Solace

Chapter 40

Duri huyi toh unse kareeb aur hum huye,
Yeh kaise faasle the jo badhne se kam huye...

"Yaar yeh headache kam kyu nahi ho rahi!" Karishma spoke, rubbing her temple with her hand while taking a sip of lemonade in between.

"Lemonade pee rahi ho na! Thoda time toh do issko apna asar dikhane ka", Antara mumbled from under her duvet in a half awake state, "Don't be so impatient!"

"I'm not impatient!" Karishma fired back defensively.

"You very much are", Antara teased. "And you are in love", she added as she lazily got up from the bed.

"Thanks for letting me know", Karishma muttered sarcastically.

"You really have your heart and soul dedicated to her", Antara said, her tone softened with every word she spoke. Karishma looked at her questionably, not sure about where she was going with this. "As she has!" She paused and looked up to face Karishma, "And when two people love each other and can't make it work, it's a real tragedy. Yeh quote toh tumne suna hi hoga?"

Karishma placed the glass on the nearby table and took a deep breath before speaking, "Remember our college days in Bangalore? Ghar se dur, gharwalo se dur rehna!" Antara nodded affirmatively as Karishma continued, "Koi long weekend ya phir holidays pe, ghar mein sab mera wapis aane ka intezar karte the, aur mai bas Haseena ki intezar karti thi. Wajah dhundhne ki kabhi koshish nahi ki maine, lekin jab tak mai usse nahi dekh leti thi, I didn't feel like at home." A bright smile appeared on her face and her eyes gleamed with immense love and affection, mirroring the depth of her feelings. "Woh na humesha se bohut kam bolti hai. Hum dono ki pasand napasand mei bhi kuch khaas similarities nahi hai. But I cherish her company anyway. Lagta hai ke humesha uske paas rahu, kabhi usse apne se dur na jaane du. And I don't know whatever she has done to make me want to lose my sanity all the time", Karishma uttered somewhat in an astonishment, making Antara chuckle lightly. "She is involved in my life in a way that her going away from me feels like...", she paused, feeling a sense of yearning raising inside her chest, escalating almost like a physical pain, "Like I am walking away from my life."

"See, you have got it all figured out", Antara exclaimed, putting her hand on Karishma's shoulder to which she gave her a faint smile.

"But I don't think I have ever given her any reason to feel the same for me. I have only ever hurt her, sometimes out of anger, sometimes in impulse", Karishma's voice trembled as a remorseful realization weighed upon her, "And this time it was just my insecurity!"

"I don't know about anything else but you did give her the most precious gift ever. Your loyalty!", Antara said with a soft smile. "Kyunki har pyar karnewale wafa nahi kar pata", she added, her voice tinged with a mix of pain and empathy. Before Karishma could respond to it, Antara interjected her saying, "God! you are making me sound like an old philosopher! I hate you!"

Karishma gave Antara an unbelievable look, unaware of the turmoil that evoked inside her. "You and your mood swings!" she uttered as Antara pushed her towards the washroom for her to freshen up.

.

"Ma'am is her the way", Tara informed Haseena who was waiting in front of Madam Sehgal's cabin door with a pile of files in her hands.

"So should I wait here?" Haseena asked, unsure as to if it would be appropriate to stay in her boss's personal cabin when she was not present.

"Ap andar jaake baith sakti hai, I will be around", Tara said as she left.

Upon entering, Haseena diligently kept the files on the table and her eyes caught notice of a photo frame placed there. It had a young Madam Sehgal being offered a bunch of roses by a man, who Haseena concluded as her husband. Haseena stared at the happy picture with a smooth smile when her mind drifted back to the past.