Tum Hi Aana | A Short Story

Bohat Aayi Gayi Yaadain...

Kaisi ye hain dooriyaan,

koi hal hi nahi

aaj bhi tu aaya na,

tu aana kal bhi nahi...



'Maine kaha tha ke kuch aisa mat karna jo mein bardaasht na saku...'

Murtasim blinked. A single drop fell onto his cheek and made its way down slowly. His face taut, his fingers clenched onto the steering wheel and his bloodshot eyes staring intently at the dark road ahead, he let the rare evidence of weakness continue to its destination. The last time he'd let himself cry in front of anyone had been in total, utter vain.

A memory unfolded on the windscreen in front of him and he swallowed thickly. Him standing in front of Meerab, in what had once been his studio. Him confessing his love and her looking at him with wide, agonised eyes. His tears had fallen and hers hadn't been far behind.

All of it wasted. All tainted.

He could've sworn she had felt his pain and understood his plea of not wanting to lose her too. And yet she'd done the exact opposite. She'd betrayed him the very next moment; had done the only thing he'd become afraid of. She had taken a step which had taken her away from him.

His hands tightened around the wheel and his foot pressed down on the accelerator until the pedal hit the floor of the car. The car flew down the highway and Murtasim just wished for the pain to disappear; for relief to arrive and dispel the crushing weight on his chest. But there was no relief. No reprieve came and even blinking became a curse because his mind would flash with images of her every time his eyes closed. It was the same picture again and again; her standing in the middle of the road, forlorn and looking at him, her wide, faintly beseeching eyes blazing a hole in his very being.

Standing in the middle of the road...alone.

Murtasim clenched his eyes tightly shut for a moment as the pain became too much to bear. A wave of red, hot anger and helplessness hit him, so overwhelming that he nearly turned the car around. His palm slammed onto the steering wheel and the horn blared, piercing the eerie silence of the deserted road. The car sped down the road, the engine roaring as the speed ate up the miles. Another tear of sheer, utter frustration escaped and he took in fortifying breath.

He couldn't go back.

He couldn't just bring her back home, couldn't just hide her within his chest and forget about the rest of his family and the devastation which had been unleashed on them tonight.

No matter how much he wanted to.

The gates to his majestic home opened and Murtasim had the strangest feeling weigh down his chest as he drove down the driveway. The magnificent structure came into view, illuminated by several lights and Murtasim had never seen a bleaker looking picture.

She was gone.

The one who lit up his eyes, his heart, his soul and every latent corner of his being.

His home was now empty; just like his life. The only place she existed now was his heart and even there, the muscle had been slashed open with knife of her actions. The pain seeped out like blood from a fatal wound but the ache of her love tortured the entire organ.

His car was haphazardly left on the end of the driveway and taking in a deep breath, he made his way inside. Slamming the door open, he kept his eyes front and centre, his body and mind solely focused on getting their...his room. The last thing he wanted was to see or talk to anyone, for his sake and theirs.