Halfway Through- Part 4

Throughout the 20 minutes cab journey to her house, her mind tried to seek only one answer- after all this time why was he calling her again?
She didn't dare to check her phone. If he would have called her about six months back, things would have been so simple for her, she thought. When on some nights she felt lonely and her pillow soaked all her tears, where was he all that time? Why was he back when she has moved on?

Once she reached home, she immediately took out the phone from her purse and checked. 5 missed calls. She was thinking of what to do next, when the phone flashed again. It was Nakul's call. She took a deep breath, and took the call.

"Hello, have you reached home safely?"
"Yes I just reached."
"Okay, I called you twice, but you didn't respond, I was worried, and.....
"Look, Nakul," Minisha interrupted him, "I know you are concerned, but I am not a kid, so you don't have to be overprotective. I need time to think." Minisha blurted at him. Her words didn't make any sense to Nakul. Before he could reply, she disconnected the call.

With trembling hands she dialled Aarav's number. He picked the call in just one ring.
"Hello, Minisha?" He spoke, with a restlessness and longing in his voice.
A tear dropped down her eyes. The voice which she once craved to hear, was again heard by her, but when she lost the hope and the desire of it. She tried to speak, but her voice choked.

"Minisha, are you there?"

"What do you want now?" She finally spoke in an indifferent voice,  suppressing her emotions.

"How have you been? I read your mails and...."

"Oh, so early! I am impressed. But I think I started mailing you since you blocked my number and all my social media accounts, and I continued to mail you for two months, to be precise, before I lost all hopes. How you thought of me after all this time? Well, making me wait had been your habit, but don't you think this time you're too late?" She unleashed her anger.

"Believe me, I always read your mails, but I chose to stay away from you, as I thought that was the best thing to do. I believed that we didn't have a future. I didn't want to give you false hopes. I was going through a lot in my life and I didn't want to share my problems with you. Parting ways was the toughest decision of my life, and the worst too. I realized that you were the best part of my life, the one who loved me unconditionally and understood me better than anyone else...."

"Stop your drama. You only loved me when it was convenient for you. Whenever I needed some support you never backed me. Whenever I broke down and couldn't stop my tears, instead of comforting me you simply reprimanded me for being weak and mentally sick, hurting me even more. You compared me to the other girls around you, humiliating me in the most subtle manner. I developed an inferiority complex for myself which lowered my confidence. For the world you were a perfect beau, nobody knew of all the things I compromised in our relationship. Everybody has their own flaws. I loved you inspite of all you did to me, but you left me alone. I had no job, was going through severe depression and you left me because you thought I don't deserve you. It was the time you could have proved your love by standing as my pillar of strength, and you proved that your love and promises were fake. I still remember your last words, you called me a self- obsessed, sick woman and a loser. How can you expect me to forgive you, and do you really expect that I could be still waiting for you?" She broke down, unable to control her sobs, remembering the trauma she went through.

"I won't defend myself. I know I had been wrong throughout the two years of our relationship. You're too hurt to forgive me, but deep down my heart tells me that you still love me, you always did. You were the perfect girlfriend, you could never feel the same for anyone else the way you felt for me. And trust me, even I could never love anyone else after you. Even after I broke up with you, I never let any other girl enter my life. Please come back to me, I'll be a better person, and I've lost you once, that's a lesson for me. I won't let that happen again, I can't bear that pain again. Please...I love you Mini." Their was repentence in his voice.

"Don't call me by that name, you've lost all rights. You didn't do me any favour by not letting any other girl enter your life. Whatever you did was enough to hurt me beyond tolerance. I can't go through all that again. I have moved on. I have another man in my life now." She replied spontaneously, just to make him lose hope, waiting for his reaction.

"I know you better than yourself. You can't move on so easily. Your lies can't repel me." He said in a pacified voice.

A sudden guilt hits Minisha. Even after being the right one in the relationship, she felt guilty for letting Nakul enter her life. Aarav's words reminded her of that evening's tryst at Nakul's place, and she wished that had never happened.

"I am here in Delhi, I came to know that you're working here. Please meet me soon. Let's talk in person and settle our differences for a new beginning. Please."

"I don't know, I need time," she replied, regaining her senses.

"Sure, I can wait forever for you, just let me know when you're ready to do so." He spoke hopefully. Minisha disconnected the call.
............

She took a leave from the office for a two weeks. She didn't want any encouters with Nakul, as she was clueless of their future now. When Nakul called her again, asking the reason for her absence, she simply replied that she wasn't well and needed to spend some time alone. Nakul didn't enquire further. He thought of letting things flow on its own, and decided to accept it as his fate. He remembered his resolution of not tampering with his self respect for the sake of love. Yet everytime his ego made him repulsive to Minisha, their last meeting flashed in front of his eyes. Her soft touch, her fragrance, her embrace, everything made him crave for her even more. Her disturbed face told him that she was in trouble, but he decided to give her time. He had faith in her. She would surely tell him what's troubling her. He decided to wait and happen things on their own.

She used to stay at home all day, thinking of every single thing that happened in her life, cursing her fate. Her indecisiveness made her restless. Everyday she received messages from Aarav, asking her about her day and health. It seemed that he was genuinely trying to make up for all the wrongs he did. Inspite of her determination, she couldn't stop herself from replying to his messages. She tried to empathise with Aarav, at the same time the thought of Nakul created great dilemma. On one side there was her past lover who left her alone and shattered but was ready to change for her, and on the other side there was this man, her mentor and a friend who stood there for her unconditionally whenever she needed.

She remembered the time when one night she was lonely and was missing Aarav, she called Nakul to share her agony, and told him everything about her relationship. He told her, "You love him because you want him, not because he wants you. You want him for your happiness, not for his'. Trust me, one day you'll move on and you'll no longer want him. You'll realise you don't love him anymore. Be happy for yourself, he lost someone who loved him unconditionally, and he'll realise that one day, but then you would have moved on with someone who deserves you." Back then these words gave her great comfort. But now they increased her dilemma. She had to take the crucial decision of her life.

A week passed. One day she received the message from Nakul. "How have you been? If you feel like sharing something I'm always there for you." She sighed, didn't open it and read it from the notification. After sometime Aarav's message popped up. "Don't you think we all deserve another chance? Can we meet today?"

EVERYBODY DESERVES A CHANCE.

These words proved to be the deciding factor. She stood up, and decided to meet him, forgetting everything that happened in her past and to begin afresh. And she decided to do it in her best way.

She spent the hours in a beauty salon, getting the facials, manicure, pedicure done and all the things she never tried before. Though she was a frugal minded girl who believed in dolling up only on special occasions, but today she believed was a very special day. She was going to meet him again, and she wanted to look her best, so as to encapsulate him in her beauty.

Till the evening, she was dressed in a beautiful black dress, her hair done in a simple but elegant fashion, her face beaming with the subtle makeup. She made sure not to look overdressed, but also to be dressed in such a way so as to make any man go weak in the knees. And she succeeded in her efforts. She looked like an epitome of a perfect beauty. The days of dilemma and indecisiveness were finally gone. She knew what she wanted in life. Blushing at the thought of meeting him after a long time, she hoped to clear all the misunderstandings today.

She picked up her phone and opened her Whatsapp. Ignoring Nakul's message, she opened Aarav's chats and started typing. "When we were in relationship, I gave you infinite chances, so now the probability of giving you another chance is zero. You left me when I had nothing, so better stay away when I have a life worth living. Now that the dark circles around my eyes have vanished and my beauty is restored, I've no intentions of bringing them back again spending the sleepless nights for you. I know you won't get a girl who loves you more than me, but now whoever comes to your life don't compare her to me and learn from your mistakes. Have a great life ahead. Goodbye." She sent the message. He received the message and read it instantly, started typing something, but she didn't wait for his reply and blocked his number. She took a deep breath, as if she got freedom from servitude. No tears were shed, and no regrets were felt.

Next, she opened Nakul's chat. "I'm sorry to reply late, but did I tell you that I prefer tea to coffee, that too flavoured with basil leaves? If you don't have a plant in your house better pluck some of it from your neighbour's place, I'm coming to your house in an hour." She hit the send button, smiling to herself. Within a minute she received a reply, "Did I tell you I make even better tea, waiting eagerly to exchange the cups with you again." She blushed at his response, took a final look at the mirror and left to meet him.