31. Back to India

8 months later-

The flight landed in India and we got out of the airplane and into the bright, scorching sunlight. I felt a familiar hand grasp mine and I looked up to see Shiv.

"We can do this." he said and squeezed my hand and I squeezed his back, not knowing any reply.

The babies were put in a trolly and before we knew, we were in my car, driving back to the familiar house. The place I spent all of my childhood was going to witness my nightmares come true.

When we reached, the house was newly painted and decorated with flowers. Flowy drapes snaked around the huge pillars. All of it looked festive but not happy. My father reached the bottom of the stairs and gave me a small, sad smile before hugging me. He patted Shiv's back and we left for my room.

"Dad, can a crib be arranged for the babies?" I turned around and asked him.

"Everything is already in your room." he smiled.

When we entered my old room, everything was changed. The walls were all white instead of the usual pink and the interiors were more modern and mature. The furniture was sleek black unlike the ancient wooden like it used to be.

"Wow. Last time I saw this place, it was all pink with teddy bears and Barbie dolls." Shiv commented. The last time he was there was when we were kids.

"I could say the same." I said, still shocked.

"You mean this place is renovated?"

"Yes. It was always the same since the very start. This is all new." I scanned my eyes through the room and saw two white cribs in the corner near the balcony of my room.

I put Keya in the crib and Shiv followed me. Both the babies slept through most of the journey other than the flight which was pretty surprising. They slept peacefully, they didn't know what was planned and why they were in India; they were carefree, just sleeping and bothering each other and drinking milk while pulling on each others hair.

I looked at their sleeping figures while Shiv stood beside me with his hand on my shoulder and my head on his chest.

"I hate all of this. I just want to go back and be happy again." I said.

"I know. We will be happy again. We will go back as soon as possible. Okay?" he said and comforted me.

.

"So, tomorrow is the wedding." my mom said.

"We all know that." my dad said.

"I was going to ask how will we execute the plan but you can never go without interrupting me." mom said and rolled her eyes.

"I wouldn't have if you completed your sentence." dad replied to her.

"Okay, mom and dad please stop. We have bigger problems here." I interrupted.

"So, we do exactly what we planned. Okay?" Vivan said and we all nodded before letting him continue. He started explaining everything again and telling everyone what they needed to do.

"Wait! We thought about everything but who will stay with the babies?" I said before everyone was going to leave.

"We can." Shiv's mom said and gestured to his dad and herself. "We are just guests and don't require to do much. No one will notice if we are not there."

"That can work I guess. You can switch with Sanjana and Lorenzo halftime if you want." I said.

"Okay, then. Everything is planned out." Shiv said and everyone returned to their rooms.

.

"What if it doesn't work out?" I ask Shiv as we laid in bed.

"It will." he said nonchalantly.

"But what if it doesn't?" I asked again.

"I told you it will. Can you please go to bed?" he asked in an annoyed manner.

"Okay why are you being so rude suddenly? I am just asking."

"Don't ask. The situation is already pissing me off. I don't need you to irritate me." he said and my eyebrows shot up.

"I am irritating you?" I scoffed and sat up on the bed.

"Yes, you are. Ever since we got to know about the wedding."

"I can't believe this." I said and shook my head while standing up.

"I get it that you are stressed about all of this but so are we. Don't push it." he stood up too.

"Oh so you think that I am pushing it? You know what? Yes I am pushing it because I don't want to get married, I never wanted this." I raised my voice.

"None of us wanted it. Get over it. I didn't want to have these babies, I didn't want to come back here, I didn't want my dad back in my life. But we have to live with whatever is happening around us. There is no need to whine all the time." he yelled.

"Y-you never wanted the babies?" I asked in a whisper.

"No, I didn't. You didn't too. What's so wrong with that?"

"What's wrong is that you are just being an asshole like you always are. I didn't need this fight when I am already going through all of this. I always wanted the babies and you should've too. If you didn't, you shouldn't have said that you did." I said to him.

"I lied. I know, but I wanted you and I thought you would change your mind and get an abortion but you never did." he said like it wouldn't bother me.

"Get out." I said.

"What?"

"Get. Out." I yelled.

And he did. He walked out of the room. Just like that

All of the time, he was expecting me to give up on my children. He never wanted a baby with me. He did what I was afraid of, just the night before my wedding that I didn't want to take part in.

I cried. Thinking of all the times we had together, happy ones and sad ones.

I thought you would change your mind and get an abortion. His words replayed in my mind again and again.

I never thought this would be a topic why we fought. We had fought about small things like what to have for dinner or what colour to paint the kids room, never about heavy things like this.

We fought the time his father showed me the pictures and that was the first time I had cried over him and it felt like it would've been the last. Apparently, it wasn't.

I held myself together and walked towards my father's room. The last thing I wanted was to be alone and he was the first person that came to my mind when it came to being there and not talking.

I knocked on the door and he opened it. He saw me crying and his face changed. He opened his arms without a word and let me cry into his chest.

"Are you okay?" he asked me.

"I will be." I murmured and he kept running his hand over my head lightly to comfort me.

He asked no further questions and let me stay there, just crying and letting it all out.

"Look, Naina. I was never good with words and never will be. I don't ask you to tell me what happened but I am saying that if you need to talk, I am a good listener." he opened the door further and we walked in.

"I know dad. That's why I came to you." I sat down on one of the chairs near the balcony.

He handed me a glass of red wine and I looked at him with shocked eyes.

"I know, I never did this with Vivan but I want to be a good father and sit down and have a drink with you. So, drink up and tell me if you want to."

I took the glass from his hand and nodded.

"I don't really want to talk about it." I looked down.

"Fair enough." He said and nodded.

"I want to tell you but it's just that I don't know what to say." I said while swirling the wine around in the glass.

"Look, darling. I know this is something related to Shiv and I want you to know that whatever it is that you are fighting for, cannot be greater than your love for each other. You are lucky that you have found love, appreciate it. Look at me, I still haven't found my real love but you did, at such a young age and trust me, you don't want to end up all old and pathetic like me." he said and smiled.

"I-" I started but he cut me off.

"Shh...just think. You have to explain it to yourself, not me."

"Thank you dad." I said and noticed him rubbing his chest.

"You are always welcome." He smiled and suddenly, his breathing became rapid.

"Dad, what's wrong?" I panicked.

"It's probably nothing." he said and I noticed him starting to sweat while cold winds blew in though the balcony.

"It is not nothing. You are sweating and your breathing is ragged." I said to him.

"I will be fine." he said and fell down on the floor.

"Mom! Shiv! Someone help!" I yelled.

I held his hand and cried as he struggled to breath. I heard footsteps running towards us.

"Naina! What's wrong?" my mom yelled before walking in the room and looking at the scene.

"M-mom, help him. P-please." I cried and she ran out of the room to call help.

"Someone call an ambulance!" I heard her yell.

I kept holding his sweaty hand.

"Hold on, dad. I love you, don't leave me." I said to him.

I saw everything blurry through my teary eyes, the ambulance pulled over and they carried him into it as we followed it to the hospital in our car.

I felt my mom comfort me and I saw Shiv drive my car and Vivan sitting in the passenger seat. I didn't pay attention to anything, all I cared for in the moment was my father. He was the only person I loved to see at the end of every lonely day I spent alone. He was rarely there but was a good father, the only person in my family  who talked to me like he really cared. I never missed him till the time I realised that I may lose him.

The car ride felt like it would never end. All memories came through and left.

"Naina! my darling! How are you?" he asked me with a smile as he entered the house and I sprung up in his arms as he sat on his knees to match my height.

"I am good! I missed you so much." I said to him.

"You did?" he asked and I nodded my head. "I did too! What did you do today?"

"I read an entire book! It is about a puppy who is lost and finds the way back to his family."

"Really? Will you read it to me after dinner?" he asked.

"Yes! I would love to!" I said excitedly.

"Naina, we are here. Come on." my mom said and I shot out of my thoughts.

We rushed in the building and saw him on the stretcher with an oxygen mask, being pulled away into ICU.

We sat there in the waiting room for hours and hours waiting for the doctors to update us.

"Miss Naina Dixit?" A doctor, probably in his fifties, called my name.

"Yes, I am here." I stepped forward.

"Your father had a cardiac arrest. It was a good thing you brought him in on time." he informed me.

"Is he okay?" I asked.

"He is fine now but his situation is still pretty complex. We need to keep him here for some days." he said and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding

"That is okay if he will return healthy." I said, calming down.

"He will be all good, meanwhile, I need you to fill up some forms." he said and handed me a bundle of papers on a clipboard with a pen.

"Sure." I said and went back to my seat. I handed he forms to Vivan.

"He will be fine." I said to everyone.

"What happened to him?" Vivan asked.

"Heart attack." I said.

"Oh my God!" my mom gasped.

"He will be fine. He has to be here for a few days though."

"What about the wedding?" mom asked me.

"I guess we have to cancel it or postpone it."

"No need for doing that." I heard a stern voice say from behind me and I turned around to see Ashwin's dad.

"Did you not hear he had a heart attack?" I asked him.

"Oh, I did. I just don't want to postpone the wedding. You will get married tomorrow." he replied.

"You are sick." I said, utterly disgusted at how heartless he could be.

"I guess that would be your dad, not me." he said and I did what I never thought I would do.

I slapped him.