Abhina

Part Two - The Yellow Temple

Sevita was the first person who saw Abhina. Abhijit walked back home in the darkening streets with a large package and empty pockets. His mother had already left by the time he got home. The soup simmered for him on the stove, lending the apartment its fragrance.
Abhijit took out the beautiful, dark red fabric and laid it across his mother's mattress. She owned the only mirror in the apartment. He ran his fingertips across the length of the elegant material, and breathed in. Abhijit was trembling. For five months he had imagined this moment. The embodiment of Abhina in material form. He pleated one section of the sari and tucked it into his waistband, then pleated the other section and wrapped it over his shoulder. He turned admirably in front of the mirror, then walked to the bathroom and opened his mother's makeup cabinet.
Eyelids heavy with his mother's gold eyeshadow and long lashes caked with mascara, Abhijit started dancing like Kashvi, replicating the motion of her hips, the sensual twirl forward and back. A natural force took hold of him. Abhijit reached his arms out to either side and forced his shoulders back. He sucked in air with renewed vigor. His legs became noodles, and sweat beaded his forehead. He spun and laughed.
The bag of groceries hit the floor with a loud "thud." Kashvi stood stock-still, her mouth open in shock. Abhijit instantly realized his mistake; in his excitement he had forgotten that his mother always went to the market on Sunday evenings instead of work. He opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. The words felt lodged in his throat. Instead, they just stared at each-other in terrible silence.

Everything that happened after that moment was a blur. His mother shouting at him, asking if it was a joke, splashing his face with water and scrubbing off the makeup, the dark days that followed. His mother forbade him to leave the house, even to go to school.
He and Kashvi stood in front of a sour yellow building.
Abhijit picked at a stray piece of thread on his shorts. His family performed their daily worship at home; trips to the temple were usually reserved for special prayer or ceremony during festivals.
"Kneel" Kashvi muttered.
Abhijit got down on his knees at the feet of the statue of their deity and bowed his head. The air inside the temple was dead, the room humid and stuffy. Abhijit felt a twinge of nausea. He twisted the piece of string from his shorts between his thumb and forefinger.
"Pledge that you will never act the way you did again in my household" Kashvi commanded. He felt a ball form in his throat.
"Say it" Kashvi demanded.
Abhijit wrapped the string around his finger and pulled it painfully tight. Tears started forming in his eyes, but he blinked them away and kept his head on the ground. He pressed his forehead down hard against the floor of the temple.
He forced the words out, managing to choke weakly, "I pledge...I pledge that I will never...a-act the way I did again in your household."
He sniffled. Abhijit's heart felt empty. He hadn't seen Sevita since the night Abhina had been discovered. It had been weeks since he had left the house. Something inside of him was broken.