"Why don't you ever try to understand me Abhi?"

"Why do I always have to understand ? I can't take this anymore.

You are more difficult to deal with than even my boss Ritu.

You think you are the only one suffering in this stupid relationship? I am suffering too," he screamed at the top of his voice with a ferocity that threatened her.

"You smell like a jerk. You are reeking of cigarettes," she yelled back at him after a moment of thought as her eyes welled up.

"Look! I can't put on with your emotional drama anymore. Let anything happen and all you do is start crying. I am so sick of this," he shouted frustrated.

"All I did, was ask you to stop smoking and snatched away your cigarette. Why do you have to be like this?
You will get yourself killed this way," She said sobbing and wiping away her tears harshly.

"You don't have to worry about me. Okay? Just leave me alone," he scoffed.

"Fine!" She said and stomped out of the room.

He kept staring outside the window, into the dark night sky.

Being the marketing head in his region, of a multinational company, he was heavily stressed out. The sales were plummeting.

Hearing a sharp noise, he turned around to notice that Ritika was carrying a huge trolley bag down the stairs.

His instant reaction would have been to snatch the trolley bag from her, as it looked quite heavy. However, he was rooted in his spot as she screamed,"You are not the only person who is stressed out Abhinav. I too have a lot of stuff to worry about."

She somehow managed to place her luggage on the floor and ran straight to the kitchen,"I prepared your favorite dishes for dinner but" She threw the food into the waste basket outraged "you can't even bear to have me in your life. I am leaving and I won't be back."

Ritika was a professor at a prestigious University and had spent all her day delivering lectures, helping the scholars with their research papers. When she returned home, she wanted a small celebration and had baked a chocolate cake. It was their second marriage anniversary. She had made all of Abhinav's favorite dishes and dressed up in one of the most elegant wine purple sari from her wardrobe. She had put on matching earrings, necklace and a light make up.

When Abhinav returned home, he was engaged in a phone call and barely noticed her.

What surprised her more was that he was smoking. When he lit the fifth cigarette, she snatched it away angrily yelling," Abhi you have been on the phone since you returned, that's since the last two hours."

"What's your problem Ritu? Can't you see I am busy?" He quizzed back frustrated.

Then the arguments continued till, Ritika was desperate enough to leave the house. 

Abhinav wanted to hold her arm and plead her to not leave him but then begging for someone to stay was something he considered below his dignity.

If she wants to leave, who am I to stop her ? She always does what she wants anyway.

He stood there firm watching her leave.

She dragged her luggage, took her car keys and looked back at him twice as if wanting him to say something or do something. Then she drove away at a menacing speed.

He could only murmur softly, "Careful! Drive carefully."

He strolled to the kitchen slowly, and found a card on the table

Thank you for the beautiful and sweet memories, we have shared together.

No gift I give you can rival the precious love and care you give me daily.

You are my pride and my joy.

Happy Anniversary Abhi.

Besides, this card was a small present. 
He opened the gift wrap enthusiastically, it had a black coffee mug with a big heart and ' I love you' written on it.

He called her up immediately wanting to apologise.

Her number was switched off. He called her again and again but to no avail.

His heart started pounding at an immense speed. She had been hurt and drove away at an alarming speed. 

He had ignored her feelings, and directed all his pent up frustration and anger on her.

Deeply hurt, she drove with tears almost blinding her. It was only their second marriage anniversary, she had dreamed of a bright future ahead with him.

What did I do so wrong by asking him not to smoke? Do I mean nothing to him...nothing at all? He didn't try to stop me from leaving once. Was he really suffering because of me... because of this 'stupid' relationship as he said? She questioned herself.

Grief stricken, she wondered where she should head onto. Could she show up at her mother's place? She had been so excited when she called up her mother earlier, and spoke to her all about her preparations for Abhinav. She had even insisted her on sharing some cooking recipes.

Ritika was emotionally shattered, his words were ringing loud and clear in her ears.

She wanted to call up Anwesha, one of her colleagues and best friend but then discussing about her marriage relationship with a friend was going to agitate the situation further. Abhinav would be furious, if he knew that Ritika was discussing these issues with her colleagues.

The pain and anger in her chest had clouded her mind.

Her car fell in a ditch due to her reckless driving as she tried her best to avoid hitting a huge loaded truck.

******

When she went missing, the police traced her car and her body was found after seven days.

Abhinav wasn't even able to identify her, and had to believe that it was her as all of her stuff and belongings were found around that body.

He now could never forget his marriage anniversary for as long as he survived. The heart wrenching pain and agony he suffered was unbearable and unbelievable. He cursed himself all the time, that he was solely responsible for Ritika's death. He could never smoke again as it reminded him of that night when he lost his everything.

He wanted to touch her fingers, wished to see her beautiful smile, and hear her voice. He wanted to embrace her in his arms but she was gone, gone forever.

Had he known what she meant by
"You can't even bear to have me in your life. I am leaving and I won't be back," he would have begged on his knees and never let her go.

He couldn't cherish her or make her feel special even on their anniversary, when she had made huge efforts for him.

He lost connections with all his friends, was fired from his job. He was completely nothing without her. He had given up on himself. He felt he had no reason to survive.Ritika was his only family and still he hurt her in a way that ended up her life.

Earlier when once things had turned quite ugly between them, Abhinav's mother had stepped in. She had firmly taken the matter in her own hands. While defending Ritika, she had slapped her own son saying, "Enough! Ritika isn't your puppet and she won't dance according to your will. This is not the way you treat your wife."

Ms. Bharadwaj didn't let her son get close to Ritika for a complete week, till he learnt to behave and apologized.

Abhinav wished his mother was still alive and intervened this time as well. He needed a tight slap, being unable to control his nasty temper. He became a monster when he was angry. The previous time, he couldn't even hold himself back from hitting his wife. He had been extremely mean, harsh and rude with her while all she did was try to provide some solace to his aching soul. She was trying to help him in her own ways.

After six months of Ritika's death, Abhinav found it impossible to stay in the same house where they lived together for two years. Everytime he shut his eyes, all he could see was the pain in her eyes, when she looked at him before leaving on that day. It was the last time he saw her.

Locking his apartment, he left the city and wandered around like a madman with no clothes, food or shelter. His state was reduced to that of a beggar. His friends, ex-colleagues' or his relatives had no idea regarding his whereabouts. He had vanished from the city as well as from people's minds slowly as time passed by.

His relatives though had started to look for him, right when he had disappeared had ceased the search assuming that he wasn't alive anymore.

Abhinav on the other hand had completely lost his self identity. He was a nobody, lost in darkness...in an endless tunnel with no hope and no reason to survive. Though he was still breathing and was alive, he wasn't living. Ritika's sudden death had turned him insane.

Oh! How he wished he hadn't said those harsh words that night. The impact of those words were so deep that it threatened his sole existence and shattered his life like a glass.

Barely clad, he carried the coffee mug and the card everywhere he went.

Author's note:

Hopefully, you will enjoy the story.

Thank you for reading.