Chapter 17: Evidence of things not seen
"Lavanya told me I could find you here." Khushi turned around to see Shyam standing six feet away from her, hands in his pockets. He was one person she couldn't decide which side he batted on. She forced a smile in return.
"You came here alone?" She asked. She was sitting on a park bench in the small garden the orphanage had next to the children's residence. Shyam nodded. "Anjali let you talk to me without her chaperone?" She asked bitterly as he walked towards the bench and sat next to her.
"She isn't as bad as you make her to be Khushi." Shyam immediately defended Anjali. "She has her own fights to deal with and a tonnage of grief and guilt Khushi. So don't patronize her," he was acerbic.
"Why are you here?" Khushi said flatly ignoring Shyam's defense. It was best to ignore his condensation and just get the conversation over with.
"I don't know actually," Shyam said clenching his fist. "There were times when I wondered what if I hadn't shown you that photo?"
"You wanted to screw over Arnav and that's why you showed the photo Shyam. It's quite simple deduction, really." Khushi said, anger simmering below surface. Shyam looked horrified at the allegation.
"I was genuinely surprised to having come across that photo Khushi!" Shyam said clenching his teeth. Khushi felt a migraine of magnanimous proportion invading her skull.
"You could have shut up about it or better yet, shown it to Arnav," Khushi hissed.
"You know how Arnav is sensitive about his mother and always blamed his father for her suicide. If he saw the photo of his father intimately hugging your mother, he would lose it." Shyam tried to reason.
Khushi laughed mirthlessly. "Are you still playing this story Shyam? Really, after all these years?"
"I don't understand." Shyam's voice held mild panic.
"You knew very well that Arnav would discard the photo as history. He might wail and go moody a bit but he would never let go his hold on what is going on in his life and let curiosity and pursue for truth takeover his rationality and nose dive in to it from ten thousand feet without a plan or a parachute." Khushi snapped the book shut and turned to look straight at Shyam. "You came and told me because I would do exactly what you thought I would - destroy Arnav's peace of mind so that you can run your shoddy show behind his back," Khushi was shouting by the end of it. She breathed loudly and heavily and saw that Shyam was looking at her with an unreadable expression.
"Shyam, I had seven years to go over everything that has happened. You think I haven't analyzed the real reason why you happen to leak the information to me?"
"I couldn't tell Arnav and Anjali Khushi. They would be devastated if they hear gossip about their father," Shyam defended.
"And I wouldn't?" Khushi smiled sarcastically. "You did this because you and Anjali didn't want me to get married to Arnav. It was as simple as that," Khushi said leaning back on the bench.
"That's not true Khushi. Anjali and I adore you very much. We planned and fixed a date for your wedding. It's not fair to accuse us like this."
"This is exactly what I don't get." Khushi said narrowing her eyes.
"What is it?" Shyam asked shifting away a little from her.
"You always include Anjali in all conversations. It's always 'us' and 'me' or 'I'. That's odd, actually. It's as if you are representing a company by not using first person personalized pronoun." Khushi played.
"I happen to love and trust my wife very much, thank you," Shyam replied ignoring her barb.
"Really Shyam, it was a very well thought of plan, was it yours or was Anjali also involved in it?"
"Khushi, there was no plan. It was a chain of misunderstanding, please believe me," Shyam pleaded with wild fear in his eyes. Khushi enjoyed having that power over people.
"I mean you planted that doubt in my mind which Anjali knew I would pursue till I had all the answers. She knew it happening with me before and figured out maybe the car wreck I was could evolve into a train wreck. She was a stellar psychology student after all and probably would have made a name for herself in the field had she not been sleeping with her professor," she fired.
"Khushi!" Shyam exclaimed, his heart beating wildly in his ears.
"I would have never told Arnav the real story behind yours and Anjali's sudden wedding and why you insisted on living away from the house for a year, Shyam. But you and Anjali always saw me as a pathetically downgraded soap opera villain out to destroy the perfect couple." Khushi exhaled loudly.
Everything about her had always been exaggerated though there hadn't been anything unexceptional. She prudently devolved from normalized definitions of her generation and worked hard and lobbied harder to keep herself out of the runt.
She had believed that she was being whimsically impulsive and found desolate romanticism in accepting a cruel fate which she believed she wasn't entitled to. In a moment of grandeur righteousness, she had taken a bag and stuffed some clothes, money, and passport and left home.
In the end it was all about money, family secrets and self-survival.
"Stop blaming me for showing you that photo. You had a choice to talk to Arnav but you never did. You went around with Akash in search for so called truth and never bothered to explain anyone about it. Why didn't you tell him then? Why didn't you make a choice to discuss and clear the air?" Shyam stood up and gave her a pitying look. "You claim that you loved Arnav but you hid things from him. He is a grown strong man and he can take what comes in his way. Why do you always try to save him when he doesn't need saving?" Shyam was shouting by the end. "You always had a choice Khushi. You chose not to trust anyone. Actually, you never believed that someone else can have a perspective clearer than you and come up with a solution - a better one with much less collateral damage. But you didn't. So, please, stop blaming me for the choice you didn't make."
Khushi didn't respond but looked at Shyam. Without saying anything, Khushi whirled around and walked away from the man.
When her back was turned on him, she allowed the tears to fall.
Next Chapter: Chapter 18, Little bit of Frost and lone spark
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