FF: Hum Tumhare Hain Sanam *Completed* EPILOGUE pg:103 13/02/2017 - Page 6

Chapter-2

O Ajnabee... Mere Ajnabee...

Na jaane tum kahan chale gaye ho...

Yaad mujhe tum kitna aa rahe ho...

Sooni si hai, dil ki gali...

O ajnabee... Mere ajnabee...

"Sonakshi... Kyu kar rahi ho ye shaadi... Main jaanta hoon tum uss Ritwick se pyaar nahi karti..." Tears trickled down Sonakshi's eyes remembering Dev's words. He understood her so well... Then why did he leave her?

Sonakshi let her tears flow after her strong constraint on her emotions when she had met him for the last time to declare that he is no one to question her- "Aap aur main ajnabee hain Mr. Dixit... Strangers... We are nobody to each other... And strangers don't question other strangers... Keep out of my reach..." The words were hard to utter, but in the fit of anger she could say all that to the man she could have never dreamt of saying. What cross roads she was on...

Sonakshi had gone to Dev's office after his secretary's call of help... Dev, a teetotaler, was repeatedly drinking... Consuming neat alcohol all times of the day... Sometimes she had herself observed him drinking at the various bar corners in the restaurants she and Ritwick went. But this is disastrous... He was totally drowned in alcohol... He lay disarray on the waiting couch in his cabin, his shirt was creased, his hair was unkempt, he hadn't shaven for days now... She went near him, caressed his forehead in such sadness... His numb brain registered her touch, and the drowsy eyes opened to see the face he missed the most...

What broke her heart the most was when he opened his eyes... Bloodshot red eyes, all puffy... And in a matter of a few seconds they were clouded with a pool of tears looking at her... Even the redness and the light brown colour of his eyes hid behind the waters of his eyes, that started overflowing, seeping down to his sides, disappearing in his hair...

"Dev, ye kya haalat bana ke rakhi hai aapne... Kyu kar rahe hain aap aisa?"

"Sonakshi, main Tumhare bina nahi reh sakta..." Dev cried, trying to get up...

"Kya aap kuch kar sakte hain iske baare mein?" Sonakshi tried to be stoic.

"Sonakshi..." he whispered in despair... as he stood on his feet, and stumbled about, to be put back on the sofa by Sonakshi...

"Aapse do pairon pe toh khada hua jaa nahi raha... Aap iss rishte ko kaise sambhaalenge?" Sonakshi admonished him... "Dev, aap samajhte kyu nahi hain... Sab kuch khatam ho chuka hai... Kuch nahi bacha... Aapne rishta todd diya, aapki maa ki yahi marzi thi... Maine kisi aur se rishta jodd liya, wo mere maa baba ki marzi thi... The basic fact is, I am now engaged to Ritwick... Not even a week is left for the wedding... There's no turning back from here on Mr. Dixit... We are strangers, and that is how we will try living from here on..."

Coming to the present, Sonakshi continued weeping...

Tere pyar ki nishaaniyaan,

Ban gayi kahaaniyaan...

Phir se mohabbat, phir kaise main pyaar karoon,

Phir se wafaa ka kaise main iqraar karoon...

Tere pyaar mein main toh dhali,

O ajnabee... Mere ajnabee...

Sonakshi sat in front of the mirror, dressing up for her wedding... She had absolutely no interest dressing up, against the dreams she had seen with Dev to become his bride... Picking up ornaments one after the other getting ready for Ritwick, each piece of jewellery weighted over her heart... Picking up a box of bangles, her eyes landed over the bangles Dev had brought for her from the roadside... She was so happy clinking those colourful bangles... Today even these clinking colourful bangles didn't cheer her up... The jewelleries before her, each reminded her of something or the other about Dev... These bangles he gifted to her... The anklets that he took off from her ankles and then teased her until she gave up... The earrings that he had gifted her along with the saree... The diamond bracelet he had brought for her... Everywhere she looked at the dressing table, she found Dev's memories... Her heart was sinking...

Sonakshi closed her eyes, fresh tears leaked out of them... How should she do this? How to go through this wedding ceremony with Ritwick, when all that is running through her mind is Dev's memories... She still did not know how to give Dev's place to Ritwick... How to share her present and future with someone else, when she still could not move from her past...

"Oh Dev! Why did you leave me? Why couldn't you fight the world for me? Why did you give up so easily?" Sonakshi was sobbing yet again... Her head bowed on the dressing table... Dev's belongings all spread over it, her face caressing them... Sonakshi broke down completely... What a misery! Dev broke his promises, fair enough! The saddest part is she broke her promises too... "Dev, main aapka saath kabhi nahi chodungi... Aap mujhe chodenge, tab bhi nahi..." Sonakshi could remember her own words... But she gave up on him almost instantly when she realized he is losing... She too left for her parents' sake... At least Dev didn't move on, but what is she doing? She, for the sake of her parents is marrying someone else... She was betraying Dev... But she is still doing it for her parents... Realization dawned to Sonakshi... When she can move on for her parents' sake, Dev had the right to leave the relationship for his mother's sake... Fair enough... They both have to fulfill their responsibilities... Sonakshi controlled her sobs, wiped her tears, and determinately finished dressing up for her wedding...

Kisse kahoon pareshaaniyaan,

Dil pe kar jaao meherbaaniyaan...

Pal jo beete, toh lambi judaai hui...

Ek ek pal main toh paraayi hui...

Aa kar mujhe, le jaa abhi...

O ajnabee... Mere Ajnabee...

There wasn't even a spark of excitement or happiness on her face, when she and Ritwick had seen each other eye to eye during "Shubho Drishti", the first ritual done in the main wedding ceremony where the bride is taken to take seven circles around the groom, holding beetle leaves covering her face, and then finally they look at each other... Sonakshi's sad eyes met Ritwick's placating eyes... As if he had taken upon himself to help her go through this torture of a wedding happening...

With each passing moment Sonakshi's mobile eyes searched if Dev was somewhere around... Maybe he is seeing her in the altar and finally loses hold of his restraint and asks her to marry... May be some miracle happens... May be Ishwari Aunty ji finally had mercy on her son or on Sonakshi... She pleaded with all her heart...

But the heartfelt prayers didn't reach the destined God, coz with each passing ritual she was belonging to Ritwick, and was forcefully getting distanced to Dev... Her father had done her Kanyadan... She was being given away to Ritwick... The man promised to keep her happy... Sen Babu, Ritwick's dad promised to keep her like their own daughter Madhu.

She and Ritwick stood to take pheras... With heavy steps, she followed Ritwick for the four circles and with heavier heart lead the last three circles... With each step, she took with Ritwick, she knew she is walking from her past, that she never wanted to leave...

Totally numbing herself from the next moment on, Sonakshi let all the moments flow away in a blur... Her mind had stopped registering when Ritwick and she put Khoyi in the holy fire, when he had put sindoor in her parting, when he had put the "Lajja Bostra", the saree that came from her in laws, and when she was taking adieu from her family...

She just numbly hugged her family... Her baba promised her that this house shall remain hers, her baba would always be with her... She quietly shook her head, not registering anymore... What brought her back to her senses was when she sat in the car with Ritwick, that out of the window her eyes caught of a disheveled Dev standing outside the reception hall against a tree trunk, looking lost, like never before... She could see, today he hadn't just lost his love to another man, but also lost the hope to a better life with her... And he was broken like nothing can ever bind him together... Lots of lives were shattered today for the happiness of the two families...

~~THANKS FOR READING~~