Two Months Later

               
Shamira looked at Gauri holding Rahul and felt proud of her as if she was her mother. In the years she know Gauri ,being a mother made her more stronger and brave because she always put Rahul first.

              
" Sorry I couldn't make it to the appointment , Rahul had a fever last night and I didn't want to leave him, " Gauri answered back ,usually Shamira would rearrange the appointment if one of her clients can't make it but with Gauri she asked if she could visit her at home .

                  
" Well I wanted to see the little one in person ,pictures won't suffice not when I can see his dimple cheeks in person, " Shamira answered back , she had made a commitment to stay out of her clients personal life but with Gauri the lines tends to get bit skewed.

                   
  She had visited her when Rahul was born ,attended her son first birthday party two months ago even if she couldn't stay for more than few minutes due to her personal commitments and kept herself involved a bit more in Gauri life. 

                  
" Where is Arun ?" Shamira asked,  even when she already guessed the answer ,Arun who had been a wealthy man need not to work for living and so the only reason he wasn't around would have been because he was somewhere around the world trying to find a doctor who could help his son .

                 
  " Canada , I feel sometime guilty for sending him too far away and too often . It feels like I am the dormant parent for Rahul while Arun is out there exhausting himself,  " Gauri answered back,  and shamira can't help but offer her advice considering she had seen it in every parents.

                  
" I got laid off at work and my husband has to work over time and he isn't happy ." ,  " I don't like to leave my daughter with my mother in law but i can't afford to quit work .", " My husband isn't even lifting a finger to help me , I have to take care of three of her children all by myself and it like I am a single parent.  " , She heard variation of all the complaints in her career and she understood Gauri's as well .

                
" Gauri ,this isn't one of your session but let me tell you this regardless there is no reason to feel guilty and you can't downplay your part in Rahul life ,you are here with your son when he was sick and you have surrounded your life around him . No kid could get more love from their parents then Rahul .

                   
Also you have said Arun used to be a computer engineer who worked himself too much and travelling must have been part of his life before the accident , he may have quit working but this would help him as well to go out and be focused on something " Shamira answered back which brought back the question she had been meaning to ask Gauri .

              
It is Shamira job to ensure Gauri is capable to living a normal life and while Gauri progress had been more than promising ,she is still in an safe environment thus there are ultimately no triggers for her to encounter either .

                 
  " So ,you have a Bachelor degree in Literature right . What was your dream before that night " Shamira asked , she believed talking about Gauri life in two segments helps Gauri to focus on her past better .

                    
" Nothing honestly , My love for books was the reason I choose literature.  My best friend wanted to be a doctor as long as I know her, my other friend wanted to be a actress ,the last I heard she has even started shooting for her first movie . But even being with them didn't make me aspire for a dream job  . My dream had always been something unattainable , a family with the man I loved , " Gauri spoke up ,she had never mentioned about her boyfriend more than few times but each time it was said with a deep wrenching sorrow that still haunts her .

             
" If there was one thing I wished for it was to build a life together with him ,but I have a family now too Arun and Rahul ,it more than enough . Forgive me I didn't mean to make this is into a session . Can you hold him for awhile ,so I can bring you some refreshment,  " Gauri answered back,  and Shamira let her go because it wasn't her hospitality sense that made her leave but rather Gauri need for a moment alone .

               
Shamira left that day wondering if she could do more for Gauri ,  and while she has the greatest appreciation  for homemakers and mother who raise their children .

Gauri needs more of a social world and the only way she would step out would be to pursue something she dreams about and until Shamira found it ,she need to hold off on the topic she decided as she drove back home .

  
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Gauri couldn't quite get the words from her doctor out of her mind, she had broached the topic few times before to see if Gauri was interested in the outer world and when she had her son ,it seemed a gone conclusion that she would be a stay at home mother until today .

           
She used to write stories , a little bed time stories for children . While Arnav published her collection of stories as book ,she never penned one after their break up. She still have the book tucked in Rahul play room , Arun had asked her if he wanted to book to be published in a larger scale for her  but she declined the offer .

             
The book always made her remember Arnav ,they only made about two hundred copies of those books and she donated all of them to orphanages and libraries as she never dreamed of a career a writer and she didn't want to become one now either.

              
And Rahul was still only a year old ,they haven't decided if he would be homeschooled or sent to a special school yet . Arun was still hoping for a permanent solution that they haven't discussed the topic yet .

     
            
               
She got Tulisi di to help her with house chores and Arun can baby sit her son in the day yet she wasn't sure on what she wants to do with her life . Her mind got distracted by a call from Arun who briefed her in about the trip and seemed disappointed that it didn't heed the results it expected.

           
  " Come back home Arun ,Rahul misses his daddy, " She answered back ,it was true her son seem to keep looking at Arun chair as if he wants his daddy back soon .

               
" And Arun do you miss working,  She asked him,  before she thought it through ,she knew he felt guilty for over working and failing to spend more time with his family but it wouldn't have been easy to completely give it up as well .

             
" What brought this sudden question , " he asked her ,and she told him about Shamira doctor visit and her thoughts , a year ago Gauri would never have felt easy to share anything with Arun .

               
But once she decided Arun needs her to be his friend and not just a roommate ,she made herself open up to him . It hadn't been easy but slowly he had opened up to her as well that quickly turned into a deep friendship not just a partnership for Rahul .

             
A friendship her mother hope will turn out to be more ,she had even told Arun about it and was relived to find he wasnt ready to move on " I can't fall in love again Gauri , I am sorry if it something you want as well,  " he spoke up but she was so relieved by his admission that he laughed when he noticed it .

            
" Look like we are on the same boat ,where you worried I might have had a change of heart, " he asked her,/ and she told him how it was impossible to not feel worried , they were married for close to two years and became more close friends who live together and she didn't want to learn Arun had hoped for something more because she it would lead to a disappointment for both of them. 

           
  While Gauri was relived her mother had been disappointed with the news but she took it without much argument once she told Arun agrees with her .  And so it was why she wasn't surprised Arun took a moment to answer now .

               
Because she knows by now that if she asked him a tough question ,he always takes a few minutes to answer back and sure enough she heard his voice back in the phone few  moment later .

              
" I miss it sometimes , even when I know how consuming it can get I liked the hours , I spend inventing something no one ever done before ,sure it seems like  few hours before a computer screen for others but to me it like a whole new world ,  " he answered back , surprising her ,she did know Arun had been passionate about his work but believed his passion dried away just like her interest to write stories .

                    
" So why not do it again ?" She asked him,/ because she didn't want to hold him back from something he loves to do .

                   
  "Because I can't afford to be  lost in another world now Gauri , I don't want to miss out on Rahul life like Riya , maybe few years later,  " he answered back,  reliving her that he hadn't fully given up on his career

                   
" I am relived that you haven't given up, " She answered back ,and few more minutes where she let Rahul and Arun talk using Skype she ended the call .

                     
But the question on what she can do kept playing in her mind for long time until she found the answer few months later all credit to her son who really showed her what she aspired as an career .

P.S :" That it for now . Let me know your thoughts and feedbacks. Hit the votes if you liked it "

Juanita Reid