Manasi, Maitree, and Rudra were sitting at a café at a round table with Maitree and Rudra close together and Manasi opposite them. Maitree had an uneasy smile as she looked over at Rudra and then back at Manasi, who was pouring sugar into her coffee.
"Aunty," Rudra murmured, noticing Maitree's discomfort.
"Sorry, there isn't enough sugar in this coffee," Manasi said, stirring.
"What are you doing here?" Rudra asked in a gentle voice.
"Khushi called," Manasi said, looking at Maitree. Glancing around the airport, she asked, "Is it absolutely necessary for you to get back today?"
Maitree shook her head in a 'no' slowly.
"Good," Manasi murmured.
"Do you think I am your daughter?" Maitree asked abruptly, leaning on the table with her elbows, narrowing her eyes, intent on knowing what Manasi thought.
Rudra looked at Maitree with his eyes widened and his mouth slightly opened
Chuckling, Manasi nodded slightly. "There is a chance," she said, pausing for a second before continuing, "you look almost like my mom." After another pause, she added, "If I had paid more attention at the godh bharai, I would have known."
"Why didn't you ever come for me?" Maitree asked in a low tone, shaking her head.
"We did. We looked for you everywhere, but... our situation was different after we lost you," Manasi replied, her voice low and filled with regret.
"That is no excuse," Maitree murmured, shaking her head.
"I agree," Manasi nodded, looking down and touching the rim of her coffee mug. "The only reason we stopped looking is because Khushi's father passed away a month after we lost you." Rudra held Maitree's hand as she continued to stare at Manasi.
"After we lost you, I was so desperate to find you that I lost sight of Khushi. Ravi..." Manasi's voice trailed off as Maitree looked at her, confused about who Ravi was.
"Your father," Manasi said in a quiet tone. "When we lost you at the carnival, I invested all my time into finding you. I lost sight of Khushi and Ravi. Ravi took care of Khushi in my absence, she was really close to you so she was getting more depressed as time passed. Ravi and I argued a lot during that time, and Khushi stopped talking. One day, Ravi just collapsed—it was a heart attack." Manasi wiped a lone tear from her eye.
Maitree kept staring at Manasi as Rudra squeezed her hand. Manasi continued, "Khushi didn't even cry at her father's funeral, and I just couldn't ignore her anymore. She was alone and depressed, and I became selfish. I had lost you and Ravi, and I couldn't lose Khushi too." Manasi wiped the tears flowing from her eyes while Maitree blinked back her own.
"And you stopped looking for me," Maitree concluded, leaning back.
"I was selfish, and there is no excuse for that. All I can do is apologize for not being there, not cheering you on, and not consoling you," Manasi said, shaking her head, guilt evident in her voice. Tears escaped Maitree's eyes.
After a moment, Manasi dug into her purse and pulled out a letter, handing it to Maitree. "Your father wrote this a few weeks after we lost you," Manasi said softly as Maitree took the letter. "He loved you very much."
Maitree kept looking at the letter as she asked, "What does 'Mai' stand for?"
"Maithilli," Manasi said with a small smile. "Maithilli Rana. You are named after my mother," she continued after a pause. "Khushi is named after Ravi's mother."
"How did you know that?" Manasi asked, narrowing her eyes.
"What?" Maitree asked, confused, looking at her.
"'Mai?'" Manasi asked, leaning a little forward.
"It was written on my feet with a sharpie. 'Mai' on one and 'Ran' on the other," Maitree said, touching the place where her name had been written. "To my Mai," she read softly.
"We could've found you," Manasi said, feeling dejected and covering her eyes.
"How did you not know that?" Maitree asked suddenly, her eyes widening. "How did you lose me?" she asked, getting agitated. Rudra whispered, "Calm down," to Maitree.
"I just want to know," Maitree said, looking at Rudra, then back at Manasi. "How does a mother lose her child?" Tears filled her eyes as she looked at Manasi. "Neetha aunty didn't lose Sonakshi. How did you lose me? How could you let that happen?"
"Your father and I didn't lose you," Manasi said in a low tone, looking directly at Maitree. "Khushi lost you."
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Threads of Destiny
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