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"Didi it's too dark!" said Chhutki, her small hands clutching the hands of her elder sister tighter. "I can't see a thing!" She said, her voice quivering, not so much due to the chilly weather as it was due to fear.
"Ssshh!" Annika spoke in a hushed voice. She sat down and untangled her right hand from her little sister's grasp and put it around her tiny face, trying to look into her eyes even though she could barely make out her outline in the dark. "I'm here na! Don't worry, we'll be out of this place in no time. And it'd be morning soon, and all the darkness will be out of our lives forever" she said wistfully, shivering a little herself as she thought about what they were about to do. It was something that would change their lives forever. She wouldn't admit it but she was scared herself, running away all by herself to that enormous city called Mumbai - with her little sister in tow, without any idea about how they'd be able to sustain themselves in that unknown place. But the present was more scary than the future, and all she cared now was to somehow take herself and her little sister away from this god forsaken place.
"Do you remember what I told you the last time Chachu put us in the storeroom and it was so dark we couldn't see a thing?"
"Usse bhi kya darna jise jugnu hara deta ho!" The little girl exclaimed, pepping up a little. Annika smiled and stood up, tightening her grip around her sister's hand.
"Di, I'm scared that he'll catch us," Chhutki said, looking up.
"And that is why we must hurry!" Said Annika, before breaking into a sprint with her little sister by her side, into the depths of the darkness that enveloped them.
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"Nooo, chhutki, no! Don't!" She woke up with a start, clutching her chest, gasping for air. Tears clouded her view and for a moment she could see nothing. Then suddenly someone was at her side and he held her face, steadying her, rubbing away her tears. "Sshhh," Shivaay said, "It's just a bad dream."
"I...I couldn't...save...her..." She managed to speak through the tears that kept coming, trying to breathe as a new wave of sobs choked her. He put his arms around her and let her face fall into his chest.
"Sshhh. Just breathe. Breathe with me," he said, patting her head and moving his hands all the way down to her back, trying to soothe her.
"Why does everyone leave me Shivaay? Why does everyone go away?" She sobbed into him.
"It's okay Annika. I'm here. I'm here with you. What's bothering you?" He patted her head, rubbed her shoulders. But she wouldn't stop crying. He felt helpless, the sound of her sobbing too painful for him to bear. He soothed her, wanted to do anything to take her pain go away.
"You're okay. You're with me now. I'll never leave you," he added, unable to understand the reason behind her sudden qualms.
She lay there for a long moment in his embrace and let his breathing sounds calm her. The nightmare still lingered, leaving her jarred and so she let herself cry out into his chest till she was drained. She was so tired she couldn't even pull back. She didn't want to pull back.
"She drowned. I couldn't save her," she heard herself saying, her voice laced with despair. The nightmare was so real. Every single time she had this one, she knew she could save her. She was so near, her tiny hands flailing in the air as the current caught her. Every single time she told her she'd be okay. Every single time she'd reach for her, the cold water knocking the breath out of her, the darkness making it impossible for her to see almost anything. And every single time she'd fail.
"Who? Who drowned?" Shivaay was perplexed. "Whom couldn't you save, Annika?"
"My chhutki...my...sister..." she stuttered somehow through her sobs. "After maa and papa left us, we were supposed to be together," her throat closed in and she let herself cry quietly for a while. "It was dark. He was after us. He'd have caught us if we didn't run, she just didn't want to get caught...we were so scared Shivaay..." her voice trailed off as the memories of that fateful night filled her head once again and she snuggled closer to him.
Shivaay stayed silent though nothing was making sense to him and he wanted to ask who and what she was talking about. But he knew beneath the street smart talking and her carefree attitude she had a fragile heart and today she was laying it bare before him. Though she was talking to him, he somehow felt he'd intrude on her privacy if he said something. So he just continued rubbing her shoulders in a comforting manner and waited for her to continue.
"Chachu used to beat us. He used to lock us in dark rooms and make us go without food for days. We just...we just wanted to get away...to run away...Shivaay, I asked her to trust me but I couldn't save her." She broke down again and Shivaay felt as if someone was driving a knife into his heart. He was used to dealing with his brother's pain but this kind, it was more powerful than anything he had ever seen or felt. He had a sudden protective instinct, where he didn't even know what he would protect her from. He just knew he'd never let anything hurt her ever again, even if it meant he had to give up his life to do that. He hugged her tighter, a tear lingering on his own cheek. He wanted to speak a few words of comfort but his words came out in broken clusters.
"She ran too fast. It was too dark" she whispered against his chest. "She slipped."
Both of them didn't talk again for a while and for one moment Shivaay thought she had fallen asleep against his chest. But then she stirred and pulled away, suddenly aware of the closeness between them.
Her cheeks were wrinkled from all the crying, the kajal in her eyes was smeared - making them look hollow. She looked weary, as if she didn't even have the strength to breathe. Shivaay stood up.
"Annika...I..." But he couldn't complete his sentence. There was so much to say, so much to apologise for. But not today. This was not the right time.
She looked up and saw the tears in his eyes. Her own eyes widened a little. He looked away, unable to quite meet her stare. When he looked back at her she was looking down.
"Sleep Annika, get some rest," he said in a heavy voice. He helped her lie down on the sofa where she was sleeping. He pulled up the blanket till her shoulders and brushed away the hairs from her wet cheeks. She sighed and closed her eyes but he could see her eyelids were quivering. Looking at her face, he remembered the night when she'd had this nightmare for the first time in this house, and how she'd held on to him, scared and whimpering. And when he was leaving, how she had held his hand so tight even though she was unconscious. He sat down on the floor beside the sofa so that their faces were at the same level.
And then he kissed her forehead.
Her eyes opened. She looked confused but grateful that he hadn't left her.
He took her right hand in his own and clutched it tightly. "I'll sit here with you, hmm?" he said, half expecting she'd protest but she didn't. She nodded, and closed her eyes as he looked over the girl he loved and vowed silently to himself that he'd never make her go through any kind of pain again.
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Guys it's my first attempt on an FF...just wanted to see this scene on the show and so thought of writing it down. We don't know much about Ani's past but this is how I imagined it to be. A few likes and comments will be highly appreciated😳
- Archie
Jhanak
