Iniquity: a tale of guilt and love || Completed

8.Her smile!

~ it's only me who can give you unbearable pain, but then, only I can shower you with unfathomable happiness~

Shravan opened his eyes to the best sight in the world. A delightful chirpy Suman was hugging the life out of Preeti in excitement. A small smile formed on his face, it had been so long he had seen her this happy.

"Pretty Preeti, do you even understand what 10 lakhs mean, especially when they are paying before hand? I can buy new utensils for PCT, I can do many things, and I can pay two installments to mamiji, together. And that would mean just three more before I am free of this debt. God! I am so happy", Suman laughed and cried together, while Preeti giggled at her almost gone mad sister.

Shravan listened it all, his mind stuck at the 'installments' and 'debt'. What was she talking about? Before he could press further, Suman noticed that he was awake. She rushed to him, trying to check his vitals.

" Shravan? Are you alright?", Suman asked but Shravan was taken aback at her voice. After weeks of fights and unnecessary arguments, it was today that he felt like his Sumo was back. To push back the lump formed in his throat he nodded, meekly and Suman sighed in relief. Since the drip was almost over, she took it out gentally leaving the cannula attached on his hand.

"I will just inform everyone and bring some food for you", she spoke gently, and Shravan gaped at her, trying to drink in her presence, his Sumo's presence. His? No, he shook his head at the thought, she deserved happiness, and he had nothing to give her. Suman returned, with a plate of food, and all the family members.

"Bhayiya", Pushkar excaimed as he sat beside him. No matter how much he was at cross roads with him, for his mistakes but he couldn't stop loving his bhaiya, never. Shravan smiled, meekly at him, trying to console him. Lalaji and Kamini also asked him to take care and left, but all the hell came loose when Ramnath Malhotra sat beside his son.

"Shravan! How are you feeling son?", Ram asked, keeping a hand on Shravan's shoulder, and Shravan hid his right hand inside the duvet, tightly clutching it in a fist to stop himself from lashing out at his own father. He nodded at him, he knew his voice will betray him if he tried to speak. He didn't even meet his eyes, lest he saw the rage in them. Ramnath waited for a minute or so, for his dear son to say something, and when he didn't, he sighed and left. Suman was watching everything, confused. Did it really happened that Shravan avoided his father or was she reading more into the lines?

Frowning she forwarded the plate to Shravan who tried to hold it from her, but failed as Suman withdrawed the plate, stunned.

"Shravan!", She panicked confusing him, but the next minute he realized what was happening. His right hand was bleeding profusely. The force with which he had clutched his hands, trying to control his rage, had let to the cannula piercing his skin, and hence the bleeding. Suman returned with a first aid box, and cleaned the wound, bandaging it properly. Sighing, she took the plate in her hands and forwarded a morsel. Shravan looked up at her, his eyes filling with tears and as soon as he ate the first morsel, two tears rolled down his cheeks, vanishing in his stubble.

"Shravan", Suman panicked, she had never ever seen him in tears this way.

"What happened? Is it paining?", She gestured towards the hand, but Shravan was lost in his own world.

"Yes. Its paining in extreme, so much that it's suffocating me", he mumbled. His words held an irony, the one suman could not even understand.

"Have the food and I will give you some painkillers", Suman said softly, and Shravan looked up at the beauty in front of him. His walls were up again.

" Do not pity me Suman. I am fine", he dismissed her concern by taking the plate in his left hand and eating with his injured right hand, and though it did pain him, even a twitch of a muscle was not seen on his exterior.

Suman stood up to leave when her cell phone rang again. She was needed in PCT.  She looked back at Shravan who avoided her gaze dutifully, and shaking her head she left, asking Pushkar to take care of him.

The first delivery to the new order was better than expected. Not only they loved their food, the good hearted people also recommended PCT to their other clients, and Sumo was already on cloud nine by the time she packed up. PCT had 3 new orders, all worth magnanimous prices and Suman was nothing less than ecstatic. She felt like she would be free of her first responsibility really soon. She would be finally free of the debt that had crumpled her soul a little, with every taunt mamiji hurled her way, and today, she could cry out in happiness. Her cheeks were hurting with the constant 32 inch smile, and that was why when she reached home, she failed to notice Shravan's red puffy eyes, that glittered up as soon as he saw extra happy Suman in front of him. Suman entered bubbling with joy, and at once jumped at Shravan.

" Shravan! I got 3 new orders! My dream of PCT will be fulfilled now, with my own hardwork! I am so happy!", Excited behind limits, suman spranged on Sharavan who was standing with the support of the bed table and without waiting a second, no matter how much it hurt him to raise the wounded hand to wrap it around her, he did with joy. For one minute, he wanted to be close to her, to let her warmth heal him.

A few minutes later, when Suman realized what did she do in the heat of the moment, she took two steps back, tucking a few strands of hair, her cheeks red with embarrassment.

"Umm...Sorry! I will just come", and she disappeared in the washroom leaving Sharavan with a minute of gratification to hold on to. Shravan's gaze was fixed at the door, she vanished into, a small smile on his face, that he couldn't decide was a happy one or sad one.

But atleast, there was one mistake he had now paved the way for rectification. Atleast, for every humiliation he had throwed PCT and it's members way, he would be showering them with extra happiness. Just that when he insulted it, everyone knew and now that he was rectifying it, no one will ever know. He will ensure that.