Devakshi One-shots/Drabbles/Short stories

Building bridges (Part 5)

It was a cloudy day, grey and dull. By the time Dev and Sonakshi dropped Suhana at school, it started to rain.

"Why don't you wait here? I will get the car and pick you up at the entrance." Dev told her. She watched him go, as she waited at the entrance of the school.

It had been a few months since their date at that resort. They talked a lot now, just like their early days of courting when conversation used to be the main part of their meeting. In the past few weeks, they had both aired all their grievances against each other, the hurt, the betrayal, the anger, the love, the hate, the loneliness, the pain. It had been a relief, soothing and tender. Like the wound was finally healing, the pain fading away into obscurity.

Her parents had been asking the status of their relationship, she always said that they were working on it. She herself wondered what that meant. She and Dev were doing everything together, yet weren't exactly together. They were in a zone of uncertainty in their relationship. No, she corrected herself. He wasn't uncertain. In fact, he was very clear about his desires, his intentions. He never failed to make his love known. It was her. She did love Dev and she wanted him. Then what was holding her back? That final commitment really scared her. She had done it before and when they broke up, it had been very tough to heal. What if he leaves her again? Will she be able to deal with heartbreak one more time? As much as she knew she wanted to take a leap of faith and give her all, she refrained. She wondered if there would come a moment when she would simply know.

He brought the car around and she got in.

"Could you drop me home? I have to take care of some work before office." Sonakshi asked.

"Yes sure."

"You are preoccupied."

"I have this merger happening with a start-up and that is just weighing on me." As they hit traffic, he proceeded to tell her all about the start-up, the number of employees he had to assimilate, the decision to keep or let-go of people, the financial and legal aspects of it. She was nodding politely listening to him when his phone rang. It was his PA. Sonakshi watched him as he talked business with his employee and realized she had never seen him in action before. Sure, he had been her boss but at his home, not his office. Sure, they shared an office, where she had seen him delegate work and go to meetings and conferences, but had never been in those meetings to see him function. This side of him, where he got down to the nitty-gritties of his work with his staff was something she hadn't been exposed to much, even during their short-married time. He was serious, focused and diligent in his questioning as she could hear his PA hustle to answer and get things ready. His eyebrows were furrowed in concentration, as he navigated the traffic while ironing out details for his upcoming meeting. She was fascinated watching that vein on his temple, his jaw, the way he was using his hands.

He cut the call and turned to her. "Hey I need to get a file from my place urgently. It's on the way to your house, so is it okay if we stop to get my file first?"

"Sure."

Dev pulled into the parking garage of his building and Sonakshi stepped out. This place was posh, rich. It screamed money, with the glass panels, tall vines, security, water fountains and abstract art fixtures.

"Is this your apartment, where you stayed these years?" She looked around. It was the first time she had come here.

"Yes. Come on in." He used his key to unlock the door, holding it open to let her in. "I won't be long. Make yourself comfortable." He went inside into a room that she assumed was his study or work area.

She wandered around the place Dev called his 'home' for all these years. No, he never called it 'home'. He called it his 'apartment'. It was very airy and expansive. The walls were light colored with giant glass windows letting in tons of sunlight. She could see an interior designer had been hired to furnish this place. It was tastefully furnished with a tan couch, a matching recliner and a glass center table where magazines and other papers were spread around. A giant screen TV was mounted on the opposite wall. There were paintings decorating the walls, but nothing very personal. No family pictures. Not even of his mother. The living room opened into a marble kitchen, maintained spotlessly. The coffee maker was used extensively, as was obvious.