~ArHi FF: The trodden paths~ ch4 pg69 NEW--13/7)) - Page 22

Chapter two

"Relationships are precious.. don't take them for granted' Because it is sad but true.. that the worst pain in life is when someone you know becomes someone you knew"-- unknown

"Jiya you will catch cold... come inside right now... Ma, is that you?"

Arnav felt his heart beat for the first time in three and half years. Too scared to hope, too scared to believe incase his hopes came crashing down as all his efforts to find her had, he took a tentative step towards his dream, his hope, his reason to live, his wife, his Khushi. The wooden flooring made a creaking sound as he climbed up the stairs, bags forgotten. He concentrated on the ground, taking another step trying hard not to build hopes. The shallow ramp, besides the steps that led to the porch didn't go unnoticed but he didn't give it another thought as his heart sang only one line.. that Khushi is here. His hands shook as he pushed open the main door and sweat broke out all over him.

He knew it was Khushi even before he saw her... years of separation hadn't dimmed the connection between them which alerted him to her presence just as it had not dimmed his love. His heart was thudding loudly and he was surprised no one could hear it. He closed his eyes and sent a prayer to the same god he hadn't believed in, and took another step eyes still closed. Mentally preparing himself for the heart wrenching sadness that would follow lest he was wrong, he opened his eyes, blinking till his eyes adjusted to the faintly lit room.

In the bleak nights of Khushi's absence when Arnav had felt nothing but despair, he had allowed his mind to wander, fantasizing about meeting her again... he had seen himself rushing to her and crushing her in his arms never to let go, he had seen himself whispering his undying love for her in her ear, he had seen himself kissing her till all the pain wiped away, he had seen himself promising her every happiness, and now here she was... and so was he... but he stood there, heart aching, eyes refusing to believe, mind too tired to differentiate between memories and dreams.

She was sitting on the couch, hair loose, wearing a simple peach colored salwar totally opposite to the bright colors she once wore. The moment she saw him, she let out a startled gasp and her eyes immediately filled with unshed tears ... she was laughing...she was crying and yet stayed where she was., perhaps too stunned to move. He could hear the faint voices of di and others drifting up to him but they didn't matter, the world didn't matter, nothing mattered but the fact that he had found his wife. The light had gone out of his life when Khushi had... now the light was back and so was Khushi... and yet something hung in the air' an emotion sweet and painful at the same time..

"KHUSHI JI"

Anjali cry broke them from the trance as they became the part of the world once again. Arnav took an unsteady breath and brushed his moist eyes with his palm, watching his sister as she limped towards Khushi and enveloped her into a hug. There were both crying... tears of happiness, tears of pain, tears for the lost years, tears of the ache the separation had created. Khushi wiped her tears and gave Anjali the bright smile he remembered so well...

"Di, its been so long.. how are you? How is jiji.. naniji, amma, babuji, buaji...everyone?" she asked excitedly.

"They are all fine. Why didn't you come back Khushi? How could you walk away and not look back even once?" Anjali asked Khushi tearfully

"It was for the best di" Khushi replied silently

"How could it be for the best when it caused so much pain.. never mind.. now we have found you again and we will not let you out of sight... chote, see Khushi is here.. we finally found her chote." Anjali said looking at her brother who was watching Khushi, too afraid to even blink lest she turn out to be an illusion.. lest she disappear as she always had.. leaving behind memories and grief too deep for tears.

 He moved then, walking slowly towards Khushi, his eyes not leaving her face. He did not make an effort to hide the tears that rolled on his cheeks. He sat on his hunches near the couch. Khushi broke apart from Anjali's arms and looked at Arnav. He slowly lifted his hand and cupped her cheek his quivering lips trying and failing to form words. Her name was all he could say as the lump in his throat didn't let him say anything else,... but he didn't need to say anything else as the next moment Khushi was in his arms and he was hugging her just the way he dreamt he would.  Everything else ceased to matter...the distance, the pain.. it all seemed to dissolve into nothing as the one emotion took over which had always remained between them.. despite of the mistrust, despite of the hate,... Love

They didn't know how long they stood in each others arms.. An eternity later they broke apart and Khushi kept her eyes lowered too afraid to read the love that was reflected in his eyes lest she read it wrongly. Wordlessly Arnav brushed his cold hand on her warm cheek, wiping away her tears and cupped her cheeks once again.

Khushi was forced to look into his eyes but a movement from behind caught her attention. She saw Jiya bounding towards them and suddenly her insides filled with fear. The father and daughter were meeting for the first time, the ties of blood between them still unknown to them. Suddenly she found herself praying that Arnav wouldn't find the truth about Jiya being his daughter. There was a reason she had tried so hard to hide the truth about Jiya from Arnav, tried so hard to stay away from her family... There was a reason why she refused to walk on those trodden paths again...

Jiya walked past arnav and squeezed between Anjali and Khushi on the couch.

 "How dare you make my Mamma cry.. I'll--I'll bite you." Jiya said angrily taking in her mothers tear streaked face.

Arnav saw the adorable girl who stood looking at him furiously and for the first time he really looked at her. Looked at her and really saw her and he felt his heart crack.  Jiya was a spitting miniature image of Khushi. With an aching heart a few realizations dawned over him and his sister's audible gasp beside him said that she had realized those facts too. His mind registered what Jiya had just said... How dare you make my Mamma cry? Numbness began to spread over his mind not letting him accept any explanation as fear made his way through his heart once again. Suddenly Mrs Ahuja's words rang in his mind   "My daughter in law is alone at home and she must be worried too."   Khushi was married, he realized feeling an acute pain in his chest. He had found her after all this time, only to lose her... again.  

Khushi collected herself together and looked at her daughter and said in a stern voice,

 "Jiya is this the way to talk to elders? Apologize at once.. and say Namaste to aunty and uncle... where are your manners?"

"B-But mamma..?" Jiya protested

"Now Jiya." Khushi said strictly

"Sorry and Namaste" Jiya said reluctantly "--and I don't mean a word I say," she added cheekily before jumping off the couch and sprinting towards the kitchen to hide behind her dadi.

"Sorry about that.. Jiya is just like..." Khushi stopped in midsentence just realizing that she was almost about to reveal that Jiya was like Arnav. Eager to cover her mistake, she didn't notice the devastated look on both Arnav's and Anjali's faces as she hurriedly said

"I- I'll show you your room."

Arnav got up and stood aside, even though everything in him screamed to ask Khushi if she was happy, if her husband gave her the happiness she deserved, if her husband gave her everything he could have but didn't cause he had been too blind to see her innocence. There was a strange emptiness laced with numbness that had taken over his heart.. pain would come later, he knew.. it always had...

"Jiya.. baby get my chair please.." Khushi said loudly, looking towards the kitchen.

"Chair?" Anjali asked her. Arnav looked at Khushi curiously too, thinking this must be another tactic of his unpredictable Khushi. He smiled despite of his broken heart but the sudden noise made his head snap up and he felt a fear descend inside his heart more acute than he had ever felt before.

Now Arnav knew why Khushi hadn't rushed to greet them when they had arrived. Now he knew the purpose of the ramp besides the stairs that led to the porch..Now he knew why Khushi had sat frozen in her seat all the while...He stood there as if tied by some invisible forces, too shocked to move as he watched Jiya and Mrs Ahuja help Khushi in a chair.

It was a wheelchair...

Chapter Three