"Dhekiye Vikram ji, aap-aap batameezi kar rahe hain-please" wriggled Humeira under Vikram's nasty and rigorous hold. He dug his free hand under her head and tightly pulled at her hair, freeing her neck from the tangled mess.
"Badtameezi? Tum meri patni ho! Tum samaj ti kya ho apne aap ko huh? Mujhe pata hai ki tumhare naazre kis par tik rahi hai aaj kal!" snorted Vikram, tightening his grip.
"Vikram! Aaah! Let go of my hair! Please!" Humeira screamed and yelped trying to move her head closer to his hand to ease the pain. When her eyes caught his, the pleasure and lust in them made her want to throw up. She could feel the bile rising in her throat and she immediately looked away. This man was her husband? This was the man she was dying to find for the past few weeks?
Vikram who was clearly annoyed by Humeira's reluctance and resistance decided forcing himself on her was the only way he could have her. He twisted her hands behind her back and locked them in his secure grip. He pulled her into him as she cried and brought his mouth to the crook of her neck, sucking and biting at the same time. He was done with trying to be Mr. Goody Shoes. How could he not make use of the maal infront of his eyes?
Humeira on the other hand could not stop shivering. She felt so exposed and cold. Just having come from the shower, her hair was wet and was clinging to her bare back and the front of her blouse leaving dark patches in the light colored cloth. She shut her eyes and tried to think calmly.
Maybe if I play along, he may let me go. But how? How can I face this disgusting man? Yah Allah, please-please save me!
"Rajni, main yeh sab karna toh nahi chahta lekin tumne mujhe majboor kardiya hain. Main ek aadmi hoon after all!" Saying this he pulled the dori of her blouse and brought his hands front, trying to unhook all her buttons. Now Humeira simply froze, it was as if she was paralyzed. She gasped as cold air hit her chest and made her realize she had to do something and fast!
Seeing Vikram's hand reaching out for her breast, Humeira quickly bought her mouth lower and sunk her teeth deeply into his palm.
Vikram screamed out loud and his hold on her loosened momentarily, giving Humeira the perfect chance to escape from his prisonment.
"You little bitch!"
She smirked a little when she saw him flailing his hand in the air and sucking the wound occasionally to ease the pain.
That little smirk was not missed by Vikram though. His eyes turned coal black which was a scary change to his light brown orbs. The smirk crept of Humeira's face as she backed into the wall. His menacing glare made each part of her body quiver with fear. Coming closer to her, Vikram slapped the hands which were furiously trying to put her hooks back. He then pulled her pallu away and forcefully pressed his body onto hers, making Humeira swallow the bile that filled her mouth. She was crying miserably now, helplessly pushing him further but he just came crashing back harder. Vikram brought his face closer trying to kiss her but Humeira simply turned her face away.
That's when she saw the glass vase on the furniture beside her. She moved a little sideways, her face still away from Vikrams. When she felt that she was close enough, she turned to face him and raised her left hand to grab the vase. Vikram lowered his head again but this time he yelled in pain as the glass came crashing on his head. He blinked a little to orient himself and gritted his teeth when he realized what had just happened.
Humeira was in a dilemma, she had no idea why she was doing all this. He was her husband after all, he had all rights on her. Then why was she hell bent on acting like she was being raped? She shook her head and dropped the broken half vase on the floor. This didn't feel right, that's why, she answered to her subconscious mind.
Humeira being a small woman knew that her blow had not been hard enough. No matter how hard she hit him, she would not be able to hurt him bad. Her thoughts were clarified when Vikram winced sharply and turned to look at her. He was seething with anger which was visible by the way he was breathing. Humeira knew she had to run away before things fell apart. She dashed from Vikram's right but was stopped short by a strong grip on her arms.
"Haha Biwi Ji ko laga ki hum unhe itni asaani se jaane dainge?" Vikram laughed digging his nails into her skin.
Humeira held her cry in by biting the inner walls of her cheek. She would not cry in front of this ass of a man she decided. She yelped as he pulled her into him and slapped her face really hard with the back of his palm. She tried fighting him off but a strong push from him and she felt herself losing her balance. Humeira tried to slow herself down but she felt everything go black as her head hit the egde of her dressing table.
**********************************************************************************************************
Humeira woke up to see a mess of her room and Vikram hovering over her head with sweat all over his brows. He sighed when he saw her open her eyes and slumped onto the side of the bed, wiping his face with her pallu.
Humeira squinted her eyes as she tried taking everything in.
Who was she?: Humeira
Who was he?: Vikram
Humeira held her head as all the past flashbacks ran in her head. Her fight with Ayaan. Her leaving home. Her meeting Rajni. Her thinking she was Rajni. Her living with this so called Vikram. Vikram forcing himself on her.
Just when she couldn't comprehend what was happening, Humeira did what any girl in that state would do and screamed at the top of her lungs.
**********************************************************************************************************
Ayaan was walking around the house absent mindedly. He had nothing to do and he was really worried about Humeira. He couldn't stand her in the same room with another man, that too one that was obviously an imposter. But he could ignore her mental state. The doctor had said that things had to go the way they were. Humeira would remember everything by herself. But how he wondered? He took a sharp breath as he passed her room. Her presence lingered in the air and he could not help but turn to look at the wooden door.
He mustered up some strength and forced himself to walk away but just as he did a loud shriek cut through the air, silencing everything else.
His eyes grew wide as he realized that is was Humeira. He turned sharply and dashed into the room, shocked by the sight in front of him.
Vikram hadn't even noticed him enter because he was so busy in covering Humeira's mouth with his hands. Ayaan unable to stand the sight of him touching her ran towards him and grabbed the back his collar. He pulled him up and punched him straight on his face.
Vikram's groan was barely audible as he tried to stop the blood gushing from his nose. He tried to throw a punch in Ayaan's direction but the throbbing in his head made him lose balance and stumble upon the carpeted floor. Ayaan still burning with fury, punched and kicked until his body went numb and he felt a pair of arms snaking around his waist, trying to pull him away. He took a step back and admired the wreck he had done. He spat on Vikram's unconscious body and removed the hands from his waist.
What Ayaan felt when he saw Humeira was inexplicable. She looked so broken, so fragile that he sensed if he didn't gather her in his arms she would break into pieces. So Ayaan did what he was felt right and engulfed her in his arms, but he immediately let go when he felt her going stiff.
How could I forget that she thinks she's Rajni?
"I-I'm sorry. Phele aap ko thik kar-karte hain" Ayaan mumbled as he slowly picked the end of her pallu and put it on her shoulder. He saw her shiver and once again the urge to kick Vikram came to him but instead he walked to the bed and grabbed a blanket.
"Rajni Ji, yeh lijiye." Said Ayaan, turning to Humeira, but all he got was a dazed girl looking into empty space and sitting with her back against the wall.
Ayaan carefully walked to her and purposely stomped on Vikram's hand on the way. He couldn't help it, he just wanted to keep hurting that man for hurting his life.
Kneeling beside Humeira, he moved her damp hair off her face and wrapped her cozily with the blanket. With hesitant fingers he touched her shoulder, trying to get a response out of her.
"Rajni Ji? Aap thik toh hai na? Vikram ne kuch kiya toh nahi?"
Humeira shook her head slightly as she felt tears brim her eyes.
"Dekhiye, I think aap ko yahaan nahi reh na chaiye. Aap mere room me aram kar lijiye. Main Vikram ko baad me dekh loong ga." He tried convincing her and then turned to give Vikram's form a disgusting glance.
Humeira tried to stand up and Ayaan was there holding onto her but it felt like all energy had been drained out of her. Ayaan sensed this and swiftly put his arms under her knees and carried her out of the room. She felt as light as a feather. Humeira was a petite girl, but the blanket cocooned around her made her look so much younger. She looked so nave, so innocent. He couldn't believe that she had to go through all that. He would make Vikram pay back, that was for sure.
Once they reached Ayaan's room, he placed Humeira on his bed and nudged her shoulder, trying to get her to lie down.
Humeira shook her head and sat still.
"Rajni Ji, please zid mat kariye. Main chala jaoonga but please phele aap aram kijiye."
When she said nothing Ayaan groaned and said, "Rajni Ji, please!"
"Humeira."
"What?"
" Hum Rajni nahi hain, I'm Humeira." She repeated.
Ayaan could not believe his ears. Humeira. Humeira. His mind kept chanting her name. When he finally came to his senses he rushed to sit beside her and blinked madly trying to keep his tears at bay.
"Humeira" he repeated, cupping her face with his bruised hand. Humeira shut her eyes. Just her name of his lips was killing her. She reached for his hand and pulled them down, earning herself a confused glance from Ayaan.
"Aap ne hi kahaa tha na Ayaan, ki aap hum se pyaar nahi karte. Toh yeh dikhawa kyun?" she asked looking into his eyes for answers.
Ayaan held her gaze for he knew he had a lot to explain. He moved a little closer and held her hands into his.
"Tum he yeh dikhawa lag raha hain?" he asked with such intensity in his eyes that Humeira had to look away.
"Yahaan dekho Humeira. Main manta hoon ki mujh se bohut badi galti hogayi thi. Main tum hare pyaar ko kabhi samaj hi nahi paya. Mujhe laga ki yeh pyaar nahi ho sak ta. Mujhe laga ki ye sirf infatuation ya immature sa ek ehsaas tha. Aur woh shaadi ka pressure. Mujhe kuch samaj main nahi aa raha tha. Patna nahi kyun."
He held her hand tighter and continued, "Tumhare pyaar ka ehsaas mujhe tum hare na hone par pata chala. Tum hare sab yaadien baas mere dimaag main ghoom te the. I couldn't sleep without thinking about you. All those memories. All those moments. It was as if a piece of me was torn away. I remembered all those times our breaths had mingled. All those times I could have kissed you. But then you were gone-" his voice croaked as he tried to swallow the lump in his throat.
"I felt so guilty for hurting you. I prayed to Allah every day that if he gave you back to me, I'd never let go."
Seeing his broken state, Humeira moved into his lap and hugged him with enough power to push him back . She removed the blanket off her and pressed her body into his, wanting to feel all his warmth that was radiating of his body. She rested her head on his shoulder and felt his arms go around her back. She didn't mind that her back was bare, she didn't mind that her clothes were torn. All she cared about was that she was home in his arms. All she cared about was that he had accepted their love.
Humeira pulled back and looked straight into Ayaan's eyes. They looked so much at peace now that even she was filled with relief. She brought her face closer but held onto the gaze. When they were close enough, Humeira shyly said, "Our breaths are mingling now, you can do what you always wanted to."
