Arun's world shattered in a single phone call.
It had been a sunny afternoon, and Aarya, now three years old, was giggling on the floor, playing with her favorite stuffed elephant. Arun was in the kitchen, preparing her lunch, when his phone rang.
"Mr. Arun?" a somber voice spoke on the other end. "This is Inspector Mehra. I'm calling about your wife, Ria."
The words that followed were a blur. Ria's car had gone off a cliff during her drive back from an art exhibit. Rescue teams had searched the wreckage but found no sign of her body. The car was mangled, and the strong currents of the river below made recovery efforts almost impossible.
"We're very sorry," the inspector said. "Based on the circumstances, we have to conclude that she didn't survive."
Arun's phone slipped from his hands. The room spun as he stumbled to the floor, his knees giving way.
"Papa?" Aarya's tiny voice broke through his haze. She toddled over, her wide eyes filled with concern. "What happened?"
Arun scooped her up, holding her tightly. Tears streamed down his face as he whispered, "Mama's not coming home, sweetheart."
The days that followed were a haze of grief and disbelief. Arun refused to accept the police's conclusion. He clung to the hope that Ria might still be alive, that she had somehow survived and would return to them.
He spent hours looking through the photos and videos of Ria on his phone, her laughter echoing in his memory. Aarya would sit beside him, occasionally pointing at the screen and saying, "Mama!"
Every time Arun heard her say it, his heart broke a little more.
One evening, as Arun tucked Aarya into bed, she looked up at him with her big, innocent eyes.
"Papa, where is Mama?" she asked, clutching her stuffed elephant. "Why isn't she coming home?"
Arun swallowed the lump in his throat. "Mama… had to go away, baby. But she loves you very much, and she's always with us in our hearts."
Aarya frowned, her little brow furrowing. "But I want her here."
"I know," Arun whispered, tears slipping down his cheeks. "I want her here too."
He stayed by her side until she fell asleep, her tiny hand clutching his shirt.