Chapter 33
Bihaan who was expecting a totally different reaction was shocked by Thapki's actual reaction. Wat was she saying? Did she already know abt her illness? But wat did she mean by "how much time". He looked at her face that looked like stone. Before Bihaan could say anything else, Thapki asked again.
Thapki: "How much more time do I have?"
Bihaan: "Have u not heard wat I just said?"
Thapki freed her hand from his and got up. She inhaled for few seconds and turned back.
Thapki: "I have heard every single word u have just said and u have been saying since God knows when"
Bihaan (confused): "Wat r u talking abt?"
Thapki: "Oh plz stop being naive. U know wat this is all abt. Wat were u thinking?? U thought I will never find out?"
Bihaan was more puzzled than before.
Thapki: "Okay let me end ur confusion. I know wat this is all abt? My sickness has given u the chance to get back with Sheena"
The shocked look on Bihaan's face brought a sick smile on Thapki's face.
Thapki: "And u must have thought that I will not find it out on my own... I have come to know abt ur secret affair with Sheena but I was wondering y would u do that to me... oh but now I understand...U must have found out that I am sick... Seriously sick... Who would want to spend his life with a sick... dying woman?... So u must have decided to get back to the woman who actually loved u... Loved u since always..."
She took a break and looked at Bihaan's face. He had that shocked look mixed with disbelief in his eyes which made her stop for a while. But she was already tired of this game of hide and seek so she decided to spill it all out.
Thapki: "U must be wondering how I know abt U and Sheena... Well I witnessed her love confession on our wedding day. I even wanted to call the wedding off but Dadi Maa made me believe that we were "made for each other" couple... Less she knew and less I knew then... but on our wedding night, u went to meet Sheena but u lied to me when I asked... If there was nthg to hide then y did u lie?... and ur recent activities and ur recent conversations... If u had actually become so tired of me, U shd have at least waited till my death"
Bihaan screamed "Thapki just shut up" with anger.
Thapki did not even look at him this time. Tears were rolling down her face.
Thapki: "No I will not shut up... Not this time... I am not begging u for anything... I am not asking u not to leave me... U can leave when ever u want... But u shd not have done this to me... U knew how much I loved u... I so openly expressed my feelings to u in that letter but u never responded the same way... I know that our marriage was not wat u desired but for me my "to be husband" was my everything... I did not even know the name of my fiance... I only knew that I was to get married to Balwinder Uncle's son... And I married u and I whole heatedly accepted u as my husband but wat I got in return??"
Thapki had no energy left to speak more. She sat on the floor, covered her face with her hands and started crying. It was some one's arm on her shoulder which made her move her hands and look upwards. Bihaan was sitting next to her with his arm on her shoulder holding a glass of water in his hand.
Bihaan: "Plz stop crying and drink this water"
Thapki refused to drink but Bihaan persuaded her to take few sips. He held her tightly and made her stand and sit on the bed. Her red eyes were making him feel sad and guilty at the same time. So this is wat she was going thru... so this is wat has burdened her heart and polluted her mind. But was this her mistake only or he was guilty too? Of course he had been hiding stuff from her but he had no bad intentions. But now he had to clarify some things. It was needed... needed for their relationship to survive.
Bihaan: "Have u spoken it all or is there anything left to say?"
Thapki looked at him with her swollen eyes but did not reply.
Bihaan: "Okay now when u r almost finished, let me speak sthg in my defense"
Thapki looked at his face with wandering eyes... Wat was "that" in her eyes... "hope" it looked.
Bihaan: "I know I have not been a gud husband. Its not coz u r not a gud wife but it is coz I had a troubled childhood and my life was not an easy ride. There r some truths in my life which have ruined me forever but it does not mean I am a bad person. Any way, we will talk abt it sometime but not today. Today we will talk abt u only... Yes u r sick but I guess u did not hear wat I earlier said. I mentioned ur treatment. Ur condition is curable"
He looked at Thapki who was looking at him with a very serious face.
Bihaan: "I always found it difficult to discuss ur disease with u coz I did not know how u will take it as u had just lost ur mother to some disease"
Thapki: "Am I suffering from cancer?"
Bihaan: "God forbid no. U just have fibroids"
Thapki: "Fibroids wat?"
Bihaan: "It's just a non cancerous growth in ur womb and it is curable. Since u r suffering from it since few years now so they have increased in size and number but worry not. U just require a surgery and u will be fine in 4-6 weeks"
Thapki: "Okay so all that pain and bleeding..."
Bihaan: "Yes... It is due to that and that is y we need to get them removed. I have arranged everything and once we return, u will go thru ur surgery"
Thapki: "If I go back with u, have this operation and get cured then wat will be the status of our relationship?"
Bihaan: "Wat do u mean by that?"
Thapki: "I mean wat abt U and Sheena?"
Bihaan: "For God's sake Thapki! I am not having an affair with any one. I do not know wat u heard and how u translated that to an extra marital affair but yes Sheena shared her feelings with me on our wedding day but I told her that I have never felt anything ever for her and that she was just a friend for me... Oh now I understand the reason behind ur swollen eyes and pale face as a bride... I wish Sheena had not taken promise from me that day or else I wd have told u everything"
Bihaan noticed the surprised look on Thapki's face. She had her eyes fixed on her hands in her lap as she was suddenly avoiding eye contact with him. Bihaan walked towards her and sat next to her. He held her hand but before holding it tightly, he took her permission to which she replied with tears. Bihaan side hugged her and let her cry for some time.
Bihaan: "Will u keep crying or at least tell me abt that letter u just mentioned?"
Thapki just looked at his face with teary and inquiring eyes.
Bihaan: "The one in which u had confessed ur love for me"
Forgetting all the bad things she had just told him, her cheeks turned red on the mention of her love confession. Bihaan could not stop but admire her innocence.
Bihaan: "I promise u that I have not seen that letter nor I was aware of it. Now will u plz tell me wat was written in that letter and when did u give it to me"
Thapki: "But I put that letter in ur Jacket's pocket, the one that is ur fav and u also wore it the day u came to this house... Any way when I saw u with Sheena I went to take it back but found the other letter"
Bihaan: "Wat other letter?"
Thapki (sad face): "The one u wrote to my Mom telling her that u can not marry me"
Bihaan: "How could I have written that letter when I was not the one who was supposed to marry u. Bau Ji had promised to marry u to his son.. i.e. Dhruv... And it seems that u found the letter given to me by Vasu Maa"
Thapi: "Vasu Maa?"
Bihaan: "Yes Vasu Maa. Vasu Maa did not want u as her bahu so she gave me the letter to hand it over to ur mom... I did not even know wat was in that letter. She just told me to give it to ur Mom and she will understand... When I reached ur place, ur Mom was no more so I kept that letter with me in that jacket's pocket"
Thapki: "Okay I found that letter and there was no name in it so I thought u wrote that letter and did not want to marry me... and as I had just seen u with Sheena so I thought she was the reason"
Bihaan: "And u did not even talk to me abt it"
Thapki: "And u blame me for that?"
Bihaan (taking a deep breath): "No I don't. I understand wat u went through and I am sorry for that but promise me that next time if u suspect me for sthg, u will come talk to me abt it instead of assuming things"
Thapki nodded her head.
Bihaan: "But I am still wondering where did ur letter go?"
Thapki: "May be it is still in that Jacket's pocket"
Bihaan excitedly stood up and searched for his bag which was no where to be seen.
Bihaan: "Where is my bag? I remember seeing u packing that jacket with my luggage"
Thapki (nervously): "Ur bag and clothes got wet in rain so I have ur clothes spread in sun on the top floor"
Bihaan: "All of them... But how?"
Thapki: "Well..."
Bihaan: "Okay forget it... I need to see that letter"
With that Bihaan left the room in a hurry. Thapki followed.
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Bihaan was lying on the bed and Thapki had her head on his shoulder.
Bihaan: "I can't believe u wrote all this. If I had received that letter on that day, so many misunderstandings could have been avoided"
Bihaan thought abt all those times when he suspected that Thapki liked Dhruv over him. If she had misunderstood him then he was guilty of the same. But he knew that everything need not to be told. Wat's done was done. They had to think abt their future now. Suddenly Bihaan recalled the pregnancy thing.
Bihaan: "Thapki"
Thapki: "Hmmm"
Bihaan: "R u pregnant?"
Thapki lift her head from his shoulder and looked at him.
Thapki: "I don't know for sure but I may be"
Bihaan: "Wat makes u think that u may b?"
Thapki: "Y can't I be... I am married and we r together and we had our kiss..."
Bihaan: "And u think that made u pregnant?"
Thapki: "How else would I be?"
Bihaan (controlling his laughter): "Oh God... U gave me a wife who knows nthg"
Thapki: "Y r u saying so... Am I not pregnant?"
Bihaan: "No u r not... This is not how u get pregnant"
Thapki: "No?"
Bihaan: "No..."
Thapki: "Then how?"
Bihaan with a naughty smile on his face turned his face towards her. He got closer and very close to her.
Bihaan: "Do u really wanna know how?"
Thapki noticed the sudden change in Bihaan's mood and her heart started beating faster. She did not know how her heart changed its beats whenever Bihaan was closer to her but she loved it whenever it did. She did not know wat to say so her gaze lowered. Bihaan held her arms and brought his face very close to hers...
It was the door bell that interrupted their moment.
To be contd...
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