"Sumo I don't understand tum in sab se door kyun nahin rah sakti?" Shravan squeaked in frustration, letting out a heavy disappointed sigh. One of his hands rested on his waist and the other was placed firmly on her desk in PCT as he crouched in the chair in front of her. "Sumo please understand, this is Kamini chachi's first grandchild, let her do it her way." he kind of requested this time.
Sumo rolled her eyes. "Shravan sirf tumhari kamini chachi ka rishta nahin hai preeti se. Hamara bhi hai. Main bhi maasi aur chachi dono ban ne wali hoon. Aur isliye meri behen ki god bharai mein arrangements karne ka poora haq hai mera. Preeti ki god bharai mein khana ayega to sirf PCT se" she declared, refusing to budge.
Resting his elbows on the table, Shravan dropped his face in his palms. He had no clue how to make this woman understand. Three months into marrying her and she had only been all the more stubborn and difficult than he ever knew. Though how much he actually cherished every damn second of this roller coaster ride destiny had pushed them together into was a secret still unknown to him. Just that off late it's silent after effects had begun to show in the pink of his cheeks and the twinkle in his eyes.
"Sumo I am requesting you yaar ", he looked up at her after a brief pause. "Please let chachi do as she likes this time" he said almost pleadingly,
Sumo felt annoyed at his words. "Shravan I really don't understand, ismein itni zidd ki kya baat hai. And let us ladies handle this na...Why does this bother you so much? " she asked irritated, making him feel more enraged.
"I don't want to answer your stupid questions Sumo...just tell me will you do as I say or not?" he looked straight into her eyes.
"First tell me why is this so important to you?"
Shravan shook his head in frustration. "You are impossible" standing up from his seat he walked towards the door in anger not noticing the low doorway.
"Ouch" a loud scream shook Sumo suddenly and she noticed him bending over near the door with his hand pressed against his forehead.
"Oh god " startled and anxious, she ran towards him in no time and the next moment she was making him sit on the chair in front of her desk.
"Shravan tum bhi na kya karte ho...tumhara dhyaan kahan tha.Ek to itne lambe ho aur upar se dekh kar nhi nahin chal sakte. Kitni tez lagi hai..dikhao mujhe is it bleeding, Just let me look at it" she was suddenly so worried for him that words just spurted out of her mouth without realizing she was literally scolding him.
"Shant ho jao Sumo...ek beemar lachar insaan pe thoda reham karo" he taunted, still wincing in pain. She could not believe he still had the wit to crack a joke.
"Sirf darwaza laga hai tumhein, koi tsunami nahin aa gayi..beemar lachar" she rolled her eyes but regretted it almost instantly as she noticed a small stream of blood oozing out of his forehead. She wished she hadn't argued with him so much.
"Bahut dard ho raha hai..." she asked after a pause, a gush of pain palpable through her voice.
"Nahin mujhe to bahut mazza aa raha hai" he rolled his eyes. "Tumse to na concern bhi dikhana bematlabi hai. Cold hearted insaan kahin ke" she smacked him on the shoulder.
"Chalo ab ..main gaadi nikalti hoon" she told grabbing the keys of her car.
" Yaar yahan main abhi tak apne world ko focus mein nahin la pa raha aur tumhein drive pe jana hai" Shravan shrugged his shoulders.
"Waise Mr. Shravan Malhotra I must say tum jitne dumb dikhte ho usse kahi zyada ho...Hum drive pe nahin Arora uncle ke clinic ja rahe hain. " she told him and walked off.
"But Sumo doctor ke paas jane ki kya zaroorat hai?" Shravan made a face while Sumo drove the car. "Waise bhi I hate hospitals and especially..." as soon as the images from Sumo's fatal accident splashed in front of him he closed his eyes for a brief second.
Sumo felt a lump rise in her throat witnessing the pain on his face. She understood why Shravan hated hospitals.
"Itna darr gaye the.." Sumo whispered groggily, looking at him with a film of tears in her eyes .
For Shravan, there was no easy way to answer her question for he had never felt so terrified in his entire life as he had felt in that moment. He looked at her painfully for a brief moment before looking away from her, trying to hide his tears.
"Dhyaan road pe please...Waise bhi ladkiyon ki driving pe bharosa nahin hai mujhe"
Sumo flashed a fake smile at his words. "Pushkar theek kehta hai...tum lawyer bahut ache ho bas jhooth bolte waqt maar kja jate ho"
+++
At the hospital, Dr. Arora checked upon Shravan and applied antiseptic to his wound. Sumo's hands flew to his almost on an instinct keen to comfort him as he hissed. As Dr. Arora smiled seeing the evident intimacy of the newly married couple both look away embarrassed.
"Arora uncle koi medicines ki to zaroorat nahin hai na" Sumo asked, a hint of worry still evident in her voice.
"Relax Sumo...Just a scratch. Main theek hoon ab" Shravan was a little conscious now as even the doctors and nurses had begun to notice her unrelenting concern for him and giggled about the same. Not that it affected him in any way. He just didn't like anyone having a laugh at her expense.
"No Suman beta, no medicines required. Bas ek injection lagega..anti tetanus ka. Main nurse se kehta hoon wo laga degi" Dr. Arora's words made Sumo wince a little.
"Tabhi kehti hoon dekh ke chala karo...dekha ab injection lagwana padega" she scolded Shravan who didn't know whether to be amused at the adorable dork his wife was or be stoked at her sudden shift in demeanor. If this was the way she intended to treat him he won't mind falling sick forever.
"Ye haath mein nahin lagta..." interrupted the nurse as she saw Shravan rolling up the sleeves of his shirt. Sumo noticed she had been trying to flirt with Shravan almost since they entered the hospital. She almost couldn't keep her hands off her husband.
"What do you mean?" Sumo asked giving the nurse a not so polite stare.
The nurse made a face. "Tetanus is a strong dose...It needs to be given there" she gestured towards Shravan's backside smirking. At that moment she appeared no less than a lustful witch to Sumo who wanted to predate on her husband.
"I think there's no need of that because " Sumo tried explaining before Shravan interrupted her. "That's fine..please get done with it. I don't have a whole day for all this" Shravan spoke indifferently.
"But Shravan..."
"Chill na Sumo...it's just a shot"
"Okay then I will also come along"
"WHAT! NOO" Shravan almost shrieked at her words. His cheeks had turned a hue of red and embarrassed would be a small word to describe how he would feel if Sumo came along. Realizing what she spoke and meant, Sumo too felt mortified for a second.
"Waise aap dono husband and wife hi hain na" the nurse asked cheekily as both of them exchanged some uncomfortable glances.
+++
Done with Shravan's first aid both of them drive their way back to the Malhotra Mansion.
"Chalo ek game khelte hain" Sumo spoke, too pepped up for the situation.
"Is waqt?" Shravan grimaced.
"Ye tum har cheez ke liye waqt kyun dekhte rehte ho yaar...game ko thodi pata hai hum abhi hspital se aa rahe hain"
Shravan shook his head at her stupid joke. "Thankyou so much but I am not interested"
"Ok then meri turn. To tum mujhe batao ki woh jo chillane ki awaz ayi thi injection room ke ander se jisse tumne uss bache par blame kiya tha, woh tum the na Mr. 6 ft 4 in. And no lies allowed ok" she asked, starting with this question only to lighten the atmosphere before hitting the nail.
Shravan looked away embarrassed. "Aisa kuch bhi nahin hai okay...and zyaada assume karne ki zaroorat nahin hai" he tried brushing her question off but she raised a brow at him. She gave him her typical "Who are you even kidding Shravan' look.
"OK fine I did...but do you have any freakin idea how much that stupid needle hurt. My ass is still burning up man" he winced and Sumo couldn't control her laughter.
"Ha ha very funny...ab daant phadna band karo..It's my turn"
Sumo stiffened up a bit at his words. He too had something running on his mind. She wasn't anticipating this.
"Tum uss nurse se jealous thi na? Am I right Mrs. Malhotra?" he grinned mischievously.
Sumo looked away, trying to break eye contact with him. "What rubbish...Main kyun jealous hone lagi kisi se." she stammered.
"Sawal ke badle jawab hota hai Mrs. Malhotra sawal nahin"
Sumo let out a heavy sigh. "Han thi main jealous...khush ab. Mil gayi shanti apni big fat ego ko boost karke" she squirmed.
"Bahut" Shravan smirked.
"OK my turn now. " she asked without wasting another second. "To tum itna desperate kyun the, to stop me from arranging Preeti's functions."
"Sumo not again! Ok and I am done with this stupid game. Just chuck it"
"Shravan you cannot run from things everytime"
"I am not running Sumo. YOu are making an issue out of nothing."
"If it's nothing then tell me why it bothers you so much? You have to tell me Shravan"
"This bothers me so much because I cannot tolerate anyone insulting my wife dammit!! " Shravan blurted annoyed. Sumo let out a surprised sigh at his unexpected reaction. "Tum janti ho chahe kitne bhi ache arrangements ho Kamini chachi phir bhi satisfied nahin hongi. Aur phir tumhein neecha dikhane ke liye sab family friends aur relatives ke saamne tumhari insult karengi. And I just cannot tolerate that anymore, you get that Miss Suman Tiwari. " he said with a menacing sharpness in his tone .
In the past few days, it was the first time that Shravan's anger had brought a smile to Sumo's lips. Off late he had developed this habit of calling her Suman Tiwari instead of Mrs. Malhotra whenever he would be too irritated or enraged only to nudge her because he knew she hated it when he called her Suman. But sort of this time, his this habit, made a few butterflies flutter in the pit of her stomach than make her feel upset.
Her lips parted slightly as her gaze locked with his brooding one for a brief moment. And then she looked away quickly, as his eyes were so severely intense , she would be left gasping for air.
"Matlab agar mujhse koi rudely baat karta hai to tumhein itna bura lagta hai" she whispered.
"Han lagta hai mujhe bura. Koi problem hai tumhein"
Sumo kept on staring at him while smiling sheepishly. A little blush crept to her cheeks as the sweet realization sank in. Her innocent chashmish had still not totally gone away from within this grownup arrogant man sitting right next to her.
"Maine koi joke nahin sunaya...daant kya faad rahi ho" he told her off.
"And this is my last question..." Shravan spoke after a pause. " Tumne Aditya se PCT ke papers kyun liye Sumo" it took a lot of time for him to muster up the courage to ask this question as it only meant opening up about his vulnerabilities in front of her.
Sumo felt little taken aback by his question. But what bothered her more was the sheer disappointment and anger in his tone when he asked it.
The car automatically came to a halt as Sumo stared at him.
"What do you mean Shravan? Main kyun lungi Aditya se papers tum hi batao? Ofcourse because tumne bheje the woh papers" she spoke casually still unaware of Shravan's version.
Shravan felt totally confused at whatever she spoke now. "Ek minute Sumo...main? Main kyun bhejunga Sumo?"
"Meri help karne ke liye Shravan...Jaise tum hameshan karte aye ho. Aur main uske badle kabhi kuch nahin kar payi tumhare liye."
This meant Sumo didn't know he hadnt sent those papers rather she thought it was him helping her via Adita.
Shravan felt extremely ashamed of himself for misunderstanding Sumo. It dawned upon him how he had formed an image of Sumo because of his father's constant misconstruction of her character. And how all this helped Aditya to create this misunderstanding between them. He felt angered at himself for letting Aditya create cracks in their years long friendship. For letting him create doubt about his love. Only if he had trusted her a little more.
There were moments of silence in the car before they reached home. No one spoke or tried to explain anything.
"I am sorry Sumo.." Shravan mumbled as she was about to step out. " I am sorry for misunderstanding you, for all that happened at PCT after that...I don't know what got into me. I am really sorry Sumo" there was a palpable guilt in his voice.
"That's ok Shravan. Aur waise bhi hamare beech jo bhi ho chuka hai...ab ye choti choti baatein aur misunderstandings bahut peeche choot gayi hain. I dont think any amount of conversations or realizations can make this better. We have stopped feeling for each other. We are not friends anymore. It's been too big a void Shravan" Sumo walked off saying and despite her words had broken Shravan's heart into a million pieces, he was at least relieved the dawn had finally come to wake. He had realized that whatever assumptions they made about each other was majorly a figment of their imagination mainly triggered by people around them. By people who wanted their love to fall apart. People who could not understand their connection. And it was high time they needed to work on understanding each other from the scratch, without any assumptions and judgments of other people.
He finally headed towards his room, resolved to get his best friend back in his life.
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