Chapter 5 #2
She took the jersey and started to walk to the hospital entrance.
Instinctively, he reached for her hand. She looked at it and held it. But she didn’t move.
‘Oh, shit.’ She was probably going to have a panic attack right about now.
‘Kaavi?’
‘I’m fine.’ She raised her chin, took a breath and headed for the door.
To anyone watching, they looked like the perfect couple – he in crisp chinos and a button-down shirt, she in tailored black pants and a cream top that hugged her just right. Polished, poised, not a strand of hair out of place. But beneath the surface, turmoil brewed.
‘Do you know which ward he’s in?’
She shook her head. Neel went to the reception desk and asked for information.
All he knew was that her father’s name was Mr Archary.
The nurse on duty seemed to know who he was talking about and directed them to the second floor.
They came out the lift and walked hand in hand into the waiting room.
‘Kaavi?’ A woman who was obviously Kaavi’s mother rushed to her daughter. Neel let go of her hand for her mother to embrace her. But Kaavi didn’t return the hug. Her mother still squeezed her.
A man and woman came forward. They were probably Senthil’s parents. And then an elderly man was at their side. Neel didn’t know whether he should introduce himself. He decided to let Kaavi take the lead. It was her show, after all.
‘I thought you weren’t going to come,’ her mother said.
Kaavi looked away. She just wouldn’t speak. It was clear that Kaavi was not going to say anything, so Neel decided he had to step up.
‘Hi. I’m Neel Naran,’ he said, reaching forward to shake hands with Kaavi’s grandfather, uncle, aunt and mom. They returned the handshake, completely unaware that their minds were going to be blown in a second.
‘I’m Kaavi’s husband.’
Her mother gasped. Her aunt and uncle’s eyes opened wider and her grandfather smiled.
‘Husband? Is this some kind of joke?’
Her mother looked at Kaavi. Still, she was like a deer caught in the headlights.
‘No, it’s not a joke. Kaavi and I are married. We’ve been married for almost three years,’ said Neel.
‘Three years!’ her uncle exclaimed.
‘I don’t understand any of this,’ her mother said.
‘You heard what they said. They’re married. Your daughter is married. Let them be happy,’ her grandfather said. Her mother looked closely at her grandfather.
‘You knew! Dad, you knew!’
He just smirked.
‘Granddad? What do you mean you knew?’
Finally, Kaavi was speaking.
‘Kaavi, babygirl, of course I knew. You think that Senthil and I would leave you out in the big world on your own without keeping tabs on you?’
‘Sen knows?’
‘Of course Sen knows,’ her grandfather said casually.
Neel blinked. He felt as if he’d stepped into some reality show about a dysfunctional family.
‘Do you want to see your father?’ her mother asked, completely changing the topic.
‘No.’
‘He’s having surgery tonight. It’s a risky one,’ her mother said.
Kaavi looked at her mother in disgust. This was not the Kaavi Neel knew. Was he wrong about her? Who treats their parents like this?
‘Kaavi, may I please speak to you? If you could excuse us for a few minutes,’ he said politely to her family. He led Kaavi away.
‘What the hell is going on with you? This disrespect. I didn’t come here to watch you behave like this,’ he said.
‘You won’t understand. You never will,’ she replied.
‘Make me understand.’
‘Is that an order? Are you going to punish me if I don’t do as you say?’
Neel stepped back.
‘Kaavi, you’re worrying me. When have I ever ordered you around? Punished you?’
He saw the sadness in her eyes. He didn’t wait for her response. He pulled her into a tight hug.
‘I …’ he was about to say he loved her but caught himself.
He let go of her.
‘Shall we go back to the waiting room?’
She nodded.
Her family was now sitting in a corner.
Kaavi took the seat next to her grandfather, so Neel sat on the other side of her.
‘Why aren’t you two living together?’ her aunt asked Neel. ‘Kaavi has been living alone in Rally.’
‘It’s complicated,’ he replied. What else could he say?
‘Is your family Naran Shipping and Logistics?’ her uncle asked.
‘Yes. My grandfather is the founder,’ he replied.
‘And you?’
‘I’m the CEO,’ he said.
‘And you treat her right?’ her mother asked.
Kaavi jerked her head to look at her mother.
‘Of course I do,’ he said. Her mother nodded and looked away.
‘Is your family okay with this arrangement?’ her uncle asked.
‘If you mean Kaavi and I being apart, then no. No, they are not okay with it,’ said Neel.
‘And no wedding? That’s something you’re both okay with? No family. No wedding?’ her aunt asked.
Neel looked at Kaavi. This was exactly what had torn them apart. The secrecy.
Before he could answer, a nurse approached and said, ‘Mrs Archary, your husband is going into surgery. You can have a few minutes with him before we take him to surgery.’
Her mother stood and looked at Kaavi.
Kaavi stood and looked at him.
‘Wait for me,’ she said.
Before he could ask if she was okay, she walked away with her mother.
‘Kaavi.’ Her father’s voice was weak and he looked frail. Nothing like the man who’d terrorised them.
‘Hello,’ she said. What else could she say? I love you, Daddy. Hell no.
‘I’m sorry,’ he croaked.
Kaavi stepped back.
‘No. No. Don’t do that. You don’t get to be the bigger person here,’ she snapped.
He didn’t reply. He simply looked away. Her mother was crying. The nurses pretended they were not eavesdropping.
Finally, they said it was time to go.
Kaavi watched the bed he was on being wheeled towards the huge double doors.
Her mother wiped away tears. Kaavi turned on her heel and walked back to Neel.
He stood the moment he saw her, crossing the room in a few quick steps. Without a word, he reached out and rubbed her shoulder, gentle, familiar, like he’d done it many times before.
‘Okay?’
She nodded.
‘Kaavi, babygirl, come here,’ her grandfather said.
She nodded and went to him, taking the seat beside him.
‘Me, you, Senthil. We are the same. Fierce. Proud. Senthil at least uses more common sense than us. But we, you and I, we can’t see anything else other than what we are feeling.’
Her mother was crying silently, listening. Even her aunt wiped away a tear. Kaavi was acutely aware of Neel next to her, also listening to her grandfather.
‘I know, babygirl. We all know. We can’t change it.’
Kaavi nodded.
‘Granddad, I appreciate everything you’ve done for me. I value your advice. I truly do. But there is no forgiveness in this situation.’
‘As I said, you’re exactly like me,’ her grandfather replied and tapped her hand.
Kaavi blinked away tears.
‘How long is the surgery?’ she asked her mother.
‘Eight hours, or it could be longer.’
She couldn’t imagine sitting in the hospital for that long.
And what for? She wasn’t there to support anyone.
She wasn’t there for him. She came back for her last act of defiance, yet she didn’t tell him she was married.
She didn’t know why, but in the moment she was supposed to say ‘in your face’, she choked.
‘Babygirl, if you two want to head back to the house to wait instead, it would be okay,’ her grandfather said. He was so perceptive.
‘We’re not staying at the house. We’re staying …’ she started.
‘At our house,’ Neel added, reaching for her hand.
‘We’re staying at a hotel,’ her aunt added.
‘We’ll stay here. We’ll wait with Mom,’ Kaavi said. Her mother looked up, surprised.
Kaavi didn’t know why she wanted to stay, but something told her she had to.
Her uncle said, ‘Dad, let’s get going. You’ve had a long day as well. I’ll drop you off at the hotel and come back.’ Then, gently resting his hand on his wife’s arm, he asked, ‘Marls, are you staying?’ Her grandfather stood and her aunt nodded.
After her uncle and grandfather had left, Kaavi leaned towards Neel. ‘Please stay with me,’ she whispered in his ear.
He nodded.
‘Can I get any of you something to drink or eat? There’s the hospital canteen or we could order for delivery,’ he offered.
Her mother and aunt shook their heads.
Kaavi needed to get away for a few minutes.
‘If I remember right, there’s a coffee shop outside the hospital. Maybe we could walk there and have coffee,’ she suggested.
‘Sounds like a plan,’ he replied.
‘We’ll be back,’ Kaavi told her mother.
When they stepped out of the suffocating hospital, Kaavi stumbled and grabbed Neel’s arm. ‘I just need to catch my breath.’
‘I’ve got you,’ he said reassuringly.
Kaavi couldn’t believe everything that had happened. She’d walked out on Neel, yet here he was, standing by her as her husband. She also couldn’t digest that Sen and her grandfather knew she was married.
They began to walk again. When they got to the coffee shop, they ordered coffee and Neel ordered muffins and bottles of water to take away for her mother and aunt. That’s the Neel she knew. Kind. Level-headed.
They sat at a table in a quiet corner and observed their surroundings for a few minutes.
‘So, are you going to tell me what’s going on?’
She knew this question was bound to come.
‘My father and I have some bad blood between us,’ she said.
‘That’s all you’re going to give me?’
She ran her hand through her long tresses.
‘It’s complicated,’ she said.
‘Like us,’ he replied.
‘I left you. Divorce papers are sitting on the table in Sen’s hallway. And you’re here with me in my hometown, with both of us wearing our wedding rings. It’s like a low-budget reality show,’ she said.
Neel chuckled.
‘I thought the exact same thing.’
She sipped her coffee and wondered what life would have been like if she hadn’t left.
‘Do you think you can forgive your father?’
His question startled her.
‘Sorry, I was a million miles away … Neel, I cannot forgive my father.’
‘It may ease your pain,’ he replied.
‘Can you forgive me for leaving?’
He didn’t answer.
‘You see. It’s not so easy to forgive someone who has hurt you,’ she said.