Ratneshwari

Chapter 38

Ratneshwari went to the police quarters along with Shivan. They reached there in the evening.

Shivan stopped the car. Ratneshwari got down from the car and looked at her 'new house'. Shivan placed his hand on her shoulder and said,"Ratna, what are you thinking?" Ratneshwari said,"Nineteen years ago, you took me to your house just like this. Do you remember?" Shivan nodded his head. He said,"I remember everything." They held each other's hands and entered the house.

Shivan took her to a room and said,"This is our bedroom. Everything is same. Look there. The almirah is just the same. The clothes and jewelleries you kept there are in the same order. I have kept everything properly. I also have your pink teddy bear. I don't know when you bought it, but it was a cute teddy." Saying this, he laughed a little.
Tears filled Ratneshwari's eyes. She said,"Did you really love me that much? Why did you not tell me anything? If you had told me earlier, we could have avoided all this. We would have been living together in peace." Shivan had no answer.

Ratneshwari walked around the house to have a look at everything. Then, she kept her things in order. Shivan was sitting in the drawing room. She sat beside him. Shivan said,"Shall we eat something?" Ratneshwari said,"Actually, I am not hungry." Shivan raised a brow. He said,"Didn't you say that you had skipped breakfast? You even fainted because of that. If you don't have your food in time, you will fall sick." Ratneshwari smiled and said,"Okay then, let me cook something." Shivan smiled a little. He said,"It has been years since I ate the food prepared by you."

(After two hours)

Ratneshwari served the food. Then, she sat down beside Shivan to have her food. After sometime, Ratneshwari said,"How is Amma?" Shivan looked at her but words did not come out of his mouth. Ratneshwari was still waiting for an answer. Shivan looked down and said,"She is no more. She died last year." Ratneshwari was sad. Shivan's mother had always loved Ratneshwari as if she was her own child. Ratneshwari missed her.

When Ratneshwari was in Madurai after the divorce, his mother had visited her. She did not know the reason behind the sudden divorce. She tried to convince Ratneshwari to return to her son. She even promised her that, she would talk to her son and make him understand. Ratneshwari did not want to hurt her. So, she did not tell her anything at first. But at last, she had to tell her everything. Ratneshwari remembered shouting at her. She said to her,"Go and ask your son then!!! Go and ask him the reason!!! He slept with another woman behind my back and got her pregnant!!! He was in love with her. He never wanted to marry me. I tried to make our relationship work but it was of no use. He ruined everything!!!" Ratneshwari remembered how his mother broke down after listening to her words. She did not say anything else to Ratneshwari and left the house.

Those memories brought tears to Ratneshwari's eyes. Shivan said to her,"She loved you a lot, Ratna. She spoke about you even on her death bed."

Shivan and Ratneshwari finished their food. Then, they went to their bedroom.

Shivan held Ratneshwari's hands and said,"You entered my life like a storm. You watered the dry soil of my heart like rain. Tell me, who are you?" Ratneshwari had tears in her eyes. Shivan kissed her forehead. He hugged her. Ratneshwari hugged him back and cried to her heart's content. When she had stopped crying, Shivan separated himself for her. He wiped her tears.

They looked into each other's eyes. They were lovers who were lost in the sea of separation, they were two birds who were separated during migration and they were two souls who were wandering as they had lost their way. Finally, after a lot of struggle, they had found solace in each other's arms.

Shivan brought her closer to him. He said to her,"My rose faced beloved, tell me, what shall I do with you?" Ratneshwari said,"Is it a dream? Am I hallucinating? If it is a dream, then do not allow me to open my eyes." Shivan cupped her face and said,"Open your eyes and look at me. It is not a dream."

Ratneshwari was overcome with emotions. Shivan embraced her. She looked into his eyes and kissed his lips. Shivan kissed her back. They had been burning in the fire of their desires for years. They knew that only they could quench each other's thirst. They continued to kiss each other. Shivan unbraided Ratneshwari's long hair. He smelled them and said,"They still have the same fragrance." Ratneshwari smiled at him. She unbuttoned  his shirt and started giving him love bites all over his chest. He also gave her a few love bites on her neck. He took off her sari and looked at her.

Ratneshwari whispered into his ears,"Did you change your decision like last time?" Shivan pulled her closer and said,"Absolutely not." He took off her blouse and planted kisses all over her shoulder.

And for the first time in years, the night had grown longer for both of them. They decided to drown themselves in the sea of love.

I am asking you my dear friend, what does the thirsty man do when he comes across an oasis in a desert? Does he not try to drink all the water in one sip? The condition of Shivan and Ratneshwari was just like that thirsty man.

It was midnight. Ratneshwari and Shivan were lying on the bed together with no piece of clothing to cover themselves save for a blanket. Ratneshwari kept her head on Shivan's chest. Shivan kissed her head and said,"What are you doing?" Ratneshwari looked at him and said,"I was listening to your heart beat."

Then, she caressed his head and said,"Your hair has started turning grey. My hair has started turning grey too. It means that we are growing old. But do you know one thing? When I am with you, I feel like a teenage girl once again."

Shivan smiled. He looked into her eyes and said,"I want to spend my life with you. We can live together with love. I also want a child. I want a cute daughter who looks just like you." Shivan's words made Ratneshwari silent. Shivan said to her,"What happened? Why did you become silent all of a sudden?" He saw tears in her eyes. She said,"It will be really very nice. I had always wanted to give you a child."

Two weeks had passed. They became busy with their lives once again. Ratneshwari started going to school and Shivan also joined his duty. But everything was different. They had each other's love with themselves. Ratneshwari started going to school wearing beautiful saris. Her colleagues also congratulated her when they learnt about the marriage. One of them said,"You are glowing like a young bride, Ma'am. Well, I am quite upset. You did not call me to your wedding." It was indeed true. Ratneshwari was glowing. A few days passed in this way.

One night, they were having dinner together. Shivan said to her,"You look pale. What happened?" Ratneshwari said,"I have fever. I am feeling weak. Today, I fainted in school." Shivan nodded his head. He said,"Don't take too much stress. After finishing your food, go to the bedroom and take rest. I will clean the dishes."

A few days later, Ratneshwari fainted again. She started feeling nauseous. She did not feel like eating anything. She threw up whatever she had eaten. These problems increased over a few days.

One day, Shivan took her to the doctor. That day, she had fainted while teaching in the school. The doctor asked them to have some tests done. The reports came the next day.

Shivan and Ratneshwari went to the doctor again. The doctor said to Shivan,"Sir, I have studied these reports. You need to get some more tests done. Meet me after those tests."

Ratneshwari used to suffer from high fever and used to cough a lot. They visited the doctor a week later with the new test reports. The doctor looked at them. She was silent for a while. Then, she said to Shivan,"Sir, your wife.....has....blood cancer." It was a shock for both of them. Shivan said,"Doctor, good treatment will be able to cure this, right? Please say something." The doctor said,"People say that doctors are like God. But in reality, doctors are just human beings. I do not want to lie to you and give you false hopes. You must have noticed your wife. She has been suffering from very high fever and cough. She also looks pale. Along with these, she has also lost her appetite. The chances of her recovery are very less. But still, if you want to try, you can go for the treatment."