Raavi looked at the clock. It was 2AM. Shiva hadn’t still returned to their room. She tossed and turned, but couldn’t sleep. She wanted to believe that everything that happened was Shiva’s fault but it wasn’t so. Rishita got an attack but she knew in her heart that Shiva didn’t want that to happen. Shiva played pranks on everyone, even on her when they were young. Only this time he went too far.
Giving up any her sleep, she got up and went out to find her husband. Raavi still wasn’t used to living in this huge haveli, and it scared her during the night. She checked the garden, but Shiva wasn’t there. At last, she went to the terrace and found him sitting there. She was about to start fighting with him, but then she noticed tears in his eyes.
Raavi had never seen him cry before, not like this. For her, Shiva was the strongest person in the entire world, and seeing him breakdown like this broke her heart. Raavi could already feel the tears coming to her eyes. She didn’t know what to do, she knew how to deal with Shiva but not when he was like this.
“Shiva.” Raavi called out to him.
“Tu jaa yaha se.”
Raavi went and sat beside him.
“Bhabhi ko meri kitna sunna para.” Shiva said. “Pehle uss Rishita se phir maa se. Sab meri wajah se.”
Raavi knows how much he loved his bhabhi and she knew how much that must have hurt him. Unable to stop herself, she started crying too.
“Aur Krish... usko bhi meri wajah se maar khaani pari. Yeh mera plan tha. Uski koi galti nahi thi Raavi. Aaj jo kuch bhi hua sirf meri wajah se hua. Rishita ko attack aa jayega nahi pata tha mujhe. Main toh bas use sudharna chahta tha. Upar se itna sab kuch ho gaya. Bhabhi ab baat tak nahi kar rahi hai mujhse. Gaumbi bhi nahi.”
“Shiva, maa ko tune bata diya na sab kuch. Woh matter toh clear ho gaya aur mujhe pata hai tu Rishita ko hurt nahi karna chahta tha.” Raavi touched his shoulder to make him look at her but he winced in pain. “Bohot dard ho raha hai?”
“Nahi. Bhabhi chahe mujhe 100 dande maar le.”
Raavi knew he wouldn’t show his pain but she couldn’t see him in pain. “Shiva room mein chal.”
Shiva just shook his head.
“Shiva chal!” Raavi pulled him up.
She dragged him back to their room, and made him sit on the bed. Then she fumbled around the drawers until she found a bottle of ointment.
“Apni ganji utar.”
Shiva didn’t do it so Raavi took it off for him. Then she slowly began to put ointment on his arms and his back. He kept hissing in pain and Raavi couldn’t hold back her tears. She wanted to be mad at her Dhara di for hitting him so hard, but she knew it hurt her equally hard to beat Shiva like this.
“Shiva kal sab thik ho jayega dekhna.” Raavi wiped away her her tears. “Dhara di tujhse bohot pyaar karti hai. Bas thodi naraaz hai woh. Agar tu pehle hi mujhe bata deta toh main kabhi tujhe yeh karne nahi deti aur yeh sab nahi hota. Isliye next time se aisa stupid plan banane se pehle mujhe bata dena.”
Shiva smiled a little. How easily she had accepted his story! Raavi looked at his smile and wiped away his tears with her dupatta.
“Par itna sab toh meri wajah se hua na.”
“Hua toh hua. Ab kya kar sakte hai.” Raavi said. “Kal tak sab thik ho jayega. Trust me.”
He smiled at her and noticed her tears. Shiva used the same dupatta and wiped away her tears.
“Tune khaya nahi hoga na? Main kuch khane ko lati hu.” Raavi got up, but Shiva caught her arm.
“Kuch nahi khana mujhe. Tu yahi baith.”
Raavi sat back down with him but noticed that he hadn’t let go of her hand yet. She saw the morose expression on his face so she gently pulled him and laid his head on her lap.
“Mujhe pata hai ki tu jab bhi sad hota hai toh Dhara di ki godh mein sar rakhke so jata hai. Ab Dhara di toh yaha nahi hai. Toh main hi sahi.”
Shiva smiled at his wife and closed his eyes. He drifted off to sleep, and so did she.
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