1: Broken hearts
“Hriday mein chhaap si chhod gya Jo,
Jiska pta aatma ko pta na thaa,
Jo samjhota tha, jiska aarambh vish se huya,
Kab wo iccha ban gya, pta hi nhi chala,
Aaj saat mahine beet gaye par aisa lagta hai jaise, aaj bhi wahi ratri hai,
jab aap mere saamne the, par aapke paas na aaya gya,
jab hriday toot gya tha, wo kadwe shabd sun kar.”
“You, who left an imprint upon my heart, Whose existence even my soul was unaware of. What began as a compromise, What started with poison, When it turned into a wish, I never even realized.
Today, seven months have passed, yet it feels As though it is still that very night— When you stood before me, But I could not come near you, When my heart shattered Hearing those bitter words.”
The dark veil of night wrapped the city in its shadows, but the shimmer of lights refused to let Banaras be tossed into darkness. Vaani sat by the glass wall of her college’s cafeteria, lost in thoughts of the person her heart yearned for. Her eyes were lowered, lost somewhere else.
A distance of only a few months has been encountered, and it felt as if something had been stolen from the soul. Without even a single glance of his handsome face, those shining eyes that used to admire her at an instant, the smile on his pink lips, and the words that were proud when she topped did bring momentary joy. Her heart remained somewhere else, whose location was stranger to herself.
The cream fabric beaded with mirror work embraced her arms while the hem of the kurta fell to her feet, pooling around it as if a twirl of golden shimmer.
There hasn’t been a single moment when Vaani hasn’t drifted to thoughts of the life she left behind, but returning was impossible. Moistness touched her eyes at the reminiscence of the moment when she shared elation with Shaurya, but a flash of the hatred she witnessed in his eyes came before her sight, which brought warm tears to her eyes.
“Vaani!!!”
The familiar call shattered the glass of those thoughts, which reflected a pain interlaced with a subtle elation. A blink of her eyes brought the tears declining down her face, which she brushed away instantly, curving her lips into a smile.
Not for once had she disclosed the fact that the mirror of her heart had been broken a long time ago. Vaani lifted her eyelashes only to find her best friend Maira sitting opposite her. Her hand extended towards her, in whose hold the coffee was. Vaani extended her arm, and her fingers touched the warmth of the coffee cup, which was residing on the table.
“Ma’am, we’ve been selected for the 2nd round!!!”
She broke the news, which shone elation in Vaani’s eyes, but even that didn’t last long. “The final round is in Mumbai,” Ritika declared, sitting next to Maira and placing her strawberry shake on the smooth, glassy surface. After being away from the city for months, Vaani never wanted to return to the past she left behind, the past, which could never become her present, especially in the existence of the wall of hatred.
The notice of sorrow on Vaani’s face never escaped from their eyes, eventually raising questions.
“What happened, Vaani?” Maira asked, furrowing her brows. “Nothing,” she responded, shaking her head. A pretense of being happy is put on by Vaani. “I wish we win it!!!!” an excited Ritika exclaimed, but no trace of happiness was on Vaani’s face, for whom the city only held someone she yearned for.
“Vaani, you didn’t tell us how your marriage happened?” Ritika asked, taking a sip. Her round eyes were aimed at Vaani, expecting an answer.
In all these months, Vaani never opened her mouth regarding her wedding. The mere emergence of the topic brought a veil of sadness over her face, which till now kept Maira and Ritika from questioning her, but the curiosity to be aware of the cause of their friend’s gloominess overpowered them tonight.
Maira nudged slightly, giving Ritika the gesture to stay silent. Every time the question rose, Vaani turned silent as if in a cocoon of darkness.
The reminiscence of the night flashed before her eyes, when Shaurya filled her maang, when he wore her the mangalsutra, when she took saat phere with him. At that instant, only hatred replenished her eyes, but now something else sparked a flame in the heart that ached. The late-night study session, the hunt for truth for him, the post-wedding rituals they did together, embraced her, causing her to yearn even more for Shaurya’s presence.
“It just happened,” a low voice emerged from Vaani’s throat.
“Vaani, whenever we ask about your husband, why do you go quiet? If there’s something, you can talk to us. Please don’t hold back,” Ritika urged, keeping her laptop on the table, in an attempt to break the ice that encircled Vaani in its clutches.
Today, every chord of events that unfolded reminded her of Shaurya. The wind played, making her hair fly in the air. There was no relation between her and Shaurya, but she still wore the sindoor. Even her heart was unaware of the reason why she wore it.
“Vaani, you said there’s no love between you two, yet you still wear sindoor and chooda?”
“That… that…”
Her speech fumbled, refusing to provide clarity to the thoughts. “Vaani, can I ask you something?” Ritika proceeded but was interrupted suddenly, causing her to give Maira an annoyed look.
“Can we see him?” Maira questioned instantly, stirring her drink with the glass pipe. Vaani lifted her eyelashes, looking at Maira, who had her hopeful gaze at Vaani.
The dim lights of the corridor reflected upon Karan, who walked back and forth, awaiting the doctor’s arrival. The reason for his arrival might have been contrary, but his mind was stuck on the point when Ahana disclosed the fact that she was not pregnant and didn’t know of it, until Mehak divulged it to her.
“Karan, I…I didn’t know of it before.”
All she wished at that moment was to keep their relationship intact, to not let any crack emerge in it.
The thoughts shattered away the moment the doctor arrived, who carried a smile on her face.
“Can I get the reports?” he asked, forming a smile that never truly existed. She headed into the room, and the file prepared for him was slid toward Karan, who sat on the opposite side. A tremble ran down his hands; he wished the test results to be positive.
“Thank you.”
Getting to his feet, Karan headed outside. His fingers brushed against the cover before forming a strong grip and flipping it open, only to find the test results negative. Ahana had found out the truth a long time ago, but still kept it secret from him, until Mehak didn’t appear.
He almost stumbles, but the support of the pillar is taken. The hands lost contact with the pillar’s marble surface and he stepped back. He almost fell to the chair, but in all this, not for once did his eyes drift away from the reports and the date.
“You betrayed me, Ahana!” he thinks.
A droplet of tears rolled down his face, and the vibrating phone was taken out of the blazer. The call is answered, and her chirping voice asked of his whereabouts.
“Karan, where are you?” Ahana almost yelled, while Rakhi held the phone to her ear. The loud music surrounded them, suppressing her voice.
“Don’t have my name written on your palm. I will never marry a deceitful girl like you.”
The mere words of his fell on her like a rock, piercing through the skin, inviting trails of blood.
“Karan,” she whispered lowly. The coldness of the mehendi struck her hand, causing her tear-laced eyes to lower.
