‘Hi,How are you? Are you not going to invite me inside?’ he asked her,bringing her back to reality.
Shwetha recovered herself quickly.
‘Please come in’,she told him.
Arjun walked in accompanied by a small boy,who kept clinging on to him.
Shwetha felt a sudden bout of disappointment hit her.
Oh! He is married. Maybe it is his son!
‘I came here to visit a friend. Was told you live nearby. So I thought I can drop in’,said Arjun.
‘Oh yes,you are always welcome’,said Shwetha,hiding her disappointment.
‘This is my son Prahlad’,said Arjun,pointing to the boy accompanying him.
Prahlad and Pooja immediately became friends and started playing with each other.
Shwetha at last found her voice. ’How come you didn't invite me for your marriage’,she finally asked Arjun. He seemed surprised by her question. He gave her a mischievous smile and then answered,’Shwetha,I never got married’.
‘What’,Shwetha almost shouted,darting a glance at Prahlad.
Arjun sensed her confusion and gave a hearty laugh.
‘Just like you,I also thought it will be nice to adopt a child. I didn't want you to feel insecure because of your decision to adopt Pooja. For the past few years,I have worked hard to build up a business venture. Once I was a bit comfortable,I decided to go in for adoption. Since I knew you already had a baby girl,I thought I will adopt a boy to complete the family. Wanted to come to you once I felt I was ready to support you. Now,how does that sound?’,he asked her.
Shwetha was speechless.She hugged him tightly,overcome with relief and gratitude. Suddenly,she was aware of his presence near her. Wow!She had never imagined that such a day will come.
She welcomed herself to a life of love and affection with Arjun. Not only for herself,but for little Pooja and Prahlad as well. Yes,they needed a Mom and a Dad,more than she needing Arjun or Arjun needing her.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Written for Day 9 of Ultimate Blogging Challenge and #DailyChatter
Final part of Shwetha's short story series.
Read Part1 ,Part2 here..Shwetha and Arjun-Part2,Shwetha and Pooja-Part 1