Recap: Heartstrings - Part I
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The next morning, Raavi woke up with a heavy heart! She realized what good news Dhara was talking about when she brought her the lehnga! She felt so ashamed of herself for being rude to Dhara and everyone else in the Pandya family, her family. She got mad at Shiva, too. If he hadn’t been such a jerk, none of this would have happened. Even though she loved Shiva, she still couldn’t forgive him for his harsh words. As his rude behavior towards her and his actions last night played side-by-side, she realized that she was missing something! Shiva had been hating her since childhood, but he had never ever questioned her character before, and he wouldn’t leave her so ruthlessly or else he would’ve let her die in that Khandar. Something didn’t seem right. But she decided to focus on that later. For now, she had to apologize to Dhara and Gaumbi for her own misbehavior. And so, she got up and got ready to accept her mistakes and her punishment.
Shiva’s morning started with a heavy heart, too. Even though he was much relieved knowing that Raavi was with him now, he still felt guilty for the way he had behaved. Even though he thought his reasons were justified, he had still hurt her and questioned her character in front of everyone. He knew that before anything else, he needed to apologize to her. But it wasn’t going to be easy; a simple sorry wouldn’t work. He needed to accept his mistakes and his punishment publicly just as Raavi had to endure his insults in front of everyone. And so, he got up and got ready to repent for his mistakes, which by now seemed like sins, and face his punishments.
Dhara and Gautam came downstairs and saw Dev, Rishita, & Krish playfully working in the kitchen. Suman was sitting on the swing drinking her tea just as Rishita brought breakfast for her. Dhara saw that Rishita was ready to go to work but she was doing everything she could to make sure that the house was taken care of before she left. She saw Dev helping Rishita and felt relieved knowing that the house and her family will be taken care of after she was gone. The realization of her situation brought tears to her eyes, but she quickly wiped it before anyone could notice. However, Gautam did notice, and he felt a knife twist in his heart. All he could do is put an arm around Dhara’s shoulder and try to be her strength. Just then Rishita saw them and wished them good morning. As they sat down near Suman, Rishita brought them tea and breakfast and started serving them.
Dhara put a hand on Rishita’s head and said, “Ab tu sach mein iss ghar ki bahu lag rahi hai!” and smiled.
Rishita faked a frown and said, “Lag rahi hu? Mein iss ghar ki bahu hu Dhara Bhabhi!”
Dhara lovingly nodded and hugged her. She fed Rishita the breakfast and Dev and Krish joked that Dhara doesn’t love them like before anymore as her new favorite is Rishita. Dhara chided them lovingly and fed them, too.
Shiva came there and looked at Dhara.
Seeing him she said, “Tu bhi aaja! Aaj tujhe bhi khilaati hu!”
He sat down on the floor next to her as she fed him. He looked at her saddened smile and wanted to cry and hug her. He wanted to tell her not worry as he wouldn’t let anything happen to her but seeing her so content with them, he couldn’t.
Rishita said, “Bhabhi, aaj mujhe aane mein thodi der ho jaaegi. Ek training session hai jo mujhe attend karna hai. Aap bas aaj ka dinner dekh loge?”
Dhara smiled at her and assured her not to worry. Suman’s face said that she wanted to protest but Dhara interjected and said that she would handle it and glancing at Shiva she said, “Aaj agar Raavi hoti toh kisi ko tension nahi leni padti!”
Shiva guiltily looked away when Dhara added, “Raavi ki bohot yaad aati hai!”
Krish said, “Hum sabko Raavi Bhabhi ki bohot yaad aati hai. Jabse woh gai hai, aisa lagta hai jaise saari masti chali gai hai iss ghar se!”
Dhara sighed. For a moment, the entire house fell quiet.
And the next moment, the silence was shattered, and they heard,“Dhara Di!”
They all turned towards the door and saw Raavi standing there, tears rolling from her eyes. At first Shiva got worried seeing her crying but as he looked into her eyes, he knew she came to apologize to Dhara and Gaumbi. Everyone else got worried, too. They got up and Dhara walked to the front.
“Raavi, kya hua? Tu theek toh hai?” It was enough to get her feet flying as Raavi ran to Dhara and hugged her and cried. Dhara got worried and so did everyone else.
“Raavi kya hua?” Rishita asked rushing to her side.
But Raavi couldn’t say anything. She was crying hysterically. Dhara tried to push her away and make her look at her, but Raavi was clinging on to her.
“Raavi, ae Raavi! Chod Dhara ko!” Suman said worriedly but it seemed like none of their words were falling on Raavi’s ears as she subconsciously fell to the floor holding Dhara.
“Raavi!” Dhara exclaimed and said, “Rishita ja paani leke aa!” Rishita rushed to the kitchen.
Dhara worriedly looked at Gautam, but her eyes caught Shiva. He was standing there looking at her and Raavi as if he knew what was happening.
She said, “Shiva! Kya kiya tune?”
“Bhabhi woh … “ Shiva said, his voice trailing off.
“Woh kya? Dekh tu… “ but before Dhara could complete, Rishita came back with water.
In her arms Raavi was still crying like a baby. She pushed her away with all the strength she could muster and made Raavi drink water. Raavi started having hiccups as she gasped for air. Dhara gave her some more water and wiped her tears.
When Raavi quieted down a bit, she asked again, “Raavi? Kya hua? Shiva ne kuch kaha tujhse?”
Still gasping for air, Raavi nodded no.
Gautam caressed her head and asked, “Toh kya hua hai bacche? Kyu ro rahi hai itana?”
Raavi looked at Gaumbi and held his hand and started crying again. He fetched his hand back, held her face and said, “Shh! Raavi chup! Bilkul chup!”.
Raavi quieted down again and sat up but didn’t say anything.
“Ab chup kyu hai? Bolna?” Gautam asked irritated a bit.
“Aap hi ne toh kaha “Raavi chup! Bilkul chup!”” Raavi replied innocently.
Gautam couldn’t help but chuckle at her innocence. The rest of the family smiled, too. Gautam took her by her hand and helped her stand up as Rishita and Dev helped Dhara get up. Dhara turned to Raavi and wiped the remaining tears from her face.
She looked her in the eyes and said, “Raavi please mujhe batana kya hua hai?”
Raavi saw the face of her beloved Dhara di and her heart flooded with their fond memories.
She held her ears and said, “Dhara di! Sorry! Mujhse itani badi galti kaise ho gai? Maine aapki itani insult ki! Aapki baat nahi suni!”And she started crying again.
Dhara said, “Shh! Chup! Rona bandh kar! Kya bol rahi hai tu?”
“Aap pregnant ho! Aapne mujhe bataaya kyun nahi?” She said frustrated.
Dhara looked shocked. Rishita gaped at her and the rest of the family except Shiva, who knew what was going on, seemed perplexed.
“What? Tu iss liye ro rahi thi aise phoot phoot ke?” Rishita asked annoyingly.
Raavi nodded with her red eyes and flushed face. Dhara faced palmed herself as Rishita walked to her and slapped her slightly.
“Itani si baat ke liye jaan nikaal di tune hamaari!” She said and added, “Tu bilkul paagal hai! Woh kya bulaata hai Shiva tujhe? … Haan ek number ki Gadhedi hai!”
Shiva chuckled hearing this but Gautam head slapped him.
Seeing this Raavi rebuked, “Rone ke sivaay aur koi option choda tha tum sab ne? Kissi ne mujhe bataana zaroori nahi samjha! Sab ke sab mujhe hindi serial ki vamp bante dekhte rahe!”
“Oyy! Hum kaise bataate? Tu sunti tab na! Kitani baar maine kahaa k tujhe misunderstanding ho rahi hai. Par tere sar pe toh bhoot sawaar tha!” Rishita replied angrily.
“Ha toh! Tum “misunderstanding” ka jaap jap rahi thi. Ek baar zor se bol deti ke Dhara di pregnant hai!” Raavi argued.
Rishita looked at her incredulously. “Wow! Khud kaan aur dimaag bandh karke baithi thi aur ab mujhe accuse kar rahi hai!”
“Dekh Rishita tu … “ Raavi replied but was cut off by Suman.
“Oh Maharaanio! Yeh kya laga rakha hai subha subha?” Suman scolded them and both Rishita and Raavi quieted down at once.
“Raavi! Tu yaha maafi maangne aayi hai ya hume sunna ne!” She added angrily.
“Maafi maangne! But gussa karna bhi toh mera haq hai na Kaki! Bahu hu iss ghar ki. Abhi tak divorce hua nahi hai mera aur Shiva ka. Responsibility ke jhande toh fatt se pakda dete ho aap! Ab jab haq se mujhe pata hona chahiye tha itani badi good news ke baare mein toh “Raavi tune suna nahi” ke bahaane ban rahe hai!” Raavi said in a fit of rage.
Rishita was ready with a comeback, but Suman shot her a look to stay quiet!
“Tujhe haq chahiye?” Suman asked calmly.
Raavi looked at her and got scared thinking about the way she just argued with her and hesitated.
“Bachpan se yeh Shiva tujhe pareshaan karta hai na? Kitani koshish karta tha woh tujhe ghar se baahar nikaal ne ki!? Par tujhe woh toh kya koi nahi rok paata tha! Tu khud haq se aai aur apni Dhara di ki, Gaumbi ki, aur hum sab ki apni ho gai! Aur aaj jab rishta sach mein bandh gaya, toh tujhe invitation chahiye? Ke hum aaye aur tujhe haq de? Yeh tera ghar hai, tera parivaar hai!” Suman said and, against her nature, got tears in her eyes as she added, “Hamaari bahu hone se pehle hamaari beti hai tu! Iss ghar mein mere baccho ke saath saath teri bhi hasi aur sharaaratein basi hui hai; tera bachpan basa hua hai! Ek baar apni kaki ka, apne Dhara di aur Gaumbi ka haal puchne ke liye tujhe invitation chahiye? Uss Kaagadi, Prafulla virus, ka itana zyaada asar ho gaya hai tujhpe?”
Raavi stood still! She knew that the family cared about her, but she never thought that she meant so much to them. Suman looked away wiping her tears when Raavi sat down and put her head in Suman’s lap and cried. Suman put her hand on Raavi’s head and made her look up. She kissed her on the forehead and hugged her. Dhara joined them followed by Rishita, Krish, Dev, and Gautam.
Shiva was amused as for the first time in his life he realized that his family loved Raavi from the bottom of their hearts. She was as much a part of Pandya family as him; perhaps more! He should’ve felt jealous and angry as he used to when Raavi used to barge in his house when they were kids, but he was smiling instead. As he recalled his childhood with Raavi and the good moments after their marriage, he realized why everyone loved her so much! She was adorable and earnest, she cared about everyone and everything, she found happiness in every corner of the life and spread it around, and she loved wholeheartedly. His smile, however, quickly vanished when Raavi’s tear filled face came to his mind. The way he had hurt her and made her cry hurt him with even more intensity now. He looked at her smiling face and decided to apologize to her and repent for his misdeeds first. And with that resolution, he reluctantly walked away and out of the house.
Raavi noticed Shiva leave. Still hugging everyone, when Raavi looked up, she saw a smile on Shiva’s face. She also noticed the expression of nostalgia on his face as if he was reliving their childhood and the happy moments of their marriage. But when his smile vanished and gave way to hurt and guilt, her heart said once again that Shiva’s hatred and his anger towards her wasn’t simply because she was his "Mami ki behen ki beti". Her heart replayed all their moments since their marriage, and she saw what she had been looking for all this time! The way Shiva looked at her when he killed the mosquito sitting on her face, the way he secretly admired her during their reception, and the way he had said, “Raavi mujhe tujhse kuch kehna hai … kuch dino se mujhe bohot ajeeb sa lag raha hai!” made her heart skip a beat! She saw the love and care in his eyes when he had rushed to her when the lamp fell on her foot. Even on the night he came home drunk, he wanted to say something to her but couldn’t; she couldn’t read his eyes then, but she did now. And she realized that Shiva loved her. But if he loved her, why did he push her away so ruthlessly? Raavi decided to find out the reason ASAP!
Just then Suman released them from her hug. Raavi held Suman’s hand and said, “Sorry Kaki! Mujhe khud se aa jaana chahiye tha! Mein vaada karti hu ke ab aap sab se kabhi dur nahi jaaungi!”
She looked at Dhara and Gautam and apologized once again and promised to be there for them no matter what. With that she got up and said, “Accha Di, mein chalti hu! Meri class ka time ho raha hai!”
“Kaunsi class?” Rishita inquired.
“College ki class. Maine master’s ki padhaai start ki hai!” Raavi replied.
The family was elated with the news and Dhara said, “Aree wah! Rishita ne job start ki hai aur tune padhaai!”
She lovingly hugged her two baby girls with pride and told them to excel in their fields. She glanced at Suman who had disapproval etched on her face and pleaded her to let the girls be happy. Suman reluctantly looked away without saying anything as Raavi took their leave and Rishita too left for work.
Next: Heartstrings - Part III
Shiv Shakti
