifully her life has covered up the lapse of those 15 years in between. She was learning new things about the man she loved. How he wants his writing place to be, where does he wants to sit when he writes- He loved early mornings and the early evenings to write. He doesn't likes to sit in a secluded closed study, but sit in the balcony of their hall, where his thinking caps were on, listening to the birds chirp, feel the waves of breeze soothing him, kids either going to their schools, or playing a game of cricket or kho-kho; he would give them a smile as well. The kids have learnt, not to let the ball come over to his balcony, or they may disturb his flow of writing. They were noisy, but never disturbing their Ashu Uncle, with whom, they would sit of Sunday afternoons for a long story telling catch-up.
Nidhi would come up after two three hours of his sitting with a cup of tea or a light snack, and she would read what he wrote, and give her inputs as well. Ashutosh encouraged her to write as well, since she was so good at words and writing. Nidhi the other times, when she was not with Ashutosh or at the Publishing House, she would sit with baba and yap with him like hours. Both the father in law and daughter in law experimented food in the kitchen, having a gala time. Nidhi sometimes wondered, if she ever missed her baba after she got married? May be no. She couldn't compare Ashutosh's baba with her own baba... Coz Bade Baba was just incomparable. The love he has showered on her was just beyond thanking. So she just happily accepted her new life like a blessing from God and was happy in her little family.
Right now, like her ritual, she brought two cups of tea for Ashutosh in the balcony. She sat down on the adjacent chair, and looked around at the playing kids. She looked lost. When Ashutosh asked if she is not going to read what he has written, she took his laptop, and like a professional editor pointed out what she felt. Ashutosh began correcting it, when he looked at the corner of his eye, she was still lost. She was quietly sipping her tea, where is her chirpiness, that would challenge the zeal of the little kids who were pushing their team mates to get a place to sit in a game of kho-kho? What has made her so serious?
Ashutosh pulled his glasses off, and shut the screen of the laptop, putting it on a sleep mode. His wife was a priority at the moment. Something wasn't right with her. He pulled his chair closer to hers, and very gently asked- "Nidhi, everything alright jaan? Why are you looking so upset? Kind of, in a lot of tension. What's up?"
Nidhi put her fingers in her hair, and brushed an invisible knot in them, heaving out a heavy breath. Her eyelashes were wet, but just wet. Not many tears to be pouring out her eyes on her cheeks. She spoke in a little voice that Ashutosh had to keep his ears to her face to hear what she began with- "I went to the doctor Ashutosh, God has blessed us to be parents soon."
Ashutosh looked up at her, and gave her a fond smile. He side hugged her for the happy news. Ever since they have got married, and her Bhabhi from Kanpur had told her that children are not possible in her age; something had triggered into Nidhi's heart. Though she never explicitly expressed the desire to have children, understanding that though the pregnancy is possible even at the age of 40, but the chances of fertilization goes down at a considerable rate. And she didn't want to raise anybody's expectations at home, for something that may not be achievable. Though adoption was at her mind, but, that was for a later thought.
"It's such good news Nidhi. Why are you so tensed about it?" Ashutosh smiled at her.
"Ashutosh, it is one thing to marry at a later age, and an entirely different thing to bring a child into the world at this age. We were questioned, we faced it. But what would be that child's fault, if he/she has to face those snide remarks." Nidhi expressed her tension.
Ashutosh stood up from his chair, and came behind her chair, and held her shoulders firmly, as if helping her being grounded, and not wanting her to collapse in the crowd of the world. He explained- "Nidhi, it was not in our hands that we got married at that age. It was our luck, our fate to have to wait for 15 long years to tie the knot. But still we took all the taunts and snide remarks in stride, and we eventually learnt how to deal with them. What's wrong if our child has to face it as well, if he has to... He will learn to deal with it. We can anyway not save them from every atrocities of life, they eventually learn to cope up with that. And so will our child. And the good news is, that people talk, talk for some time, and then they forget.
We may not be special, but are definitely unusual. We have a unique set of a middle age marriage, and we are going through the ups and downs of the conjugal life like any normal couple. So will our child, like any normal children, he will lead a normal life..."
Ashutosh explained to Nidhi, helping her relax, and got back to his chair pulling towards her, taking her hand in his, and asked- "tell me all the details the doctor gave you..." He asked excitedly. And she began answering, talking animatedly. Back into her jovial mood...
Things are not easy or tough, we make them. The perspective we take, makes us what we are. Even the unusual of the circumstances are at our behest, if we treat it with our will and positive perspective... Ashutosh and Nidhi did it.. One could feel, there can't be any more hopeless life. Love lost, family lost, young life lost... How bitter the life is... But they proved it wrong... NO! Their life is not bitter, their life is not angry with them... Albeit late, but TUJHSE NARAAZ NAHI ZINDAGI. And they proved it right!
THANK YOU ALL...
I can never thank you all enough...
The love you guys bestow on me, is just so so pure, that I really am floored... No matter where I go, I miss you guys the most, coz no matter what, I can't find a better bunch of such loving people who encourage, love and bless me so much with their presence...
I love you all to the moon and back...❤️
Aazeen.
Current Affairs
