Dehshat-E-Ishq

Chapter 9

Mahira looked around the room with disinterest as she walked around to see the room, she was told was going to be hers. Her quiet nature does have some unpredictability. She was very easily distracted from things. One time she was scared and another time she was fine. It was as if two personalities that live within her. with Abhaya, she is very open about herself but with others, she finds it difficult to adjust.

Even now, only when Advit left her alone, did she feel her fear fly away and she roamed around the room. With dark lightings and even darker shades, the whole room reeked with a dark aesthetics as if even in daytime, only night will remain in this room. She saw the lamp that was giving out dull lightings and looked for a light switch.

Finally after looking around for a minute or so, her eyes saw the remote control for lights and picked it up. She tried switching on and changing lights when finally, the whole room was lit up as if in daytime. All lights of the room were switched on. She even saw a sweet showpiece that was black and thus not completely visible in the dark before.

Her hands glide over the black showpiece which was a pair of two kids sitting together and one of them was touching the other's head and she imagined the scene.

Probably, the younger out of the two was playing and fell when the older one touched the younger one's head and the face of the older one showed a different kind of helplessness while the younger one just smiled silly.

As Mahira imagined such a scene and smiled, her head conjured up an image that seemed to match exactly her imagination and her breathing fastened. She started to look around the room and ran towards the place she knew Advit put her medicines into. She knew Abhaya should have given him her medications.

As she took the medications, her breathing calmed and she dully looked around. Those eyes, that were shining were suddenly filled with lifelessness. Whatever it is, that she was taking was not doing her any good, but that breathless feeling made her even more desperate to run away.

She knows, whenever she looks at young kids, her heart beats in a way she isn't so sure of. She knows she love kids but whatever it is that reminds her of her childhood seems to hurt her in ways she wasn't able to bear yet. She does want to know about her childhood and those memories from two years ago, but she doesn't dare to ask.

Her father won't really tell her. His eyes always averted from hers whenever she asked about her throat injury or even about why she doesn't remember anything from two years ago.

Everybody makes up something whenever she asks about this. Later on, with time she stopped asking as if she really forgot about this. Mahira's dull eyes wandered around the room as her eyes landed on that showpiece again and she walked towards it slowly.

As she stood close to the showpiece, her eyes rolled and as she fell right on the floor. She probably twisted her leg but Mahi, who lost her consciousness wouldn't really be aware of it.

"DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOUR FATHER HAS DONE?!" A female voice shouted as Mahi who looked about 15 or 16 looked at her. Her eyes seemed lifeless as the female hit her with stick one after another.

"YOUR FATHER, THAT BASTARD!" The woman continued hitting her and as her sanity returned, she calmed and sat in front of Mahi who was dead to the world or maybe she was living but her insides were already dead.

"Do you know? Your mother, is a mistress and your father, he is a cheater!" The woman spit out the words that seemed to burn her. As if those words are abhorrent to her.

"I am the only person you father has even loved. I am the only one!" Her insanity filled eyes looked at the lifeless girl when a gunshot sounded around, and her eyes turned to look outside the room in fear.

-

Advit who was looking at some documents saw the servant bringing a food tray to his room and he got up when the servant came running to him and said, "What happened?"

"Sir, Ma'am, she–" Advit didn't wait for his sentence to be completed and ran upstairs as he saw Mahira lying on the floor and picked her up to place her on the bed.

"Mahi? Mahi!" His dark eyes were filled with frenzied fear as he sprinkled water on her face and when she slowly opened her eyes, he hovered over her.

"Mahi? Are you fine?" Advit looked at her as he helped her sit and she nodded and said "My leg hurts..."

Advit hurried checked her leg and saw some swelling around it. He wondered for how long she was lying on the ground.

"I'll call the doctor for you, wait here." Advit was leaving when Mahira held him back by his hand. Her beautiful finger wrapped around his hand, and she pulled at his hand. Advit turned and looked at her bending down in front of her to ask what happened.

"Can you also call Abhaya, please?" Mahira pleaded as she stared right into his eyes and Advit sighed before nodding and said "I will. You just rest, okay?"

Mahira nodded. She held her leg by her hand and Advit left the room to call the doctor and his sister.

Soon, Abhaya entered the room and looking at Mahira, she said "You fainted again? Mahi, I think we should go to Dr. Ankita again."

Mahira held Abhaya's hand as she gestured her to keep her mouth shut.

"I think I am remembering something from two years ago–" Abhaya cut her off as she said "Kyun!"

"Why do you want to remember something that you know will hurt you?!" Her question scratched Mahira's heart and she said "Why not? I feel like this person that I am is not even me? I feel scared of every stranger and yet I try to hold my ground in front of everyone. Whenever people want to know about me, I am not sure who I am! Sometimes I answer Mahi, sometimes Mahira when all I ever feel is estrangement to this name, Mahira Mittal!"

"Abhaya, would you like to live a life where you aren't even sure what you are, where you are not even sure of your own existence?!" Mahira's eyes were wet with tear when the door opened, and she saw an old male doctor come in and soon her leg was tied up while her medicines were in Advit's hand.

Advit glanced at Mahira, asking her for anything she needs, and Mahira shook her head while Advit patted her head before leaving.

Abhaya who was watching all this saw her brother closing the door and she sat beside Mahira.

"Mahi, I know you want to know everything that happened in your past but not now, if bhai comes to know of anything right now when he is this obsessed with everything about you, he will mess everything up and might even end up hurting himself. Please, for now we should just calm down. And about the incident two years ago, I'll get my people to check upon it without letting uncle know..."

"I know now you will say 'what my people, why do I sound like a gangster or something' but it's not the time for this. Just hear me out, don't anger bhai. Do whatever he is saying and don't get in the way of this family's business. Right now, I can't tell you much but what you saw yesterday has happened too many times in this house and even in your own house. You have questions but right now, wait calmly. Don't end up hurting yourself in your own hunt. Okay?" Abhaya said as she hurriedly stood up to leave when Advit opened the door to the room and said, "You are leaving?"

"Mahi needs rest, bhai." Abhaya said and left the room. She hurried ran up to her room and closed the door with a bang. "Mom, dad will be back in a day. Mahi needs to know everything before Bhai gets to know about her." she whispered to herself.