Togetherness- A Series (Part 8)

The earlier parts of the series: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6 and Part 7.

The days passed leisurely. It was the first time I was away from Karan for so long, and that too like this. But this time, dad was adamant to make me go for the trip. He said I was stressed and tired, but no! That wasn’t true! After a long discussion and a minor debate, I had to pack my bags, and get ready to leave. I don’t know if it was a co-incidence that Karan was no attending office for a week, or maybe it was something else. Well, so I set off; to enjoy, to relax and to get refurbished.

So, time was slow, and there remained the constant tension of Karan, what he would be doing- would he have eaten and the other questions about his neglect for himself ate into my heart, and kept chewing on me. But there was nothing I could do. Karan had strictly instructed me to not call, nor to message, as he wanted me to be away from technology a bit. But I couldn’t control myself, and I called up.

It was all against me, and he cut the phone. I tried again, the next day, and a woman picked the call, and just giggled. I was shocked. I couldn’t move. I just waited to reach home again, and to be with Karan again. But I was scared, and my heart had tons of questions for him, and they all terrified me.

The days for which I was away felt like years, especially after the giggling incident, which I would never forget in my life. And I waited expectantly, almost with the wish to run away earlier, tensed yet fresh.

As the bus came to a halt, I stepped down and stretched myself in the evening warmth. A slight drizzle pattered on my face and damped my clothes. I strode over to dad, who stood waiting with the car.

“How was it," he asked.

“It was nice dad. The break from daily office work felt good as well."

“See, I'd told you earlier that you will love and enjoy it."

“You were right as always dad."

“Oh you two, now let’s get home. I'm sure my Niki is hungry after her long journey," said mom from the front seat.

I put my bag behind and as I sat, I pulled out my cell phone and started typing a message to Karan. Seeing my cell phone out, there went a weird glance between my parents, and then mom said, “Keep your phone for sometime at least. You have just reached here."

Heeding her say, I kept the phone inside instantly, knowing she was right; and my message remained half typed.

An hour later, I called up Karan, who just said he was a bit tied up in things, and would call me back as soon as possible. I was unable to stop the downpour as it consumed me, and the sadness overtook me. Karan was ignoring me, and he was hiding something as well, I was sure. I knew he had forgotten what the next day was, and I was sure he would make some excuse. There was something aloof, and maybe Karan was drifting away, I felt so. Something was wrong.

With these thoughts in my mind, I slept. I didn’t know that the next day was going to be the biggest day of my life; I had no clue of it.