My Life Is Incomplete Without You

Chapter 1 - All Alone

All Sanyukta...

It was a fine Monday morning when I and my best friend Divya were walking towards school.

"Damn! I hate these Mondays, same school, same studies and this junk cycle" kicking one of the wheels she irked.

Since I wasn't the only kid in family, I wasn't provided a bicycle. I kept kicking sand under my feet while walking with a smile being lost in myself. It was the last childlike day I spent being a 12 year old unaware of the arrival of the most unfortunate day of my life; the day which changed my prospective towards life.

Although I belonged to a middle class family, my parents were extremely supportive. My father, Prithviraj Agrawal was a clerk in income tax office and my mother Sushma was a perfect homemaker. Unlike other parents, they didn't make fun of my dream. My 6 years old twin siblings Vibhu and Tamanna being much younger than me completed our family. We lived in a big mansion, probably one of the biggest in our village left by our ancestors.

"Wow! Seems you found a boyfriend", asked Divya playfully hitting my elbow.
"Yeah! Multiple!" I mocked a smile.
"Fine! Unfold the sensational suspense of your  exclusive happiness", she huffed.
"We are going Jaipur for a movie this evening", I answered.
"Amazing! You got tickets to Disneyland! congrats!" she spoke in disguise.
"Haha! Uncivilised joke! Don't you know my dream to be a superstar. Don't you know how much I get excited spotting actors on screen" 

"Babe, only actors act on screen, isn't it?" 

"Yeah! But I see myself in them. Besides that after 5 long years mom's joining us with the kids" I mocked.

"And finally you're a little distant from your parents' romance" she teased again.

Very funny"
"Still I'm amazed. I mean dreaming huge being a remote village resident needs incredible courage that too without ruining your academics"

"I don't spend much time in studies you know that. I have two things along with my family,one is my passion for henna art and other one I told you"
"Wish I could be that smart"
"Come on! You're not a failure"
"You don't know the pain of a student whose best friend scores best grades in class" she stared me tugging her nose.

We giggled and reached school in a few minutes.

**********

"Iqbal" I read out the board of the theatre while waiting for our parents to reach us. We got into out seats soon after their arrival. I was always fascinated towards this huge dark room and the only source of light, where people get stuck only to the large screen and nothing else. How amazing would it be to be the single focus and inspiration to multiple crowds, I wondered.

"Poor guy, how much he's going through to live his dream" I spoke during the two third of the movie. "Had he be not deaf and dumb, he might got it easier" I wheeze.
"Exactly dear. Everyone has their own struggle to reach their destination" clutching my shoulder he said and continued. "Okay one question, just because you're normal would it be easy for you to become a successful actress? No, right! You yourself have to work on your problems to get rid of them. We must learn much from them and prepare for the unexpected tests designed for us. Failure and defeat are two different words. Accepting failures teaches you lessons but accepting defeat pulls you apart from your destination. Keep your strength alive in any situation"

His words were inspiring. They kept enlightening my dream. Soon the climax of the movie proved it. I admitted his words still somewhere I believed that his presence would make everything easy. I smiled and moved outside. Catching an autorickshaw, they seated us and followed us by their scooter. Perhaps every lower middle class family couldn't afford more than this.

Our parents were following us. Soon we got into a traffic and we could not trace them. Even after getting out of traffic we were unable to see them. It was a long time since we were lost. Once again we got into a huge traffic. We got stuck there more than twenty minutes.

Instructing the kids to be hooked at the place, I finally decided to look for our parents. At a distance, a crowd gathered. Walking towards it, I slipped into the centre only to find something that made emptied my mind. My jaws hung down and feet lost balance when I saw my parents lying motionless in a pool blood spread more than metres. I felt a stroke in my nerves and shouted loud "maa-baba". Falling into my knees, I shook them one by one.

A drunken truck driver had hit their vehicle to which they landed over highway and stuck under the huge tyres of the 16 wheeler.
"Perhaps they're dead" I heard someone saying in the crowd.

"They're alive, do you get that" I roared at the peak of my voice clutching the collar of that man. "Someone help me", I sobbed.

I was behaving like a mental patient by then. An ambulance appeared in a few minutes rushing towards hospital. After a long jerk, doctors came to attend them.

My fears took a life as I heard those words from doctors "they're no more". I broke down into pieces like a glass. I carried my forehead in my palms and sat in the nearby bench. My brain couldn't register what happened and what was going to happen ahead. Within moments, life made three of us orphan. "Three of us" I murmured and stared the kids. Their innocent faces innocent words jerked my insides. Neither we were rich enough to feed ourselves nor had any relatives who could adopt us. We were left all alone in the merciless world. Just then, a soft palm landed over my shoulder pressing it lightly.

"Baba", was the only word I could utter while facing the person. My burning swollen eyelids could just trace my best friend Divya. Perhaps she was the best medication I needed during that interval. I threw myself into her tight warm hug and sobbed like never before. "Di... Divi... We... We are left orphans. We've nothing left Divi, we're finished" I blabbered and stammered in sorrow.

"Calm down Sanyu. Stop crying. Shh... " she said rubbing my back. "Look at them" wiping my face she made me look at the twins. "They don't have anyone other than you. You've to be their guardian, guide and strength after your parents. Atleast you're grown enough to take care of yourself but they even don't know what death is. You won't want to handover them to any adoption center, would you? Don't break apart like this Sanyu, be a fighter. And about you livelihood we'll definitely do something about it" she consoled me cupping my face.

Her words reminded me my dad and another drop of tear made its way through my cheeks making me gulp a lump. Although it was an unexpected challenge of life yet I knew I had to fight it and there was no way apart that. I walked till my siblings and stared directly into their eyes and once again tears rolled down my cheeks.

"Why are you crying di", my sister said wiping my tears.
"Di, where's maa, I'm hungry" my brother asked innocently.
"Maa and baba are on a long tour baby" I answered suppressing my tears.
"Without us? We'll also go" Vibhu muttered making a face.
"Vibhu..." I raised my voice and then continued getting over my emotions "see baby we can't go there. We don't know the address, do we? But they said if you'll be good and follow your di nicely then they'll send surprise gifts"
"Wow! I'll ask baba for my favourite barbie" little Timi chirped happily.

I ran away sobbing again followed by Divya.

"Am I gonna lie them all my life Divi? I'm breaking down at their innocent questions" I sobbed louder.
"You're more courageous than you look. I'm sure no one can take of them more than you" she smiled followed by a hug.

**********

To be continued...