Solace

Chapter 37

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"Kitni chup si ho gayi hai Karu", Shivani uttered, looking towards a very pensive Karishma with concern filled eyes.

"Dikh raha hai", Amar replied in an airy tone.

"Bas? Apni behen ki koi parwa hai ke nahi apko?" Shivani was irked at her husband's indifferent attitude, "Usse aise suffer karne denge?"

Amar finally looked up to his wife and said in a calm manner, "Tumlog usse babysit karna bandh karo, yahi sahi hai uske liye."

"Ap na..", Shivani chided but Amar interrupted her saying, "As they said, suffering is very personal. Sunne mei kadwa lagega lekin yehi sach yahi hai hum uske gham ka na andaja laga sakte hai, nahi usse baatt sakte hai. Uske dard ka bojh usiko uthana parega." A silence of despair clutched Shivani as a heavy realization weighed upon her. They really couldn't do anything that would provide solace to Karishma because who could do that was far away from her.

"At least ek slice hi lelo! You like pizza right!" Santosh tried to persuade Karishma who pretty much had lost her appetite for food.

"Mann nahi hai", Karishma replied blankly before leaving for her room.

"Ab jab tak Delhi nahi pouch jati iski mood thik nahi honewali", Santosh mumbled hopelessly.

"Woh toh Haseena ke paas jane se thik hoga na, Delhi kaha se agaya beech mein?" Cheetah asked in confusion, munching on his pizza.

"Tujhe yaad hai na Haseena kiske saath gayi hai?" Santosh asked.

"Adeel ke saath", replied Cheetah, still not being able to connect the dots.

"Aur woh kaha rehta hai?" Santosh posed another question.

"Delhi?" Cheetah uttered and Santosh gave him a slight nod. "Haseena ko toh yaha se sheher tak jaane ke liye bhi ammi ki permission leni padti thi. Ab ekdam se Delhi kaise chali gayi!" he pondered.

"Yahi toh baat hai na Cheeteh", Santosh tried to probe into the situation, "ammi ne usse Delhi jaane ki permission kaise dedi!"

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"How was your day?" Adeel asked with a smile as Haseena settled herself on the passenger seat of the car beside him.

"Acchi thi", Haseena replied, glancing at her brother's tired face, "Tumhe roj roj hume pick karne ki kya zaroorat hai.. Hum khud ajate. Dekho itna sa muh nikal aya hai tumhara!"

"Bohut zaroorat hai. Aise raat ko tum akeli kaise aaogi!" Adeel muttered in a protective manner, making Haseena smile.

"Waise tumhari baat huyi hai ammi se?" Haseena asked in a melancholic tone.

"Nahi", Adeel replied, "Tum kyu tension leti ho? Ammi kitne der naraz reh sakegi", he continued. "Tum filhal apne job pe dhyan do na! Aur shadi ko leke tumhara jo bhi faisla hoga, I will always support you", he assured her.

"Pata hai hume", Haseena said, resting her head on the car window with a faint smile, wondering how her brother would react upon knowing the whole truth.

"Ammi ap kyu nahi samajh rahi hai, hum nahi karna chahte shadi!", Haseena urged, "Kamse kaam thoda waqt hi de dijiye hume!"

"Agar waqt dene par tu shadi ke liye raji ho jati toh shayad de dete", Salma uttered sternly and Haseena could sense exactly what she might be talking about. "Teri nikah Arshad ke saath hi hogi, aj ho ya kaal", she declared in an unyielding manner.

Haseena struggled not to break into tears. The weight of her suppressed desires bore down on her, making her feel suffocated. She didn't want to be in a relationship that she knew she wouldn't be able to accept wholeheartedly.

"Hum yeh nahi kar payenge ammi", Haseena mustered all her strength to defy her mother for the very first time in her life. "Humara yaqeen kijiye ammi, apne hume utna nahi toka hoga jitna humne apne apko roka hai, humesha se..." her words trailed off, adding on the heaviness hung in the air. "Humne bohut koushish ki ke hum aisa mehsos na kare lekin nahi ho paya. Aise apne jazbaato ko dafnate dafnate mar jayenge hum", she desperately wanted her mother to understand her for once but whatever she said only infuriated her.

"Bas! Iske agee ek aur lafz nahi. Teri behayai ka fasana nahi sunna hai hume!" Salma raised her voice, "Itna sa bhi lihaaz nahi bacha tere andar jo apne ammi ke samne khade hokar aisi baatein kar rahi hai. Humari toh chod, tujhe apni marhoom bap ki izzat ka bhi koi parwah nahi hai!"

Haseena stood there, not bothering to fight her tears anymore as they fell down freely across her cheeks.

"Ab apne bhai ke saath hi rehna jab tak aqal thikane na ajaye", Salma said, leaving Haseena to survive a torturous battle all by herself.

A lone tear escaped Haseena's eyes, dwelling on her mother's words. She couldn't help but wonder why it was so hard for anyone to understand her feelings! Be it her mother or be it Karishma, why couldn't they try to listen to her side for a change! Why her feelings meant nothing to the people she valued more than her life?!

"Haseena? Kya hua hai?" Adeel asked worryingly, noticing her tears.

"Kuch nahi! Bas thak gaye hai", Haseena replied, wiping off her tears. "sabki umeedon ki bojh uthate uthate", she murmured under her breath, diverting her gaze outside in an attempt to escape the upheaval of her life amid the hustle-bustle of the busy roads of Delhi.

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Hello dear people, hope you all are doing well.

Here is the chapter 37 of Solace. Do vote, comment and follow to motivate your writer. See you in the next one.