Tears In Heaven

SHORT FIVE

Amidst the dark trees she was searching for a voice calling out, speaking her name as if trying to search for her like she's the most precious thing that person has. She didn't had any idea who he was because she was lying there on her mother's lap as her mother lovingly caressed her forehead. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes to forget that voice which was constantly disturbing her solace and yet even though it would stop for a while, she would get desperate to find out why wasn't it coming. Who was it? Why was it calling her? she got no idea about that

Gauri sighed as she kept her hands on the feet of her mother, gently brushing her palms against it. She was so tired that she would sometimes sleep in there and hear no voices and sometimes she would wake up and hear that same voice, constantly calling her to get up and come to him. She would just hold her mother even more tightly and never even think about leaving her side and following the voice, because she didn't wanted to go there, the peace she found here, would not be anywhere else and she knew that.

"Gauri" she heard her mother's soft voice. "Gauri beta uth jaa" her mother said. "Nahi" she answered and smuggled even closer earning a chuckle escape her mother's lips as she smiled herself. "Uth jaa chutki, it has been so much time since you are here beta. Someone is calling you, see there" her mother eyed the place as she followed her eyes, still holding her mother's waist with her head in her lap. "Maa bohot sukoon hai yahan, achcha lag raha hai" she said as she stopped looking at that direction and turned to her mother again.

"Koi tujhe pukaar raha hai chutki. You hear that voice, it sounds as if it is in so much pain, get up, it needs you" her mother replied. "Naa, hum bohot thak chuke hain maa. Itna ki ab hum bas yahin rehna chahte hain, issi sukoon mein, tere paas maa" she said, not looking at her mother. "Par beta, you can't stay here forever, you know that. Kabhi toh jaana padega naa?" asked her mother. "Naa" she said like a child and held her mother even tighter "that voice can call me as much as it wants to. I am tired maa, it feels like I was carrying so much burden, I want to rest maa".

"Par chutki kab tak? Someday you have to go. This isn't your world darling and someone is desperately waiting for you" her mother voiced out. "Who is waiting for me maa?" she asked. "Your Shankerji beta" her mother answered. "My Shankerji?" she asked, frowning. "Yes, your soulmate, the one you are made for, my little girl. He is waiting for you there. He has waited enough now sweetheart, you should go" her mother said. "I hear that voice maa, I don't know who he is" she replied.

"There is someone down, waiting for you to break your slumber beta. He is waiting for you to come back and it's only you who can end his miseries darling, he has gone through a lot" she hears her mother.

"I love you Gauri... Please waapis aa jaao. Main mar raha hun yahan... Roz... Please come back" she heard the same voice and this time she couldn't stop herself to follow it.

"Gauri" she stopped hearing her mother's voice. "Beta, he never did anything knowingly. Don't carry any burden with you my child. He has done his share of mistakes but he loves you a lot. You will be happy with him" those were the last words she heard before everything went dark around her.

"Good morning Gauri" Omkara said with a chirpy voice as he came inside with a bunch of roses and replaced it with the old ones beside her table. He had followed his heart and had stayed only with her, not caring what anyone said. He had been there since that day. How could he let anyone harm his chirraiya when he knew she was the only reason of every single good thing in his life now. She had managed to invade his heart like no one else could ever. Never in his life had he thought that he would be able to love someone as much as he does her now. She was the centre of his universe and still he had ignored her to some point and he was guilty of it. He had accepted that it was his fault somewhere. He should have paid attention, just a little bit attention and probably he would not be able to forgive himself for the rest of his life.

So, he decided to be with her. You know you realise someone's real worth in someone's life once they leave you to be on your own. He realised that he has to be with her, talk to her and tell her how much he loves her; every single day. If Gauri can dedicate her whole life to him then who is he to not dedicate his whole life to her. He was still waiting and he would wait till eternity if she wanted it to. He was ready for any way she was punishing him. He would take it all, smiling, just like she did before for him and he knew that she was that special that even if he would give his whole life trying to be worthy of her, he won't ever be.

"You know today again Annika bhabhi snapped at Shivaay. Yeh dono Roz jhagada karte hain, aur roz itni jaldi maan jaate hain ki pucho mat. Rudra is still struggling with his married life you know. Whenever he tries to change anything, Bhavya attacks him" he laughed and continue telling her everything that he is been since the past three months.

Three months since that day when the doctors had told him to let her go and he wasn't able to. It is since that day that he had decided to be with her and treat her like she was there with him because he knew that somewhere she was listening to everything he said, reacting on every plea he made and laughed on every single joke he cracked. She was his Gauri; the strong and confident Gauri Kumari Ssarma who would never loose such a pity battle when she knew he was waiting here for her to come back. "Come back home baby, I am waiting for you" he said as he pressed his lips on her forehead and let it linger for a little longer.

He rushed to the hospital as soon as he could. His heart was beating frantically, as if he would just get a panic attack and faint that instant. He was so ... he didn't himself knew how to describe this feeling inside him. It's been months, almost a year and now that he is rushing back to the hospital, his legs weren't working, his hands were cold, his heart reacting like it would just come out and his mind was in a haze.

He stood on the gate of her room, frozen on his own spot, unable to move. There she was sitting up, looking outside the windows with a rose in his hand, one out of the bunch that he had brought today. She looked so calm. Though he did notice how weak she had become but the overwhelming feeling of her coming back to him had overtaken anything that his mind would wander upon. She was sitting there ... sitting there ... Gauri was awake ... His Gauri was awake ... she was awake and he was seeing her right infront of his eyes.

"Gauri" ... he spoke as if unsure that she would answer.

"Omkaraji, I was waiting for you" she smiled and just then as if every pain that he had undergone in all these months, healed itself magically.

He rushed to her and she welcomed her with open arms. "You were ... you were not sp .. speaking. You didn't say anything to me all these days. I was waiting to he ... hear you. It feels like eternity Gauri. I ... I missed you so much" he said as he kept his face on her shoulders and cried, for the first time feeling relief that she was there to hold him "I know ..."

He sniffed as he faced her "you ... you were not here ... it felt like eternity since I saw you Gauri. I thought you would forget me. I was so scared"

"Hey!!! Hey shhh! I am here alright, you don't have to be scared. I am alright and well Omkaraji. Thank you for waiting for so long" she said in her soothing voice.

"What would have I ever done without you? Even the though of that scared me. Don't ever leave me again. Ever" he cried. "I will not, I won't" she said as she immediately hugged him, calming him down.

She held him tight, not wanting to let go. She too had been struggling for months and now that he was here, now that she had seen him; that feeling was just way beyond she could describe.

The peace he had in her arms was unmatched. He knew that no matter how brave he would pretend to be, the time she would wake up, he would loose himself to her and the same happened.

That happiness he found while she soothed him was what he was crying for. He just had to keep his promise to keep her safe and happy now.