Chapter 3

"Priyanka?" Gauri calls her confused.

"You can see me?" Priyanka asks Gauri confused as she turned her gaze from Omkara.

"Yes." Gauri replies in amazement.

"Where is she?" Omkara asks Gauri turning to her. "Where is my sister? Prinku? PRINKU!"

"She is standing in front of you." Gauri replies softly.

Omkara stops in shock and turns to look straight ahead. "I can't see her." Omkara softly whispers in pain then turning to Gauri frantically he asks her, "I CAN'T SEE HER! WHY CAN'T I SEE HER?"

"Because only I can."

"You are lying." Omkara accuses her as he left Gauri's hand and moved back. "You lied about the song. You are lying now. She is alive! I am going to find her!"

"She is standing in front of..." Gauri starts to say as she turned to look at Priyanka and stops in shock seeing the empty space. "I can't see her."

"BECAUSE SHE IS ALIVE AND SHE IS LIVING SOMEWHERE ELSE!" Omkara furiously tells her.

"Shut up!" Gauri snaps at him and turns to Inder. "Papa, I could see her and now I can't."

Inder who was staring at Omkara asks him, "Your sister... has she ever donated her organ to you?"

"What? No!" Omkara replies irately. "I am going."

Omkara starts to walk off when the front door closes loudly.

"She is here?" Gauri asks Inder as she turned to him hopefully realizing Priyanka was closing the door to stop Omkara from leaving.

"You said you could see her now you are asking your father whether she is here?" Omkara asks her furiously.

"Why the hell do you argue so much? Can't you shut your mouth and accept what I am telling you?" Gauri asks him furiously.

"Why should I believe anything that you say? You are a liar and a psycho!"

"Omkara..." Inder calls him before Gauri could argue again with him.

Omkara turns to Inder and tells him, "I almost believed her when she told me about the song. That is why I called you but you guys are liars. I am leaving."

"Please think again, has she ever donated any organ? Anything? Please when you were children any surgery... anything?" Inder asks him. "I just need to understand why Gauri was able to see her just now."

Hearing children and surgery Omkara tells him hesitantly, "We were twins. We were conjoint. We shared the same liver."

"And the liver still lives on in you." Inder finishes off.

"What do you mean?" Omkara asks confused. Understanding, what her father was saying, Gauri quickly grabs Omkara's hand.

Omkara turns to her exasperated, "You have some nerve. You think you are strong enough to hold me here? What are you going to do next tie me down?"

"I can see her." Gauri tells Omkara as she stared at Priyanka.

"You are ly.." Omkara starts to say and stops in shock feeling Gauri's hold on him turning cold. It felt like ice. Omkara turns to Gauri, "Your hands are cold. It's like it is frozen."

"Not mine." Gauri replies as she stared at her hand that was holding Omkara's. Priyanka had kept her hand over Gauri's.

"She... is... Here?" Omkara asks Gauri as his heart started slamming against his chest.

"I can see her. When I hold you, I can see her." Gauri explains to him.

"I can see him too." Priyanka tells Gauri as her eyes filled with tears. She was smiling at Omkara lovingly. "When you hold him, I can see him. Please keep holding him. Earlier, when he suddenly disappeared... i..."

"I won't leave him." Gauri promises Priyanka and then turning to Omkara who was staring at her confused hearing her, she tells him, "She told me to keep holding you."

"I want to see her." Omkara requests Gauri. "Please?"

"I don't know how." Gauri replies helplessly then turning to Inder she asks him, "Papa?"

"He can't. It is your contact to her living part that is letting you see her and letting Priyanka see the one that has her living part in them." Inder explains it to her.

"I am sorry Priyanka... I failed you... I should have known." Omkara tells her regretfully as tears filled his eyes.

Gauri was starting to convey the message to Priyanka when she replies "It was not your fault, Omkara. I should have trusted you and not believed Ranveer."

Gauri turns to Omkara and tells him gently, "She is saying that it was not your fault and she should have trusted you instead of Ranveer."

"I should have looked for you."

"It doesn't matter... take care of mom... tell her I chose you both."

Gauri tells Omkara what Priyanka had said.

Feeling a sense of peace spreading through her, Priyanka realizes that it was time. "It's time for me to go... tell Mom that I love her."

"She is saying it is time to go. Tell your mother that she loves her."

"What do you mean time to go?" Omkara asks frowning furiously.

Gauri turns to Priyanka for an explanation. "Take care of my brother and my mother. I can see the sparks... make a move." Priyanka tells her grinning.

"What?" Gauri asks shocked.

"What did she say?" Omkara asks Gauri.

"To make a move."

"Move?" Omkara asks confused.

"Nothing important." Gauri tells him as she turned to glare at Priyanka.

"Angelina Jolie." Priyanka tells her.

"Angelina Jolie?" Gauri asks her confused. Not understanding.

"You got to be kidding me!" Omkara says outraged.

"Your sister is saying that!" Gauri tells him.

"I was telling her that!" Omkara snaps back at her as he glared at her disinterestedly.

"What?" Gauri asks confused.

"Tell him I don't have much time... ask him to tell me the truth." Priyanka tells her.

"She is saying she doesn't have much time. She is asking you to tell her the truth."

Omkara turns to look at Gauri helplessly for a few seconds. "What?" Gauri asks Omkara confused seeing him staring at her.

Sighing loudly, Omkara says "Brad Pitt!"

"I knew it!" Priyanka says excitedly.

"Knew what?" Gauri asks confused.

"Shut it, Prinku!" Omkara orders her.

"It is kind of a code word... when I want to set him up with some girl, I tell him Angelina Jolie and if he finds her attractive he replies Brad Pitt." Priyanka tells her excitedly.

Gauri turns to Omkara in shock, "You talk about these things at this time?"

"She started it and nothing is going to happen between you and me." Omkara tells her irately.

"As if I am dying to be with you, pig!"

"As long as we are on the same page, psycho!"

"I love you, Omkara. Take care of Gauri. She is a sweetheart." Priyanka says.

"She says she loves you." Gauri informs Omkara disinterestedly.

"You won't tell him the rest." Priyanka says shaking her head.

"Stop playing matchmaker. You should be better utilizing your time." Gauri warns her.

"I worry for my brother and my mother. Someone to look after them like I did. After getting to know you and seeing how you find my brother hot, I kind of want you two to get together." Priyanka tells her shrugging. "It's time for me to go."

"She is saying it is time for her to go."

"Don't go Prinku!" Omkara tells her frantically.

Priyanka leans towards Omkara and kisses him on his forehead.

"Please don't go, Prinku... Mom would want to talk to you." Omkara pleads her as his eyes filled with tears.

"I can't wait for her, Omkara." Priyanka tells him as tears fell from her eyes.

"She is saying she can't wait for her." Gauri gently tells him. "She kissed you on your forehead." Gauri informs him, not sure whether he realized it.

Omkara turns to Gauri and asks surprised, "she did?" then he says sadly, "I didn't feel it."

Gauri saw the heartbreak in his eyes and she didn't know what to say or do to make him feel better. In the end, she just tightened her hold on his hand.

"Bye." Priyanka says and she was gone.

Gauri gasps in shock seeing her disappear. The reality hitting her.

Feeling the coldness gone, Omkara asks Gauri sadly, "She is gone, isn't she?"

Realizing that the girl, she had spent the whole day with was gone for forever, Gauri broke down and she falls to her knees crying. Seeing her cry, Omkara kneels down next to her.

"I didn't think she would really go." Gauri tells Omkara as she cried.

"All these months, even when I was angry with her, I knew one day I would meet her and forgive her... but now..." Omkara tells her as tears fell from his eyes and he sobbed for his sister. "She has been with me always. Since the day I was born, she has been with me... i will kill that bas***d! I will kill that Ranveer." Omkara says furiously.

"Your mother has only you left." Inder reminds Omkara as he knelt down next to Gauri and hugged her. Gauri hugs Inder as she softly sobbed.

"What am I going to tell my mom?" Omkara asks Inder helplessly realizing that he had to confirm it to his mother that Priyanka was really gone.

"You have to tell her the truth." Inder advices him.

Much later, after Omkara and Gauri had calmed down, Inder helps Gauri up and Omkara also gets up. Omkara was about to leave when he hears Inder ask Gauri, "Gauri, what is that blood?"

Omkara turns to look at what Inder had pointed and sees the blood. In all of this, he hadn't noticed that blood.

"Papa... I did a stupid thing today." Gauri worriedly tells Inder.

"What stupid thing?" Inder asks her frowning.

"I... when they refused to believe us... I had no other option..." Gauri nervously stammers as she worriedly gulped. She didn't want to hide about the murder attempt and get murdered, now even Priyanka wasn't there to protect her.

"Please Gauri... don't tell me you tried to find the killer." Inder helplessly pleads her.

"I am sorry, Papa... I wasn't thinking straight." Gauri worriedly tells Inder what had happened.
"HAVE YOU GONE MAD, GAURI?" Inder asks her furiously.

"He tried to kill you?" Omkara asks Gauri furiously.

"Priyanka chased him away." Gauri informs them to calm them down.

"I am going to find him!" Omkara says furiously and starts to leave when Gauri runs behind him.

"HAVE YOU GONE OUT OF YOUR MIND? HE IS A KILLER!"

"Did you think of that when you went to challenge him?" Omkara furiously asks her.

"I was stupid and desperate. Not anymore." Gauri tells him.

"Omkara, I can understand but your mother needs you now." Inder calmly tells him.

"He killed my sister. He tried to kill Gauri for fighting for my sister!" Omkara argues.

"And what of your mother? She lost her daughter. Now she will lose her son too." Inder calmly reminds him.

Understanding what Inder was saying was the truth, Omkara agitatedly runs his fingers through his hair, gripping it. He knew Inder was right but then how could he let Priyanka's murderer let go easily? And now he is a threat to Gauri too. Screaming in outrage, Omkara furiously bangs on the wall and Gauri jumps back in shock.

"You need to let out your anger before you step out of this apartment." Inder calmly tells Omkara.

Gauri turns to her father in amazement at the ease and calmness he was handling the whole issue, thinking back, the only time he had lost his composure today was when she had her asthma attack, otherwise he was composed as if he had seen all this before.

"Why don't you sit for a bit?" Inder calmly suggests. "Relax. Then go home, tell your mother about Priyanka. Tomorrow, we will go to the police and file a complaint against Ranveer. They won't believe us but maybe we can file a man missing case." Inder calmly tells Omkara. Then turning to Gauri he starts to say, "Gauri, please clean..." then seeing her condition, he tells her, "You also sit down while I clean up the blood. Your mother might get scared seeing all this."

Gauri nods and sits opposite to Omkara. They both were lost in thoughts as they tried to come to terms with what had happened that day. Few minutes later, Inder comes with the mop and bucket, and he starts cleaning the blood and setting the furtniture back into position while Omkara and Gauri watched him silently.

 

Seeing Inder walk back into the kitchen, Omkara gets up and says, "I have to go home. I have to tell my mother."

"Do you want us to come?" Gauri asks him in concern.

"No... it's okay... thanks for your help." Omkara says and walks out. "Please tell your father too."

Before Gauri could call out to Inder, Omkara walks out.

 

 

Madhavi walks in sometime later, tired. "Did you know there was an accident outside our building?"

"Accident?" Inder asks confused.

"Yes. A man got run over by a truck. It was so horrific." Madhavi informs him traumatized by the image. "He was running around like a mad man screaming. He died on the spot. It should be there in the news by now. There were press and police outside." Madhavi informs him as she walked inside.

Curious, Inder turns on the news and puts the local channel which usually aired all the news around the town mainly. Few minutes later, the news about the accident was up with gruesome images of the news.

 

Gauri was in her room, as she thought about Priyanka, Omkara and their mother. It hurt her that she couldn't do anything to help them. All she did was bring them bad news. And Priyanka being gone permanently felt like a friend lost forever, and that was making her all the more miserable. Gauri sighs, wondering if she was feeling so bad then what would Omkara and his mother be feeling. Gauri closes her eyes to try to shut out everything and get some sleep. Just then, she hears the name Ranveer over the TV. Curious, she gets up from bed and comes out of the room.

 

"It's him, Papa!" Gauri tells Inder panicking seeing Ranveer's photo on TV. Inder turns to Gauri confused hearing her.

"That is Ranveer. He was so scared of Priyanka when he ran out maybe..." Gauri tells Inder in shock, not understanding how she was supposed to react to the news.

 

 

Omkara was lying in his room thinking about Priyanka when he hears his mobile ring. With a sigh, Omkara picks up the call.

"Hello?"

"Hello Omkara, this is Gauri."

"Yeah?"

"How is your mother?"

"She was hysterical. We had to sedate her." Omkara tells her sighing loudly.

"And you?" Gauri hesitantly asks.

Omkara didn't know how to answer that so he just makes some vague noise.

"Did you see the news?" Gauri asks him.

"No... why?"

"He is dead." Gauri informs him.

"Who?" Omkara asks frowning.

"Ranveer. He had an accident when he ran out of here."

Omkara sighs in relief hearing that Priyanka's murder was dead.

"I just called to tell you that."

"Okay... thanks for telling me."

"Okay... bye." Gauri says and hangs up.

 

Next day, Gauri and Inder visits Oberoi house and sees that there were many relatives who had come there hearing the news of Priyanka's death. They were informed about Priyanka's death which happened couple of months back and to avoid further talks regarding the death, Omkara didn't mention to the relatives about Priyanka's ghost rather that Ranveer had confessed before his death. Since, her body was missing, they did all the other rituals related to a death without the body.

 

Seeing Omkara busy with everything, Gauri decides not to disturb him and goes to see his mother. Jhanvi was lying on her bed crying when she spots Gauri walk in. she sits up and asks Gauri, "You came here yesterday, right?"

Gauri nods her head. "I am sorry, Aunty."

"Please leave us alone for a few minutes." Jhanvi tells everyone in the room and they quickly leave giving curious looks at Gauri. Once everyone had left, Jhanvi makes Gauri sit next to her and asks her in tears, "Did he hurt her?"

Understanding what she was asking, Gauri shakes her head as tears stung her eyes, "I don't know, Aunty. I didn't ask."

"How did he...?"

"Strangled her." Gauri tells her.

Hearing her Jhanvi breaks out into tears. Gauri quickly hugs her, and informs her, "She was happy... at peace when she left, Aunty."

"My poor baby." Jhanvi says as she cried hugging Gauri.

 

A while later, Jhanvi had calmed down and seeing that she was dozing off, Gauri turns off the light and closes the drapes. She quietly leaves the room and sees Inder waiting for her.

"We will go?" Inder asks her.

"Did you talk to Omkara?" Gauri asks him as she looked around for Omkara.

"I did. He is busy." Inder informs her.

"Okay, then let's go." Gauri tells him and starts to leave when she spots Omkara in a serious conversation with some relative of his. Omkara looks away from his uncle and his gaze falls on Gauri. Seeing her, he nods his head at her acknowledging her presence. Gauri nods back at him and she leaves with Inder.

 

At night, Gauri was getting ready to sleep her mind still on Priyanka and Omkara.

"Gauri?" Inder knocks on the door.

"Haan? It's open." Gauri says.

Inder opens the door and walks in with a gentle smile. "I wanted to talk to you."

"Hmmm?"

Inder sits next to Gauri and takes her hand in his. "How are you doing?"

"I am fin..." Gauri starts to say then shaking her head she tells him, "I feel terrible, Papa. Priyanka is gone. I didn't know her well but we had kind of become friends."

"I know." Inder tells her with a gentle smile. "You got attached."

"Every time I think of her family, I feel so miserable. I feel as if I didn't do my part. As if, I failed them. They are in pain because of me. Before even though they were angry at her they thought she was alive and they had a hope of reuniting with her and now... I ruined it all."

"But Priyanka got peace." Inder reminds her.

"What about Omkara and his mother?"

"Gauri, your duty is to help the dead. By helping them, you might end up hurting the living. But no matter what, you have to do it." Inder tells her. "And don't worry, Gauri. Life has a way of healing every wound. Haven't you heard, time heals all the wounds? Life gives them the strength."

"I hope so."

"There is another thing, Gauri."

"What?"

"You got attached. You shouldn't. You should remain detached while you help them." Inder gently tells her.

 "How can I?" Gauri asks helplessly.

"If you start getting attached then you are going to be miserable. You are going to be in pain every time you bring someone peace. They are just like a passenger on a train. You see them, you talk to them, maybe help them but when time comes you need to part. If a doctor starts getting attached to every patient of his then life is going to be difficult, right?"

Gauri nods her head.

"Forget about the Oberois now. You have a bigger responsibility to the world, and you shouldn't get hurt by them." Inder advices her.

Gauri nods her head. Inder smiles hearing her and gently kisses her on her forehead.

After Inder left, Gauri was lost in thoughts about what he had said and just then her mobile buzzes and Gauri sees that Omkara had sent her a message. She checks it curiously.

 

A week later, Gauri found herself at the Oberoi Mansion because she couldn't stay away. There was a constant concern in her for Priyanka's mother and brother. Though she didn't talk much with Omkara, she spent her time talking to Jhanvi and getting to know more about Priyanka. If she bumped into Omkara, other than a nod or a polite hello, they didn't talk much. Even though, Inder knew about it, he didn't comment on it much giving Gauri the freedom to learn by herself about why he asked her not to get attached.

Few months later,

"I found a new house." Inder informs Gauri at the breakfast table.

"I am not shifting again." Madhavi declares irately. "When are you going to give up, Inder? There is no such thing as ghost."

"There is." Gauri informs her in a hesitant tone.

"You also started?" Madhavi asks her shocked.

"I am not the gifted one." Inder informs her.

Madhavi looks at him irately and then realizing what he had said, she asks him suspiciously, "Then who is?"

"Me." Gauri informs her.

 

"This house is haunted?" Madhavi asks panicking after hearing everything.

"It was, not anymore." Gauri tells her.

"Are you sure about that?" Madhavi asks as she looked around for a ghost to mysteriously appear.

"Yes, Ma."

"Then we are not going anywhere from this house." Madhavi declares.

"But Madhavi... it is Gauri's duty."

"What duty?" Madhavi asks furiously. "Are you crazy? How can you encourage her? if someone finds out all this... then who will marry her?"

"Mama..."

"No, Gauri. You will stop all this nonsense. You are not going to talk to any ghost and we are not moving from this house." Madhavi declares and starts to go to the kitchen and then stops and turning to Gauri she asks her worriedly, "You are sure there are no other ghosts, right?"

 

Gauri was at her usual visit at the Oberoi's and talking to Jhanvi about Priyanka. Talking about Priyanka still brought tears to Jhanvi, but she still insisted on talking about her.

Gauri was walking out of Jhanvi's room after her visit when she hears the doorbell. Omkara who was going to his room stops and looks around for any servant to answer the door. When he sees no one around, sighing loudly he walks towards the intercom.

"Yes?" Omkara says into the intercom.

Seeing that, Gauri remembers how they had met at first and starts smiling remembering how they had fought. It was so crazy. Gauri thought with a chuckle.

Hearing her chuckle, Omkara turns to look at her and seeing her smile, he starts smiling realizing why she was chuckling.

"I AM Omkara." Gauri says imitating him making Omkara chuckle.

"You truly were crazy." Omkara tells her chuckling.

Gauri smiles at him as she walked towards him. "Who was it? Another crazy?"

"No... salesman. How everyone manages to get past the watchman... I seriously need to change him." Omkara says shaking his head grinning. "He even let's in the crazy."

"Ha!" Gauri says smiling. "I should get going. It is getting late."

Omkara nods and opens the door for her.

"I'll see you around." Gauri tells him and starts to leave.

"Gauri..." Omkara hesitantly calls her.

"Yes?" Gauri turns to him with a smile.

"I know you mean well... and I really appreciate the care you are showing for my mother and my sister... But..."

"But?" Gauri asks confused.

"We all should move on. Priyanka is gone and we have to accept that. I have accepted it but Mom... every time you come, she is reliving the pain of having lost Priyanka... you remind her of Priyanka... she told me that..."

"So what do you want me to do?" Gauri asks him.