innocent love

31.10.2009

Rita was sitting on a chair, just beside the window. It was late at night, Animesh,her husband was again out of station. The soft moonlight illuminated her pained face. She did not even noticed the magic it was spreading outside.

She was a shortheighted, slim woman in her mid thirties. Her short hair looked cute on her childish face, which was wearing a deep frown right now.

She went to bed after a while, not to sleep, which she knew wont come to her easily….

She looked at the face of her tiny daughter Mahak, she was sleeping like an angel, with a soft smile on her lip. She laid down beside her and pulled her close to her.

Its been ten years since their marriage. She still remembers the first day they went out together. She fell in love with Animesh at the first sight. He was tall, dark and handsome. There was some magic in his huge eyes, which were full of patience, wisdom and kindness.

They were sitting in a park. Spring all around them and in Rita’s heart. She was watching the flowers, birds and her fiance’s face again and again.

“I want to tell you something Rita, before you make up your mind about me, our marriage.” He said in a very soft voice. “You know I am an orphan, I was born and brought up in Ramkrishna Mission.”

“I am not marrying you because I need someone in my life, I am marrying you to keep an oath. I promised someone that I will marry you.” He continued.

“I have a past which I cant share with you. Because someone else’s extremely personal life is involved in it.” he continued, “But that past will never effect our life together, all I will ask from you that I will have to go away from you atleast for ten days per month.”


“Whatever I will do during that period is completely honourable, and though I cant share it with you but I know if I could you would have loved me even more.” He said looking at her face sincerely.

“You can call off the engagement, it wont matter to me.” He concluded.

Well, she chose him and promised him that she will never ask a single thing about his past or any thing which he doesnot wants to tell her. Her heart told her to trust him.



The pain:


Mahak came to their life a couple of years later. She was the apple of their eyes.

During the first few years of their marriage Animesh used to go out for a week per month, then it started to get longer. Not only that the frequency too increased. By the time Mahak was seven years old it started to take its toll on their married life.

He has gone away on first of this month for ten days, now it was twenty first and he has again left. This time for five days.

Rita spent the night without a single minute of sleep, next day was Sunday, no school for Mahak. So she was sleeping but Rita got up with the chirping of the birds.

She decided that it was high time that she will speak with Animesh.

Animesh returned on fifth of next month. There was a dark line of tiredness under his eyes.

Rita made arrangements of his rest and took care that Mahak doesnot disturbs him.

Mahak was out playing with children when Animesh woke up. He got up and saw that Rita was sitting outside in the balcony. She looked up at him when he approached her.

Animesh was shocked by the look of her eyes. A deep pain has taken place of the happiness which used to reside there earlier.

He sat down beside her and took her hand in both of his hands, “I am sorry, I owe you an explanation.”

“Its ok, I have promised you when we married that I will never ask any thing which you don’t want to tell me.” Rita said, “Its just I miss you so much…” her voice trailed away as she turned her face away to avoid an eye contact with him.

“I want to share it with you.” He softly said. “Mahak’s Dussehera holidays are starting from tomorrow right? It’s a ten days holiday, lets take a short trip. Just a few hours journey from here.”


Revelation:

They left early next morning by train. Mahak was chirping like a little bird, chattering away endlessly with Rita. Animesh was sitting silently, speaking only when he was forced to speak.

They descended on a small station at the dusk. The evening sun was glowing in the western sky, spreading a pink hue over every thing, birds were returning to their nests chirping like Mahak.

The horizon was dotted with hills, some were near and some far. Some appeared quite high.

Animesh took a taxi and they started their journey. Another couple of hours later they reached a small hotel situated on a hill. They rented a room for ten days.

“Get fresh. We don’t have any thing to do tonight, we will be there tomorrow morning, at ten.” Animesh said.

When Rita woke up next morning Animesh was not in bed. She got up to look for him and saw him sitting on the balcony. Staring at the eastern horizon which was on a riot of colours.

The clear blue sky was scattered with clouds of various colour and the rising sun was pouring down colour on them with both hands. To enhance the beauty a luscious green carpet of grass was surrounding the hotel. Filled with various types of trees.

Animesh took her hand and pulled her beside him. She sat down beside him with her head resting on his shoulder.

Birds were singing all around them, some were invisible and some not.

“Wake Mahak up, get her ready and feed her something.” Animesh said after an hour or so. The sun was already up and the employees and other guests of the hotel were stirring now.

Some were taking walk in the garden below, some were making arrangements for leaving … and the employees were busy attending them.


The meeting:

Animesh called up the reception for a taxi at nine. They climbed the taxi, it winded its way down the hill to climb another.

It finally stopped near the top of the hill, there was a high boundary wall and a group of guards sitting in the guard room at the gate. They knew Animesh because they exchanged nodds.

Animesh asked the taxi driver to either wait for them or come back after four hours. The taxi driver promised he will be back there sharp at four and left.

They entered the hospital after taking the gate pass. Rita has already read the Signboard which she missed at the first glance.

It was as beautiful as picture, small white buildings were scattered among groves of trees and green lawns. Every where there were flower beds filled up with seasonal flowers, butterflies and bees busily flying around them.

“Let Mahak play here, its absolutely safe.” Animesh said. “she will be clearly visible to us.”

“sweetheart, don’t go out of this garden ok?” he told Mahak. “We are going to that room, if you feel scared you can come to that room and ask that aunty to call us. Whatever you do darling don’t shout.” He showed her a room and the nurse sitting outside it.

“Come.” He held Rita’s hand in his hands as they walked across the lawn towards the room.

“Hi Mr. Ghosh.” The nurse looked surprised. “You were here the day before yesterday, were not you?”
“Tandra is just as before, no improvement or deterioration.” She suppressed her surprise.

“Hi sister, meet my wife Rita, I brought her and my daughter Mahak to meet Tandra.” He introduced them and pointed out Mahak, who was playing in the garden. “Will you keep an eye on her?”

The nurse nodded as she smiled at Rita. They entered the room, it was a neat, clean, beautifully decorated room. With vases full of flower on tables and there was a picture of Animesh, Rita and Mahak on one of them. There was another picture too, Animesh, A gorgeous woman and another girl, who looked just like the woman.

Rita turned toward the patient on the bed, it was the same lady in the picture but she has transformed to almost a skeleton. She was either sleeping deeply or was unconscious.

“Come, lets go and sit outside.” Animesh said, “She is sleeping, wont wake up soon.”


The story:

“Sister, we are sitting there on the lawn, will you let me know if Tandra wakes up?” Animesh asked the nurse when they were outside. She softly smiled and nodded.

They sat down on the grass watching Mahak play.

“She is Tandra. My first love. She was my colleague in my first job.”

“I fell in love with her head over heels and she too reciprocated it.”

“We lived together in Bangalore. She was not very keen to marry and I was hoping she will change her mind with time.”

“Two years went by like dream. That morning she called me up and told me she was expecting.”

“I was ecstatic and proposed her again, this time she agreed and we went to the gynae.”

“It was hardly one month and she changed her mind. When I uttered the word marriage next time she bluntly and heartlessly refused me.”

“I begged her for hours but she did not gave in. That night I emptied a bottle of sleeping pill in a glass of juice and swallowed it.”

“when I woke up she was sitting there, holding my hand, her eyes were red and swollen.”

“That was the beginning of my nightmare, she told me that she is a patient of leukemia, and in the final stages, the gynae told her when she went to her.”

“I begged her for days to marry me and give her last years to me but she refused. She told me that if I don’t listen to her she will kill herself.”

“Then Mehul came, and her condition started to deteriorate further, she started to pester me to get married and she herself selected you and forced me to marry you.”

“She has been working in this hospital since last seven or eight years as a doctor, suddenly her condition deteriorated and she collapsed.”

“That’s when my frequency of visiting her increased. Earlier I used to come here see her and Mehul and return after a couple of days.”

“I have never broken the trust which you have laid on me, I don’t think Tandra would have allowed me either.” He said.

Rita firmly held his hand in both of her hands.


The child:

“Where is Mehul?” she asked.

“I have admitted her to a boarding school nearby. Run by a reputed missionary organisation.” Animesh said.

“She comes to visit Tandra once a week either with me or some nun.” He added.

Rita’s heart filled up with deep pain for the small child who will have to face this horrible loss so early.

“How old is she?” she asked.

“Eleven, her eleventh birthday was last month.” Animesh said.

“What were you planning to do with her if something happened to Tandra?” Rita asked him.

“The boarding school is up to twelfth. After that I would have got her enrolled in some good college.” Animesh said.

“I have some other plans for my elder daughter, I am planning to take her with us when we shift to our own home next month.” Rita said, “we will enroll her there and she will live with us like she is supposed to..”

Tandra did not woke up that day, so they left when the taxi came.


The family:

They headed straight for Mehul’s school. It was a small but prestigious looking school.

One of the nuns guided them to the visitor’s room. Animesh went out to the office with Mahak, Rita was sitting there alone when a beautiful girl entered the room. She was an exact replica of her mother.

Rita stood up and hugged her. “ Mehul?” She asked.

The girl nodded, “Who are you?”


Rita softly replied, “I am your mother, your sister is waiting outside with your father.”Mehul denied vehemently, “You cant be my mother, my mother is in hospital, I go to see her often with father or sister Rose.”Rita held her close and softly said, “When your mom fell sick she prayed to God to send her sister to take her place so she could take care of you, and God has sent me to take care of you.”Mehul innocently looked up at her and hugged her tightly.

They returned that day after clearing the formalities and Mehul was admitted in Mahak’s school.Mahak took her new friend and sister, who was only one year older than her with love and gratitude. She already knew the deep misfortune of her big sister. She regularly visited Sumi with everyone else and have seen the cold hostel in which her sister lived before she found a family in them.Under the caring, guiding eyes of Animesh and Rita two flowers started to bloom and spread their fragrance.