Us Against the World

36. A Passionate Reunion

I made a mistake to let Chandini get the mail.

A couple of months have passed since Chandini's pregnancy announcement. Riya calls every day, checking up on us and updating us on her pending arrival. She still hasn't managed to convince Mausa and Mausi to join her in America, and no matter how many times I tell her it's not going to work, she doesn't listen. I can't burst her bubble, though, so I let her continue to live in her futile fantasy.

Chandini, meanwhile, has been adjusting to homeschooling. It's not as hard as I thought it would be, though, and even though it costs a bit more (and causes me to stay at the office longer), she seems happy with it. Of course, both of our social lives are destroyed due to the stress of the baby's arrival, but surprisingly, it hasn't affected Chandini as much as I thought it would. Being a social queen, Chandini feeds off Instagram likes and comments from her peers at school. It's like a drug to her. However, she's adjusted quickly to virtual learning.

I, unfortunately, am a different story.

"Marcello's becoming a living nightmare, I swear," Ezra rants to me over the phone one day. The humid spring air seeps through the open windows of the hallway from the door that Chandini has left open. "Everyone in this goddamn place is. It's hell, Meera."

"I can imagine." I lay on the couch in front of the fan, soaking up the cool breeze as I multitask on my laptop. "Ashleigh's being a pain too. Ever since I took up extra hours at the office, she's been giving me more work to handle."

"She's a worrier, just like you," Ezra laughs huskily. "Hopefully the workload ends soon, on both fronts. I'd like for this shit to be over with."

"What's happening in your company, again?"

"Some mergers going awry," Ezra lazily complains. "Nothing to worry about. We've been having some connection issues as well, but I have my IT department working on that. Hopefully, they fix the problem soon."

"Funny, Ashleigh's having the same problem," I murmur. "She hasn't explicitly stated what's wrong with the main computers, but I know that something's up."

"The servers have been down after that storm last week," Ezra notes calmly. He yawns. "Sorry, my love. You're not boring me. I'm just...tired."

"It's okay. I understand," I say. "I'm tired too...and I miss you."

He chuckles. "I miss you too," he murmurs. "I want to see you soon, Meera."

"I do too, and I hope time will allow us to do that soon," I say, moistening my lips. "How's Aceline? I haven't spoken to her in a while."

"She's doing fine," Ezra replies. "She's been hanging out with Felix. I thought that you talk to her at work?"

I sigh. "With everything going on, I haven't gotten many chances to talk to her." My phone begins to beep, warning me of an incoming call. Riya. "Hey, my cousin is calling. Can I call you back another time?"

"Of course!" Ezra sounds like he's rummaging through his desk. Miscellaneous voices can be heard in the background; probably his IT crew updating him. "I'll talk to you later, love."

"Yeah. Love you." I cut the call and accept Riya's notification. "Hey, what's up?"

"What's up yourself," Riya laughs. "What are you doing? How's the little brat doing?"

"Fine." I crane my neck toward the open door. "I'm tired, but Chandini's doing okay. She's adjusting to the new changes in our lives, and I think she's getting excited about the new baby."

"That's a surprise," Riya snorts. "What about you? Ready to meet Chandini 2.0."

"Please, I have a couple of months left," I scoff. "How about you? By the time you come here, I'm sure we'll have the new company around too."