Love, am I not worth it ?
Chapter 16
Next day morning
Shantivan was a house with lots of colors. It was always a joyful place. Opposite to the meaning of its name, it always had lots of sounds and happiness especially in the morning. But that day morning was different. There was no sounds. No people running here and there. No cracking of jokes or leg pulling. Everybody and everything was silent as its name suggested. Well it was like that for few days.
In one room of that house, laid a man in his king sized bed. Sunlight peeping inside the room woke him up. Slowly getting up he looked around. Seeing his state nobody will say that he is the king of the fashion world, Mr Arnav Singh Raizada. Shabby clothes, days old stumble, Red baggy eyes, and tired form. He looked nowhere near to that strong business tycoon whose name itself made people shiver.
The room looked as if it was a garbage bin. All the things lied scattered here and there, days old arrangements for first night was destroyed, flowers were dried. Arnav Singh Raizada sat on his bed leaning on the headboard clutching the photo of an innocent girl in his arms, his wife, Khushi. He looked broken.
He looked around. It has been three days to his marriage with Sheetal. He never felt this much helpless in his life. When his Do phoned and told him that his mother had an attack, he won't lie, he was scared. She loved his mother so much.
He immediately left from Nainital. On the way he tried to call Khushi. But her phone was switched off. Then he remembered her saying about the meeting and that her phone would be off for sometime, when she called the previous day.
On reaching Mumbai he came to know that his mothers condition was critical. She had called him to talk. When he went there she asked him to marry Sheetal. He denied. He tried to make her understand the situation. He tried every way to convince her. But she was adamant.
She wasn't ready to listen any of his words. He tried all ways. But her condition started worsening, his denial wasn't helping either. So finally to save his mother's life he agreed.
The marriage was fixed for the next day. He reluctantly came there to finish the rituals. With every passing minute it was becoming unbearable for him. He never believed in such rituals so that marriage never held any meaning for him. According to him relations are made by heart to heart connections. For him only one woman could take that place in his heart, his Khushi. But the very thought of giving her place to someone else made his heart bleed.
When he saw her standing at the entrance like a broken soul he felt life leaving his body. The pain, hurt and disbelief he saw in her eyes made him feel thousand deaths. He saw her running away from there. He wanted to go behind her, say sorry to her, tell her that all that didn't meant anything for him, all that mattered was her.
But his sister stopped him. One look at his mother sitting in the wheelchair he stopped. He couldn't go. He had to loose one person. His mother or his love. If he choose his love he will loose his mother forever but if he choose his mother he will loose his love. But at least his mother and love will be alive.
He soon finished the rituals and left from there. Reaching his room, he shut the door. The room was decorated for first night. He destroyed every decoration. He destroyed everything that came in front of his sight.Taking Khushi's photo from the closet where his sister had kept all her belongings, he held it close to his heart and cried.
Few hours later his sister came with Sheetal but he didn't let them enter. After sometime they left. Like this two days passed. Neither he talked to anyone nor he came out of the room. Sheetal lived in one of the guest rooms. The room was closed from inside. It only opened when HP brought food for him.
Most of the time he didn't ate anything. But ate only to keep himself alive. Since he was a diabetic patient if he didn't ate then his life could be in danger.
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Shantivan was silent. Nobody wasn't saying anything but silently having breakfast. Suddenly everyone heard the sounds of footsteps. Looking up everyone saw a familiar figure coming inside the house through the entrance. They were shocked. Nobody didn't knew how to react.
Khushi entered inside the living room of Shantivan. She saw everyone having breakfast sitting in the dining hall. Seeing her everyone stopped eating and stood up. They started moving towards her. But ignoring all of them, she went upstairs. They looked at each other nor knowing how to react.
Reaching in front of the room Khushi knocked. Thinking that HP had brought his breakfast Arnav opened the door. Seeing her standing before her, he was surprised. Ignoring him she entered the room.
Seeing the condition of the room she understood what happened. But she didn't respond. She went to her closet and started packing her stuff in a bag.
Coming out of his dazed state Arnav came towards her trying to hug her. But Khushi stopped him showing her hand. Arnav stood still.
"Khushi I..." Arnav tried saying something.
But Khushi cut him middle once again showing her hands. " I don't want to talk. Get out."
"Khushi please listen to me."
"I said na I don't want to talk. I came to take my stuff. I will do it and go. Till then you please stand outside." She told her words slowly.
She was calm but her eyes were glazing. Looking at her eyes, Arnav felt shiver ran down his spine. The eyes which held love, care and concern for him now looked dead. There was no emotion in it.
"What are you looking? You are going out or I should go out." She asked in a challenging tone.
Seeing him unmoving, she said, " OK then, I will go. I will send someone to get the stuff." Saying this she started moving out.
"No. No need. I will go." Saying this he went out.
Khushi continued to pack her bags. Few minutes later her mother entered there. Trust her sister to call her mother in such circumstances knowing about her soft corner for her mother. She knew why her mother was here.
She let her mother do her part but she continued to do her work. Her mother told her about what happened in those three days she was away. How Ratna fell ill. How she asked Arnav to marry Sheetal. How he had to agree for the sake of his mother. How much she was helpless because it was about Shreya's future.
After sometime Khushi finished her packing and sat on the bed while her mother continued to narrate the tale. She felt pity. She felt pity on her mother. More than her mother she felt pity on her own self. On her mother because of her blind trust and love for Shreya. She loved that venomous snake unconditionally. One day when she will find her truth she will be heartbroken. But she didn't care anymore.
She felt pity on herself that she sacrificed her everything for this woman. Her happiness, her childhood, her Tai's justice, her babies' justice and those girls' justice whose life her so called daughter had ruined. She felt disgusted of her own self that she did all these for this unfaithful, selfish and backstabbing woman.
But today, none of her words affected her. Once there was a time when her each word was like a line carved on the stone. She never denied her. But now she felt nothing for her or her words. She can go to hell with her extra sugar coated words.
But she calmly heard her words. As soon as she finished saying Khushi moved out of the room with her bags.
Downstairs everyone was waiting for her. As soon as they saw her coming down everyone stood up. Nobody had the courage to look into her eyes. After few minutes Anjali came forward.
She kept some papers on the table and said, "These are divorce papers. If you sign it we can proceed it in the court as soon as possible."
Khushi glared at her. Looking at her fire spitting eyes Anjali looked down not being able to take its intensity.
Sighing Khushi said, " OK. I will sign these papers. But..."
"But what?" It was Sheetal this time.
"But before that Arnav had to sign these papers first." Khushi put forward her demand placing some papers on the table beside divorce papers.
"What is this? Property papers." Sheetal asked cunningly.
" So what if it is property papers, I haven't asked you to sign these papers. I have asked Arnav to sign them. And by the way your signature won't give me anything. Your signature will be beneficial only if you have something on your name. What can you expect from beggers." Saying this Khushi smirked. Today she wasn't here to hear their words and be silent or cry. Today she was here to finish the unfinished work.
"You called me a begged. How dare you?" Sheetal fumed.
"Oh I dare. When a clingy bitchy second wife like you who don't know nothing but going behind married men can dare to talk like this to me. Then I can dare much more than that. For your kind information I am still his first wife. And according to IPC section xxx bigamy is illegal in India. If I dare to file a case, then you, him and each and every person standing here will be behind bars. You know me very well right. I won't take me even a minute to put you all in the jail." Khushi said with a mocking smile.
Everyone was amazed with her this new avatar. They were shocked to see their soft spoken, innocent, calm and loving Khushi like this. But one thing they all understood that she was broken beyond limits so that only she wass behaving like that. Their betrayal had made her like this. They felt ashamed of themselves. Nobody had courage to say anything against her.
Her dead eyes send shiver down their spines. Even though her face was calm. The fire burning in her eyes were easily palpable. Nobody could look into it.
Seeing them silent Khushi continued, " Hey don't worry. I won't do it. After all we are a family. " She said through gritted teeth. "I don't want to harm you people. I don't want to go behind police station and court. Unnecessary headaches. So we will settle it outside court. All you have to do it Arnav should sign these papers and I will sign the divorce papers."
"What are these? Property ..." Before she could finish a slap echoed inside the four walls of Shantivan.
All the residents of Shantivan stood with a hanging mouths. Khushi stood in the middle of the room breathing fire. Sheetal laid on the floor with her hand on her right cheeks. The corner of her lips were bleeding. Her rights cheeks were adorned with the imprints of Khushi's beautiful hands.
None spoke for few minutes not being able to take the shock they had witnessed few minutes back. Khushi reached to Sheetal and pulled her up.
Pointing her fingers at Sheetal she said, " This you have from me in the past two years. Whenever I want to talk with my family or I will be talking with them, you always come in between. I wanted to give you this gift long back but my values didn't give me the right to lift my hand on a person elder than me. But now I understood that all these values, traditions, rituals all that don't have any meaning. All that are meaningless things which people used for their benefits. "
Everybody looked down not being able to look into the eyes of the innocent soul whom they have broken beyond limits. Arnav came forward and signed the papers she had kept on the table. Sheetal and Shreya wanted to say something but looking at Khushi they decided to keep quiet unless they wanted their truth to come out.
Seeing him not reading the papers Khushi frowned. " Don't you want to read the papers."
"No. Even if you ask my life I would have given you. Loosing you means loosing my most priced possession. There is nothing more important than you in my life that I could loose. Moreover I trust you." Arnav said brokenly.
"So that is why you have betrayed me and married her. Right!" Khushi asked challengingly.
"Khushi I... I." Arnav shuttered not able to answer.
"Oh sorry sorry. I forgot you married her because your mother had a heart attack right. But I am confused about one thing a person who don't have heart. How can that person have heart attack." She pretended to think.
Everyone looked at her confused while some started sweating.
"Oh you didn't understand right. Well let me clear your doubts"
Coming in front of Ratna who was sitting in her wheelchair, Khushi knelt in front of her. Keeping her hands on the place where her heart was beating she sat there.
"What are you doing?" It was Anjali this time.
"Anjali Di. Don't worry I won't do anything to your mother. I was just checking whether she had a heart or not. Don't worry she has a heart." Khushi smiled.
Turning to Ratna she said, " But I am disappointed with you, Maa. Why did you become housewife. You should have became an actress. You would have had a great future. Now itself look Maa. Nobody will say that you were acting to have a heart attack. See they all believed that you actually had a heart attack. Even I believed it Maa before knowing the truth. But one thing I didn't understand. Will you answer me Maa." Khushi asked cutely like a baby questioning her mother.
Others stood with bated breath. They couldn't digest the things happening in front of them.
Keeping her head on Ratna's lap, Khushi asked, " Why do you hate me so much Maa. I have always considered you as my mother then why did you do this to me. Is all mothers like this."
"Khushi, I am sorry beta. But I wanted a grandchild. I have been longing for one for such a long time. So for that I did all these." Ratna said crying.
Getting up, Khushi said, "So you did all these for grandchild. Then why didn't you ask me about it. You never told me about that not even once. OK leave it. Tell me one thing what if the problem is not with me, it is with Arnav. It is not like some doctor had given a final verdict that we can't have kids because of me. OK let's think that Arnav can have kids. So what if Sheetal also couldn't give child, will you get him married again."
"Leave all these just answer me one question as a mother. It has been only two years for my marriage with Arnav which was the last marriage in this family. All your other kids have been married for more than two years. As far as I can see they also don't have kids. So are you going get them also remarried. OK let's leave your sisters kids, your own daughter had been married for more than two years. Even she don't have kids so are you going to do remarriage for your son in-law also."
Ratna looked down not able to answer any of her questions. Anjali stood beside her mother frozen.
Khushi turned to Anjali and asked, "So are you going to help your mother plan your husband's marriage also."
Anjali clutched her mangalsutra tightly. She couldn't utter a word. For the first time she could feel the weight of her sins.
Turning to others Khushi said, " But whatever it is. I am done with it. I am signing these divorce papers. I had enough of all you people. Don't ever come behind me."
Saying all these Khushi signed the papers. A lone tear unknowingly escaped her eyes. She wiped it before anybody could see that. No this was not time to fall weak. She said herself.
Taking the papers Arnav had signed she started going out when Aastha came in front of her.
"Come Pari, let's go." Aastha tried to take her hands.
But Khushi jerked her hands away. When Aastha tried to reach her she stopped her showing her hands. " Enough you had done your part very nicely. Thank you but no thank you. I don't want your support. I can very well take care of myself. You don't have to worry."
Looking at Shreya, she said, " Think that you have only one daughter from now onwards not that it was otherwise earlier. Don't come behind me. Also tell others to never try to find me. I don't want to come back ever."
Saying this she went out. Sitting in the car she drove it to Paradise. She looked at the papers in her hands. It was her Ponies custody papers. She had taken away all their rights on her Ponies. No. She won't let them snatch her Ponies away from her, ever. Her Ponies will stay with her forever. She can't loose them.
Back in Shantivan everyone stood still. The things that happened few minutes back was indigestible for them. They all couldn't believe that Ratna could do something like this. She could betray all of them like this.
Arnav came out of his dazed state and walked up to his mother. Standing in front of the wheelchair he made her stand up.
"Why Maa. Why did you do this. Have your dream of having a grandchild had become so important that you did all of this. You betrayed all of us. You snatched my everything from me. Why Ma? Why did you do this? If you wanted grandchild you could have told me na I would have done everything to fulfill your wish. But for that you snatched her from me. You ruined our life. You played with the life of an innocent soul."
Turning to Anjali, " And Di you. You knew all these in fact you helped Maa in all these. Why did you do this Di. Why did you snatched my love from me."
"I did all for you Chote. For your happiness. And Love. You love Sheetal na Chote. So I did it so that you can get your love." Anjali said.
"Shut up. Just shut up. Who told you that I love Sheetal. Oh sorry, the great Anjali Jha decided that I love Sheetal. So if she had decided then it should happen like that na. Right Di. You decided I love Sheetal so I should love Sheetal, you decided I should marry Sheetal then I should marry Sheetal. Right Mrs. Jha. I am saying truth. Whatever you decide that should happen. Whatever you want that should happen. What about me?" Arnav screamed.
"Chote, I... I" "Chote listen" Anjali and Ratna tried to say simultaneously.
"No you guys listen. From today onwards Chote and Arnav is dead. Only ASR is there. You all can call me that. Now I am only ASR for outside world and also for everybody. From today onwards, Mrs. Anjali Jha and Mrs. Ratna Raizada is dead for me. I don't have any relation with these two people. From today onwards I don't have any mother or sister."
Turning around,pointing at Sheetal he said, " One more thing, you people might have made me get married to her by trick. But she can never become my wife. She may be your daughter in-law but will never be my wife."
Saying that Arnav went to his room he locked his room from outside. Taking the keys he came down. " That room and everything in it will always belong to my Khushi. Nobody will have any right on it."
With that he took his car and zoomed out of the gates. Inside Ratna and Anjali fell on her knees crying. Nobody tried to console them not being able to forgive their sins themselves.
Precap: Arnav's POV
Geet - Hui Sabse Parayee
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