Three months passed and Mithran had now begun making adorable sounds just to grab the attention of his parents. Vishnu and Hema visited almost every alternate day, unable to stay away from the little one for long. Meenakshi had resumed her online coaching classes and Aakash, after months of working from home, decided it was finally time to return to the office.
One morning, Aakash and Meenakshi were having breakfast while Mithran lay on a mattress on the floor, surrounded by his toys. He waved his tiny hands and legs in the air, babbling and rubbing his nose with his fist, trying to draw their attention.
“What happened, Mithu? Give us a few minutes to finish breakfast,” Aakash said, feeding Meenakshi while glancing at his son every now and then.
But Mithran wasn’t willing to wait and soon began to cry. Sarala quickly picked him up, rocking him gently and called him by sweet names. Meenakshi washed her hands and took him from Sarala to feed him, while Aakash followed her with the plate and continued feeding her.
“Should I speak to my manager and continue working from home?” Aakash asked, his voice laced with concern.
“I’m going to miss both of you. I won’t be able to work peacefully and I might get fired for being mentally absent. How will you manage without me? Now that you have resumed your classes, he will keep making these sounds and disturb your sessions.” Aakash said shaking his head.
Meenakshi couldn’t help but chuckle at his anxious rambling. “Calm down, big baby. I know it’ll be difficult at first, but we’ll manage. Sarala akka will be here until you return from the office, and I’ll try to put him to sleep during my classes. I want you to relax and focus on your work.” she said gently leaning in and kissed his cheek.
Aakash let out an exaggerated sigh and nodded, still not entirely convinced.
The next day, he stood in front of the dressing table, buttoning his shirt with a grumpy expression. His eyes drifted to Mithran, who was sleeping peacefully on the bed after keeping them awake until midnight. Meenakshi walked up to him and quietly finished buttoning his shirt. Aakash rested his hands on her shoulders and kissed her forehead.
“I thought he would wake up before I left for the office. Now I have to wait until night to see both of you.” he said in a heavy voice.
“I’ll video call you when he wakes up. Now come, let’s have breakfast. Maybe he’ll wake up feeling hungry.” Meenakshi reassured him with a smile.
They walked out together and Sarala served breakfast. Aakash kept glancing toward the room, waiting impatiently for his son to wake up. Finally, he went back in, sat beside Mithran and gently kissed his forehead.
“Mithu, baby… Appa is leaving for the office. I’ll miss you,” he whispered softly, placing a kiss on his tiny fist before picking up his laptop bag and stepping out.
Meenakshi handed him his lunch bag and Aakash smiled at her. He quickly glanced behind her to make sure Sarala wasn’t watching. Satisfied, he leaned in and stole a quick kiss on her lips before walking out, leaving Meenakshi standing there, completely flustered.
Meenakshi was making notes when Mithran woke up, stretching his tiny arms and curling his legs. She smiled instantly, closing her notebook and turned her full attention to him.
“My cute Mithu is awake? Come, let’s get ready and call your appa,” she said fondly. With Sarala’s help, she bathed him, then dressed and fed him. Glancing at the time to make sure Aakash would have reached the office.
Just as Aakash switched on his laptop, he received a message from Meenakshi asking if he had arrived. He immediately made a video call and Meenakshi showed Mithran, who was busy staring at his tiny fist and the bangle on his wrist.
“We are fine, so focus on your work,” Meenakshi said gently before ending the call, though Aakash clearly missed them. His colleagues couldn’t help teasing him, noticing how lost and distracted he seemed on his first day back after months.
During lunch, Aakash opened his lunchbox and called Meenakshi again, asking if she had eaten. She showed him her empty plate and then turned the camera toward Mithran, who was fast asleep after feeding.
“Are you both missing me? Because I’m definitely missing you. I’m losing my mind, Meena. Honestly, I can’t sit here peacefully,” Aakash admitted, running a hand through his hair.
Meenakshi softened at his words and blew him a kiss. “Just get through today and come home. We shall talk about this. This is a serious problem for my big baby,” she teased gently and Aakash nodded.
Later, Meenakshi was taking her class while Mithran slept in the bedroom. She had left the door slightly open so she could hear him if he woke. Just then, the door opened quietly and Aakash walked in with a soft smile. She glanced at the time, surprised he had come home early. Not wanting to disturb her, he went inside to freshen up. By the time he returned, Mithran was awake but quiet.
“My baby is awake? I missed you, Mithu,” Aakash said, scooping him into his arms. Mithran lifted his head slightly and blinked up at him adorably.
“You are the cutest baby. Let’s not disturb amma. Stay quiet, and I’ll talk to you,” Aakash murmured, sitting on the bed and chatting away as if Mithran understood every word. He showed him his toys and watched with delight as the baby responded with soft smiles and curious sounds.
After finishing her class, Meenakshi walked in and paused, smiling at the sight of Aakash engrossed in his one-sided conversation with their son. The moment he noticed her, he stood up, pulled her into a hug and buried his face in the crook of her neck, holding onto her tightly. He didn’t let go until Mithran’s cry broke the moment.
Meenakshi sat down and began feeding the baby, while Aakash settled beside her, leaning against her shoulder.
“Aakash, I’ve been thinking maybe we should plan something beyond regular jobs. Instead of depending only on a monthly income, we should try building something of our own.” Meenakshi said thoughtfully.
Aakash lifted his head and looked at her curiously. “What do you mean? How else do we earn? I’m an accountant, I don’t see how I can run a business with that,” he said, leaning back onto her shoulder again.
“I have an idea. It might sound difficult, even impossible but with effort, anything is possible.” Meenakshi replied and her voice was steady.
Aakash hummed in response, absentmindedly playing with Mithran’s tiny toes.
“Tell me your plan. We shall see if we could do it” he said, only to whine softly when Mithran pulled his leg away mid-feeding.
“Stop disturbing him and go change your clothes. We shall talk over coffee or after dinner when Mithu is asleep.” Meenakshi said, nudging him lightly.
Aakash sighed dramatically but obeyed, already curious about what she had in mind.
After dinner, Aakash paced around the hall, gently rocking Mithran to sleep, while Meenakshi walked out of the kitchen with a glass of milk. Once Mithran drifted off, Aakash carefully placed him in the crib. Since they had been meaning to discuss their future, he joined Meenakshi in the bed and pulled her into a warm embrace.
“Aakash, I think you should quit your job,” Meenakshi said softly and Aakash immediately sat up, startled.
“Listen to me completely. We are good at coaching, both of us. I think we should start a coaching center full-time. I know the income might not be enough initially, but over the years, we can grow it into a proper organization with branches and more staff. And I have another plan for you. I want you to study and become a CA. I have looked into it, you can skip the foundation level and directly register for intermediate because of your master’s degree. You can study from home and only the two-year articleship is mandatory. You are capable of this, Aakash. I know you are ” she said calmly.
Aakash swallowed, trying to process everything.
“Meena, do you even realize what you are saying? Even if I clear intermediate in the first attempt, that’s one year and then two years of articleship. For three years, how do we manage with just coaching income? That’s too risky.” he asked, shaking his head.
Meenakshi gently pulled him back down and he rested his head against her.
“I’m not saying it’ll be easy but has anything in our life ever been easy? At least this struggle will lead to something better, to the life and recognition you deserve. Imagine yourself as a CA… we could have clients and you could even teach CA students. Our coaching center would reach a whole new level.” she said, running her fingers through his hair.
Aakash sighed, still unconvinced. “You still haven’t answered my question. What about us until then? I don’t want you and Mithran to compromise on anything.”
Meenakshi lifted his chin so he would look at her. “We have my jewelry and some savings. What’s the use of them if we can’t invest in our future? And don’t start saying I need jewels. Won’t you buy me more when we are settled?” she said.
Aakash smiled faintly and kissed her chin. “I’ll buy you an entire shop, Meena.”
“That’s enough then. This is our plan for the next four years. Don’t quit immediately, it wouldn’t be right after they supported you with work from home. Continue for now, save money and cut unnecessary expenses.” she said with a small smile.
Aakash let out a soft snort. “There’s nothing unnecessary when it comes to you and Mithran,” he mumbled, nuzzling closer. Meenakshi laughed and lightly tapped his back.
“Hey, stop that,” he said playfully. “It’s been three months and you have forgotten your husband. You only take care of Mithran. I need you too… at least the way we used to cuddle.” he whined.
Meenakshi bit her lip to hide her smile. She glanced at the crib, Mithran was fast asleep and unlikely to wake anytime soon. Turning back to Aakash, she gently pushed him and he immediately caught her hand, pulling her closer.
He wrapped an arm around her waist, held her carefully, but suddenly paused, a slight frown forming on his face as he looked at her more closely.
He squeezed her waist once again and then looked at his wife.
” Meena, you have lost weight. Its not the same as I used to hold your waist before Mithran was born. Are you ok ? Are you skipping food without my knowledge ? ” Aakash asked worried.
” You are the one feeding me every now and then so why do you doubt that I m skipping food ? ” she asked pulling him back to her but Aakash was still pondering over the thought.
” Accounant sir, do you want me to kick you to your place and bring Mithran between us ? ” Meenakshi asked and Aakash smiled at her and looked at her full bosoms.
” They are so full Meena. I just remember that you call me your big baby ” he said licking his lips and Meenakshi gasped at his words.
She tried to push him but Aakash held her hands and looked at her with a plead.
” Please baby, we don’t need do anything for the next two more months but have some mercy on me. Take care of your big baby ” Aakash whispered and Meenakshi melted in his words.
He let go of her hands and buried his face in her valley. Meenakshi gasped and arched her back when his warm lips latched on to her buds. Aakash moaned ravishing her and Meenakshi curled her toes as she struggled to stop her moans.
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