A continuation from the earlier chapter, please read that to know and understand the rural background and the characters, all of them are mature and consensual.
"Please leave me alone for some time." Sangeeta had requested her aged mother-in-law and she looked at her sadly and went to her room besides hers.
...
I tried to remember all that my mother-in-law had spoken to me and it was astonishing that she had allowed it to continue. Coming from an even older generation, such relations are taboo in her eyes.
Did she actually feel they love each other? I then tried to remember Sharmila's face when they were making out and it was pretty clear that she enjoyed it with him, and as far as I know, she's not the type to just throw it around for anyone.
What about my son Arjun though? Did he love her? It is clear that he's fond of her but to remain marriage-less for an older lady. Is he willing to go that far?
One thing was for sure. That night's scene had burnt deep into my consciousness & it had awakened something in me which I had tried so hard to bury after my husband Anand's death.
...
It's almost a year, since that day and we are now in the present. Arjun hasn't married yet and Sharmila has left the house to stay at her parent's place in Gurgaon.
...
I haven't had much of a chance to talk to Sharmila on what transpired then and since that night, I have also noticed that she avoided Arjun for a few days till she went back to her parent's place. She has stayed there for the whole year and she hardly picked calls or replied to any messages from anyone in the house.
It was only three days ago that Amrit, my husband's brother, expired due to an accident because of drug overdose and we informed her family immediately and Sharmila came back to visit for the funeral yesterday.
There wasn't very much to grieve for anyone, especially for her and she continued to maintain a stoic silence throughout the rituals of Amrit's funeral.
Inside her, he was long dead for her.
I couldn't fail to notice that she looked haggard and a lot skinnier than when she had left us a year ago. For the first time in this whole year, I felt a stab of pity for her.
I, in my shameless jealousy and the fer of losing my son to her, had ensured in return that two precious lives suffered for so long. I needed to quickly make amends before I permanently lost both of them.
I had a small doubt to confirm before I decide to act.
I needed a plan of action. Something to justify my actions and consequences.
I kept myself shut for the rest of the evening until dinner was served. I could see Sharmila didn't come out of her room and I heard from my mother-in-law that she mentioned something like having a slight journey related tiredness & fever.
"Arjun also looks disturbed to see her this way" saying this Kavita Devi retired to her room.
After a few minutes, Arjun came & knocked at my door to question about my well-being.
I shooed him away, "Don't you know why women fall sick every month?"
"Sorry Mamma". I could hear him gingerly stepping back and retire to his house to sleep.
After what seemed like an hour, I gently opened my door and stepped out into the porch and gingerly looked around. All felt silent and I walked over & gave Sharmila's door a faint knock to check if she's sleeping or not.
She took a few seconds to open the latch and was shocked to see me and immediately averted her sad and tired eyes to the ground.
"Will you not invite me inside?" I asked in a stern tone.
"Who am I to invite you Bhabhi. This is your house, please come in!" she faintly smiled back at me to check my reaction.
She bolted the door behind me and immediately turned towards me & fell on my feet.
"I am so sorry Bhabhi ... I uh ... I don't know if you will believe me but I always tried to tell you everything ... I tried hard Bhabhi but could never muster the courage to face the aftermath of this sinful disclosure.
"It not that I was afraid of being thrown out ... I was scared to death about losing you and Arjun forever. Both of you have always meant the world to me ... You are the elder sister I never had and Arjun is ..." she tried to search for the right word.
I couldn't help sneer at her "What ... my dear sister? Your son ... huh! God knows you have indeed a lousy way of showing your motherly affections, no?"
She looked more pitiful.
"That's precisely why I couldn't bear to be around both of you and yet be so far and distant. You can't understand how this year has been for me. It was hell."
She collapsed at my feet and sobbed like a child.
I immediately realized my mistake. The words must have felt like ice daggers as she became more disconsolate than ever.