The Path I Crave!

Chapter 1

Chandni

Present day

Can a house intimidate a person? Mine does, not that it's a haunted house. In fact everything about the place I am standing before is overawing. Home, the place I grew up in, with the sweet memories of my life and the place I fled away from. Now why would a person with common sense do that? I guess most people with common sense flee from their home for different reasons. So I should never use the word common sense here. Each one has an inescapable in their life to flee from. And I had mine.

Nothing had changed in two years. The Royal Enfield stood in right side of the house, along with black Honda City- Vehicle of my choice. The little Garden we loved growing unique plants, filled succulents and wild plants. 'Rishi, let's make our garden unique' I recall pursuing my brother. The white and red paint for the place was my choice. A duplex with a portico, little garden is home for me.

My fingers trembles standing in the front porch, tracing the doorbell.

How did I let this happen?

I am a stranger to my own house. It feels wrong in so many levels. The darkness of the house reflects the darkness within me. I realized no-one is home. It isn't like I had well informed in advance about my arrival. Until this very moment, I wasn't even sure of coming home.

One other place I could visit was just a street away. And that's what I decide to do. Dumping my bag pack in the porch I take the most familiar path I have walked countless times. Will he ever forgive me? Will he ever take me back? Will he ever want to see my face?

You will find out in couple of minutes.

The residence in the corner of the street is glowing with different colors of lights. Vehicle parked on either side of the street, gates wide open and people dress up. I have missed wearing saree, though I'm not a big fan of sarees. Watching these beautiful women I suddenly have an overwhelming desire to drape a saree. For a second I wonder, if it's the same house I want to visit. It's surely my destination but not the way I imagined it. As I go further to my destination, my anxiety increases. My knees feel weak and tired. A weird restlessness starts increasing within me. I want to sit down, it feels like I have been walking continuously for two years. Then, I see him!

Adi!

Smiling and greeting people, but the smile is not genuine, at-least I feel it's feign. It is like he is asked to smile and that is why he is smiling.

Oh, how much I have missed his dimple which appears every time his lips curled into a smile.

Dressed in black tuxedo, he is handsome as ever. A woman dressed in pink saree with beautiful ornaments caught my attention. I lean on the hinge of the gate, the reality of the situation sinks into me. Did this function have something to do with Adi?

Oh my god, did I just walk into Adi's engagement party? This possible is not happening to me. My heart breaks to see him with another woman.

No, No, don't break my heart.

A pair of warm hands wrap around me, pulling me towards the familiar strong masculine chest. I jerk back immediately, my eyes still glued on Adi.

'Shhh, it's alright, you going to be okay' he murmurs into my ears, tugging me back into his chest. He fails to greet me but he assures me everything is going to fine. He is aware how catastrophic it's going to be for me.

'Rishi' I choke failing to control my tears.

I fight hard to blink my tears away, just when I'm determined to stopping being miserable I have more reasons. I clutch my fist into a ball with Rishi's clothes, fighting back my tears. He draws me away from his chest inspecting my face, holds my face in his palm and wipes off my tears with his thumb. Betraying tears!