• Second Chances •

5. Harsh truths

"You are kidding right?" asked Ram as he stared at Brinda's serious face. 

Brinda crossed her arms and stared back. "You seriously think that I would kid about such stuff?" 

Ram's body heated up. There was mild ringing in his ears and his heart was pounding. What he had heard couldn't be wrong because Brinda and Aditya were saying it. They were seldom wrong. But if it wasn't wrong, then what were the consequences going to be?

He blindly reached for the tablet box but Brinda stopped him. "Did you have a pill before coming here?" 

Ram numbly nodded and stammered. "Y...yes..." 

Brinda snatched the box from his hands. She hid it behind her back and out of Ram's reach. "You are not getting a pill for the next eight hours at least." 

"Yaar..." Ram couldn't even get proper words out of his mouth. He was sure he heard himself make a foolish, whining sound but it was fine. It was just Brinda and Aditya in front of him. They had seen much worse from him. He looked at Aditya and fidgeted with the paperweight. "Tell your wife to behave. I want a pill." 

Aditya rolled his eyes. "Well, no. You need to behave."  

"What the hell!" Ram threw his head back on the couch. He knew that he looked like a toddler throwing a tantrum right now but he didn't care. He tried to bargain with Brinda. "Okay. Half a pill please?" 

She remained adamant. "No. And no means no. Get it?" 

Ram's head hurt and he groaned. Aditya sighed and sat down beside him. He kept a hand on Ram's knee and said, "Listen, I know how you feel. But we need to deal with this calmly. Popping pills is not going to help." 

"Yes, jaan..." Brinda put a comforting hand on his chest. "And you need to remember that whatever you decide, both of us are going to be with you. Always."

"Yes, always!" 

Ram's eyes went towards the door. Vikrant and Kunal smiled at him. He walked towards the couch and settled in front of him. 

"Ram, we just got to know about Shivina..." said Vikrant solemnly. "Brinda told us. It's okay. We will find a way out of this. Don't worry." 

"How?" Ram held his head. "How am I going to find a way out of this? She is pregnant for god's sake. Now, she can't marry Sid. But more than that...Shivina never told me that she liked someone else. It is clear that she does not trust me at all. If Brinda had not overheard Mom's and her conversation, I would have never come to know about this." 

Brinda inched closer to Ram. "Ram. Relax! I am sure Shivina trusts you a lot but this is a sensitive topic and something that a girl does not tell her brother. She didn't even tell Shubham so please don't beat yourself over it. You just think how to deal with Shashi now." 

Kunal nodded. "We don't even know if she is pregnant for real. These instant tests are apparently not reliable."

"Oh they are not!" agreed Vikrant. "They are almost always wrong." 

"How do you know?" asked Brinda.

"Oh of all people, Vikrant would know this!" said Aditya smugly.

"Shut up!" chided Vikrant. 

"Guys!" Ram said a little loudly, diverting their attention back to him. "Focus on my problem please." 

"Oh yes..." Brinda looped her arm with Ram and rubbed it. "Okay now listen to me carefully. Please don't tell Nandini Aunty or Shivina or Shubham that you know. Let's see if they tell you or not. I know that they are checking at a clinic so let's also wait for a result. But meanwhile, we need to find out the guy Shivina really likes." 

"Yes," Ram nodded briskly. "I can't let this marriage happen knowing that Shivina loves someone enough to have a physical relationship with. I need to find out who this guy is..." 

"We!" Vikrant smiled at Ram. "Listen Bhai, you chill. We will sort this out. We will find out who this guy is." 

Ram smiled at all of them gratefully. "Thank you." 

"Haan bade manners aa gaye hai tujh mein ab..." Aditya laughed. "Thank you and all." 

It made Ram smile a little. If there was anything good in his life then it was these four people in his life. No problem, no issue felt too big when they all were together. In his heart, he knew that they were his only family; his true family. His eyes misted over. 

"Aww come on!" Brinda cooed near his ear. She pressed a tissue over his hot eyelid. "Don't cry now. We all are going to sort this out. Yeah?" 

"Yeah..." Ram repeated. 

**********************************

"What?" Priya snarled at Akshay. "Are you kidding me?" 

Sandy made a face. "Kind of. He has definitely made a kid with someone." 

Akshay hit her lightly on the head but Priya's lid blew up. "It's not funny Sandy! And how dare you Akki? Just...how could you?" 

"I..." Akshay tried to reason. "We didn't know that this would happen!" 

"That's what usually happens after intercourse Bhaiya! How could you not know?" sneered Sandy. "See this is why sex education is so important." 

"Sandy!" yelled Priya. "Shut up!" 

She then turned towards Akshay. "I am so ashamed of you, Akshay. First, you have this secret relationship that you tell no one about. Then you have also slept with this girl. It does not end there. You have also made her pregnant. And worse, you have dumped her. I think all the men in this family are just...they are vile and classic assholes. I thought that you were better but clearly, I was wrong. You are just as bad! Congratulations! You proved me wrong!" 

"Priya!" Meera clicked her tongue. "Beta, relax." 

"I know!" Akshay nodded in agreement. He looked dazed by Priya's words. He took a moment to frame his thoughts and said, "And Di, listen to me. We had mutually decided to break up. I never dumped her. And yes, we got physical but she never told me that she was expecting until today. As soon as I came to know, I took her to the clinic. She was the one who went ahead with her decision to marry Sid. I had just told her that I wanted to settle down in my career first before marrying. Nothing else. I have truly loved her. Please do not misunderstand me. If she is pregnant, I am going to talk with her family and get back with her." 

Priya stared at her and Akshay could see a few signs of her softening. He took her hands in his. "Please. Believe me, Di! I am not like the other men of this family. I mean...please." 

Priya sighed. "Fine. But I need to meet this girl. I want to talk with her." 

"We are getting the reports tomorrow. If you want, I can bring her here..." said Akshay. 

"Okay," Priya got up and walked towards her room. "Bring her." 

With that, she slammed the door shut behind her. Okay, her assessment of the situation was too drastic but she stood on her ground. All men did irresponsible and stupid things. All men did crazy, mean things and then held the women responsible for it. Akshay was no different. He could have a career and a marriage at the same time. What was so difficult about it? Her head had turned hot. She lied down on the bed and closed her eyes to calm herself down. 

Was there going to be a day when she didn't have to worry about anything? Was there ever going to be an hour when issues didn't crop up? She wryly chuckled. No. The answer would always remain a no. It was never going to change. Never.