An SS on Ruhi's POV *Completed* - Page 5

As the kids came in through the door with their numerous suitcases full of items, she stared at them in serenity, finally the reassurance was given that never would she be snatched away mercilessly from her Ru. Her daughter was just as much as satisfied with herself as her mother was, she smiled widely as she halted and stood with ease at the threshold of the living room; behind her was the view of her father and brother struggling to move the full suitcases belonging to the one in front of them. They didn't crib, neither did they sarcastically obliging her to move herself from the only entry, what they would most commonly do; after looking at the huge smile on her face, no one wanted this moment to end. She didn't have tears in her eyes; she wasn't that type of a person. She was strong, but would take the first hit if it was one of her close ones who stood against her in battle. The thought that the war was finally over, that no one won or lost, that they called peace from now on, was one which no one could interrupt.

They didn't have to ask her to move, she did that herself as she hurriedly ran towards her mother and flung her arms around her waist. Her mother's tears couldn't control themselves and fell on her daughter's long silky hair, trickling down her thick strands.

The feeling that finally her other half was safe and secure with her, in her arms was one which could never be put in words. Both refused to leave each other until her Chachu pulled her out of the ever so long hug and picked her up into his arms.

"Where did you leave us and go huh?" he said whilst wiping the now dry tears off his face.

"Yes, you didn't think even a little about us? Apni maa ke khushiyan ki hi padhi hai na." Her grandmother said in an enraged tone, but still sweetly.

"Now please, don't bring this up ever again, I've come back right that's enough for both me and all of you."

"But what you felt was nothing compared to what I did." He mother said

Indeed she was true, even though she never said anything about it, she wasn't at all happy about her daughter's sudden decision. The days after she left were a completely different type of suffering for her, and not only her, everyone. The days went by like a snail, the nights seemed so long. Everyone in the family was already agonized and on top was the daily torment they had to go through with just the feel that she would never return.

At first this uninvited thought crept into her mother's mind that she was just fooling with everyone, that she was just playing a harmless game of hide n' seek with everyone, that she was bound to return just a few minutes later in time for dinner. But alas, she never came, leaving her mother awaiting her presence by looking intently at the entrance of the house with an unused upside down plate kept across the table.

She would usually spend her nights crying herself to sleep and if that would also not work, which quite frankly never did she ended up gazing out the window, her eyes amongst the stars in search of her treasured daughter. The nights would seem to never give her the feeling of calmness, instead was left alone, with no one beside her. Even if someone tried to console her, she would brush them off with only the want of her Ru with her.

She would get angry at little things, even when they were so that there was no reason to be annoyed. But everyone knew her thinking as they were experiencing the same.

The mornings were not nearly as bright as they were, even if the adults and Ruhi herself thought it was no occasion to start your day with a smile, the day used to be the most interesting hour in the entire day's time, at least for the ones who were watching. Ruhi would scream at the top of her voice because her mother would forget to wake her up, at least what she thought she forgot in reality it was her mother who gave up after the countless efforts to wake her daughter from her eternity long of a slumber. This used to be the rooster's call', a final warning to those who didn't wake up even after setting the alarm. After that, all you could see were hurried figures moving about the tiny space of the common room. After an hour of constant moving in the drawing room space, everyone was finally sent to their respective destinations. Ishita would sigh in relief that the mayhem in the house just minutes ago was finally over, but then she would realize that she herself was to reach her clinic.

Now, it was different, the sound of her hoarse voice early in the morning started to feel like a melody to the ears of the family members. Without waking up to hear her annoyed voice was as if a big part of their years-long daily routines was just suddenly modified. The annoying sound of the alarm would sound twice as more annoying because it went off before hers did. Everyone woke up with unpleasant faces, never looked towards a new, fresh start of the day. Instead it was more of a dark, gloomy, murky surrounding. The powerful, bright sun rays that would come in through the window would be piercing the eyes which once would also pierce the eye but never added the feeling of despair to it and just make it even worse. Even though everybody would crib to go to work, they would always have a guarantee that with them leaving for the door named Purgatory' the others would also follow, but now their most wanted member had already blindly walked into the door and without looking first took a forward step and fell into an abyss.

Ishita also failed to do different from grieving for her child, with this everything would fall apart the second she started to do her daily chores, she wasn't even trying to do what she used to do just a few days ago. And no one even blamed her. At times someone would try to bring up the spirits in others, but would fail miserably by being neglected and given dangerous glares. No one wanted to recover, no one wanted to be happy again, it just felt...wrong. Recover, even if they would, they would have never felt completely free of the affliction.

But now, it was all done, what bad times had to go through went through. What good times were to come were to...come. But now the only thing that differed from the earlier times was that they knew that good, happy moments were to come, it was never able to predict what lied ahead of their shattered lives.

"All is Well...finally." She said in the most silent voice as she smiled whilst she was crushed in a group hug with her family.