It was that time of the year again. The time she used the love; the time she had grown to despise. Another chaotic beginning to a noisy, never ending day. Carrying a smartphone in one hand an infant in the other, a woman in conservative dress was busy operating her kitchen's appliances.
"Krishna, Mohan, naashta tayar hai. Come to the kitchen kiddos", she ran after her twin boys who refused to swallow anything of nutritional value.
"One chocolate for whoever finishes their veggies".
The boys made their way to the kitchen table and began to chow down on boiled vegetables.
It was not by choice that she bribed her kids rather, out of necessity. A minute late and she would upset her schedule along with her clients'.
"Mummy, my friends eat waffles, pancakes or cereal for breakfast. You are the only one who gives boiled vegetables".
The twins resented the scent of anything green despite their mum's best efforts to make the food look presentable.
"Child, you are extraordinary. And, what does daddy say?"
"Extraordinary food for extraordinary people", the twins responded in an excited tone of voice.
They sped up on the eating and slowed down on the complaining. She breathed a sigh of relief and went back to attending the various buzzing gadgets. The infant woke up from her slumber.
"Aren't you quiet one?" She whispered in her ear, "You are going to be mommy's little angel".
She had promised herself not to pick favourites but, her baby girl was the least troubling among her otherwise energetic kids.
"Where is our chocolate mum?"
The twins had licked their plates empty. They called Bittuji in as witness.
"Uncle, you stand witness. We ate all of it, even licked the plate".
Bittuji, a chubby old man with a receding hair line, sided with the twins.
"Bittuji, kehne ko toh aap RK ke assistant ho lekin chamchagiri innki karte ho. And you two, I taught to you to eat with a fork and knife. Do not attack your food like circus animals".
"Chocolate?"
The twins' attention was fixated on their reward. She took out the smallest piece of Belgium white chocolate from her secret hiding spot and handed it to the boys. They gave her a kiss on either cheek and clung to Bittuji's arms.
"Off you go. Be safe and learn something while at school", she looked at her boys with loving eyes.
"Bhabhiji aap aur chief toh sirf mujhe tankhwah dete hain. Kaam toh mein inke liye karta hoon". He left before Madhu could add in her word.
"You will spoil them even more than their dad already has". She yelled loud enough for Bittuji to hear.
She did not like being the bad guy in every parenting crisis. Alas, she had to. Her husband was not home enough to know what was going on his kids' lives. She felt her insecurities kicking in again. Fortunately, her trusty tablet reminded of the meeting she had in ten minutes. She dropped everything, excluding her infant of course, and headed downstairs to her home office. She placed her baby girl in her crib nearby and tuned in to a video conference call with, what looked like, a group of elite corporate personnel.
"Ms. Nair, I assure you not even a minute piece of information about my client is posted on the social media sites without my say so".
She projected confidence in her tone, a trait she thought she inherently lacked. Or, was it just the personal front where she was sheepish? Right, she had to avoid negative thoughts for now and focus on the task at hand- make a successful business deal. The potential clientele was impressed.
"Mrs. Kundra, we are pleased to have you as the new social media representative for Sony Media Inc. We hope to witness you translate the success of Mr. Kundra's online image to our group of companies. I am positive that, with your work ethic, there will be no issues".
"We have a deal. Enjoy your day".
She abruptly ended the call to tend to her daughter who was on the verge of crying from the lack of attention.
"Just like Rishabh, aren't you? Always wanting me by your side".
There they were again. The fleeting thoughts, the ominous thoughts of her and her husband breaking up. She tried her damnedest to dismiss them as suspicions but, the thoughts came back to haunt her everyday. Were the affairs all just rumours? Had he never felt the need to find another girl: a prettier, younger girl?
Madhu knew she embodied poise but, the poise had grown old. She was well into her thirties. Maybe, she did not have what it took to appeal to a man with an impeccable taste. Had he grown tired of her? Why else was he not coming home often? Why did she need to find his whereabouts via texting, twitter or worse from the tinsel town gossip girls?
Whatever this was, was her fault. RK had not changed one bit. It was Madhu who had evolved into a new person. Sure, she had become independent, taken up responsibility and even excelled at her niche career. Still, she found herself doing less than impressive work in her personal life. She had been a bad mother. One who was easily aggravated by her own children. What kind of a mother does that? Mums are supposed to be these giving creatures who take love, hate and indifference from their children with equal affection. Not her, she was doing it all wrong. She had certainly not been a good wife. Rishabh had been a man true to character in all their years of marriage. He still carried his signature coiffure. He still had that strut of a walk that exuberated confidence. She was very much in love with RK. But, was he? Had she given him any reason to be?
Madhu pointed out her limitations as she inspected herself in the mirror. When was the last time she had put on lingerie? When did she turn from an hour glass beauty with the bare back to a Republican Condoleezza Rice. She stripped off her modest pant suit and slipped into a sari from the good old days. Ten years and three kids later, Madhu surprised herself by fitting into the outfit with ease. She decided that, at least for now, her apprehensions had no tangible proof.
A/N: Ideally, I would like to stop writing here. Some stories do not have an ending. However, from past experience, I know you all are NOT going to be happy. You WILL be vocal about your frustrations. Therefore, HAPPY ENDING below, Enjoy!
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