Malaal-Chapter 13

Chapter 13

“Please please Kanhaji. Not again! Shit!”, Jigar said as he pushed the laptop away. Frustration crept onto his face. He had been searching for Rashi’s social media accounts but there was no trace. Nothing. She had deleted it all. 

“Jigarji smile with some swag! Uff!”, she had said when she had taken their last selfie and uploaded it. 

Jigar smiled with himself. He looked around him.

“See, you are everywhere around me. Still not with me.”, he said when Champ jumped on his lap and Jigar controlled his tears with a lot of effort. 

Hetal and Kokila peeped into his room and Hetal couldn’t stop her tears. Kokila held her softly and patted her. 

“This Rashi. Let her come, I will scold her so much! You can’t just leave us like that no-“, Kokila said to herself. She wanted to cry too. She hadn’t shed a tear since the day Rashi had left but obviously she was extremely worried about her. “She can’t even clean her room without guidance, how will she manage? Krishna Bhagwan knows where and how she is. Our Rashi.”, she thought.

‘Our Rashi.’ What Kokila didn’t know was that Rashi wasn’t their Rashi anymore. She was changing into an unknown personality, a Rashi totally different from the lazy Rashi Modi. Surely, her wounds had left permanent scars on her. So much, that she would become unrecognisable soon.

“Congratulations, Ms Rashi Shah. Your score in college was excellent, and your wits are unique. That’s what we want here: Talent, wits, and confidence.”, one of the interviewers said and nodded in acknowledgment. Rashi felt like flying in the air. She controlled her huge smile and was about to say thanks when a man interrupted her from behind.

“And hardwork. There’s nothing if there’s no hardwork.”, he said in a deep voice. Rashi turned to look at him. He was probably a man in his early thirties, wearing dark blue formal suit, clean shaven and having a medium muscular body. But what was striking was his charm and attitude. The way he walked. The way he talked. And the way he looked at a person. His eyes could pierce anything.

Rashi stood up to greet him. “Hello Sir.”, she said and stuck out her hand for a handshake. The man was amused. No employee had ever even attempted to shake hands with him. They would always just stand, ready with their services for him.

He smiled and shook her hand. “Hi. I am Harshad Malhotra. MD of this company and direct in-charge of the Finance Department. In short, your boss.”, he said calmly.

Rashi was intrigued. “He’s my boss! Why does he seem like a problem maker already?”, she thought.

“What are you thinking Miss? That maybe I am a problem maker?”, he asked and smiled. Rashi’s eyes widened and she shook her head.

“Be confident Rashi.”, she told herself silently.

“Not at all Sir. Even if it is, then I can handle problems pretty well.”, she and smirked(by mistake).

Harshad nodded in acknowledgment. She seemed one of those rare employees who are there for the job, not for perks, to Harshad.

“Okay then, Ms Rashi Shah. Will see you here from tomorrow. Your appointment letter and salary details would be mailed to you by the evening. Goodbye.”, he said.

Rashi smiled, childish excitement finally making to her face. “Sure Sir. Goodbye.”, she said and walked outside.

She didn’t feel a sense of satisfaction. Neither of pride. She felt a sense of revenge. A little step towards being a person that won’t ever love Jigar anymore. She hated how everything she was doing was ultimately connected to Jigar. “Maybe I would never forget our love. Unlike you. After all, Rashi doesn’t exist for you anymore no?”, she thought and clenched her fists. A tear appeared in her eyes but she decided to save it for the night. She forced a smile. 

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“WooohoOooooo!”, Ishan shouted as he held her hands swirled her around. “I knew you were gonna do it! Otherwise Rashi yaar, what were you doing living as a daughter-in-law in that saree!  Glad that you discovered that you can be YOU as well!”, he shouted. 

“Get ready now. There are some new clothes on your bed. You had said that you will wear western stuff once you land a job. So do that now. And ya, you owe me drinks in exchange of the money I spent on your clothes.”, he said and winked.

“Yeah but where are we going at this hour? It’s too late!”, she exclaimed as he pushed her towards her room.

“There’s never too late for celebration.”, he said and pushed her inside.

Rashi smiled and glanced at the clothes. Ishan’s taste in clothes was indeed excellent. After all he was a fashion designer. She chose a dark blue and black hued dress. It was sleeveless with a sharp cut neck and ended above her knees. She looked at the mirror and felt a bit uncomfortable. She had wore such clothes ages ago. She brushed off the nervousness and styled herself. She applied moderately thick kohl in her eyes, gave her eyes a smoky look, and let her hair loose. Her hair look sexy; deliberately and beautifully messy.

“I could’ve been a designer too!”, she laughed and winked at the beautiful young lady standing in the reflection.

She walked out of her room and Ishan stopped in his tracks. He checked her out from top to bottom.

“Not bad huh! Rashi, you are making me proud by the moment.”, he said as he grabbed her hand.

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“What is this place!”, Rashi asked confused. It was an open space, didn’t look like a proper club, neither looked completely makeshift. It was definitely created by some unprofessional people who had a nice taste. Besides the open space, was a bar with a wooden decor. It gave a vibe of natural and rugged.

“This is a special space. It’s unofficialy called the ‘Getaway’. It is created, contributed into and managed by a group of heartbroken lonely people who met each other by chance. Not many know about this place. I swear there’s no vibe like this place. You’ll love it.”, he said and grabbed her hand.

Rashi got into the crowd of dancing people. They all were faceless, sad people, looking for reasons to exist. Just like her. Ishan was right. She immediately loved it. She felt like she was allowed to be sad. Something that no one usually does. Allowed to embrace her pain, to swallow it, to get it all over her and to live with it. The song hit her hard.

“Dil ki takhti par hoon likhti, ishqa ishqa

Jag kya jaane dil ko mere ishqa kiska....

Rabb Yaar Gaal Le Saar Meri

Mujhe kya parwah iss duniya ki

Tu jeet meri, jag haar meri,

Mai hoon hi nahi iss duniya ki....”

Ishan glanced over Rashi and saw her dance in a trance. She moved with herself, looked like she wasn’t present there, like she was somewhere else, somewhere away from reality, just dancing to the sad tune of her heart. Rashi swallowed her emotions as she danced and a smirk crept on her face, a dark, dead smile. The smile she adopted today and would remain with her for years to come. 

“Rashi, your life has ended. A new phase has begun. A phase that you will experience till your body dies.”, she told herself.

“Tumhi ho bandhu sakha tumhi...”

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