Take Me Home

10. Nobody Compares to you

Karishma sat inside the parked car the surrounding was so silent around the house. Yes in the past week she had learnt to not call this place her home. She had never had a home for herself. She did once upon a time when her parents were still alive but that was a far memory now. After that she had to live with that tyrant which was a memory she had suppressed for so long that it seemed like a nightmare. Trauma did that to people. Making things seem unreal until you question whether such a thing actually happened. However the downside to such trauma response was one starts questioning their sanity. If remembering was hard, so was forgetting because forgetting made oneself question why they were so damaged when nothing horrible had ever happened to them. Then she lived with Pushpa ji. She was good with Karishma. She was like her mother. But then she left for India and Karishma had ever since lived alone. Living with Haseena was thus difficult because irrespective of how horrible the incidents were that led to this, she was afraid of something horrible happening again that could change this arrangement because every time she called someone her family, they left her. She started imagining scenarios that could mean she no longer had to live with Haseena and Kiara. Like Haseena moving in with Samantha for example? A voice in her mind asked her and she would slap that voice if only she could. She realised with a jerk that she had been sitting inside her car for an hour now. Haseena must be on her way here and she didn't want her to witness this so she got down.

As Samantha turned the car into the lane Haseena was sure that she had spotted Karishma's figure walking into their home. She wondered for a second where else the former had been because she remotely remembered Karishma leaving the party soon after the clock had struck 12 AM. Haseena got down and Samantha did too helping her get Kiara from the back seat. She hurriedly said her goodbyes and walked inside the home her eyes searching for Karishma.

"Singh?" She called out. Kiara was still awake and she had to put her to sleep before she could go change but Haseena wanted to talk to Karishma. She was done with Karishma ignoring her and treating her like she was invisible. When Karishma didn't respond, she walked to Kiara's room laying her down whispering some fairy tale story in bits and pieces until the little one was asleep.

"Singh?" She called again and there was no response again and so she walked to the balcony where she often spotted Karishma with a glass. It was her drinking place because she wanted to be alone at that time.

"Hum kabse aapko awaz laga rahe hai?" Haseena said crossing her arms looking at Karishma with a dead pan look.

"Mujhe sunai nahi diya tha." Karishma didn't turn to face Haseena. She was looking at the dense forest to the left side of their housing community. They lived in the outskirts of the city and the place they lived was surrounded by various grand houses such as the one they now lived in. However the west side of their community was covered by vegetation and no skyscraper to interrupt the view to the full moon in the empty sky which Karishma seemed to be looking at.

Haseena walked to stand beside Karishma placing her hands on the railing consciousness clouded her being so she refused to peak at Karishma when she asked.

"Did you mean those words? Joh aapne humare baare mein kaha party mein."

"Nahi. I didn't mean any of it. Humko waise kehna nahi chahiye tha. Sorry." Karishma said and took a long sip from her glass. Her apology made Haseena to finally look at her and she gasped at the bruise on Karishma's knuckles. Haseena held the glass pulling it away from Karishma to examine her hand.

"Ye ye kaise hua? Aap theek hai na? Raste mein ghir gayi aap apne bike se?" Haseena shot one question after another at Karishma and Karishma just remained silent. She pulled her hand away from Haseena and bent to pick her glass from the glass table.