REMAKES: A Short Story Collection

TUM HI HO (PART 3)

After some days prerna was sadly walking on road as she remembered how she saw her father in the bar she works and how he talked to her.

"You talked as if you will get famous and rich and this and that? Now where are you? Singing in a bar with men eyeing you with their dirty looks. Are you not disgusted with this? Or you are enjoying their dirty looks?" her father harish asked while prerna's eyes welled up hearing him.

"Are you really my father? How can you hurt me like this with your words? This was the reason we left you" prerna said angrily

"But you sister and mother came back to me realizing I am the best and you are an idiot as you can't fix for financial problems in the family after getting cheated by another drunken. Now you living alone"

Prerna was not able to digest how her father called Anurag a drunken even though she is angry with him for cheating her. So she shouted at her and left the place but her father followed her and said, "See come home. Let married to the guy I select for you and be a good house wife. That is the good thing you can do to me for bringing you up all these years. But we need to hide the thing that you were working in a bar for all these days"

"The only reason I worked there was to help my family and give them food and shelter but they left me and returned back to you. Now I not doing this job but I won't return to you also" prerna said and went from there.

Harish shouted she had gone mad and will return home when she realized his goodness but prerna left in a auto without even turning.

At her apartment, prerna fell into her bed and burst into tears remembering how her father used to emotionally abuse her in childhood. Her mother tries to help her but by that time prerna's mental health was such that even her mother misunderstood her and started calling her selfish.

When prerna got a job she asked her mother and sister to move out with her to live a peaceful life away from her toxic father but since her sister in still studying and her job doesn't help her to pay her fees, she saw her mom and sister moving back to their father helplessly.

Harish is a wealthy man but he is toxic and prefer male dominance in the family. Prerna got away clever but still her childhood and teenage years were not good. But her sister tisha got stuck and tries to change her father. When prerna lose her job and got job in a bar and her parents got to know about this. Harish manipulated the situation that women can never live with a man support and took them home saying he will provide them good food and everything just like he did in the past years.

Prerna didn't go and stayed back at her apartment even though her mom tried to make her understand. Her mother nitya said family are like that and every family had problems and they had to forget and forgive but prerna didn't and stayed stubborn at her decision. Now nitya calls her every Sunday to say how her father had changed and never talk rubbish but prerna knows once she gets home he will take back control and start his old habits. Because that's what toxic people do. The act like good till they get what they want and show their true colors and getting it.

After sometime prerna washed her face and calms herself and called her friends to get a job for her when she heard a door bell.

She got scared that her father followed her there to take her home. She started trembling but went and opened the door to see Anurag standing with a bandaged hand.

Prerna didn't notice his hand and was about to close the door angrily when he stopped her and said he wants to talk. And that's when she noticed his hand.

"What happened?" she asked pointing at his hand.

"I got into an accident and because of that I was forced to stay there itself for 2 more moths. Sorry for that. I heard that you came to my office. If you forgive me can you please give me another chance?"

Just then prerna got a mail in her phone and saw that one of her friend got her a job at her workshop.

"I just got a new job. I need to go there tomorrow. I am ready to give you another chance but I won't leave my this job" prerna said while Anurag happily agreed.

Prerna invite Anurag inside for a coffee.

"Why did you select suddenly in between thousands of people?" prerna asked remembering the day when he pulled her to dance with him in his concert.

"To he honest I felt some connections with you that I have never felt with anyone. And you suddenly started singing and it was just awesome" Anurag said while his eyes showed some unknown emotions.

Prerna who was already emotional thinking of her past got really emotional and moved forward to kiss him without thinking. Anurag also got carried away by his feelings and they started kissing.