Page 79 of The Circle of Exile
“Atharva.”
“Iram.”
Yathaarth made a long, burpy sound.
“Is he done?” Atharva set the plate on the nightstand and climbed to sit in front of her. Her eyes were already down on their son, tenderness returning to her features — “Eyes going down. Almost down.”
Atharva pulled his T-shirt off, grabbed the pillow from in front of her and pushed closer. Their knees touched. His chest met his son’s bare back and he pushed one arm behind Iram, bringing her closer and into the circle of his arm. Yathaarth released her nipple with a pop and his eyes were already at half-mast. Atharva accepted him into his palms and let her clean herself up. She began to pull her top back up.
“Come,” he set Yathaarth in the crook of one arm and held the other open.
Joy crackled across her face, tears breaking down from the clouds of her eyes. Not a deluge, a drizzle. Slow, steady patters.
“Keep crying and I’ll make you hydrate too now.”
She chuckled, holding her open top to her chest and crawling into his arms. Her arm came to cradle Yathaarth and it was like nurturing their son in the warmth of the shared heat that they created. Atharva saw his son’s eyes fall closed. His breathing went steady. His body went slack. Happy. Fulfilled. Trusting.
“He went to sleep,” she whispered, the sob now not in tears but in her throat.
“Do you want to leave?”
Her eyes rolled up to meet his. And then she said the best no of his life.
16. His world felt buoyant until Atharva came home and found Dev Kohli…
His world felt buoyant until Atharva came home and found Dev Kohli sitting there. The one day he hadn’t taken calls or security updates from his house, it was invaded. He leashed the flare of rage inside him. This man. This shameless… Atharva stopped. All eyes were turned to him — Dev Kohli’s, Begumjaan’s, and Iram’s. His entire convoy had made enough of a spectacle depositing him at his doorstep.
“Sir?” Altaf stepped up beside him, clearly reading him.
“It’s ok.”
“I should have taken an update,” he whispered closely.
“It’s fine. You can go, Altaf.”
He nodded, stepped back and Atharva felt the cars and the men dismiss behind him. He stepped inside his house, the dusk fallen in his hall too suddenly. Iram sat far away from Dev, physically and emotionally. He could see it. He knew it. He had gone through this again and again. And yet, the idea of her reaching out to him in that fragile time of need. And him sending her money. It felt like a betrayal of the highest order.
“Atharva,” Dev got to his feet. He nodded, his eyes meeting Begumjaan’s before passing over Iram’s. She didn’t look worried. Like she trusted him to take care of this, in a good way. Atharva felt the storm inside him soften. That is what he had needed all along. Her trust. Her faith. That he would make it ok. Even if he couldn’t, her trust in him would make him do unthinkable things, achieve unimaginable feats.
Atharva took his eyes back to their guest — “Dev,” he extended his hand. Dev stepped forward and shook it, looking just as exhausted as Atharva felt. He looked something else too. Guilty.
“When did you return from Durban?”
“Last night. I know we spoke about some things four months ago, but I did not express my condolences.” He glanced at Iram, then back at him, and meant it when he said it — “It’s a burden no parents should carry.”
Atharva gave a nod. “Sit.”
The baby monitor between Begumjaan and Iram blared to life. Yathaarth’s loud whine was followed by more waking-up noises. Not cries, but his calls to be properly woken up — pick-up and cuddles. Atharva felt his body move unconsciously before he saw Iram jump to her feet just as unconsciously.
“I will go and check,” she began to stride towards the stairs. Would she be able to pick him up from inside his cot? Atharva glanced at Begumjaan but she didn’t look like she was moving from her perch.
“Dev,” he addressed. “Let’s talk in my office. Would you like tea or coffee?”
“I had coffee, thanks.”
“Would you mind waiting in my office for two minutes?” Atharva gestured to Shiva. “Shiva will show you in.”
Dev looked conflicted, but nodded. As soon as he was on his way to his office on the other side of the house, Atharva gave Begumjaan a look and ran up. He sprinted down the corridor, panicked, only to hear Iram’s cooing. His heart slowed, as did his footsteps at the threshold of his bedroom.
