PART 27
Sujal goes to his office on same time, asking Kashish to 'take care' of herself. She gives her usual silent nod in response. He leaves giving a final look to her and really wishing in his heart that she should take care of herself. Kashish knows his two words 'take care' are not merely words, she has realized his sincerity. She wonders why does he care about her when she had showed her unfaithfulness on first week of marriage, shy care for a person who just had given him difficult times and bad memories. Why is he so nice that he makes her guilty of being the evil? He does so much for her, what she has done for him...nothing. She sits in her bedroom lost in her thought when she realizes that there are pending household chores that need to be done. She goes around the house collecting the clothes that she needs to wash.
She picks up his worn shirt lying on the bed and looks at it. Holding the cloth in both her hands she looks on and on. The shirt still has his smell on it. The slowly brings it near her face and rubs it to her cheek slowly feeling his smell on her skin. She slowly hugs the shirt to herself and shrinks herself into it, drowning on the feeling...the feeling she feels when she is with him...what feeling? She does not know...how to name it? She does not know...but it's a feeling she hasn't ever felt before...but the feeling is special she knows...'his' feeling...
After so many days she likes something about her...her smell...because now she smells of him. She comes out of her thoughts when clock strikes 12 and she realizes that he will come for lunch in an hour and she hasn't even started preparing it yet. She knows, he won't even complaint even if she won't prepare anything for lunch even after driving for an hour in the sweaty noon and traffic jam just to come home for lunch. He would just go without lunch and would make her eat something. That's why to avoid his one sided kindness; that he only showers on her never on himself she quickly prepares the lunch.
He comes home for lunch at his usual time and today he had also brought her ice cream. But he won't admit he brought it for her. He just keeps it inside the freezer saying 'ice cream hai'. They hardly spoke to each other. She wondered did he also rehearse words and conversation in his mind like her and like her nothing would come out when he would be in front of her. Whether he anticipated like her that he would start s conversation, even it would happen the conversation would end after two seconds.
After an hour of awkwardness and few two second conversations he again leaves for work, saying 'Take care, 7-7:30 tak aa jaunga' and she again nods in response.
She gets up with a start at dead of the night with her nightmare reminding that horrid day again haunting her. Her throat is dry, her feet cold and her body is sweating. She takes a deep breath to normalise her heartbeat. She is even afraid of walking over to the kitchen in the dark to get some water. She thinks of waking up Sujal and glances at him from corner of her eyes. He looked very tired today; he was sleeping on his side facing her in a deep slumber. His hair looked dishelved and his face looked so relaxed that she didn't feel like disturbing his comfort. She slides a little towards him to be inside his aura of protectiveness. As she slides near her eyes fall on a black little mole placed on his chest that was always hidden under his shirt. She slides a little more near to take a closer look and sees her lashes...o my...they were so huge and thick and black...she had just read of the heroes of romantic novels who had such lashes. Her eyes travel down to his nose...umm...she analyses...nothing bad...just slight imperfection on right side...maybe coz of a broken bone or something in past...but that slight imperfection gave him an edge above others that he was different...not like everybody...he had a feature which could distinguish him from all the rest...her eyes travel down further on his upper lip where some 5'o clock shade had grown...the tiny hairs were small yet looked rough...did they feel rough too? She wondered...but didn't dare touch them. Her eyes decide to concentrate elsewhere...she chooses his lip...she wonders...how can someone have such contrasting features? His shades looked rough and his lips...they look soft as a petal...she swallows hard at the thought that just invaded her mind. She turns back to her side and shuts her eyes.
But the moment she shuts her eyes the vivid images of the horrid nightmare start filling her mind. She opens her eyes again and turns her head to look at her husband. He was in a deep slumber...he wouldn't know...she thinks and slides towards him bunching his T-shirt around her hand. Her heart feels an instant solace and sense of protection as her eyes get closed due to eluding sleep.
Sujal's alarm in his mobile beeps and he lazily opens his eyes to shut the damn thing. But as sleep slowly starts escaping him he realises something clutching his T-shirt. He puts his hand on the area as a reflex and realises it's something soft like a cotton ball...he feels it more to realize it's not a ball and its smooth too and it was so nice to touch. As sleep start leaving and his conscious self starts working he becomes aware of the soft rhythmic breathing close to him. He opens his eyes to see Kashish's face just inches from his. He quickly looks down to witness her hand bunching on to his T-shirt and his hand holding hers. He pulls away his hand in an impulse and fear that what she will do if she wakes up.
Kashish wakes up due to his sudden jerk and sound of his heavy breathing. She slowly opens her eyes drifting slowly from her relaxed happy slumber; it was the first time she had managed to sleep without any interruption after that incident.
As she opens her eyes Sujal out of his confusion and hurry quickly tries to get away and hide his unintentional mistake of touching her. He moves away off her without realising the dimensions of the bed and tripped down on the floor in a most awkward position. Kashish who was looking at him couldn't suppress a giggle as he looked an innocent fool in that position, with a sleepy face and dishelved hair.
Edited by storywriter - 13 years ago
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