Lakeerein - Ties That Bind Us

48| Chapter 43: Dil Se

Those words reminded her of her Amma, reminded her of the accusations she had thrown at her to drive her away but despite being rude and hurtful, those words had been true to a certain extent, be it how much ever she may deny. Preoccupied with all sorts of emotions and thoughts, it was this moment that this particular thought flashed in her mind. And so, as she looked on at the bitterness evident on Rupali's face, evident in her tone, she realized in her heart that the reason this sort of bitterness hadn't clouded her mind at her mother's inaction was the basic difference in a person's response to circumstances they are subjected to. In yet another moment of wisdom beyond age, she understood that while their situations were somewhat similar, their responses were different due to other factors that played part.

"Every story has two sides to it Didi, as does every circumstance. You know your story. You know what you have seen and what you have inferred. But do you actually know their side of it?" she said, a glint of wisdom shining in her orbs, adding a regal look to her young, innocent face. It forced Rupali to actually listen to her words and to not retort back. She fell silent.
As she uttered those words, Imlie felt a perspective forming in her heart as well. For years she had blamed her father for abandoning her mother. For years, she had blamed their miseries on him. And while she had no doubt of his culpability, her own words forced her to retrospect his reasons for his actions all those years back. She snapped out of this thought when Rupali whispered,

"Hearing their side or paying heed to it will still change nothing would it? Can it forgive their mistakes?"

Tears pooled Imlie's eyes but she held them back. She looked right into Rupali's eyes and said
"No, it can't! It cannot forgive their mistakes but it can surely shed light on the consequences of those mistakes in their lives"

Imlie took Rupali's hand into hers and said
"In this world, not everyone is fortunate to have a family. Families may not be perfect but at the end of the day, they are still our family. I told you the other day about my family, dint I Didi?"

Rupali nodded her head silently. She was silent, actually listening to Imlie's words. She dint know why though. Maybe it was the maturity and wisdom she was receiving from a person she dint expect or it was something her heart yearned for - understanding or maybe both. Whatever it was though, it prompted her to listen.

"My family is not perfect Didi. Similarly neither is yours. Different people react differently to different circumstances. And we have to agree, despite how much ever we oppose it, that this society and its imposed mindset has its impact on us" her tone became distant as she said that, remembering her own circumstances.

"It does Imlie. This society does impact us and strongly so. It was a battle I had to fight to even step out of my situation. People still taunt me today." Rupali's eyes clouded with painful reminisces of her past.

"It hasn't been many days and I am a complete stranger to you. Yet, tell me Didi, what happened?" Imlie asked quietly.

Rupali glanced at her for a moment after which she let out a heavy breath.

"I still don't know what went wrong Imlie. We were so in love. It was beautiful, our life together. Nobody could feign such love, now could they? It was all fine till my complications in pregnancy forced Twinkle to be a premature baby. She had to be put on a ventilator for the first few days. Even after that, there were issues with her health. It caused issues in my health as well. They were stressful months in the beginning. And then, when there began a sense of normalcy in Twinkle's life, and I thought things would start to get better, it turned for the worse. I caught my husband with another woman and it wasn't after some moments even when I learnt that he loved her and that she was pregnant with his child. It was then that I realized that he hadn't been there much for Twinkle all these months at all. It was unbearable - my entire world had collapsed within seconds and I could do nothing about it! If it weren't for my baby, I wouldn't have found strength to fight the society, to leave him even! It was for my baby that I did everything" Rupali said, her voice heavy with tears.
Imlie squeezed Rupali's hand in comfort but said nothing. A few moments of silence followed after which, she continued

"My family did not ask me to go back to him. They allowed me back into the house. But they did nothing when people slandered my character outside. They did not even interact with our neighbours for months, such was their shame. They did not say anything directly to me but their actions spoke volumes. Their silence, their inaction - it just fuelled my hurt Imlie. They made me feel as if it was my fault that my husband deemed it fit to have an affair outside marriage!" anger had crept back into her tone but they were now laced with evident hurt.

Imlie still remained silent, just providing a listening ear even as Rupali let out all those feelings she had buried within her since years. She let out her pain, her bitterness, her guilt, her conundrum regarding the plethora of emotions that plagued her. There was no stopping her as words flowed out along with tears and she went on till everything within her had been let out. And through it all, Imlie had her arms wrapped around Rupali in a comforting hug. She said nothing, just hugged Rupali to her chest and let her vent out everything, providing silent comfort.
When she was done letting out everything, Rupali felt her heart lighten. It felt as if a heavy load had lifted off her soul. The scars were still there so was the hurt that the man she had loved with her everything, had left behind. But for the first time in years, there was an actual hope blooming within her, that maybe she could finally move on!

Love,
Pratyusha