Forget-Me-Not : Bound by Secrets

Chapter One

Chapter One

Fifteen Years Later

Rohan banged his foot on the ground and yelled, "You promised! You promised to get it, but you didn't. You always break your promises! I don't want to talk to you." His eyes filled with anger and betrayal as he looked at her, and before she could stop or calm him, he turned around and fled from the room. Geet laid her head on the cupboard door in frustration, as she watched him go, and closed her eyes. She didn't like seeing him upset or unhappy because of something she did, but she couldn't help it. This time, she really had tried. But like every other time, it had backfired.

She hadn't slept since two continuous nights, owing to the problems going on in the office and house. On top of everything, Gautam wasn't with her. She couldn't handle things single-handedly, however much she tried. Sometime, this was bound to happen. She just hadn't expected that she'd find it so difficult. Exhausted and emotionally drained, she slid down to the ground and took a deep breath. What was she doing wrong? What could she possibly do better?

The image of her five year old son, angry and unhappy with her, came to her mind. And she felt awfully guilty for forgetting about the game he'd asked. He'd wanted it so badly, and he'd asked so sweetly, too. How could she have forgotten?

"I'm such a bad mother," she thought to herself, and her eyes filled. "I'm bad at everything. I can't handle anything in my life."

For a moment, she gave in to worry and the bleak future she could imagine. How come the days just kept getting worse? Surely there had to be an end to one's bad time?

The last few days had been tough. She wasn't complaining, and she never had. It was just that she needed some support. And she would have felt so much better if Gautam had been with her. But he was in Delhi, regarding his product launch meeting, and wouldn't be back until tomorrow. She just had to survive the next twenty four hours; how hard could it get? She willed herself to get up from the ground and do the thing she'd come to do-preparing a check. She drew out her check book from the drawer and began writing the account name.

As she did so, her fingers trembled slightly and she felt her eyes filling up again. It was ridiculous, how every time her mother could manage to break her when she came into her life. Last time it had been the same. Before that it had been the same. And it would remain the same, as long as they both lived. Then why was it so hard to sign a check and get it deposited? Geet stopped herself from crying, from forming judgments, and signed the check. The amount stared back in her face, forming a knot of confusion and doubt in her stomach.

Should she really do this? Transferring three lakh rupees without Gautam knowing about it seemed wrong. But hadn't she always done it? He'd never bothered to ask. Maybe this time he wouldn't, either. Maybe he'd understand before she told him. She put the check back in her drawer, making a mental note to get it deposited in the bank the following day. When she'd closed the cupboard, she allowed herself to take in the mess that was her room. She sighed and began cleaning up.

Usually she wasn't a messy person, but this evening Rohan and Naina had both wanted to play 'house'. The mess was just an after-effect of rolling in the bed, throwing pillows and books and papers at each other, and finally chasing each other around the room in the end. The hour she'd spent with them then was the happiest she'd felt in the last couple of days. And she began thinking of her children, of how she could possibly give them all the happiness in the world. The thought of their small, happy faces took away all her sadness, and she felt herself filled with love and blessings for them.

She decided that she'd buy Rohan's gift as soon as possible-maybe tonight, if she got time. And buy that little doll for Naina, too. And sing them to sleep like she did every night. As she was thinking of this, her phone rang and she saw that it was Gautam.