Closing the distance

Chapter 1

Dev, still reeling from the shock, tried to think back to that day. When Asha Ma had gotten sick.

It started out as a light fever and Sona took her to their family doctor. Just a seasonal bug, was the diagnosis. Probably will get better in a couple days. It did not. The fever did not subside for over a week. Dev visited her, delivering his ma's halwa for her. Asha ma looked weak, but just as sweet as always. He flirted, hoping to raise her spirits. "So when is my favorite Bose girl getting better, because there is a new restaurant in town, and I am hoping for a date." She laughed, smacking his arm, "Bodmash". It was good to hear her laughter, as he saw Sona smile from the corner of his eyes.

They got some blood tests done and looked like there was a serious UT infection. Sona was getting more and more concerned. He tried to talk to her, put her at ease, but she would have none of it. She was going on an overdrive, researching Asha ma's symptoms, her diagnosis, second opinions, third opinions. Her worry about her mother's health was increasing by the day and she refused to listen to any of his reassurances. Eventually he gave up trying to convince her that everything was going to be alright and decided to focus on taking care of the kids more, while she takes care of Asha Ma until she gets better.

Asha ma didn't get better. Instead, she took a turn for the worse and was admitted to the hospital. Sona spent most of the days there with her now, coming home mainly to change clothes and perhaps grab a bite to eat. So it was upto him to take care of the kids. He didn't mind it one bit, the kids were his haven! Ma helped with food, the nanny was there as well. But the problem was that the kids missed their mother. So, in between meetings, he tried to spend as much time possible with them. He browsed the internet as he looked for ideas to help Suhana with her science homework. Did schools really need to give this much homework? Do 8 year olds need to make a 3D solar system? Why, he wondered. How does this help them? This was more of a project for the parents. Suhana was very ambitious, she was determined to ace this and wanted to make sure hers was the best. He had already played around with some ideas only to be quickly shot down by her. He sighed. Golu may also need help. Couldn't Vicky show a little bit more responsibility towards Golu? Immediately, he chagrined himself. All these years, he had done everything with Golu, he cannot simply expect Vicky to take over just because he had Suhana now. He should check on Golu's project also, most likely he may not even have started. What a day!

On top of all this, he had an important seminar coming up, which a prospective investor was organizing. Dev had started a major project with a co-investor in Malaysia. Unfortunately, the co-investor pulled out all of a sudden, leaving him high and dry. Luckily, he was able to find another person almost immediately, with the interest and resources to invest in his project with him. All Dev had to do was convince him to take the final leap. Then the project will still be able to stay on schedule and he wouldn't incur too much loss. This prospective investor was organizing a seminar and had invited him also to come and have a chat. It would be really good, if he could make it there and convince him. He would then be able to make a real foothold in Malaysia. He would have to talk to Sonakshi about this. He zoomed in on a Pinterest post on a model solar system that he liked, which looked simple enough to make. He showed it to Suhana to get her approval, as Shubh skipped in with his football, pretending to be Messi. Blasphemy it is, his own son interested in football instead of cricket. He smiled at the little guy, as Shubh pretended that his kick had achieved the Goal of the Year.

Sona came back late that night.

"How's Asha ma doing?"

"Fine." She kept moving around the room, arranging her clothes, accessories.

"What did the doctor say? When will she be discharged?"

"Hopefully soon. Her WBC count was coming back to normal."

Dev wanted to ask, what is WBC, but held back. He will check on Google. "Did you eat dinner? You hungry?"

"No, I grabbed a sandwich in the hospital canteen." She went inside the bathroom and he was left staring at the closed door. Something wasn't quite right. She seemed okay but there was a chill in the air. He tried to think what the matter was. Sona was generally very vocal about things. But since Asha ma had been admitted in the hospital, she seemed different, like she was withdrawing into a shell. No, no way. That wasn't his Sona's way. She just has a lot on her plate, he convinced himself. He should go meet Asha ma in the hospital. He had been there when she was first admitted, but since then, with work and kids, he hadn't had a chance.

"I will come with you tomorrow morning to the hospital." He declared through the closed door.

The door opened. "Oh, you will? Is your schedule free?"

It was an innocent question, yet it didn't quite seem very innocent. Or was it? He frowned, unable to place it exactly. Doesn't matter. He needed to assure her either way. He went over and stood in front of her, forcing her to look up at him. How were her eyes so beautiful, he wondered for the millionth time, as he felt himself drowning. "Yes, I want to come with you. Is that all right?" She smiled, relaxed and settled into his arms. He let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding. Okay, so everything is good, he told himself, as he inhaled the scent of her hair.