Uncharted Trails

Faceless Love

Pree wanted to take that look away. So she lifted both her arms like a baby wanting to be picked up. Anu came and picked her up very softly still the rage in him did not recede. He knew he should calm down because Prerna was getting more upset for him than herself. But the moment he laid down with her in his arms all his control broke. He ran his hands through her hair her face checking for the bruises finding the hand print of Pritish on her cheek and a slight swelling of the side of her lower lip where it had cut from her side tooth, the fingers imprinted on her arm where he must have held her tightly.  And he started to cry holding her face in his hands and touching their forehead, he caved in her arms. 

Pree: Shhh… shhh itna bura kuchh nahi tha. Main theek hu. Dekh… dekh main theek hu. Achha sun na tu kaise ayaa waha? Tu toh date pe gaya tha naa? Komolika ke saath...huuh? Grumpyyyy, And then she kissed his eyes his forehead and then held his head to her heart. And silently cried for their fate. What will she do after he left for the US? How will she live without him, again? He would have his family and career and she would live with these memories. Because she has realized marrying somebody would be so wrong to some good man. She will never ever be able to love someone like she did him. She will always walk the world on her wheelchair, while being hollow from within. No amount of companions, friends, engagements or career or even a family could take that away. She kissed his head again and again. Running her hands through his hair and wiping his tears and rocking him from side to side as a baby. She will have to leave for Mumbai and convince Anurag to marry and go back to the US for his Doctorate. She was still trying to think of a way to convince him when she felt that he was asleep and she breathed easier and slept too.

In the morning when Pree got up she found some salve applied on her bruises and a blanket covering her. There was juice and breakfast on her side table and some tablets with a note… 

“Piddi...
Sab kuchh finish kar dena, agar kuch bacha na toh tere eyebrows pe hair removing cream laga dunga… 

Love 
Grumpy” 

He had put in a cute little clip bookmark with a Bandariya on it. And that's why she kissed the place where he had written his name as Grumpy. She sat with the note and the bookmark for sometime and then went up to the box where she had a collection of such quirky bookmarks collection he got for her from all over the world.  

Every single day we are handed so many miracles ...but do we realize them... Nope and thats our biggest flaw in living...

She was about to dress up after her bath and breakfast when she got a call from Nivi Di…

Nivi: “Prerna, kya tum ghar aasakti ho immediately please, Anu he is….”

And Phone fell from her hand, and she rushed …

**********