Raman: Ishita, is everything okay?
Ishita nodded silently. Raman crawled on the bed and sat in front of her, holding her hands in his.
Raman: Tell me what's running on your mind. I know you're thinking about something deeply
Ishita: Hamari trip ke baad, maybe the weekend after, I was thinking why not we all go on a picnic?
Raman: Haan it's a fantastic idea. I'll speak to a few of my contacts to get the arrangements done near the waterfall. But why suddenly?
Ishita: Bas aise hi (Just like that)
Raman: Ishitaaa...
Ishita: Okay I'll tell the truth. I don't want Ruhi to feel like I'm neglecting her. I feel like she'll think I'm not focusing on her but focusing on other things. And with my clinic work piling up, it just makes me feel worse. I feel so imbalanced. I love both of you so much, I don't want it to be as if I'm not paying much attention. Even Amma feels that I don't spend much time with them anymore. I just feel so lost
Ishita started sobbing and tears started dropping.
Raman: Ishita you've been locking up so much in yourself. Why didn't you tell me earlier?
Ishita: I was afraid you'll think I didn't know how to balance myself
Raman wiped her tears and cupped her face.
Raman: Ishita it's not your fault. Our marriage was not a normal one, where we get married first, then have a child. Because if it happened like that, you would have got time to adjust slowly. Like Roo said, everything was upside down. It is unreasonable if you think you can balance everything in one go just like that. It may look like that in movies but in real life that's not the story. You have Ruhi, her school, our home, Amma Appa Mihika, your clinic, your brother Pathak, your bff come sister-in-law Simmi, and most importantly, your baby Raman
Ishita smiled lightly through her tears.
Raman: Take it slowly at a time. If you feel you need a break, take a short sabbatical from your clinic.
Ishita: Bu-
Raman: I'm not that typical husband who's asking his wife to quit working just because she's married. But sometimes, the pressure piles up and it's not healthy Ishita. We can manage the finances
Ishita: It's not about the inco-
Raman: I know you're thinking about Amma Appa, how they'll manage with Appa's retirement income alone. I'm here na? I call them Amma Appa, won't I do that much for them? They trusted me and gave me your hands, don't I have the responsibility to take care of them like my own?
Ishita: It's not that
Raman: See I know dentistry is your passion, but it can be dangerous when it starts to take a toll on your mental health. It's not healthy Ishita...
Ishita: I really don't know what to do...
Raman: I tell you what... After our honeymoon, take a break for about two weeks. Take some time for yourself. Go out and relax. Maybe you can start planning the activities during the picnic for the following week. After all, you'll be so tired after the honeymoon
Raman winked and Ishita looked down blushing. She climbed on his lap and sat sideways, encircling her hands around his neck. Raman was pleasantly shocked seeing her make the move.
Raman: Bukhar toh nehi hai na? (You're not having a fever are you?)
Ishita raised her eyebrow.
