Arshi FF: Another Chance With You

Interlude: Red, Green and Pink

Sheesh Mahal:

"Khushi"

The first time that Ratna had heard this word from her son's lips, she hadn't thought anything about it. She hadn't known how important the word would be, until much later.

When she had first come to Sheesh Mahal, she had foolishly thought her dreams were coming true. She had imagined a blissful married life with a loving and devoted husband and as a result, many cute children to love and cherish. With time, Ratna had learned that reality was both cruel and giving. Yes, this marriage had given her two faithfully affectionate children but, it had also imparted on her an emotionless sham of a loving relationship. She had arrived here with great expectations and was now left here trapped in this unloving marriage with her innocent children.

So, it was to no one's surprise that Ratna found solace in spending time with her children. Especially, her Arnav. Her son, Arnav who was just four years old. Her chottu sa chotte was easily frustrated and despised any time away from his Maa and Di. Together, they enjoyed their mornings, gardening in their conservatory and later on, sketching away to their heart's content.

  Over time, Ratna started showing up at parties and events with her children rather than her husband. They became her shield against the unforgiving, relentless society that her sasural was a part of. This was the reason why at the age of four, Arnav witnessed a wedding for the first time.

  "Maa?" Arnav asked, "Why are they playing around the fire? Can I go play with them? Please Maa?! Please?"

  "Chotte, they're not playing around the fire. They're taking their phere. They're getting married, Chotte. Aur tum shaadi sirf uske saath kar sakte ho, jiske saath tumara zindagi bhar pyaar aur vishwas ka bandhan ho. (And you can only get married to someone, who you will love and trust for the rest of your life.)" Ratna explained, patiently.

  "Apke saath, Muma? (With you, Mom?)"
Arnav questioned, innocently waiting for an answer.

  Ratna chuckled before replying, "Nahi, Chotte. Mere saath nahi. Uske saath, jo tumare sapno ki rani banjayegi. (No Chotte. Not with me. With the girl who will become the queen of your dreams."

  Arnav paused and contemplated this for a moment and then stated, "So, Khushi se. (With Khushi./With happiness.)"

"Haan. Main toh yehi chahoongi keh tum tumari Khushi se hi shaadi karo. (Yes. I would only wish for you to get married with your happiness.)" Ratna said, with tears in her eyes. At the time, she hadn't really understood what Arnav meant. It wasn't until a few weeks later that she was able to realize her mistake.

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  For the past three weeks, she had noticed that all of Arnav's drawings were of a girl. At first, she had assumed that the picture he was drawing was of herself but she had noticed that in most of the drawings, the girl was holding a yellow, spiral-shaped object. So, she had come to the conclusion that the object was a lollipop and he was sketching his Di. However, the thing that she couldn't understand was why he was only sketching her in clothes that were red, green, and pink. She knew that Anjali was found most often in clothes that were bright purple, like her favourite colour. Still, she passed this off as childish whimsy and went on with her day.