Chapter 2 - Going South
She watched the doors open in anticipation and glanced at Devyani, who nodded once in encouragement.
"Go."
Khushi gulped and doubtfully looked at the plump woman who stood by the car, awaiting her. She hugged herself nervously before starting to walk. Two whole years she had spent in this facility, repenting for a crime she had never committed. It had not been such a nightmare, but it not been so easy either.
She had been teased for having murdered her father. They had played disgusting pranks on her. But fortunately, Devyani Gupta had been there to support her. Of course she could not openly fraternise with Khushi, but she had always been there for her. She had urged Khushi to keep her studies going from inside the facility. And today that she was being freed, the girl did not know what to think or feel.
Devyani walked her to the lady. "Khushi, this is Madhumati. You will be leaving with her for now, okay? Don't be scared. Just go."
The girl's gaze swayed to Madhumati who smiled comfortingly at her, and with a last withered glance at Devyani, she got inside the car...
o0o
She trailed her eyes over the house. It was not very big, but she had never seen such a beautiful house before. Well, that was obvious since she had spent most of her life in an orphanage and then, there had been the facility...
"Whose house is this?" she asked Madhumati.
The woman smiled at her affectionately. "Devyaniji's."
Khushi turned to her with undisguised astonishment.
"She will explain everything to you when she returns. I'll show you your room for now," Madhumati said as she walked up the stairs. Khushi followed her meekly, feeling very confused and uncomfortable. "Here, this is your room. You can have a bath and get settled. I'll be preparing something to eat and drink for you, alright?"
"Thank you... Ma'am," the girl stuttered.
But Madhumati cupped her cheek, chortling at her. "You can call me Buaji."
o0o
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you before."
Khushi turned only slightly to acknowledge Devyani's words. Her eyes remained on the leaden skies outside the window. She watched the branches waver under the winds that grew yet stronger in sign of the impending storm.
"I could not tell you, Khushi. It would be against the protocol to... Do you understand?" Devyani said softly as she walked up behind her. The girl nodded, still looking away, and the lady sighed. "You will stay here only for a month. I will enroll you in a university in Ooty."
"Why can't I stay here?" Khushi asked softly.
Devyani gave her a sad smile and caressed the top of her head, her eyes full of motherly affection. She had never had a child of her own and that was her biggest regret, but since she had known this girl, it felt as if that wish had been fulfilled, even though it would not last long.
"I would have kept you here with me, if I could," she gently explained. "But I want you to move on in life. Your case... your father's death... these things are still very fresh in this area and because of this, you won't be able to study here. They won't even let you live in peace. Ooty is far enough, no one will know you there. And yes, I have one request."
The tears were blinding. Nothing or no one but ill-luck was permanent in her life... She gulped and nodded.
"Will you change your name from Malik to Gupta? It will reassure me. It will erase any doubts that may arise around you and if the person who did that to your father tries to find you..."
Devyani couldn't go any further than that. She had tried to talk to Khushi about this several times before. In the facility, she had been safe. But now, she was out in the actual world. Shyaam's real murderer could be looking for her. She was the only person other person who had been present there that day and she might represent a danger... Devyani, retreated to the door, pausing on the threshold to look back at Khushi, who continued staring into the heavens that had closed up on her.
"Think about it Khushi. You deserve a better life. I am just sorry that I cannot prove your innocence."
o0o
Devyani squeezed Khushi's hand as the bus rolled into view. "Remember my instructions well, okay? And your tickets, money, everything else is with you, right?"
Khushi smiled tightly at her and nodded as the older woman wrapped her arms around her for a farewell hug.
"Take care of yourself, child. Study well and remember to call me once you reach there, okay?"
The girl nodded again, breaking Devyani's heart. She never spoke much. Her life and all the miseries she had faced all along had destroyed her. She could only pray that the suffering would end here and that this young heart would learn to beat properly once again...
"When the time is right and you have finished your studies, I will call you back, Khushi. And someday, you will find the happiness you deserve."
There was no response to that. Khushi just hung her head and turned away.
o0o
Her eyelids fell shut while she let the wind recklessly whip her face, her hair slapping her cheeks. She barely felt the sparks of pains. In a way, they were comforting. It reminded her of her mother. Of the times when life was a bed of roses. When she was nice, Shobha Malik would take her hiking in the mountains during the weekends. The winds would blow hard in those heights turning their cheeks red. A faint smile grew on her lips. She could still hear the tinkling laughter of her mother, feel her presence. If only that stroke had never happened...
"Do you mind if sit here?"
Her eyes fluttered open in alarm and she stiffened at once, staring warily at the young man who smiled at her with a friendly expression.
"Actually, I gave my seat to that little boy over there. He was sitting on his grandfather and it was getting pretty uncomfortable for both of them."
Clutching her bag closer to her, she nodded ineptly and he flashed a lopsided grin at her before sliding in.
"So where are you from?" he asked. "You don't look like you're from Delhi."
"Nainital," she muttered, not quite willing to having a conversation. It had barely been thirty minutes since the bus had departed from Delhi and she was already annoyed. It had not been very easy for her to move through the crowd and find this bus.
"Really? Must be very beautiful there, right? And I heard it snows too? But I'm sure it isn't as beautiful as you."
Her head snapped up briefly and she scowled at him to show her displeasure at his attempts to flirt but he seemed to have expected such a reaction from her since his lips were twitching as though to hide a smile and his eyes glimmered with humour. She slid her gaze back to the scenery outside as they started leaving the city behind.
"I'm from Delhi, by the way," she heard him chuckle and she clenched her jaws together, controlling her irritation.
She felt him lean closer to her, feigning interest in the landscape too. Khushi whipped her head around to tell him to stop it but all she could do was to suck in a surprised breath. He was so close their noses were almost touching. She could nearly distinguish each shade that made the rich brandy and caramel of his eyes, which held copious amounts of flirtatious amusement. Colour crept up her cheeks despite herself. She was not impressed, not at all. It was just the first time that someone of the opposite sex was so close to her.
"She is beautiful, and therefore to wooed," he whispered. "She is a woman, and therefore to be won."
It was a line from Henry VI, by William Shakespeare. A hardly perceptible smile touched her lips as she recognised it and his smirk widened.
"Expectation is the root of all heartache," she quoted back in response, trying to sound as indifferent as she could.
He shrugged and straightened himself. "We'll see."
She bit her lip and looked back outside, hoping to have shattered all his anticipation with her coldness but he tapped her on the shoulder to capture her attention again within the second that followed.
"Tell me your name, I'll tell you mine."
Cricket
Suggestions / Comments
35