Rudra stared at a photograph. A picture of the three Oberoi brothers. ShivOmRu - the word, which had always been something full of pride, now only brought pain. A knock on his cabin door had him brought out of his trance.
"Come in" he permitted. "Sir, ma'am has called" The receptionist looked down as she spoke. "Tell her I am busy" he sighed as the lady exited nodding.
Why couldn't she understand he didn't want to talk to anyone?
Bhavya cried as the receptionist informed her that Rudra was busy, She knew this was just another way of pushing her away. What was her fault? What was his fault? What was so wrong with her asking about how he was? Why was he punishing her? Why had he changed so much?
Sometimes we punish ourselves and others, for the mistakes none of us have made.
The alacrity of Rudy was long gone. His equanimity was dead, only agitation remained buried deep in him, which he refused to share. When the news of the death of his eldest brother came out, he was devastated. Ever since he returned from Germany with Om, after Shivaay and Anika had left, he kept searching for them. Towns, cities, villages - there wasn't a single place in the country where he and Om didn't search for their bhaiya - bhabhi.
Both, Om and Rudhra had blamed themselves. Only if they hadn't left for Germany. Om's hatred for Tej just increased. That man, whom he hated to address as his father, had ruined his mother's life as well also had taken his brother away. Drugs had become his friends again. While Rudhra found his lost peace in alcohol.
Rudhra's guilt had been far greater than that of Om. Only if he didn't accompany Om. If only...
The mansion, which was once home, haunted them. They wanted to be away from it. The kitchen, they couldn't bare the sight of it. Memories came haunting me at night, the flashbacks followed the immense heartache.
They missed their brother. They felt like orphans, none there to praise, none to reprimand. They missed their bhabhi, her weird language, and the everyday nok-jhok of their favorite couple.
The Oberoi Mansion had lost two of its residents while they both had lost the reason for their residence there.
Rudhra entered the mansion with an alcohol bottle in one of his hands, his shirt crumpled, his tie loosened and a blazer hanging from his left hand. He didn't feel like coming here. This mansion was a prison, but he wasn't the lone prisoner.
A figure hid in the shadows as he watched his son ascend upstairs, his body swinging side to side, without any balance, just like how their life had become, unbalanced.
Tej Singh Oberoi can never wipe it off his memory, the apocalyptic result of his one work. he had distanced his sons, even more, saying that Shivaay was noxious to his health and also theirs. The egregious outcome and the ignominious behavior of his sons, made regret flood his heart.
Was there anyway repentance now that Shivaay was long gone?
•••
It was Yvainecreation 's idea for me to write an on-track book. It'll depend on the response if I continue this as I'm not much of an on-track theme writer!
I'm supposed to study chem, idk what I'm doing.
