What A Beautiful Face She Has

Appreciation

Mathew's POV:

After a few weeks...

"Hey Stella," I yelled, but she didn’t come out.
I called her again, still no response.
Enna panra lo? Sethutha pola.
(What is she doing? Did she die or what?)

I opened her room’s door without knocking, only to find her talking to someone.

"Hey, are you deaf? Whom are you talking to?"

She didn’t even glance at me and continued speaking in a professional tone.

"Yes, sir. I’ll complete the articles and send them to you tonight. Thank you for your patience," she said and hung up the video call.

Then, she looked at me.

"Mathew, don’t you have the basic etiquette to knock before entering? And in spite of seeing I was on a call, why would you talk like that?" she asked.

"I don’t care about all that. Today my friends are coming. Keep the food ready, and please don’t show your face to them. I’m ashamed to say that I have..."

"Fat, ugly wife," she completed.

I raised my eyebrows.
She’s become smart.

"When you don’t want me to show my face to your friends, why do you want me to cook for them? I can’t," she said.

Oh, ipolam thimiru adhigam ayiduchu, ivazhuku.
(She’s become so arrogant lately.)

"Hey, shut up and do what I say."

"I can’t. I’m busy today. Ennaku freelancing work iruku, so stop disturbing me."
(I have freelancing work.)

"Don’t test my patience. I don’t give a damn about your work. Naan solradhu sei."
(Just do what I say.)

"Okay," she said.

"Good," I said and went inside the bathroom to take a quick shower.

Ipolam edhirthu edhirthu pesura.
(Now she talks back for everything.)

After the shower, I came out and looked at myself in the mirror.
I was shocked.

Thoppai vandhuruche. Dark circles kuda. Cha, what the heck is wrong with my body?
(I’ve got a belly now. Even dark circles. Ugh!)

From tomorrow, I’ll go to the gym and start maintaining my body.

I got ready and came out of the room, looking for her.
She was nowhere to be found.

"Stella?" I searched in the garden and, kitchen, nowhere.

I went to her room to check if she had taken her phone and thought of calling her.
That’s when I noticed a text:

"Sorry, Mathew. I cannot cook for your friends as you said you’re feeling embarrassed to introduce me to them. I’m not your maid to do all your chores and get slammed. Also, I’m busy with my office work. Since you weren’t listening to my words, I’m going. Message me after your friends leave, so I don’t make you feel embarrassed in front of them."

I closed my eyes in frustration.

Idiot, I muttered under my breath.

I ordered food for my friends and waited.

Finally, Ranjith, Abdul, and Sanjay arrived.
They’ve been my close friends since college. Ranjith and Sanjay live in Mussoorie, and Abdul lives in Mangalore.

We started chatting.

"Hey, you got married, right? Where’s your wife, da? Call her," Abdul said.

"No da, she’s gone out," I said.