Chapter 20

He turned around. He looked at me shocked. He got up from his chair and came towards me apprehensively. With maintaining a proper distance and his voice filled with worry he asks me     "Are you ok?! Are you hurt? Did something happen?"

The man who I shouted at like an imbecile 3 years back is asking about me. He is asking whether I am ok. I felt a lot of weight on my chest. Tears were back once again to rule the night. I got on my knees the next instant.

"Am sorry! I shouldn't have separated you and mom." I say with a broken heart. " I am sorry I was a kid back then and know no good!" I raise my voice feeling shameful of myself.

"Am sorry I shouted at you! I shouldn't have." I tell him. But by the time I look up, he was sitting on his knees in front of him.

"It's ok. Saumya beta." He says with so much love in his eyes and that... that... reminded me of my dad. I don't know what got into me. I went in to hug him. I hugged him so tight. I cried on his shoulder. I felt relieved.

"Come to mom," I tell him, through my tears.

"My mom needs you," I whisper the last lines.

When Shubham said I made many wrong decisions... It was always somehow linked to my mom. She never ever blamed me for separating her from Rajesh uncle. She never once told me I was wrong for throwing a tantrum. She just sucked it in and never brought that up and I feel like a fool for thinking it was the right thing. Now I will make my wrong decision right.

My mom deserves someone to take care of her, and dad, and dad would have wanted her to be happy. I still remember the day she came to me after the blow-up I had.

" Saumya," My mom says gently, coming into my room. I didn't come out of the room the whole day. She put her hand on my head as she brushed her fingers through my hair.

"Saumya. I wouldn't do anything that you wouldn't like right." She tells me as she continues to comb my hair.

"I don't want you to marry anyone," I say adamantly.

"I won't," She tells me and pulls me into a hug.

"I love you maa," I tell her

"I love you too." She repeats.

I loved her...with so many conditions. But she loved me unconditionally. She was ready to give up her love for me. How did I let that slide? I make big statements that I have to take care of my mother and this is how I do that?

I pull back from the hug.

"I am sorry. Please come back." I tell, but I still sense apprehension in his voice.

"Your mom..." He says as if trying to say she wouldn't be accepting.

" If she doesn't accept I will drop you off right here," I tell him pulling him off his feet.

He was still adamant about it.

" My mom still loves you. Don't you love her?" I ask him. But his answer blows my mind.

"I will never stop loving her." He tells me as I was already pulling him in through the backyard forest of the old house.

" Who is he?!" Shruthi asks concerned again. But I shush her off.

" These are my friends. Shruthi, Shubham, and Dhruv." I say pointing to each person. He nods awkwardly waving at them.

"Dhruv! Get to my home as soon as possible." I order and he does as I said. Before I knew I was in the house. I tell uncle to not come in until I say so.

I run to the door and start banging it. I can feel my mom hurrying from the other side. She comes out and is shocked at my teary face.

"Did something happen?" She asks examining me around. She spots the mud on my pants. " Did you fall down? Are you ok?!" My mom had so much concern in her voice. My voice broke the instant I tried to speak.

"Maa!" I tell wrapping her in a hug.

She pulls me inside with no further questions asked.

"Am a bad child," I tell her in the midst of the hug.

"No, you are not who told you that?!" She says her voice breaking.

"Am not a good daughter," I tell her again this time, my mom flinches.

"No! You are my sweet, caring daughter who loves her mom so much." She says as she runs her hands through my hair.

"No! Maa! Am sorry for everything you had to go through." I tell her crying more.

"What happened Saumya?! You are scaring me!" My mom was really scared.

"I don't listen to you, am a daughter you don't deserve!" I tell crying even more.

"Don't you dare say that! You are everything I have of your father. I can never fathom to think of you less than anything. You are and will always be special to me." She tells me her voice breaking into million pieces.

"I made many mistakes maa. Unforgivable ones." I tell her. I am hiccupping a lot more than I expected.

"Children make mistakes!" She tells me as she hugs me tight.

"I should have listened to you! Aarav is not a nice guy. He cheated on me." I tell her trying to hold in my anger.

"And it's all my fault!" I tell her. She goes silent. I could see she is burning up with so much anger.

"Where the fuck is he?!" I hear her voice boom through the wall of the house.

"Maa! Listen to me," I tell her trying to calm down.

"It's my fault that I was blinded by his love. That I couldn't recognize your love for me...nor for him." I tell hanging my head down in shame.

"What are you telling Saumya?" My mom asks to shocked to even speak.

"I know you still love him. I know am the reason you never got to be with him. I am the one at fault." I tell her. I accept my mistake for the first time.

"I was scared. I was scared that he might replace dad. I thought dad would not be even in memory with us anymore. I was scared I might lose this unconscious part of him, that I failed to understand that your love life has nothing to do with me. I am no one to question who you be with. I should have trusted you. I should have understood your feelings as you did for me. If I would have made the right decision then...I wouldn't even have met Aarav, to begin with." I tell her the truth...The naked truth.

"What?" my mom asks confused.

"I became friends with Aarav because he supported my decision of not letting you be together. I felt I was heard when I was with him. Only if I would have let you guys get married then...I wouldn't have suffered such heartbreak. I am sorry." I tell her with all my heart.

"And I intend to make it right," I tell running out of the house and pulling in Rajesh uncle with me.

"Here maa... You deserve to be happy. You deserve to be loved. You deserve to be with someone for the rest of your life." I say putting Rajesh Uncles hand in my mom's hand.

"Hello, My Love," Uncle says, and he really meant it.

"Hello." She tells him in a meek voice. Her hands roam on his face as if half expecting him to be imaginary. Both were crying.

"You got old." She says her thumb rubbing across his cheeks while he looks at her with admiration.

"Well, you got young." He says with a smile adoring his face.

"I love you, Rajesh." My mom says in a heartbeat.

"I will always love you more." He says pulling her into a hug.

I hear a hiccup beside me and I see Shruthi in tears as she lay her head in Dhruv's arms. "I can't wait to find a love like their's" She cries out as she hugs Dhruv closer.

Shubham looks at me, an actual smile adorning his face.

"You took the Right decision." He mouths.

Yes, I took One Right Decision.

🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂

It's done, guys.
We have reached the end.
We have reached the end of Saumya's story. That is it.

Am I crying? Yes, a bit. Sauyma from start was frustrating to begin with.
But am happy she grew... a bit. Yes, Her life is not totally set, she is not booming in her career choice. But she was able to take the right decision. She understood what could mend her heart and she went with it. I am no less proud of her. She is also probably one of the boldest characters I wrote because let's face it- Accepting mistakes and setting them right is never easy.

Once again I thank every one of you who showed your love for "One Right Decision". As I told you this story had a lot to do with the passion of mine. I got this story on a whim and yeah that's about it. I will be writing an epilogue as well as a few extra chapters.

Also, stay tuned for the next book. I promise it will be soon.

Please keep supporting and voting and commenting. Thank you so much for everything. So here is me signing out, as the Author of "One Right Decision"

As always stay tuned. Until the next book...

~Author