Samaina SS : Jeevansathi Hum( note on pg 41) - Page 25

Late at 10 in night Naina was back from Aggarwal house. She was greeted on the door by Ramdhari who too appeared drowsy after a hectic day after all he was the one who looked after everyone's needs in the house single handedly. Though it was Naina's second day in this house formally as a new bride but she had been regularly visiting Somani house after Rohan's sudden demise and Vivek Somani's illness. So,she basically was aware about the routinely activities of Somani house. She enquired about the whereabouts of other family members and got to know that Vishaka had left for the hospital half n hour before and daddhi was sleeping in her room peacefully .

"Bhabhi ab aap aagyi hai toh hum sone jaye, ser mein bahut dard ho raha hai, memsahab bolkar gayi hai ki Sameer bhaiya aate honge... toh unke khane ka agar aap dekh le toh... " asked Ramdhari hestitatingly in a soft tone.

Naina nodded her head in agreement and asked him to retire for the night and herself went in her room . She found the room neat and tidy as she had left in the afternoon before leaving for her pagpheras. All the things were at their right place . She felt now this room looks worth living without the foul smell of alcohol which was getting on her nerves from past night from the time she entered this room . She walked up-to the window and drew the curtains apart looked up towards the sky.

The dusty window panes however gave her a clear picture of dark night. The new moon sky was slight pearly grey in colour. Contrasting to the fateful night she had last glanced at the moon lit silver. The moon was then eclipsed, shining with remnants of hope. But today the moon was gone ,the sky is still there waiting for a gleam of light .The soft stars can't help much just like stars of her life. The moon was gone so was Rohan. Her life was no more eclipsed it was scary dark alone night .Her thoughts drifted towards Ahana. She remeniscenced the few happy days she had spent with Rohan and Ahana ,never had they imagined such a day would ever come into their lives. Her thoughts went back to the fateful day when she was getting ready to marry Rohan

Flashback

" Maine toh pehle hi kaha tha yeh manhoos hai pehle apne maa ko kha gayi aur ab apne honey wale pati ko kha gayi... abhi toh shadi bhi nahi hui thi pehli hi apni manhoos chhaya us bechare ladke par daaldi isney... aey Naina kuch laajsharam bachi hai tujhmein toh ja andar aur aag laga le khud ko... aur kitne logon ko maaregi... isey acha khud mar ja hamsab ko chain se jeene de. " Naina stood still as if unaffected by taiji's vile curses. She was in deep trauma on hearing about Rohan's demise in an road accident. She could still not come in terms with the reality that her groom was no more ."Bhabhiji aap kya bole ja rahi hai... Naina ki halat toh dekhiye,bachi kuch bol nahi rahi hai aur aap hai ki jo muh mein aarha hai boli ja rahi hai," said Bela when she couldn't tolerate taiji's allegations. Bela tried to bring Naina back in to reality "Naina idhar dekh mujhe.. tu bhabhiji ka baat mat sun... meri sun... Naina... Naina... kuch bol beta."

Taiji continued to spew her venom "Ne vaah.. meri baatein suni hi kaha tum logon ne, sun li hoti toh aaj us ladke ki jaan bach jati, bechara iski nazar usko bhi lag gayi."

"taiji bas kariye bhut hua"said Preeti angrily,"aap ghar jaiiye papa aur tauji aate honge, main bula lungi, voh btayenge kya krna hai ab"

"O bai bithe bar ki ladki aur mujhse zubaan chala rahi hai, karna kya hai.. ab is kulakshini se koi shadi krne se toh raha...huh.. bolo isey ghar k kisi kone mein padi rahe... ya zeher kha le.. hhuhuhhh..mujhe kya main ja rahi hu Parlay k papa aur baaki jan jab aspataal se wapis aajaye toh bula lena... aur hn maharani k dulhan ka libas aur gehne utarwa do, antim kriya k liye Rohan k ghar jana hoga thodi der mein " blabbering taiji stormed out of the Aggarwal house .

Both Preeti and Bela were inconsolable but their mustered all their courage and tried to bring Naina out of her reveire . "Naina.. sun na kuch toh bol... Rohan chala gaya tujhe kuch farak nahi padh raha kya ?" questioned Preeti and shook her tightly from the shoulders and tried to bring her back to reality. Naina was still standing lifeless near the main gate. Many relatives who had came for the wedding had departed directly from the wedding venue after the unfortunate news of Rohans death. Aggarwal men along with few other close male members decided to visit hospital along with Maheshwaris . Anand refused to take Naina along seeing her condition and had asked ladies to take her home "Bela tum log Naina ko leke ghar jao hum wahan se hoke aate hai.. bd mein antim kriya k waqt le chale tum sabko... Rohan chala gaya hai Naina ko is waqt sambhalana zaruri hai.."

Naina had not been reacting at all from the moment when she came to know about Rohan's death. She hadn't shed a single drop of tear infact she had been oblivious to whatever was happening around her. Vishaka couldnt believe the news was true when she received a phone call on the wedding venue from Sameer telling her about the accident. Somani had collapsed the moment he heard about his only son's demise and was immediately rushed to the same hospital with Vishaka and rest of the family by his side.

Few hours later it was morning. The sun shone brilliantly and the virescent colour of the day under it's glare was offensively bright and cheerful. It was as if they conspired to show how the world would go on without the departed soul. It shouldn't though. Everyone gathered at Maheshwari house for Rohan's last rites except Vivek Somani who was admitted to the hospital as he had suffered a severe hypertension stroke . Vishaka was crying inconsonsibly. Daddhi too was in a state of deep shock with her only grandson leaving this world too soon, she wept bitterly. Few relatives tried to calm them down . Aggrwals too were seated at a little distance from the body. Naina was standing near the door and staring at her fiancee's dead remains as if trying to decipher why was Rohan sleeping so peacefully. Sameer was standing at a little distance from Naina and as per funeral etiquette everyone who came to pay condolences met Sameer before leaving as he was the only male member of the grieving family present right now. Sameer stood calm and composed not a single drop of tear in his eyes,total emotion less. He needed to be strong at this hour for his family, for his mother, for his younger baby brother who had left him all alone . Everyone present had tears seeing such a young man depart so early. Everyone was reminscensing the happy moments they once shared with Rohan.

Suddenly Naina went upto her sister who was sitting with all the ladies " Preeti sun.. tu mere baalo mein gajra lagana bhool gayi hai.. Rohan ko voh safed phool bahut pasand hai.. "said Naina with light smile on her face. All eyes suddenly turned towards her. Preeti and Bela looked at each other in confusion, what's wrong with Naina. "Naina tu yeh kya bol rahi hai " asked Preeti with tears in her eyes. Naina replied "Kya kya bol rahi hu... vohi bol rahi hu jo tu sun rahi hai.. jaldi kar laga na... Chachiji hum yahan kya kr rahe hai ..chalo barat aane wali hai late hojayenge warna." Sameer glanced at Naina in confusion but somehow understood her mental condition. Though he disliked Naina but he knew how much Rohan loved her and infact watching her in this condition made him realize that she too loved Rohan deeply.

Chachiji sighed heavily and tried to convince her "Beta dekh idhr aa baith ja.. Preeti ja paani la toh ek glass... sun meri baat... " before she could complete Naina interrupted in between ,"nahi chachi voh mera intezar kr raha hoga.. mujhe sajna hai... hum late honge toh voh bura maan jayega na."

Bela and Preeti tried lot to convince her but when she refused to accept the reality Bela slapped her hard ,"Tujhe samaj nahi aaraha... Rohan mar gaya h.. yeh dekh tera Rohan... yeh uski arthhi... arthii ka matlab samajti hai na.. teri baraat nahi aayegi na ab tu dulhan hai ," said Bela angrily. Naina suddenly felt the world around her crashing. She realised what she was trying to avoid hoping it to be a bad dream was actually a shaking reality. She broke down and cried . It was more than crying, it was the kind of desolate sobbing that comes from a person drained of all hope. She sank to her knees. The pain that flowed from her was as palpable.She sobbed into her hands and the tears dripped between her fingers . She stood up and went to Vishaka "apne bete ko bolo uthe voh, dhokebaaz h, dhoka diya usney bhi aur aapne bhi ,kya bola tha aap logon ne, zindagi bhar mera khayal rakhenge hai na... kbhi akela nahi chodenge toh phir kaise chala gaya yeh... " Naina yelled ,cried hard and demanded her answers... "bolo na mummy kaise gaya yeh...uthao isko..." Vishaka had no answers. She couldn't speak ,she just wept more bitterly. Preeti and Bela tried to calm her down but she was inconsolable . She went to Sameer "Rohan aapki baat maanta hai na...mere bhaiya yeh... mere bhaiya voh... ab kyu nhi uthate isko... jao uthao," she yelled on Sameer. But he stood calm with his face down as he knew this time no order no demand could wake Rohan up. Seeing Naina and her condition finally taiji decided to intervene she pulled her forearm roughly and literally dragged her in middle and slapped her hard not once but twice. Chachaji stood up and tried to free her from taiji's clutches but tauji stopped him. "rukiye Anand babu aapne hi ser chada rakha h isey, kaise badtameezi kar rahi hai dekha nahi, kyu ri.. kya bola tha tujhe.. chupchaap padi reh ek kone mein samaj nahi aaya.. yeh in logon ka badappan hai tujhe ghar mein ghusne diya... warna inke bete ko kha gayi tu, inki jagah koi hota toh ghusne nahi deta tujh jaisi ko... " Naina was still sobbing hard she had no answers to all these allegations. She felt whatever taiji said was true , whenever people around her are happy, something or the other thing happens.. first her parents.. now her would be husband.. she has no right to live.. question was whom should she live for.. there's no one... no life after Rohan... nothing. Everyone was witnessing the drama but no one had the courage to stop taiji except for Vishaka and Sameer who were too disappointed with taiji's insensitiveness towards Naina . Sameer moved forward to help Naina but Vishaka gestured him to stop and herself intervened. She went ahead and jerked taiji's hand to free Naina from her hold and hugged her gently. Naina too reciprocated ,she was traumatized with the entire fiasco. Before Vishaka could say anything, taiji again pulled Naina back forcefully "wahan kaha chup rahi hai, ab kuch nahi lgti yeh teri samjhi.. abse tu mere sath rahegi bahut par nikal aaye hai na tere...Anand babu aur Bela agar Preeti ko zindagi bhar ghar bithkar nahi rakhna chahate ho toh aaj kuch nahi bologe tum dono, yeh abse mere sath rahegi samjhe," taiji blasted. Naina looked up towards Anand and Bela but they were standing with their eyes lowered. Last string of hope that Naina was struggling to hold on to finally broke when she saw her chacha and chachi's eyes lowered. She felt as if she was a glass vase that goes from treasure to trash, once it's broken. So today she was abandoned by the people whom she valued the most at the time when she needed their support , she felt dizzy, suddenly the world around her started turning round and with more slap from taiji she collapsed on the floor and lost her senses. Every one was shocked. Preeti Bela ran to hold her but it was too late she was already on floor. Watching all the cruelness from past 15 minutes Vishaka's patience snapped," bs bhut hua.. dur hto aap sab, Sameer idhar aa Naina ko andar leja aur mere room mein leta de,baaki ki baatein bd mein." Sameer obeyed her instructions, he too was disturbed with whatever happened in front of him, he lifted her frail, shivering body and staggeringly took her to the room. Vishaka angrily glared at everyone involved in the fiasco especially taiji and warned her in strict tone " mere bete ki antim kriya chal rahi h, mujhe aur tamasha nahi chahiye ya toh shanti se baith jaiye warna aap log ja skte h, Naina k bare mein baad mein baat karenge."

The door of the room clicked open, the sound brought back Naina into present. She looked up at the clock placed on the table it was 11.30pm .

Sameer walked inside, he stretched a bit, the tired joints made a crackling sound. He loosened his tie and threw his tired body to the nearest chair . Naina walked up-to him with a glass of water from the nearby table. He took it gratefully and thanked her for the gesture. " aapke liye khana laga du, Ramdhari bhaiya so gaye hai, " asked Naina politely ,"nahi mujhe bhook nahi hai " he replied back. After few minutes of silence Naina spoke "Voh mujhe aapse baat karni thi kuch"

"dekho Naina tumko jo baat krni hai mujhe pta hai aur mera abhi mood nahi hai us bare mein baat karne ko, maine phone par bhi kaha tha, abhi phirse bol raha hu insab mamalo mein mat pado,tum is ghar mein nayi ho aur main nahi chahta is matter ko leke is waqt koi hungama ho aur koi tumhe kuch bole ."

"par... " Naina said.

Sameer snapped back "par.. var chodo aur kal Mr Somani ghar wapis aarhae hai unka dhyan rakho.. bda shauk hai na Rohan ki zimmedariyan uthane ka toh shuruwat wahi se karo samjhi... baki jo jaise chal raha hai chalne do ...ab so jao chupchap, kyunki behes krne ki takkat nahi hai mujhe."

An hour later Naina tossed on her mattress, she couldn't sleep properly, constant thoughts regarding Ahana and Rohan clouded her mind. She felt restless. She sat up and glanced towards the bed and found Sameer missing . She crinkled her brows in confusion "itni raat ko yeh kaha chale gaye" and saw the door towards balcony open. She stood up and walked towards balcony only to find Sameer with a bottle of alcohol in his hand standing with his back facing towards Naina.

" Sameer... aap itni raat ko yahan kya kar rahe hai"

Startled by her voice bottle slipped from Sameer's hand and smashed into pieces. Sameer and Naina both looked at each other shocked. Naina spotted two unopened cans of bear on the railing of the balcony. Naina glanced at Sameer, he averted his gaze and looked away. Naina looked down and saw the broken pieces. She began collecting them when accidentally a piece pricked her hand . Little drop of blood oozed out. She whinced in pain. Sameer almost panicked seeing her injured. He held her hands gently and took her inside , "kya kar rahi thi, lag gayi na, kisney kaha tha uthane ko, Ramdhari krdeta, tumko jhansi ki rani bne ka shauk hai kya, " said Sameer in an angry tone. Naina looked at him in utter surprise. The words didn't hurt her much. How could she expect any cheesy or sugar coated words from him? however with all rough exteriors he had a soft heart ..that was sure .He cared for her in sanity and that meant a huge step in the absolute bleakness .

He did the first aid and Naina kept looking at him surprisingly and smiled a little , " kya aise kya dekh rahi ho ghur ghur k chot lagi h toh band aid lagana padega na, muskura kyu rahi ho, chot ungli pr lagi hai,asar dimag pr hua h... huhhh... sojao ab chupchap aur mujhe pr CID krna band karo samjhi, " saying so Sameer switched off the lights and went towards the bed leaving behind smiling Naina "khadus toh hai pr dil k bure itne bure toh nhi " she mumbled .

"kuch kaha tumne kya"asked Sameer.

"Nahi kuch nhi... bs goodnight" she bit her lip and give herself a light smack on her head "kuch bhi bolti hu" and went to sleep... this time hoping for a little peaceful sleep.