Diamond Hearts (Volume I & II)

34. Why did you?

Adi's throat burned as he gulped down the amber brown liquid. Whiskey wasn't his preference when he initially started drinking but thought of touching Vodka never settled well with him after she had it that night.

After the fifth drink, things started feeling unusually light. Nothing mattered, choices he made, stupid burden of responsibilities, businesses and institutes he had to take care of, everything disappeared in thin air.

'You reek of alcohol, Adi. Stay away from me. I was dying to meet you and you're here, in this state. What is wrong with you?' She had been so angry that night.

"Everything, Kuhoo. Everything was wrong," He swirled half-empty glass staring at the liquid she despised. Usually he didn't remember anything after the fifth drink but it seemed to be a special day. She probably had written it in a fit of rage. But then insignificant things related to her mattered, after she left.

Cold metal ring in his finger made a clink sound on colliding with glass as if asking for his attention. Removing the platinum ring, he held it between his index finger and thumb. "So, one fine day, Mr. Shrinivas Chidanand Bhardwaj decided to play with my life and I was so blind in love that I did not realize."

"Don't call your grandfather by his name, Adi. Where is the respect?" Suhasini Bhardwaj walked in.

"Ma?" Adi simply stared at his mother slowly taking other two figures that entered.

"What is going on here?" Shrinivas Bhardwaj roared.

"Nothing papa. He isn't handling the recent changes well. It's only been a week since he's here. Adi needs some more time," Suhasini smiled meekly.

"Is that true? Men like us don't get bothered by such un-necessary things, beta. Now come here, this old man hasn't met his favorite grandchild in a while," Grandfather extended the arms inviting him for a hug.

For once the man appeared like his old dadu. He wouldn't fall for this façade anymore, his mind resisted. But when the man didn't give up, he took slow steps ahead maintaining a straight face to engulf his grandfather in a hug.

"I'm so proud of you. Your plan of actions for our pharmaceutical industry in Delhi provided great leverage over other competitors. Government has granted us with funds to open our branches in different states. Although there is a condition to sell them at the cost of generic medicines in special sectors but we'll figure a way out of it to increase the cost benefit ratio. I missed you. Now that you are here, we'll get back to our usual table-tennis matches and morning jogs. Things will soon go back to as they were earlier," Grandfather said in between the hug.

Adi stiffened listening to those words and took a step back, "You don't have to pretend anymore Mr. Bhardwaj. The only thing you see in us is an heir. As a child I always wondered why others feared my lovely dadu but now I know. So, no, things will never go back to normal between us."

"Adi! Don't talk to your grandpa like that," Suhasini's voice raised in an octave as she pulled him back.

Jyotiraditya looked at his mother's concerned eyes for a long moment before he grunted, "Oh please ma. You can't stop me from saying the truth. Where were you anyways when he made me break the engagement? Or when he literally used me as a business deal fixing an alliance with the only daughter of Bhat family?"

Suhasini let go off the hold on his hand listening to these accusations, staring at the floor guiltily, knowing that she indeed was responsible for his plight, directly or indirectly didn't matter anymore. Adi chuckled humorlessly at her actions and then started walking around his grandfather in a wavy gait, tapping on the chin, "Let me guess, it started when bhai finally decided to give up on handling all the shit this man used to put him through and left to complete his own dreams. So, dear grandpa here decided to project all his anger on me ultimately showing his true colors which were hidden beneath the comfortable blanket of love and affection till then."