The Unwanted Houseguest Chapter 30 – Conversations Not Meant to Be Heard
I kicked at the dusty road in frustration that I couldn’t recall my wife’s favorite flower, while my arch-nemesis Amir Ali knew. He had a way of getting under my skin. I got on my scooter and drove off. I didn’t even know where I was driving. It didn’t matter. I just had to clear my head. Eventually I headed home, even though I knew I was supposed to stay away tonight. I looked at my apartment from the street. The bedroom light was on, but the main room was dark. I was obsessed with the thought that my own wife was complicit in making me stay away from MY home so that she could spend the night with her lover in privacy. And even more loathsome was the fact that she couldn’t even ask me or tell me herself. She sent it indirectly via a note delivered by her lover, probably because she knew I would object and she didn’t want to deal with trying to convince me. It seemed cruel. How could any loving wife ask her husband to move out, even just for one final night, so that she could enjoy a night of carnal pleasures with another man? I stared at the building. Hundreds of apartments, full of happily married couples. Some, probably many of them, would be enjoying sex tonight, except in the one flat belonging to Manu Sharma. In that one peculiar home, the wife would be enjoying herself with her preferred lover instead of her husband.
Kavita didn’t want to be bothered until tomorrow. It took all my willpower not to text or call her. I took a deep breath. Rationally, I could also see Kavita’s wisdom in her decision. By keeping me away, she was actually protecting me from suffering the jealousy and tension of being too close to the sordid affair that was set to happen tonight. Instead, she was giving me my own space to stay in a positive frame of mind and look forward to tomorrow’s new dawn. She had even reassured me that she was moving back in with me tomorrow. She signed her note with hearts. That symbolism would help me survive this night.
Yet I was like a moth drawn to the flame. I knew what Kavita and Prem were going to do, but I had to know more. I wanted to understand if she was as complicit in cuckolding me as it seemed, and whether she really loved Prem as much as he thought. A part of me needed confirmation that she really loved me, and that she was only putting on this one last show to close the relationship with her lover. I wanted to know how she felt about Prem, and how she felt about me. I also wanted to get clues on how I would start a new relationship with my wife tomorrow in the wake of whatever happened tonight.
In this frenzy of angst, a devious idea came to me. I parked my scooter in a neighboring building complex so Prem would not notice it. Then I sneaked back to my building, walked up the far stairwell where no one would notice me. When I got to my flat, I leaned my ear against the door. It sounded quiet. I inserted the key very quietly and cracked open the door ever so slightly. It was dark inside. I stepped inside and closed the door very quietly. I put the bag with Kavita’s shoes down so I could remove my own shoes. Then I picked up my shoes and tiptoed inside as silent as a mouse. I heard Kavita playing music in the guest room. The door was half closed, and I dared not peek inside. Instead, I quickly went into the kitchen and hid myself inside the pantry closet, knowing that no one would open it tonight. I turned my phone to vibrate and sat quietly in the dark. It occurred to me that I had no way to go to the bathroom, but it was too late to do anything about it now. I would just have to hold it in, find an empty container in the pantry, or else pee in my pants. At least I wouldn’t go hungry with all the food around.
About ten minutes later, I heard Kavita come out to the main hall. She was humming something very happily. I heard the front door open, and then voices. Prem must have arrived. Kavita cooed in delight, no doubt from the jasmine flowers he brought her. The voices grew louder as they approached the kitchen. She offered him a glass of water. He followed her in and started to flirt with her. “Kavita, you gorgeous little tigress!”
She started giggling and pushing him back. “Prem, slow down. Don’t be so horny like an eager dog! What’s the rush? We have all night.”
“Kavita, queen of my heart, what do you expect? You sent me away so you could get ready for me. It’s my last night, and now I’m back, hungry like a lion. I want to devour you.”
Kavita laughed, “Okay, all right, all in due time. But first, let’s have a drink. By the way, thank you for the flowers. They smell great! I love them.” Then she changed the subject, “So, tell me how did it go with Manu? Where is he staying for the night?”
Prem groaned, “All right, it’s a long story. Let me pour a whiskey. You want a drink?”
“I’ll have a glass of the white wine. You know I feel bad that I didn’t speak to Manu myself.”
They continued chatting as he prepared the drinks. “Kavita, your husband is staying at his friend’s place for the night. I don’t know whose place – I didn’t ask, but he will be fine. Don’t worry about him.”
“I know he’ll be fine. I just hope that he understands and doesn’t resent me for it. He’s such a generous and loving person, but he’s also very sensitive,” she observed.
Prem responded, “Sensitive yes, but he understands why this one night of freedom is important to you. He came around to it himself. If the two of you had talked, he would have gotten himself all riled up for no reason, and then it would have affected your mood too. By creating this space, it eased away any possible tension, and it gave me a chance to connect with him.”
So now I knew for sure that she had purposely avoided speaking with me about their plans. She sent Prem to keep me away tonight. It was no longer a matter of speculation. In her mind, I could not be trusted to hold my emotions together and would have ruined everything. But here I was, holding it all together, jealousy growing, but staying calm nonetheless.
Kavita relaxed. “Okay, I know it’s all for his own good.” She had a way of justifying even her most hurtful actions as somehow being in my own interest. “Did you boys enjoy talking?”
“I don’t know if I’d call it enjoyable, but we definitely connected. You should know that your Manu is even more whacked out than I imagined.”
“Oh yeah? What do you mean?” Kavita asked, giggling.
“I don’t know quite how to describe him. He’s like an anxious ball of denials, contradictions, and self-doubts. He sees me in the worst possible light, even as I was truly trying to be fair and respectful today.”
“Prem, darling, you can’t expect that he’s suddenly going to see your good heart after so many weeks and months of being intimidated by you,” Kavita explained.
“I understand his defensiveness. I was trying to make nice. But what’s more he doubts my true love for you, and he insists that you can’t possibly love me either. Worst of all, he still believes he’s a real man.”
“Welcome to my world,” Kavita responded. “You figured all this out over dinner?” Kavita joked. I pressed my ear up to the door to hear all this. I could not believe Kavita had just commiserated with her lover over his observations. Especially the last one about me not being a real man. That bothered me. I knew I couldn’t measure up to Prem on a purely physical and sexual basis. But being a man was about much more than just caveman strength. I offered many other things to compensate for my shortcomings. I wondered how well Kavita appreciated that.
“We had some good conversations, and it was emotional for him and frankly for me too. Kavita, I hate the thought of sharing you, and it hurts me to leave…”
“Prem, please. We talked about this. It was your choice. You know I love Manu, despite his little quirks. He’s my husband. I can’t be exclusive with you only, and you don’t want to share me,” she stated firmly.
“Kavita, I understand. I’m not asking you or him to change. All I meant to say is that love hurts, more than I imagined. Let’s not talk about Manu again. We have tonight. Let’s celebrate this moment.”
“I know, baby, come on, let’s sit down,” her voice fading as they left the kitchen and the kitchen light shut off.
Soon I heard indiscriminate voices from the living room, the faint sound of glasses clinging, then some soft music. Then the voices went silent. Maybe they were making out on the sofa. Or did they move to the bedroom? I desperately wanted to know what was going on. My body was starting to feel stiff from sitting so rigidly inside the dark closet. I took some deep breaths to relax.
I started to think to myself. Could Prem be right that Kavita really loves him? For more than just his sexual prowess and brute strength? I questioned how any self-respecting woman could accept the way Prem treated women. Yet, regardless of what I believed, Kavita seemed to genuinely enjoy being with him. She LIKED being treated like his slut, his bitch. She acted submissively towards him, in ways that she would never do with me. I was at best, her equal. With him, she melted into a flirtatious young girl around his manly aura, moony-eyed and lost in his charms. I pictured the belly ring she had just gotten and so proudly worn. Why, if she was just about to move back in with me, would she get a belly ring with her lover’s initials? It was the ultimate act of giving herself to him, and a shameful slap in my face. It made no sense.
The living room had been silent for some time now. I cracked open the pantry door ever so softly. Rationally, I knew I could not take any chances of getting caught. I could only imagine the horror if they caught me breaking their trust. But I saw that the living room was dark. I crawled out on my hands and knees, ready to scuttle back if necessary. The living room was empty. They had moved into Prem’s room. I heard the shower running. The door to the bedroom was wide open since they had no reason to close it. The bedroom was empty, so I grabbed the moment to make my way quickly across the living room to the far end, and then slid myself behind the sofa, dragging myself slowly through the tight space between the sofa and the wall to avoid making any noise. I poked my head out from the other side. I was well hidden from the bedroom due to the houseplant positioned next to the sofa. Through the leaves of the plant, I had a perfectly hidden view of their bedroom, but with an immediate escape route to retreat behind the sofa if needed. I must have been no more than 3 or 4 meters from the bed, and with their lights dimmed, and positioned behind the leafy plant, I was practically invisible.
That’s when I got to see my wife for the first time since this morning. My eyes felt like popping out of my head. She looked absolutely stunning, dressed in an elegant red and white wedding style saree, sporting golden embroidery all along the edges. The golden colored blouse fit her arms and breasts snugly. The saree itself floated in curvaceous patterns from her body. Her hair was tied up in a fancy arrangement, with white flowers pinned on one side. Her red lipstick and blue eye shadow accentuated her naturally beautiful features. She wore matching gold earrings and bangles, with a sparkling diamond necklace. She moved around the bedroom, floating like an angel, tossing flower petals on the bed and on the sides. Her saree accentuated the voluptuous curves of her body. Her eyes and smile radiated a powerful feminine allure.
Crouching behind the sofa, I felt a burning humiliation. A real man would have claimed his wife here and now as his own. Yet here I sat, observing passively, like a coward hiding away, unwilling and unable to act. I felt a deep shame, penetrating straight to my heart, belied by the erection pressing against my trousers. A heaviness settled in my heart, secretly watching my wife dressed for an epic wedding night, a wedding night that should have been spent with me but was instead moments away from being consummated by another man.
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