Beneath the Surface ( Completed )

Ch 1 : The Distance Between Us

Naina sighed as she glanced at her reflection in the mirror, adjusting the small bindi on her forehead. She wore the same faint smile she’d perfected over the years, the one that hinted at happiness but never quite reached her eyes. It was Saturday morning, and the house buzzed with the familiar chaos of her teenage kids, Aarav and Meera, as they prepared for a weekend outing with their friends. The chatter echoed down the hall as she made her way to the kitchen, automatically preparing Arjun’s cup of coffee. The silence between them had become routine, their conversations limited to discussions about the children or mundane household matters. And though she told herself this was simply how long marriages worked, a part of her longed for more—a connection that had somehow drifted out of reach.

As she set Arjun’s coffee on the table, she noticed his eyes fixed on his phone, his brow furrowed. “Good morning,” she offered, but he only responded with a distracted nod. Her heart sank. Arjun had always been a man of few words, and over the years, she’d tried to be understanding. But now, she wondered if she’d been too accepting, allowing him to grow comfortable in their silence. She craved a spark, a gesture, or even just a meaningful look. The kind of intimacy she saw in the couples around her, the kind she remembered from before they were married—if it had ever truly been there. As she cleared the breakfast table, Naina caught herself wondering how things might have been different if she’d had the courage to ask for more.

Later that morning, while tidying the storage room, she stumbled upon a small, dusty box tucked away on a shelf. Curiosity got the best of her, and she opened it, revealing a stack of old letters. Most were mundane, notes Arjun had written over the years to remind her of appointments or bills to pay. But one letter, buried beneath the others, caught her eye. It was worn and yellowed, clearly aged, with handwriting that felt different—urgent and filled with longing. As she read the words, her heart thudded in her chest. This wasn’t a note for her. It was a letter to someone else, someone who had once held Arjun’s heart.

She sat down, feeling the weight of the letter in her hand. The words weren’t simply affectionate; they were passionate, a side of Arjun she had never experienced. He spoke of dreams, of promises, of a love he thought would last forever. A part of her knew that this letter was written before he’d married her, but the realization hurt just the same. If he’d loved someone else so deeply, then what did that mean for them? Had she been his second choice all along?

The sound of footsteps jolted her from her thoughts, and she quickly tucked the letter back into the box, hiding it as if it were a guilty secret. Arjun entered, his gaze immediately landing on her, his brow raised in question. “Everything okay?” he asked, noticing her slightly flustered appearance. Naina forced a smile, willing herself to appear unbothered. “Yes, just found some old things. I thought we could use a little organizing.” She hoped her voice sounded casual, though inside, she felt anything but.

Throughout the day, her thoughts kept returning to that letter, to the lingering question that now hung between them like a silent accusation. She wondered if Arjun had ever felt a fraction of that passion for her, or if she had simply been the woman he’d married because it was expected of him. The possibility gnawed at her, unsettling the foundation she’d built her life upon. For years, she’d told herself that their steady, routine-based relationship was enough. They’d built a family together, shared responsibilities, and cared for their children. But had that been all it was? Just an arrangement between two people who happened to share a life?

That night, as they lay side by side in bed, Naina could feel the unspoken tension in the air. The silence felt heavier than usual, pressing down on her, making her chest feel tight. She wanted to reach out to him, to ask him directly about the letter, to know once and for all what she meant to him. But she was afraid of what she might hear. Instead, she turned on her side, putting a physical distance between them that mirrored the emotional gap she could no longer ignore.

Sleep didn’t come easily. Her mind raced with thoughts and memories, small moments she’d brushed aside over the years, things she’d chosen to overlook in the name of keeping the peace. In the quiet darkness, she found herself reliving each of them, questioning if she’d been fooling herself all along. By morning, she felt drained, as if the weight of her doubts had seeped into her bones. She knew she couldn’t go on like this, living in a marriage built on half-truths and assumptions. She needed answers, and the only person who could give them to her was Arjun.

The following evening, after their children had gone to bed, Naina finally mustered the courage to bring up the topic. “Arjun,” she began, her voice trembling slightly, “do you ever wonder if we could be… more?” She saw the surprise in his eyes, followed by a guarded look that made her heart sink. He hesitated, as if measuring his words carefully. “What do you mean?” he asked, his tone cautious.

Her frustration bubbled up, and she felt a sudden need to push past his defenses, to reach the heart of the matter. “I mean, do you ever feel like there’s something missing between us? Like… maybe we settled for this, instead of truly choosing it?” She watched as his face grew tense, his jaw clenched. “Naina, we have a good life. We have our kids, our home. Isn’t that enough?”

His words felt like a cold splash of reality, and she felt a surge of sadness mixed with anger. “But is that really enough, Arjun? For me, it feels like we’re just… existing, not really living. Don’t you want more than that?” Arjun looked away, his gaze distant, as if he were searching for an answer he didn’t have. After a long silence, he finally spoke, his voice barely above a whisper. “Maybe I don’t know how to want more.”

Naina stared at him, feeling a pang of sympathy mixed with disappointment. In that moment, she realized that Arjun’s detachment wasn’t entirely his fault. He had his own battles, scars from the past he’d never shared with her. And yet, she couldn’t help but feel that she deserved better—deserved a partner who wanted her wholeheartedly. She got up from the couch, a sense of finality settling over her. “Maybe it’s time you figure it out, Arjun. Because I can’t keep living like this.”

As she walked away, she felt a strange mix of liberation and sorrow. Part of her hoped that this conversation would be a wake-up call for him, a chance for them to start over. But another part feared that they were already too far gone, that they’d built a life on a foundation that could no longer support them. She retreated to her room, feeling the weight of the decision looming over her. For the first time in years, she allowed herself to imagine a life where she was free from the expectations, the silence, the unspoken disappointments. And though the thought frightened her, it also filled her with a quiet, defiant hope.