Miscellany Of Desi Tadka

Chapter 6🖤

She could feel a hand on her leg as one hand slowly crept on the buttons of her frock.

Danah opened her eyes, her forehead wet with sweat as she covered her mouth to breathe. The train was about to reach her destination, Delhi. She would go and hide in her hostel room and would just pretend that her past life didn't even happen.

It was not the lies but the kick her self-respect felt with those lies. The way Adeel's eyes spoke of his distrust in her. Didn't he understand her truthfulness in those days? Was she thinking something different from him? A girl needs her whole life to prove her innocence, to prove she didn't even think of that crime that they made her a criminal of.

She asked the time from the passenger beside her and it was a few minutes to one. Allah was testing her patience. Why every time she had to protect herself, had to win everyone's trust so that they would believe, she was pure, chaste?

Danah was not forgetting Maira and Sameer at the last moment, also Amma who was too sorry to look at her. It was only because of her money that she was at least able to buy a ticket for herself.

She wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes, those tears of frustration, humiliation, and complaints. Danah rested her head on the back of the seat and closed her eyes, remembering the time when she shared her dark memories with Amma.

"My destiny was about to take an ugly turn." Danah closed her eyes for some seconds, "I began to see a change in my uncle's behavior. He would care for me, but not as a father does for his kid. It was something different. Something that used to make me uncomfortable."

Amma took Danah in her embrace, patting her cheek to make her calm, kissing her head.

"I was so small to understand it yet I used to hate his touch. Sometimes when I used to sleep at night, I used to feel his hands on me. I tried telling my phupho but didn't know how to tell her. Her life was nothing without him and he was betraying her like that."

"That's why you ran away from there?" Amma asked to which she nodded.

"I came home on vacation as my phupho wanted to spend some time with me. Meanwhile, she got urgent work in her NGO." Danah gulped as those memories were too fresh in her mind, "That day I was alone at home. I thought my uncle was at work but he wasn't."

Danah opened her eyes as the train came to its halt. The night was getting darker, she ran from one danger, got stuck in one strangers' house and now was again dwindling between fear and danger.

She covered herself in a shawl properly and took the first cab to her hostel. It was a fifteen minutes journey and Danah knew she would spend it praying for her safety and nothing else.

"Come here, my Dani. Nothing will happen."

"Please leave my room. Please I beg you..." Danah yelled loudly to stop his ascending steps. Her heart forgetting to beat, as her mind created every worse consequence for the coming minutes.

He held her hand and pulled her closer with his might, Danah tried all her power to push him but his grip was strong.

"What do you think, huh? Can you get away from me? Staying in Delhi and all." Danah closed her eyes, her tears wetting her face, as she felt his lips on her cheek, "Nobody will know, Dani. Just enjoy..."

His words were as filthy as his actions. Danah used to get nightmares of his actions but she never thought there would come a time when she had to protect herself from her relations.

She again attempted to push him and this time it worked. His head hit the wall and that was the time when she quickly left her room, grabbing the shawl.

Danah without thinking about anything left her house. She had so much fear in her heart but she had to cover it with her courage. Because the roof that gives you protection begins to suffocate you, you have no other option.

***

"How can you believe her that easily?"

"Because these eyes have seen so much, I can easily smell lies in the depth of the whole truth. And I can assure you, Danah didn't speak a word of a lie to me."

Dadi was again trying to prove that girl innocent. He wanted to trust that story but he had met her relatives, her aunt who was desperate to meet her niece. Or was she too a victim of lies? Lies that had been fed to her.

The phone in Dadi's room began to ring and as he was closer picked it up on one ring, hearing a soft voice.

"Amma!"

Adeel's body froze hearing her voice. Her innocence's story was carving its way inside him, pushing him in guilt. He certainly didn't do good to this lady.

"Yes, Ms.Danah."

There was silence for some time, "Mr. Adeel Farooque, I want to talk to Amma, so please if you can give her the phone."

Did Dadi also give her their number just like money from her pension? Her voice held an edge of coldness to it but with it was confidence.

"Yes, I am giving her. Also-"

"I don't have much time to listen to you so if you please hurry."

"Yes, dear." Dadi smilingly said taking the phone from him and he came into his room.

He never regretted his suspicion or his habit of not trusting people easily but this time he had done something grave. If Dadi was right, that meant he had slandered an innocent girl. How great that sin was! And that silly girl left their house in anger, that too in that hour of the night if something would have happened to her, he wouldn't be able to forgive himself.

What should he do now? Ask her forgiveness? Would she ever forgive him? Why did her forgiveness matter? He should just move on.

***

Danah was trying to move on with her life. Her college had started and all she wanted now was to concentrate on her studies and career, keeping everything in the past. Yes, those nightmares still used to haunt her, with that sometimes she would hear Adeel yelling for her character but with all of that, she was trying to move forward.

It was one of those afternoons in June when she returned from her college and found a visitor.

"Phupho!"

Danah ran towards her and as if she was waiting, Zulekha phupho took her in an embrace. How many tears were still inside her that found their way? A calmness washed over her after a long time.

"I don't know how to complain when I am the one who's at fault."

Danah made her sit on the bed, taking a seat beside her. She didn't know what she was talking about. The happiness of meeting her aunt after a long time was overpowering everything.

"I'm sorry, Danah." Phupho held her hands, her eyes filled with guilt, "I always called you my daughter but I didn't do a single thing to be like your mother. Never understood your pain living so close to you."

"What are you talking about, phupho?"

Danah knew what she was talking about but how could she know about what happened to her? Did someone tell her? Was it Amma?

~Zeba

𝚑𝚘𝚕𝚊𝚊𝚊𝚊𝚊𝚊..!𝙰𝚂𝚂𝙰𝙻𝙰𝙼𝚄𝙰𝙻𝙰𝙸𝙺𝚄𝙼 𝙱𝙴𝙷𝙽𝙾 𝙰𝚄𝚁 𝚄𝙽𝙺𝙴 𝙱𝙷𝙰𝙸𝚈𝙾....;)𝚃𝙷𝙴𝚂𝙴 𝙰𝚄𝚃𝙷𝙾𝚁𝚂 𝙰𝚁𝙴 𝚆𝙾𝚁𝙺𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝙷𝙰𝚁𝙳 𝚃𝙾 𝙱𝚁𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝙹𝙾𝚈 𝙰𝙽𝙳 𝙴𝙽𝚃𝙴𝚁𝚃𝙰𝙸𝙽𝙼𝙴𝙽𝚃 𝚃𝙾 𝚈𝙾𝚄 𝙶𝚄𝚈𝚂.𝚂𝙾 𝙼𝙰𝙺𝙴 𝚂𝚄𝚁𝙴 𝚈𝙾𝚄 𝚂𝙿𝙰𝙼 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙽𝙾𝚃𝙸𝙵𝙸𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽𝚂 𝚆𝙸𝚃𝙷 𝚅𝙾𝚃𝙴𝚂 𝙰𝙽𝙳 𝙲𝙾𝙼𝙼𝙴𝙽𝚃𝚂. ~𝙽𝚄𝙶𝙶𝙴𝚃