Silence was never their thing, but tonight two short-tempered boys were serenely gazing at the half-moon resting above the thick murky black clouds, watching them from above with a tainted smile. Sameer glanced at his brother-in-law for a nanosecond before offering him the same tormenting silence, fiddling with the buttoned-up sleeves of his crisp ironed deep-sea blue shirt.
"Will you please tell me, why are we standing here?" Prashant asked him as coolly as he could.
"Yes yes! I will...but before that. You have to tell me one thing honestly." Sameer's fluency in English while responding to his question influenced the hot-headed doctor, and he hummed with a stoic expression.
"Tumhari life me aai baba aur Naina ko chod kar sabse important kaun hai?" He asked him with a small smile while resting his elbow above the railings, his half-tilted posture pressing against the dusted black iron pipes.
"Of course, my daughter. Pari." It didn't take Prashant a second to reply to him with a soft smile on his face.
"That's great...aur uske baad?" Sameer questioned in a gentle voice.
"My profession," Prashant said normally, unable to decipher what his sister's husband was trying to know.
Sameer shook his head in disbelief while running his tongue inside his mouth, his fingers clutching the iron fencing to refrain from saying anything offensive.
"What about Pranali vaini? Don't you love her?" Coming straight to the point. Sameer asked his wife's brother with neutral eyes, although he had a controlled storm waiting inside him to burst.
Prashant's curious eyes turned feeble and full of guilt within a moment when Her name was mentioned out of nowhere, and he said in a low voice - "I love her the most."
"Jhoot," Sameer claimed with a lopsided smile, triggering the angry young man's resentment.
"Kya jhoot? I love her, I love her so much." Prashant tried to be polite and smooth while expressing his strong, intense feelings for his wife, his muscles tightening at seeing Sameer's bitter expression.
"Oh really? But maine toh suna hai ki jise hum pyaar karte hai unhe hum kabhi akela nahi chodte, na rone dete hai, aur na hi unhe yeh feel karwate hai ki unki koi importance nahi hai humari life me." Sameer said or rather taunted him in a tranquil voice, comfortably leaning against the railings to watch Him becoming colorless.
Prashant veered away, recalling the harsh and stinging words he said to Pranali in every argument they had. Remembering the times she slept crying for him, because of him, because of his irrevocable ego, because of his uncontrollable tongue, and there are immeasurable things he did to hurt her despite knowing he shouldn't have said those criticizing and discourteous things in the fit of extreme rage.
"I think you shouldn't interfere in our matter," Prashant said ruefully with his all-time emotionless eyes looking teary for the first time in his life.
When he started to walk away to avoid any discomfort, Sameer played the smart trick on the hot-headed doctor, saying with a slow smile, though inviting the beast lying inside him - "Actually tumne na meri aankhein khol di, Prashant. Main bhi aaj ke baad Naina ke saath same behave karuga, just like you, agar woh royegi toh main so jauga, agar humare bich kabhi jhagda hua toh sorry woh khud bolegi. Main nahi, kyuki mujhe pata hai main chahe kitna bhi rude ho jau, disrespectfully baat karu. Naina aakhir jayegi kaha mujhe chod kar?"
Prashant immediately clenched his fists while grinding his teeth, blood pumping out of his visible veins as he replayed the aggravating words of his sister's husband, his eyes darkening with pure abomination for the sinful man planning to hurt his fragile little girl. He turned back, scathingly looking at relaxed Sameer, his feet frantically approaching him to break his jaws, and his whole self hyperventilating with the thickness of sweat. As his calloused hands grabbed Sameer's shirt collars, unalterable indignation permeated the air with the latter's orbs glistening in utter amusement.
