So here goes the last part :)
Part 17 (LAST part)
She lies on the dirty wooden verandah as waits for the sun to set and her mother's shrill voice to reach her ears from down the hill.
Every evening during sunset it would be their mother's voice which would remind her and Payal that it was time to come back home, that it was getting too late for kids to stay out, especially if the kids had habit of sneaking into abandoned bungalows.
But this evening, as the sun sets in the horizon and the birds fly back home, she doesn't hear her mother's voice. She feels a tear roll down the side of her face when she realises that she won't ever be hearing her mother's voice again.
A cough erupts her throat as she holds her chest to sooth the pain and soon she's sobbing like baby unable to stop herself. Today, her mother completes fourteen days in heaven.
An uncomfortable bile rises through her stomach at that thought and in the next second she's holding on the metal railing and throwing up on the creaky old wooden floor trying to keep her hair away. It's for the second time in the day that she's puking. When she's done she breaks into another round of sob when she hears footstep behind her and stills.
A childhood full of ghost stories about this house and she had to face one in adult life, she thinks as her heart races and goosebumps erupt on her skin.
"Madam? Madam..?"
She immediately turns to face an old man with a torch in his hand. It's not lit up as yet.
"Oh thank god, I thought you were dead." He says stepping closer.
She sits up wiping her eyes and lips as she tries to figure out his presence there. He's obviously not a ghost.
"I'm the new caretaker," he answers her thoughts.
"Caretaker? But this place hasn't had a caretaker in years."
"Finally someone bought this house, madam. But I hear they wants to sell again, um, they've heard rumours about the ghosts it seems. Now who would tell them, that it's just a baseless rumour started by the mothers here to keep their children off the property."
Slowly she gets to her feet as she feels her head spin. What is wrong with her?
"Are you alright, madam? You don't seem so..." He points at the mess on the ground.
"I'm sorry...I'll clean it up... I just..."
"No worries, madam. How come you're here, at this time of the day? It's getting dark." He asks good naturedly.
"I used to come here as a kid..just thought of visiting it again."
"Hmm...you look too much of a city lady to be of the village. I though you too were like one of those foreigners who was here to find peace."
She laughs for the first time in days as she says, "no I'm from the village. We shifted to the city few years ago. That corner house in green colour?" She points it out for him, "that's ours."
"Condolences to you. I heard your mother passed away?"
It was small little village, therefore it was no surprise to her that he knew. She simply nods in response as he walks her out.
"You should take care, madam. The weather is changing, maybe that's why the cough and the vomiting."
She nods uncomfortably in response as he offers her water and tea which she refuses.
"I must go home now. Thank you."
"Going back to the city or staying back, madam? You've got to admit, this place has its own charm. I keep coming back here."
"Going back to the city, but shall come back soon hopefully," she says as she spots a rhododendron tree next to the porch. How come she's never seen that before? Could it be that her father collected the rhododendrons from this tree itself and kept it at her mother's window?
She plucks a flower and smiles at the beautiful picture it creates in her head. What a special place this house is, she thinks.
"It seems you remembered a sweet memory. Sorry, couldn't help asking seeing the smile on your sad face."
"You say the new owners want to sell this house, yes?" She asks excitedly.
He nods, a little confused.
"Thank you," she says. "Thank you."
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"Arnav, can you meet me at the park in front of your house? I'm reaching there in fifteen minutes."
"What? Why you coming straight to the park? When did you even leave from there? You must be tired, it's a long journey form there. Why don't you come home?"
"No, not like this. I've to speak with dadi too, I can't just come like this. I look like a mess.
"Okay, fine. I'll be there. And oh, Khushi? You're fine, right?"
"I am. Arnav, I'm sorry I couldn't speak to you properly in the last two weeks. I was just - "
"Hey, I understand, okay? Don't worry about it. I'm coming." He says and hangs up.
Ten minutes later, Khushi enters the park and immediately spots him by the laburnum tree. She's early but he's already waiting for her. That's her Arnav, she thinks with a smile.
She can't help but break into a run to get into his arms but she immediately feels sick in the stomach again. She's hungry, she reminds herself as she slows, just like she was yesterday. Her head suddenly spins as her hand goes up to hold it in place.
She sees his eyes scrunch in concern and curiosity even from a few feet away as he now fastens his face.
She feels herself swaying and trees spinning around her. The last thing she remembers is his concerned face as he runs towards her and her head hitting the hard ground causing a searing, unbearable pain.
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The voices make her eyes flicker but they don't open. At least, not just yet. All she's able to fathom is that she's got a bad headache and is lying at an unfamiliar place. Where is she?
She hears a familiar voice and another voice she can't recognise. She catches a few phrases like 'pregnant', 'lot of bleeding', 'low impact fall', 'could have been very damaging', 'don't worry, the baby is alright."
What are they talking about, she thinks as she tries to flicker her eyes open again. She fails. There's too much light. Perhaps it's a dream, she thinks again and falls back into sleep.
When she wakes she's clear on exactly who the familiar voice belonged to and she also knows who they'd been talking about. She wishes it were a dream, a bad one. But it's reality.
She's in the hospital bed, a bandage around her forehead and she's one who is pregnant.
Arnav notices that she's awake when he hears her sniff from the couch near the window. He immediately sprigs up from his chair to come by her side.
"You've heard everything, haven't you?" He says softly as he sits next to her on the bed, his hand landing on her face to cup her cheek.
She turns her face as more tears form and roll down her face. "It's all my fault, Arnav. Things got so...messed up in the last few days that I forgot that I should have taken something after we..."
"I didn't use protection too Khushi, don't try to put it all on yourself." He says angrily.
"Arnav?" She says as she turns to him capturing his hand in hers, "Arnav, I didn't want it to be like this...dadi hasn't even approved of our marriage and I'm...oh god, Arnav. What is she going to think of me? She would say, I turned out to be just like my sister...that I have no..."
"Ssshhh. Don't stress yourself, Khushi," he says, his voice like a caress as his fingers go up to her forehead to brush her hair lightly away from the dressing, "are you feeling okay?"
She shakes her head. "No, no I'm not okay, Arnav," she says as she sits up to get into his arms and he readily takes her, "I'm not okay at all, Arnav. This is not how I imagined...this isn't how wanted things to be. Oh god, how am I going to face people? How could I have...how could I have let it happen, Arnav? Everyone's going to be so disappointed with us..."
"Don't think about all that now," he says as he runs a soothing hand on her back. "The doctor says you shouldn't take so much stress. That head injury is bad."
"Is our baby truly alright, Arnav?" She asks softly. "I still can't believe - "
"Well, if we you'd lost more blood, things would have been different. But don't worry about it now. It's all good. We're going to get married and have this beautiful child and we'll be a happy family, okay?" He says as she sobs a little more into his shoulder.
"You know why I wanted to meet you so badly?" She says when she pulls away from his shoulder, "I finally found our summer house, Arnav. Remember, we used to talk about it when we were young..."
His face breaks into a smile. "How does it look?"
"Like a dream."
"I even got you pictures on my phone, just - "
"There you are!"
They both turn at the voice. It's deep. And it's of a man angry. It's Aman's.
"Aman - " she starts to say when he walks over to her bed and before anyone can comprehend what's happening, a punch lands on Arnav's jaw. And then another until he's on the floor.
"What the hell, Aman. What are you doing?" Khushi says as he prepares to launch another punch when Arnav stops him, one hand holding his hand and the other clutching his collar.
"What are you doing, Aman?" Arnav hisses, blood starting to drip down his lips.
"You know you deserve these," he says as he struggles out of his grasp and prepares to launch more punches. Arnav stops a him again.
"What for?" He says still struggling.
"For making my best friend pregnant, for one. For hurting her a million times before. And for being the jerk that you usually are."
"Then you deserve a punch too, right? For trying to destroy her life? Getting her married to a gay man...is this the life you wanted for your best friend?" Arnav says as Aman finally loosens his grip on his shirt. A punch now lands aman's jaw.
"What the hell are you guys doing?" She cries out as two of her life's most important people fight on the hospital floor like kids.
There's a push on Arnav's chest making me fall back but he recovers quick to deliver a jab back at Aman's making his stumble back. Two ward boys come inside because of the commotion and try to pull them apart.
They're both panting as they get held at opposite ends of room to keep them apart and leave only when they receive murderous looks form both the men and Khushi has no option but to ask them leave promising them that the earlier activity won't be repeated.
"Khushi, remember, I'm letting you go to him only because behind this ass of man is a man who loves you in a way I can't ever. And you him in a way you can't love me ever."
"Spare us the shitty dialogues, Aman. " Arnav says.
"Do you even know how many times she's cried because of you?" Aman bites out, "no, you cannot even count them."
"I've hurt him too, Aman, perhaps more than he's hurt me," Khushi says, "anyway, it is not a competition. We are not counting here. The thing it's all come to an end now. Aman, are you okay? How is your mother dealing with - "
"God, we're sorry," Aman replies messaging his forehead. He looks ridiculous with a newly formed bluing jaw, Khushi thinks. "We are fine, Khushi. It feels like a heavy weight has been lifted off my shoulders. People are trying to pretend they don't know the reason why the engagements have broken and it's really fun to sometimes play along and sometimes shock people with the truth. I'm truly enjoying myself. Oh and thanks to this guy over here...I've started taking therapy," he says pointing towards Arnav," "man, did you and my mother have a showdown that night? Anyway, Khushi, you have to see my therapist. If he were gay too - actually, I don't know if he is or not - I would have definition hit on him. He's certainly attractive, has a tattoo too, you know." He says as she raises her eyebrows.
"Aman Bedi, the therapy seems to be working too fast and a little too well, don't you think?" She says with a smirk.
In reply he smily rolls his eyes, "Anywayy...I should be asking you how you are. You're the one with a baby in your belly and a bandage on your head. And look at me trying to kill your...fianc now I hope?"
Her new fianc simply nods and smirks as Aman continues, "I'm not certain whose side I should be from, but being Khushis ex-fianc and best friend, I should be from her side, right?"
"You wound me by saying that Aman," Arnav says sarcastically as he wipes the blood dripping from his lips with a handkerchief, "but yeah it makes sense for you to be from her side even though it pains my heart."
Khushi giggles and then sighs at the first lighthearted moment shared between the three first time in years. She doesn't even remember if there was one before. She looks at the two and sees for the first time how as kids they could be good friends. Everything is not okay just as yet, but at least they are trying?
Perhaps they needed to be violent and let out their anger on each other. There is a lot of pent up hatred and misunderstanding they have. Of course it can't go away this soon but she is glad the two could now stand in the same room and make a joke about it.
Tired with the various emotions she just went through, she leans against the cushion and it takes only a whimper from her as she adjusts her position to bring her two favourite men to help her out.
"Guys," she chuckles, "I am fine. But it's nice to see you two all worked up."
In return they both just roll their eyes.
"Should we call the doctor? You seem to be bleeding again..." Aman says.
"Aman, we do need to call a doctor. But not for me. Just look at your faces..."
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"Arnav I'm not even going to ask you why you look like that," dadi says as she turns to look at Khushi, "Sorry, it took me this long to get here. But someone," she points at Arnav, "didn't think that it was important inform me."
"We're sorry dadi, he must have been worked up with this...new found information. We were nervous about how you'd react. There was already so many thing going on...and now this."
"You don't worry about all that now. We're glad that the baby is fine. And so is the mother. Is the head hurting dear?"
Khushi's eyes well up at dadi's concern. They'd been so nervous about her reaction. Dadi hasn't even properly agreed for their marriage and now child has come into the picture.
"No, dadi, it's fine."
"And how's your family, dear? How's Payal and her husband? Piyush? Is he coping well with his grandmother's demise? And what about you? If you'd called us, Khushi, we would have come. Your mother was a dear one."
Tears roll down her cheeks as she says, "dadi, I didn't think you would have wanted to...after that morning..."
"After that morning when I saw you both together..." She says looking at them both, "I knew what I mistake I made not only with you but with my own grandson."
"Dadi, all these talks doesn't suit you," Arnav interrupts and Khushi isn't able to help but smile as dadi throws him a glare.
"Arnav, step out, please. I need to speak with her alone."
"Are you serious? No." He answers, "I'm not leaving her alone with you."
"Are you forgetting that I'm not only her boss but also her godmother? And as your grandmother, I can ask you to step out. I need to speak with her alone." She says in a stern voice making Khushi almost giggle in between tears as Arnav obediently leaves the room without continuing the argument.
Dadi turns back to Khushi. "I tried so hard to keep you two away but... I suppose, lovebirds find ways to get back to each other, don't they? I'm sorry child, but I know now that I shouldn't have kept you two apart. But what should I have done?"
"I did the mistake of bringing a lovely, sweet girl into the family once. Arnav's mother. And I regretted it, Khushi. I didn't want to repeat the mistake. And I was afraid for you because I tried but couldn't ever make her feel comfortable. But I was so busy too. And I can't say I was ever proud of my son's action."
"Dadi - "
"Sshh, let me continue," she says as she gestures with her hand to stop, "I have a lot of regrets in life, dear. One is of not teaching my son the right lessons. We let the wealth spoil him. But my grandchildren are different. I suppose Anjali is taking her father's path. But my Arnav...Arnav is a gem. He's been a difficult child, a rebel, in fact still is one. But that's just his facade."
"Even now I won't allow him to marry you if I get to know that he'd turn out like his father later in life. But in my heart I know, my grandson is different. And if he raises a hand at you, Khushi, I swear one complaint from you and he'd be in trouble. And I mean it."
"He won't, dadi." She says wiping her tears, "I know he won't."
"The society people would talk. Are you ready to face them?" Dadi asks as she folds her legs like a lady and straightens her spine like she's never seen an old woman of her age do, her white hair, pearl necklace and the blue silk saree screaming grace, elegance and dignity. If dadi can deal with society so well, run a huge company alone, why can't Khushi, her goddaughter? Especially when she has her man by her side, a man who loves her.
Khushi finds herself nodding in reply. "I'm ready."
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She sees their feet first, two pairs of tiny, naked feet walking side by side on an old creaky, wooden floor.
The recognises the place. It's oddly familiar but she cannot pinpoint.
She wonder if it's her and her sister's feet. It must be for she hears their mother voice then. It is sunset time already? They must go home.
The owners of the feet giggle and break into a run. She immediately recognises the house as she follows the tiny pairs of feet. She walks slowly. There's clinking of tea cup.
It's old and dusty around, she notices. It's the same house where she and her sister used to run off to after school, the same house which stood at the top of the hill, the cosy house with colonial architecture. It belonged to a British hunter, her father used to say.
She looks down at the floor. There's a third pair of feet. It's her's, Khushi's.
"Slow down, you two. And go to the verandah. Your father is already there. It's sunset time."
She is confused. For it's not her mother's voice at all. It's hers, Khushi's. Her mother would never say that.
The tiny feet are not her's and Payal's, she realises. And that's when the she looks up to the owners of the tiny feet.
Two little girls. They're beautiful. She knows who they belong to. It's hard to miss the similarities.
She sees them running and follow them until they reach the fourth pair of feet and watch them crawl up the tall, lean body. She recognises the figure. Arnav's.
She looks up, "aah, tea," he says. "Come, come it's almost sunset time."
"Can we have tea too?" The little girls say. Their girls.
"No, little kids don't have tea. But look here, we've got chocolate milk for you."
In the next moment they're all sitting on wooden chairs sipping their drinks.
The sky is beautiful. Just like perfection. It's hard to define.
"It's beautiful here. I never want to go back." Arnav says as he turns to look at her. His eyes have golden glitter in them, she thinks, but it's probably because of the bright, setting sun.
It's when the morning sun hits her face, that she wakes up stretching and finds Arnav sleeping next to her on the hospital bed, his leg and arm wrapped around her.
It was a dream!
And for the first time in ages she feels that perhaps reality after a good dream was not quite bad too.
Her stare wakes him up as he smiles sleepily, the sun making his eyes scrunch adorably.
"I saw a very nice dream." She says as she fully turns towards him and cups his face, her thumb creating patterns on his skin.
"Want to tell me about it?" He says leaning forward just a little to peck her on the lips.
But a peck isn't enough as she now leans back to for another peck and a slow kiss taking care not to hurt him where he's cut. She soothes his lips with her tongue before he pulls her more towards her and his tongue now invades her mouth for a dual with hers.
When she pulls away, his lips are beautifully wet and pink and she can't help but chuckle and wipe his lips with her hand as he takes the opportunity to drop kisses on her palm. The heat slowly rising more and more with his each kiss on her palm, she pulls her hand away when she can't take it anymore. They are in the hospital after all.
"Sorry got carried away." He says boyishly and she can't help but drop another kiss on his cheek as she wraps her arm around his torso and narrates her dream.
And when she's done he conveniently falls back asleep as if to continue dreaming her dream. "Life is going to be good," she whispers, one hand against her tummy and the other reaching up to his soft, wavy hair to touch and caress.
"Hmm," he agrees in his sleep as his hand joins her, fingers interlacing against her tummy.
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A/N: Thanks for being with me for this story guys. And thanks to all those who took out time to like, comment, scrap or message here or on the blog. Really apprecite it!
Lily
Edited by Lilypop - 9 years ago
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