Unkept Promises

Dr. Godbole's session - Part I

Abhiram's POV

We were sat in Dr. Godbole's clinic. Although Avi appeared to be visibly calm, I could sense her clear agitation and nervousness in her entire demeanour. Constantly rubbing her palm around her bare neck, or fidgeting with the hem of her shirt, and fidgeting with her fingers. If you were to observe my wife in the court, even during the toughest of the case hearings, she would be so composed, but today was not such a day.

At least she could portray herself to be calm through her face, but that was not the case with me. Not only was my mind running the marathon of a thousand miles, but my legs too were alternating in bounding up and down, beads of perspiration marring my face.

All of this was justified. We had entered an unknown realm, and despite of the fact that we wanted to make things work, we were scared of the probable consequences. I indeed was - as much as I wanted to find the answers of why I had been the way I had, earnestly so, the thought of Avi being even more disappointed in me did send a shiver down my spine. I had hurt my love more than anything, and I was scared to pain her more.

But again, this had to be done for our sake, and I will be damned if I give up.

I felt a warm touch on my bouncing legs, and they immediately went steady subconsciously. I turned to glance at the hand which had been placed on my leg, and then my vision traversed until it reached Avi's face. She had an assuring and at the same time concerned expression on her face.

"Its alright."

Two words, and they seemed to calm that turmoil which had plagued my mind since morning. Yes, I had not relaxed, I would never be until I make her feel my love, make her feel that trust yet again, but her mere assurance put my heart at ease.

"Yes, its all going to be alright.", I put my palm over her hand on my leg and gave it a tiny squeeze. Though my words seemed like they were to provide her with an assurance, I knew how much they affected me, how much they had been intended to assure me.

"Hi Mr. Gandhi, Adv. Gandhi.", Dr. Godbole entered with a professional smile on her face and greeted us.

I know we haven't even interacted with her about the matter at hand, but just the smile on her face seemed assuring. Avi and I glanced at each other at the same time and greeted her back.

"So first of all, please relax. I was immediately able to sense your nervousness when I entered in here. I know this must be really overwhelming for the both of you, and honestly, weird too. I mean, I know I am a counsellor, but speaking of your marital issues in front of other people does sound weird and intruding. I can understand that, but please relax, I am here just to help the two of you. The fact that you have approached me itself indicates that you are willing to save your relationship by addressing the issues. Trust me - this first step is the one which requires a lot of courage and you have taken that. Now, be assured, we will make it work, hmm?"

God bless you Dr. Godbole. Let all of your words come true.

"Uh, Dr. Godbole, I do not mean to offend you, but our privacy would be maintained right? Like, this will just be between the three of us right?", Avi asked in a somewhat hesitant tone.

"Of course, Adv. Gandhi, and no, you have not offended me. Its very natural to ask this question.", she assured Avi with a soft smile.

"Now before we start, I just wanted you to know one thing - please do not expect for this counselling or our sessions to immediately work wonders. I have promised to help you, and I shall do so, but this is going to take time, depending upon how grave the matter at hand is, on how you two respond to the sessions. I will not guarantee you immediate progress, because that's simply not how its done. Let's go slowly, and I promise it will be effective. The end result would be as you have expected or even better, hmm?"