Loving You

Chapter 27 - Akshara - Breakfast in Bed

I ran my hand along Abhimanyu's side of the bed, seeking him out, but came up to empty space. Confused, I sleepily furrowed my brows and slowly opened my eyes to see where my boyfriend —yes —boyfriend —Dr Abhimanyu Birla was my boyfriend now —was.

"You're awake!" The huskiness of his voice brought me back to life as I turned around and faced the bedroom entrance to see him walking in carrying a small makeshift table along with him.

"Hey you." I whispered back, trying to stifle a yawn as I sat up in the bed. "And what is this?" I asked, as he laid the tray table in front of me and unraveled the lid.

On the tray was a stack of fluffy pancakes with a smiley face decorated using two halved strawberries as the eyes, a blueberry as a nose and whipped cream was used to write Sorry, messily, curved up in the form of a smile.

I looked up at Abhimanyu, my eyes glistening with unshed tears and my heart filled with an abundance of joy and pride.

"It's a small sorry from my side." He replied, unsure of himself.

"Small? I can see at least 5 big sorries" I jested, counting the stack of 5 pancakes. "But what for?" I probed, knowing the reason all too well but still wanting to hear it from him.

"For yesterday night. For standing you up. I shouldn't have done that. I didn't want to. But..."

"But your duty comes first." I finished the sentence for him, giving him an understanding smile.

"And I know you like tea. Adrak wali chai but I didn't know how to make it but I followed along with a YouTube tutorial. And I know it won't be as good as yours..."

"I'm sure it will be great. Because you made it." I replied back, interrupting him underestimating himself.

For a man of a few words, Abhimanyu talked like a bullet train when he wanted to. Or maybe just when he was nervous.

Or maybe he talked like that just when he was with me.

I moved the tray aside and patted the mattress. Abhimanyu took a deep breath and sat down on the mattress. "And I also brought a glass of orange juice in case you didn't like the tea." He added, nervously.

I covered his hand with mine, gently stroking it. "Abhimanyu..."

"Abhi. Call me Abhi. You can call me Abhi. Only you."

"Okay...Abhi. Please relax. I'm not mad about yesterday or angry. And you have nothing to apologize for. I figured you got held up for an emergency and I didn't mind it at all. You know why?" I asked, giving him an soft smile.

"Why?" He asked, innocently.

"Because I know you would have been by my side, taking me on that date, if you could. I wasn't mad because I know how much your patients mean to you. In fact I understand wholeheartedly what being a doctor means to you. Your surgeries, your appointments, your expert consultations, your interns. Everything. They give you a purpose to live. A purpose to wake up every morning. And I would never be angry at you for choosing something that means the world to you over me."

"Akshara..."

"Wait. I'm not done yet. And I know yesterday wasn't the last day either. There will be many more days like yesterday where you would be standing me up, skipping out on our plans, becoming busy doing one thing or the other and I am totally fine with that."

I held both of his hands in mine, gripping them tightly as I gently caressed his palms with my thumb. "I'm fine with because I know that my boyfriend —you —are out there, helping a heart beat."