"Kamre mai band kr rakha hai khudko kabse. Ek nazar dekhne bhi nhi aayi. Tab se bina kuch bole, bina ek aansu bhi bahaye, baithi hui hai andar. Bhut sadma laga hai usse."
One lady spoke with sympathy clear in his voice and Rajiv felt his palms get sweaty. Because of him! All because of him.
He made his way towards the door and knocked. He called her name but there was no response. Did she do something to herself? No! His eyes widened and he opened the door.
He sighed in relief when he saw her sitting on the bed, staring into oblivion. Her face was devoid of any shine. Almost as if she had been drained out of life.
He shut the door behind her but she still didn't react.
"Parul?"
He asked in a scared tone. What if she had gone into shock?
"Parul?"
He shook her a little and seemed to come our of her trance. She spoke in a monotonous tone, which almost sounded recorded.
"Mujhe kisi se nhi milna. Akela chhod dijiye mujhe. Please chale jaiye yaha-"
She stopped as she turned to look at him and her eyes widened in realisation. Soon, her dead and emotionless eyes filled with anger.
"Aap? Kyu aaye hai aap yaha? Kya chahte hai ab aap?"
She yelled and started pushing his chest to get him away from her place. Rajiv was obviously much stronger but she kept hitting his chest and kept cursing him.
"Pehle mere baba ko maar daala. Ab meri maa bhi mujhe chhod ke chali gyi. Ab kya meri jaan lene aaye hai? Kyu aaye hai aap yaha? Chale jaaiye yaha se!"
She kept yelling and hitting his chest and he closed his eyes. He deserved it all. He knew that. But right now, he needed her to come out of her room because her mother was being taken for the last rites.
He held her shoulders and shook her, trying to bring her into reality.
"Parul! Mai jaanta hu mai jo bhi kia hai wo maafi layak nhi hai. Lekin iss waqt tumse itni request kr rha hu ki please bahar chalo. Tumhari maa ko unke antim sanskar ke liye le kar jaa rhe hai."
As if his words brought her out of her trance and tears started falling from her eyes. She seemed to have lost all her energy and he held her before she could fall. He took her out still holding her.
As soon as Parul saw her mother's dead body kept in the middle of the hall, she ran to her and sobbed, clutching it. Rajiv rubbed her back and let her cry for some time. It was important for her to let her emotions out.
When her sobs turned into sniffles but she still didn't leave her mother's body, he held her back. She started thrashing in his arms, asking to be left free. He held her securely by snaking his arm around her waist.
"She is gone Parul. Free her from this world now. Please!"
He whispered in her ear and she went limp while crying in his arms. He helped her down the stairs while the people held the pier with her mother's body in front of them.
"Baitho!"
He asked her to sit in the car but she denied.
"Parul, you won't be able to walk all the way. Please baitho."
She did and he buckled her up, while she continued to look at her mother. All throughout the distance to the cemetery she kept weeping.
Rajiv held her throughout when she did the last rites. Her hands shook and her knees gave up when she was handed over the fire torch to lite the pier. As soon as the pier caught fire, she screamed for her mother on top of her lungs and went limp in Rajiv's arms.
