I cant believe I wrote Part 1 so soon.... 😲 😆 Anyway since I wrote it, might as well post it for your comments... 😳
Hopefully this part answers some of your questions and opens up a lot more... 😆 So here we go... introducing Maan Singh Khurana... 😉 ☺️
Part 1
Khurana Mansion, Delhi
Maan Singh Khurana woke up in a torrent of sweat from the same nightmare that had been plaguing him for the past two years. He panted breathlessly and sat up on his bed, instinctively reaching out to hold on to the memories of those last moments with Geet that were slowly starting to fade away, now that he was fully awake. His hands recoiled and he stared at them for a few seconds before he furiously rubbed his face and switched on the bed-side lamp. When his heartbeats had finally calmed down, he turned to his night table and took the sole picture that decorated his room. Her picture… Geet…
It was the only memory he had of her.. this photo of hers, captured as she had come running to him, emerging from the sea of fog that fateful night in her angelic white salwar. He traced her soft features with his index finger, memorizing her face for the billionth time now, in the past 2 years. Her creamy skin.. sharp nose.. and her full, pink lips. Her swan-like neck was devoid of any jewellery and her long, black hair swayed behind her like a thick curtain. The only blemish in this photo according to him was that her eyes had been closed, trying to protect her doe-like eyes from the sudden gust of wind that had blown just when he had captured that enchanting sight in his camera for eternity. Surprisingly, after the accident, the rescuers had found him broken and mangled but his camera had survived without a single scratch! He was forever thankful for that as he had found this sole memory of hers in his camera during his tortuously long road to recovery.
He sighed, hoping he could be one of those who forgot their nightmare as soon as they woke up, but sadly that was not the case. To begin with, the nightmare was a part of his past.. their past and it was not something he could forget in this lifetime!
He glanced at the clock and saw it was 4 in the morning. In spite of his tired muscles screaming for some rest, he dragged himself off his bed, fully aware that he would not get any more sleep and even if he did manage to nod off, the nightmare was going to be waiting, to kill him slowly, bit by bit. He changed into a pair of tracks and a gray tshirt and decided he needed some cool air stinging against his face. Closing the doors of the manor behind him silently, he jogged off into the sprawling lawns around Khurana Mansion.
An hour and half later, an exhausted, sweating and panting Maan entered his gym, back from his punishing 10 mile jog, but not yet ready to give himself some rest. He had to keep himself occupied until he could go to work and drown himself there. That was the best way to keep her memories from assailing him.. the memories of her that night. He strode into his gym peeling off his sticky tshirt and started on a rigorous routine of martial arts, the strong and toned muscles bunching and gathering under sweaty, smooth and tanned skin as he focused his inner core on the tiring moves.
Try as he might he could not close out those memories. Even the pain he had to bear for 6 months during his hospitalization after the accident as his bones mended and healed dulled in comparison to the anguish he feels every waking moment of his life and often in his nightmares too. The anguish of losing his Geet… He had lost his Geet that night but had lost his sleep and peace of mind all the nights after that. The instant he had woken up in that sterile and cold hospital room he had known that he had failed her. He had immediately somehow known that she was waiting for him to save her but he had been unable to move a muscle with his casts and bandages. He had thrashed about, trying to go to her and had to be heavily sedated that day and many days, weeks after that, to allow his body to repair itself.
He paused as the same frustration he had felt when he had been bound to the hospital bed crept up on him and he smashed his hand into the wooden door of the antique towel-closet, oblivious to the splinters of wood that had pierced his hand and lodged themselves there. He stood unmoving, staring, fascinated at the blood that poured down his hand and collected near his feet.
That was how his Dadi found him a few minutes later.
***
Savitri Devi Khurana was disturbed from her sleep by a crashing sound that seemed to echo in the silent, almost-empty house. She knew the huge mansion was almost empty and at the moment the palatial house was inhabited only by her and her temperamental grandson. Even the horde of servants retired to the quarters some distance away from the mansion every night and she knew nobody could be awake and about at this time, just before dawn. Nobody, except her insomniac grandson…
Her thoughts were confirmed when she sat still for a moment to identify which corner of the house the sound seemed to have originated from. She closed her eyes helplessly, imploring God when his torment will end and stepped out of her room, in the direction of the gym.
***
"Maan, yeh aap kya kar rahe hai"
Dadi questioned him, although she knew all too well what might have happened. Her eyes swept over his bleeding hands and her heart sank at the sight of the pool of blood near his feet, even though this was not the first time she had found him in a similar condition during the past 2 years. She was a grandmother after all, who had taken up the role of a father and mother too since the time Maan was 12 and her mother's heart could never bear to see him in pain, both physical and mental. She shut her eyes at Maan's suffering and stepped towards his immobile figure, gathering a few towels from the closet to stem the flow of blood.
She guessed Maan was not even aware of her ministrations when he did not try to pull his hands back and move away, like he had done every time she had tried to dress his wounds over the past 2 years. He seemed to be in a daze, pondering about something, or rather someone deeply and she knew all too well who could be the object of his deep thoughts. It could only be one person.. Geet…
"Maan" she called out slowly, jerking him from his trance and held his hands firmly in her wrinkled ones when he tried to move away.
"Kab tak aap aise hi rahenge Maan? Kab tak?" The distress was clearly reflected in her voice and he hated himself some more for causing great pain to everyone who cared for him. He couldn't help Geet that night and that had hurt not only him, but his family too. He had distanced himself from those who had been the closest to him once and somewhere deep inside he knew that his indifference and self-destructive behavior caused them immense agony but he couldn't help it. He had to suffer for not having saved her and unfortunately his family had to suffer along with him.
" Jab tak woh nahi mil jaati, tab tak" he answered tersely and looked away.
"Lekin Geet uss raat.." She had tried to make him see sense countless times but like always, he interrupted her once again.
"Geet zinda hai, Dadi. Woh Maan Singh Khurana ki pyar hai. Itni jaldi zindagi se haar nahi manegi. Mujhe mehsoos hota hai. Mujhe uski awaaz sunai de rahi hai. Woh mujhe bula rahi hai.. lekin woh kahaan hai yeh mujhe patha nahi" he wrung his hands in despair and looked at his Dadi beseechingly, as if requesting her to make everything alright.
"Teek hai Maan. I will believe in your faith. Lekin hum usse 2 saal se doond rahe hai aur woh abhi tak nahi mili. Aur.. aur.." she stuttered before adding quietly, "aapko sirf yeh yaad hai ki uska naam Geet hai. Uska poora naam tak yaad nahi hai"
She looked up at him hesitantly, fearing the outburst that always followed when someone reminded him of his lack of memory of his time with Geet. His physical bruises and broken bones had mended over time but the bits and pieces of memory he had lost due to the blow to his head could never be recovered, even after 2 years.
He was mute for a while and slowly slid down on his knees to the floor and looked at her helplessly.
"Aisa mere saath kyun hua Dadima? Mujhe kyun uske baare mein kuch yaad nahi hai? Mujhe sirf uss raat kyun yaad hai? Kyun apni Geet ke saath bithai hui har pal yaad nahi hai? Kyun?"
~Yeti
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I am posting this from work this morning... 😆 so I will PM when I go home in the evening...
Again, Like button is right below and leave comments to tell me what you think of the story... 😳
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