Few months from now after all the riots had been taken care of, Safia would dutifully write a letter to Chavi. The letter would never reach its intended place.
Safia would think Chavi gave up on her. It will hurt. She'd cry, then deny.
Years later, she would figure out the reason for the reply that never came. That certain regions had been renamed after the partition and that their postal addresses had been changed.
With renewed hopes she would try again. But by then, Chavi would have been married and would have moved away. Ironically with the very same guy who used to tease her when she was a kid. With time fate would have played an interesting twist!
After Chavi moving away, her address would be permanently lost to Safia. She would still keep trying though. She would hate to give up on them.
Chavi too on her part would try to reach to Safia but none of those who travelled to the other side of the border would be able to locate her friend. Pakistan is so densely populated they would say but Chavi would still wait with hope for years on end.
Safia's life will take a new turn when her crush would walk upto her father and ask for her hand. Blushing to her hair roots, she would nod a yes when her father would ask for her consent. There would be merry making on their end.
As soon as things get finalised, the first person Safia would think of inviting on her wedding would be Chavi but then again, she would not know how and where her friend would be. She would look out of the window and imagine her friend's little self standing outside her house, smiling at her, mangoes in hand. Her emotions would choke her and she would quietly sit down and weep her heart out missing her dear dear friend.
She would get married still missing her friend on her big day. Her eyes would keep straying to the entrance expecting her to walk in any moment.
They will think of the other more and more with time, a little more than often at the cusp of motherhood. They'd often be found wondering what the other would be doing. Where the other would be. Their hormones would overwork them. They'd think a lot, ponder a lot. Tears would be shed in remembrance of their friendship.
And when each of them will hold their first born for the very first time, they'd break down into tears yearning for the other's presence, knowing that their kids' godmother will never know of them.
Time will elapse. They'd mother a few more and as their kids grow up passsing through various phases of childhood, they would see each other in their smiles and the antics. A ghost of her smile would linger on their face filling their hearts with love.
They will adjust. They will relive.
Fifty years from now, both will sit down with their grandkids on their portio; narrate to them the tales of their childhood.
Safia would smile with fondness as she would recollect the way Chavi would always take the blame for her. Chavi's heart would overflow with love remembering how Safi always used to take a stand for her. Their stomachs will rumble with silent laughter as they would revisit their memory lane. They'd smile, they'd laugh. They would reminisce the way they would steal mangoes from their neighbour's house and sneakily gobble them. They'd think of their hideouts, their fun moments. They would reiterate their stories a number of times, in a number of ways; warm a lot of hearts.
Their own hearts will bloom anew.
Safia would look back at how she had reacted to her situation and thank Lord that she wasn't one of those whose honour had been tarnished in the process of crossing the border. The screams and wails and bloodbath would haunt her but the good memories will eventually outweigh the bad and her friend's thoughts will eventually outweigh the depressing stuff.
They will thrive in each other's memories. Their bodies would grow old with time, not their hearts.
They would know that their friendship though however short it might have been was still in its purest form. Was still young and still new. They would treasure it with their all.
Their memories would keep them alive and kicking and they'd forever remain young at heart.
But all of this would happen in the coming years.
All of it would happen in gradual time and for now, they would still be crying. They would still be cursing their fate and drowning in despair.
It wouldn't be until years later they'd learn to find peace and as for now they would not know, not have even an inkling as to what time has planned.
*****
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Short Story[ Winner of Inked Thoughts contest held by New Dawn ] Living in twentieth century India, Chavi and Safia thought they had all their future planned, every single detail laid out but they had forgotten about one thing though. What do you think it coul...
