Eternally Yours

Chapter 9

As the morning rays entered the room, Nandini blinked her eyes tiredly as she patted Aarav while feeding him. Due to the pain in his gums, he had kept waking up every hour at night, making it extremely hard for Nandini to even sleep a wink the whole night. She didn't wake up Manik since he had an important presentation to give at the office, for which he had been working extremely hard the past few days and without sleep he would be exhausted at work.

When Aarav went back to sleep, Nandini unlatched him and settled her bra before she lowered the kurti. Sitting up, she tied her hair in a loose bum as she looked for her slippers on the floor and wore them. Getting up, she held onto the bed post as a sudden wave of drowsiness hit her.

Pouring some water in the glass, she drank it before walking to the washroom slowly. After she peed, while washing her hands, she looked at the mirror, noticing the dark circles under her eyes before her gaze moved down to the small bulge where a life was still growing inside her. It had been two weeks since the news. Her hand moved to her stomach, her thumb caressing it involuntarily.

Realizing what she was doing she immediately moved her hand away. They were still going for the abortion but since the doctor was not in town they had to wait for a few weeks before the treatment started. Since she had monitored Nandini during Aarav's pregnancy and this pregnancy involved complications, so Manik didn't want to take any risk by taking her to any other doctor for abortion treatment.

After showering, she dressed in a loose cotton suit and woke up Manik before she walked downstairs to the small temple they had built in house. Finishing her morning prayer, she went to prepare morning tea for her in laws along with Manik and her own. A few minutes later, the rich aroma filled around as she poured the hot liquid in four cups. Going to her in laws room, she greeted them while handing over the cups before carrying over the tray to their room.

By the time she entered, Manik had brushed his teeth and was sitting on the bed. Placing the tray on the bed, she handed over his mug to him and sat in front of him on the bed with her own cup. They silently had their tea as Manik was busy going through something on his phone while Nandini was lost in her own world. However, she snapped out as Aarav's shrill cries rang out.

Manik picked him up but Aarav raised his arms towards Nandini. Keeping her mug aside, she leaned forward and grabbed him. His hand fisted her dupatta, whining as his head lowered towards her chest. Laying him in her lap, Nandini took off the dupatta and as he dug his face in her bosom, she pulled him off slightly to raise the kurti, making him throw his arms and legs in frustration while she gently assured, "Doh minute mere bache."

(Just two minutes.)

As soon as she had her kurti up, Aarav latched onto her breast, suckling the milk hungrily. Even though she drank the tea while feeding Aarav, she felt her body draining off energy since she had been feeding him occasionally the whole night and now in morning too without a single morsel. Although, she had started shifting him to food but he still relied heavily on her breastmilk and she wasn't going to forcefully stop it until he was a year and a half atleast. She usually didn't had any problem feeding him but the pregnancy wasn't helping her out, her body unable to function properly as it basically nourished two children at once.

When she placed the empty cup back, Manik looked up as she suddenly placed Aarav on the bed, making him cry aloud while she rushed to the washroom. Getting up, he followed her to the bathroom as she retched in the toilet bowl. He patted her back as she heaved, her eyes tearing up in pain before she breathed deeply as she leaned against the wall. Hearing Aarav's loud cries echoing in the room, Nandini whispered, "I can't bear this anymore. I'll die like this, Manik. Just get this done with."

"Shh. I'll call the doctor today. She will be returning today or tomorrow most probably," Manik assured, making Nandini nod before he helped her get up from floor. Washing her mouth and face, she walked to Aarav, taking care of him while Manik got ready for his office.