Devakshi One-shots/Drabbles/Short stories

The Lost Years (Part 4)

The Lost Years, continued here.....

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Dev stood up throwing the blanket away and stretched. He had slept on the sofa in the living room of his farmhouse again last night. His back was killing him. This won't do, he told himself as he turned his neck, trying to get the kink out. He needed to make sure he got to his bed every night. That was important, if he wanted to get rid of this body pain. There was only one problem.

His bed reminded him of her and he was trying to forget everything about her. He had thrown away all the sheets she had slept in, but her scent remained. He tried the bedroom in the farmhouse, where she hadn't been in ages. But her scent was there too. He booked himself a hotel room and her scent lingered there as well, that sweet strawberry fragrance, inviting him. He was having a hard time sleeping anywhere at all. No matter where he went, his mind conjured up her image, her voice, her scent, her presence. His friend, Bunty had come to cheer him up and dragged him to a movie. Turned out it was some Sonakshi Sinha film. He walked out of the theater in a huff. It was like the universe was conspiring to make sure he doesn't move on, as hard as he might try. It was frustrating. So, he drowned himself in alcohol. Maybe once his senses became numb, he won't be so sensitive to everything Sonakshi.

He bent over to touch his feet to ease the backpain when he heard a rumbling sound. Dev looked around to find the source, before realizing it was his own stomach, calling out in hunger. When had he last eaten anything? Probably an apple the morning before. He needed to find some food.

He walked over to the refrigerator, opened it. There was bread and ingredients to make a sandwich. Tina must have come sometime and stocked the place up. He grabbed the loaf and kicked the door close. As he sliced a tomato, he couldn't help but think of his mother. She wouldn't like him trying to fix his own meal. He thought about the day he had last visited her, a month ago.

                                                                                       

It had been a few months since he separated from Sonakshi. He visited home every now and then, mainly to check on his mother. It was an effort, he had to try and become sober before seeing her and that accentuated his heartache. Not that being drunk helped him forget Sona in any way. Still.

Ma had been thrilled to see him after so long, immediately deciding to make him an elaborate lunch complete with halwa. After his outburst where he had told her off, their relationship had stagnated. She kept searching for her little boy Dev and he wanted to tell her, that Dev was lost now.

Dev had looked around slowly at his family, as they chatted on with him as well as among themselves. Nikki was on her phone, texting and giggling. Neha seemed oddly content, as if life was finally giving her whatever she wanted. He wondered what that was and how she came about it. He was informed that there was a new family asking for Riya's hand. Riya liked the guy and everyone was hoping this would work, that Riya would be married and live happily forever. He hoped so too. Vicky and Elena were signaling something to one other, smiling, lost in their own world. Elena was pregnant, in her third trimester and obviously showing now. Dev had always wanted a baby, a tiny symbol of his and Sonakshi's love. That dream was irrevocably broken. But he was truly glad for Vicky and Elena. At least their desires were fructifying. Vicky was also taking care of a lot of things around the office in his absence, serving as his proxy, although he didn't trust the guy's judgement one bit. He has also wondered if Elena thought of her family, of Sonakshi?

His mother and aunt had been discussing how many parathas they had already prepared and how many more were needed, while his uncle was passing some snarky comment on his wife. His uncle and aunt bickered endlessly, but he could see there was compatibility between them. Did he and Sona ever have that? He thought they did. Then what happened? How had they failed so miserably?