Love Survives

Pratap sat clutching onto the side of his seat as the hospital staff ran about. Nurses and a group of doctors were attending to the girls. Udai Singh and Rathore made sure that their names and power would help the girls get the best treatments.

Phool had regained consciousness, and her mother and Vishal were by her side. It was Roshni they were worried about. She was being checked and tested by the doctors as she had not regained consciousness. Ram and Udai ran about talking to the doctors while Jaivanta sat holding Hansa's hand.

Pratap seemed to be in a haze, as if this were another nightmare he was having. He always thought his life was cursed; everyone he loved was hurt and unhappy. Today, he was sure. His Roshni was in there, fighting for her life, that's all he could gather. He didn't remember how he got her into this mess. I should have driven her home myself, I should have. I shouldn't have let her go to that woman alone. It's all my fault! In his anger, he punched his fist at the wall, hurting himself.

Jaivanta rushed to her son.

" What are you doing?"

" This is all my fault." His voice shook cause of the tears he was fighting to control.

" No, it is not."

" Yes, I shouldn't have let her go, I should have... It's all my fault; everyone I love leaves me alone." He hugged his mother in the hope of releasing a bit of his pain. The last words hit her like a bullet; she had always thought Pratap was like his father, very composed and strong. She now knew the deep scar her son carried.

" Pratap... She will be fine. Listen to me."

" I know who did this." His voice was angry." I won't spare her."

" Her? Who is it?" Jaivanta was shocked. He was accusing someone of actually trying to harm Roshni. Her question made him look at his mother. He did not have enough strength to take her name. He ran off.

" Pratap, Wait!"
Udai turned at her cry to see his wife look at their son running off.

Pratap found a bench outside the hospital. He sat there by himself, and now he could cry; no one would know. He held his face with his palms and burst into tears. I can't lose you, I just can't. He heard footsteps and wiped away his tears quickly. It was his father. In the last 12 years, he had never even faced this man one-on-one. He stood up to leave.

" I understand how you feel." His father's voice seemed calm.

" No, you don't! You never can." He said sternly. He loves you... Roshni's voice played in his head.

" When your mother was very ill before you were born, I used to stay awake all night for over a month to be with her, to see her sleep. I was so afraid she was going to die in her sleep someday."
His voice seemed distant and sad. His mother's topic made Pratap stop and look back at the man he hated for hurting his mother.
" The day the doctors said she was out of danger and so were you, I was the happiest man on earth. I couldn't wait to hold you in my arms. I... I know how you feel... I saw a reflection of your mother in Roshni, she is such a nice girl, nothing will happen to her... I just hope she understands you more than your mother understood me."
His last words made him choke. Pratap realised his father was as lonely as his mother; he preferred to work himself to sleep to hide his loneliness.

" Dad, I... I am sorry." He faced his father for the first time in a decade.

" Sorry? Why?" Udai was surprised.

" I... I thought you were hurting, Maasa. I... I searched your room..."

"You... What?" Udai Singh couldn't believe his son!

" I found some court papers, and that is why we are here today, Dad, it's all my fault!" He sobbed.

" What papers?" Udai feared the worst.

" Some woman named Dheer...." A slap resounded across his face.

" How dare you? Just how dare you dig up my life?" He was angry. Not because Pratap knew, but because he knew that Dheer was cunning enough to hurt Pratap.

" Dad... " Udai was walking away.
" Dad... She did it, I'm sure, this is no accident."
His words stopped his father. " What have you two done?" He demanded to know.

He was telling everything when his mother came up behind them. She put her hand on his shoulder and looked at his father. Pratap didn't remember the last time they had a family moment. This was something he always wanted, just not like this!

" Let your father take care of the mess; you come with me. Roshni has regained her consciousness." A smile curved her face as he rushed off, leaving his parents behind.

" I won't let her hurt my son and ruin his life." Udai dialled a number. Jaivanta waited for the call to end. " Don't worry, your son will be fine." His tone was formal. He was about to leave.

" And what about us?"

" Us?" he turned back, surprised.

" Pratap and Roshni did so much to see us happy, but are we?" Her voice was teary.

" I can never make you happy again." Udai shook his head.

" I should have listened to your explanation and not pushed you away." Jaivanta sobbed.

" No, I should have judged your position and not expected you to support me blindly." Udai shook his head.

" I shouldn't have believed her."

" Don't worry, I heard her stepson is after her. I called the commissioner. He will use her stepson to catch her; he, too, alleged that she blackmailed his father to marry her and give her his property."

" I am sure you will take care of this." A smile curved on both faces; they regretted the fact that in all these years, they had not once tried to put aside their egos and talk it out. They regretted the scar Pratap had suffered.

Pratap rushed into the room where Roshni lay in bed, her head bandaged, her arm slung, she had broken it from the fall out of the car. She looked at him at the door and murmured, "Pratap?"

Hansa saw him come in and left them alone.

" Roshni...." He smiled at her as his eyes twinkled in joy.

" I am fine... What happened to your hand?" No one had noticed his hand was badly bruised from the wall fisting.

" It's nothing."

" Nurse! Nurse!"

" Husshhh! Am fine." He put his finger on her lips. " I was so worried."

" I know, you cried, didn't you?"

" No... I was very strong." Pratap looked away, embarrassed. She smiled weakly.

" Come here..." She stretched out her other hand to him. He held it tight as if to say I am never letting you go... He got up from the chair and sat facing her on the bed, helping her to sit up, holding her shoulders.

" Does it hurt?"

" A little, I will be fine."

" I know you will be, but will that be in a month? I'm not giving a ring with these bandages on!" He teased her.

" It was her, wasn't it?" Roshni asked, his smile disappearing.

" You think so?" He asked.

" Yes, our car was driving fine, and a white car came from behind and hit Phool's side. The car tilted, and I think I fell out of my side, this seems no accident." She recollected. He shut his eyes, even imagining the horror she went through.

Jaivanta and Udai interrupted their conversation. The Commissioner was with them.

" How are you doing, Beta?" Jaivanta kissed her forehead.

"I'm feeling better." Pratap stood up to greet the Commissioner.

" Beta, this is the police. Tell them everything."

After asking about the accident, the police asked, " Do you have any enemies?"

Roshni looked at Pratap, confused, as Jaivanta and Udai shared a stare.

" Yes and No... Actually, I have an enemy." Pratap replied.

" Come with me, I will tell you everything." Udai escorted the man out. Jaivanta followed.

Roshni looked at Pratap, confused and amazed. He smiled.

" I wanted to surprise you. You did it! They talked to me together for like five minutes! And Dad even told about..."

" OMG! You said, Dad!" Roshni hugged him in joy the moment he sat down beside her.

" Ouch!" She retreated in pain.

" Careful!" He looked anxious.

She put her head on his shoulder and held his hand. " Now I am happy."

" Anything else I can do, Ma'am?" He smiled at her.

" Yes, ask the doctors when I can go home, and come every day to see me!"

" Your wish is my command!" He bowed to make her smile. " And?"

" Always be this way!" Roshni smiled.

" Always and forever!" He replied.

In a week, Daadi saw the news and called Pratap as he went to Phool's place to see her.

" Dheer has been caught, and her stepson has filed a case against her."

" That's good."

" He called your dad for support."

" I can't wait to tell Roshni this."

" When will she go home?" Phool's mother asked, handing him a glass of juice.

" Tomorrow, they will release her. But she will have to be on bed rest for almost a month."

Phool's mother left the room as Pratap noticed Phool and Vishal smiling at him.

" What?" He asked, surprised.

" Sagaai mubarak ho!" Both taunted as he got red and blushed.
" Stop it, guys, let her be okay first!"
" Ohho, she will be more than ok, and then we will go shopping and then...." Phool went on and on as Pratap and Vishal looked at each other, hoping one of them would make her stop!

My Everything

Kunwar Pratap stormed into the Mahal at Gogunda amidst uncertainty and chaos. Happy faces of the chieftains and soldiers welcomed him as Rawat Chundawat, and some other chieftains stopped the ongoing Raj Tilak. A visibly scared Kunwar Jagmal looked clueless at a visibly angry Kunwar Pratap. Rani Dheerbai Bhatiyani hadn't expected Kunwar Pratap to show up, that too, despite her conveying to him his father's last wish of crowning Kunwar Jagmal. Twenty-one days after Udai Singh's death, she was finally close to a dream she had dared to dream since Jagmal was born. He was not informed about the Raj Tilak as per Dheerbai's instructions. She eyed Rawat Ji. He must have assembled the chiefs to this revolt against her son, against the dead king. No one except them knew where Kunwar Pratap was staying. It was for the safety of his family. " What are you doing, Chotima?" A disappointed voice was directed at her. She could stoop down so low? For the first time, an anger...

Sibling's Day

Shakti always had a very strict sibling equation with Pratap. Though they were only two years apart, the siblings had very different tastes and preferences. For Shakti, Pratap's disciplined and well-planned life looked like he was missing out on a lot of things. He sometimes didn't even approve of how impulsive Pratap was when he was emotional. Shakti, on the other hand, prioritised experiences over plans. He never found a need to feel deeply for anything the way Pratap did, and over the years, mostly in Pratap's absence from the family, he had managed to find a way with his parents. But he didn't really have any other elder sibling figure. All his cousins' sisters were close to him and younger. But with Ajabdeh, he had developed this very strong connection over the past few weeks. As a child, Shakti's playmate in the house used to be Sajja, while his father worked, his mother ran NGOs, and Pratap was always found with his head in a book. Ajabdeh was up for an...

Purnota: Chapter Forty Four

Aniruddha tapped his black loafers on the Italian marble floor of the entrance as he eyed his watch. It was almost half past five. He checked himself in the full-size mirror beside the coat hanger, looking fresh as he shaved and bathed, set his hair, chose a white summer blazer over his black shirt and trousers and abandoned the idea of a tie. He cleaned his glasses with the handkerchief, contemplating whether he should knock at Asha’s door, telling Bondita to hurry. He wondered what the women were doing there for such a long time. He could hear them giggling and gossiping as he walked past the room. He wondered what huge deal a party was that a woman needed another to help her dress up. He took out his phone and wondered if he should call her downstairs instead to avoid the awkwardness of knocking on the door. It was then that Aniruddha heard footsteps on the stairs and looked up in a reflex. He would give her a piece of his mind for wasting precious moments, especially when they...

AAYA TERE DAR PAR DEEWANA

Pratap was outside the gates of Meera Girls College in Udaipur by the next afternoon, unsure of whether to go in and ask for her. He spotted a few girls walking out, and one of them kept staring at him suspiciously before approaching him. He stood in his spot, still awkward as she asked, “Aren’t you that ASI guy that Roshni met?” “I… what?” Pratap narrowed his eyes “I am sorry, I don’t remember you.” “I am Mahek.” The girl waved her hand and smiled, “I was with her at Chawand.” “Oh, I see.” Pratap sighed. “I found some information that might help her …err… project.” He stopped at Mahek’s suspicious frown. “So I thought…” “You came all the way here to give her some information about her project?” Pratap cursed himself inwardly. Indeed, that sounded lame when she repeated it. “Why didn’t you call her?” “I…” He cleared his throat “I lost her number, so… I was hoping that she would be interested in an on-field internship…” “Oh, wait, I will give you her number. But she isn’t here, and I do...

His Wife

" Where is the Kesar, Rama? And the Kalash?" Ajabdeh looked visibly displeased at the ladies who ran around. " They are at the fort gates, and nothing is ready yet!" She exclaimed. She was clad in a red lehenga and the jewellery she had inherited as the first Kunwarani of the crown prince. Little Amar ran down the hallway towards his mother. " Maasa Maasa... who is coming with Daajiraj?" His innocent question made her heart sink. " Bhanwar Ji." Sajja Bai called out to him. " Come here, I will tell you." Amar rushed to his Majhli Dadisa., " Ajabdeh." She turned at Jaivanta Bai's call. "They are here." " M... My Aarti thali..." Ajabde looked lost like never before. Jaivanta Bai held her stone-cold hands, making her stop. She patted her head and gave her a hug. The hug gave her the comfort she was looking for as her racing heart calmed down. Jaivanta Bai left her alone with her thaal. " Maa sa!" ...

Purnota: Chapter Forty Three

Trilochon and Kalindi were having tea in the morning in their living room when Binoy walked downstairs in his Pajama Panjabi, pipe in hand and found them. Watching him unusually in his home attire, Trilochon frowned. “Are you sick? I thought you had already left.” Binoy sat down on the single chaise chair beside the couch as Kalindi poured some tea for him. “ I told you, Dada, I am here to retire.” He said, putting his pipe in his pocket. “Today, Som is going alone. We will see how that goes.” Their conversation was interrupted by Asha coming into the house in a white and red saree, with a red sindoor Teep on her forehead. She had a basket with her, and Koeli was accompanying her as she offered them the sweets she had taken as Prasad. “Since it’s his first day at the new position, we went to the temple together.” Asha narrated to Kalindi. “He left for work from there.” “Do you not have school today?” Kalindi enquired as Asha shook her head. She smiled, eyeing Trilochon, who narra...

Purnota: Chapter Forty Five

Aniruddha stared at the clock on his chamber wall for the third time and verified its working condition by checking it with his watch. He had asked Bondita to come to his chambers at six. It was almost six-ten and there was no sign of her. The peon he had sent to call her in had also left. He wondered if she had gone home earlier than usual. But then would she not have informed him? He eyed the partnership deed he had prepared to be signed, going through the terms one last time before he decided to go downstairs and see where she was for himself. As soon as Aniruddha got up, taking the coat from behind his chair to go, gathering the paperwork of the deed, a knock resonated on the door as he straightened his glasses and found his most professional voice to ask her to come in. Bondita looked a little breathless as though she had run up the stairs and apologised in a hurry, “Sorry, sorry… Meghna had some issues with her computer.” “There is a tech guy for that.” He narrowed his brows slig...

The Adventure of PI Ved: The Case in London

There is something funny about the phrase “as dead as a doornail.” Why? Because I am dead and I don’t look like a nail of any sort. I lie on my living room carpet, hands stretched out, the knife stuck to my back...such a backstabber. I hated them all my life! And what is the purpose of killing me? It is not like I would have lived much longer, I was eighty-five, for God’s sake! I lay here, the blood turning thick as I stared at the painting on the wall. It is such a hideous painting. I bought it for so much money, I was duped. I am waiting for the morning when my caregiver arrives to discover me on the floor. But I feel they are still around, looking for something. Searching every room. It is around 7 AM that she rings the bell. She bangs the door. She yells out, “Mr Smith!” Oh no, she is going back. Come back here, you fool! The criminal must still be upstairs. I hear them come down the wooden staircase and exit from the back door. Now the useless caregiver lady is back. Oh, she ...

Purnota: Epilogue

“Hello?” Saudamini’s voice was heard on the other end of the telephone as Aniruddha breathed in. “Mini, this is Aniruddha.” “Oh, Ani, how are you? How is Bondita?” Her voice changed from doubtful to excited. Aniruddha was standing by the couch in the living room with a phone book on the coffee table and a sheet of paper with a guest list in his hand. The mention of Bondita made him involuntarily eye the visible corridor to the dining area, where he could hear her voice, instructing Koeli. Ever since the marriage, she seemed to have taken up the job of ordering everyone around the house like a true landlord, and even he was not spared from her occasional orders. That is exactly how he had landed on the couch with a phone book. “Umm… she is good. Everyone’s good. I’m calling because…” “Oh, do tell her I truly apologise for not attending the wedding. I know she was disappointed with me and thought it was some payback for her not attending mine.” An amused smile formed on Aniruddha’s lips ...

Embracing Truths

Rana Udai Singh had sent his Senapati Kunwar Partap back to Chittorgarh because Dungarpur had summoned them to the battlefield. How did a friendly visit culminate in a war? Rumours spread faster than wildfires in Mewar. Rana Udai Singh was attending a Mehfil where he liked one of the King’s best dancers. He wanted to take her back to Chittorgarh, and the king, who took pride in art, refused to part with his best dancer. Udai Singh, at the height of intoxication, abused the king, insulted his dynasty and almost forced the dancer girl to follow him, leading to an altercation. What he expected now was for Kunwar Partap to lead an army to Dungarpur, wage a war and force the king to apologise. Kunwar Partap was appalled by what he heard from the soldier. Could the Rana not understand that he could not make any more enemies? He asked his troops to prepare to leave and informed Raoji. Ajbante Kanwar ran down the corridor to her chambers as fast as she could. She did not care if anyone saw her...

RAABTA

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