The Marriage Contract

25 - Team No Sleep

Akshara wasn't going to be home tonight. She was going to be volunteering at the community centre for camp night sleepover with the kids. Akshara wasn't going to be home tonight. She was going to be volunteering at the community centre for camp night sleepover with the kids. Akshara wasn't going to be home...

Abhimanyu's brain chanted the two lines like a mantra as he walked in the bland, white corridors of Birla Hospital towards his cabin. First of all, he didn't even know Akshara volunteered at the community centre. All he had been told was that she worked as a waitress, a job she had long since quit, before she decided to sign up with the agency.

See! These are some of the things you should have asked her, you doofus!, his brain reprimanded him. But oh yeah, he'd been too busy worried about her not being home for the night rather than be concerned about asking logical questions. But why? Why was he even worried about where Akshara went, or what she did? Shouldn't he just be happy, elated actually, that he'd get a sense of semblance back to the old pre-contract Abhimanyu?

"Morning sir." His intern or rather pseudo assistant who'd signed herself up to be his girl Friday walked up to him.

"Morning, Alisha." Abhimanyu mumbled, his brain starting to pound either because of a) his lack of morning coffee he hadn't drank yet or b) because he was going slightly crazy in the head regarding the whole Akshara ordeal for tonight.

"Sir, do you want me to grab you, your coffee and breakfast in your cabin?" She asked diligently, her voice chirping in his head like those annoying morning birds that wouldn't shut up.

"No, I got it." Abhimanyu replied curtly, pointing to the cup of coffee and sandwich in his hand.

"Oh." She sounded disappointed.

"Go get on with your morning duties, Alisha. No need to wait on me anymore."

"Okay, sir." Alisha replied hesitantly, confused by Abhimanyu's sudden change in behaviour. Where was the fun, flirty Abhimanyu Birla she was used to dealing with every morning? This man —the city's notorious playboy who peeked a mischievous, seductive glance at every girl hadn't even bothered to look at her.

"Is there something else you needed from me?" Abhimanyu asked, a hint of annoyance and grumpiness flickering from his voice as he glanced at Alisha.

"No. No, nothing, sir." Wow, he really did seem to be in a bad mood today.

"Okay, then get going then." Abhimanyu urged her, just wanting some peace and quiet for himself.

Alisha nodded her head and walked away, but not before glancing back at Abhimanyu with furrowed brows and confusion marring her face as she watched him step inside his cabin.

~*~

It was around 9pm when Abhimanyu walked into his very empty apartment. Just yesterday it had been filled with the aroma of spices being tempered and the sounds of Akshara strolling around the place. But today, it was just vacant.

The entire day, he had tried shifting his mind from Akshara's absence from their apartment to focus on his patients. And truthfully, he had succeeded, up until the time he had to make his way back home.

But why should he care?

He could make do without Akshara. He had been doing fine before he met her. He could very well do fine without her now too.

~*~

Abhimanyu finished slipping into his pajamas after his shower just in time for him to hear the doorbell ring. Food. Food was here. Abhimanyu strolled over to the front door, grabbed his box of pizza from the delivery boy and left him with an extravagant tip.