Aditya rifled through the pages of the file that contained details about their new project while still mulling over Zoya's words...it had become a habit for him to be the last to leave ZOSH...not because he wanted to stay back at office...but because he hated going back home to that negative ambience where all the painful memories seemed to entrench themselves in his being as soon as he entered the house. Also, staying here for long reminded him of his ultimate goal...that of destroying ZOSH...of late he hadn't been doing much about the second reason though...he even attended that client meeting today...
His thoughts veered to his mother...
Had he really been that unfair to Anjana all this while? But what did Zoya know about his life? And moreover she had no right to tell him what to do and what not to with his family members...
He slammed the file on his desk, frustrated that her words were affecting him to this extent. But it was true that she had made him question himself today...He held the round paperweight in his hand and spun the same on the table letting the memories long buried come alive...
A 14 year old Aditya was elated. He had won a medal and a trophy for his outstanding performance in sports. The teachers reiterated again and again that he was the pride of his school. He peered towards the crowd where the parents of the children were seated. He had long given up any hope of his father attending any of his school events, but his mother had promised she would be there. Amidst all the cheers and celebrations, he scanned the crowd for his mother but saw kind, always smiling Sakshi beaming at him from the crowd. Pooja, his best friend sat close to her mother. She had fractured her leg and had been unable to participate. He smiled back, and searched again in the crowd, squinting at the harsh sunlight...
When he got an opportunity, he rushed to the area where the parents were seated and inquired about his mother from Sakshi...
"She could not come beta. but she told me to take you back with me. She will pick you up in the evening...
It was such an important day for him. And his mother had no time for him. His crestfallen face disheartened Sakshi...
"Adi, beta, she had an emergency. Otherwise she would have definitely come. She told me so herself...
His name was announced for the prize distributiom ceremony and he hurried back to the podium to receive his award...
From his school he directly went to Pooja's house dispirited and in a bad mood.
Sakshi knew how to cheer him up. Anjana had given her the recipe of his favourite dish and she prepared it for him...that improved his mood to some extent..
Anjana arrived in the evening with little Arjun, his class had been given a holiday since it was Sports Day and he was snoring away to glory sleeping at the back seat of the car...
Adi saw Anjana wave at him, he bid sakshi and pooja goodbye and got into the car sulking...
"Adi, I heard from Sakshi about your medal and trophy. I had called her but you had gone out to play"
"Aren't you going to show me your prizes..?"
He frowned "Why didn't you come?
She smiled and cupped his cheek affectionately..."I couldnt Adi. There was some emergency..."
"What emergency mom? Was arjun okay?" he turned his head to see a sleeping Arjun sprawled on the car seat. He looked back at his mom.
Anjana hesitated..."I had to attend an important event with your dad"
Arjun was young but Aditya was not a baby. He knew all about harsha's amorous ways...
What befuddled him was the fact that his mother seemed completely unaffected by his father's betrayal...
He kept quiet not willing to broach a subject they both would be uncomfortable discussing...
Since that day it had become a norm for his mother to leave him with Pooja's mother. He practically grew up with Pooja and under the care of Sakshi
For the first few times, it was painful to see his mother ignoring him, but then he steeled himself. He was not going to shed tears for a mother who did not have time for him. Arjun being the baby ,was given extra care and he was never left with his friends' mothers. But he was. At times Anjana even insisted him to go to Pooja's house to study...that drove a wedge between mother and son, and the silent discord could never be resolved.
Adi stood up, the memories still twisting his heart in an ache that he was sure could never be assuaged. He took the files and made his way towards the exit.
He reached home and parked his car when he saw the lights were on in the drawing room...it couldn't be his mother in law because she was out of town...that left his mother. Why was she showing him this care and concern when he did not need it now? That riled him up even more...he rested his head on the steering wheel, Zoya was messing with his brain...
He got out of the car and walked up to the door in lazy strides...
He was fishing for his keys in his pocket when Anjana opened the door and looked at him...he saw a defeated mother unable to speak to her child...she disappeared into the kitchen...
He went in and the battle between his heart and mind ensued
"You should just go talk to her" his heart suggested
"Why should he? Did she ever feel the necessity of explaining why she did what she did?" his mind chided his heart.
"But she must have had her reasons"
"What reasons? What could be more important than her own son? It was all about the money and status... she is an avaricious woman..."
"You don't believe that!!!"
The cacophony inside him was exasperating...
He willed his brain and heart to just shut up and after a few minutes decided to go for his Heart's advice...more like Zoya's advice...
His mother was putting food on a plate and had switched on the microwave when he spoke up...
"Why are you doing this?
Her hands stilled for a moment and then she resumed with her work of heating the food...
"Doing what? Heating up the food?"
His irascible anger made an appearance...
"Showing fake concern." he spat out...
"You think my concern for you is... not genuine." she said calmly...it had cut her when he had used the word fake'
His pent up frustration, anger and grief seemed to finally take its' toll and he felt enervated...he sat down on the chair...
Damn Zoya...she was making him miserable...he thought vexed...
"Zoya thinks I am unfair to you, she also says...not in so many words though...that I am the worst son you could get."
Anjana sensed the question in the statement he had just made.
She took the chair closest to him and sat down.
"You are the best son a mother could get. I believe she is absolutely wrong if she thinks so. You have never given me any kind of trouble Adi. You were the best kid...but I am glad her comments at least helped you come out of the cocoon you've surrounded yourself in where I am concerned."
She placed a gentle hand on his left hand...
"Why do you think my concern for you is all a pretense?"
He blinked back tears, he could not remember the last time he had had a heart to heart conversation with his mother. This was also the first time he had sat down to eat the food she had warmed up for him. At other times he just ignored her and went up to his room. but his mother continued with the routine..
"Because it was not there when I was growing up." it almost felt like he was the vulnerable 14 year old kid baring his heart out to his mother.
"It was always there Adi...the concern was the reason I sent you out from the house, I let you stay at Pooja's place. Adi, whatever I had done back then, I had done keeping in mind your welfare."
"I want to know why you did it. I have the right to know.."
His mother resignedly sighed..
"Can we not talk about it?"
"No I want to talk about it..I have every right to know."
Her son had always been adamant.
Aditya observed her.
"What are you scared of?"
She smiled lightly
"Worsening your relationship with your father.
He gave her a hollow laugh
"Ma it can't get any worse than it already is."
Anjana pondered...maybe he was right..there wasn't anything left in Harsha and Adi's relation to further weaken their bond..but she still had something left in her relationship with Adi...and she was no more willing to risk it for unworthy people...
She sighed
"Adi when I got to know about harsha's affair I was completely shattered, broken. I had no idea how to deal with it. I fought relentlessly with him when you two were in school, I threatened to leave him...and he fought back, brought the whole house down..."
"You were at a crucial juncture of your life. I was worried for your studies and overall performance. Also you had your boards in a couple of years. Harsha had threatened me that he would file for custody...I knew you would never want to go with your dad, even he knew it but he played mind games. I would never want you or Arjun to go through the hassles of a custody battle and present yourselves to court and he knew it. So he played that card to his full advantage..."
"One day Arjun was home and he was sick. you know how he used to keep sick for prolonged periods when he was a child right?" Adi nodded...
"It was one of those days and I could not stop myself and we had a huge fight. Harsha left the house and I went to fetch Arjun from his room. I could not find him first but then I spotted him cowering under the bed, his whole frame shaking...I tried to bring him out but he resisted. He was shivering...when I was finally able to pull him out he fainted in my arms...he was running high temperature...I panicked and frantically called your dad...but he did not pick up... I realised arjun had seen us fight..."
"I asked Sakshi to pick you up and took Arjun to the hospital...they gave him medicines and he recovered..."but that day I realised something...
"If it was left to him, he would destroy you and Arjun completely and I could not afford to do that to my children . So I swallowed my pride, my self respect and doned on the role of the servile wife. and I thought you were best left with in the company of pooja and sakshi...though in hindsight I don't know if it was the right decision...I thought it was best for you at that time..."
Aditya had listened to every word with rapt attention...he was horrified at the revelations...his mother had gone through so much all these years, had become accustomed to staying as a second class citizen in her own home, all for him and Arjun...how could he be so blind!!!She had endured his unreasonable anger, his resentful attitude and insolence and yet had not spoken one word...
He sat still, staring at the table. Slightly dejected at his silence, mistaking it for his disbelief, Anjana slid the chair back to stand up, but he held her hand tightly...as if holding onto his dear life...she tilted her head to look at him only to see his eyes, blood red , glistening with unshed tears...
And for the first time in almost 16 years, he let the tears flow freely, the tears that were locked up in his heart's crevices for his mother's treatment towards him...and Anjana cried with him, their silence speaking more than words could ever convey...
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
