Aankhon Mein Teri
A Maaneet Fan Fic
Chapter5
Geet looked at the letter that she was still holding in her hand, unopened and definitely unread. Sitting alone on the bed, inside the room she had escaped to after Nakul's announcement, she wondered if she was the reason that Maan left so suddenly. Did she do something wrong? Was there something about her that he didn't like? Maybe it was the way she dressed. Geet had never cared one way or another what type of clothing people wore. Punjabi suits, sarees, lengha choli, western, they were all just different cultures for Geet, no single one better or worse. However, she noticed that Maan dressed in Western suits and seemed to like foreign food, so maybe he didn't care for how she looked. But if that was so, why didn't he say something? Why didn't he tell her if he would prefer she wear different clothes? It wasn't like she would make an issue out of it.
Upon thinking for a minute Geet concluded that it was probably wasn't the clothes. Surely Dadima and Nani would have told her if she should wear something different than the clothes she had, but they hadn't said anything. No, it was something else. Maybe he didn't like the breakfast she cooked. But, in that case, he could have just asked for something else, and if he didn't like her cooking, there was always Nakul. No, it must be some other reason, maybe nothing to do with her. It could be because of his business, although why would he leave a note for her and not for Dadima?
"Chalo Geet, letter parho. To tum pata chalegi baat kya hai." (Go on, Geet, read the letter. Then you will know what is the matter.)
Geet, slower opened the letter, muttering to herself that rich men were very strange. Writing letters in this day and age, when you could so easily call on a cell phone was just plain weird. Granted, she didn't have a cell phone, and he wouldn't have known the number if she did, but calling Dadima would have been easy. Well, it didn't really matter at this point, and all these thoughts were just a way to avoid finding out what her husband had written. Time to stop putting off the inevitable.
Madam,
I do not have much time, so I will come straight to the point. I agreed to this marriage only for Dadima's sake and nothing else. Her health is not good and blood pressure concerns necessitate that she remain as calm as possible. That is the only reason I left Rewari a week ago, and I now I really can't waste any more of my time. After Dadima, nothing is more important than my business, never forget that.
Now, regarding this marriage, I had never intended to marry, nor am I particularly interested in pursuing any kind of deeper relationship. For that reason, it would be better if you not bother about me. Cooking, "Suniye", covering your head, all that kind of stuff is really pointless between us. I realize that Dadima and Nani would have insisted that you use the room, so I've instructed Nakul to move my things to one of the guest rooms, where I will stay on the rare occasions when I'm there.
I hope this letter has been sufficient to make clear my position. I know it is short, but I have no more time, as I need to return to Rewari by this evening.
Maan Singh KhuranaGeet thought she was a calm, reasonable person. She thought that she had a good ability to understand people and their points of view. She really thought that she had gotten over her anger of the past week, but she hadn't. Immediately after reading the letter she had been so furious that if Maan had been in front of her she would have happily strangled him on the spot. He hadn't wanted to get married! HE had only gone through with the marriage because of Dadima's health! Just what did he think her reason was? She had only gone through with it for her mother. She herself had not wanted to get married at that time and certainly not like that. She had wanted to finish school, but he wasn't concerned about what she wanted, only what he wanted.
"Why do girls always have to give up what they want? Why is it only girls who have to chose between having a career and marriage? Why is it only girls who get punished, beaten, locked up, or killed, if they don't follow their family's demands? Why, Babaji, why?" Geet tried very hard to be tolerant and understanding of all cultures, but the treatment that she received, and many other women she knew, defied tolerance and understanding.
Geet didn't realize that she was crying angry tears until a drop fell on the letter, smudging a few of the words. She quickly wiped her cheeks, remembering her father's words. Whenever he had seen her crying when she was little, her father always told her that crying might relieve some of her emotions, but it wouldn't help her solve the problem. She needed to calm down and think what to do now. He hadn't written anything about when he would be back but that he would use a different room if he was there. Considering how rude he was, Geet was surprised that he didn't tell her to get out of his room.
Well then, fine. If he wanted to basically have nothing to do with her, then that meant that she was free to do what she wanted. Just because he wasn't interested in marriage, that didn't mean that they weren't married. She was still his wife, and as his wife she has certain rights. One of which was to stay in his room. If he thought his little mention of moving into another room was going to goad her into vacating instead, he was mistaken. She also had the right to cover up for him.
"If he thinks that I'm going to be the one who explains the state of our relationship to Dadima and Nani, then he is greatly mistaken. He agreed for Dadima's health, and he can be the one to risk making it worse. But if I don't tell them the truth, what do I tell them? They are definitely going to want to know what he wrote in the letter. He did say he was leaving for business, and from what I've heard of him, that's likely true enough. Babaji, please help me!"
Geet decided to go down immediately and talk with Dadima and Nani. It was time to eat lunch and they were probably waiting for her. She didn't want them to worry needlessly, even if the situation was not ideal, so she tried to make herself look presentable before going downstairs. She also hid the letter in her closet, the closet that now had twice as much room, since Maan's clothes were no longer in there. She didn't know exactly what she would say, but she wanted to convince them that all was well, at least for the time being.
When she approached the dining table, she saw both Savitri and Sonali stop their conversation and looked at her with concern. Savitri quickly asked, "Kya hua Maan ko? Kya kuch pareshaan likhthe hain voh?"
(What's wrong with Maan? Did he write something upsetting?)Geet, who wasn't quite prepared for the sudden questioning said quietly under her breath, "Kya dusht danaav hain. Sab uske galati hain, aur ab mein kya jawab dungi?"
(What a devilish demon he is. Everything is his fault, and now what will I answer?)Geet turned over her plate at the table, trying to act casual as she said, "Oh, everything is fine, Dadima. He just wanted to say sorry that he had to leave so suddenly, but he really needed to get back to Rewari right away. For work."
"Beti, why did he leave you a note? Why didn't he call my cell phone?"
That was exactly the question Geet had asked herself, but given the nature of the letter, she doubted that Maan had wanted to say what he had to say over the phone. However, she couldn't tell that, so she settled for, "I don't know. He didn't say."
Geet saw Savitri and Sonali give each other a knowing glance, which puzzled her. She was afraid that she had been unconvincing, but they said no more about the letter. Instead, Savitri complained about Maan once again being called away by business when there was an important rasam to complete. She was extremely disappointed that he had left before they had a chance to discuss the pag phere with him. She didn't particularly have a problem with him going away for business, but she felt that it would have been common courtesy to discuss schedules first, so that Geet would not be left in the dark about how long it would be before she saw her family again. Sonali suggested that they contact Maan and try to work something out, but Savitri didn't agree. She knew that when he got caught up in work it was nearly impossible to get him to think of anything else.
At this point Geet interrupted, something she never would have done at home, for fear of being punished. However, there was no such fear now, for both Savitri and Sonali had encouraged Geet to speak her mind. She did so, stating that she wanted to go to her maika, and she didn't want to wait until a time when her husband wasn't busy with work. Despite protests that it wasn't proper and that her family would be shocked, Geet insisted. She explained that Brij veerji was unlikely to come all the way from Hoshiarpur to get her, so they could take her home and bring her back if Maan wasn't available.
Neither Savitri nor Sonali wanted to deprive Geet of seeing her family, so they ended up agreeing with her suggestion. That afternoon Geet called her family to let them know she would be returning the next day for her pag phere. Due to the distance between Chandisgarh and Hoshiarpur, Geet's family naturally assumed that Maan would accompany her. Upon discovering that he was out of town on business, they were concerned about Geet traveling on her own. Geet spent a great deal of time explaining that her dadisa and nanisa would both come with her, along with their bodyguard/driver, therefor providing her with the protection they deemed necessary.
With both family's concerns satisfied, Geet ended her day with quite a triumphant feeling. Despite having been all but rejected by her husband, she had dealt well with the situation. She hadn't broken down completely, she hadn't let Dadima or Nani know the truth, and she had arranged everything for her trip home. She had promised herself that she was going to live her life the way she wanted, and she was definitely not going to let the fact that her husband was a dusht daanav spoil her life. She went to sleep feeling that Papaji would be proud of the fact that she didn't let circumstances get her down, but found a way to deal with it instead.
Geet's efforts played out almost entirely as she predicted. Upon arrival at her maika, she was greeted by Daarji, who was satisfied to leave her with the ladies after inquiring from Savitri if his granddaughter was living up to her responsibilities as a bahu. Brij took one look at Geet, and seeing her dressed as a typical Punjabi bride, left, secure in the knowledge that their family izzat was still intact. The women of the household were keen to find out everything about their new damaad. Geet had been expecting that, and told them as much of the truth as possible.
She explained how he was in Rewari, doing some government project and that he was always very busy with work. She told about his eating preferences, and how she had spent days learning how to cook the foreign food. She described the Singh mansion, and when her Tayi heard she was treated like a princess, she declared that their Geet was the most fortunate girl. Everyone was very impressed, which was what Geet was counting on. The one thing that she hadn't counted on was her mother.
That evening, after Savitri and Sonali had gone to stay at a friends home, and everyone in the Handa haveli was getting ready for the night, Rano came to Geet's room. Closing the door, she locked it, not wanting anyone to disturb them. Geet noticed the expression on her mother's face. It was almost as upset as it had been when she came to tell her that Dev had eloped with Meera. She couldn't imagine what was making her mother so upset, and quickly asked what was wrong.
"I should be the one asking you that, Beti."
"What do you mean, Maa?"
"I know my Geet very well. You can't hide anything from me. Something is wrong at your sasural." Geet was shocked by her mother's question, having assumed that she gave nothing away.
She was wrong, for when she tried to protest, her mother stopped her by saying, "I know you are not telling me something. What is it? Is there something wrong with Savitriji or Sonaliji? Have they not treated you properly?"
"No, Maa, Dadima and Nani are both wonderful."
"Then is something wrong with Damaadji?"
"No..."
"That is what's wrong. I can see it in the way you won't meet my eyes. Tell me everything. Has he hurt you, mistreated you in any way? What's happened? Why has he gone away so soon after the marriage?"
Rano's continued prodding finally caused Geet to break down. She told her mother everything, from the first night when she arrived at her new home without a husband, to the week long wait for him to come back, to the quick marriage registration and his subsequent leaving. Geet tried not to mention anything about the letter, but Rano soon heard all about that as well. It upset her terribly, and made her determined to talk the entire matter out with Savitri. Geet wouldn't hear of that.
"Maa, I haven't told them the truth of what was in the letter. They would be so hurt if they knew."
"Geet, Savitriji is the head of the Khurana family. It is her responsibility to ensure that her grandson behaves properly, that he does what is right. What he has done is definitely not right."
"Yes, but Maa, no one can force him to do what he doesn't want to do. I don't want a husband that is forced to be with me, pretending to accept the relation. Really, Maa, it could have been much worse. I don't think he is a bad person, and it seems that he frequently needs to be away for business, so possibly this is just another of those instances." When Rano frowned, Geet took her hand and said, "Maa, please don't worry. I'm just trying to make the best of the situation, like Papaji taught me too."
Geet's words brought a bittersweet smile to Rano's face, as she remembered her late husband. She lovingly cupped Geet's cheek with her free hand and said, "Al right, Beti, I'll let this go for now. Now tell me, has Savitriji spoken at all about you continuing your studies?"
Upon learning from Geet that the answer to her question was negative, Rano declared that she would find some opportunity the next day to speak with Savitri about that very thing. Their discussion had run quite late, so Rano fondly tucked Geet in, just as she used to when she was a little girl. Making her way back to her own room, she again promised herself that she would see that Savitri arranged for Geet to go back to school. If her fears were realized, and Geet essentially became an abandoned bride, she worried about what the reality would do to her bubbly, fun-loving child. However, if Geet could finish her degree and maybe go on to get an M.A. also, she might have opportunities to make something better of her life. That had been the dream of her darling Geet's father, and it was a dream that she would do everything to see fulfilled.
Geet felt better after having told everything to her mother, but at the same time she felt bad. She knew that her mother had insisted on the marriage as a way for her to have a better life. In some ways that was already happening, as she had so much more freedom in her sasural. But she knew that her mother would not be happy if there continued to be problems in her marriage, and a missing groom definitely counted as a problem. Geet just hoped and prayed to Babaji that her mother didn't say anything to Daarji about Maan, otherwise who knew what would happen. It was all the fault of her idiot pati! Dusht danaav!
Laxmi's Lafz:
Originally posted by: scorpiobhavika
hey i remember you saying that both the stories will deal with children ..we can see that in tum kaun ho? with JD and harsh and all ..but since you have changed some plots for this story, the children part is also done away with or it stays and is yet to come ?
Nope, the children part is still intact. It will show up in the future. Right now the story is focusing on the aftermath of Maan and Geet's marriage.
So, I have a feeling that I may have missed a few people who want to be pm'ed. If you have asked me to include you on the list, and haven't yet got a pm from me for this story, I'm sorry. Please ask again.
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