Page 179 of One Hellish Desire

“Coffee,” I say, extending the mug. She looks up, surprised.

“Vanraj? What… what are you doing here? Didn’t you go to work?”

She takes the mug, watching me as I sit next to her.

“How’s your headache?” I ask.

“Worse.” She sips some coffee and leans back on the couch.

“It’s bound to be worse. You barely sleep, and you’re drinking all day. Your meals are nothing but bottles of alcohol.”

She looks away. “Don’t lecture me, Vanraj.”

“I’m not here to lecture you, Meera,” I scoff. “I’m giving you a warning.”

She glares at me as I take the cup from her and set it aside. I need her to listen to me, really listen.

“If you touch alcohol again, you’ll see me dead.”

“Vanraj,” she shouts, just the reaction I was hoping for. I’m relieved she still cares. “Don’t you dare say that again. How can you even talk about your death?”

“And you think I can bear the thought of yours? All that liquor will kill you, Meera. Do you think I’m ready to see you die?”

She realizes her mistake and looks down, ashamed.

“Remember what you said last night?” I continue. “You told me to leave you, to go to Maa and stay with her like Vikram has.”

Meera swallows hard. “I didn’t say anything wrong. I took you away from your mother.”

“Shut up,” I snap. “You didn’t take me away. I made the decision to move to the US. And you chose to come with me. We both left her, not just you.”

Tears roll down her cheeks, but I wipe them away. I can’t stand to see her like this.

“If Vikram hadn’t left us here, we wouldn’t have realized our mistake. In a way, Vikram opened our eyes. We should be grateful to him instead of avoiding his calls.”

She nods, agreeing. “I want to talk to him too. He’s at a wedding in Udaipur, and my boy sneezed. He said he was feeling feverish, Vanraj and his voice was thick with exhaustion. He never got sick when he was here.”

“He’s fine,” I reassure her. “Ajay talked to him, and they’re flying to Delhi tomorrow. He and Maahi are happy together, and that’s what matters. We know how much our son loves Maahi. If she’s reciprocating, we should be happy.”

“I am happy,” Meera scowls. “Of course, I am.”

“But avoiding his messages isn’t helping him stay happy. As his parents, we can’t let that happen, can we?”

“No,” she admits. “Do you think he really misses us so much despite being with Maahi?”

I sigh. “He’s our son, Meera. Even though we managed without Maa, he can’t stay without us. He’s like us in many ways, and unlike us in many ways too. That’s what we love about him, don’t we?”

Tears fill her eyes again, and she hugs me tightly. After a while, I wipe her tears.

“Answer his messages,” I say.

“I will. I’ll talk to him right now.”

She’s about to get up, but I stop her.

“Not now. It’s night there, and Vikram and Maahi are alone in Udaipur. Let them have a good night. We can talk to him tomorrow.”

She rolls her eyes but agrees.

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