Chapter 12
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[MEMBERSONLY]
EXPELLIARMUS 2013-07-13 05:01:16
Ateet
(An Interlude to Shattered)
2003
Sheesh Mahal, Lucknow.
"Are you trying to tell me that my Di is in love with your brother?"
Arnav Singh Raizada stared at the young nineteen-year old who stood on the lawns of Sheesh Mahal, her fingers twisting the edge of her red dupatta even as she nodded in affirmation.
He had seen her before, of course. In a town as small as this one, everyone knew everyone else.
And her family was known throughout the town for something they had done six years ago.
Shashi and Garima Gupta, a middle class couple who ran a sweet store in the center of the city, had remained childless through the fifteen years of their marriage. And then they had shocked the town by adopting two children aged thirteen and sixteen respectively.
Not the city was shocked by the adoption , of course. The astonishment had come from the fact that they had chosen to adopt two Muslim children who had been orphaned during a wave of communal clashes that had swept through the town.
Khushi and Nayeem Khan had been left orphaned and homeless, and the Guptas had opened their hearts and home to them.
And now, six years later, the four members of the Gupta family had proved that water could be thicker than blood, if it was sweetened by the pure taste of unconditional love. They had even allowed their children to practice the religion of their birth, and had placed no pressure on them to convert.
Khushi was in her first year at college, studying for a Bachelor's degree with a major in history and political science.While Nayeem Khan, or NK, as he was known in his engineering college, had just completed his bachelor's in software engineering.
The family was happy and content, but they had had to face a lot of judgmental behavior during the early days of the adoption. But they had fought through it all, and emerged victorious.
In the present day, almost everyone accepted the children as the true offspring of the Guptas, and most had been won over by the unflinching devotion of Nayeem and Khushi for their parents.
That didn't mean that Nani would be quite as accommodating, of course.
He knew his grandmother, and he realized that she would never let her only granddaughter marry into a family such as this one.
Nani's political ambitions overruled everything else, and Di's fate had already been written many years ago.
Which was why this news had surprised him greatly, and he now waited for confirmation from the girl who stood before him.
For a moment, he felt a twinge of compassion for her.
It couldn't have been easy for her to make this decision about coming here to Sheesh Mahal, without an invitation or appointment. In fact, if he hadn't been gardening at that exact moment, she would probably have never been allowed to meet him.
But as it turned out, he had seen her and recognized her, and had assumed that she had come in with a petition for Nani, like so many others did everyday.
She had surprised him by insisting that she had come here to meet him, since she had just found out that he had just returned from the States a few days ago.
And then his surprise had mounted when she had finally revealed the reason behind her visit.
Apparently, Di had met and fallen in love with NK at an intercollegiate cultural fest six months ago, and the two had been meeting secretly ever since. According to Khushi they were irrevocably in love, but Di was determined to follow the path ordained by Nani, despite what she wanted for herself. This in turn had devastated NK, and he had gone into a state of depression since she broke the news to him. Khushi was afraid that he might cause himself some harm, and that fear for her beloved brother had driven her here, to lay the truth before Arnav.
Arnav hardly knew what to believe at this moment.
Di had appeared to be her cheerful self ever since his return, and he couldn't imagine how she could possibly be hiding all this anguish under that facade.
Which was why he was waiting for confirmation, but none seemed to be forthcoming from the young woman who was now staring at her vibrant green jootis as if they held the secrets of the universe.
"Are you ever going to answer my question?"
His harsh tone seemed to penetrate her trance, and she looked up with a startled expression.
"Sir...I am telling you the truth. Anjali Ma'am...has been dating my brother, and...and they even wanted to get married. But Sir, Anjali Ma'am cannot..."
"Stop calling me Sir. I'm not your boss or anything. Just Arnav is fine."
She stared up at him for a moment, then looked down again.
"Please help them.I know you can do it, can you please talk to your Grandmother? I...I just can't watch my brother throw his life away like this..."
She raised her gaze to his, and he sucked in a deep breath at the naked anguish in the hazel eyes.
"When...when the riots happened six years ago, I lost everything. My brother...he's all I have left. Please, don't let me lose him too..."
There were tears in her eyes now, and he involuntarily took a step towards her before stopping.
"Look, don't cry. I...I can't promise you anything..."
A whimper of pain escaped her lips, and she moved towards him, her hands pressed together in desperate entreaty.
"Please don't say that...please! You're the only one who can do anything about it, I know it. Anjali Ma'am has often told my brother that Devyaniji listens to you, and no one else. So please..."
"Will you let me complete my sentence? All I was trying to say was that I can't promise you anything until I speak to Di, and find out what she has to say about all this. There has to be a reason why she is going ahead with...look, I'll talk to her, okay? And then I'll let you know. "
"When?"
"Tonight, probably. But how will I reach you?"
She reached into her brightly colored cloth bag and pulled out a piece of paper, then proceeded to write a number on it.
"This is my...home number. But...when you call me, can you just say it is about...my classes or something? My parents don't know anything about this yet..."
His lips thinned as he thought about that for a moment.
"I have to say, your brother sounds like a coward . He isn't honest about this with his parents, and he hasn't taken any steps to prevent what is about to happen here with Di...are you sure that he does want to marry her after all?"
For the first time ever, a glint of defiance entered her gaze.
"NK Bhai is very serious about your sister. There isn't any doubt about that in my mind. But he...he hasn't told anyone because he feels it's...hopeless, the differences between the two are just too great. And he hasn't fought for her because she forbade him to. But now...he's just wasting away, and I...I just can't take it anymore!"
He stared at her, taken aback by her conviction.
He had no doubt that she truly believed in what she was saying, but he had to find out for himself before coming to a decision.
"I'll call you, okay? Probably later tonight."
She looked up at him, then stared past him at the imposing facade of Sheesh Mahal.
"Th..thank you. I'll wait..."
She clutched her bag closer, and turned around to leave.
He watched her until he couldn't see her anymore, then finally headed inside.
But even as he walked up the central staircase, his mind was still filled with images of the pale, tearful face he had seen moments ago.
In a few moments, he was standing outside Di's room.
"Di?"
The door opened at once, almost as if his sister had been waiting for him.
He stepped inside, then quickly closed the door behind him.
"I know why you're here, Chotey."
Her words startled him, and as he turned to face her, her appearance startled him even more.
Her face was pale, and she almost looked...afraid.
"Di? What do you mean?"
She took in a deep breath, as if shoring up her courage.
"I saw Khushi with you just now. And...I can guess why she was here. She told you all about us, didn't she?"
Astonished beyond belief, he could only stare at her for a moment.
"Are you telling me that it's true?"
She sighed, then sat down at her dressing table.
"The truth? What is the truth, Chotey? The only truth I know is the fact that my marriage has been arranged with Vikram Singhania and the wedding is in one weeks' time. The only truth I know is that this union is imperative for Nani's plans of political dominance over her party, since Vikram is the son of the Party leader. The only truth I know is that I never want to hurt Nani or disappoint her in any way. She was the one who raised us, and I owe this to her, if nothing else. And the only truth I know..."
She turned away, and her voice sounded choked, suddenly.
"...the only truth I know is that everything else that I feel...everything else that I want to do, is irrelevant."
Anger rose within him, and he walked up to her.
"Di, if you're only going ahead with this wedding out of some misplaced sense of obligation, then I can't let that happen! I love Nani too, but I also remember what our parents' marriage was like. Our mother was married to our father in a political deal similar to this one, and you know very well how unhappy she was in that marriage! And our father...his party was always his top priority, and power was the only thing that meant anything to him. That atmosphere suffocated me, Di...and you know that very well. And that was one of the reasons why I applied for admission to Harvard a few years ago, so that there was no question of me getting sucked into this quagmire. "
He knelt down before her, and took her hand in his.
"I came here for your wedding secure in the belief that this was what you wanted, Di. I genuinely believed that you were happy with this arrangement. But if you aren't, and your happiness lies elsewhere, I will do my best to make that happen for you. There will be no compromises for you, Di. I can take you to the States, away from Nani's influence..."
"Stop it, Chotey!"
Anjali jerked her hands away, then walked over to the window.
"You don't know what you're talking about! Do you even know anything about NK? He's Muslim, and younger than me, Chotey. By a full four years! And his family...they don't exactly move in the same circles as we do. Then there was that controversy when they adopted Khushi and NK six years back...do you see why this is impossible? Nani would never accept it!"
Anjali was shouting now, and Arnav rose to stand beside her.
"Have you ever thought of actually talking to Nani?"
"Chotey...please try to understand. Even if I do talk to Nani, even if she agrees...our lives will never be the same again. His family would suffer by association, including Khushi, who is fast reaching marriageable age. And the party...Nani would lose everything that she has painstakingly built over the years..."
An irrational anger took hold of him again.
"Dammit, Di! If this is what you thought, and if you already knew that the differences between the two of you were insurmountable and you weren't prepared to deal with the fallout, then why did you date him in the first place? Why did you play with his feelings and leave him in the desperate state that he is in?"
Anjali whirled back, and he was stunned to see a reciprocating anger in her eyes.
"I did not play with anyone! What happened between us...it was unplanned, and inevitable, Chotey. But I don't expect you to understand. How will you know what it feels like when someone's very presence makes your breath stop?"
"Chotey may not understand, but you could have confided in me, bitiya."
The siblings turned towards the door that led to the poolside, and shock overcame them as they saw Nani standing there.
She stepped inside, then walked up to Anjali and laid a hand on her shoulder.
"Anjali Bitiya, I have always tried to be a mother to you, and you are the child of my heart.You know that, don't you?"
"Nani, I..."
"I don't want to know the details of what exactly happened with this boy, bitiya. I'm only going to ask you one question, and I want your honest, heartfelt answer. And when you give me that answer, I will do exactly that, with no further questions. Do you understand?"
Anjali stared at Devyani for a long time, then finally nodded.
"Bitiya, do you want me to call this wedding off?"
Arnav stared at Anjali, willing her to say what was in her heart.
Her happiness was the only thing in the world that was important to him, and he really hoped that she would reach out and take this one chance that was being given to her.
But her answer, when it came, stunned him into silence.
"No, Nani."
The two women stared at each other, an unspoken communication passing between them that Arnav wasn't privy to.
But he couldn't keep quiet any longer.
"Di, what are you saying? What is wrong with you?!"
"Bas, Chotey. Anjali bitiya has informed me of her decision, and we will never speak of this matter again. This ends right here, right now."
Nani turned around and left the room, and Arnav turned to Anjali.
But she spoke before he could say anything, and her words stunned him for a second time that night.
"Please call Khushi and tell her that I do not wish to see NK ever again. And this is the last time his name will cross my lips."
__________
"Are you sure that she told Devyaniji that she wanted this wedding to take place?"
"Khushi, I was there. I heard it myself."
"But...why?"
"I don't know. What I do know is that Di is still forcing herself to go through with this, and that doesn't sit well with me. So until the baaraat is here, I...I'll see what can be done."
"I...I'm thankful, but...I don't see how anyone can change her mind...wait, what if she met NK Bhai one more time?"
"Khushi, I want you to promise me that you two will not try anything like that. You do know that the current situation in the city is very volatile and tensions are simmering just below the surface, right? And with us belonging to a political party...if anyone gets a whiff of this, there will be hell to pay. And that's why I want you to assure me that you will leave things up to me, and not try anything that could be dangerous to my sister or your brother. Do you understand?"
Khushi stilled, her heart pounding against her chest.
How could she promise such a thing?
How could she just sit back and watch her brother give up everything that made him what he was?
For an instant, she wondered if Arnav Singh Raizada was lying to her.
But then she remembered the note of apology in his voice, and her all her doubts turned to dust.
"I...I promise. But you will keep trying, won't you?"
"I will. And I'll call you if there is any change."
She placed the phone down, then closed her eyes.
She was doing everything she could, but would that be enough?
"She isn't going to change her mind, Khushi."
She whirled around to find that NK had come up silently behind her, and the look on his face told her that he had heard every word.
"Bhai, Arnavji said he would..."
"He isn't going to succeed. I know Anjali, Khushi. Her family has always come first for her,and I was the fool who believed otherwise. But now...I think it's time to take a page from her book, and make my family the priority."
"What do you mean?"
He sighed, then ran a hand through his hair.
"I know that Amma and Bauji have noticed my current state, although no one has asked me about it. But now I need to regain control and take charge of my life, I don't want them to suffer because of my mistakes. And then there's you..."
He placed a hand on her head and ruffled her hair affectionately.
"You have done so much for me, you even went up to the mansion, didn't you? I can't let you do that anymore, Khushi. I'm your elder brother, and it's my job to take care of you, not the other way around. And that's why I've decided that I will forget all this. Forget her. It won't be easy, but it won't be impossible, either. And I want you to stop trying, okay?"
Her eyes stung with tears, and she nodded without really knowing what she was agreeing to.
He hugged her, then left her room.
Leaving her alone with her troubled thoughts.
_________
Over the next few days, Khushi saw the inner struggle that NK went through in order to keep up the facade in front of their parents.
He could fool everyone, but not her.
The red-rimmed eyes weren't hidden from her, nor were the sleepless nights.
Each night, she heard his footsteps from the room next to her as he paced well into the wee hours of the night.
Her heart shattered every time she saw him smile, but no one except her could see the carefully-hidden pain behind the apparent joy.
She had only one hope left, and she waited every day by the phone for something, anything...
But the call never came.
Finally, it was the day of the wedding, and Khushi couldn't take it anymore.
She had spent the past few hours lost in thought, and had finally decided upon a last-ditch effort that had very little chances of succeeding.
But she was desperate, and it was all she could think of.
Before she could change her mind, she opened her notebook and quickly wrote two notes in bold, capital letters.
Placing them in two separate envelopes, she placed them in her cloth bag and walked out of her room.
Little did she know that her one, rash, impulsive decision would change four lives, shattering them beyond recognition.
___________
The melodious tunes of the shehnai filled the hallways of Sheesh Mahal, and Arnav walked towards the poolside, which was decorated with flowers.
He was heading for Di's room which opened out to the poolside, and as he walked, he smiled in anticipation.
He knew that his gift would be well-received, he had chosen it well.
He looked down at the object in his hand, and touched it gently...
It was a cell phone, one of the first to be seen in the city of Lucknow. He had procured it on special order, and it was a gift to himself , as well as Di.
Through the past few days, he had tried many times to discuss the situation with her, but Di hadn't wanted to listen.
Finally last night, he had resigned himself to the inevitable.
He had been unable to find the courage to talk to Khushi, and he despised himself for leaving her in the dark.
But he just hadn't been able to do it.
He looked down at the phone again, trying to rid his mind of the image of a pale, panic-stricken countenance.
This phone was for his reassurance, a lifeline in case Di ever needed his help, at any time of the day or night.
Vikram Singhania was a good man, and he had known him for years. But he did belong to a political family, and Arnav did not trust him well enough.
Certainly not with anything as precious as his Di.
He was almost at her door now, and for the first time, he began to have doubts about his gift.
Maybe he should have gotten her some bangles...or a necklace instead...
He raised his hand to knock on her door.
At exactly that moment, he heard the shout go up, echoed by others through the Mahal.
"She's missing!"
"Where is she?"
His heart stilled, then broke into a gallop as he turned towards the commotion.
The first person he saw was Di's maid, and in moments, he had gotten the entire story from the tearful servant.
He looked down at the note she clutched in her hand, and a white-hot rage took possession of him.
IF YOU WANT TO SAVE MY BROTHER'S LIFE, COME TO THE TEMPLE IN THE TOWN CENTER.
-K.
He pushed the rage away and forced himself to stay calm.
Despite the evidence to the contrary, he wanted to see of there was a slim chance that Di was still in the Mahal after all.
"Search the Mahal. Every single corner, now!"
Minutes later, they were all gathered in the courtyard, tired after a fruitless search.
His eyes scanned through the crowd, then focused on someone who had just entered.
NK?
What was he doing here?
And then Arnav's eyes dropped down to what was in his hands, and he collapsed on the floor.
His entire world had been shattered, in one instant.
His scream rent through the night...
"Di!!"
He ran up to NK, who was laying a still, lifeless body on the ground now.
His eyes took in the crimson stains across the red lehenga, but his mind refused to believe the evidence before him.
"Arnav...she...Anjali is..."
NK's broken words were drowned under the shrill scream that escaped Nani's lips, and she grasped Anjali's body, pressing her to her chest.
Arnav knelt down beside them , his body paralyzed with fear.
Pieces of the conversation around him filtered through the haze that threatened to overpower him, and his mind struggled to process what he was hearing...
Victim of the communal riot that had suddenly started this evening...
Slashed with swords as she attempted to elope with her Muslim lover...
As the last words entered his consciousness, he finally looked up at NK.
Even at that moment, he realized that he was only looking up because he couldn't bear to see what was before him.
And then he found himself staring in hazel eyes that were filled with anguish.
Khushi shook her head wildly, her outstretched hands reaching out to him in blind entreaty.
"Arnavji, I...I...those are all lies! She...wasn't running away! I...only wanted them to..to meet...and..."
She looked away, then collapsed to the ground beside NK.
"I...I wrote those letters...to Bhai and Anjaliji...I'm responsible for this, me!"
Her pain-filled sobs rang through the courtyard, her body shaking with tremors of anguish.
And finally, the truth struck him.
He rose slowly and walked over to her, taking great pains to avoid seeing his...Di.
When he finally reached Khushi, he pulled her up by the arms ,and raised one hand to strike her.
But his hand was stopped by Nani, and he stared at her with murder in his eyes.
"She is responsible for this! I will make her suffer!"
"Chotey, don't do this! This isn't the time..."
"Nani, let me go! I will kill this woman for harming my Di!"
"Chotey! Listen to me! Anjali bitiya is...is no more!"
"NO!! This can't be true! What are you all telling me?"
"Chotey...you have to..."
He pushed her off, then stumbled back towards Di.
His Di.
The one person in the world who mattered, the one person whose happiness he had placed above his own.
He knelt by her side, then finally allowed his eyes to rest on her pale, lifeless face.
He did not cry.
Nor did he scream again.
All he did was pry open her cold, stiff fingers, and place the cell-phone on her palm.
"For you, Di."
_________
That night, the funeral pyre of Anjali Singh Raizada did more than just burn her body to ash.
It singed through many lives, changing them forever.
It made one man leave the city, and country the very next day.
It made him vow never to return.
He lived a different, dangerous life, far-removed from his existence in Sheesh Mahal.
Where hatred and rage were his only companions for a decade.
_________
It also made one family flee the city where they had lived all their lives, unable to stay there any longer for fear of retribution .
It made them move across the country, where they struggled to return to normalcy.
It made one man live in excruciating guilt and grief for the loss of the woman he loved for a whole decade, before a second love forced him to open his heart again.
But the pyre wasn't satisfied with this destruction.
It claimed one last victim.
A woman whose hazel eyes were never guilt-free, or free from anguish.
A woman who burned all her vibrant clothes, and dressed herself in pale hues as repentance.
A woman who made her work her sole focus, and refused to get married because she considered herself unworthy of happiness.
A woman who finally tried to break free of the shackles of her past, and dared to dream again.
With the very man whom she had wronged.
________
None of these men and women were joined by anything other than a shattered past.
Their paths were never supposed to cross.
But destiny had other plans for them.
****************
A/N: This update is not meant to hurt anyone's religious sentiments.
It is a reflection of an issue that is close to my heart, one that bothers me tremendously whenever I return to India.
IPK has always had 'nafrat' as it's tagline, and this, to me, is the most vile of all 'nafrats'.
Destroying young lives just because they happen to fall in love with someone of a different religion is inhuman, and I just wanted to highlight that.
Please do let me know what you think.
New readers, please add me to your buddy list for PMs of updates.
Or you can follow me on twitter @patronus31.
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