Hope

A Fated Mismatch

While chaos was running across Rahul's mind, Avika wasn't doing any better either.

Avika always aspired to be a creative person. She loved to draw, create things from scratch, make delicious food for whatever little piece of grocery she was provided to be called 'her own' by the step mother. She always kept smiling. She thought that if she'll give into the negativity, she'll lose herself forever and her sanity. So she always diverted her mind into making something constructive.

Rahul always used to tease her and make her do his art projects too and she'd happily oblige, because the more the work for her to do, the better, as it'll let her escape her gruesome reality. When she graduated from college, she aspired to become a teacher. Her life drove her ambition to teach all the children, what she knew, to help them master their art like she did, and to meet new people where she could be herself without any judgement or restrictions.

One day, she got an offer from a very reputable school to become a teacher in the Language Department. She was very happy and excited that someone finally acknowledged her skills. She was looking forward towards her new bright future where she could be the master of her own life. She even thought about renting out an apartment for herself where she, along with her sister Sanaya and brother Rahul, could live away from those monsters who had made their lives living hell.

But accepting the offer couldn't have happened without her father's approval. She thought it'll be okay if she pitched the idea about them leaving so that her father wouldn't have to worry about three extra members of the family, and it'll be a win-win situation for all. She doubted that her stepmother would have any problem with this either because then she could have the family she always wanted, and they could all stay in touch from afar. She shared the news with her sister, and Sanaya agreed that it was indeed a great plan. So they both decided that next morning they'll cook great breakfast for everyone, and when their parents will be in a good mood, they'll share the news.

Avika couldn't sleep that night because her freedom was so close, she could almost taste it. The next morning, Sanaya and Avika did as planned but their stepmother seemed to be in a foul mood since morning. They didn't know what had happened, but were still hoping for the best.

After the breakfast was done, they both cleared the table, and as Avika's father was reading the newspaper, she showed him the offer letter and told him about her idea. He looked skeptical and didn't respond with anything for a while. Avika was looking at him with shining eyes, hoping to hear the exact same words that she had imagined and replayed in her mind the whole night where her father would say, "I am so proud of you. I hope you live a good life. Go ahead and achieve of whatever you have dreamed of and worked hard for". It was a far fetched idea, but Avika has always been a dreamer, so she thought about it anyway.

Her father finally broke his silence and said, as much as I'd like for you to take this offer, I am afraid you can't. Avika's mind went blank. She couldn't hear anything else that her father had to say as to why she couldn't work. Her eyes filled with tears, her last ray of hope got extinguished. All the positivity that she had accumulated for the past 10 years, all went away with a single sentence. She started getting breathless as she heard the word "marriage".

He explained to her that they have found a suitable match for her and she is to be married with him very soon. In fact the boy's family was going to come to their house very soon, to meet the girl. Avika's mind was already beyond the processing power and to add onto the trauma her stepmother walked out of her room and told her father that the guy wasn't good enough for Avika and she won't let this happen.

Avika thought this might be the very last time where she could try to get her freedom, maybe her stepmother was in the favour of her idea of moving out after all and would support her just this one time. Little did she know that her stepmother had other ideas for her.

Her stepmother explained that the boy is very good looking and it wouldn't do him justice if he were to marry Avika. Also, his family is very well settled, runs a successful business, so if Avika were to go to that family, she would only ruin their status with her incompetence, lack of social skills and qualifications.

Her words almost pierced through Avika's heart but she thought that if that is the case then she'll agree, and maybe if they let her take the job, she'll become qualified enough for some other guy, and they could marry each other and live a happy life.

Avika was never confident about her looks or talent. She always looked upto her sisters and imagined herself only as a shadow who would follow her sisters throughout her life. While in reality, she was the most beautiful out of the three, her voice was so soft that it could melt any stone. She beheld many skills that almost any girl would be jealous of her many talents. But there was no one who would make her realise all these things, her elder sister had already left, and her younger sister was much too focussed on herself to make her own life a little better, that they never really noticed anything about each other.

Her stepmother was jealous of her looks because her own daughter couldn't beat Avika's charm. She had already decided that she wouldn't let Avika lead a happy life, even if it meant to bear with her for a little longer. She told her husband that she had found another boy for Avika who is a perfect match, and she can become a suitable wife for him. Her father anyway never really bothered about anyone but himself, so he agreed, and a meeting was set up.

As Avika's dreams were getting crushed, her stepmother left no stone unturned to make sure that this marriage takes place. She gave her a saree for the first time in her life, just so that Avika could look pretty according to the boy's family standards. She naturally looked breathtaking, and no guy could have refused to marry Avika after looking at her.

Avika at this point, had just given up on her dreams but there was still a little hope left. When she met the boy, he told her that he is a painter, and although his career isn't going too well right now, he will try his best to provide Avika with a comfortable life. He also ensured that she'll be free to do any job that she wants after they get married, and that he'll never come in her way of success.

After listening to all this, she was overjoyed, and started looking forward towards the wedding. Now there was no way that anyone could stop her from being free. She had gotten a loving husband, a nice family, and a career to look forward at. Given her nature, she couldn't stay depressed for a long period of time either, so she started enjoying the preparations, and dreamt of her dream wedding. When Avika's stepmother saw how happy she was, she knew that her plan was not going smoothly, because Avika's happiness was the last thing she had expected out of this arrangement.

She had made sure that the boy had no earning, it was a joint family so there will be a lot of responsibilities to be taken care of, and a lot of cooking involved as there were so many family members but how could Avika look so happy even after knowing all of this? What went wrong with stepmother's well-processed plan and most importantly, what should she do about it now?

Only time could tell...