A Second Chance Completed G

Chapter 2

2843
46
5

Khushi overheard but Angad came back from the door and seated on the bed. She was hugging her legs, her chin was on her knees, theaters were kissing her hands around the legs, continuously as she was crying.

He kept his hand on her knees, “Khushi I am sorry, but it is my duty. I have too love”

“And, what about me? I am your newly wedded bride”, she chocked in between.

He wiped her tears while saying, “Try and understand. I too don't want to go leaving you in this condition at this moment, but—but “, he stopped in between when she looked at him, “you can also explain them”

“I cannot. It is an order and I am not a civilian like you who has the audacity to reject the order”, he sulked in the tension of the wedding and this order.

She licked her lips and tried to control herself, “I am sorry. I understand in what state you’re”

“Then promise me, you will not cry, when I will go”, he demanded pressing her lips in U shape.

She smiled and nodded negatively, “I will not be able to stop myself”

“No. you have to control, after all now you are a soldier's wife”, he winked at which she blushed and forwarded her palm, “You too have to promise me”

“What?”, he frowned.

She rolled her eyes, “you have to come soon”, and again get angry.

“That I have to do if you will not say as well, after all I wouldn't afford to get beaten up by my dear wife badly”, he teased her and she beat him with a cushion but he ran away from the bed and started shielding himself from the cushions, which she was throwing on him.

He screamed fake as it hit him hard, “Ouch!”

She opened her mouth in O shape, and checked his hand, “Did it hurt?”

“Yes”, he nodded.

“Where? I am sorry”, she worried.

He pointed towards his heart and said, “here”, he was looking so innocent that she couldn’t stop herself to laugh and beat him again with cushion while saying, “Go soon, otherwise I will not allow you to go”

“Ok baba I am going, if you are happy to be alone here, none will be with you”, he showed her tongue and then wrapped her in a tight embrace, she too respond the same and was about to cry when he nodded negatively to not.

He departed after sometime, almost in the midnight and waved his hand when she was looking at him and blew in the black shadow of the dark night, in a second whereas her eyes kept searching for him but he was no long visible.

---

After 8 days,

It was dulhandi night, everyone was encircling the holika and throwing cereals in it, celebrating the festival and she was sitting in a corner hugging his legs. She was constantly looking in the fire and thought, “it would have been the best dulhandi of mine, if you were here, when will you comeback”, a tear droplet fell from her eyes but she wiped it immediately when she realized that she has promised him that she will not cry. She parted her lips which murmured, “Where are you Angad?”

“Bahurani! Idhar aao, headquarter se phone hai, Angad bitwaka hoga, par jo koi bhi hai wo angrezi mein bad bada raha hai, ab wo bhashahumari samajh mein to nahi awat, tumka hi baat karan padegi (It is a call fromthe head quarter for our family, it might be Angad bitwa, but the person is talking in English, and I cannot understand that language, come here you have to do this for me)”, listening about the call from head quarter Khushi, who wasdressed in a red suit right away ran inside with the velocity of the light and reached to the second floor gasping, her dupatta was rubbing on the floor andwasn’t at her head.

The father-in-law of Khushi Mr. Ishwar Singh Verma, the orthodox man lowered his eyes and murmured, “Aaj kal ki ladkiya bhi sharam tohai hi nahi (these today’s girl, no shame of elders)”

She heard that and immediately kept her dupatta on her head and he handed over the phone to her. She hesitantly took the receiver and replied, “Hello!”

The voice from the other side asked, “Who is this?”

“I am Khushi. Khushi Angad Verma, can I talk to Angad?”, she asked.

The manly voice with heavy heart again asked, “is there someone else at home”

“Yes. But no one understands English, and my sister in law's not at home”, she answered and she confirmed again, “Can I talk to Angad”

The person hesitantly replied, “No not now. I can also talking hindi…please can you give someone else”

“Why what happen? Is everything fine. Is Angad okay, why officer why can’t you tell everything to me what has…”, she understood that everything wasn’t alright and chocked in between when the same time the receiver slipped from her hand.

She was numb, sitting like a statue, the tears didn’t fell from her eyes when the same time Shivani came, “What has happened Papa?”, he narrated everything, “ab mujhe nahi pata headquarter ne kya bola par ye aise hikyu bethi hai…bahurani”, he called her but she didn’t listen.

Khushi’s mother in law too called her but she was quiet as nothing has happened. The same time Shivani snatched the phone and asked, “Hello!I am Shivani. Capt. Angad Verma’s sister. What has happened sir is everything fine?”

“No ma’am. The captain has martyred.”, the phone slipped from her hand too and tears started flowing immediately from her eyes,witnessing which Mrs. Lata Verma shrugged her, “Kya kaha unhone?” (what they said?)”

“Ma”, she embraced mother tightly and started crying in her arms, “Ma! Angad bhaiya….”

Now everyone understood before she could say anything and tears started rolling from their eyes.

Next Morning,

Arnav stopped his car while murmuring, “Aa gaya Angad ka ghar…I think this is it.”

It was the first holi festival of Khushi, after marriage and he was being oblivious with the reality, being in his own self, jumped from the car as he wanted to hand over the photographs of wedding night to Angad and herwife.

“It is holi and why everything is so barren here? Let's check Arnie”, he tickled his nose and while humming a song went inside the huge haveli and frowned again, “Angad used to say his family celebrate the festival at enlarge level, but here is the different atmosphere…no colors nothing”, he shrugged his shoulders and stepped inside, “What if I am at a wrong pla—“, he stopped talking to himself when he reached to the door and the packet of the wedding photographs slipped from his hands when he witnessed the coffin of his best friend Angad Verma, which left him stun and when he looked at the either side, the same bride, the most beautiful bride, he has seen ever in the yellow suit, sitting on the floor like a stone and the ladies were removing her vermilion, the tears filled in his eyes.