FAMILY a journey to forever (COMPLETED)

20

  One year later. Third person POV

A year had passed after Ranjan's death. The house felt more empty than ever. Reema spoke sometimes to everyone except Raksha. She believed her daughter was the reason for her husband's death. It was not just her, but even her sons, Rahul and Rohan. They left for London after a month and never came back. Nor did they speak a word to their little princess. Sheila and Aaryan stayed home with them, like a relief. They did everything as Reema was bound to her room and Dadu in his. They were living with Ranjan's memories now. The person who was broken the most was Raksha, as she never had any good memory of her father. She didn't want it to be the same with her mother. She tried talking to Reema but failed every time. Aaryan comforted her sometimes. All he had was his family as Shenaya broke up with him, complaining he never had time for her and she was not his priority, in spite of knowing what had happen in the  family. Aaryan did not feel bad because for some reason, he knew it would happen. Dadu called Rahul and Rohan back home and insisted them to get married before anything worse could happen. That is what their parents had wished for. 

They agreed on one condition and decided to come home. This time all the arrangements were already made and the day after their arrival, was their wedding day. The brothers agreed to get married only if Raksha would not be married on the same day, along with them. They blamed her for their father's death, even though they never said it in words. But the Malhotra siblings had wished to be married together, that was their dream. It was a no from their side, but Rahul and Rohan was so stubborn that the Malhotra family had to agree on it anyway. The wedding was planned with close family and relatives without a grand celebration. Nobody could get over the loss of Ranjan. The big brothers were picked up by Aaryan and was home now with their mother. Raksha made sure not to show up in front of them, fearing they would leave again.

Rohan's POV

Papa's room looked exactly the same, but he would never be here. I touched his clothes that were hanging in his cupboard. I felt him. I missed him so much. Ma was alone without him. Why did he leave us so soon, when we finally decided to be that happy family. Maybe it was never meant to be so. Rahul was sitting on Papa's side of the bed, hugging his pillow. He cried silently. It was hard for us to be back here. We left home to change our minds, when we would be engaged in our works. But the truth was, we were always thinking about family. That's how it is, you will always think about that very thing you are trying to forget...Papa. I touched Rahul and sat beside him. He leaned on to me, crying. I couldn't resist either. We sat there and cried together thinking about our father. Ma was in the kitchen, making us food, pretending nothing had happened. It was our wedding tomorrow so she wanted us to be happy and fixed a fake smile on her face since we stepped foot inside the house. We had heard about Shenaya breaking up with Aaryan. We felt bad for him. If it had not happened, we would have had our big day together. Poor Aaryan, he was never lucky in relationships, first, the American and now, Shenaya. The house was repainted in its original colors. It looked new and bright. Everyone was trying to make things right. Aaryan had made sure everything was perfect for the wedding. He did our part even though he had lost his love. It was lunch time. We had few more hours be together since the next day, new members would join us. We left the room and sat at the table. Everyone was present except Raksha. She did not come and see us nor did we go to her room. I did not want to see her. No matter how much I accepted Papa's demise. She was the sole reason.

Rahul's POV

I sat beside Ma, holding her hand. Rohan was on the other side. Dadu, Aaryan and Sheila aunty was happy to see us. Raksha was in her room. We wanted to forgive her for going away. Only if she had stayed back... that made me more angry every time I thought about her. I tired but I could never forgive her. It felt like I never had a sister in my life. I had shut out all my emotional attachments and connections with her. I was only concerned about the rest of my family. Maybe I was being to cruel to her but honestly, I did not care about her at all. Ma was so kind in making our favorite dishes. I was happy that she finally decide to talk to us.

"Rahul, Rohan, did you like the wedding dress? Do we need to make any alterations?" asked Ma.

"No Ma, it perfectly fine", I said.

"Even the choice of colors are excellent Ma", Rohan smiled.

"Sheila and Aaryan helped me with shopping and the other things. All I want to say is that my sons are going to start a new life tomorrow. Someone else will also be with you. It will be beautiful, new but also hard at the same time. Just remember one thing. Always think from their side before making a decision, talk to them if there's anything and in the future when you have kids, please be good to them, so you won't have to regret it after", Ma was in tears.

"Ma...please" I held her close and so did Rohan.

"I'm okay. He was her father after all and yet she chose not to forgive him. How could she be so cruel to him? He just wanted to be at peace". Ma sounded helpless and angry.

Ma's words echoed in our ears. Raksha is our little princess. All we have to do is forgive her but even we choose not to. How can we be so cruel to her? Isn't she hurting the same way as us? Or maybe even more? Our ego forced us to remain cruel on her. 

"Ma, we understand... please have your food", Rohan insisted.

"Yes Ma. We are here for you always and so is Papa. Everything will be okay. Trust me". I held her hand firmly.

Ma nodded her head and slowly started eating. Aaryan, Dadu and Sheila aunty was not convinced with whatever Ma had said. They always had a soft side for Raksha. In that case, she was not alone. So why bother.