*Hi,
What's with the rapid-fast updates you ask? Well, this story is killing me. I can't think of anything else, so I am writing this quickly!
Complain about the speed all you want, but please complain softly 😛
Happy reading!
-TK*
Chapter 14
"Where are you? Where's Trishna and Madhu?" RK barked as soon as he picked up the phone.
"I am with Trishna madam. She fell asleep in the car." The driver answered, a tad scared of RK's temper.
"Oh, that's why she's not picking up her phone. She is the car?"
"Yes sir."
"And where's Madhu?"
"She just went inside. We're outside St. Andrew's boarding school."
"Okay. Stay there. I am coming there. Tell Trishna if she wakes up to call me."
*******************************************************
"Didi" Manav ran towards Madhu as soon as he spotted her in the lobby. Madhu and Trishna had both gone to the spa from the cafe, but after some time, Trishna said she was bored and proposed that she would come along with Madhu and wait in the car. Madhu protested but it was hard to protest against Trishna, so they had both driven here. Trishna had fallen asleep even before they got here though, so Madhu didn't disturb her and walked inside the school after instructing the driver to take care of Trishna. She wished she had carried the cell phone Rishabh had given her along to the trip so she could inform him, but she hoped Trishna would wake up in a few minutes anyway and it would be ok.
Madhu had never been to Manav's school. Mukund had picked it since he claimed he knew some officials at school, and although it wasn't the fanciest school in the area, at that time it seemed like a great option, especially because Madhu wanted to shelter Manav from the rumors of her town. Now, as she waited in the lobby for Manav to be called, she wondered if that had been a good choice. Manav being away had probably saved him, but here he was also out of Madhu's sight and at a place Mukund had knowledge and possibly even access to. How she wished she could transfer him away to someplace safe! Maybe she could ask RK, maybe he would help, Madhu wondered, but then realized RK knew nothing about Manav or Mukund or her past. Could she share some part of it with him and get his help? Would he believe her and help her? Could she really trust him?
"Didi" Manav screamed and embraced Madhu, and she in turn hugged him tight as well, deciding to think about that later
"How are you?" she asked him even as tears automatically streamed off her eyes. Manav looked taller and happier than she remembered.
"I am great. How are you didi? Why haven't you visited me in all these months? And why did you tell me in your letter I can't call you or come to you? And where's Jijaji?" Manav bombarded Madhu with questions in all his excitement.
"Didn't Mukund jiju come with you?" Manav asked, and the question opened up a flood of pain for Madhu. She had given Mukund her heart, her trust, and he...
Madhu shuddered and her eyes turned red as she recollected everything that had happened. She had been terrified and heartbroken at the same time. She had begged Mukund to spare her, and he had instead tried to gang-rape...
Pulling her thoughts away to the present, she tried to focus on Manav. He didn't know everything that had happened, and obviously still believed Mukund was the friendly neighbor who had given them shelter and support after their father's death, and who Madhu was going to eventually marry.
"No Manav. Listen...Mukund...he is not a part of our lives anymore. In fact, if he ever comes here, I want you to not come in front of him or talk to him come what may. You understand?" Madhu sternly explained to Manav.
"What? Why?" Manav asked, shocked at Madhu's emotionless statement.
"I can't tell you all that. Just trust me, please. You're all I have. I love you very much and one day very soon I will arrange for you to get out of this school. But you must be alert and take care of yourself ok? Please?"
"Leave this school? What's wrong with you didi? This is the best school I have ever been to. This is not like our town. And I have so many friends here. I am not going anywhere."
"Stop being stubborn Manav." Madhu screamed irritably, trying hard to not get angry at her brother while keeping her emotions in control. Unlike Madhu, Manav had always had a temper, even as a kid. Perhaps he had inherited it from their father. Even though his anger usually disappeared quickly, he did get outraged very easily and therefore Madhu had always adopted a calm, gentle approach with him to make him understand things. Except today.
"You will do as I say. This place is not safe. Understand? You have to do as I say." Madhu was stern.
"Why? What's wrong? Tell me didi, what happened? There has to be a reason."
"Nothing happened. Don't forget I am elder than you. I am all you have ok? Just do as I say. Please Manav, it's for your benefit. Please believe me. I love you."
"You don't care about me!" Manav screamed and pushed Madhu away, his teenage mind unable to grasp why his sister was behaving so weirdly. She had never talked in this way with him, commanding and vague.
"You have changed didi! You left the man who saved us and now want me to not even talk to him? You forgot what Mukund bhaiya did for both of us after baapu died? You forgot how much he loved you? How ungrateful can you be!"
"Manav!" Madhu screamed in anger and almost slapped Manav, but stopped herself at the last instant, her hand stuck in the air. Manav's gift that she had been holding in her fist fell down on the ground. Mukund and love had no business being spoken of together in the same sentence. He was not the man they had both believed him to be. She wished there was a way for her to explain the truth to Manav without destroying his innocence. She wished she had never trusted Mukund in the first place - that man had ruined every dream she ever had.
"Hit me! Just because I am saying the truth you'll hit me. You're not my sister. You're not my Madhu di."
"Manav, please understand. There are things you don't know." Madhu pleaded.
"Then tell me!" he yelled, but Madhu stayed quiet.
"You've changed didi. You don't care about me or Mukund bhaiya any more. You're clearly happy in your new life, wearing expensive clothes and what not?" Manav jeered, pointing at Madhu's expensive-looking anarkali suit and the bangles in her hand.
Madhu took a deep breathe and tried to calm down. Manav was all she had, and no matter how much his words were hurting her, she couldn't lose him. She had to try again.
"Manav, my little darling, listen to your didi please" she stepped up close to Manav, held his cheeks with both her hands and spoke as sweetly as she could manage, but Manav, still angry, slapped her wrist away, unwilling to be pacified. A few of the bangles in Madhu's hand broke with the impact, immediately drawing blood.
"Didi!"
"Madhu!"
Two voices spoke out of concern and unison as Madhu hissed in pain. The second voice made both Madhu and Manav turn towards the source. RK stood there outside, about 20 feet away from the door of the hall, from where he had clearly seen and heard the last bit of the conversation, starting from when Manav was pointing accusingly at Madhu's clothes.
Manav, whose first instinct had been of guilt and concern as he spotted the blood, looked at RK and backed off.
"Who's he?" He asked, then looked at RK's expensive suit. "So is that why you left Mukund bhaiya even after everything he did for us? For him? For his money?" he added.
"Shut up Manav! He's my...umm...my boss."
"At what? You are a teacher right?"
"Umm...I..."Madhu struggled to explain what her job was. It wasn't like she could speak the truth.
"Save it. I am going. I don't want to talk to you until you tell me the truth. You go back to your...boss. I am leaving. And yes, I am not moving out of this school. If you don't pay my fee, I will call bhaiya myself. I am sure he still cares about me even though you clearly don't. Or I will earn it myself." Manav shouted and turned to leave.
"Manav!" Madhu called again, but Manav didn't stop, leaving behind a bawling Madhu.
"I never want to see you again." he yelled from the stairs, and Madhu's heart almost stopped. She had lost her brother, hadn't she?
RK watched as all life drained out of Madhu's face. He had taken a few steps closer to them but was still standing outside. RK saw an indescribable pain of the kind he had never seen before creep up on Madhu's face. He didn't quite fathom it, but for some reason, he could feel a deep ache inside his own heart as well. He had only heard a part of Manav and Madhu's exchange as he had come inside the school to check if she was fine one he realized Trishna was still asleep outside in the car.
Those brief moments split RK. On one hand, alarm bells were ringing in RK's brains. The boy had sounded hurt and betrayed, and accused Madhu of chasing after money. That sounded eerily familiar and extremely uncomfortable. as it resonated with the pattern of gold-digging women he was himself so well-versed with. Yet, something within him protested, that accusation didn't really feel justifiable for the Madhu he had come to know in the last three months. Or, well, the rest of him questioned, did he know the real Madhu at all? He obviously did not know everything about her and also, her own brother would definitely know her better than he did.
On the other hand, away from all this conflict in the head, were RK's eyes, his limbs and his body seemingly running by themselves. RK's eyes were captivated by a broken Madhu who was walking out of the hall, lifeless and dazed. She was walking towards him but not really towards him. She look like she had been hit by a lightning, and a deep ache erupted inside RK that pushed him towards her even as his mind was an a different, unaligned plane, trying to assimilate the situation and order the body to comply. He took a few steps towards her, and then his vision blurred. Neither Madhu and RK had yet erupted with the pain inside him, but it seemed as if the Panchgani clouds could not hold on any longer. RK blinked, for the first time since Manav had left, and the next second his eyes saw Madhu falling to the ground. His hands and legs acted on its own and somehow, he had caught her before she fell. He held her, then hugged her tight, and instantly the unresolved conflict in his head quietened down and the splitting halted.
The rain saved him.
Her arms were on RK's chest and her face was caught between them. By the time Madhu looked up and registered RK was holding her, she was prepared for the avalanche of pain to really hit her. She didn't see the questions and accusations in RK's eyes that were there not moments ago. She was drowning, and all she saw was RK as the straw. She held on to him as she broke down.
The rain saved her.
"Madhu" he whispered as he felt her intractable sobs give way to a bursting dam. Lightning was followed by thunder, and somewhere amidst all that RK heard - but did not fully register - the three words on Madhu's lips that she was mumbling.
"He sold me!"
"Madhu" he whispered again, and parted a little, holding her chin up so she could face him.
"Madhu!" she heard him say, as she suddenly snapped out of the darkness that was killing her. She stepped away, realizing that she'd broken down in front of RK, that she'd let him in with a foot in the door to her inner hell.
She stepped further back, but RK held her by the wrist to steady her. His hand was directly above where her arm was still bleeding from the broken bangle. She winced, drawing both their attention to the wound.
"Let's leave" they both said in unison. He because he was anguished by her pain. She because he was completely drenched in the rain.
Wordless, but hand in hand, they walked back outside towards the car.
The rain saved them.
Toofan to aana hai, aakar chala jaana hai
Baadal hai ye do pal ka, chhakar dhal jaana hai
Parchhaiyan reh jaati, reh jaati nishaani hai
************************************
"Chhiii" RK sneezed for the fifth time in the last two minutes. They were in the car now, on their way back.
Trishna, who had woken up as they returned, fretted "Oh my God bhai, you are getting sick. How did you both get this drenched?"
"It's rains in the hills Trish. It's ok. Chhiii" RK tried to pacify her.
"What ok? You're sneezing and Madhu is almost shivering."
RK looked back at Trishna's comment and saw that Madhu indeed had a small shiver, but he realized it was probably as much pain as it was the cold. The rain had clearly helped her recover, especially in front of Trishna, but RK could clearly see she was trying hard to compose herself.
"I am ok" Madhu echoed RK, but her voice was weak and labored, convincing RK of the turmoil she was trying so hard to hide.
"What ok? You're both delusional. Can't you guys see what's right in front of you?" Trish screamed looking a Madhu.
"Bhai, you're both going to get sick. You need to get out of these wet clothes."
"We don't have change of clothes in the car. Anyway, it's ok."
"No, it's not. Driver bhaiya, can you stop at the next restaurant? We'll see what we can do. Anyway, the rain is heavy. It's not safe to drive."
"Yes ma'am." the driver answered, and nobody else protested. An angry Trishna was apparently almost as bad as an angry RK.
They dried their hair and feet as much as possible at the restaurant, but neither RK nor Madhu ate much. Trishna noticed that they were both extremely quiet and restless. In particular, they didn't seem to talk to each other at all. She could understand RK - he was never a very expressive person- but Madhu looked nowhere as happy as she had all day and Trishna worried about what had transpired while she was asleep. But Madhu had only gone to meet her brother. What could have happened? Was her brother unwell? Was she just missing him?
As they all walked back to the car, Madhu walked towards the front and started to sit on the passenger seat.
"What are you doing?" RK asked.
"Rishabh ji..um...I'll sit here. You sit at the back. You're getting a cold and the direct AC draft in the front seat will make it worse."
"There's no need..."he started to protest.
"No, there is need." Trishna interrupted. "Madhu is right. Neither of you should be sitting on the front seat."
"But..."
Trishna cut Madhu down as well "But nothing. You're both still wet. I am sitting on the front seat. Come on!"
"Trish this is..."RK tried
"...not unnecessary. Why do you have to fight about everything? Just go sit at the back."
The drive through the night back to the city was mostly silent. Rain thrashed against the car windows like the thoughts of the three of them thrashed inside their mind. Trishna in particular worried about how stubborn her big brother was. All the time spent with him over the last 24 hours had convinced her that he was still battling his demons inside and that he wasn't going to easily share or open up. An hour later, she looked at the rear seat and saw both RK and Madhu deep in asleep. The car turned at a curve and Madhu nestled against RK's shoulder, who in turn wrapped his arm casually around her and rested his head over hers. Trishna watched their breathes rise and fall comfortably in unison and decided to quit worrying.
Maybe, there was hope.
Kuch paakar khona hai, kuch khokar paana hai
Jeewan ka matlab to, aana aur jaana hai
Do pal ke jeewan se, ek umr churani hai
Zindagi aur kuch bhi nahi, teri meri kahaani hai
Edited by teekay - 9 years ago
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