"Aap kaise ho ab Malini/Malini Didi?"
(How are you now Malini/Malini Didi)
Both Aditya and Imlie asked together as they came hurrying into the room. They looked at each other and immediately looked away. Malini who had been clutching her head till now looked up and sighed in relief. She extended her hand out towards Imlie who immediately held it and sat down beside her. As soon as she did, Malini pulled her into a hug. Aditya sighed in annoyance and looked away.
The next few moments went in explanations and assurances, before the three made their way out to the pooja. The rest of it went uneventful with Imlie retreating to her corner, unable to hold herself after his accusations. Hurt welled within her yet again and she really dint know how long this would go on till she breaks completely!
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"Are you out of your mind mom?" Malini burst out, for the first time at her mom. Since the time they had come back, her mom had been silent and worried, until one certain moment where she frantically started yelling that they should call off the marriage!
Though taken aback by Anu's state and repeated chants of calling off the impending marriage, Malini tried her best to be calm and normalise Anu. Only, she lost all her patience, anger overpowering her when Anu babbled on that Aditya and Imlie were likely to have an affair!
Anu looked on wide eyed, taken aback by the fury in her daughter's eyes, which she had probably seen for the first time.
"What in the name of God is wrong with you? How can you associate my to be husband and sister like that?" she yelled, tears flooding her eyes. Malini had never spoken back. Instead, she had always been a pillar of support for her mother. But Anuja Chaturvedi had crossed a line today and Malini was not going to have any of it.
She stormed away, angry and hurt even as Anu collapsed onto the couch heavily. Her daughter was far more emotionally attached than she had anticipated!
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The night sky shimmered with twinkling stars, gentle breeze rustling the leaves outside, weaving a symphony along with dulcet tunes of the night insects. She stood at the terrace, gazing at the moon, her arms wrapped around herself. Her eyes held nothing even as they blankly gazed at the black canvas above. When her corner could no longer alleviate the hurt she felt but instead felt more suffocating, she rushed out and headed to the terrace. She was a distraught mess, enveloped by thoughts and provocations of schools of thoughts that battled in her head. One tried to evoke anger within her while one sought to push her to reveal the truth and ask for her rights. Another part of her drowned in her heartbreak, painfully reliving flashes of Aditya and Malini together. Yet another part forced her to shout the truth and go away to some place far while another part of her refused to do any such thing, in fear of hurting such wonderful people. And one more part of her felt guilty at feeling bad seeing him with Malini while yet another pondered over why it affected her so very much. Torn between these conflicting emotions and feeling suffocated with agony she couldn't let out, Imlie had sought some fresh air to clear her mind.
She was all alone with just the moon and stars as company, silence wrapped around her still and expressionless form like a blanket. So when she heard footsteps, it startled her and she immediately hid at the nearest spot she could find.
The sound of footsteps increased and when they were the loudest, she heard them still at someplace not far from her. She peeked out a little from behind the cartons and her eyes widened when she saw who it was.
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The line on the monitor showed a flatline and he collapsed by his mother's lifeless body, heart-wrenching sobs escaping his mouth. She had been his only family and her deteriorating health had been why he had left his education and taken up odd jobs to make enough money so that he could afford her treatment. But he hadn't been able to do enough! His mother was gone!
The doctor gently pulled him away from her but he clinged on like a frightened child, refusing to leave his mother's body, pleading her to wake up. He had never known this heart-wrenching pain of loss for he had been just 1 when his father had passed away. He had never seen his father hence dealing with his demise had been more of coping up in the world without his presence, without a father's presence, especially since their economic condition was pathetic. It was a stroke of luck that he got an opportunity to study and he had taken it, putting his heart and soul into it so that he could provide a good future to his mother. But alas! Everything was now snatched from him! He had nothing to live for! Nothing!
Love,
Pratyusha
NOTE
Hey all,
Extremely sorry for taking so so long. Too many things were going on - from college to exams to well, many other things. Also, I have stopped watching the show hence was feeling largely disconnected with Adilie. Plus, this part of the story deals a lot with Malini and all other characters, hence writing her is difficult, considering she is genuine in my story. So I apologize for the delay and hope to not keep you waiting too long for the updates.
Hope to receive the same love even after this gap.
YOU ARE READING
Lakeerein - Ties That Bind Us
Fanfiction------ Can Be Read As General Fiction ------ One night. One event. Lives of two people altered completely. When Aditya Kumar Tripathi, Chief Executive Reporter at Bhaskar times stepped into Pagdandiya and met Imlie, he did not know how his life woul...
