Naina woke up feeling disoriented. Her vision was still blurred.
Maybe she was dreaming.
What she saw couldn't be real.
Raj was standing near her holding a tiny bundle - her daughter. Both of them looked so comfortable with each other. His grip was confident as if he had held newborns all his life. She was quiet and safe in his arms.
But then Raj spoke confirming that it wasn't a dream.
Raj: Look who's up princess. Mumma is up.
He walked up to Naina and handed the baby to her. Naina cried tears of joy as she held her baby for the first time.
Raj: She's gorgeous isn't, she? When the nurse handed her to me she was howling her lungs out. But once we became friends she became quiet. Snce then she has been chilling in my arms, occasionally opening her eyes to see everything aroundher.
Naina; She's just perfect. isn't she?
Raj nodded. Shalini walked into the perfect scene of Raj and Naina hovering over the baby, smiling and cooing at her.
Shalini: She is!
Naina: Thank you Shal! For eveything you have done. For me and my jaan.
Shalini: My pleasure. Now Naina, it's not easy to recover from a C-Section. You will unfortunately be in pain for a few weeks. You need to focus on recovering first and not over-exerting herself. We have an excellent staff at the niursery who can help take care of her!
Raj: Which reminds me I should take her back there. The nurses wanted to examine her properly.
Come here baby. Come to me
He gently took her in his arms and walked away.
Naina: Shalini, Raj?
Shalini: I had called him to sign some papers. But he has been here since you went in surgery. And since the baby was born he has been around her constantly. Holding her, hovering around the nurses.
Naina it's his decision. Don't take stress. Just focus on yourself and the baby.
Over the next week Raj was around 24*7. Naina needed to take enough rest to recover from the surgery. By the end he had learned to feed her, burp her, bathe her. The nurses complsined that he was taking over their job!
A fortnight later Naina was getting discharged. Raj was helping her pack. Naina noticed the ring on his finger and felt a sharp pain. It was a reality check for her. Raj wasn't her husand. He wasn;t Sia's father.
Naina: Raj, I can't tell you how thankful I am. But please...
A loud angry voice interrupted their conversation.
Ritu: "THANK YOU FOR BEING MY SERVANT" Isn't that right Naina?
Raj: Ritu not here!
Ritu: Raj went straight from our engagement venue to this hospital and he spends almost all his time here.
Raj: Ritu Naina needed help after her c-section.
Ritu: If she needs help she shold call Raghav her husband
Raj: Her ex-husband.
Ritu: But he is this baby's father forever isn't he?
Naina: NO! SIA IS MINE. ONLY MINE. NOT THAT MAN'S! NOT THAT MAN'S.
Ritu: I think you need a psychiatrist.. You really do,
Sia began crying and Raj instinctively picked her up.
Raj: It's alright jaan. Its alright.
Ritu: Vow she has a magical effect . You can use your daughter in the future Naina. Raghav used to pimp you around to clients, you can pimp her daugher around.
SMACK!!!!!
Naina slapped Ritu hard.
Naina: LEAVE! LEAVE NOW! AND RAJ GET OUT OF MY LIFE! DON'T EVER COME BACK TO ME OR MY DAUGHTER. GET OUT!!!!!
Raj knew he had to stay away from Naina. To protect her from Ritu and her vitriol. But he found it hard to stop thinking of Naina and Sia. He often drove by their house to see Naina playing with Sia in the garden.
A few months. Raj was close to nailing Ritu. One day he got a frantic call from Shalini;
Come to Naina's house. Now
He rushed to Naina's house.
Shalini: Sia won't stop crying. She won't drink her milk.
Raj took the crying baby in his arms.
Raj: Jaan it's me. Remember how we became best friends when I first held you. Stop crying jaan.
Sia calmed down after a few minutes in Raj's arms. He even managed to feed her the bottle of milk. An hour later she was sleeping quietly.
Raj: Where's Naina?
Shalini: In her room.
Raj: What?! She is here? Why isn't she with SIa?
Shalini: Raj Naian went to meet Ragahv this morning to get him to sign papaers where he gives us all legal rights to Sia.
Raj: He didn't sign it?
Shalini: He did! But he also broke her bubble. Reminded her that Sia is his daughter. Broke the mental dissociation she has between Raghav and Sia. Since she got back she cant make herself look at Sia let alone take care of her.
Raj: But Shalini...
Shalini: Naina suffers from PTSD. She had found a way to cope by thinking of this baby as only hers. But Raghav has swung her mind. Now she can only see Sia as his daughter.
Naina sat huddled in her bedroom holding her knees. Raghav's words played in loop in her years.
JAIL VISITING ROOM
Raghav: THERE I have signed the papers. But you realize you cant change the blood that flows in her veins. It's my blood.
Naina: I am leaving I dont want to listen to your nonsense.
Raghav: I got a friendly jail guard to lock this room for an hour. Why don't we talk about how Sia was conceived?
Remember that night? This was after that captain, Rajveer had fed you all the crap about rights etc and ypu were refusing to sleep with my clients making them angry.
FLASHBACK
Raghav: You again refused to sleep with my client. Called him a rascal?!!
Naina: Yes. And this is the last time i wear such a dress and go to any client of yours.
Naina: I have respecta and dignity.
Raghav: SPeaking captain rajveer's words again I see?
Naina began walking ahead. Raghav caught her and slapped her hard.
Raghav: I am not done yet. You know what'll happen to your father if..
Naina: That's all yoi can do. Blackmail me. You spineless coward.
She spat in his face. Raghav lost his senses. He slapped her multiple times and dragged her to the parking lot. He threw her in the backside of the car and turned off the lights.
Raghav: Naina, I'll show you what a spineless backward can do.
Before Naina could yell he taped her mouth shut and tied her hands with her scarf. He straddled over her and kept f**king her till she was limp with exhaustion
JAIL VISITOR ROOM
Naina was white by now. Sweat was dripping from her face.
Raghav: That's where Sia was conceived. In the back of the car! I am surprised you carried her to term and gave birth to her.
Every time you see her, you'll remember me. All the nights we spent together. All the times I raped you. All the times I pimped you as a prostitute.
Sia is my daughter. My flesh and blood. And you may have put me in jail. But she'll stay with you forever.
Edited by paradigm - 8 years ago
Cricket
12