Barkha informed Shefali that during this time of the month, women here were not allowed to even touch the sacred water of the ghat at the back.
Instead, Barkha took her to a tiny section surrounded by heavy blankets from four sides and a mud vessel full of water and a tiny pot inside it.
She was asked to freshen up there and Barkha brought her some light clothes with cotton rags.
Shefali shivered as the cold water ran down her spine.
The sun was already on the horizon and the day was almost about to seize.
Barkha stayed there, sitting on the granite stairs, giving her friend company for as long as she was there.
As soon as Shefali was done bathing and washing her clothes, she came out and hung her clothes on the rope that was spared for her use in a corner of this shady part of the campus.
"Where will they send me?"
Shefali asks with a straight face.
After having bathed under cold water, Shefali has got back her senses to some extent.
She knows there won't be anyone for her to rely on. All she has is herself so she can't break down like this.
Whatever is waiting for me ahead, I'll gear up the courage to face it... She explained herself several times with each throw of cold water her way.
If they can do it, I'll do it too... she reassures herself.
Barkha looked at the dry ground while she spoke, probably thinking how scared she herself was the first time she had to do this.
She clearly remembers how much she mentally cursed the woman who confronted her with this and hates that she is the one telling Shefali about this in her turn.
"There is a house in the farther eastern hills. That is where we are taken to spend these few days"
She says and glances at Shefali after gathering enough courage to meet her eyes.
"Don't worry! Someone will bring you food in the morning and at night..."
She adds immediately, trying to reach Shefali's hand but remembers she is not supposed to touch her during this time of the month.
"In fact, I'll go for that duty!"
She almost screams.
Shefali smiles at her with immense love.
"You are just a bit unlucky. Mostly there are at least two to three girls who go through this together and even more sometimes. For that, there are about four vacant houses there but unfortunately, they are all empty now. I'll pray someone joins you soon"
Barkha says knowing there is no chance she will get hers any sooner.
"Don't worry... I'll be just fine"
Shefali says not knowing if she is assuring Barkha or just herself.
Both the girls walk towards the house that is already lit with tiny lamps.
Shefali's pain was slowly increasing with each step she took.
Many women were already gathered around the lawn, murmuring and pointing at her. She felt a certain kind of inferiority that she couldn't explain. Gauri's face kept coming back to her mind and she kept struggling to hold back her tears.
She packed a few sets of ghagra cholis and a few shawls. Barkha promised she would send more if she needed more.
As much as Shefali wanted to take her saree with her for more comfort, she did not because she was not allowed to.
أنت تقرأ
𝟏𝟓𝟐𝟗: 𝐀 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐑𝐚𝐣𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐚| Indian Historical Fiction
التاريخية𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊 Ⅰ 𝐎𝐅 𝐑𝐀𝐉𝐏𝐔𝐓𝐈-𝐁𝐀𝐈𝐒𝐀 𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐋𝐎𝐆𝐘 Shefali Roy had lost her parents in a pandemic when she was just one year old. That was the first time she was orphaned. The next time she was orphaned was when she was seventeen. The army of...
