Part 33
Prachi had walked out of her room carrying her suitcase Milind stood up and retrieved the case from her, "Maa " Prachi had tried to speak but Premlata had ignored her adressing Milind before she could utter another word. "Iska khayaal rakhna Milind aaj sey yeh tumhari zimmedaari hai, isskey Papa ney buhut pyaar sey paala hai issey or unkey baad mainey puri koshish ki hai keh issey kabhi koi dukh na ho tum bhi is baat ka khayaal rakhna." Prachi stood mutely, visibly shaken her mother had ignored for the first time in her entire life she did not recall Premlata ever giving her the cold shoulder since she had been born. More than mother and daughter they had been friends and now that beautiful bond had been broken because of a lie. Part of her wanted to tell her mother everything right down to the last detail but there was too much at stake, fresh tears graced her cheeks and she had wiped them away impassively. Milind shook his head in the affirmative reaching down to touch her feet with Prachi following suit. "Tum dono ki jodi sada salamat rahey" she had blessed them handing Preeti to Prachi who had been engrossed in stuffing her mouth with sweetmeats all this while and was extremely happy when Premlata kissed her tenderly enclosing a morsel of the sweet in her small palm.
As she stepped out of her house Prachi had cast a despairing look at it's closed doors her heart felt as if it had been torn to shreds she couldn't decide what effected her more her mother's silent acceptance of her lie or her indifference to herself. She followed Milind down the wooden stairs and in the Kompressor which had come to life as she closed the metallic door and soon sped on the tarmac road to her new abode. She gently patted Preeti who had found a few cds and proceeded to scratch marks on their surface, normally Milind would've taken them from her and placed them in the glove compartment but today he was too absorbed in his own train of thoughts. There were still Bua and Naintara to introduce Prachi to, he understood Bua would be the hardest to convince she knew Milind inside out and if she became suspicious of their marraige as an act everything would fall apart. He had to call Shashank too a lot of misunderstandings could crop up if he didn't know the truth before hand. Also he had to fix an appointment with Dr Deepa for a complete check up for Prachi's daadi he had to fulfill all his promises. He viewed Prachi from the corner of her eye who seemed oblivious of her surroundings, her cheeks were smeared and her eyes were listless she stared out of the window watching the trees rush past, her hands hugged Preeti close who did not mind being held on to. He hoped in time he would be able to restore her smile on her face one that would be true and everlasting.
As the white columned mansion loomed in view Prachi sat up straight she wiped away any traces of tears on her face and composed herself she had to play her part now and she had to play it well. They entered the garlanded doorway when she heard a raspy voice cry out "Wahiin ruk jao". Prachi shivered slightly as the owner of the voice appeared in full view she was an old woman with knotted hands and a wrinkled face, her hair and saree both were the same shade of white she walked with an ebony cane limping slightly even though she appeared feeble Prachi could see she was still very much in command of herself. Her posture was upright her manner firm and the way her grey eyes searched Prachi's countenance it scared her, Milind had noticed Prachi's face drain when Bua had approached her and automatically his hand had slipped in hers, their eyes had met and Milind's eyes had assured her gently. "Prachi yeh Bua hain meri, Chandigarh sey aayi hain or Bua yeh Prachi hai meri patni" he had introduced her to the elderly figure and both had bent down to gain her blessings touching her feet with reverence. "Jeetey raho" Bua had exclaimed rigidly touching their heads as they straightened up. Naintara had appeared then she was a bright bubbly character clad in a bright blue salwar suit that looked as if it had been purchased at a flea market. Her oiled hair was pulled in a tight braid with a vibrant ribbon woven through the ends, even in the early hours of the day it appeared as if she was set to attend a party with matching high heels and bold shades on her lips and cheeks. One look at her and Prachi understood why Milind had assented to carry on with the fake marraige idea in the first place. She was a bit clumsy too as she nearly dropped the small pot of rice she carried placing it in front of Prachi she performed the aarti for both Milind and Prachi and then urged Prachi to tip the contents of the pot . Prachi had turned to Milind when Bua had cut in "Ab kiya grahe pravesh key liye bhi pati sey ijazat maangey gi?" she had inquired acridly feeling embarassed at having been caught in the act Prachi had put out her foot and nudged the copper pot tipping the rice. As she walked forward Naintara had placed a copper plate infront of her it seemed to be filled with some red liquid, picking up her salwar a bit Prachi had stepped in it leaving crimson marks behind her as she trudged on.
So far so good Milind had thought when Ramu kaka had entered carrying Preeti who had clung on to the old servant as soon as she saw him, "Chocat!" she had exclaimed searching his shirt pocket in hope of finding one. "Detey hain bitiya ander to chalo" he had laughed carrying her inside the house. Baba and Ali had returned from their visit to the caterer and decorator smiling in bliss they had informed everyone present of the evening's party Baba had though called up Bua to inform her of Prachi's arrival beforehand. Milind could see how much all this had meant to his father whose face shone with exhileration. "Baba aap khush to haina?" he had asked dubiously and Baba had hugged him in exuberance "Khush nahin buhut khush huun" he replied kissing his forehead fondly, seeing Prachi stand beside Milind he had directed her to her room. Milind had not wanted to be there with her alone and had stayed behind on the pretext of discussing the evening's arrangements with Ali. Her luggage had been shifted there earlier and stood in a corner of the room.
Prachi stood mesmerized by the sheer size and luxurious nature of it, it looked as if it had been cut out from a designer magazine. The room was spacious done in pale oyester pink , a sleek King sized Chaplin bed made of pine solids and figueira veneers enhanced with a cherry tobacco finish adorned the north wall besides it stood a wardrobe of the same make and texture, to the south wall stood an intricately patterened dresser with a huge Belgian mirror atop. The floor was solid Italian marble with swirls of greyish streaks and a single rose patterened Persian rug was placed near the foot of the bed. A solid pine table with an upholstered pine chair stood beside the dressing table it appeared to be Milind's workplace complete with a laptop, files and ashtrays. She roved her eyes to absorb the splendour pale pink laced curtains fluttered by the huge windows a set of richly draped Caslon sofas were tucked away beside them the room spelt class right down to the French chandelier that hung from the ceiling, although it was exquisite Prachi had a feeling of profound loneliness that seemed to be etched in the room. There was not a single photograph of the occupants and not one ornament that wasn't designer made it lacked warmth and life, so this was her room for the next four months sighing she had reached for her suitcase and started unpacking her stuff.
Naintara had run in helter skelter some time later "Prachi shaam kii party main kiya pehnogi?" she had inquired breathlessly dumping herself on the large bed. "Kuch bhi" Prachi had replied frazzled by her sudden appearance. "Arey party to tumharey liye hai to phir kuch acha pehenna na, Bua ney merey liye eik red jora liya hai woh duun tumko?" she had offered "N..Nahin woh merey paas hain kaprey Naintara tum fikar nahin kero" Prachi had stammered she could well imagine Naintara's choice. Milind had come up to collect an important file he planned on going to the office some urgent affairs needed to be attended to when he saw Naintara trying to persuade Prachi to wear her red dress for the evening, Prachi looked flabbergasted and despite the tensed atmosphere Milind had smiled, she needed to be saved. Stepping in his room he had cleared his throat informing them of his presence, Naintara had risen up from her seat on the bed "Naintara main tera kiya huun?" he had asked advancing slowly towards her Naintara looked as if she'd been fed to the sharks. "Milind bhaiyya .... aaa aap to bhaiyya hain na merey" she had stammered "Good girl Naintara..... aur Prachi meri kiya hai?" He had asked again his steps still advancing in her direction his tone low. "Woh to aapki patni hain na" she had answered humbly "Excellent Naintara iss rishtey sey woh teri kiya hui?" Milind stood inches away from her his hands pocketed in his trousers as he stood boring his eyes in her trembling form "B...bhabhi" she had muttered gritting her teeth. "Aaj sey issey naam sey pukara to mujh sey bura koi nahin hoga" Milind had warned her before walking to his table and picking up the required file.
Not wishing to be interrogated or threatened further Naintara had shot out of the room in a flash. "Aap ney to dara diya ussey" Prachi had said softly "Kam az kam ab tujhey uska lal jora to nahin pehenna pareyga" he had tried to put her at ease. "Haan" she had smiled a thin watery smile. "Aap shaam main kiya pehnaingey bata dijiye main press ker dungi" she had asked him before he turned to leave "Ali dekh leyga merey kaprey" he told her walking away before stopping midway, he turned around to find her gaze at him "Abhi Saadia aayegi uske saath shopping ker lena or agar kisi cheez ki zarurat ho to mujhey call ker dena" he had stated when he heard her voice. "Aap maa ko bula lijiye woh......... merey kehney per nahin aayeingi ...... please" she had implored and his feet had been directed to her automatically. Her eyes glistened with unshed tears as she looked at him hopefully and he knew it must've taken every ounce of her energy to hold them back. "Woh aayengi Prachi yeh mera vaada hai" he had touched her face lightly and she had closed her eyes in gratitude tears fell down her cheeks in his palms "Thank you Milind.... thank you so much" she had whispered clasping his hand in her own.
😊
This one's a tribute to my loyal readers hope this makes your weekend better!
Edited by blind horizon - 17 years ago
CID
Anupamaa
Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon
