Naveen yawned and stretched his arms and legs. He smiled when he noticed the timing. He had slept till 2 p.m. After completing 14 hours of sleep and getting a warm shower, Naveen got the much awaited rest that he deserved.

He didn't tidy up the bedroom. He went to the hall room and noticed some food packaged on the centre table. A small pink note was stuck to one package.

'Dear hubby, I cooked something special for you. And don't worry, I didn't burn the house down. Please heat it up and enjoy your day. I will call you when it's time for me to return. Love, your wife.'

"Take all the time you need," Naveen said and heated up the food.

He plopped down on the sofa and rang up his friends while eating. All the guys confirmed arriving at Naveen's place by 4 p.m. Naveen watched a replay of a cricket match and delightedly welcomed his three friends once they arrived.

Chicken, pizzas, booze, cold drinks, cigarettes, Biryani, snacks, hookah: everything to enjoy a get together was there.

"So, Naveen, how are you doing?" Naveen's friend, Rohit, asked.

Naveen took a puff of hookah and waved his right hand in air. "I am alive."

Everyone laughed. Another friend named Chirag called for everyone's attention.

"Guys, look at our bro Naveen. Such a sweet and caring husband. Working day and night for his wife and unborn baby," Chirag said and patted Naveen's thigh. "But, bro, I can't bear this state of yours."

Naveen sighed. He knew what Chirag meant. Even though he got a long sleep, his physical condition was impossible to improve in just one day.

"Bro, it is tough. Really tough." Naveen shook his head dejectedly.

"Kusum is in her seventh month, right? Then why don't you send her to her parents' place? Get some rest, man."

Others agreed. One of the friends, Hemal, massaged Naveen's shoulders.

"Our Naveen is so kind that he won't do that. And I understand the love he has for his wife, but, doesn't Kusum see her husband's condition? Naveen will be dead by the time his baby arrives," Hemal said in concern.

Naveen was about to say something when Rohit stopped him. "We know you will take Kusum's side, so don't say anything. She might not be able to see it, but we do, Naveen. You are a human too; how much stress can you handle? Be honest with me. We have been making plans of trips since last two months and you cancel every time.

"You can't even come to Hemal's place, bro. He lives just half an hour away. Whenever we call you, you are either working or cooking for your wife. What is your wife doing all day then?"

Naveen raised his eyebrows. "She is pregnant."

"So what?" Rohit rolled his eyes. "That's the excuse to make you work 24 X 7."

Chirag joined in. "And Naveen, even if Kusum is pregnant, can't she even handle the house chores without you? Do you know our mothers used to work till the last month of their pregnancies without any complaints.

"And what's so great about getting pregnant, huh? If we men could, we would have also gotten pregnant. But using it as an excuse to sleep and relax while your husband toils all day? When are men supposed to relax?"

Hemal agreed with what Chirag said. "I mean it wasn't just your choice to have the baby, right? Then why are you the only one doing all the hard work? When my wife was pregnant, I had called her elder sister and mother to babysit her. I had even sent her to her home for delivery.

"I was already paying the bills, so why should I have done the physical labour too? What was my wife doing? Just resting and eating food all day, that's it. Even after delivery, they relax for a month or two. Dude, do you think we will ever get that much relaxation even if we asked?"

Naveen breathed deeply. What his friends were saying was slowly making sense to him.

"I make the breakfast, do the laundry, go to office, break my back and risk my sanity to earn money for my family, come back, do more chores, cook dinner, wash dishes, fulfill Kusum's every need... I do everything, man. And what Kusum does, you ask? She sleeps, man. She sleeps day and night.

"I even have to wake up in the midnight to tend to her. I am tired, guys. My body aches continuously and today is one of the rarest days when I got a good amount of rest. The cycle of hell is going to begin the moment Kusum returns. Oh, she was going to call before she arrived, but I guess I still have some moments of peace."

"I will give you an advice," Hemal said. "Even if your wife keeps calling you to help her or complete her task, try to ignore her sometimes. If you keep pampering her by being present at her whim all the time, she will get used to it and take advantage of it even if she is able to do her work herself. Remember that."

Naveen's friends looked at the poor state of their friend in concern and nodded. Rohit began saying something when all of them heard some shuffling noise outside the house. Chirag got up and went to check outside but returned, waving his hands in the air.

"There was no one," he said.

Everyone continued with the talk.

"Why don't you talk to her? Tell her parents to come and pick her up. Don't they feel anything on seeing you like this ?" Rohit suggested.

"I will call my father-in-law and ask him to pick Kusum up after a week or two," Naveen said.

Even though Naveen said that, he doubted if Kusum would agree to go. His last attempt at making her go to her home had failed. He wondered how he was going to convince her. His ego wasn't letting him confess about him being suffering in front of his wife.

After some time of discussing about turning Naveen's life back to normal, the guys finished off the food and prepared to leave as the clock ticked 10 p.m. Naveen checked the time and wondered if Kusum was going to call sooner or not.

Just at that moment, the main door of the house opened and Kusum entered with some containers in her hands. She smiled at the guests and glanced at Naveen.

She put the containers down on the centre table, noticing the mess in the hall room. She acted as if she didn't notice all the cigarette butts and empty bottles rolling on the floor.

"Dharna Didi gave some food for you. I have already eaten at her place, so I will just go in our room," Kusum told Naveen.

Though her actions seemed enthusiastic, her voice was missing the usual chirpy tone.

"Please excuse me," Kusum said to Naveen's friends.

Naveen moved to help his wife but stopped after two steps.

"Kusum, I will be seeing my friends off. Can you sleep by yourself today?" Naveen tested the waters.

As if Naveen's friends understood his intention, Hemal nodded and assisted Naveen in forming a believable lie.

"Yes, Kusum, we have met after such a long time. I was wondering if we could spend some more time with Naveen. When he would get free again, we don't know."

Kusum gave a small nod. "I understand. I am sorry I wasn't here to host you. Naveen, why don't you stay with your friends tonight?"

Naveen blinked rapidly. "I can? But... what about you in the midnight-"

Kusum cut off Naveen before he blurt out the situation Kusum found embarrassing.

"Naveen, chill. Your friends came over to meet you. I will be okay. I mean, what else I am going to do other than sleep, right?"

Naveen's friends exchanged nervous glances with each other. Kusum quickly laughed and waved her hands.

"Am I lying? I am so tired that I won't be waking up till tomorrow afternoon. I won't be even able to join you guys. So let's end the topic here and let me get my beauty sleep."

Everyone's expressions morphed back to normal. Kusum turned to go to her room while Naveen sighed in relief. Once his wife was out of his sight, he pumped his fist.

"Tonight is all ours," he said.

Kusum heard the loud cheering and laughs from outside of her room. She tidied up the bedroom, took out her clothes from the cupboard and went to clean herself up.

Slowly, she dragged her swollen feet on the cold floor and entered the bathroom. With careful steps, she positioned herself under the shower and began taking off her clothes.

When her left arm got stuck, she instantly opened her mouth to call for her husband but bit her tongue soon after.

She waited till her muscles allowed her to perform the action again, and after ten minutes of struggle, she freed herself from her own clothes. Now, the main task remained.

Every day, her husband shampooed her hair and scrubbed her; but today, even though Naveen was only some distance away from her in another room, she didn't had the courage to call him.

'Can't I even take a bath myself? Am I a baby?' Kusum scolded herself.

As hot water splashed on her, Kusum let the tears flow along with the running water. She couldn't hold them in any longer. She had accidentally heard the exchange between Naveen and his friends.

She had come home earlier and entered when she had found the door open. She had forgotten to call her husband on phone and was going to call Naveen's name to announce her presence, but what Naveen had said had made her halt in her place.

She was shocked to hear Naveen's sorrow, but realising that she was eavesdropping, she walked out of her house. Her mind had gone numb, so she didn't know what to do.

Dharna, Kusum's neighbour, had noticed Kusum walking on the common road aimlessly, so she took Kusum to her house. Kusum didn't say anything, but Dharna understood something might had happened.

When Kusum had finally come back to her senses, she went back to her house with food given by Dharna.

"I didn't even realise I was being a burden on Naveen," Kusum mumbled to herself.

The soap kept slipping out of her hands, and when she grabbed it for the tenth time, the soap looked like a disfigured frog. Still, Kusum continued and turned off the shower.

She hesitated walking on the slippery floor of the wet bathroom as she didn't have faith in her sloppy feet. And Naveen wasn't also there to hold her.

'Again Naveen.'

Kusum managed to get herself safely out of the bathroom, holding her large stomach in her hands. She laid down on the bed, the noises of her husband and his friends vibrating through the walls.

At 11:33 p.m. Kusum closed her eyes. Naveen's voice kept echoing in her mind.

"I do everything, man. And what Kusum does, you ask? She sleeps, man. She sleeps all day and night."

"I am tired."

"I even have to wake up in the midnight to tend to her."

The embarrassing moments of her husband cleaning up after she had unintentionally wetted their bed flashed in her mind. She had taken her husband for granted; she didn't realise for even a second that Naveen would have felt uncomfortable.

"Please don't do it again today," Kusum prayed.

Wishing herself the best, Kusum decided to contact her parents in a few days. Her pregnancy had seemingly brought a tough time for her husband, but her poor health had become a bigger menace than that.

Kusum also didn't like being on rest most of the time, but her body demanded otherwise. Thus, she couldn't do anything but cry for the pregnancy to get over soon so her husband wouldn't find her a nuisance. Even in her sleep, Kusum couldn't forget Naveen's words.

"The cycle of hell will begin the moment Kusum returns."