Why isn't anyone at home? Besides, no one is attending my calls. What's wrong? I didn't even find the spare key. This day can't be better. It's already getting dark and I am too exhausted to stay over Sha's house. Everything is getting on my nerves. I am feeling annoyed, impatient, betrayed, and tired of this day.
Giving up, I dial Sha's number to stay over at her house until I get to know about my dad and Daadi.
Her phone is ringing so is my head. It is ringing with incoherent words. Why on earth has everyone abandoned me today? I cut the call and lifted my head only to see the reflection of the watchman approaching me with a knife in his hands on the front glass windows of our house. WTH!!
My brain stops working with the shock but I manage to escape from his attack. I kick him hard in his gut and run to my bicycle. But before I get on my bicycle he caught me by my hair. How the hell did he recover soon from my kick? I groan in pain and try to escape from his grip but he slaps me on my face. The slap was so sharp that I fell to the ground. My head spins for a while but I recover and notice the little blood at the corner of my mouth. Before I react, he tries to drag me to the van parked outside. Who the hell is he?
I struggle to escape but he drags me by my hair which is painful. He's about to push me into the van which I take advantage of to kick him again. I stomp my foot on his foot and in a brisk, I grab a huge flower pot on the wall near the gate and hurl it on his head.
Dang!!!
I ran as fast as I could followed by him. I can't believe that he joined as a watchman only to kidnap me not to protect me. And the irony is that Daadi appointed him to increase security. Daadi...you really need to enquire next time. Certainly, someone out there named Ahujas still has not given up on their retaliation. I take a turn and enter a narrow alley where I can see people doing their chores. Can't they see that a teen girl is being chased by a lunatic? Why do people behave like a wimp when it comes to rescuing others?
"Come on, you should give up by the time" I am currently hiding behind the trash can at the end of the street. I peep to see him searching for me. I should call someone to help me.
"Nononono..."I realize that I drop my phone at my house as I search for it in my pockets. Probably, my life is over. There is no way to escape from him. I should see my Dad once before I die.
I silently pray to God to save me one last time. My body is shivering out of fear and my heart is racing fast with each second passing by. He is slowly walking towards the trashcan and I grab the trash bag beside me getting ready to hit him. He's just a two-foot distance from me and I get my position with the trash bag in my trembling hands. I am about to get up and hit him but my fortune... he got a call and got distracted. I take this chance to sneak away from the street.
As soon as I reach the main road I stop an auto and hop in instantly.
When the autowala asks me where to drop me, I can't even form a sentence to speak. Finally, I managed to say the address of the hotel where Pratheek Uncle is staying.
I know that it's not safe to go to Sha's house when I am being followed by a kidnapper. So I decided to go to Uncle's place. He's still in this town, fortunately.
Meanwhile, I requested Autowala for his mobile to make a call. Firstly, I tried my luck with Daadi hoping that she would lift the call this time and I got lucky.
"Little girl...where are you? And whose number is this?"
"Daadi...please tell me where you are?" I barely try to hide my fear.
"Are you okay? Tell me where you are. I'll pick you up" she asks concerned
"I..I.. Just tell me the address"
"I am at the hospital"
My fear is replaced with worry.
I told the address of the hospital to the autowala and returned his phone.
This sounds wrong but I feel like something is wrong with Dad.
Why is this happening to me? I sit there in silence with tears rolling on my cheeks.
As soon as I reach the hospital, I run to Daadi crying. She is waiting at the entrance for me. For a while, I felt that I might not see her again.
"Why don't you attend my calls?" I say in between my sobs.
She caresses my hair for a while and we retreat.
She frowns as she notices the bruise on my cheek.
"Little girl, what happened?" she asks with a bit of worry and anger.
"It's..." I don't know how to say what happened but she asks me sternly again. And I decided to tell her.
"I am attacked...again"
She is a bit shocked but her shock turns to fury in no time. "Who the hell dared to lay his hands on my little girl? Just tell me who it is and I won't let him live" She asks me and I tell her everything that happened an hour ago.
She fisted her palm to the extent that her knuckles became white. I try to calm her but she quickly makes a call to someone and says something about my safety.
"Daadi...what happened to Dad? Please tell me" After she finished talking to someone on the other line, I asked her with all the anxiety left in me.
"Let's go inside"
After she gets me something to drink, I ask her again what's happening under my nose. I can sense that.... whenever they try to hide something from me.
We sit in the cafeteria on the hospital premises as Daadi insists that I should relax a bit at first. I should listen to her when she's serious. I can't help but follow her orders.
"Will you tell me now? Please..."
She takes her time before she speaks....
"You should listen to me carefully and don't freak out..okay," she asks for my consent and I nod at her. "Your Dad...he needs surgery"
"What surgery? Is he going to be alright?" My anxiety is increasing advertently. God!! Please don't make my nightmare come true.
"He..he has a tumor inside his brain and there was a delay in diagnosis"
"What!? How did the delay happen? There is treatment for brain tumors right?"
She is silent and her silence is freaking me out.
"Daadi...please tell me he is gonna be alright?"
"Treatment tho hai..lekin..."
"Please tell me the truth, Daadi. No more hiding. Please" I plead with tears rolling down my cheek.
"The tumor in his brain is becoming larger and occupies most of his brain. He needs immediate surgery. But...the success rate of these surgeries is very low. In some cases, patients would die during the surgery. It's very risky"
My pulse drops on hearing that. She's lying. No, it won't happen to my Dad. He's going to be okay.
"He wasn't ready to take the risk...because of you. But that tumor... it's killing your Dad daily with unbearable headaches. He is tolerating the pain for you"
I can't stop myself from breaking down in front of her. How can I live without my Dad? He's everything I have. I can't just see him dying. He's dying every day and I don't know about it.
"After you leave for a farewell party, he falls unconscious. Doctors advised me to admit him ASAP. They want to monitor him every day and they also talked with a specialist from abroad. He's coming next week for your Dad's surgery"
"I want to see Dad. Please take me to Dad...please"
"He has been sedated, Dear...to lessen his pain. He was in immense pain. And it will take 48 hours for him to regain consciousness. That drug is too powerful, little girl and its effect won't wear off easily. It's better not to disturb him"
"Please Daadi...I won't disturb Dad. I just want to see him once...please" I say in between my sobs.
"Okay. But don't take a long time"
I wipe my tears and nod at her sniffing.
"Your Dad needs strength to handle the pain. Remember...You should be his strength...always"
I nod at her and am about to go inside the room he's admitted.
"Little girl...He should be your strength too" I smile slightly and prepare myself not to cry.
As I approached him slowly, it was becoming harder for me to breathe. I am suffocating inside holding so much grief. But Daadi's words kept reminding me that I should be his strength. I gently hold his palm lying on his side and I sit beside him waiting for him to respond. But nothing happened as I expected. I am on the verge of crying but his steady breath makes my heart beat steady. To me..he's sleeping peacefully. He's healthy and safe. My words fail to come out but my teardrops are not. A teardrop accidentally fell on his palm and he still has not responded. Daadi is right that he needs to rest. I rub my tears and I get up to leave. Before leaving I kiss his forehead like he always does before I sleep "Come back, Dad"
"It's twelve, Anara. You don't sleep yet. Are you alright?" Sha asked me as I stared at the clock like it was the only thing in this world. 24 hours...I was barely living in the last 24 hours.
"I'm worried about you, Anara. I don't know what's bothering you but you seem lost since you arrived yesterday. Mom is also worried about you. And you are barely eating like you lost your appetite. Are you upset with us?" She asks in a low voice like she's afraid of every word she speaks.
"I always wish good for you and Aunt Anika, Sha. It's not you"
"Is it about Vaibhav? I should have hit him hard for doing that to you"
"No....not at all. He is not even in my worst nightmares. Let alone my thoughts...I forget that the moment I left the school"
"Then what is it? Is it about...." she hesitates a bit and I'm a bit tensed. I didn't tell her about Dad's condition. I knew that she already come to know about Dad's tumor and that's when I understood why she reacted weirdly at that dinner night. That's the reason I didn't disclose to her about Dad's current health condition or his surgery. I don't want to disturb their lives.
"Come on Sha, Don't ponder over things. Just spit it out" I am too exhausted to even speak. I can't be okay until Dad becomes conscious.
"Is it about Anirudh?"
The mention of Ani's name piques me. What about him? Did he do anything stupid again? Or did she mean by our usual cold shoulder thing?
"I thought that you were sad because he was leaving in an hour. I mean I know that you don't care but if it's like you do care about him deep inside. No, I don't mean you should care. It's your wish but I reckon that you want to meet him one last time before he leaves. Perhaps he never returned to India. We don't know, right? Maybe he wished to see you and you too but your heart and mind are not on the same page..."
"Sha...calm down....it's okay" I try to stop her from ranting. I know that she is being delicate towards me but her behaviour like I'm a glass that can be broken by her words is kinda worrying me. I want her to be honest with me. That's it. After all, she is all I had today. And Tomorrow she will also leave me alone in the darkness.
I don't know what wrong I did to lose all my loved ones gradually. Back then, it was like I had nothing to lose. But now, it's different, and my biggest fear is ending up alone. I'm afraid that in the end, it's just me with me. I don't want it to happen. It won't happen.
"Does that mean...you aren't thinking about him?"
A few minutes ago...I'm not. But now...my mind drifts back to Ani. I used to develop hatred towards him lately but the truth is I'm not. I don't hate him. I would miss him. He's always the one for me. But I should let him go. He doesn't belong to me or our family. He has his life and he should be bound to his family rather than being a friend to me. Once upon a time, I wished that the bond between him and his father would always be good like mine and my Dad but when it happened I misunderstood him. I understand how it feels to lose one's Dad slowly when my Dad is on the verge of dying. I realized how his Dad is important to him just like my Dad is to me. And this is the moment I forgive him for what he did. But that doesn't mean I should tell him now.
"I am..." I say in a low voice.
"Then make a call...say goodbye. You'll feel better" she says enthusiastically.
"I can't !!!...it's not the right time, Sha" she felt disappointed as I exclaimed at her enthusiasm.
"Are you sure about it?" I hear the familiar strong feminine voice behind us. We look at our behind to see Aunt Anika leaning on the door frame. Is she here all along?
"Mom..." Sha goes to her and murmurs something in her ears before she leaves us alone. And I guess that she has said something like 'Speak to her' What in the world does her code mean?
I haven't spoken to Aunt Anika properly since I arrived. I was so lost that I couldn't spare some time for them which was the reason I chose to stay here. When I was in the hospital, Sha called me and asked me to stay with her before they shifted to Delhi. Daadi approved my stay concerning my safety. But I couldn't be myself since I left the hospital. I was checking on Dad now and then through texts from Daadi.
"Do you wish to speak about it?"
I look at her with teary eyes remaining silent. I don't know how to explain what I'm feeling right now. It's so sweet of her to look after me but I can't express myself in front of her or anyone right now.
"It's okay, dear. When I was young, I was like you. Fear of expressing myself to anyone. Fear of being misunderstood by people. Fear of losing people but in the end I had become what I was always. I ended up being alone with no one at my back. But I guess I'm good with it. Still, I know what it feels like. So...speak to yourself and if needed speak to the person you trust" She pauses for a while and lifts my chin with her palm as I look down to hide the pain in my eyes.
"A proper goodbye is all it needed, Anara. Not to end up things. But to finish what's started. It just needs a bit of courage to do what needs to be done. And a huge relief after it is done" I nod at her as she has a point there. I should bid him goodbye and wish him the best of luck with his new life. Perhaps he needs that. He deserves a proper goodbye at least.
"Mom, I think I can take it from here" Sha appears again with a smile.
I feel bad for them. Instead of helping them, I have been taken care of by them. I'm pathetic sometimes.
"Thanks for everything, Auntie," I say with a small smile.
"Don't be, dear. Your mom would do the same" she says caressing my hair. "You should be strong just like your Mom. It will help you all along"
She left with a goodnight kiss on Sha's forehead.
I am grateful for her valuable advice.
"Are you ready?" Sha asks as she is about to dial Ani's number. I rub my face with my palms and nod at her. When she is about to press the call button, she gets a call from Advik. Perplexed we both exchange a look before she attends his call. She lifts the call and puts it on the speaker.
"Hey...are you still awake?" says Ad from the other line. She rolls her eyes and says. "Whom do you think to lift your call if I have slept?" I scoff at her remark and nudge her to ask him the point of why he called her at this time. She nods and does the same.
"I...I..um..wait is Anara with you?" he asks her out of the blue.
"Yeah...of course. Why?" she says nonchalantly.
"Thankfully....I am at the airport. You know we are on good terms now..."
Sha gestures to me that Ani and Ad are on good terms.
"Yeah, I know. Is he with you?"
"Yes. Hold on"
There is absolute silence on the other line for a while.
Sha holds my slightly shivering hands and nods at me telepathically saying 'It's okay' I gulp a lump in my throat and take her phone into my hands.
"Hello.." I speak with a bit of hesitation.
"Ninja.." my heart stops for a while on hearing that name from his mouth. My eyes brim with tears and I am lost at words. But I held back my tears and said "Ani"
He sniffles which says that he's crying too. At the moment although we are at the miles of distance I can feel him before me. Sitting in front of me. Everything is blurred except for me and Ani. Like we are face to face seeing each other's teary eyes.
"I'm sorry, Ninja. For everything...I did to you. I was impulsive, restrained, and absurd. But I missed you....a lot. You can't imagine how much you matter to me"
His words shock me and make me cry for him at the same time. But I choose to stay silent letting him speak his heart out.
"You are the one true person who makes me feel alive, who brings out both the best and worst in me. Never in my dreams, have I imagined that you are that miracle that brings me and my dad closer by annihilating the barriers between us. When I came to know about that, you didn't believe but I really wanna hug you and thank you for everything you have done. But I don't have enough courage to confront you. Thank you for coming into my life and fixing me" he says honestly. His words make me warm and fuzzy inside. I just wanna go to him and hug him right away. And I know it's not possible so I just close my eyes seeping his words into me.
"I know that you still do not forgive me but I hope that one day you will forgive me and accept me as your friend again. I will miss you. And....I like you. I tried to say this many times but I guess this is the time. Hope we will meet again"
I miss you too...Ani.
"It's time...I have to go. Goodbye, Ninja" he says in a hurry.
"Ani...all the best for your future....(pauses) and...I forgive you"
By the time I said the last part he had already given back the phone to Ad. "Sorry...he needs to leave immediately," Ad says to us disappointing both of us. "Advik...can you convey my best wishes to him" Sha requests him which he agrees and disconnects our call. Will he also say that I forgive Ani? I wish Ani would have heard that. I don't want him to think that I'm still mad at him.
"That's harder than I expected," Sha says sighing. I don't know why people used to say that Goodbyes are the most beautiful and heartbreaking thing at the same time. I just experienced it and I don't know what to say about it. His words are still strolling in my mind. 'I like you' is the part which I never expected. Did he really mean by that? And do I feel the same about him?
I really need someone to pluck out all these thoughts from my brain. As far as I am concerned his chapter in my life is over. We are not meant to be together just like Aunt Anika and Uncle Arnav. This chapter of my life where we made good memories as friends has become my past and I know that he will not be there in my future. At present...we finished what we started. From there on, we part ways as the new life welcomes us into two different worlds of us. It should be a good old memory rather than a complicated one. So I just brush off what he said and look at Sha by saying "I can't agree more" She smiles at me embracing the moment along with me. We both retreat and are about to sleep but her phone chimes. Her smile itself says who it can be. I feel bad for Ad as he cannot spend his time with Sha before she leaves. But I guess they aren't parted just like me and Ani. I hope they will have a greater bond than we ever have.
I lay on the bed recollecting the moments of me and Ani once again from the beginning. It always brings a smile to my face and contentment in my heart. Wish I could have him in my life like I used to thought. My eyes slowly drifted off to sleep while I was thinking of Ani cuddling with me in my memories.
****************
Hey guys!!
Hope you are doing great!!
I'm back with a new chapter. What do you think about their departure?
Please vote if you like the chapter and don't forget to comment.
Keep supporting...
#staysafe #spreadlove