Big Fat Love – Chapte 10

Meenakshi sat on the bed, scrolling through her mobile. A yawn escaped her lips and she glanced at the clock. It had struck eleven and Aakash had still not returned.

This had become the new routine over the past three weeks, ever since the day he informed her that he would be coming home late.

He had asked her not to stay awake just to serve him dinner but she ignored his request and waited for him every night.

Soon, she heard the sound of his bike outside. Quietly, she walked out of the room. Careful not to disturb her father-in-law, who was asleep in the hall, she opened the door.

Aakash entered, looking utterly exhausted.

“Did you have dinner?” he asked immediately.

Meenakshi smiled. That was always the first question he asked the moment he stepped inside the house.

She nodded her head and Aakash quickly changed his clothes and came out to see Meenakshi placing a plate for him. She was about to serve the chapathi and gravy onto his plate when a thought suddenly stopped her.

She had often noticed his hands trembling whenever she stood close to him. Tonight, she wanted to confirm it before deciding what to do about it. So she stepped closer and placed the chapathi and gravy on his plate.

The moment she stood beside him, Aakash’s heart began to race. He swallowed nervously. His fingers trembled and he quickly tried to hide it by sliding his hand beneath the table.

“Why aren’t you eating?” Meenakshi asked as she poured water into his glass. But she could clearly see how restless he was.

She quickly understood that it wasn’t anger but it was fear.

For years, she had handled students and had learned to observe people carefully. Right now, the reaction her husband was showing was nothing but pure fear and anxiety.

A bead of sweat rolled down his forehead. Without making it obvious, she quietly stepped away and went into the kitchen to give him some space.

From the doorway, she peeked at him. He picked up the glass and gulped down the water but his condition looked miserable.

” What happened to him?  Why is he scared of me? ” she wondered.

The thought left her both confused and worried. What troubled her even more was how completely withdrawn he seemed, not just from her but from the entire family.

No one in the house spoke to him except his father. Rajesh and Lavanya looked at him as if he were some kind of alien. His mother smiled and spoke to him only when there was something that needed to be taken care of.

Meenakshi felt deeply saddened by the way he lived his life.

” I need to do something. Even I cannot live like this forever. I need to talk to him.” she thought.

She watched him eating slowly. His hair had fallen over his forehead and he looked incredibly handsome as he adjusted his glasses.

Once he finished eating, he carried his plate to the sink and washed it himself. Meenakshi walked out of the kitchen, already knowing what he would do next.

Aakash looked around and noticed that she was busy cleaning the table. Quietly, he opened the sugar container, took a spoonful and ate it before walking to their room with a water bottle in his hand.

Meenakshi noticed it and smiled faintly as she placed the vessels in the kitchen. But at the same time, she felt worried about his sugar cravings.

She wiped her hands on her shawl before entering the room. Aakash was sitting on the bed, looking seriously at something on his mobile phone.

The next morning, Meenakshi entered the kitchen and was surprised to see Padma there. The aroma of ghee filled the air. Padma was preparing kheer and looked unusually happy.

“What’s special today, Aunty?” Meenakshi asked curiously.

“Today is Rajesh’s birthday. This is his favorite dish and he loves it when I cook it for him. Make something special for breakfast. Your uncle will buy mutton later to cook biryani for lunch.” Padma replied and she transferred the kheer into a casserole before walking out of the kitchen.

Meenakshi quickly prepared several dishes for breakfast and hurried to pack lunch for Aakash.

Soon, Aakash entered the hall and saw his parents blessing Rajesh.

“Happy birthday, Rajesh,” Aakash said, handing him a shirt he had bought as a gift.

Rajesh looked at the shirt with a frown. “You could have asked me about the color before buying it. I already have four shirts in this color.” he said dismissively and casually dropped the shirt onto the sofa.

Meenakshi glanced at the shirt and then at Aakash. He looked slightly embarrassed but he masked it with a faint smile and quietly sat beside his father.

“My friends wanted a party but I convinced them to go for a movie instead,” Rajesh said, looking expectantly at his mother.

“Aakash, he wants money,” Padma said and Aakash opened his purse and handed him a few currency notes.

“This will only be enough for the tickets. What about snacks?” Rajesh complained.

“You should have told earlier. Aakash would have given you the money instead of buying you a shirt,” Balaram said sharply, glaring at Rajesh. The look was enough to silence him.

Padma then turned toward the kitchen. “How long will you keep standing there? Do you even know how to serve breakfast? Aakash is getting late for office,” she snapped at Meenakshi.

Meenakshi hurried out and placed the dishes on the table. She served breakfast to everyone and then went back into the kitchen to pack lunch for Aakash. The exhaustion finally caught up with her. She paused for a moment, leaning slightly against the counter before stepping out again and placed the lunch box on the table.

Aakash quietly poured a glass of water and placed it in front of her.

“Have some water and sit for a moment. Don’t tire yourself cooking lunch for me. I will manage.” he said.

Padma scoffed immediately. “She stays idle at home all day. If she can’t even pack lunch for you, what else is she good for?” she said sarcastically.

Aakash ignored his mother and gestured her to drink the water. Meenakshi silently drank the water and continued serving them.

Padma then served the kheer to everyone.

Aakash extended his bowl toward Meenakshi, offering it to her. But she shook her head when she noticed Padma watching closely.

“I’ll have it later,” she said quietly and added another spoonful of kheer into his bowl, knowing he had a sweet tooth.

Later that afternoon, Meenakshi finished cooking the biryani. She packed a small portion into a container for Aakash. Just then, Padma walked into the kitchen and gasped dramatically.

“Shameless woman. Are you sneaking food now? Aren’t you ashamed? You are already twice the size of my son. He’s embarrassed because of you. That’s why he doesn’t come home early and hardly spends any time here. Do you want him to leave this house permanently?” she shouted and her words came out like venom.

Hearing the commotion, Balaram rushed into the kitchen. Rajesh and Lavanya, who had returned early to have lunch, followed him.

“Padma, what nonsense are you talking?” Balaram demanded, standing beside Meenakshi.

Meenakshi struggled to hold back her tears. The humiliation burned inside her. For a moment, she felt like throwing the food at Padma and walk out of the house.

But her mother’s words echoed in her mind that Keerthy’s life depended on her patience.

“Don’t try to control me. For once, stop your daughter-in-law from embarrassing Aakash. Look at her… sneaking food ” Padma snapped angrily.

Meenakshi quietly closed the hot box and placed it in the corner before turning to look at Balaram.

“Uncle, I packed the biryani for your son. He may or may not eat it since he returns late but I thought he should at least feel that someone thought of him. I have done my work and I’m not hungry so I’ll be in the room,” she said.

Without sparing a glance at Padma, who was still glaring at her, Meenakshi walked out of the kitchen.

“Did you see that? It has been only a few days since she came into this house, yet she already thinks about her husband and cares for him. When did you turn into such a demon?” Balaram said, turning to Padma. His voice trembled with anger.

“She is a girl, the daughter-in-law of this house, our son’s wife and more than anything, she is a human being.” he said further and with that, Balaram walked out of the house.

Thirty minutes later, he returned and saw Padma, Rajesh and Lavanya eating the biryani.

He silently walked to Meenakshi’s room and knocked on the door. Despite her refusal, he insisted on giving her the snacks he had bought for her.

As usual, Aakash returned home late that night. Meenakshi prepared dinner and also reheated the biryani she had made earlier.

Aakash sat down, rolling up his sleeves while Meenakshi placed the dishes in front of him.

“I cooked biryani in the afternoon. I reheated it, but I wasn’t sure if you would eat it, so I also prepared dinner. What would you like to have?” she asked softly.

Aakash looked at the biryani and then at her. It was the first time she had cooked biryani. Even though it was late at night, he wanted to taste it, knowing she had saved it especially for him.

“Serve me a little to taste. I’ll have dinner afterward,” he said.

Meenakshi served a small portion onto his plate. The moment he took the first bite, he closed his eyes, savoring the taste.

“Wow… it’s really good. Thank you,” he said sincerely and ss he looked up, he noticed her hands trembling.

“Are you alright? Did you have dinner?” he asked and Meenakshi nodded quietly.

But Balaram, who had been awake the whole time, came and sat beside Aakash. He explained everything that had happened during the day, including the fact that Meenakshi had not eaten anything since the small breakfast she had in the morning.

After his father finished speaking and left the room, Aakash adjusted his glasses and looked at Meenakshi.

“I’m sorry and if you won’t eat, then don’t cook for me either.” he said quietly.

He paused, gathering his thoughts. “I may not be able to fight my family over everything, that will make things worse but I want you to understand one thing, you have every right in this house, just like the rest of us.” he said and his voice grew firmer.

“I earn for everyone in this family, and you are part of this family too. Now either eat… or I’ll starve as well.” He said looking straight at her.

Aakash said the words with quiet determination, feeling angry at himself for being such a coward until now.

Meenakshi noticed the guilt in his eyes. For a moment, she wanted to scream at him, for not standing up for himself, for not standing up for her. But she stopped herself. She didn’t yet know the reason behind his fear.

At the same time, she felt a strange sense of pity for him and silently hoped that someday she would be able to fix everything.

Without saying anything, she served dinner onto her plate. Watching her, Aakash quietly pushed the biryani aside and served dinner for himself as well.

They returned to the room and Aakash then noticed the snacks on the table. They were still untouched and he looked at her questioningly.

“Uncle bought them, but I didn’t feel like eating,” she said softly before spreading the mattress on the floor to sleep.

The next morning, after Aakash left for the office, Meenakshi went to a nearby temple. She sat there for a while, lost in thought about her fate.

On her way back home, she saw a few children happily eating chocolates. The sight reminded her of Aakash and his late-night sugar cravings.

” I should do something about it ” she thought.

When Meenakshi entered the house, she was greeted by Padma’s rolling eyes.

“Took you long enough to visit the nearby temple. Go and start cooking lunch,” Padma said curtly.

Meenakshi quietly went to the room, changed into a salwar and began preparing lunch. While cooking, she noticed the palm jaggery kept on the shelf.

A soft smile appeared on her lips.

By evening, she served coffee and tea to everyone. Padma walked into the kitchen just then and paused as the sweet aroma of palm jaggery filled the air.

“What are you making?” Padma asked suspiciously.

Meenakshi stopped stirring the jaggery for a moment.

“He looks exhausted after working for so long so I thought I would prepare something healthy and sweet for him.” she replied calmly.

“As if you won’t eat it yourself,” Padma muttered under her breath before walking out of the kitchen.

Meenakshi ignored her comment.

After finishing, she rolled the mixture into small nutritious ladoos and packed them into two containers, one for the family and one especially for Aakash.

That night, as usual, Aakash finished his dinner and was about to reach for the sugar container. But the moment he saw Meenakshi entering the kitchen, he quickly withdrew his hand.

Meenakshi picked up a container and placed it in front of him.

“I made these laddoos. They are healthy too. Have one before you go to sleep. I’ll pack some in your lunch bag tomorrow so you can have them during your break.” she said softly.

Without waiting for his response, she quietly went back to their room.

Aakash opened the container and took a bite of the laddoo. A small smile appeared on his face as he savored the taste. He had the urge to eat more but he restrained himself and carried the container with him to the room.

By then, Meenakshi had come out of the bathroom after washing her face.

“You saw me eating sugar, didn’t you?” Aakash asked, scratching his head like a child caught red-handed.

Meenakshi almost laughed but controlled herself and nodded.

“Why do you eat sugar like that?” she asked gently.

Aakash thought for a moment.

“I don’t know. Actually… I feel very tired sometimes and eating sugar makes me feel like I’m getting my energy back. Maybe I have just become addicted to it. It started during the first few months after I began working. One day I had some sugar casually after coming home from work, and it slowly became a habit. I wanted something sweet ” he said.

“Thank you for noticing and doing all this for me… even though I don’t think I deserve it.” he said looking at her sincerely.

Meenakshi looked at him, slightly bewildered by his words.

“I notice things too,” Aakash added quietly before lying down on the bed.

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A/N:

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