I Am Guilty

34. Guest?

Arjun stirred in his sleep. Tender strokes on his scalp were soothing him and pulled him back to sleep.
He turned over to find himself sleeping on the bed. He slowly opened his eyes to find his wife smiling at him.

He sighed deeply and sat up to lean his back on the headboard.

"Hungry?" Mitra asked pushing his unruly hair back from his forehead.

He grabbed her hand gently and kissed the inner of her palm.

"I am sorry, Mitra!" His voice was troubled.

"For what?" She asked surprised.

"It's just the third day of our wedding and you had to go through so much."

Mitra looked him in his eyes.
"You too, went through a lot, Arjun. And you deserve none of that. I hope you understand that too."

Arjun looked away. "I can't help it."

"Yes, you can." She replied without a beat.

Arjun pursed his lips and looked at her with furrowed eyebrows. He knew what she had to offer.

She entangled their fingers and kissed his upturned palm.
"You were so carefree, Arjun. Yes, you were missing a vital part of your life, but you still were happy. I always knew, you missed your family. But I could still say that you were not compelled to do something that you didn't wish to. You were yourself, and no one judged you for that."

Arjun blinked at her and gulped hard. He knew she was right and he had no words to contradict her. He rubbed his toes on each other to distract himself.

Mitra tightened her enclasped fingers.
"Come back with me, Arjun."

Arjun did not raise his eyes to look at her. He knew it was a lost case. He did not anymore know what he wanted and what was good for him. He knew Mitra was right, but he also knew, his father would not let him go easily. Being an orthodox family, Mitra was expected to stay with his family in Mumbai. But he could understand that Mitra had a huge business to run, along with her father.

Mitra waited for him to respond, but he was lost in his own thoughts. She gently cupped his face and turned him to look at her.
"It's time for me to leave. Come with me. Let the things settle down. I am sure, they will accept you with a happy heart when you decide to come back. Everyone is emotionally troubled now. Give them some time to cool down. You can always come back... Whenever you want."

Arjun blinked at her. His features turned hard.
"It's not easy, Mitra. In fact, they would want you to stay too. They... You know..."

Arjun found himself unprepared to break the fact that she too was expected to stay with her in-laws, like in every Indian family.

Mitra blinked at him. She pursed her lips for a moment and waited for him to continue. But, soon she realized that he would not say more. She entangled their hands and Arjun was taken aback.

"Why don't you take a nice warm shower? Lunch is ready. I will give a head massage, it will help you to sleep and fight off the fatigue. You still look tired."

Arjun blinked at her retreating figure with sinking heart as she left without letting him reply. He sighed and dragged himself to the bathroom.

When Mitra came back to the room, Arjun was in a clean pair of sleeveless vest and lounge shorts. He was settled on the sofa with a faraway look focused on the wall in front of him.
She sat beside him and he looked at her and then at the food in the tray.

She smiled when he unconsciously licked his lips.

"Why did you bring it here? I will eat with everyone." He said, tearing his eyes from the food.