Big Fat Love – Chapter 11

Meenakshi served breakfast and placed Aakash’s lunch box on the table. Padma glanced at the date on the calendar and then looked at Aakash.

“Aakash, it’s already been two days. Haven’t you received your salary for this month yet?” she asked.

Aakash paused mid-bite and looked at her. “It has been credited to my account but I haven’t had the time to go to the ATM. Tomorrow is Sunday, so I’ll withdraw the money since I’ll be home,” he replied.

Padma nodded with a satisfied smile. “What have you decided about your cousin’s wedding?” she asked.

Aakash scratched his eyebrow thoughtfully. “What have you planned, Maa?” he asked curiously.

“Before you make any plans, keep the current gold price in mind,” Balaram reminded her and Padma scrunched her nose before turning back to Aakash.

“I was thinking we could gift something in silver, if not gold. I know you spent most of your savings on your wedding. So how about we withdraw some money from the savings we kept for Lavanya’s marriage and deposit it back later?” she suggested.

But Aakash shook his head.

“No, Maa. I have a monthly chit with my office colleagues. I’ll ask them to give the amount to me when it is needed. They will adjust. The amount will be around twenty five thousand. I hope you can plan something within that,” he said and Padma nodded immediately.

The next morning, after breakfast, Aakash went to the ATM and returned with the money. As usual, he handed it over to his mother. It included the amounts meant for his father, Lavanya, and Rajesh.

Padma counted the money carefully before looking at him.

“Aakash, you have been working overtime these days. Didn’t you get paid extra this month?” she asked, glancing between the money in her hand and his face.

“No, Maa. There is no payment for those extra hours,” Aakash replied calmly before returning to his room.

Meenakshi served tea and coffee to everyone and then carried a cup of coffee to the bedroom for Aakash. She placed it on the table and was about to leave when Aakash stopped her and quietly closed the door.

Then he took out some currency notes from his pocket and handed them to her.

“This is for you. Use it for your own expenses. Buy whatever you like. You don’t have to depend on anyone or ask anyone for anything.” Aakash said, handing her the money.

Meenakshi looked at him in shock.

“But isn’t this your petrol money? What will you do if there are emergency expenses at home? I don’t need money. I stay at home anyway, so I don’t really need anything,” she said shaking her head in denial.

Aakash placed the money on the table and picked up his coffee.

“I have money. You don’t need to worry about that. I have it all planned,” he replied.

Meenakshi suddenly realized something. “Did you work overtime to earn extra money?” she asked, bewildered.

Aakash looked momentarily caught off guard. “I… I mean… I didn’t work overtime. But… I joined a part-time job as a tutor at a coaching center. I teach accounts there.” he said hesitantly since he didn’t want to hide the truth from her, at least not this.

Meenakshi stared at the money on the table. Memories of the nights he returned home exhausted flashed through her mind. Her eyes grew moist as she realized he had done all that for her.

“Did you take a part-time job just to give me money?” she whispered.

Aakash took a deep breath and sat down on the bed.

“I just wanted to support you… at least in some way,” he said quietly and Meenakshi noticed the guilt in his eyes.

“Is he feeling guilty because he shut me out and denied me my rights as his wife? “, she wondered.

She picked up the money and returned it to him.

“I don’t need the money, so please stop exhausting yourself. Quit the part-time job and come home at your usual time. I’ve seen how tired you are every night when you walk in. You barely eat a proper dinner and you don’t even get enough sleep. Please don’t do this.” she said gently.

She was about to open the door when his voice stopped her.

“Please accept it,” he said almost pleadingly.

Meenakshi turned and saw how vulnerable he looked.

“I won’t spend this money. But you can ask me for it anytime if you need it.” she said softly and  placed the money in the trolley beneath the bed.

“I’ve ordered a small cupboard for this room. You can arrange your clothes in it instead of keeping them in the trolley. It will be delivered today.” Aakash said after a moment and with that, he walked out of the room.

Meenakshi felt unexpectedly happy. She was humming a song while cooking biryani in the kitchen.

Through the kitchen window, she could see Aakash in the backyard, trimming the bushes. Sweat rolled down his face and the vest he was wearing was completely damp. She poured a glass of buttermilk and walked toward the backyard.

Clearing her throat softly, she got his attention. Aakash startled slightly and quickly reached for his shirt but before he could say anything, Meenakshi placed the buttermilk on the concrete  nearby and hurried back into the kitchen.

From the window, she watched him. He lightly tapped his forehead and muttered something to himself but soon a small smile appeared on his face as he looked at the glass she had left for him.

He took a sip of the buttermilk, wiped the sweat from his face with the towel he had brought along and then quietly resumed his work.

Meenakshi peeked out of the kitchen and saw Rajesh watching cricket. She gritted her teeth before speaking.

“Rajesh, could you please help your brother in the backyard? He gets only one day to rest, yet he is still working even on a Sunday,” Meenakshi said humbly.

Rajesh glared at her. “There are people who would do that job for barely five hundred rupees but he wants to save the money. I’m not used to doing such work,” he replied dismissively.

Meenakshi said nothing further and quietly returned to the kitchen to resume her work.

After finishing his work, Aakash took a bath and sat down for lunch. Meenakshi placed a plate in front of him and served hot biryani with a smile. Aakash smiled back as the aroma reached him. He began eating quickly, clearly hungry. Meenakshi served more biryani onto his plate, ignoring the watchful eyes around them.

Before taking another bite, Aakash placed a plate for Meenakshi and looked at her, a silent request asking her to join him.

Meenakshi sat beside him, leaving enough space between them. To everyone’s surprise, Aakash added more biryani to her plate.

After a heavy lunch and an exhausting morning of work, Aakash soon dozed off. Meenakshi quietly watched him sleep, noticing the rare peace on his face.

In the evening, the family gathered in front of the television. Since Aakash was home only on Sundays, Meenakshi had prepared snacks along with tea and coffee for everyone.

“Bro, Amma already gave me money for this month but I need some more,” Lavanya said casually.

Balaram immediately scoffed.

“Appa, please stop teasing me every time I ask for money. I’m planning to join a coaching centre for accounts. They usually charge ten thousand but many students from our college have joined there, so they are offering a discount. We only have to pay seven thousand.” Lavanya said, rolling her eyes.

She looked at her mother while speaking instead of her brother, the one who would actually be paying the money.

Meenakshi spoke before anyone else could respond.

“Lavanya, why do you need a coaching centre when your brother can teach you? Did you forget he is a chief accountant? With his master’s degree, he could easily join any college as a professor. Wake up a little early in the morning and he can teach you for an hour before leaving for office. Or you can learn from him on Sundays.” Meenakshi said.

Aakash looked at Meenakshi and smiled at her words.

“Meenakshi is right, Lavanya. I will teach you. Give me your syllabus and we can sit for an hour every morning or on Sundays,” Aakash said, feeling happy that he could help his sister.

But Lavanya gritted her teeth and glared at Meenakshi. “You don’t want him to give me money, do you? You could have just said that directly.”

She stormed into her room and returned within seconds with the money that had been given to her. She threw it onto the table.

“Here. I don’t need any money from now on. I will wake up early and walk to college. And tell me if I should stop eating to save money too. I’ll happily do that,” Lavanya spat venomously.

Meenakshi stood there, stunned by her words.

“Stop it, Lavanya, she only suggested that I could help you. If you weren’t comfortable with the idea, you could have refused politely. She is your sister-in-law and older than you. Is this how you behave?” Aakash said firmly.

Lavanya immediately burst into tears.

“You’ve changed. All these years you never spoke to me like this. But today you are shouting at me just to show that your wife has power in this house. Please forgive me. I won’t be a burden to you anymore,” she cried.

Aakash pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration.

“Lavanya, I only asked you to be polite. I just meant you didn’t have to be so harsh while expressing your thoughts,” he said, trying to calm her.

But Lavanya continued crying hysterically and stormed to her room. A loud thud followed as she slammed the door shut.

“Ignore her, Aakash. You were right. She cannot speak rudely for no reason,” Balaram said.

Aakash glanced at Meenakshi, who was still standing there in shock.

Before anyone could say anything further, Padma’s voice cut through the room.

“I knew you weren’t good for this family. You are deliberately provoking Rajesh and Lavanya against Aakash. You tried to push Rajesh to work in the backyard knowing very well he would refuse, just to create a rift between the brothers. And now you have successfully created a problem between Lavanya and Aakash. Do you think I am blind?” she shouted, glaring at Meenakshi.

Meenakshi shook her head in disbelief, unable to process the accusation.

“Amma, please…” Aakash began, trying to defend Meenakshi but Padma raised her hand, stopping him immediately.

“Stop taking her side, Aakash. Or do you expect me to give up everything the way Lavanya just did? It’s not new that Lavanya is stubborn. She has always been pampered. Your wife might not know that, but you do. Yet you listened to her and lashed out at your little sister. I never expected this from you, Aakash.” she said angrily.

“If we truly are a burden to you, then say it openly.” she said further wiping her tears.

Aakash felt his heart shatter. The fragile peace of the house had crumbled within minutes, leaving him torn between the family he had always protected and the woman who had entered his life with complete trust in him.

He wanted to defend Meenakshi. He wanted to tell everyone that she wasn’t what they were accusing her of.

But the look in his mother’s eyes terrified him. He feared that one wrong word might turn this argument into something far worse, something everyone might regret later.

So, for the moment, Aakash chose silence.

Padma stormed into the room to console Lavanya. Meenakshi felt a deep wave of disappointment and quietly walked into the kitchen. Leaning against the counter, she wiped the tears that had escaped her eyes.

“He could have simply said it wasn’t my intention… that I only spoke to support him”, she thought as she began chopping vegetables.

Aakash entered their room and sat on the bed, holding his head in his hands. The look on Meenakshi’s face before she left had clearly shown how disappointed she was in him.

“Is this how married men feel caught between their mother and their wife? How do I convince her? How much will she have to endure just because she married me? ” he wondered helplessly.

He felt frustrated and ruffled his hair. To distract himself, he decided to iron his shirts. But when he opened the cupboard, he froze in surprise. Every single shirt was already neatly ironed and arranged.

He knew immediately who had done it. He wanted to speak to her, to apologize properly. So he waited.

After a while, he sat beside his father on the sofa in the hall. From there he saw Meenakshi placing dinner on the table. She walked toward Balaram but didn’t even glance at Aakash, though he was sitting right beside him.

“Uncle, I feel a little feverish, so I’ll skip dinner tonight. Could you please tell Aunty to serve dinner? I’ll wash the vessels in the morning,” she said softly before returning to the room.

Aakash felt terrible. Unable to face her immediately, he walked up to the terrace. After some time, he returned to the hall where he saw his mother serving dinner.

“Aakash, come have dinner,” Padma called out. But he shook his head.

“My manager just called, Ma. I have some important work to finish. I’ll eat later,” he replied and walked into the room.

Meenakshi was already lying on the mattress with her eyes closed. But Aakash knew she wasn’t asleep.

“Meenakshi… I’m really sorry. I wanted to support you but the situation would have exploded. And once again the blame would have fallen on you. Please forgive me.” he said quietly.

There was no response.

Two hours later, Aakash walked out and saw his father sitting alone in the hall. Without saying anything, he entered the kitchen, served dinner onto two plates and returned to the room.

He placed one plate beside her on the floor and sat on the bed with the other plate in his hand.

“Meenakshi, I brought dinner for you. I already told you that if you don’t eat, I won’t eat either. Either we eat together… or I will skip dinner too. I know you are awake. Please, Meenakshi… forgive me.” he said gently.

He waited patiently. But Meenakshi remained stubbornly silent.

“Alright then, let’s both starve.” he said quietly after a moment.

He took both plates back to the kitchen and returned to the room. This time, he lay down on the bed.

A few minutes later, Meenakshi suddenly sat up and tied her hair into a bun. Without looking at him, she walked out of the room. Aakash immediately followed her, knowing exactly what she was going to do.

Meenakshi served dinner onto a plate and sat down to eat. Aakash quietly sat opposite her and began eating from his own plate.

Neither of them spoke a word but they ate together.

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A/N:

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