Chapter - 12

Whenever she tried to do something to please Arnav, he would cut it off by pointing out mistakes.

   "Vibha, what will your neighbors think of you? Every night she comes home with a different guy! Don't you care about image? It's horrible! I told

you to use your brain."

   This came as a shock to Vibha. She paused for a minute thinking what to reply to this. She wanted to laugh at his poor level of thinking and wanted to

cry for being offended.

   Arnav took this silence for her

guiltiness.

   "See, I too have a few..." He tried

explaining her.

   "What did you just say? What will neighbors think? Who cares! As long as you and my parents know the reality...I don't have to worry about other people. I don't have to marry the guys of the people in my society. Besides, how long do you think am living here? Just until my degree. Plus, with that level of thinking you want to be an American? And by the way, it was you who didn't like Dhruv for dropping me home safely. Now, he's sending his friends. I thought you would be happy." Vibha had met with an explosion. She couldn't

think straight.

   "See, I don't know what level of bitch your Natasha is, but I want you to think before doing anything."

   "OK! LET'S THINK! You think and tell me this, who would come to drop me home this late? All the girls are being dropped home safely after our meets. Tell me."

   "I don't know. Just make sure to use your brain" Arnav's tone was arrogant.

  "What do you want me to do?" Vibha wanted this conversation to end soon.

"Decide".

  Natasha was home from a dinner date with Mayank. She opened the door to her flat with keys. And found there were no lights in the living as the

kitchen.

  "Is V in the bedroom? So early?' Natasha was talking to herself. She opened the door to bedroom and was

horrified to see Vibha laying on the bed and crying.

  "What happened?" Nash ran towards her.

  "He doesn't trust me. He won't let me be with my friends. He thinks only he is doing great work in life! Why? Why me? You have known how loyal I have been with him." Vibha was sobbing.

  "And I thought you said you were happy with.him." Nash looked at her with grave expressions.

   She continued, "I haven't seen him respecting you. I thought it was fine by you. He calls your parents names. Fine by you? He tells people to spy on you, find by you? He hasn't spent one day with you without pointing out your mistakes..FINE BY YOU? He is the least giving person in this 'no more happy' relationship, fucking fine by you?"

   Natasha had seen Vibha and her behavior change from past year. For her, Vibha had become a cowardly dependant person. Who could let Arnav

decide things for her? Who used to fight to get things right with him? It had ultimately taken her emotionally down.

  Nash remembered a hang out where Arnav had demanded Vibha to give names of the people she was with.

   They had all stared at Vibha for

uncomfortably getting up and going towards washroom. He had always made her give justification as of what she was doing, who she was with and when would she return and oh! The most vicious question that personally annoyed Nash- Are You with Dhruv?

  Natasha stayed awake whole night while Vibha kept complaining and whimpering.