Thank you so much for the comments and encouragement.
I know it took longer than expected to upload, but I at least wanted some Vibarth scene in this chapter so it is much longer 😕
The hectic driving and early mornings were finally starting to show effect. As he drove, he could feel his concentration and reflexes getting slower. As exhausted as he was, the thought of going to Mumbai with Vibha excited him. He had something to look forward to and that gave him the extra jolt of energy. At least he could catch a few hours of sleep before heading back.
As he unlocked the door, he was shocked at the state of his home. It was in a complete mess. There was shattered glass everywhere and the furniture looked like someone had purposely pushed it in all directions. He looked around for any more disturbances when he spotted his stepfather sitting at the table. He had his arms crossed and his eyes were on Parth. He ignored the stare that he was getting from his stepdad and looked around for any signs of his maa's presence.
"Maa"
She came out from hiding from behind the corner of her room. He looked her over. She didn't seem to be physically hurt, but the fear was clearly present on her face. Maybe she was petrified of what had happened or maybe of what was about to happen. He continued to ignore his stepdad and approached his maa.
"Are you okay?"
She looked as if she was struggling to say something but instead she just nodded. Parth tightened his fists. Had he hurt her again?
"Are you hurt? Did he do anything?"
She shook her head and looked past him. Parth was about to turn to face his stepdad, when she finally spoke.
"You shouldn't have talked back to him this morning, Parth"
Parth clenched his teeth to stop himself from losing control and screaming out his frustration at her. Had she really just said that? Was she so lost that she allowed her husband to do as he please and expected her son not to voice a single protest.
He was no longer that vulnerable boy. He wouldn't stand by while allowing his stepfather to use him as his personal punching bag. That time was long past.
Parth turned to finally look at the man before him. He couldn't understand what made this man think himself as strong and able. Physically he wasn't much to look at. He had a medium build, a reclining hairline and the little hair remaining he gelled back for no obvious reason. He wasn't even capable of supporting himself without the aid from his dad's insurance money. He hadn't earned a single thing and yet he stood before him as if he was the head of the family. How was he so delusional or perhaps it was the support and silence from his mother that allowed his stepdad so much power.
"You cannot speak to me that way or treat me like that, do you understand?"
Parth stood listening, but found in unnecessary to respond. His voice was low and filled with anger, but it did nothing to scare him.
"I am speaking to you!! I let you live here and I support you. You have no right to disrespect me. Look at me when I am speaking to you"
Parth crossed his arm and clenched his jaw. His voice was increasing in tone and his face seemed flushed in anger. It kind of looked as if he had gone red from holding his breath and was about to burst, like a red balloon. If not for the situation it would have been comical.
His stepfather took calculated steps towards him, waiting for him to react. But Parth wouldn't let him have the satisfaction of getting a reaction out of him. No matter how badly he wanted to punch his stepfather, he just stood there with his arms crossed and reining in his anger. He just looked at him, starting to get a little bored with his act.
This seemed to frustrate his stepdad even more and that gave Parth a little satisfaction.
He couldn't understand the need of his stepfather to repeatedly pick fights with him. It had been a long time since Parth had actually allowed his stepfather to win. Yet, every once in a while, his stepfather would again attempt to provoke him and assert his authority. Perhaps, that is what this was. It was a game, an act to assert authority and dominance. Or maybe it was all just to create fear, the same fear that was currently present in his mother's heart. Whatever the reason behind, it was still a reality that Parth would have to continue to face.
Parth watched as his stepfather took slow strides towards him. He could hear the shattered glass break into even smaller pieces as he stepped over them and hear his rash breathing. All of these pointed to the anger of his stepfather, but Parth still didn't feel any fear. His heart didn't beat any faster. Nor did he unwillingly move away from his father's approach. Despite knowing the inevitable, Parth found himself clenching his fist and awaiting an opportunity to take out his own anger.
His stepfather stood in front of him and stared directly up at him. He looked him over, as if assessing him and waiting for him to avoid his gaze. Parth looked down to stare right back at him.
His stepfather raised his hand. Parth saw the slap coming, but he allowed it to make contact. He could feel the burn on his cheek and was aware that it was probably bright red with finger marks. He could feel himself shaking from anger and his fist clench even more. He turned to stare back at his stepfather. He had made the first move, but it was now his turn to respond. Parth grabbed his stepfather's collar and raised him to his eyelevel.
"Parth! No!"
Parth let go of his collar and turned to look at his maa in shock. All the anger and strength seemed to leave him. In its place, he felt defeat and disappointment. Had she really chosen this moment to raise her voice? She hadn't said a word when he had taken a slap. Was she beyond caring for him?
Parth continued to stare at his mother, while his stepfather took the opportunity to push him. His stepfather hit him again, but no sound escaped his mother. She just watched them and he watched her. He could feel the water build in his eyes and the heaviness in his chest seemed to be pulling him down. But still, he watched his mother as his stepfather continued to raise his hand at him.
His stepfather gave him another hard push and he felt himself lose his balance and felt fall back.
"Parth!"
His mother had finally screamed his name and was running towards him. He felt sudden pain, but he couldn't seem to figure out where it was coming from. As he lay on the floor, he felt warm liquid running along the side of his face and wetness against his back. His vision began to blurry. He tried blinking away the tears and to try to make out his mother's face. But it didn't seem to help and his eyes just got heavier. He opened his mouth to scream or even utter a single word, but he was unable to do so. He didn't want to close his eyes. He didn't want to leave her alone with him. He had to stay conscious. He had somewhere to be and someone to be with. He had to do so many things, but that didn't stop his eyes from closing.
Vibha had remained silent the entire drive to Mumbai. Only Manik seemed to understand her mood and had allowed her to remain spaced out. She knew something was wrong. Otherwise Parth would never have broken his promise. She felt it in every fibre of her being. She just didn't know what it could have been. There were a thousand scenarios running through her mind, but the most outrageous and dangerous scenarios were the ones that kept replaying. She feared even voicing them as if it would turn them into reality. She had shared her concern with her dadi and even with Manik, but both of them had assured her that everything was fine. They both had given her numerous situations and possible reasons behind Parth's absence. Maybe he was running late. Maybe his parents didn't give him permission to come. Maybe some work had come up. There seemed to be a lot of maybes, some more plausible then others. But none of them seemed to calm her down and her anxiety grew as she got closer to Mumbai. She had refused to come in the first place. But her dadi had assured her that if Parth had come, then she would give him the address or relay any messages. She had recalled her dad's speech, about balancing relationships and not being solely invested in one relation. It had sounded reasonable and unarguable then. But now, it made no sense. She should have stayed and waited for Parth.
She stared out the window of the room that Manik had given her. Since their arrival in Mumbai, she had locked herself in that room while the rest of them were downstairs. She could hear their laughter even from up here. It was already midnight, but the city still seemed alive. There was still traffic, and people roaming the streets. It was like another world existed at night and she couldn't be a part of it tonight. She knew she wasn't sleeping tonight and maybe not even tomorrow. Until she knew what had happened and where Parth was, she knew would be unable to rest. She had come to a standstill. She sighed as she watched the people passing by. She felt the on-coming tears and knew there was nothing she could do to stop them.
His eyes were closed, but he could hear some voices. Even though he couldn't make the words, he could tell they belonged to men and it sounded as if they were close by. He tried to focus on the words, but they all seemed slurred and just jumbled sounds. He tried to open his eyes, but they weighed too much.
He was becoming more aware, but he worried if everything was okay. He wondered if he was okay. He tried to move his fingers and legs. He was thankful when he could. At least, he had his mobility. He retried to open his eyes and this time he could. His eyes felt dry and his vision unclear. He blinked a few times to focus his vision and look around at his surroundings. He had always hated hospital rooms. They were all the same, with too much white and an awful scent. He looked over to find his mother asleep on the black couch on the other side of the room. She looked worn out and fragile, but at least she seemed to be getting some rest. His attention was then captured by his stepfather who looked be in a heated conversation with a police officer, outside his room. His stepfather seemed to be cowering away as the officer seemed to be talking harshly to him.
"Good morning. How are you feeling?"
He stopped staring out the glass and turned to look at the doctor and the nurse. Parth hadn't even realized when they had entered his room.
"Am I okay? What exactly happened?"
"Well, you seemed to have fallen on glass. There were a lot of shards embedded within your back and a nasty gash on your forehead. Fortunately, your fall didn't seem have been too impactful, so only the surface layers of the skin were broken. Your abrasions will heal, but you will have to continue to apply the medications nightly. The gash in your forehead will also need changing."
Parth nodded absently. He had experience with all of this. He knew the drill. He also understood that there was no lasting damage and that he was able. He felt relieved. At least one of his worries was gone, but he still felt a weight on his heart. He had somewhere to be.
"Can I leave?"
The doctor shook his head. He had his experience with impatient patients, but he still found it difficult dealing with them at times.
"Yes, you can. But Parth, to be honest, you were very lucky that it wasn't as severe. It could have been really bad especially considering it was on your back. I am going to give you the prescriptions. Also, I want you to rest as much as you can and try to stay off your back to avoid agitating your abrasions"
Parth nodded as he pocketed the prescription. He looked around the room, until he spotted his black bag next to the couch with his mother on it. He bent down and considered at his maa. He should have felt anger or betrayed or even resentment. But all he felt was a sense of defeat. After so many such occurrences, it no longer felt like incidents, but rather like a cycle. It was a routine. His stepfather would always be the one provoking him. They would always fight and chances were that one of them would be injured. And as always his mother would remain on the sideline and silent. And one day he would learn to accept that.
He grabbed his bag and headed into the adjoining bathroom to change. He had changed into a pair of black jeans and was now staring at his reflection to assess the cuts. Most of the cuts seemed to be concentrated on his lower back and were decently deep. He had taken worse before, so he knew he would be okay this time as well. He peeled the bandage off a bit and looked at the gash on the left corner of his forehead. This one had a few stiches and was a bit longer. He put the bandage back. He could hide a little of the bandage if he let a few of the strands down and didn't gel his hair for the next few weeks. He took out a random t-shirt and flinched as he changed into it. But as he was walking out, he noticed that the angry bruises and gashes were visible on his arms. He lightly ran his fingers over them. They didn't hurt, but they would raise questions so it would be best to hide them. He took off his t-shirt and changed into a full-sleeves white shirt before walking out.
"Parth"
He turned to look at his maa. She had red eyes and dark circles under them. She seemed to be struggling with words and hesitant to move closer to him. If only she had the courage to speak her heart, maybe then they wouldn't be standing in this position. He knew what was in her heart, but even his endurance had its limits.
"Don't. I have heard it a million times before and I don't want to hear it now. As always, I won't tell the police or anyone anything. But this time, I want something in return. Vibha! She sacrificed her own job for my sake and because of your complaint. A job she needed badly. It may not weight on your heart, but it is strangling mine. I don't care how or what you say to them, but you have to get her job back. She should have it back before I return. Otherwise I won't hesitate to turn your husband over"
His mother was about to say something, but was interrupted when his stepfather walked into the room. Despite the fact that a few moments ago he had been cowering away as he was being scolded by the officer, he seemed to be back to his old self again. But before he could make a move towards Parth, Parth had grabbed his collar and pushed him against the wall. He wanted him to sense the anger and fury behind his threat and realize the truth behind every word he spoke next.
"If I find out that while I was gone, you did something, I won't hesitate in dragging you to the station or even to take things into my own hands."
Parth didn't give him a chance to respond and let him go before walking out. He had to get the keys to his jeep and retrieve some of his belongings before heading for Vibha. He walked into his home again and found it still a mess. However, now there was blood on the floor and no one around. He ignored the destruction and retrieved his things.
He flinched as he leaned back in his driver's seat. He didn't want to be in that place any longer than necessary and he didn't have enough courage to allow himself to feel the turmoil it brought. He moved forward in his seat and avoided leaning back. It was going to be a task to remember to avoid agitating his back. He sighed and placed his head against the steering wheel. There was a small pounding in his head and it seemed to be getting heavier by the second. He probably shouldn't be travelling such a distance, but he needed her. He also knew that his absence would have raised a million questions and alarms in her head. She would have been worried for him and would continue to be so until he was in front of her. And he needed to see her just as much. He wanted to see her and talk to her. But she was out of his reach at this moment. She was probably already in Mumbai and he had no way to get in touch with her. He didn't know where she would be, but he knew that who would have an idea. So he started driving to her home and to her dadi.
As he drove, he felt the exhaustion taking over. He felt his breathing getting slower and heavier, but he still managed to keep his eyes wide open. It was already noon, but at least he had made it to Vibha's house. He stood in front of her building, trying to figure out a way to talk to dadi without alerting her parents. He had waited half an hour before deciding that he had no choice but to enter from the front door this time. He walked into her building and rang the doorbell while praying that dadi would open the door. His prayers were answered as dadi stood before him.
He smiled at her, but her smile faltered as she looked at him. At first, he thought that she was upset with him as he failed to show up. But then he caught her eyes staring at his forehead and then it dawned on him. He watched as her eyes assessed the bandage on his forehead and all of sudden it made him conscious of his injury.
"It's nothing, dadi. Just a small accident"
He didn't have it in him to tell her the truth. The worry and concern were clear in her eyes and he could see her getting teary. He knew that she knew there was more to it than that, but still she just nodded and patted his head.
"Are you okay?"
He nodded.
"Will you come in?"
Parth looked down at his feet. He knew that proper etiquette dictated that he should go inside and explain himself. But he felt he was already strained for time.
"Vibha..."
"She waited for hours yesterday, but I am sorry I forced her to go."
"No, I am glad she went, but can I get..."
"I will write down the address and her cell number. I know she wants to hear from you, but I have been trying her cell all day and she hasn't picked up. I think she is probably at their concert, so maybe can't hear her cell. But Parth, in your state I don't think you should be..."
"I am okay dadi. I promise. I am sorry that I didn't show up and that I worried you. I am so sorry, dadi"
"No, it isn't your fault. I am just relieved you are okay."
Parth took the paper with Vibha's information and touched dadi's feet before turning to leave.
"Parth"
"Ji, dadi?"
"If you ever need anything, just never hesitate to call, okay?"
Parth nodded and smiled before leaving.
As soon he was back in his jeep, he dialled the number scribbled on the paper. He waited impatiently as it rang, but no one picked. He redialled and no one picked up. He tried redialling again and again before finally giving up. He punched the steering wheel out of frustration and ignored the pain that it had caused. He had her number in his hand and knew that he was only a call away from talking to her. But she hadn't picked up. He put his jeep in gear and started driving to her.
Vibha had been standing in the crowd for the past two hours. She had always taken extreme pride in watching her friends perform. They all seemed to have a certain factor that attracted a roaring crowd. But today, neither her mind nor her heart was in it. She had been staring at their performances, but she didn't actually register the music. She hated being pushed around by the surrounding people and could feel her headache worsening as the songs continued on. Everything seemed to agitate and suffocate her right now. She couldn't take it anymore. She threaded her way out and looked back at the crowd. She wouldn't be missed.
She stood outside on the balcony of the auditorium and took in a deep breath of fresh air. Some of the heaviness in her head seemed to fade. She took out her cell and was shocked to see so many missed calls. She recognized that a few were from her home number, but there were at least 30 missed calls from an unknown number. She felt her heart racing as she dialled her home number. Had something happened?
"Hello dadi, did you call?"
"Parth came"
She let out a breath. He had come, but she hadn't waited for him. She couldn't stop her voice from shaking and her lips from quivering.
"What did he say? How was he? Is he okay? Is he..."
"Vibha! He is fine. I gave him your address and number. He must have already called you"
"I have to go. I need to call him"
She was about to hang up, when her dadi stopped her.
"Vibha, listen! He was...he was hurt"
"I knew I should have stayed. I wished I had..."
"No, beta, I mean he was injured. But he said he was okay"
She clung to the phone as she crumbled down to the ground. She tried to speak but found herself struggling to even take in a breath. She was breaking, but somehow had found the strength to speak the next few words.
"He was hurt?"
"Call him"
She furiously nodded as she hung up the phone and dialled the unknown number. Her hand had a slight tremor as she waited impatiently until finally someone had picked up on the other end.
She could hear unsteady breathing and knew that it was him on the other end. She wanted to say something, but her voice was caught in her throat.
"Vibha"
She let out a sob as she heard his voice. She finally felt a small sense of relief on hearing his voice. It was as if she was finally broken out of her frozen state and was once again moving forward. She found it somewhat easier to breath, so she tried to speak again.
"Tum theek ho na?"
"Haan"
"Dadi was saying you were hurt?"
He put his head against the seat and stared at the sky. As soon as he had seen her name flash on his cell, he had parked his jeep at the side of the highway and quickly picked up. He had wanted to talk to her so desperately, but now he struggled with the words. He didn't know what to say in this situation. He didn't know what to say to make it all better. He knew she would have a million questions, and had the right to their answers. But his answers would only add to her worry right now.
"It was a small incident and I am just a little injured. That's all. "
"Are you lying?"
Parth let out a breath. Was he lying? He didn't know if he was lying or just omitting the truth. He wanted to protect her from worry, but not at the cost of betraying her trust in him.
"I don't know, maybe. I won't hide anything from you. I will tell you everything, just not over the phone. And I am not lying about being okay."
"Promise?"
"Promise."
Parth smiled a little. Her faith in him resembled that of a child's. She believed in every promise that he had made, whether it was to meet her every day or to share everything with her. No matter how unreasonable or implausible those promises may have sounded she never questioned it and he would do his best to make sure that they were kept.
"How is the concert?"
"Loud"
"How is Bombay?"
"Crowded"
"Have you gone sightseeing? Or shopping?"
"Yeah"
He sighed. She had always been the one to talk and now when he wanted to hear her speak she was giving him one word answers.
"Bas itna? Aur kuch nahi baat karogei?"
She didn't respond right away and he heard suck in a deep breath before speaking.
"I miss you"
He missed her as well, more than he was willing to let himself feel. He didn't even know how he had made it this far without breaking down.
"I am coming."
"Wait. You are hurt, you shouldn't be driving"
"I am coming"
"Parth! Please, you are hurt. I don't want you to risk it"
He sighed. She was right. He could feel the pounding in his head growing and the weariness taking over his body. But he still wanted to go to her.
"I need you"
Vibha clung to the phone and fell back against the wall. They both seemed torn between rationality and what they both wanted. She wanted to see him, but not at the cost of his health. And he needed her, so he was willing to risk his health. They were both helpless in this situation.
"I will come to you, Parth."
"Vibha, I am already on my way. I will be there soon"
"Parth, please..."
"I will be there soon. Don't worry"
"Please zid maat karo...I will come to you na"
"I should be there soon"
She could hear him start the engine and knew that it would be pointless to argue with him now. They were both stubborn, but today he had the upper hand. She would see how brave he would be once he was in front of her.
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
