Deciphering His Love

32 | The One With The Accusation

14th February 2017

-S H R E E     P R A S A D-

Madhav has been glued to the phone very recently. It's been so annoying and irritating, especially when we went out on that Valentine's Day dinner.

It was our first valentine's day after our wedding, and we were at a very romantic restaurant. I wore a chiffon sari of his favourite colour: green, because I thought it'd make him happy, but he rarely noticed. I was hoping to have a romantic chat with him during dinner, but I couldn't, because he rarely took his eyes off the phone. He had the spoon on one hand and his phone on the other. He chuckled and smiled as he ate. Forgetting that I existed.

I tried so much to get his attention. I tied and untied my hair several times, I cleared my throat so many times, the only people ones who looked were the couple beside us. I even brushed my leg against his. I thought he'd amend things when we returned home, but that's where he crossed the line. It was around midnight when we came home.

The only time he had the phone away was when he was driving to the restaurant and back home.

As soon as we go to our room the person who he'd been texting throughout dinner, Tia Shetty, calls him. He heads out to the balcony to take the call and promised to return soon.

I was so naïve for actually believing that he'd return soon. I had a quick shower and sat on our bed, wearing a satin robe. Underneath the satin robe was a beautiful negligee made of translucent black net with a deep crisscross plunge. I sat there like a pretty princess, my eyes glued to the half open balcony door, waiting to see him come back in.

He doesn't return until around 3 AM and I could hear him laugh. I softly walk towards the balcony door to hear him.

"Nah I'm not going to work tomorrow; a friend is getting married and I promised to be there. I'll drop by at your apartment in the evening if I can."

He stops and listens closely, with a playful smile on his face. I lean in closer, pressing my ear to the door to the balcony. "Okay okay Tia, I can't picture us on a wicker swing, it sounds too cheesy. Don't you think we should spend more time by the fireplace on a cold night, lying on a furry carpet holding onto each other? You know what, that is something I can picture the two of us doing. You know what else is better-" He stops for a minute and hears Tia speak.

"Damn, that's so romantic and hot." He adds saucily. "Indeed, you are a naughty little vixen. You know what, we should talk about this in the evening. Darling go sleep, you need a lot of energy when we meet tomorrow. I'm fixated on wearing you down tomorrow."

I lay in the bed, string at the ceiling. I try to connect all the dots: the frequent phone calls and messages; him returning home towards midnight; the lies and the whiff of the flowery scent on him. All these dots translated into one unbelievable illustration on my head.

I close my eyes and try to push that thought out of my mind.

* * * * *

15th February 2017

The next day was Ahaana and Ashok's wedding day. Madhav was wearing the traditional veshti and shirt, whereas I wore a pink chiffon sari with a gold border.

The wedding happened in one of Mumbai's biggest mandhir. It was an elegant and a magical ceremony.

Ahaana looked very much like a Marathi princess dressed in that red nauvari with a gold-green border. Her jewelry was simple except the pearl nose ring. She had her best smile on that face which radiated with a golden aura. She looked better than Priyanka Chopra from Bajirao Mastani. Ashok was magnificently royal. He was wearing a cream coloured kurta with an off-white dhoti. Together, they made a very charming couple.