😊Hello everyone, hope everyone is having a good weekend.
Thanks for all the comments and encouragements.
Here is the next part.
Part 4
Next morning Gopi woke up before her alarm went off, and got up to get ready for the day. She didn't glance at Ahem as she walked towards the bathroom.
Thirty minutes later she walked out of the bathroom, towel drying her hair and went to her dresser. She went thru her routine mechanically, she dropped the towel on the chair, letting her hair air-dry. She turned to her dresser drawer and pulled out the matching bangles set, she put those on; then she turned to the other drawer to pull out the matching necklace and earring sets. After she finished putting the jewelry on she brushed out her long straight hair, and parted it on the side.
She glanced in the mirror at Ahem's sleeping form and frowned. She glanced up at the clock and saw that it was almost seven, and he was not up yet. Should she go wake him? Then she became more worried thinking he might be sick or something. She had been aware that he had been awake most of the night, and wondered what had he been thinking about. She hoped everything was ok with his current project. She sighed, and thought, why do you care so much Gopi? She closed her eyes for a moment to compose herself. She glanced at her Kanaji and thought why can't I stop worrying for him? Why can't I stop loving him? But as usual her Kanaji only smiled at her with that serene smile of his, and did not answer her.
Unknown to Gopi, Ahem has been awake for sometime now, watching her do her daily routine. He lay there and wondered how will he ever get it right with her. She has been very tense lately, there is something else going on beside their troubled marriage. He watched as she went to her closet and pulled something out of her drawer, and stare at whatever it was for a long time, bit sadly, she then put the object back in the closet slowly and closed it. By the time she turned back he was sitting up in the bed watching her.
She tensed more, when she saw him watching her. She quickly looked away from him and turned towards the dresser again. She took her sindoor box and took a pinch of sindoor and applied it to her part, still watching him in the mirror. Her expressions were blank.
Few minutes later she left the room without saying anything to him, and so begins another day in their lives. The silence was killing him. She only speaks to him in front of the family now, when they are alone the silent treatment begins, and he was getting really tired of it. He knew it was his own fault for not apologizing to her when he found out the truth about the night of the party, but how do you apologize for breaking someone's heart not once, but twice, especially someone like Gopi, who is very sensitive and reserved to the point of being standoffish.
He sat on the side of the bed holding his head in hands. Nine months ago his mom had come to him, all excited, claiming she had found a perfect wife for him and a perfect bahu for Modi Bhavan. Until then he hadn't thought about marriage, he had left all decisions in his mom's hands, knowing his mom had his best interest at heart. At the time he hadn't even dreamed that Gopi would comeback in his life, or that the girl his mom had chosen for him was the one who still haunted his dreams.
When he had come face to face with his future wife, she had been just as shocked to see him, as he had been to see her. Thank god his kakiji as had suggested he and Gopi talk alone before making any decisions.
She had been ready to back out of the marriage, but he couldn't let her do that, and break his mom's heart, so he had proposed a marriage of convenience. At the time he hadn't known what had made him do what he did, all he knew was that when he saw her, all the old feelings had resurfaced. He hadn't realized at the time his feeling for Gopi were strong and ran deep.
What had surprised him was Gopi, herself. She had been so quiet and the pain and sadness in her eyes had taken him back. She was more beautiful then ever. She only wore sari's now instead of the salwars she used to wear in college. She had been wearing a green sari in Bengali style, her long hair, parted to side, had been open and flowing on her back. She had on minimum makeup, with a small round green bindi.
He had asked her how she met his mom. She had stiffened at his question and told him she hadn't known it was his mom who had brought the proposal for her. All she had been told was that his mom and her mom had been best friends, and had lost touch with each other after their marriage.
It was his mom who had told him how he met Gopi at a charity event and had been very impressed with Gopi. When she inquired about Gopi to some people she had found out that Gopi was the daughter of her best friend, who was no longer in this world. She then made up her mind to make Gopi her bahu, and nothing and no one was going to stop her. His mom never told him why she had been so determined to choose Gopi for him and no one else, and he hadn't asked her, but may be its time he asked his mom about it.
They had been married eight months and Gopi had blended into the family perfectly. Everyone loves Gopi and she loves everyone. Within a month of their marriage, Gopi had taken over most of the household responsibilities from his mom and Kakiji, leaving them free to spend their time how they wanted to.
There had been some tension between Gopi and his sister Kinjle, but that had been resolved after that night. Now they acted more like sisters than sisters-in-laws.
He had been the only hold out in Gopi's fan club. He had held on to his anger from the past, for one reason and one reason only. He hadn't wanted to fall for Gopi again; he hadn't wanted to be vulnerable to another person like that. He was not the same easy going Ahem of college days, life had thought him few lessons and hardened him even more than he had been. He had refused to give up his rigid control.
What he hadn't realized was that life could not be controlled. Feelings could not be controlled. He finally got up to get ready for the day. For now he needed to concentrate on work.
When he came out of the bathroom forty-five minutes later he saw that his clothes were already laid out for him, and there was also a cup of tea sitting on the table beside his laptop bag. What surprised him was Gopi never failed to do her wifely duties, no matter what, she always had his things ready just the way he liked them. He hadn't even realized when she took over taking care of him; it must have been within few weeks of their marriage. He should have known she would keep the truth of their marriage a secret. She never gave any indication that their marriage was anything but perfect. He was the one who, by his own actions, showed to the family that all is not well as it should be with his marriage.
If no one else, he knew his mom suspected that Gopi is not as happy as she appears to be. He needed to have a long talk with Gopi, and clear all the misunderstandings between them, then move forward with their lives. There was so much she was hiding from him and he won't know how to help her until she tells him what has been bothering her lately.
He finished getting ready, drank the tea, grabbed his laptop bag and made his way to the dining room. Everyone was already seated, waiting for him to eat breakfast.
He greeted everyone. "Jai Shree Krishna." His mom searched his face, for what he didn't know, but everyone else greeted him back with a smile. He sat at his place and watched as Gopi served him, she smiled at him for the benefits of others, but he noticed her smile didn't reflect in her eyes. He looked away; it hurt too much to see that fake smile on her face.
Gopi looked around at others and hoped no one saw him snub her so blatantly. Everyone else was busy eating to notice, but her maji was looking at her with sympathy. She looked away before maji could see the unshed tears in her eyes.
Koki glared at her son. She didn't know what had gotten in to him lately, but this is not how she raised her son. She is going to have to talk to him soon, before she lost her Gopi vahu. She needed to do something to bridge the distance, between her son and vahu that she had noticed for long time now.
"Gopi dikra?" Hetal addressed Gopi.
"Ji Kakiji, did you need something?" Gopi hadn't been paying attention.
"Nahi dikra, I just wanted to know if you were feeling better today. You had a slight fever yesterday. Did you take medicine for it?"
"ji kakiji, I am much better today." Gopi glanced at Ahem and was shocked to see him starring at her in concern.
She turned back towards Hetal kaki; she didn't want or need his concern. It was too little too late for him to show any kind of consideration towards her.
"Still, you should take rest after breakfast, I will take care of lunch today." Hetal said with concern on her face.
Gopi started to protest, but Koki interrupted her. "Gopi vahu, motabhabhi is right, you need to take rest today. And Kinjle will be coming home in two days, and she won't let you rest at all. She will be running you here and there, so just relax."
"Ji, maji. But I was thinking we should get Kinjle ben's rakhi gift before she comes back."
Jigar spoke up. "Yes bhabhi is right, we forgot all about rakhi, and she is right about the gift, if we try getting the gift after Kinjle comes back, she will bug us to find out what we are getting for her." Everyone smiled at that, because they all new Kinjle hates surprises.
Koki turned to Gopi. "You rest for now, we will go this evening and get the gift. Jigar and Ahem can meet us at the mall this evening." They agreed to meet at five that evening.
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Cricket
