Part 29
Gayatri: Raj what have you done! Look at how much blood you are losing?
Raj: How could he say that? My Naina... My baby... Nani... I'll die without them. Maybe I don't deserve them. But what if anything happens to them.
Gayatri: Ragjuvendra leave right now. Raj, nothing will happen to them. your grandfather has just become a very bitter man! Don't take his words seriously.
Raj: But what if he is right? What if... I bring bad to luck to them...
Gayatri: Shh... beta... let me bandage your hand. OK.. OK let's go and see Naina?
Gayatri led Raj to Naina's room
Gayatri: See beta. She is sleeping peacefully. Everything is fine.But if she sees you like this, she'll get equally agitated. You don't want that, do you?
Gayatri took Raj back to Priya's room and called for the doctor to stop the bleeding and to bandage his hands. After the doctor left she turned to Raj.
Gayatri: Raj it's time you know the entire story about your mother and your father Karan.
As you know Priya was our only daughter. It was Raghuvendra who had insisted that we have only one child so that we could focus on giving her the best of everything. While that is common now, it was very unusual back then for a man, especially of royal bloodline to behapy with only one daughter.
Priya was the light of our lives. We always encouraged her to make her own decisions and to live life on her own terms.
Karan was the son of a very dear friend of mine. The poor boy had a nighmarish childhood. His father was an alcoholic who regularly beat his mother and him. Kara became a very quiet and unhappy child. He had almost no friends. Except Priya. Seeing them together was like seeing dark clouds and the sun together. But Priya, even as a child, saw past his anger and saw the good enough him. And Karan adored her.
Then when Karan was 12, his mother had had enough and committed suicide. Karan was devastated. His grandparents took over his custody but he was going through a lot of trouble and so they sent him away to a special school for children with behavioral issues.
Priya didn't give up on him. She wrote to him every week and in many ways helped him through the dark years, He also found direction in his life through the military service. He saw how strength didn't have to be used to harm weaker people but rather to protect them.
They began growing apart. Priya got busy with her law degree and Karan was training to be an air force pilot. Then Karan started his service and Priya went to the US for her masters. While Karan's professional life stabilized his personal life didn't. We heard stories of his philandering ways, sleeping around with new women every week.
A few years later Priya returned to India. She was 25 by then and we were beginning to get concerned about her marriage. Then out of nowhere Karan got posted in Jaisalmer and Priya invited him over. The moment I saw Priya and Karan together I knew we were in trouble.
Raj: Why?
Gayatri: It was obvious to me that Priya was in love with Karan. She had probably been in love for a few years.
As the days progressed Priya and Karan spent a lot of time together and it became clear to us that they had begun dating one another. Priya told me later that Karan had resisted becayse he was aware of his own phobia from commitment but Priya had assured him that she didn't expect any promises from him.
The whole city was talking about them. Raghu and I were in a quandary. We had always respected Priya's decisions but we were concerned for her.
Things came to a head one day. We came back a day early from a trip and it was obvious that Karan had spent the night with Priya.
Karan left immediately and Priya tried explaining herself
FLASHBACK
Priya: Ma, Baba, I am sorry you had to see us like this. But you have always said that these set of rooms are my own and I didn't feel the need to meet Karan in hotels...
Gayatri: Are you crazy? You think that's the only problem? And not the fact that you are sleeping around with Karan?
Priya: Ma please. You realize this is a normal part of a relationship between adults. And I am careful.
Gayatri: Priya I wil...
Raghuvendra: Priya beta.. you know what you are doing? You are playing with fire. Karan is not a man who'll commit.
Priya: Baba I believe in Karan. My love is enough to fill the gaps in his life.
We were concerned but there was no way to stop Priya. Then we heard that Karan was being transferred. We were glad. But then Priya gave us the most shocking news of our lives.
Priya: Maa,Baba, There's no easy way to say this. So i'll be direct. We were always careful. But as it turns out I am pregnant with Karan's baby.
Gayatri: You are what?
Priya: am pregnant with Karan's baby.
Gayatri: I had warned you Priya! Waned you. This is what you give to us in return for all our love and support? This? This illegitimate child?/
Priya: Ma please!!
Raghu: Gayatri enough. Let me talk to Priya. Beta when are you and Karan planning to get married.
Priya: Baba... I told Karan. But he isn't...can't bring himself... You know what happened with his parents... He can't commit. He can't get married.
Gayatri: He WHAT??? CANT COMMIT? BUT HE COULD GET YOU PREGNANT? THIS IS INSANE? YOU HAVE DISGRACED US. I AM SO UNHAPPY WITH YOU AND WITH MYSELF FOR RAISING A DAUGHTER LIKE YOU.
Raghu: Gayatri stop before you say something you regret. Priya go to your room. We all need time to think and process.
Next morning:
Gayatri: Get ready. We'll go to the hospital in 30 minutes.
Priya: For what Maa?
Gayatri: I have spoken to Dr. Rastogi. She's agreed to keep matters discrete.
Priya; Discrete about what?
Gayatri: Priya don't be so think. I have taken an appointment for you to abort this mistake.
Priya: Maa, this baby's conception may have been a mistake. But he is definitely not a mistake. This is my baby. And I will carry him and give birth to him and raise him alone..
SLAPPP...
*******
PRESENT
Gayatri: I slapped Priya, for the first and last time in my life. I know this must have been hard for you to hear. It's hard for me to admit that I was pressurizing Priya to go for an abortion.. But..
Raj; I understand... What surprised me more was Raghuvendraji's reaction. He genuinely made an effort to hear and understand Mumma.
Gayatri:Raghu was a different man. It wasn't easy for him to accept that his daughter would be an unmarried mother. But once he realized that Priya had made her decision, he supported her. He was her emotional anchor. Priya was in a lot of emotional turmoil. I wasn't talking to her. She had genuinely expected that her love would change Karan, make him forget his past.
In time I realized that I needed to support my daughter. The last months of your mother's pregnancy were some of the happiest months of your mother's life. Then you were born. Priya was holding you in her hands. Rather fighting to keep Raghu from monopolizing all the time with you. He was over the moon when he first held you. And then Priya began experiencing shortness of breath. It was all over in less than 30 minutes.
Raghu was speechless. He didn't what hit him. People were gossiping as usual and many people felt that his love and support for Priya was responsible for her getting pregnant, deciding to carry the baby end eventually dying. Raghu was lost. Not speaking at all But he began internalising the conversation and blaming himself.
Karan showed up on the day of Priya's funeral. He was inconsolable.
FLASHBACK
Karan: Priya,, how can you go... How can you go?... You are my sunshine... Don't go...
Seeing Karan finally broke Raghu. He beat up Karan and refused to let him come to Priya's last rites. Karan kept sitting outside the palace.
Karan: Uncle you have to forgive me... I may have been an awful partner to Priya but I loved her. I couldn't marry her... Not after what happened with my parents.
Raghu: Guards take him away.
Karan: Uncle please. Priya also loved me. And our son. My son. He's proof of how much we loved one another.
Something flipped in Raghu's head that moment. from that moment you stopped being Priya's son. You became only Karan's son in his eyes.
Raghu: Take that bas***d child with you. He and you killed my daughter.
Karan: Uncle.. but how can I? I don't know how to care... I... am currently posted in Kashmir.. I...
Gayatri: Raghu don't be crazy... He's three days old. He's our Priya's baby.
Raghu: No he's this rascal Karan;s child.
Raghu walked in. I asked Karan to leave. I hoped Raghu would come around eventually. But he couldn;t. I tried getting him to hold you, remind him of how excited he had been at your birth. But that part of him was dead.
Two weeks later he gave me an ultimatum. Either I removed you from the palace or he'd leave. I made the impossible decision and put you in the orphanage. I knew Raghu was broken and needed me and I gave up on you instead.
I informed Karan. Karan said that he had decided to raise you. He didn'y want to be the horrible father his own father had been.
Raj: Did he not show up? Not live up to his promise/ Fear commtment as usual?
Gayatri: No. He was committed to taking care of you. He applied for voluntary retirement. Decided he woule take up a job that gave him more stability and time in life. He genuinely planned to turn his life around.
Raj: So what happened?
Gayatri: Tragically he died flying his last mission. His engine's failed and he chose to crash into an open ground rather than let the aircraft hit a residential area.
Raj was crying. He didn't know what to say. He calmed himself down and finally asked.
Raj: But it's been so many years. Nana.. I mean Raghuvendraji never moved past his hatred for me?
Gayatri: Raghu died with Priya. The man you see has trained himself to live by hating himself for always supporting Priya's independent thought and blaming Karan and you in addition. There's also another problem. While your nature and behaviour is just like Priya's, you look a lot like your father karan.
Edited by paradigm - 8 years ago
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