by P. G. Van
“You are being completely ridiculous, but I love you and respect you too much to not value your emotions and sentiments,” Nick said in a slightly annoyed tone.
I looked at him as sadness clouded my eyes and Nick said as if in reaction to my expression, “Okay, that came out wrong, but I don’t have any filters with you. I am going to say what I think,” and as if he wanted to distract me he asked, “So what do you think really happened to RajaRam?”
“Well, Jasleen blamed her family for RajaRam’s disappearance, especially her brother because he was outraged when they eloped. He even had announced that he would end RajaRam’s life for trapping his sister and making her elope with him,” I said looking up at Nick.
“I didn’t ask you what Jasleen thought, I asked what you thought really happened to RajaRam,” Nick said repeating his question.
“I thought a lot about this exact question during those few weeks I spent in my grandparents’ village. Since I knew the Bhatia’s had nothing to do with his disappearance from talking to Mr. Jaideep, I wondered if he met with an accident and was never found or..,” I paused looking at Nick and added softly, “One other thought I had was that RajaRam disappeared on purpose.”
“What?” Nick asked taken aback.
“Nick, it was just a thought,” I said defending my theory.
“I am offended that you are questioning RajaRam’s love for Jasleen,” Nick said sounding disappointed.
“That’s why it is puzzling that he actually abandoned his family. From what I heard from my grandpa, RajaRam gave this chain to his son before he left on that business trip and told him to never ever give it away even if they were starving to death and that he had to take care of his mom and sister,” I said shaking my head.
“That is impossible unless he abandoned his family to protect them,” Nick said thinking out loud.
“Exactly, but protect them from what?” I asked sounding extremely skeptical and added, “We have no clue as to what he would do and where he would go. We knew nothing about him except for the fact that he was highly educated and was a sugarcane cultivation expert back in the early 1900s.”
“Wait. We do know more than that about him,” Nick said and paused to look at my puzzled expression and asked, “You really don’t know anything else about him?”
“I am pretty sure I got everything about RajaRam and Jasleen from my grandpa,” I said wondering why Nick was asking so specifically.
“Did you know that Jasleen wrote a letter to her brother before she moved to a different town?” Nick asked his eyes twinkling.
“None of my family knew about that letter. I was surprised to hear that when Mr. Jaideep Bhatia told me about the letter and how brutal the message was in the letter. No wonder they thought that Jasleen cursed them and said that the family would not have any girls born into the family until they learned to respect a girl’s wishes and dreams,” I said in dismay and added, “Jasleen’s brother immediately started looking for his sister to bring her back home but could not locate her. He realized that her sadness ended up as a curse on the family when his three sons had three sons each and had no girl child.”
“I guess that’s when the entire Bhatia clan started off with the yearly ceremony to pray for a girl to be born into the family,” Nick said smiling at me.
I smiled back at him thinking of the ceremony that I had attended at Nick’s place that was performed to lift the curse. We had no idea about the connection at that point.
“That’s the first I am seeing you smile in hours, and I am glad to see that smile baby,” Nick said as he planted a kiss on my forehead.
“I am glad we are having this conversation,” I said looking into his deep eyes and added, “I have to applaud the dedication of the Rajput family for their efforts to search for their lost family. It’s unbelievable that the dedication and drive to find Jasleen’s family was passed down through generations.”
“Yes, I agree. From what my dad’s cousin told me it wasn’t until your dad passed away that they found out your whereabouts,” Nick said and added cautiously, “They saw your dad’s obituary that the hospital he worked for posted in all of the newspapers in India. By the time they came to Hyderabad, you guys had moved to your grandmother’s town and they have been searching since. They became pretty desperate recently as you and Nethra were in marriageable age and needed you ‘Vaasi girls’ to perform the so-called ceremony.”
“Nick you need to stop mocking people’s sentiments,” I said my voice flaring up.
“Okay,” Nick said apologetically and asked, “Do you know what else was in the letter?”
“There was more than just Jasleen’s wrath directed at her brother?” I asked curiously.
“Yes and this may throw a wrench into your theory about what happened to RajaRam,” Nick said in a cool voice and asked, “What was the reason for Jasleen’s brother not agreeing for her marriage with RajaRam?”
“I think it was because RajaRam was not as wealthy as their family or maybe because he was from south India and belonged to a completely different community or caste system,” I said throwing out all the possible options that I could think of.
Nick smiled and said, “Close enough but the reason was because RajaRam was not of royal descent.”
“Oh,” I said feeling sad about how something so irrelevant was a problem, but thinking back to those times, it was probably required to preserve the royal culture of that region.
“Jasleen wrote in her letter that RajaRam was also of royal descent, and he had abandoned his royalty to live a normal life. His goal was to help farmers and that’s the reason he studied agriculture in one of the famous universities in India,” Nick said in a calm voice. I felt the shock cut through my core when I heard what Nick revealed.
“You are kidding. RajaRam was royalty too?” I asked in surprise and added with regret, “If only he had told Jasleen’s brother about his background.”
“Well, I don’t think he told Jasleen until after they got married, as he wanted someone that loved him for what he was and not based on his bloodline,” Nick said taking in a deep breath as if the depths of RajaRam and Jasleen’s love for each other touched him.
“And this is exactly the reason for my fear Nick. There were so many things in Jasleen’s life that could have been so much easier, but she had to go through a lot, all by herself,” I said my voice blaring through the quiet night.
Nick tightened his arms around me and said confidently, “I am right here and will do what it takes to prevent any such obstacles in our lives.”
“Nick, I have one more thing to ask,” I said biting my lip, as I wasn’t sure how he would take it.
“I am listening,” Nick said as he continued to rock me in his arms.
“Nick…” I paused unable to find the strength to speak and managed to speak in a firm tone, “I would like for us to live in the family residence when we go back to California.”
Nick gently released his arms taking me by my shoulder to look into my eyes and asked, “What do you mean?”
“We should move out of the San Francisco apartment into your wing at the family residence so we can live with your parents,” I managed to say as I saw the anger build up in him.
“Sameera, you know how I feel about living at the family residence. I am fine with spending a weekend there, but there is no way I am moving back. The apartment gives us the independence and privacy we need as a couple,” he said in a very tamed voice, and I knew he was trying very hard to stay calm. I had piled too many things on him and topped it off with one of his hot-button issues.
“Nick, I am not willing to take no for an answer. I will either live in the family residence, or I will move back into my...Nate’s apartment,” I said holding my breath.
“Sameera,” Nick said in an elevated voice that shook me to the core. I had never heard him take my name in such anger, and he continued to speak in the same tone and said, “You are being utterly stupid and childish. Do not take my l
ove for you as my weakness and threaten me the way you just did. You will never ever talk about not being with me ever again.”
Tears ran down my cheeks endlessly as I looked at him. Nick looked at me his eyes flaring and still angry at what he had heard, and for the first time he didn’t attempt to console me but stood up and stepped onto the balcony off my bedroom. Just when I thought we were making progress, I knew I messed it up again. I eventually fell asleep amidst sniffles and sobs while Nick stayed on the balcony.
*****
I woke up to the light streaming through the drapes and was immediately reminded of the events from last night and felt sick to my stomach. My body was aching from the mental stress from the previous night. I got out of bed and noticed that the other side of the bed was untouched. I wondered if Nick stayed up all night or if he slept in Nate’s room. I walked towards the balcony and peeked through the sliding doors. Nick was standing on the balcony with his back to me. I stood looking at him and felt pathetic about saying what I said to him. I knew I was putting both of us through a boatload of stress, but I just could not let go of my emotions.
I kept looking at him without moving and as if he felt my presence, he turned to look at me with an enigmatic expression. He did not smile at me or say anything but continued to look at me. I stood frozen inside with my heart beating rapidly with my thoughts all over the place as I debated what to do.
Nick looked at me in silence for a few minutes before he took a few steps towards me and stood at arm’s length from me. He reached out to touch my cheek with his hand and held back halfway when I looked up into his eyes through a screen of moisture in my eyes. I reached for his hand that he was about to pull back and buried my face in his palm hiding my tears from him.
“Nick…I am sorry...” my voice trailed off as he took me into his arms.
“Sameera,” Nick said in a firm but delicate tone and when I gathered the courage to look into his eyes, he looked down deep into my eyes and said, “Can we sit down and talk?”
“Sameera, you are the most important person in my life, and I can’t believe I spoke to you that way last night,” Nick said in an apologetic tone.
“I totally deserved it,” I said my voice muffled against his chest and added, “It was very manipulative of me to tell you that I will move out. I am so sorry, Nick.”
I pulled out of his embrace to look into his eyes and said, “You know I would never do that, but I said what I said in desperation to get you to move into the family residence,” I said in a shaky voice.
“I know, and I have to tell you I still don’t understand why it is important for us to live in the family residence,” Nick said in a dejected voice.
“I know how much your mom and dad would like it, and I am not saying we would forever; but at least for now we should,” I said in a soft voice and placed my palm on his jawline. I added, “I am sure they are not mad at us but just in case they are, it will help if we did something that would make them happy.”
He gently took my palm to his lips and said, “Do you still want to live in the family residence knowing that we may not be happy there?”
“I don’t see a reason why we wouldn’t be happy living with family, Nick and yes, I am willing to take the risk of us being unhappy because I know we can endure the hardship that will only make our relationship stronger,” I said with confidence in my voice.
“I am willing to stay in the family residence for six months, and we need to re-evaluate the situation at that point; if I feel strongly about moving back to our apartment, we should. No questions asked,” Nick said challenging me.
“Yes, I will take six months for now,” I said smiling weakly at him.
“This is not a done deal yet. I need time to think,” Nick declared.
“Okay, and I don’t want to discuss any of this with anyone else. Not even Nate. If you are having difficulty seeing what I am dealing with, I cannot expect anyone else to understand. They will end up reading too much into the situation and will complicate things further,” I said softly as I tightened my arms around him.
Nick nodded and traced his lips along my jawline and started planting feather light kisses on my cheek.
“I am sorry I ruined our wedding night. I will make it up to you when we have our Rajput wedding night,” I said, as I took my lips to Nick’s neck, and I heard him burst out laughing.
“What’s with you and your obsession with the Rajput wedding?” He asked in surprise and added, “I would expect that you would want to donate the money we spend on weddings to charity but you are insisting that we get married again?”
“Yes. I do and it’s because I want your parents to witness our wedding,” I said and added, “Until we have that wedding, we are friends and a married couple only in the eyes of our family.”
“What have you been smoking lately?” Nick mocked and when I looked at him without responding, he chuckled and added, “Friends with benefits, right?”
I pushed Nick away taking my lips to his cheek, and said, “Just friends,” and pulled back immediately.
“This is beyond ridiculous. I will soon need therapy if I am only friends with you,” Nick said lying flat on the bed.
“I know it is going to be hard, but we will survive. I am sure we will sort things out in no time,” I said smiling and added, “Let’s go downstairs and make some coffee.
“I have a suggestion,” Nick said with mischief in his voice.
“Now what?” I asked suspiciously, looking at him with my hands on my waist.
Nick laughed and said, “It looks like you are pretty determined to hold off on consummating our marriage until we get my parents’ blessings, but I think us continuing to be a normal couple will help relieve the stress, you know what I mean?”
“So,” I prompted sarcastically.
“I will do my thing to seduce you whenever and wherever possible, and I want to see how long it will take you to give in,” Nick said in an evil tone.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I said annoyed.
“Are your beliefs and sentiments not strong enough that you are worried you will swoon at my first attempt to seduce you?” Nick teased.
I looked at him with my nostrils flaring thinking for a second and said, “Challenge accepted,” he put out his hand to seal the deal, and when I put my hand out to shake his hand, he took my hand and with little effort, pulled me onto the bed. He was on top of me in a second taking his ice-cold lips to my ear lobe and whispered, “Seduction starts this second.”
I laughed as I pushed him away. I got out of bed and ran into the bathroom locking myself in. I stood in the bathroom with my back to the door and smiled to myself when I heard Nick laughing victoriously in the bedroom.
Chapter Nine
I spent almost half a day persuading Nick to move into a joint family setting and after a lot of convincing, he finally agreed to move for six months. I acknowledged that I overreacted the previous night, and I needed some time to sort out my thoughts and emotions. I could tell that he didn’t like the way I was dealing with my emotions, but Nick was being very supportive.
My parents and grandparents came back home late evening the day after the wedding. They were happy to see that Nick and l were amicable. I was pretty sure they feared the worse based on the very little information they were given and the way I behaved after the wedding ceremony.
Nate, Srini, and Ann joined us for dinner. Nate spoke nonstop about how awesome the bridal suite was at the hotel and the pampering plan that was part of the package. As she described the special food and the spa treatments that they experienced all day, I listened with fake excitement in my face with Nick’s eyes boring into me with sheer jealously. I knew what I had deprived him and myself of, but I needed to have the talk I did with him for my sanity.
“Ma, Nick and I need to go back home very soon. We will probably head out in two days,” I announced at the dining table taking everyone by surprise.
“Meera, why are you guys
in such a hurry?” Nate asked surprised.
“Nick has been away for a while now and needs to get back to work. I have been away way too long, and I need to get back as well,” I said lying through my teeth.
“That’s ridiculous. Nick, I can’t believe you convinced Meera to go back already. You are a workaholic,” Ann teased.
Nick laughed and said in a sarcastic tone looking at me, “That’s right, I did convince her.”
I glared at him for the sarcasm in his voice and said looking away from him, “We will most likely leave the day after tomorrow.”
“Why are you guys in so much hurry to go back? We can all go back together next week?” my mom said sounding unhappy.
“It will be hard on the love birds here if we all leave together so we should leave in phases,” I said laughing and looking at my grandparents.
“That’s the silliest reason I have ever heard, but she has a point,” my grandma agreed smiling.
“Nick, I am glad that you are going early so Srini doesn’t have to think about work on our honeymoon,” Nate said smiling at Nick.
“I am glad to help,” Nick said smiling at Nate.
“Did you already make plans for the travel?” my stepdad asked in a flat tone after being very quiet all evening. I wasn’t sure if it was because he was picking up on the tension between Nick and me or not.
“Yes,” I said looking at him and added, “Nick took care of the reservations this afternoon.”
“Nick, please don’t expect me to go with you. I am still on vacation, and will get on that plane only after I am done with my shopping,” Ann said giggling.
“You got it, sis,” Nick said smiling affectionately at Ann.
Nate, Srini, and Ann left right after dinner to go back to their hotel rooms. Nick and I stayed back with my parents and grandparents who almost immediately disappeared into their rooms, leaving Nick and me staring at each other in the living room.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” I whispered to Nick when he refused to look away from me.