'Haqeeqat': MADI ff,p.30(utd 10/05) END - Page 21

Recap: She stood staring into his back. His built frame was hidden by the worn denims accompanied by the black of his jacket… his hands rested calmly in his pockets, while the breeze ruffled through his hair. She could feel the intensity build in the air and was getting increasingly afraid of the unspoken between them. "Adi…" she began, but the words left her as she felt herself pushed against a large boulder. Looking straight, she felt her heart pound incessantly against her chest as she faced his fervent gaze…

Part 9

As his eyes seared through hers, her mind went blank. He seemed to have consumed her abilities, as she stood motionless in his grasp… void of feeling anything, but his presence. She knew though better, than to look into those eyes... but she felt them glued to his face, while she drifted of control. Had it not been for the involuntary numbness, perhaps the pain would shoot up her arm from his increasingly tight grasp… but the ache held no sway in the midst of the moment. Suddenly, she felt the hold on her loosen as he turned away… again facing the open ocean… now surging with vicious waves victimizing the drenching sands. The sound of seagulls crowing in the skies as they made their way eastward lingered lightly in the air… but it was a feeble match to the increasingly vehement ruffles of water. She stared intently at his back, her body still pressed into the solid rock behind… unable to free herself from the paralysis brought on by his vigorous touch. Observing him, she couldn't help but notice his ruggedness once more… There was nothing soft about him, he was a ticking bomb… and she was his helpless victim.

Her eyes moved from his rigid figure towards the thundering seas. It suddenly struck her… how much they were alike… the ocean and him… so filled with intensity… a passion unfathomable… They could be fierce as ever, yet still… they soothed the soul… Or so he had affected her. Shaking the thought away, she tried to picture her and Praney walking along the shores… But his sturdy figurine blocked her view, and all she could catch was a blurry picture of herself. As he turned, she watched his long, masculine fingers rake through his dark mane. His eyes were an equally pitch, if not darker… Their glance clogged the passage of anything else coming her way. Fervently, he came to her again… holding her roughly by the shoulders… and letting go… When he turned towards her now, she felt a tinge of fear spark within. It was not fear of him… but the immeasurable fervour overpowering him. "What the hell have you done to me?!" he roared in a barely audible whisper… She felt his voice resound through her being as he stared into her eyes… his nose touching hers. Her lips began to quiver as she saw him like this… a mess… The question left her perplexed. What had she done? She knew not… Feeling his hands cup her face, as they brought it close to his… she could feel the tears threaten her waning composure. His forehead pressed against hers, and she felt the urge to surrender herself, but then her thoughts went down memory lane…

{Flashback}

She stood silently in the far corner of the still room. Her thoughts had outdone her, and now she stared blankly through the window. Mumbai traffic rolled on oblivious to anything beyond the moment. Such a strange place it was, she had often wondered. People came here constantly, and the place had the capacity to make… or break. "Maithali beta?" A stoic expression garnished her face as she turned to acknowledge the presence of Parvati Agarwal. "Parvati Mamma?" she whispered in a low voice.

The latter observed her for an excruciating minute, and she felt the urge to hide herself in Parvati's arms. "Maithali, main ye nahin kahoongi… ke main tumhara dard samajh sakti hoon… Haan, lekin uss halat ka ehsaas hai mujhe." (Maithali, I won't say… that I understand your pain… But, I can fathom the feeling). She watched as the motherly figure came to her side, a distant expression on her face. Parvati looked at the end of her pallu entwined in her fingers before continuing, "… main bhi kayi saal pehle iss daur se guzar chuki hoon… Shru… Shruti ka… bhai…" (… I too have wen through such times… Shru… Shruti's… brother…). She stared patiently as the wised woman's voice broke off. After a pause, Parvati composed herself as though nothing had happened. A smile playing lightly on her lips, she brought and affectionate hand to Maithali's cheek. "Beta, main tumse kuch nahin poochoongi [about the father of Maithali's child]… lekin tumse kuch maangna chahti hoon… do gi?" (Dear, I will not ask you about anything… but would like to ask you for something… will you?).

She stared at the woman afore – Parvati Agarwal – a woman of virtue and love. After many hurdles, she had overcome her enemy in the name of Trishna dadi and emerged a stronger pillar to the Agarwal family, who doted upon her. She recalled how Parvati had helped her father in times of need and funded her brother's operation for his legs. For however long this life was, she was indebted to Parvati forever. "Boliye na Mamma," she encouraged with a small smile. The latter smiled and clasped her hands together, "Beta, tum toh jaanti ho ke Mallishka ne Praney ko kitna bada dhoka diya. Usse toh Praney ke paison ke ilava kuch nahin chahiye tah, aur jab usse maloom pada ke maine paanch sau kadod tumhaare naam kar diye hain, toh wohe Praney ka istimaal karke sab cheena chahti teeh… Beta, baat yahan paison ki nahin hai… par uss chahat ki hai… joh shayad kabhi tumhaare dil mein Praney ke liye teeh. Wohe tumhaari bhavnao se waakif hai…" (Dear, you are fully aware of how Mallishka betrayed Praney. She used wanted nothing but Praney's money, and when she learned that I had transferred the 500 mil in your name, she wanted to use Praney to get it all… But dear, money is not the factor here… what matters here are the feelings… the feelings which perhaps you had at one point for Praney. He is aware of those feelings…). She waited patiently as Parvati paused before continuing. Parvati, "Beta, Praney toot chukka hai… Kya tum usse sambhalo gi?" (Dear, Praney has broken apart… Will you take care of him?). She stared at Parvati dumfounded, as the request pounded through her head. It came as a wonder as to how long she had desired for this moment… like a desert wanderer in search of water… and now, when it was coming to reality… she felt as though a stone to the words… hoping for it to be a dream. Why? She still could not fully explain, but she knew now… that whenever she thought of Praney now, there was none of the previous felt mixed in… and his thoughts were always overpowered by another… But she was lost, confused… indebted… Giving a meek nod of her head, she felt herself being taken into a warm embrace. Closing her eyes, she felt the single tear fall silently down her cheek…

(End Flashback)

She opened her eyes, startled at her behaviour. Consciously, she pulled away from his grasp and averted his eyes. She could feel his eyes question her and her lips knew no answers… Taking a deep breath, she looked at him, still standing rigidly… a few inches from her. "Adi… main Praney se…" She looked up at him surprised as his three fingers hushed her lips. "… Tum Praney se shaadi nahin kar sakti Maithali…" (… You can't get married to Praney, Maithali…). His hardness seemed to fade into a strange calm… as his fingers lifted from her lips… gently moving away straying strands of hair from her face. "Tum sirf meri ho…"(You belong only to me…) he stared deeply into her eyes… his confidence implying a definite tone. Moments went by as his voice registered… Abruptly, she pushed him away from her and stood with her back to his face. "Adi, main Praney ki…" (Adi, Praney and I) … "Kabhi nahin ho sakti," (Will never be together) he completed. She turned now to face him, her face hard with anger at his show of arrogance. The rumours of him she had heard, felt untrue… yet it mattered not now, as she had given her word. "Main Praney se shaadi kar rahi hoon, Mr. Vikram Aditya Mehra… aur iss baat ke liye, mujhe aapki ijazzat nahin chahiye," (I am getting married to Praney, Mr. Vikram Aditya Mehra… and do not require your permission for this) she stated in a defying tone. With a hard glare, she turned to walk away… stopping at his words. "Kwaabon ke peechey kyun bhaag rahi ho Maithali… Haqeeqat pe koi parda nahin hai…" (Why are you running after dreams Maithali… Reality bears no veil…). He was right, and she knew it… but she was unable to move from her word. After a pause, she continued...

***

"Chalo na Maithali… shaadi se pehle ye tumhaari aakhri party hai, iss maukey ka luft utao!" (Come on Maithali… this is your last party before you get married, make the most of it!) She tried prying an eager Pragati's hand off of her arm, while her eyes pleaded to her best friend. "Pragati, mujhe ye sab acha nahin lag…" (Pragati, I don't like these thin…) her voice was droned by the entrance of Tannu, Bharat, Ronit and Praney, who were engaged in an argument. "Maithali, tum shaadi par kaunsa rang pehnogi… pink na?" (Maithali, what colour will you wear at your wedding… pink right?), suggested a determined Praney. "Eww no ways! Pink kitna overused hai... Maithali toh kuch alag pehngi… Hmmm… blue!" (Eww no ways! Pink is such an overused colour… Maithali will wear something different… Hmmm… blue!" Tannu pitched in with a bright smile. Bharat gave a negative in the shake of his head… "I say… something more elegant… kyun na ek deep green…" The argument again burst into flames as the trio was joined by a firm Pragati who seemed bent on a mixture of blue and green.

"Kehte hain laal rang pyar ka prateek hota hai… uspe tohra champagne daal do, toh rang mein jaan mil jaaye…" (They say that red symbolizes love… and if you add some champagne to it, then the colour comes alive…)… Silence… All turned their heads toward the entrance, from which the voice had come… "Adi!... Kahan tehe tum… kabse tumhara intezaar ho raha hai," (Adi!... Where the heck have you been… we've been waiting for you for so long now) stated an instantly cool Praney. She watched as Adi greeted Praney with a buddy-type handshake, his eyes never leaving her. It was nice to see the previously arch enemies now address each other as friends, she was glad they had moved above their differences... or so it seemed. Seeing him take long, slow strides towards her she felt her heart beat come to a standstill, as the perspiration tingled on her forehead. With an arm casually draped across Praney's shoulder, and the other extending to where his hand lay in his pockets, he stared at her intently while coming forward. She silently cursed herself for becoming so vulnerable in his presence and in the next second, she thanked the lord as he stopped a few steps away. "Kyun Maithali... tumhe kya lagta hai, iss dulhan ko kis rang mein dhalla jaaye...?" (So Maithali... What do you think, what colour should we shade this bride in...?). Having previously averted his gaze, she now lifted her eyes to match his, clearly aware of the impish glint within them. Just as she opened her mindless mouth, Praney spoke, "Mujhe Adi ka idea acha laga... aur Maithali wohi pehnegi joh uske duhley ko pasand ho" (I like Adi's idea... and Maithali will wear what her groom likes). She turned her attention back towards him, her eyes wide as he left the room with Praney, but not without turning his head slightly... as he gave a wink, and exited...

Cheers,

dc