Member-only story
Three’s A Crowd
A Short Story
Their first night together following the wedding, Maha asked Kabir to use protection.
“I don’t want to get pregnant,” she said to him, rummaging through his drawers to find what she needed.
“You don’t want to have children?” he asked, his tone slightly accusatory.
“I want to know you better before we start a family,” she responded.
The two had been on a few outings before the wedding, but Maha wondered how much you could really know a person from just spending a couple of hours at a time together.
He immediately left the bedroom, visibly upset. She plopped down on the bed, confused as to what had caused this change in his composure. A few minutes later, her mother-in-law entered. She did not knock or announce herself. She walked in with the authority of being the last word in each nook of the house.
“Why don’t you want children?” she stated more than inquired, her voice brimming with rebuke.
“Where’s Kabir?” Maha asked.
“My son is frustrated that you would ruin his first night of marriage with your ridiculous demand.”
Maha looked up from the bed at her mother-in-law, who, despite her short stature, was evidently attempting to tower over the new bride. “This isn’t…
