If only Anirudh knew to skip that day. 

If only he knew to not go there. 

If only... he didn't have to do what he was about to do. 

Alas, it was too late. 

It was the day that Anirudh and Bondita returned to Tulsipur. 

They returned quite excitedly, although Anirudh wouldn't have minded a few more days with his lovely wife - the honeymoon could be extended indefinitely, in Anirudh's opinion. 

The family was happy to see them back. 

Batuk had nearly jumped on Bondita, trying to feel his nephew. Anirudh had grabbed Batuk by the ear and yanked him off! 

"Away," he hissed. 

"BIG DDDDDDDDDD," Batuk whined dramatically, "You had my nephew all to yourself for all this time. Let me spend some time with him now!" 

Bondita was standing in the living room, laughing. 

How much her brother-in-law loved the baby. He had dubbed himself Super Chachu - well, Vikram kind of had. 

And her Pati Babu, being his overprotective self, wouldn't have any of it. 

Batuk pouted as he was yanked off his Boudi. 

Trilochan was standing to the side, muttering, "Shiv Shiv Shiv... none of them will let Bahu rest. Right now is a crucial time for her, yet Anirudh went on a honeymoon, and Batuk is jumping on her like she is a cushion!"

Binoy, who was next to Trilochan, muttered, "Da, Batuk's just excited. And when did Anirudh get to go on a honeymoon with Bondita before? He's also a young man - he'll want to spend some time with his wife. It makes me believe that my son is normal at times too." 

"Shiv Shiv Shiv," Kaka just expressed with irritation. 

Somnath was standing there, arms crossed over his chest. 

His time was being wasted! He had a night shift in the hospital in a few hours, and he was only here for formality because his Dada and Boudi had come home after quite some time. 

"Bondita, let's go to our room and rest," Anirudh told her. 

"Pati Babu, we rested all this time!" 

"That was resting?" Anirudh questioned. 

"Shiv Shiv Shiv!" Kaka gasped, eyes getting wider - he had been played by the two of them for years, and he couldn't believe Bondita Bahu's pregnancy. In fact, now that he found out about any inkling of their physical intimacy, he was reminded of those days of extreme trauma!

Somnath just rolled his eyes and muttered, "Disgusting." 

"Just two minutes Big DDDDDDDDD," Batuk was moaning with unhappiness, "Boudi had your Big D for all this timeeeeeeeeeeeee, let her free now." 

Trilochan furrowed his eyebrows, wondering what that meant, while Bondita's face just went red. 

Anirudh also looked flustered and he hissed, "Batuk, do you want to get a beating?" 

"When did you get so violent?" Bondita whispered to Anirudh, as she regained her composure. 

Anirudh turned to glare at Bondita now, and she just gave him a sweet smile. 

"Super Chachu, don't worry! Me and the baby will come to see you soon," she told Batuk, and then gave him a wink. "Kakasasurji, I'm going to rest." 

"Very good," Trilochan said, "Anirudh, please let her rest. She needs it." 

Anirudh ignored his Kaka and took Bondita's hand, leading her upstairs and leaving behind a pouting Batuk. 

"I will call Kalindi first thing tomorrow to come for Bahu's checkup," Kaka said, his eyes lighting up at the mention of Bondita's Thakumaa. 

__

That evening, the phone rang. 

Batuk was the only one in the living room, so he answered it. 

"Hullo?" Batuk said absent-mindedly. 

There was silence for a moment, before a female voice spoke up. 

"It's me... ji." 

Mallika. 

Batuk raised his eyebrow. Why was Mallika calling him? 

"I'm calling from my Bebe's friend's house. We came here for dinner," Mallika explained. 

"Oh..." Batuk just said, still wondering why she was calling him. 

There was silence again. 

"Mallika...?" Batuk questioned, finally breaking the silence. "Why did you call?" 

Batuk wasn't expecting to hear what she said next. 

"Just bored ji." 

"Bored?" Batuk questioned. "Don't you think I'm an idiot or something? Why am I the first one you're calling when you're bored?" 

"You are," Mallika said, and she softly muttered, "But I seem to be a bigger one." 

"Huh?" Batuk asked, not quite catching the last part. 

"I mean... what to do ji? I'm just bored..." 

Batuk was confused! This girl always told him off, always acted like he was stupid, like she was superior... and she also seemed like she didn't like him one bit. Yet, when she was bored, she thought of him first? 

No... not possible. 

"How did you know Boudi's back?" Batuk questioned, "We only found out today. Did she inform you?" Batuk gasped - a horrific sound escaped his mouth. "Oh, did she tell you before ME?"

On the other side, Mallika rolled her eyes. 

"This is why you're an idiot," she managed to say. 

"Rude," Batuk huffed. "Well, Boudi has departed for her bedroom with Big D. And he won't let her out anytime soon. I'm sure of it. So you should enjoy your dinner." 

"I didn't call Bondita," Mallika said, before he could hang up the phone. "I called you, Batuk."

"Why're you so bloody confusing Mallika?" Batuk asked right away, "Why the hell would you talk to me?" 

"I just... thought that maybe I misunderstand you sometimes," Mallika finally said, her voice softening. "But you have to be rude and prove me wrong, don't you?"

Batuk blinked a couple of times.

"Whaaa --" he started.

"I mean, I do call you stupid... and I do think you're an idiot. But... maybe..." Mallika sighed. "Maybe, it's just... not your fault." 

Batuk was in utter shock! 

Was this really the Mallika he knew?

"Mallika?" Batuk asked, his voice filled with doubt. "Are you feeling okay?" 

"I'm fine ji," she said. "I was just thinking... and I realized this." 

"What were you thinking about, that made you suddenly want to understand me?" 

"I saw..." Mallika clenched the phone in her hand on the other line, "I saw you and S - Surabhi." 

Batuk raised an eyebrow. 

"You two were... doing... things that are forbidden." 

"Forbidden?" Batuk wondered, still not understanding her point. 

Mallika took a deep breath and she whispered, trying to mask the pain in her heart, "Not good things." 

"Not good - oh, you saw us kissing? AGAIN?" Batuk gasped. 

Batuk placed his free hand on his forehead, and looked around hoping that his Kaka wasn't around to hear this. 

Thankfully, he was still alone. 

For some reason, he didn't like that Mallika saw him and Surabhi kissing. 

But why did he care? When he acted so macho in front of Surabhi. 

"It... isn't good to d - do those things. I know Surabhi is also very liberal, b - but, she's a woman Batuk. If someone else sees... they will point fingers at her character," Mallika stated. 

Batuk breathed sharply and hissed into the phone, "I didn't ask for a lecture Mallika." 

"I - I'm not trying to lecture you," Mallika's lips started to tremble, "I was j - just trying to tell you that you don't know what a g - girl goes through." 

"I do know," Batuk said defensively. "I do know what girls face. And I don't like it one bit. I don't like what happened to Tupur, nor did I like the nonsensical stuff that happened to Boudi as she and I grew up. I know that women aren't treated fairly. But Mallika, Surabhi is my girlfriend." 

Tupur... Batuk realized that Mallika probably didn't even know who Tupur was. His ex-girlfriend was now married to Chandrachur. 

"But... will you marry her ji? Will you be with her forever?" Mallika asked, with a heavy heart. 

"What does that have to do with you?" 

"Why can't you say yes, if you're so sure about her?" Mallika questioned. 

"Bloody hell! Why are you provoking me?" Batuk asked, "I thought you called because you misunderstood me all this time, but you're pushing my buttons now!" 

"I'm just concerned..." 

"You're not! You're just nosy!" 

"I'm not," Mallika said, "I... I don't want Surabhi to suffer." 

"She's strong. Stronger than you," Batuk huffed. 

Mallika felt a wrench in her heart, as Batuk compared her to Surabhi. 

"She must be... better than me," Mallika managed to say, "That's why..." you chose her, Mallika finished in her mind. 

"I didn't say that," Batuk said immediately, wondering why he felt bad all of a sudden. He took a deep breath and said, "Surabhi can handle it, Mallika. And nobody has caught us. And even if we get caught, I will stand for her."

"You can stand for her, but you don't know if you can marry her?" 

"I'm not ready for marriage!" Batuk said quickly. 

Which was really strange... because not too long ago, when he was with Tupur he had been ready to even marry Tupur. 

But then again, he had been younger, more in a la-la land. Now he was growing up. A bit older. A bit more receptive to what the world had to offer. 

"Then don't do things married people do!" Mallika huffed. 

"It's none of your business!" Batuk snapped back. 

"Okay ji. I am just concerned --" 

"You've said that already. I'm hanging up if you have nothing to do other than lecture me and show your concern for Surabhi, about a matter that she isn't even worried about," Batuk snapped. 

Mallika took a deep breath and said, "S - sorry. I couldn't help it." 

"Couldn't help what?" Batuk asked with annoyance. 

"I guess... just to hear your voice... I unintentionally... bothered you," Mallika said. 

"My voice?" 

"Nothing. I'm going. Bye." 

Before he could say anything else, Mallika hung up. 

"What the bloody hell is wrong with her?" Batuk wondered, and hung up the phone as well. "She called to lecture me about Surabhi... but said she thinks she might misunderstand me? I'm so confused by the shades of Mallika!" 

Girls! Why were they so hard to understand at times?

--

That night, Bondita fell asleep quickly.

Anirudh was reading a book in bed beside her. 

After he heard her deep breaths as she slept, he put the book down and leaned over her. 

"I must have really tired you out. You fell asleep so fast," he said lightly and kissed her forehead. 

That was when there was a knock on the door. 

"Barrister Babu, there's a phone call for you," Bihari's voice called. 

It was quite late, and he knew the rest of the family had gone to sleep. Bihari usually slept quite late, after making sure everything was clean and proper. 

Anirudh climbed out of bed, in his light grey silk pyjamas, the belt of his robe tied around his waist. 

He left the room and went to answer the phone. 

"Hello?" Anirudh answered, as soon as he picked up the phone. 

"Anirudh, it's me." 

Bhoumik Babu's voice. 

Anirudh took a deep breath, trying not to get angry, and said, "I don't want to talk --" 

"I'm in Tulsipur, Anirudh. And I'm coming over." 

"What?" Anirudh gasped right away. "No. No way." 

"Then you meet me. Outside. Right now." 

"No," Anirudh repeated firmly. 

"If it wasn't urgent, I wouldn't call you Anirudh. You must come. Now. Otherwise, I will have to come there - and I know that you won't want your family members to be bothered by this." 

Anirudh took a deep breath, as he felt his blood boil at the same time. He said, "Look, I don't want to be involved, no matter how urgent the matter is. Right now, my wife is sleeping. But if she wakes up and looks for me, I need to be there. What if she has a nightmare?"

"Don't talk like a baby Anirudh," Bhoumik said, shaking his head. "My child is also having nightmares -- yet, I can't solve them for her. You need to meet me now... otherwise, I will do something out of sheer desperation, and you won't like it." 

Anirudh was upset, but he knew how low Bhoumik Babu could go - so he didn't drag this matter further. 

"What do you want?" Anirudh finally asked. "Do you need money?"

"No Anirudh. I don't need money. Let's meet, and we will talk." 

Bhoumik gave him the address and hung up the phone. 

Anirudh slowly went back into the bedroom, where he glanced at a fast-asleep Bondita. 

"I'll be back Bondita. I know how low this man can get, and I can't let his shadow fall anywhere near you," he murmured and then he got dressed up, ready to go and see what Bhoumik Babu wanted. 

Little did he know, that he was about to be put at a crossroads. 

A crossroads that questioned his entire existence. 

That questioned his love. 

That questioned his fitoor. 

And that questioned the very fabric of his relationship... with his wife, with his family, with his ex, and with his revolutionary cause. 

--

Precap: 

"You've hurt my Mini badly Anirudh," Bhoumik hissed, as Anirudh watched a sleeping Mini who had a boiling fever. "She has only had nightmares since she visited you, and she only utters your name in her sleep." 

"I can only get her admitted to the hospital," Anirudh said firmly. "I can take care of her medical expenses. I can get the best doctors by her side. I can't do anything more."

"You can, and you will," Bhoumik Babu told him, in a threatening voice. "Because if you don't, your world will come crashing - everything you built up this far, will fall like a broken tower. You'll be done Anirudh Roy Choudhary."

--

"Pati Babu," Bondita said, a smile on her face as soon as she woke up. 

Anirudh was standing by the window... a sullen expression on his face. His eyes were swollen, dark bags under his eyes. 

Bondita got out of bed and approached him, her hand on her belly. 

"Are you okay Pati Babu?" she asked. 

Anirudh squeezed his eyes shut and said, "We need to talk Bondita." 

--

I plan to post another chapter this weekend if you want the next one! Just let me know. ♥

I reaaaally want to go on a spree this weekend too.

Are you eager for the next part? 

The plot is thickening and things are about to get super interesting. ♥

By the way, any thoughts on Batuk-Mallika?

What's going to happen between Anirudh-Bondita-Mini?

Would you like a spree?

Please press star and leave your thoughts. 

LOVE YOU ALL! 😘♥