Part 5
One year later
It was Milind's and Prachi's wedding night. After the customary ragging, Prachi's brother Alaap led him to the bedroom which was decorated for the big night. Prachi decked in all her bridal finery received Milind at the door. She held his arm, shut the door and led him to their bed which was strewn with flowers. Taking in the floral aroma, he turned his sightless eyes to her and took her hand to his lips, kissing it gently. She looked down shyly.
"Prachi, what are you wearing?" he asked out of the blue, feeling the material she was wearing.
She looked at him, startled by his question.
"I'm wearing a saree."
"What type of saree? Can you describe it for me?"
"Well, it is a crimson silk saree with intricate embroidery in zari and zardosi."
"Sounds beautiful."
"It is."
"Pity then that I'll be stripping you off it in a few minutes but I'm sure you'll be even more beautiful in your birth suit," he said mischievously.
She turned red at the thought. The guy never beat around the bush, was always direct in speaking his mind. His bluntness had its own charm.
"Your face must be the colour of your saree now," he said confidently, lifting his hand to her face and softly caressing her right cheek. "You look even more beautiful when you blush."
She looked at him inquiringly.
"Are you wondering how do I know? I don't have to see you with my naked eye to know that. In my mind's eye I can see you darling and you look simply ravishing, the most beautiful girl in the world."
"Milind, I am not beautiful. I am marred," she said tearfully and took his hand to her left cheek. His fingers encountered the huge scar on it. His thoughts flew to the day of the accident.
Milind's flashback
After he rescued Prachi from the burning hospital wing, he collapsed outside it. They were both taken to another hospital in the locality. Milind's optic nerves suffered irreparable damage due to the exposure to intense light and the doctors had given up all hopes of his ever seeing again in his life. Prachi suffered burns on her arms and on her face. While the burns in her arms were not very deep and healed relatively soon, the one on her left cheek was far deeper and took time healing. After the initial burn wounds healed Milind got the best plastic surgeons in the country to attempt a reconstructive burn surgery to improve both the function and cosmetic appearance of the scar on the face. However, doctors realised that Prachi's skin had a tendency to develop keloids which are tough heaped-up scars that rises quite abruptly above the rest of the skin. Hence they advised against plastic surgery, as any surgery would only leave more scars on her skin than remove the existing ones. Steroid medication was injected directly into the scar to reduce the redness, itching and burning but they couldn't do much to remove the ugly scar.
End of flashback
Milind leant forward, gently kissed her scar and licked the salty tears.
"Sh....Darling you are even more beautiful to me because of this, for it is a sign of the depth of your love for me. It is the price you paid trying to save me, sweet heart."
"The price I paid is too small in comparison to what you did. You sacrificed your eyes for my life, Milind." Her eyes welled up again and her hot tears wet his bearded cheeks as she repeatedly kissed his closed eyes.
He wiped her tears with the palm of his hand and kissed her entire face before capturing her lips in his voluptuous ones. Prachi kissed him back with the same intensity, holding his head between her hands and running her fingers through his mane. Even as his lips locked with hers, his fingers got busy, quickly dispensing the clothes that separated them. In the absence of his sight he put his other senses to full use to imprint her image in his mind. His nose took in her fragrance; his lips and tongue tasted her; his touch memorised all the lines and curves of her body; his ears picked up her crescendo of moans indicating the effect he was having on her. She closed her eyes and gave into the sensations he was evoking. When she could not bear his assault on her senses anymore, she gently guided him in. Although he was unable to see her face, he was quick to notice her initial discomfort. He prepared to withdraw but she embraced him tightly. Her fingers dug into his muscular back as their passion and yearning for each other took over. They finally became one in body and soul.
Three years later
"Prachi, where is my tie?" shouted out Milind as he rummaged through his cupboard drawers. Normally Prachi laid out his clothes for him on the bed while he had his bath but that day she seemed to have forgotten to lay out his tie.
Prachi came running in, two-year old Ishan on one hip and a sipper on the other hand. She quickly put Ishan down on the bed, gave him the sipper and rushed to search her husband's tie for him. Sensing her presence near him, Milind circled her waist and tried to kiss her.
"Sh...behave yourself, Milind. Ishan is there in the room."
As if to announce his presence, Ishan gurgled loudly while drinking his milk.
Milind quickly let go of his wife and slowly moved towards the sound of his baby son. He bent down and feeling his little shoulders he picked him up. He caressed his curls and kissed his chubby cheeks. Ishan reached up to his father's face and pulled at his moustache.
"Ouch...You want my moush? Don't worry, son. You too will get one when you grow up." He tried to pull his little son's hand away from his moustache.
Prachi had, in the meantime, located Milind's tie.
"Here you are," she said and taking their son from him, she thrust the tie in his hands.
Seeing Milind struggle with the tie for a few minutes, she put her son back on the bed and helped him with the tie.
"What would I do without you, my darling wife," Milind said when she finished and pecked her cheek. In the meantime Ishan got off the bed and ran out, leaving behind the sipper of milk half drunk.
Prachi's attention immediately went back to her son and she ran behind him before he could reach the stairs.
Back in his room Milind counted his steps and confidently walked out. He had no problem navigating around his house and his office as long as there were no unexpected obstacles on his path. His family made sure that Ishan's toys were not lying around the house when he was around so that he does not trip over them and fall. At work he was assisted by Prachi who never left his side and Alaap who became his business partner. Prachi had given up nursing and instead devoted all her time to her husband. She learnt all the business nuances and was his eyes. After Ishan's birth, she stayed at home for a year but realising that her husband needed her more, she left Ishan in her mother's care during the day. Alaap too was of great help. While Milind made all the business plans, Alaap faithfully executed them. His wife, Suyesha was away at her mother's for the delivery of their first child.
As Milind came down the stairs holding on to the rails his mother-in-law greeted him and invited him to have his breakfast. She asked Prachi, who had just managed to get Ishan finish his milk, to sit with her husband and took her grandson from her arms. Milind started picking things from Prachi's plate, helping himself to them. Prachi smiled and slapped his hands playfully. PL noticed the banter between her daughter and her son-in-law and smiled happily. They were all blessed to have Milind in their lives. He was like another son to her, very affectionate and caring.
That evening Prachi and Milind returned from work a little early. Alaap had gone to visit his wife in his mother-in-law's place. Milind was having a shower in their room while Prachi was playing with her son in the hall when the front door bell rang. On opening the door, Prachi was surprised to see a young girl who introduced herself as Pranati Roy, a journalist who worked for a youth magazine. Inviting her in, Prachi wondered what she would want with them.
The girl, who was initially shocked to see the huge scar on Prachi's cheek, recoverd to take her seat on the sofa. Sitting opposite her with Ishan on her lap, Prachi asked her what she wanted to know. Without much ado, Pranati came straight to the point. She was doing a feature on love between real life couple for the Valentine Day Special Issue. She remembered hearing her uncle narrate this amazing story of how a young nurse and a patient went to great lengths to save each other's lives during a fire in the hospital in which he worked. On further enquiry it came to light that the girl's uncle was the man who escorted Milind out of the hospital and tried preventing him from re-entering when Milind realised Prachi had run into the burning wing. Now she wanted to cover their entire love story in her magazine.
"When did you meet your husband?"
"I met him four and a half years back when he was admitted as an accident victim with serious eye and leg injuries."
Over the next fifteen minutes she gave a brief rundown of their life with the girl taking down notes.
"Wow, your husband sacrificed his eyes inorder to save you? He must really love you very much."
"Yes, he does," boomed Milind who had come down in the meantime and asked Prachi who it was she was conversing with. After being told about the journalist who wanted to cover their story, he smiled and extended his hand. He sat down next to his wife and took his son from her. Ishan jumped up and clung to him tightly, resting his little head on his shoulder.
Pranati turned to Prachi, "If you don't mind me asking, the scar on your face..was it the result of the fire accident?"
Prachi nodded her head.
"Don't you feel bad that it has marred an otherwise beautiful face?"
"No, because the only man whose opinion I care about cannot see me. I don't care what others think of my looks."
"To me she is the most beautiful woman in the world," said Milind proudly.
"And you Sir, how do you feel not being able to see forever?"
"Who said I cannot see? I see with her eyes. There are many who are blind even when they can see, blind to the pain and agony of the people they claim to love; blind to their needs; blind to their desires. I may be physically blind but I am more aware of my wife than maybe even she is of herself. And she, in turn, is more aware of me than I am of myself."
"That is true," said Prachi. "We compliment and complete each other."
Pranati's eyes widened in amazement.
"Wow. This is true love. By the way how do you plan to celebrate Valentine's Day which is two days from today?"
"We don't plan to celebrate it. In fact we have never celebrated a single Valentine's Day in the last four years."
"Why?" wondered Pranati.
"Because for us every day is a Valentine's Day. Our love for each other keeps growing with every passing day. We don't need to wait for one day in a year to express our love," said Milind.
Pranati was very impressed with the young couple. PL had come in with refreshments just then and told her how Milind has accepted Prachi's family as his own and she would always be grateful to him for that. Milind then had to assure her that he gained as much in having such a loving family around him after living his life in solitude for more than two years. Seeing the mutual love shared among the family members, Pranati's eyes filled up with emotional tears. She then took pictures of their beautiful family and before she left she wished that their love multiply manifold in the coming years.
With his son in one arm, Milind put his other arm around his wife's waist and drawing her close to him, he kissed the top of her head as she leant against his chest. They were after all inextricably tied to each other by the invisible bonds of love.
****The End *****
Edited by Opti - 16 years ago
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
