EK PREM KAHANI
A SaJan~MayUr Legacy
FLASHBACK
Three Years later
G: 'K guys! Mujhe jaana chahiye! Warna u know Papa na? He'll scream his head off!
The boys nodded. They knew him alright!
Samrat smiled.
S: Chashmish! Tum kitni dar pok ho! Apne papa se hi darti ho!
He laughed, joined by the other boys in the gang. Gunjan stuck out her tongue.
G: Main darti nahi hoon samjhe!
They rolled their eyes. Gunjan crossed her arms.
G: dekhna! Main dubaara khelne kabhi nahi aane waali! Bye! Main jaa rahi hoon!
The boys snickered.
S: Haan haan! Jao jao! Wapis tho yehi aana hai na?
The boys high fived each other as Gunjan stormed out of their secret meeting place. She smiled when she was out of sight. Samrat was funny. He and the other boys were really the only friends that she had. None of the girls in her class interested her. They were all playing with little dollies and doing…well…'girlish'things. Gunjan laughed at their childishness. How could they possibly have fun with dolls made out of nothing more that plastic??? That was beyond her comprehension. She ran out into the clearing and over to her house on the far side of the lake. Her father was pacing outside. He was glancing at the watch on his hand every now and then. Suddenly, he spotted Gunjan. He ran over and held her tightly by the shoulders.
GD: Kahan challi gayyi thi tu!??? Pata hai main kitna dar gayya tha?
He pulled her by the arm into the house. Suitcases were sitting there on the porch.
G: Papa…? Yeh sab kya ho raha hai? Hum kahin jaa rahe hain kya?
GD lifted the luggand and pulled her out once again.
GD: Yes. We're going to Michigan.
Gunjan was confused.
G: Par…papa? Who tho…U.S me hai na…?
Gunjan's father held her by the arm.
GD: Ek Minute chup nahi rehe sakti kya??? Sochne de mujhe!
He shook her harshly. For the first time, Gunjan was truly scared of her father.
G: Papa! Plz! Mujhe dard ho raha hai!
Her father was furious.
GD: Stop it Gunjan!! Buhot ho gayya! Tumhaari aur tumhaari maa ki bakwaas sunke main tang aa chukka hoon!
His face was red. Gunjan knew she needed to get out. Her father's hand was right near her mouth. So she did what any normal person of her age would have done. She bit it. He winced and removed his hand from her shoulders. That one second was enough for Gunjan to run. Her hands were shaking badly. They couldn't be... moving…? Could they? No! She wouldn't let that happen! She wouldn't leave her friends1 And especially not Samrat!
She whispered silently.
G: Main aapke saat nahi chaloongi…
Her dad, who was just recovering from the bite, glared at her in the eye.
GD: Kya bola tune?
Gunjan gulped. She was really asking for it now!
G: Main aapke saat nahi chaloongi…
She repeated louder.
He neared her.
GD: Ek aur baar bol? Kya nahi karegi tu?
Tears streamed out of Gunjan's eyes.
G: MAIN AAPKE SAAT NAHI CHALOO-
She felt a hard burn on her cheek. The nxt thing she knew, she was laying on the groun, writhering in pain. Her cheek was swelling up. She couldn't believe that her own father…her own father…whom she loved more than anything had just slapped her! In that one moment, she lost all respect for…for that man. She glared at him disgustedly.
G: Mera faisla abhi bhi wohi hai. Main nahi aongi. Main apne doston ko chodke kabhi nahi aoungi.
Tears were running down his cheeks as well.
GD: Yeh kya kar diya maine… Yeh kya kar diya maine?
He bit his lip and bent down to help his daughter up. She cringed away. He winced. His hands were trembling.
GD: I'm sorry. I'm so sorry beta! Mujhe aise nahi karna chahiye tha….
Gunjan didn't respond.
GD: Main jaane pe majboor hoon beta…. Mere paas aur koi rasta nahi hai. Plz…ho sake tho mujhe maaf kardo….
He started to take her by the hand when suddenly, he stopped.
GD: Gunjan! Tum apne friends ko batake kyun nahi aati ke tum…unke saat…ab khel nahi paogi?
Gunjan glared at him. She removed her hand from his and went to her room for the last time. She took out a pencil and paper and began writing….
THE NEXT DAY:
S: guys! Tumne Chashmish ko kahin dekha?
Dheeraj rolled his eyes.
D: Samrat. Kal usne khud hamare saamne bola tha ke who khelne nahi ayegi aage se! So chill!
But Samrat was worried. His heart told him that something very wrong had happened…. But what? He had to check.
S: Main jaake Gunjan ke ghar check karne waala hoon. Care to come?
They all shook their heads.
D: Dude! Tu uske baareme itna fikar kyun karta hai?
He nudged him on the shoulder.
D: Kahin tujhe usse pyaar tho nahi ho gayya?
Loud oohs came from everyone as Samrat blushed.
S: Tum bhi na? Main jaa raha hoon! See ya!
Saying this, he left for Gunjan's house.
The first thing that hinted that something was wrong was the open door. Samrat was feeling very uneasy.
S: Arre? Yeh darwaaza kyun khula hai?
He slowly made his way in.
S: Chashmish?
No response. He checked all the rooms. There was no one there. Samrat was getting scared. What if something had happened to her? Would he ever be able to handle that? He walked into her bedroom for the 2nd time. Suddenly, a small slip of paper caught his eye. It was laying on the middle of the bed. Samrat picked it up and began to read.
Samrat…agar tum yeh note padh rahe ho…
Tho buhot der ho chukki hai…
Main ab kabhi waapis nahi aongi Samrat…
Papa mujhe zabardasti U.S le jaa rahe hain…
Mujhe pata nahi kyun…
Ho sake tho mujhe maaf kar dena…
Aur haan…
Tumne bilkul sahi samjha tha…
Main papa se darti hoon…
Aur issi waja se main kuch bhi kar nahi pa rahi hoon…
I'm sorry…
Hamesha hamesha ke liye…
Tumhaari,
Chashmish
END
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