Paayal - His Scarred Butterfly ✅

31 - HEARTBREAKS

நினைக்க தெரிந்த மனமே
உனக்கு மறக்க தெரியாதா?
பழக தெரிந்த உயிரே
உனக்கு விலக தெரியாதா?
(The heart that knew to think,
Don't you know how to forget?
The soul that knew to mingle,
Don't you know how to depart?)

The telephone's incessant ring echoed through the quiet house. Paayal, lost in the heartbreak, let the ring persist unanswered. Meanwhile, Pranav felt frustrated as no one was answering the telephone for more than 15 minutes. He thought to retrieve the details on himself and came to the home.

On entering their home, the sight which greeted him in the hall made his heart to skip a beat. Paayal was crying, burying her head between her knees. The air was filled with her sobs.

He immediately rushed to her, sitting on the floor nearby her, and inquired restlessly, "Hey, why are you crying? Any problem?"

Paayal looked up at him with reddened eyes which were cascading tears. "That... That...," She stammered, her words striking in her throat, struggling to speak between her sobs.

Pranav felt a pang in his heart, sensing a turmoil in her again. "Please don't cry. Tell me what happened?" He asked softly, placing his hand on her shoulder.

"That.. That... Krishna.... My Maa left me, My best friend left me, My L... Love left me. He told not to meet him again," She sobbed, her lips trembling.

"Love?!! Are you both in love??" Pranav asked, widening his eyes in shock. He had sensed Paayal's love for him occasionally. But, He never sensed any traces of romantic love from Krishna. He couldn't believe they both were in love.

She answered between her sobs, "No, I only love him. I believed that he would accept me. I sensed love from him too. But today, I came to know that he will not accept me. Even if he loved me like I sensed, he would have broken it by now."

Pranav inhaled deeply to relax himself and asked softly, "Okay leave about it. Please, Stop crying and tell me what happened between you both now. Why did he tell you not to meet him?"

"He saw my pregnancy report accidentally," She sobbed, the weight of her truth suffocating her.

Pranav widened his eyes. "What?! So, Did he know that you were molested?"

"No, He thought that me and my non-existent lover crossed the limits and I got pregnant," She cried, his words echoing inside her again.

Pranav's nerves twisted immediately. He yelled, "Damn it!! So, he doubted you. Are you crying for a person who doubted you??"

"Dada, if you don't know that I was molested and if you accidentally see such a report, what will you think? Will you think about a rape which happens here and there or Will you think about love which happens the most," She defended Krishna as always.

Pranav took a deep breath again, understanding the circumstance. "Okay. He thought like that. But you could have told him the truth, right?"

"I tried, Dada. But he was not ready to hear me out. But now I feel, there is no point in revealing the remaining truth. If I do, one part of him will urge him to accept me. Another part of him will urge him to reject me, because I killed a baby. I don't want to push him into a dilemma. I was wrong, Dada. I should have not dreamt about marrying him. He is a person who aspires to become a doctor and save people's lives. Even if that pervert who touched me is bedridden, he would try to save him. It is his professional ethics which he learned now itself. Then, how can he accept the thought of killing a baby in the womb itself?! I should have thought about it. But I couldn't control my heart. I fell for his kind and understanding nature," She cried.