Chapter 32
Karan
“You seem happier, man.”
I nod to Ajay with a smile, shifting the wooden logs I’m carrying to equalize the load between both arms. Rachel and I have been back since earlier this morning, and already, I can tell every member of my family wants to ambush me for details.
“Yeah, I think so.”
A gust of cold wind blows through Ajay’s shaggy hair. He winces and nearly missteps into the snow. With his frame being much smaller than mine, the fact that he’s somehow trying to one-up me in the number of wooden logs he’s carrying is a bit ridiculous.
“You’re going to hurt yourself,” I warn him. “Why don’t you set a few of those down?”
We’ve barely walked ten feet away from the woodshed; he’s not going to make it inside the cabin at this rate.
“Nah, I’m good.”
As if the universe was listening for those exact words, Ajay suddenly plummets, face-first into the snow.
“You still good?” I put my logs down and offer him a hand, which he takes with an embarrassed smirk.
“Can you pretend this never happened?” Without a beat to take a break, he leans back over to pick up the logs he dropped.
“Only if you stop trying to impress me for whatever dumb reason.” I shrug and pick up my own logs with a chuckle.
“Are you laughing at me?” Ajay asks, a look of shock painted on his face.
“Oh. No. Sorry.” I rub the back of my neck with another nervous chuckle. “I’m a little bit on edge.”
“Oh?” He stops mid-motion and straightens back up without picking up more wood. “So, which is it, man? You happy, or you nervous?”
“What, I can’t be both?” I raise an eyebrow at my cousin, who, I’ve got to remember, is much, much younger than I am.
And much more immature, as young men tend to be.
“So, did it go well or not with Rachel?”
There it is. I knew he’d been itching to ask me that question since Rachel and I came back. He’s been circling around me all day, looking for an opportunity to corner me. I should have known something was up when he offered to help me bring firewood inside.
I look around to make sure we’re alone. There’s nothing around us but snow and trees, no souls separating us from the frozen expanse of the sea. I sigh, resigning myself. I might as well share now and get Ajay off my back so that I can fully focus on being there for my wife.
I drop my logs again and take an awkward seat on my pile.
“It went well,” I start.
When Ajay realizes I’m going to share, he also takes a seat on his own pile of wood. Might as well get semi-comfortable instead of standing stiffly in the snow.
“But it’s far from over.”
“Oh, yeah?”
“I’m definitely hopeful we can work through this, though.”
That’s the truth. A new ember has been lit inside my chest ever since Rachel and I fell asleep in each other’s arms that first night. She’s coming back to me. At least, she wants to.
My wife is no longer out of my reach.
“She agreed to couple’s therapy, for one thing.”
