by P. G. Van
“Huh?”
“Rajeev’s company can build the equipment I’ve been working on as an idea for almost a year now.” Yash sounded excited.
“How exciting!” Sloka chimed in.
“That’s very cool. I’m glad your date worked out with Rajeev. Now let him be on a date with his wife,” Mantra teased.
Mantra and Yash left the happy couple to enjoy the rest of the evening.
“You hungry for any of this?” Mantra asked pointing at the menu for the day on the wall.
I’m only hungry for what I see in front of me,” he groaned pulling her to him.
Chapter 27
Mantra sat in the study at Yash’s house working on her thesis. It was Friday night, and he was out of town to check on the new resort he had bought a few months back and was going to open shortly. It had been a few weeks since she started spending time with him, and she missed him more than she had expected.
She stopped and looked at the words in front of her. She was writing about the part where couples have trouble, and one of them resorts to cheating. She paused unable to stop thinking about when she saw Gaurav with another woman.
Mantra wasn’t thrilled with herself for not sharing it with Yash. She had no reason to share or not share. She pushed the chair back and walked to the kitchen where Yash had a few phone numbers scribbled on a sticky note.
Mantra read through his chicken scratches and saw Sona’s phone number. She wasn’t sure what the right course of action was, but she felt like she needed to tell Sona what she saw, and what it appeared he was doing that night at the hotel.
With her heart thudding, she dialed Sona’s phone number.
“This is Sona.” Mantra heard the cheerful voice of Yash’s sister.
“Sona… this is Mantra, we met…” Sona did not let her finish.
“Mantra, how are you?”
Mantra could sense the shift in Sona’s tone.
“I’m good, Sona. Did I catch you at a bad time?” Mantra was having a difficult time talking.
“Is Yash okay?”
“Yes, he is out at the resort. I… I need to talk to you… do you have a few minutes?”
Sona paused for a moment. “Does Yash know?”
“What?”
“Does Yash know you saw Gaurav with the woman that night?”
Sona knows?
“No… I wasn’t sure…”
“Good… I do want to talk to you about it and wasn’t sure how you would handle it. Are you at Yash’s place?”
“Yes.”
“I’m expecting company later tonight, but I can come meet you now if you are available.” Sona sounded calm.
“Yes.” Mantra’s palms were getting sweaty.
“I’ll see you in ten minutes.”
Mantra spent the time from when she ended the call with Sona feeling like she was on pins and needles. She just could not get over the fact that Sona knew and didn’t seem to be upset.
Sona was an entrepreneur and had her own company with her best friend as a partner. She wondered if she was with Gaurav for money, but that didn’t add up.
Mantra went to the door when she heard the bell ring.
“Hi, Mantra. I’m glad you called.”
“Sona, I don’t want to jump to conclusions, but I felt like…”
Sona smiled. “I know what he is doing, and I was the one who suggested it to him.”
“What?” Mantra was sure she was having a weird dream.
“Can we sit down?”
Mantra nodded and sat at the dining table, and Sona took the chair next to hers.
“Mantra, my husband is not cheating on me… he is doing it because we agreed it was okay for him to sleep with other women.”
Mantra swallowed. “Are you in a… an open relationship?”
“Call it what you like, but I had to do it to save my marriage.”
Mantra wanted to ask all kinds of questions, but she bit her tongue and looked at Sona in silence to calm herself down before speaking.
“Sona, you don’t need to tell me if you don’t want to but… is everything okay?” She was still recovering from the revelations and was numb from everything she heard.
Sona broke into tears, and all Mantra could think about was to put her arms around her. The woman who Mantra had thought had it all—a loving husband, a supporting brother, and a successful career—was totally miserable.
“Sona, please. Talk to me.”
“I need your help. I have been thinking about it, and you are the only one who can help me.” She pulled back to look at Mantra with her eyes filled with tears.
She did not know Sona at all. She had met her once before for coffee, and Yash hadn’t talked much about his family.
“Sona…”
“My marriage is a mess, and I am the sole reason,” she blurted out catching Mantra by surprise.
“How can I help?” She had no idea why Sona was sharing such intimate details with someone she had met just once.
“You are a therapist, aren’t you? Only you can help me.”
“Sona, please.” She took Sona’s palms into hers to comfort her. “I am not a licensed therapist. I can get you a reference for the help you need.”
“No, it has to be you. I know you can fix this for me. You’ve changed Yash. He is a different guy. I’ve never seen him so happy in my life… ever, and the number of times we talked in the last few months is more than our entire lifetime.”
“What… what are you talking about?”
“Yash… I’ve never had him around growing up and now…”
Mantra interrupted her. “I want to talk more about Yash, but tell me what’s going on with you and Gaurav?”
She wiped her tears away. “It’s embarrassing… but… I can’t have sex anymore.”
“Sona, there is nothing to be embarrassed about. How long has this been an issue?”
“Two years.”
“How long have guys been together?” Mantra asked, following her standard question sequence.
“We met right out of college and have been together since… almost ten years.”
“Did you have trouble with intimacy before that?”
Sona shook her head. “No, we were good.”
“What happened?”
“It started about two years ago… and every time we had sex, I would feel an unbearable burn, and my body just revolted, every part of it ached, and my skin crawled.”
“Did you see your gynecologist?”
“Yes, multiple times and after numerous tests and biopsies, there was no diagnosis.” Sona wiped off a bead of moisture from her eye.
“I’m sorry, but I have to ask you this. Is your husband sexually abusive?”
“No… he is a very smooth and sweet lover, and I don’t know why, but it just blew up in my face.”
“Why does he have to see other women? Can you not pleasure him in any other way if intercourse is not working?”
“I can’t. I can’t do anything with him, and it was driving me nuts to see him so miserable.”
“Are you not attracted to him… is there someone else for you?”
“No… I love my husband, and I could not see him pay for my issues.”
“So, you asked him to see other women?”
“He didn’t want to do it… he does it when I set him up with someone,” Sona confessed.
“You felt it was the right thing to do? Have him see other women?”
“Yeah, he needed it, and it was just a few times that we did that. When you saw him that night, he came home and told me. I fully expected Yash to come barging into my house the next day wanting to punch Gaurav. I was so sure you would have told him.”
“I… I’m guilty of thinking he was cheating on you.”
“If you were sure, you would have told Yash… I’m glad you called me…”
“Sona, what changed?” Mantra couldn’t understand why Sona suddenly seemed to have lost interest in having a love life.
She shook
her head slowly. “I don’t know.”
“Sona, this is something to do with your state if mind. I think you are perfectly fine physically.”
“What do I do now?”
“Can you bring Gaurav to the clinic where I work for a session?”
“If you think that would help…” Her voice trailed off as the doorbell began ringing.
“Is Yash supposed to be back tonight?”
“No, he is not back until tomorrow night.” Mantra stood up to walk to the main door.
Mantra opened the door and stood looking at an elderly couple who looked very unsure of themselves. “Hello… can I help you?”
“Is Yash home?” the elderly man asked.
“I’m sorry he is not available… is he expecting you?” Mantra looked from the man to the woman’s face and back again.
“Mom… Dad… what are you guys doing here?” Mantra heard Sona squeal from behind her.
Mantra stepped aside and sheepishly smiled as Sona hugged her mother and father. “I thought you were meeting your friends before you came home… you came to see Yash?”
“It’s been such a long time since we’ve seen Yash, your mother wanted to surprise him.” Sona’s father stepped into the living area looking around the house.
“Yash is away and oh… Mom and Dad, this is Mantra… Yash’s girlfriend.”
“Good to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Birla.” Mantra shook hands with the elderly couple.
“Sona, baby, why do you have tears in your eyes?” The elderly woman placed her hand on her daughter’s cheek.
Sona froze in her spot and stared at her mother, a blank expression on her face.
“I… I just told her about Yash’s new resort opening.” Mantra blurted out. “Tears of joy.”
“New resort?”
“Yes, Mom… it’ll be the best resort along the West Coast.”
Yash’s mom looked relieved. “That is such good news. We should go there when we are here.”
“It’s not open yet. It’s going to open in a few weeks. That’s the best time to be there.” Mantra tried to distract them further.
“Raj, we should come back for the opening.” Yash’s mom looked at her husband.
“Yes, absolutely!” Mantra said cheerfully as Sona made a smooth exit to the restroom to wipe off the mascara that had run down with her tears.
“Mantra, it’s okay if Yash is not here. You should tell us all about how you and Yash met.”
Mantra smiled and led the elderly couple to the living room and tried to be a good hostess. She was glad Sona joined them and ended up leaving shortly after along with her parents.
Mantra made a note in her thesis about cheating and added the note about the kind that kept a couple together.
Chapter 28
Mantra missed Yash more than she had expected to miss him. It was the third day she was spending away from him in the few weeks since she moved in. It was late afternoon, and Yash was on his way back from the resort.
She smiled looking out of the window. She was a happy person who was making tremendous progress with her thesis and was having the time of her life. She was so glad when she saw the expression on her professor’s face when she presented her findings and research conclusions to her. She had not intended to include the events in her sister's life, but after a lot of reconsideration, she asked her sister if she could anonymously include her situation as one of the case studies, and her sister did not object.
Mantra was in the kitchen at Yash’s house fixing a salad when she heard the garage door open. She dropped what she had in her hands and ran to the door.
He had pulled his car into the garage door and was taking his bag out of the car. He had not made eye contact with her, and that sent her a warning message.
She tiptoed to him and put her arms around him from behind. “I missed you.”
When he didn’t move or respond, she knew something was wrong, really wrong. She loosened her hold on him and moved around to look at him, her arms circling around him.
“Yash, what’s wrong?” Her body quivered uneasily.
He didn’t respond or look at her.
“Yash.”
He brushed her aside and walked indoors making her wonder what was going on. She followed him indoors calling out his name, and when he didn’t respond, she became angry.
“I’m not a mind reader, Yash. You have to tell me if something is wrong.” Her voice was calm yet stern.
He stopped and turned to look at her. “You have no idea?”
“What are you talking about?”
He took a few intimidating steps toward her looking outraged. “You invited my parents to the resort opening? My parents.”
“Oh… yeah, I mentioned the resort opening and… I’m sorry if I told them before you could,” Mantra said feeling bad about ruining the surprise.
“You don’t get it, do you?” His voice was chillingly cold.
“What?”
“I do not want my parents at the resort or anywhere. They have not been part of my life for a while now, and I’d like to keep it that way.”
“Yash… your parents… I don’t know why you are saying that.”
“You should have kept your mouth shut.” He sneered.
“Yash, I do not appreciate your tone. How in the world do you expect me to know what you have going on with your parents when you don’t tell me?”
“I hate talking about them.”
“Yash, they showed up at your door, and I had to tell them where you were.”
“And why the heck was Sona here?”
“Sona stopped by to say hi, and your mom and dad showed up at the same time.” Mantra had no intention to share any of Sona’s situation with Yash.
Yash stood with his back to her, and she walked over to him and cautiously put her arms around him. He didn’t respond immediately but soon put his arms around her.
“I’m sorry, Yash. I didn’t mean to…”
He pulled away and didn’t let her finish. “I cannot stand them… they’ve done unthinkable things to keep me in the research program. I’m ashamed to have them as my parents.”
Mantra hadn’t realized how bad of a relationship Yash had with his parents. She wondered what got him to feel so strongly about them.
“How can I help make this better?” Her voice became muffled in his chest.
He pulled back to look into her eyes. “I want you to call them and tell them they are not welcome at the resort opening.”
She pushed his hands away and took a step back, her eyes questioning his words. “Do you realize how ridiculous you sound?”
“I don’t care. I need you to call them and tell them they can’t go.”
“Yash, that is so rude… why are you being so absurd?” Mantra shook her head in disbelief.
“Mantra, I’m not asking again.”
“I will not do it, Yash.” Her tone was firm.
“Do you have any idea what kind of people they are? I do not want them at my resort.”
“It doesn’t matter. They are your parents, and no matter what they did, I’m not calling to un-invite them to the resort opening.”
“Would you invite your parents to the resort opening?”
“Yash, you are not making any sense. Please calm down.” Mantra realized Yash was dealing with something deep-rooted and was way too angry.
Mantra walked back to him and cupped his cheek with her hand. “Talk to me, how can I help you get over your anger?”
He jerked out of her hold. “I do not want to get over it. I’m ashamed to be associated with them.”
“Yash, they are your parents.”
“Stop being a hypocrite, Mantra. I know what you are going through with your parents. What makes you the expert?”
“Yash, what I have with my parents is different, and I don’t know…”
He wasn’t in the mood to listen and kept cutting her off. “It’s no different. You were disowned because you refused to continue on
the path they thought was right for you.”
“Yes, but I don’t hate them.”
“Liar,” he spat.
“Yash, what has gotten into you?”
“Mantra, you of all people should understand what I’m trying to say.”
“You need to calm down and tell me what happened and why you feel the way you do about your parents.”
“Don’t try the therapist crap on me.”
“Yash, what the heck are you saying?” She lost it.
“I’m saying I want you to talk to me as my girlfriend and not my therapist… I need no fucking therapist.”
“Your girlfriend can’t help you, you need professional help,” she raised her voice.
“Bullshit.”
Mantra took a deep breath to calm herself down. “Yash, my parents and I may have disagreed, but I do not hate them.”
“I hate my parents because they were selfish. They were ready to stoop to any level for my future as a neurosurgeon.”
“Yash, they are your parents. What do you expect them to do?”
“Are you saying they were right to do what it took to keep my future secure?” His eyes widened in disbelief.
“Yes, how can you blame them for wanting the best for you? You were good at what you were doing.”
“Stop it. I can’t deal with this anymore. Are you going to call them or not?”
“I am not calling them.” She held her chin high.
He looked at her for a long moment. “I was right to think therapists were useless. You have no way to fix things.”
“Shut up, Yash. Not another word.” Mantra turned away from him and reached for her backpack. She could not bear the sight of him anymore. She walked out of the living room and went to her car.
She drove out of the parking lot a few minutes later, angry tears rolling down her cheeks.
He proved to be a total asshole.
*****
Mantra had a difficult time getting out of bed. She felt sore all over, and all she could think about was hiding under the sheets. It was the third day she had felt this way. She walked away from Yash's house Saturday night and had been fighting tears every moment as she refused to shed a tear for him.
Asshole! Always was, her mind was on drugs to ignore it.
