Short Story Husband Wife – Drizzle on that day
Image© Anand Vishnu Prakash, YourStoryClub.com
‘Just be frank Sanjay. Is he sleeping with her?’Maya was trying hard not to show any emotions. She still couldn’t believe she is asking about her husband. But the text messages, telephone calls at odd times, unusually late business meetings…Maya knew something has been wrong for some time.
‘Don’t over think this’, Sanjay said ‘you know Ram. He wont do anything like that.’ Maya just stared at him blankly. ‘Answer me Sanjay. Is he having an affair?’
Sanjay squirmed in his seat. He has known Ram from his school days. ‘He is a good guy. He wouldn’t cheat on his wife’, he thought. But he just said ‘I don’t know Maya. He hasn’t told me anything.’
Maya was not satisfied. She could feel the anger bursting up inside her. She needed to be alone. She just walked out without saying anything to Sanjay. She walked to her car parked under a tree near Sanjay’s office. She kept muttering to herself. She didn’t even realise she had pushed aside a small girl selling small glittering plastic stickers.
She felt so furious. She felt so betrayed. She couldn’t understand how her husband can seek the company of someone else. How is she lacking as a wife, as a friend?
Motor reflexes conditioned over years of practice kicked in and she started driving without any particular destination or without any absorption of anything around her. She was oblivious to the angry horns from behind as she turned the curb to get in to the main road.
She was thinking of the time they got married. Her family had ‘arranged’ it. She was a bit bitter about breaking off a relationship from college. But Ram’s charm and care post the wedding swept Maya off her feet. Ram was a husband any girl would wish for. Handsome, successful, romantic…she had felt the happiest ever, during those days.
Things did change after a few months. It wasn’t steamy ‘passion’ everyday. But she had expected that over time, their relationship would grow in to a good friendship. One of mutual love and respect and trust. Or that’s what she thought. It’s now been seven years since their marriage. The first strain in their marriage was their inability to conceive a child. After torrential cycles of expert fertility specialists, astrologers and pilgrimages, her uterus has adamantly remained barren. She is still undergoing treatment but her hopes have waned.
She remembered the day they had returned from the clinic, first time after starting the treatment. Ram had told her how much he loved her and that is not going to change whether they have a child or not. He had then given her a necklace. She was wearing that necklace even today. ‘Then why did he not keep that promise?’ Tears started swelling up in her eyes. She could barely see and all the contained pain and sorrow burst out and she started to cry. She abruptly parked the car to the side of the road. Other motorists swirled fowl adjectives at her. She let her head fall on to the steering wheel and cried.
It had started to drizzle when she looked up again. Sorrow had given way for anger inside her now. ‘It’s not just him who can break trust!’ The disdain with which he threw away her love made her want to hurt him. But at the same time she wanted to be desired for, to be more than just an accessory of consequences.
She looked outside and found herself to be near her college. The main emotional core memory of her college life was her relationship with Ajay. Maya wasn’t in love then. She just said yes to the first boy who proposed among the many who showed interest. She never planned any future with him and it was all part of the big ‘fun’ ride college life was supposed to be. But nevertheless it was hard to break up when Ram’s alliance got fixed. And now, she found herself remembering how Ajay had courted her. She longed for that kind of affection. Any kind actually…
It was not intentional that she drove to these parts but she now started the engine with a purpose. Ajay runs a hotel and they have been in the same social and friend circles. But their relationship has been just cordial after her marriage.
She pulled in to the parking lot of the hotel and took out her phone. She didn’t feel any compunction, just a tinge of chafe at the corner of her consciousness, as she dialled his number.
‘Hey! Maya!’ a surprised Ajay answered.
‘I need to see you Ajay… alone’
- *
She adjusted the clip on her hair standing in front of the mirror attached to the cupboard. She could see Ajay’s reflection, lying on the bed. He was looking at her get dressed and had his head propped on to the headboard of the bed with his elbow tucked in between. ‘Just like in college’, thought Maya. She stepped back to get a final glance, to check if anything was amiss. She checked her phone. There was a missed call from Ram. She slid it back in to her clutch bag and walked to the door. She turned the door knob and stopped. She looked back to see Ajay still looking at her. She couldn’t read the expression on his face. She suddenly had the image of his wife flash on her mind. She had seen her a couple of times at some social gatherings. Never made any acquaintances with her, though. She had felt a bit awkward then, considering the past she shared with her husband. But now, she didn’t feel any guilt or remorse. Just the registration of the fact that Ajay, is also a husband to another woman.
‘This… is not going to happen again’, Maya said and she turned and walked out shutting the door behind her.
It was still drizzling when she started driving back to her house. She was feeling very calm, and she thought if it’s wrong to feel so. She thought whether to tell Ram about what happened. A middle aged couple was riding on a motor bike in front of her car. Both of them were wearing rain coats and the woman, riding pillion, had her arms wrapped around the man’s waist. Maya wondered whether they were together because they were happy or just because they were married. She wondered if they had children waiting for them back at their home.
She drove in through the open gate to her house. Ram’s car was parked inside. She deliberately took time to lock the car, latch the gate and to walk in to the house. Ram was standing inside the living room as if waiting for her.
‘Maya, please sit down. I need to tell you something’, said Ram. She kept her clutch on the teapoy and sat down on the couch. Ram kneeled down on the floor beside her with his hand resting lightly on her knees.
‘I need to confess something Maya’, began Ram. She just looked at him blankly.
‘I know you think I’m having an affair. It was just text messages at first. About work…Then I don’t know how… It was just not about work. I… I should have stopped it then. But I didn’t. We started meeting for coffee. Just coffee. And nothing else. I know it was wrong and I wanted to stop it. But… And today, I went to her apartment. Am sorry Maya. I kissed her… But I looked at her face and I could only see you… I couldn’t stay there anymore. I swear nothing else happened. I came home immediately. I’m so sorry. I made a mistake. I shouldn’t have let myself… I’m so sorry. Please forgive me Maya. Please…’ Ram was clutching her hand tightly. She looked at their hands and at his face. Tears were flowing down his cheek. She could feel tears trickling down her face as well. She could feel the earnestness in his look.
He bent down to kiss her palms. ‘Please forgive me.’
She slid her hand through his hair and nudged his head on to her lap. He wrapped his hands around her waist. He was crying heavily. She looked outside through the window. It had stopped drizzling.
–END–
