The bench

Letting it go - 1/3

Abha pulled into the parking of their house. She sat in her car for the next twenty minutes. She had topped her graduation exam and she had hoped that at least today, her parents would come to the college with her. Abha knew they wouldn't, but she still hoped that they would. 

Like she had hoped when she got her 12th board exam result. But that time, Dadi was at home. Dadi had been the parent her parents never were. Abha had been a smart child and she usually sailed through all her exams. She always got the best of everything, except her parents' time or attention. Her parents were lawyers and they were always busy. When her parents were at home, they used to fight. Dadi used to take her to her room and her her stories when she was younger, and watched Netflix with her when she was older. Dadi learnt to make her favourite pasta and pizza. While Abha knew her house was different, she got enough love from her Dadi. When Dadi passed away after her boards, Abha didn't cry. Abha made up her mind, the day she got her degree, she was going to move out. 

As she sat in the car, she knew this was the day. She had been accepted in a prestigious university in the USA with full scholarship. Her parents had lost interest in her studies when she picked engineering over law. Today, she missed her Dadi the most. Dadi would have been so excited and Abha made up her mind. She was going to go up to her room and pack her bags. She had saved enough money to buy her own ticket, a one way ticket to USA. Her parents had given her all the other documents needed for her visa as they thought she was planning to go to USA for a vacation. As she entered the house, there was silence. She sent a message to her parents on their whatsapp group with a photo of her degree, and then, after some hesitation, a photo of her ticket. She knew they would call, maybe offer her a latest device to make up for their absence, so she turned her phone off. She left the house, the house that had stopped being her home, the day her Dadi passed away. 

She said goodbye, mostly to her memories, her childhood and all the tears she shed alone in her room for all these years.  

 Letting go - 2/3

Rishabh's dream to become a lawyer had made him so driven that when he got into the college of his choice, he knew one thing for sure. He was going to rise above the middle class life he had been brought up in. His father had been a clerk in a government office but he had passed away early. Money had always been tight but his mother knew the value of a good education. She made sure Rishabh was able to pursue his dream of studying law. 

When Rishabh met Shruti, the attraction was immediate. Shruti had been a transfer student from Maharashtra and she was the university topper. They often challenged each other in class and their debates grew famous amongst the professors and they were often pitted against each other. They started hanging out with each other all the time and their friends used to call them the "uncle aunty" of the college. When Shruti found out she was pregnant in the final year of their college, Rishabh was shocked. This was not according to his plan, but he loved her. When Shruti decided to keep the baby, Rishabh had only one choice, he offered to get married. Shruti's parents rejected this immediately and threatened to cut ties with her if she didn't come back right away and abort the baby. Rishabh's mother too was disappointed but before she could come to terms with it, Rishabh and Shruti got married in the court. Shruti's pregnancy was complicated and having twins didn't make it easier. Shruti was put on bedrest and she had to give up her studies. They had to borrow from friends to get a place to stay and pay for the hospital bills. And when Abha and Raghav were born, there was nobody with them.

Raghav was born with many complications and doctors told the young parents that he would need weeks, maybe months in the hospital. In desperation, Rishabh went to his mom and looking at his distraught face, his mom opened her house and her heart to them. While Rishabh struggled to cope with a sick new born, another at home and completing his education, the loans just kept piling up. Shruti was torn between her two babies but Abha was being cared for, so she focussed on little Raghav. 

And then one day, after two years, Raghav finally decided, he had enough. They had known about the inevitable but they couldn't never ready themselves. The shock of losing Raghav, was unbearable and both grieved, but separately. Rishabh had just joined a law firm as an intern and he knew had would have to pay off the massive loan he was under. 

Rishabh was possessed with his dream and if that meant he was going to work long hours, he would do so. Shruti also went back to college and got her degree and took up a job. They both worked hard to pay off their loans and as their loan got smaller, the distance between them got bigger. The resentment grew and as much as they tried, they started avoiding each other. And even when things started to improve financially and professionally, they were not able to fix their relationship. They moved into a bigger house, and the space between them grew. They never talked about losing Raghav or those stressful years and the resentment led to arguments. 

That day, when Abha's message popped up on their phones, it was as if they were hit by lightening. Shruti broke down in tears, she didn't realize how far they had gone away from each other and from their only child. Rishabh was devastated. The dream no longer seemed relevant. Unknowingly, he put his arms around Shruti as she cried. "I am sorry", was all he could manage. The distance melted away and both regretted where they were. 

They tried to call Abha but they knew she was on the plane already. Rishabh and Shruti sent out emails to their office about taking a long overdue vacation and booked the first available flight to Atlanta. 

 Letting go - 3/3

When Abha landed in Atlanta, she had contacted the International students association at her university and someone had come to receive her at the airport. Once she reached her dorm, she sat down on her bed. There were many parents who were hovering over their kids, helping them set up their rooms. There was a lot of happiness around, and while Abha missed her home, she knew she had done the right thing. She was not going to turn on the phone with her India SIM. 

She reached out to her backpack and pulled out a small wooden box her Dadi had given her when she was 8 years old. Every year, Dadi's gift was something small but Abha cherished it more than the expensive gifts her parents got for her. Every gift reminded her of her memories with Dadi and made her smile. As she reached to the bottom of the box, there was an envelope which Abha hadn't noticed before. As she opened it, she saw her Dadi's handwriting, and her heart skipped a beat. As she read the letter, tears started to flow. And when she finished reading, Abha was overwhelmed. Abha never knew about Raghav, about the struggles her parents went through to get out of debt. She couldn't help but feel regret about her actions. 

She folded the letter and there was one last line on the other side of the page. "Forgive them as I did when your father came to me that day, because if I hadn't, I would have never been a part of your life and not knowing my only grandchild would have been the biggest regret of my life."

Abha turned on the India phone and saw the last message from her parents with a photo of them trying desperately to click a selfie, together, with their flight tickets in their hands. With a smile on her face, Abha booked a cab to the airport and sent out a message to her parents. "Let's start over, and let's start first with me teaching you two how to take a good selfie. See you outside the immigration area!"