Chapter 12
Aarush and Radhika left the next evening for Mumbai. Finally they were going to be alone after a long trip. Radhika’s parents didn’t accompany them, but Radhika was going to join office, as Aarush agreed upon.
In another few hours, the flight landed and Love was standing at the airport to receive them.
‘Oh brother!’ Aarush hugged him for the first time in life, ‘Can’t tell you how good I am feeling to see you…’
‘Me? Seriously?’
‘You should meet my relatives, you are just a beginner in the annoying-game that they have mastered!’
‘Bastard…’ Love swore under his nose.
‘What?’
‘Nothing, I am saying, ‘who mastered what game?’’ he tried to cover up!
‘Before you talk anymore nonsense and I totally forget to tell you the big news, here is it…’ Aarush handed him over a bag.
‘What is this?’
‘Open it!’
Love opened the wrapped box restlessly and was curious to see what was inside. Once opened, he couldn’t believe his eyes. It was a small baby-suit.
‘The fuck?’
‘I am going to be a father!’ Aarush hugged Love, and almost picked him up.
‘Seriously Radhika?’ Love hugged Radhika who couldn’t stop smiling either.
‘Yes, we are going to be parents!’
‘But I don’t see the bump…’ Love stared at Radhika’s slightly bumpy stomach.
‘Of course, it’s just the second month going on…’ Radhika cleared out.
‘Oh! Congratulations guys, I should start preparing man, for the grand party. Sahil would be happier I know!’
‘Why so?’
‘He’s the one who loves kids…I just hate them…honestly…no offense to yours, but I don’t…’ Love made weird faces.
‘Sucker! You hate kids, but you love the process of making them, such an asshole you are…’ Aarush laughed, and came out of the airport carrying luggage, while Radhika was walking along them, trying to ignore their ‘boys-talk’.
Love brought his car to the gate, and he dropped them home. Radhika opened the house after ten days gap, and couldn’t bear the smell and dirt that had accumulated.
‘Shit!’ Aarush immediately ran out as he stepped inside.
‘At least come inside, this is our home only…’
‘I can’t bear a second in there! What in the name of God has happened?’ Aarush covered his face with a handkerchief and entered inside.
‘I think something died.’
‘Let it be one of my annoying relatives’ dead-body, I swear – one down!’ Aarush joked.
‘This is not a matter to joke about. Shut up!’ Radhika picked up a broom and started sweeping under the cushions and beds. Finally she found the culprit. A rat had died and its body was recovered from beneath the refrigerator.
‘Oh man!’ Aarush ran inside the bathroom.
‘Such a kid you are…’ Radhika taunted him and cleaned up the rat’s mess.
‘I think it’s right time.’
‘For what?’
‘To renovate this place, and for the time being we can move to my older apartment, that one BHK. We anyways don’t need five BHK right now. You will focus on cleaning and tidying it up, let’s close this one, and shift back there…’
‘But didn’t you sell that one off?’
‘Yeah I did, but I am not going to buy it either baby. I am going to rent it! Meanwhile, I will rent this one too, balance out things and adjust the loan of this apartment too.’
‘Awesome!’ Radhika was happy that she had a business-minded person with her, who could make sound financial decisions.
‘So just pack the important stuff that you need right now, rest everything will be shifted by office staff, I will call some boys to help. You just pack your main luggage and for now, we will shift at Love’s apartment. He’s anyways living with a girl nowadays…’
‘What?’
‘Yeah, fucker didn’t tell me about it, Sahil told, and that too when he kicked him out of their old apartment!’
‘Shit, where is Sahil living now?’
‘A new place, which is very far off from office but somehow he’s managing. You know how Love is…’
‘He should learn to behave, seriously this is the limit.’
‘Yeah, try your lecture on him!’ Aarush packed all their stuff into bigger bags, and started loading them into lift, from where they picked up his car from the building garage and reached Love’s place.
His apartment was no less than a five star hotel. White orchids hanging all around in the balcony, shining white carpets and furniture and white curtains. Everything was white apart from the bedroom which was sizzling red.
‘This man has taste, I must say!’
‘He spent a fortune at renovating this place.’
‘I can see that!’ Radhika looked around and was amazed at the lighting and the interior work Love had managed to get done.
‘Hey, Radhika! How did you like the apartment?’
‘It’s really good, I am happy for you Love…’ Radhika smiled, while holding her bags.
‘Love darling, who are you talking to?’ an amazingly sexy girl walked out of the bedroom in a night-gown.
‘Sameera…Aarush!’ Aarush put his hand forward and shook it.
‘Aarush…’ while the girl just hugged him. Radhika didn’t have a problem with it, until she didn’t leave him even after one full minute.
‘Thanks! I got it…’ Aarush backed her off.
‘Love, baby is there anything to eat in the kitchen? I am starving!’ she moved towards the kitchen blabbering stuff she didn’t have any idea about.
‘Come on! This can’t be it.’ Aarush said to Love.
‘What happened?’
‘Are you seriously dating her?’
‘Yeah man! What’s wrong with her?’
‘Have you looked at her? I mean, she’s promiscuous. Just look at the way she’s behaving with guys in the office, and just look at how she just hugged me!’
‘Yeah, right!’ Radhika jumped in the conversation, uninvited.
‘You stay out of this for a while, it’s a man-to-man talk!’ Aarush winked at her.
‘Man, she’s hot!’
‘I know that, but she’s not serious for you, can’t you see that?’
‘So what? Who said even I am serious for her?’
‘What?’
‘Yeah! I am not thinking about settling down man, this is not serious relationship going on. I have seen you guys – first a serious relationship, and then marriage and before you can even go to your honeymoon, you get the news that you are pregnant – fuck!’ Love looked at the ceiling.
‘Fuck you!’ Aarush cursed him for reminding him of the honeymoon that he had planned so extensively. He didn’t want Radhika to travel anymore now, not at least for a few months, but then she would be so pregnant, that she wouldn’t be able to walk properly – and then there was no point of honeymoon. Aarush had no choice but to simply cancel his honeymoon entirely!
‘I am cancelling it.’ Aarush said to Love.
‘What?’
‘Yeah, the honeymoon.’
‘What?’ Love was trying to signal him to shut up, and not reveal the plan in front of Radhika at least, but he didn’t want to hide anything, now that it wasn’t happening at all.
‘Radhika…I planned a honeymoon for us, but I don’t think you are in a condition to travel.’
‘Where were we going?’ Radhika asked with puppy eyes.
‘Don’t look at me like that! I will take you there, and just surprise you but I know I can’t!’ Aarush was frustrated now.
‘Why can’t we go now?’
‘Have you seen your condition? You can’t climb the stairs without panting and stopping for at least five times, and you are asking me why am I not taking you to a trekking trip?’
‘Trekking?’ Radhika opened her eyes wide! She loved to trek and had asked Aarush to plan an adventurous honeymoon and not a boring, romantic one. She wanted them both to do stuff that no-one does, and that included many things of her interest.
‘Yeah! Can you trek?’
‘I don’t think so…’
‘Then?’ Aarush looked at her, while she stared into the floor as if getting pregnant was her fault.
‘Hey…I am sorry.’ Aarush sat on his knees, while Radhika was sitting in a chair.
‘Why are you apologizing?’
‘Because of me you are pregnant, and you can’t go to a trek too!’
‘Hey, it’s not that I am pregnant because of you, it was both of ours mutual decision, so stop blaming yourself!’ Radhika smiled at him.
They both were busy in embracing each other, while Sameera grabbed Love from collar and took him inside bedroom. In a minute they got busy with their act while Aarush and Radhika were left outside alone to listen to the live-telecast of it!
‘And this is where you have to keep me Aarush, seriously? This fuck-pad?’ Radhika didn’t like the environment of Love’s apartment.
‘Don’t worry ma’am, this is just a matter of few days, after which we will shift to our old home!’ Aarush assured her that things will be fine, but Radhika knew that it was just the beginning.
She went inside kitchen to cook something to eat and came out screaming.
‘What happened?’ Aarush asked.
‘Co…’
‘Cockroach?’ Aarush tried to complete the sentence.
‘Condom!’ Radhika said with a heavy heart.
‘What? In the kitchen?’ Aarush was disgusted.
‘Yeah! I can never eat out of that kitchen now!’
‘Don’t worry, I will order something for you. After that you just lock yourself up in the bedroom and please take some rest! I have some office work today, I will be late. You take rest today, and join office from tomorrow.’ he smiled and kissed her forehead.
‘Thanks!’ Radhika hugged him and walked inside the bedroom that was spare for Aarush and Radhika.
Once inside, she locked the room from inside, to hear even louder noises of Love and Sameera having sex.
‘God! How can I sleep in here?’ she cursed her destiny, laid down in the bed and covered herself up with blanket layers. Amidst all the noise and moans, she tried to sleep, while Aarush went to office to work. Radhika felt the need to relieve herself as soon as she lied on the bed, and so she went to the washroom which was adjacent to their new bedroom.
As she was washing her hands, she spotted something beneath the basin. She picked it up, and ground slipped beneath her feet. It was a home pregnancy test, which was ‘positive’…