Love is a spontaneous emotion

Chapter3 Some Thing Was Wrong

Naanima's pov continued

I picked up her call, Mitto greeted me (Mitto is the nickname for Maithili that usually Naani called her With)and asked for Naav, she did'nt talk anything else other than greeting me in a voice that was devoid of excitement which was very uncharacteristic of her.She usually spoke to me for a long time before she even asked to talk to Naav but today it was different ,there was urgency in her voice.Something was off. I asked if everything was OK with her and she said she was fine but I could sense some sort of hesitation in her voice.

She asked if Naav was already back from the trip and I told her that she will be arriving this evening. Then she said nothing furthur and biding bye she disconnected the call.

After talking to her,my mind was restless. I felt a sense of inexplicable trepidation which was unsettling. I could tell that there was something wrong and she did'nt intend to divulge.

Maithili is Naav' best friend and her classmate since their kindergarten time.Maithili is a very good girl, a motherless Child who grew up without love and care of parents .

After marrying Shalini,his second wife who is Maithili's Stepmother, Maithili's father, Varun just ceased to be her father anymore. He turned blind eye to all the injustice the little girl had to endure that her stepmother inflicted. We were eyewitness to all her sufferings, but couldn't do much . We took care of her and showered her with love and affection whenever we got a chance.

My daughter Subhadra (Naav and Raghunandan's mother) was very attached to Maithili when she was alive and Maithili loved her too.

Naav and Maithili have been best friends since they were kindergarteners .They both went to same school, "Kendria vidyalaya".

Subhadra always thought if one day Raghu married Maithili and brought her home as her daughter-in-law then she would be the happiest mother in law in the world but back then we never knew that even Neerav had the same intentions for Raghu or was it a recent development, I don't know but when Neerav expressed his interest in bringing Maithili home as daughter-in-law I was ecstatic.

He said that we cannot find a better match than her for Raghu and I totally agree with him. She is very beautiful, kind, compassionate, loving , brilliant, and the list goes on . The most important factor of all is that we have known her since she was a child ,a four years old .

Back then we were neighbors with Varun Pathak ,Maithili's father but later after Subhadra's death we moved to a different house.

Naav is one year older than Maithili though both were in the same class . That was because Varun was working and was struggling between taking care of his daughter and his office work so he decided to enroll Maithili a year earlier than her peers by changing the date on her birth certificate making her a year older on the document. I know it is not a right thing to do but who am I to judge . He had his reasons for doing so and also Maithili was benefitted by that decision because her cognitive development was far beyond her age and always topped her class even though she was the youngest kid in the class.

In every respect Maithili is the match for Raghu. Raghu is very handsome young man who is 6 feet tall , broad shoulders, black silky hair , stubborn chocolate brown eyes and the most alluring smile in the world but he unfortunately seldom smiles and a brilliant boy .He went to medical school at All India Institute Of Medical Sciences where Maithili has got a medical seat now . After completing medicine he did his Masters in surgery in the same college and at Harvard finished his fellowship in surgical oncology and has returned to India .

The problem here is Raghu's reluctance to get married. Neerav is relentless and is hell bent on getting Raghu to tie the knot. Raghu is just 28 not 38 that he should be so insistent about his marriage and even though Maithili is 18 on documents she is only 17 years old so I did'nt understand why the rush to get them married. So I voiced my concern to Neerav.When Neerav enlightened me with his reasons I was impressed. He is not one step ahead than the rest of us but many . No wonder he has made such success in business in such short period of time.

He said " Maa( Mother) , I know both Raghu and Maithili have enough time to tie the knot but Maithili is miserable .I know how Shalini treats her and how her father never defends his daughter . I have also heard about the horror stories from Naav .I was waiting for the time till she turned 18. Marriage is the only ticket for her get out of that hell hole . Once she is married Shalini loses rights on her daughter . She cannot meddle in her life the way she is doing now. Maithili's husband and his family will be responsible for her. So this is the safest exit for her from that house . I know Raghu is 11 years older than her they definitely have a huge age gap and also Raghu is not willing to get married .He is stubborn as a mule . But if I got Maithili married to someone else then I can't ensure her safety, her happiness and well being .She might end up in a better situation or worse. I can only take care of her if she married Raghu."

Now I know the reason why Neerav is pushing hard this marriage I completely agree and support him. Everything is for a right reason but how will I convince my hardheaded grandson? Raghu and Neerav already have a strained relationship since Subhadra passed away. When children needed their father the most Neerav was drowned grieving the death of his wife and could'nt be of any emotional support for his kids. The man who adored and pampered his children in every possible way had completely abandoned them .Raghu never forgave Neerav for his behavior and later when Raghu decided to pursue his career in medicine Neerav was dead against it .He wanted Raghu to do engineering ,MBA and other degrees so that he could take over his company but Raghu however, did what he wanted to, and became a surgeon.

Now again the adverse situation has surfaced where we will be asking him do something he most definitely does'nt want to. I don't know how are we going to convince him to marry Maithili? I was just thinking of calling back Maithili to ask her if she needed help because with that women, Shalini around I am not so sure of her well-being ,just then Raghu came in and announced that he will be leaving to London.

Naani pov ends..............