Page 78 of Fixation

“You got it,” Rajiv said.

Rajiv and Ananya moved to the centre of the court. Their father stepped forward and threw the ball in the air. Both her siblings leapt in the air extending their arms.Rajiv grazed the ball with his fingertips, but Ananya was faster; she caught the ball, bounced it a few times, and with a quick flick of her wrist,sent the ball soaring towards a basket.

Reina cheered. Navya glared at her. “It’s just begun, sister.”

The game continued with Ananya and her scoring another two quick baskets. Reina dribbled the ball toward the other end, but Rajiv tapped it out of her hand and shot a basket from the middle of the court.

He turned around and put his hands on his hips. “Why did you leave London?”

“Because of a man,” Reina started the bouncing the ball.

His eyes widened. “Fuck. Who is he and what did he do? Do I need to kill him?”

“Score another basket, and I may just tell you. Or maybe, I won’t.”

She ran away from him, bouncing the ball, spinning against Navya’s counterattack. Already, her heart felt lighter than before. She was enjoying this more than she’d expected to. Itkept her on the edge and put her mind off... Nope she wasn’t thinking ofhim. She was going to focus on winning so that she didn’t allow her siblings to coax her into telling them everything abouthim. She couldn’t allow that to happen.

She tossed the ball to Ananya who dunked it with one hand. The game continued with Rajiv and Navya shooting three consecutive baskets. They were at ten while Ananya and she were at six points.

Rajiv and Navya faced her.

“Alright, talk,” Navya said. “Are you really thinking about working in Dubai now? Why did you quit your job? Who is this man?”

At her silence, Navya said, “We’re waiting, Rei, and we have all night.”

Sighing, she began to speak. She told them about how and why she’d changed her name to Dr. Singh. She told them about how, for the longest, she’d worried about the impact being a Mehra would have on her career. On how her looks made her feel less confident in herself. And finally, she told them about Dr. Williams and the sexual harassment she’d faced from him. Even her parents and Sheena had moved closer to listen to her. She showed them the video she had of her final conversation with him.

“Did he hurt you?” Rajiv asked, his voice stone cold.

“No, it was all verbal. I refused to be alone with him once he’d made his intentions clear. I was lucky. I’m not sure if others were.”

“Fucking bastard,” Ananya fumed. “I can write about him, exactly like you’ve already threatened him.”

“Say the word, Reina, and we will destroy him,” Rajiv said.

“I agree,” Navya concurred. “We can’t let him get away with it.”

“I took care of it,” Reina said. “I met the management and sent them this video, with a clear warning that either they act on it or I would sue them all. I believe they’re initiating action against him as we speak. I’m sure more women will come out in the open once news of his digressions is made public. I’m ready to speak up against him in a courtroom if I have to.”

“I’m proud of you, Rei!” Navya sniffed, her eyes shining.

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Sheena asked. “You know you could have come to us anytime.”

“I could have, but unfortunately, I didn’t put myself first then. Now I have, and I always will. I was dealing with a lot internally for too long.” Reina sighed. “Thank you for making me speak up. I should have spoken to you all about this.”

They all stared at her, each of them looking shocked or angry or both. She felt infinitely lighter after sharing this with all of them. Her brain had been so muddled with everything that she’d decided to keep all of her problems inside her. But now she felt so much better knowing they were with her.

Her father approached her and put an arm around her. “I’m proud of you. You stood up for yourself. It doesn’t matter who birthed you; you are my daughter. You are Reina Mehra. You are one of us, and you should never forget that.”

Her mom came to her. “The world will always judge you. Too poor, too rich, too smart, too silly… someone will always find fault with you or judge you because of your success, your wealth, your looks, or who you are related to. That doesn’t mean you lose sight of whoyouare. You are kind, beautiful, and successful. Show the world that.”

“I will, Mom. I will.”

Seeing all their disturbed expressions, she laughed. “Guys, it’s all behind me now. I’ve dealt with it. And thank you for creating an environment where I could speak easily of this.”

Her heart felt freer. After confiding in them, she could let go of that part of her life. Now, if only she could let go of Vedant completely, her life would be great.

“Let’s play,” Navya said, distracting her. “I still have some questions.”

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