ArHi: Starlight and Moonshine: #16, Pg 54, 29 July - Page 30

Intriguing...need to read more😉

The woman and her son is a mystery . They have planned to go back home . Since the names are not revealed i am curious to know who are they ?

Is that akash n chaya ...

this is chaya naa... n her son is the one khushi n arnav r luking fr???

Wow too many emotions in there

i have to read it again..is it khushi's mum

15: Swati: The Sword/Independence

"...and she hasn't spoken at all since weekend and hasn't come out of her room."

Arnav rubs his forehead tired as choking Garima demands to know why her daughter, Khushi, has become a silent corpse.

"What happened Arnav?" Garima begs to know the thing that has left her daughter in a catatonic state.

Arnav sighs. "Did she tell you where we went?"

"She said you were taking her for a long drive and a picnic. She said you stayed overnight because the two of you wanted to hike early next morning." Garima answers, confused.

Arnav sighs again. "Is it okay if I come over now? Its best done in person." He requests.

It's midafternoon when he arrives at Gupta household. "She isn't talking to us." Garima says the moment she sees him.

"We need to talk," he says simply and walks in. He sees rest of the family waiting for him in the living room. He wonders how he ended up being the person to break this news when it was Khushi's to share.

"Khushi found out last weekend that her mother, Chaya, died six months ago battling breast cancer." Arnav says without any preamble and lets his words settle.

Garima breaks first, followed by Shashi. Payal stares at her parents.

"So you lied. All these years. Again." Payal is oddly calm when she turns her accusatory glare on her parents. "Khushi wasn't being paranoid, was she?" When Garima chokes out a sob, Payal rises her voice a notch. "Now isn't the time for regret ma. Just give us answers and we can move on from this shit storm soon."

"I promised Chaya." Garima says. "She wanted a new start and -"

"She didn't want a baggage. Me." Garima whips around to see Khushi standing behind them with sunken eyes and a broken expression. "Explains a lot, actually." The callousness in her voice startles her family.

"It doesn't. But that's a decision Chaya had to live with." Garima tries explaining. "She wasn't in a good place at that time Khushi. She had lost your father and she was alone."

Khushi looks at Garima blankly making her mother flinch in response. "Yeah. I am sure it was a real difficult decision for Chaya to make."

"It was." Garima said strongly. Shashi nodded, silently adding his own affirmation to the action.

Khushi smiles a smile that has no humor, mirth or joy. It's a smile of defeat and Arnav is saddened by it.

"Since I have no way of knowing her motivations anymore I will take your word for it." It is said in such a nonchalant offhanded way that Garima and Shashi look aghast at that. Payal chooses to stay quiet and mutely hold a resolute expression.

"We didn't mean for this to happen Khushi." Garima consoles. "Chaya wanted -"

"It's okay." Khushi interrupts. She shrugs as if the weight of the world is that of a feather. "It is what it is. Now I have to live with the consequences."

Garima makes sound of a wounded animal. Its rawness troubles Arnav while Khushi's nonchalance scares him.

"Will you drop me to work? It's been five days already," Khushi turns and asks him.

Arnav silently nods. Khushi walks back to her room without another word.

The room collectively lets out a breath. "This is bad." Payal says after several moments of stretched silence. Arnav looks at her quizzically. "This is how Khushi shuts down. She is polite, indifferent and excessively quiet." Arnav frowns and wonders how that might look like. As if reading his mind Payal snorts. "Exactly. Its unimaginable. Her rage is in her quietness. The violence in her mind is her politeness. She becomes this f**king shell of a person who display no emotion, is constantly submissive and never initiates any conversation. This isn't Khushi taking revenge Arnav. This is Khushi being f**king enraged."

"Oh." Arnav says unintelligently.

Payal laughs mirthlessly and turns to her parents. "Just wait it out ma. Don't offer any more explanations. She won't hear them the way you intend. She will misread, misinterpret and misunderstand. She is mourning for a mother she never knew she had. Allow her the space to grieve. Once she comes back to us, we can all sit and talk."

Payal watches her parents who look suddenly aged. She knows it isn't anyone's fault. But there are consequences that people have to live with.

It's the way universe f**ks with people.

Res

This one was pure fury - In Khushi's words, Payal's wise understanding of her sister (cousin - however they refer to each other), Garima's helplessness and Arnav's fear

I couldn't however, ignore the parallel between the one before though. The silence outside and the violence within. It's not unintentional, isn't it?

Warm? Cold? Hot?

Inder Chandra...The stars are converging?

Res

Loved part 15👏