Just Friends [√]

Chapter 7 :" Violence "

Three weeks later.  

  Gauri had never been scared of a policeman after all her father was one and a higher ranking official as well which made her feel more safe around them until today as she starred at two unfriendly faces before her .

         
" Mrs Prasad , Can you tell us what happened,  " the policewoman spoke up , not kind this time around because for the past fifteen minutes she had been asking the same question awhile Gauri remained still shaken up by the events.

         
After her regular check up ,she has been the one who asked Arun to drop her in an library for few hours ,Gauri fascination with books made the hours she spend in the library peaceful. Arun had filled her room with books but still the prospect of visiting a library appealed to her .

           
The library was just two blocks away from her home and though Arun asked her to call him to pick her up ,she decided such a short walk would be a sort of exercise until it didn't as she stepped on to the street ,she felt a pair of footsteps behind her which created the sense of panic that she was being followed .

       
Gauri had believed she was over it , it has been months and it made no sense for her to be too wary of stranger but when she turned around to see three man walking behind her . her mind jumped to the worst conclusions . 

    
She didn't think but began to run and her fear increased when she heard voice behind her as they ran as well , she carried a pepper spray in her bag that she used on one of them once they caught up with her until she saw the book in their hand .

   
One of the books she took from the library to read must have fallen from her hands when she began to run ,she could have apologized or found words to explain her actions but she remained frozen by what she did until passerby began to gather around her to investigate .

      
And few of them began to hit the three men whose only fault had been to try and help a pregnant lady who dropped her books , but her silence was misconstrued as their guilt . She knew she should have stopped them but she remained frozen by her fear that the damage had been done by the time she spoke up . 

       
And by then it was too late ,one of  passerby had already called the police and now Gauri was seated in the nearby police station where they waited for her statement,she knew how it will look and she could understand the anger from the three innocent who were harmed because of her yet she couldn't speak up in her defense .

  
       
" Mrs Prasad , tell us what happened, " they asked her , few times and she didn't know how to explain it . She had given them her Identification card when asked about her name except that she couldn't say much and so she was relieved to find Arun walking inside the station few minutes later .

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Gauri loved books and he knew she would stay there for hours if he didn't arrive to pick her up , and when he found out she already left he began to panic because it was so unlike her . She had never went anywhere alone but he had been able to get the information from the library incharge who had seen Gauri leave about a hour ago .

    
And she even checked to see that Gauri had withdrawn few books using her library card which sealed the deal and he didn't know where she could have left until he got a call from the police station .

      
He had called his friend Kishore who was a lawyer  as he drove to the station and by the time he settled it out on her behalf ,he became more worried about her as she refused to say a word to him until they got home .

    
Gauri mother left back home  three days ago and he was all she had to confide in but she remained silent for the next two days except one word answer he got nothing more from her that his worries began to increase further .

      
" It was a misunderstanding Gauri ,you reacted out of fear and it wasn't your fault, " he told her,  when she got out of room to have breakfast three days later from the accident ,anything to make her stop feeling guilty.

     
" I froze Arun ,I couldn't speak or react at all . Do you know how scary it is when you mind fails to cooperate with you . What if one of them were harmed grieveiously and I know you agreed to pay for their treatments and compensate them fairly for their injuries  ,all because I was still stuck on that day,  " Gauri answered back ,he was partly relieved that she was finally talking to him in more than one word but he was worried as well when he didn't know how to convince her that she can't blame herself .

     
The momentary aspect didn't bother him a bit because it would mean Gauri won't have to face any legal problems , he was glad that the police and the victims agreed to let it go because if not he didn't know how Gauri would have handled it .

    
Arun knew what Gauri feared worst was being helpless and the incident had made her feel helpless and the only way for her to recover was if she found some reassurance and security and fortunately Arun had an idea up his sleeve on how to help her .

 
        
The next day he brought her something that will give her a sense of security and freedom ,when he showed her the car she was taken back by his gesture but it had been Arun fault for thinking since he was aorimd she need not have her own mode of transport.

        
Arun knew it wasn't easy for Gauri to admit that maybe she wasn't ready to be alone yet out in the world but the car had been the first step to give her some of the confidence and security back .

        
Because the night she had been waiting for her father to pick up ,she was left alone to be preyed upon and it was given the first time she was out on her alone ,she would feel the fear and it could have been avoided if Arun hadn't made her rely on him to go out thinking it was the best for her .

      
Arun realized awhile it was no hardship for him to drive her all times , Gauri needed to feel control of her movements and he hoped the car would be a start in the right direction . One which ensured she need not wait alone for anyone to pick her up ever again .

P. S :" That it for now ..Let me know your thoughts and feedbacks.. Hit the votes if you liked it "

Love

Juanita Reid