Discordance

Chapter Twenty-Two

In her sleep, Akshara had felt Abhimanyu switch out the hot water bag for her multiple times throughout the night and when she had woken up properly, she had found him sleeping on the floor, his hand in hers and his head resting next to her on the bed. Who did he think he was to make her feel like this? Nobody had ever done this for her, she wasn't even sure the last time someone had revolved their entire being around her welfare. She wasn't sure what possessed her to reach out her hand and stroke his hair softly. So rare was it for her to wake up while he was still asleep that she always wanted to take the opportunity to study him like a specimen.

Her interaction with men was generally limited to her brothers who while growing up were randy, wild, loud and annoying like brothers mostly are and while they cared about her, it was nowhere close to what Abhimanyu had shown in the past few days or the month. All she had heard about men was from the numerous abuse victims they harbored at the shelter so her viewpoint of men overall tended to err on the side of caution. But Abhimanyu even when so angry at her had never been like what the men, shelter women described to be as. She was not going to excuse his behavior when he yelled at her and made her feel ugly, unwanted and scared for days on end in his vicinity, but he had shown her this sweet caring side and it had unlocked something in her heart.

"Hey" he mumbled and the sweet relaxed smile he gave her caused her blood to sing. When she began to pull her hand away from his scalp he grumbled loudly making her smile and continue her massage.

"You slept on the floor all night, why didn't you just come up on the bed" she asked, she had been wondering about it for a while, her realization shocked her that she wouldn't have minded sharing the bed with him, she felt safe with him.

"oh umm I-" he spluttered making Akshara giggle but then he immediately tensed up. grabbing her hand and asking her if it was still hurting?

"No, just a little sore and my back hurts but it's not too bad" she whispered and he immediately jumped up rushing to the bathroom making her wonder what was going on.

"Come on" he said after a while as he scooped her up once again ignoring her protests, only letting her go when they reached the bathroom where he had drawn a bath for her, steam still wafting from the surface. "I've added some essential oils which should help. I want to give you meds but you'll have to eat first ok?" he asked and when she nodded he turned around and left her alone to undress. Akshara stood at the same spot for a bit still reeling from his actions, she tried so hard to unpack all the emotions rising inside her but she couldn't quite place a finger on what it was. This seemed to be beyond friendship but she had no experience to classify it as something else.

By the time she got dressed in some comfy clothes, he had already brought up a plate for her making sure she ate before he handed her the medicine, watching over her until she had gulped it down. The moment she put her foot down from the bed to begin to get her things, he was there next to her looming over her.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked indignantly, and his tone was so sharp from what he had used on her in a long long time that she involuntarily flinched. She regretted it the moment a flash of guilt crossed his face.

"Fuck, I am so sorry monkey, I wasn't angry at you I was just worried that you were going to go to work after barely getting any rest and being in this much pain" he looked more mad at himself as he said it and Akshara had to hurriedly do something or he would continue spiraling like he had been doing the last couple of days.

Grabbing his hand she pulled him down to sit next to her "I'm not going to work. I'll work from here ok? I know you weren't yelling at me, please stop. I dislike guilty Abhimanyu more than I dislike angry Abhimanyu" she whispered but when he didn't say anything she looped one of her hands through his bicep and rested her head on his shoulder. "I'm ok." Finally he rested his head on top of hers, interlacing her other hand with his, "I know, I just worry about you."