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A/N ~ 1
Hey all.. 😊
This had been my entry for the contest whose results were put up a few hours ago on the forum. Please dont get scared by that glaring word-'Tragedy' 😛 Trust me and read along?
Edited~ Its a SS now.
Here I' d like to thank each one of those generous ones who voted for it. And everyone who had left comments. 🤗 and got it a position amongst the top ten. I know who you are and wish to personally thank you which I 'd just do. I am so happy that you liked it considering the fact that I am no writer , then that I had never written something with a tragic undertone to it plus abiding by the instructions had somewhat limited the way OS could have been written. Nevertheless, it was my decision to take part in it knowing the rules and am thankful to Manjari for conducting it in such a systematically organized way.
I am thankful who served as the judging panel ( Sona, Saara and Zehra 😊) . Thank you for your comments and this
After this thankyous filled thank you speech--Here goes Entry number # 7 😛
**
HIS bones must be electric for what else could explain the jolts that rose up, painful, whenever he attempted to push himself up by putting strain on his elbows. Bruised and bloodied much like the rest of him. He shrank back onto the ground letting out a grunt. Mud, stuck onto the side of his face that laid on it while he was uncaring of it or the rusty smell of the blood that coloured the ground. It would have shone like rubies had the sunlight been there to grace it but for now the dark of the night only helped enough to outline convulsed shadows of him and the trees around using the silver embers of the moon as the source and the earth as the screen. The almost ghostly foliage would have intimidated anyone else as much as to make them loose their way. But even a blindfold would not make him stray away from his path for the forest was his ally, for even the rustling of leaves , the crunching of a twig or the faraway sound of a gushing river was enough to lead him around. The part of the boundary lines which he protected while the country slept into a peaceful slumber and it would'nt do to not know it inside out. He knew exactly how far he was from his base camp. And far it was. And he was aware of the difference between acting on his will power and foolishness. There was no chance that if he started he would get to his troop back without becoming the target of the hidden trespassers again. Not when there was a bullet lodged in his abdominal area. He let out an expletive at the that thought. His troop had scattered around the area as soon as they had received the radio message of unidentified armed men crossing the border. And there was no way he would have settled down until they had taken down all of them. After a strenuous gruelling search he had spotted one of them. And he wasn't surprised when he lost him and had been attacked from the back which was now almost six hours ago. But now he needed to do something and fast. He could feel his eyelids becoming heavier by the second as his insides whirled. Gathering his faint energies into his exhausted arms, Lt. Col. Arnav Singh Raizada made an attempt to get to his feet once again before loosing consciousness.
**
The reasons and chances that he'd not believe her were plenty but she did'nt have it in her heart to leave him there like that in the sweltering heat. Unconscious and obviously in dire need of help. His immobile muscular frame had made her heart drop but the gentle rise and fall of his chest and the slight puffs of breath she had felt on her forefinger as she had checked on him were enough to restore her fraying nerves. It had been a task to pull him upto her hiding. A small hut camouflaged and surrounded by trees that kind of formed an alcove around. After making him lie on the ramshackled mat made out of dried leaves , as she scanned his face with her kohl rimmed eyes, it was'nt long before she spotted his name tag sewn onto his jungle camouflage uniform. "Arnav" she whispered before she proceeded to do the needful.
An hour or two later, as the light sluiced in to tiny sliver as his eyelids fluttered and then shut again due to heaviness and ache, he was , even in his delirious state, aware of a few things. First that he had been saved. Second, he was lying not in his camp but somewhere secluded. Third, of the bandage around his torso and abdomen and fourth of the gentle chiming of anklets. The thought was enough to make him bolt upright followed by a sharp wince as the pain from his wound shot through. He saw her standing at some distance away from him with her back towards him , engaged in something that he could'nt make out from there. With one swift motion he got to his feet, feline like a leopard, as much as to not to make a sound and alert her. He neared her with predatory steps, his dark stubbled jaw tightened around his pursed lips and eyes intent on her. The light humming of some song reached his ears just as soon as he caught her by her elbow and the sound died on her lips.
With a strong movement that knocked the breath out of her , she found herself tugged towards his chest with force, causing her sky blue duppatta to slip and get entangled on his tanned arms. In a heartbeat he pushed her with the force of his body towards the weak wall of the hut causing the sharp end of a wood that stuck out from it to nip a little on her temple and the blood to bloom out like a bud. Just as a tiny drop. She was painfully aware of the thudding of her heart and the unsettling of her insides that had much to do with the merciless hold on her arms, his nearness and the feel of his breath near her ear, of the jagged end of a knife, that threatened her throat, which was held by him. Her widened eyes met a pair of the captivating ones of her attacker that held nothing but distrust which if she believed subsided bit by bit.
Arnav found himself gazing at the most guileless pair of eyes that he had seen in a long time. He would know ofcourse if she spelled threat. He had been around enough and wise to know. She was innocent and pure. "Who are you?" he bit out , his eyes betraying none of the contrasting thoughts his heart knew. It must have been the fear for he couldn't have known anything else that caused her to stutter out in voice that caressed his mouth. "Kh..Khushi..".
His gaze then dropped to her neck and down. She followed him and raised alarmed eyes back to him and averted them , raising her hands to clutch at the neckline of her yellow kurta. Trying to get out of her embarrassment, she spoke again, " I had found you not in a very good condition a couple of miles away from here. I got you here and have tended to your wounds. You will be good to go in a few days but you must not strain yourself like this. Please res..". He cut her rambling mid sentence and with a gentle tug, he said gruffly, " What are you doing here in the middle of the jungle alone? Who do you belong to and what purpose are you here for?". She raised questioning gaze to him and then an understanding dawned in them. " I am from the neighbouring land." He wasn't surprised at the admission. Moving back, he turned his back towards her. A feeling of being bereft caught up with her. She continued nonetheless. If she was surprised at being given a chance to speak for herself , it did'nt show in her voice or words. There was no doubt that she would have been shot down or caught up the dark jails with no tell tale sign of her to the outside world once they knew that she had crossed the borders illegally. No one would listen that she was here for her brother who hadn't returned since a week. That there was a possibility that he too might have infringed the laws without having the knowledge that he was trespassing. Whether he was there around somewhere or not she didn't knew. She didn't want to think of it. She hadn't meant to cross the lines. Just look out for him in the forest that was adjoining their village. But then how could she have had made out the difference amongst the lands that were meant to belong to different powers. They had looked the same. Even the sky looked blue from both sides. Same was the story of the wind and the water. So here she was 10 days into the world that she had no knowledge of. And she told him all.
"You know what I could do to you for being here?".
"I am not at wrong." She told with conviction.
"Not everyone will believe you". Once his troop caught up here, she wont survive he knew that. Not when there were the ones who were in the land who were harmful and moving in unbridled. She gave him a bright smile that threw him off guard and surprised him as much. "My brother is the only one I have. I cant sit just like that. And did'nt you listen to me? I am sure your people would too.". She said assuringly, before flitting out like a dash of yellow and blue and he did'nt realize before that when the blue flimsy cloth unwound itself from around his arm and flew out alongwith her. Just as quickly she had vanished , she returned again and started enthusiastically " What would you like to eat.? Not that you have many options. But still.." , she trailed off at his grim expression. "Alright. Don't fuss later. You need to take care of yourself anyways. So you have to eat." She said authoritatively and moved outside.
He glanced at her retreating back and then sat down. The whole thing that took place had sucked whatever energy he might have gathered while sleeping. He looked around. Sunlight cut through the thin gaps from the thatched roofs and fell onto the ground in criss cross patterns, illuminating the suspended dust particles that were in the air. The smell of burning coal wafted in and alongwith that of someone talking. He recognized her voice. As he made to catch the other figure by bending to look out through the door, it walked away. A few minutes later as she walked back in, she held a aluminium plate in her hand. With a slight smile, she gave it to him. Two rotis and some pickle was the meal of the day alongwith some onion. And hence for the following seven days, he found himself being thoroughly taken care of. She had'nt gone anywhere in these days. He didn't talk much to her, waiting to gain enough momentum to leave as soon as possible. Staying here would also mean drawing trouble towards her. And he did'nt want that. Somehow, the reason he didn't want to contemplate on, he never wanted that lovely smile to leave her face ever. She didn't mean anything to him. A nobody. But he would do anything to keep her out of the harms way. Once he goes back, he also needed to find out about her brother. He had discovered that she had befriended a local shepherd girl. The one whom she had been talking to that day. Kind enough to supply this lost girl, stupid enough to endanger her life, edibles.
The nights were the most awkward. Not as much to him but to her. She would delay lying down, going about to do the most mundane of tasks. He would pointedly look at something away from her. She had put together another mat which was adjusted at a little distance away from his. Along the years in the army, being here where the breaking out of gunshots did'nt come up with some former invitation, he had lost his sleep. An hour or two during the wee hours of the morning would usually do the the trick of being rested. So in that small space, moonlight would find him sitting through the night. Watching her sleep. A sense of peace would settle to glimpse at her even breathing as her chest rose and fell with it. She had this simplicity about her. And her face was so too. That made her seem beautiful. He would break his gaze away from her at that. On the eighth night, the wind was playful. And the moon hid behind the thickly laden clouds.
'' Its going to rain!'', she squealed. She had twirled about in the open , just enough for some raindrops to tickle her a bit and form a random pattern of wet patches on her white kurta, before she ran back inside and beamed at him. He glanced back at her with an inscrutable expression. A flicker burnt in his eyes that was tangent enough to caress her, making her smile slip away and a nervousness take over. He was aware of the her pull towards him. It was there in the surreptious glances she threw his way and her hesitant fingers whenever they used to change his dressing. But he had brushed it aside. It was not meant to be. It would never be easy. Too much was at stake. She moved towards the only window that place had and attempted to cover it with the tattered sheet that served as a curtain. It must be stuck somewhere for it refused to obey her command. Her dainty fingers that had clutched onto it so as to pull it, were covered with his dark and larger calloused ones as he came and stood behind her. His arm ran along and above her as he made to pull the curtain,applying the light force on her palm that held it. Her heart stopped its rhythm for a second, it felt, as he whispered '' Its done..'' into her ears, before it started beating in synchrony with the pitter patter of the rain outside. Loud and fast. But just enough for her to feel.
Arnav moved back and lied down, turning away from her. It would'nt be a good idea to stay awake. Not tonight.
**
The next he woke was to the sound of persistent knocks on the door. The shepherd girl informed Khushi of the sighting of some army men near the area. The stupid girl was excited that he would be now taken care of well. He smelled danger. The possibility of militants in the area was strong . And he wasnt wrong when powerful shots rang about in the air. He was up and about, pushing her inside and said in a harsh voice, '' Listen woman, leave! No one is going to believe you. If you want to survive, leave and never come back..''.
'' But where are you going? They'll come for you. Won't they listen to you.? I am with you, right? ''.
Why won't she understand.? She has crossed the border illegally. That much is enough to push her to death or maybe a fate worse than that. She doesnt deserve that. Not any of it. The intention won't be cared for. Not right now. And later, it would be too late.
He gazed back at her tearing hopeful eyes and with a one last push again, bolted her in her dwelling. He might now make everyone stay away from here if he can't make her understand. Ignoring her calls for him, he ran further away as much as his aching body could take. And before he could have caught up with any of his troop members, he found himself at gunpoint.
He made to fight with him but in a few moments was smacked down on the head and then on his wound with the butt of the rifle. Before loosing his rationality , he was aware of two things. The militant in front of him being taken down by his fellow companion who had arrived and that she should'nt have come out . He could hear her dear voice nearing.
**
He made no attempt. No attempt to even glance at the photographs that had been taken of the dead militants. 4 men and a woman. His hope that she was unharmed overpowered the clenching of his gut at the thought of her being no more if he would just not look out for truth. Her face adorned with that beautiful smile swam in front of his eyes. Hopeful and happy. If it was to reassure herself in midst of such pain and danger, he would never know. He had never attempted to know. Afterall she was nothing to him. But the growing lead like heaviness in his chest was unbeareable. He slipped his hand in his trouser pockets and fingered the little grooves and bells of the anklet that lay in peacefully in the cocooned warmth. She had'nt known when it had come undone and he had taken it up on an impulse. Taking it out , he glanced at it and that was his undoing. Dashing through the dark pathway, he entered the tent where the possessions taken off from the dead militants lay. He frantically rummaged through it, an earnest plea rising in his heart to not find the other anklet of the pair. That should give him some hope to settle the restlessness. Going through the photos was tougher. He would'nt take up that. And hope he found when he did'nt find it. With a tired sigh, he looked into her brown sugar eyes that were imprinted in his mind.
**
Maybe, maybe she could now take the customary steps to go across the border, she mused as she caressed his name tag with her fingers. She needed to mend it, she thought as she gazed at the worn out threads that held the tag to its uniform jacket. And then find him. That makes it two. Her brother and Arnav. Distress started to course through her at the thought of her brother even as a smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she kept the only materialistic memory she had of the army man.
**
A/N ~2 ~ Thank you all for reading it. Do let let me know what you thought of it. Each story post of mine is like a contest wherein I eagerly wait to read what you have to say as you all are the judges and smile at every increase in the like and views.
Love you all!! 😊
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