Dawning

Chapter 7

Hardy wasn't worried about Vishal finding them. That bast*rd didn't know where he was staying or how long. But he decided that it'll be wise to stay away from the police just utill he can figure out how to take Jassi back home. For now, he was taking her to his temporary home that he shared with 8 other people.

It was middle of the day when they finally reached the beat down house. Half the men were still there as they did not have any day jobs.

Hardy had learnt the night before that most of them had come into the country through Dunki - or donkey route taken for illegal entry and illegal immigration, including donkey-like long walks to enter the counties like UK and US from India and other south asian countries. He wondered briefly, if that worked the other way. If he could leave the country the same way.

As they stepped inside the crammed house, Jassi following closely behind him, clinging to his left arm, they were met with suspicious eyes. Two of the men stood up and came close to them.

"Hey! Who is she? We agreed to let you stay here because Raj (the friend of friend's who had done Hardy the favour) asked us to. You can't just bring anyone here."

One man barked at them.

Hardy defensively stepped in front of a scared Jassi, still holding onto her hand.

"Brother listen, I understand. But-" he hesitated before continuing, "but she's my girlfriend. Her father got her married off to this horrible man who was already married before. He treats her like trash. I just want to take her back home. Please let her stay for couple of days. We'll be out of your hair shortly."

Hardy added, almost pleading to the guy. He could feel Jassi's eyes boaring a hole in his back.

She couldn't believe the things he said, but she understood why he did it. Hardy squeezed her hand reassuringly. The previous man seemed to have missed the exchange, because his demeanor softened. But he warned them, they couldn't overstay their welcome. Hardy thanked him profusely and took Jassi further into the house.

The house, a 1RK was lined with bunk beds along both the walls, leaving a narrow passage in between. Hardy stopped near the last bed, his. Letting go of Jassi's hand briefly. He took out a towel from his bag and handed it to her, pointing her towards the bathroom to freshen up.

Jassi took it and muttered a thank you. She scrunched her nose up at the rancid odor when she entered the bathroom, but she supposed anything was better than living with her "husband". Once she was back, Hardy offered his space to her and asked her to rest for a while. She was tired, emotionally, physically, in every which way, so went to sleep easily. Knowing that Hardy was nearby probably helped.

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Hours later, Jassi woke up with several pairs of eyes watching her curiously. She sat up immediately and pulled the blanket to her chest. Obviously she could not spot Hardy in the small crowd.

"Where's Hardy?" She asked timidly.

"Don't know. Who are you? Are you really his girlfriend?" Asked one.

"I- yes." She stammered to answer, remembering the lies from earlier.

"She's stammering, she is definitely lying." Said another one.

"No she looks shaken. Look at her she's clearly injured." Piped in another voice.

"It's all lies. We are barely living here, we can't have a woman live with us too. She needs to leave." Another one said as a strange hand darted towards her, intended to drag her out of the bed and then possibly out of the house.

Jassi was about to protest when another arm shot out to stop the hand approaching her. She looked up at the owner. It was Hardy. He quickly took a look at Jassi to make sure she was fine. Once assured, he directed his attention back to the men. He took them aside and repeated the same story from a while ago. There were some disapproving grunts but they all seem to have come to some agreement because after couple of tense minutes,

Jassi saw him walking towards her. She noticed he had a small bag in his hands. Hardy gingerly sat at the end of the bed, keeping respectable distance between the two, and handed her the bag.

"I've bought you some food and medicine for you. It's just pain meds, that's all I could get without a prescription." He managed to give her a small smile.

"Thank you." She took the bag, her eyes already watering up again.

Since she had entered this country, no one had been this kind to her. And she failed to understand why a complete stranger would do this for her. She wiped her tears and looked up to find Hardy looking at her. He averted his eyes when he saw her looking at him.

"You shouldn't be doing this for me you know. You don't even know me."

Hardy let out a dry chuckle, "Jassi, I think I've known more about you in the last one month I spent in Laltu, than anyone else. Besides, I feel like I'm responsible for your condition. Let me- let me just help you." He replied sincerely.

Jassi didn't say anything, instead gave a sad smile. In last 7 months, she had lost a lot. But she had realised there was no point crying over spilled milk. She had gotten another chance at life and she should probably take it.

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Author's note: ik, long, too much text, very situational. but had to be done.