It Wasn't Supposed To Happen

49

The Roy Chowdhury haveli was silent except for sobbing of Sampoorna in her bedroom. Trilochan sat infront of Durga maa, prayers moving his lips as the horror had moved his heart.

" Save my bahu maa...save my bahu..." His bahu was more important than the baby. He always knew that but how regretfully never showed it. His actions were always opposite. He did everything because he really thought it was for the best of his children. He never wanted them to face any harm. But he himself had pushed them in a ditch. His over confidence as he had a few years over them had taken away everything from them.
How could he be so blind ?
Aniruddh kept telling him, begging him...but no ! He was the elder, he knew best.
His bahu would never look at him again. Why would she ? When the most hideous of the tricks were being applied on her, one he had tried himself, he stood as a bystander. Didn't Aniruddh warn him last time how malicious that could be ? How dangerous ?

" Maa... You should have punished me for my sins...why them...? Why my children...??!!" Even he knew how stupidly hypocritical his prayer was. He himself wanted this for his children. If this would not have happened he still would have been on to them about it. Still after the life of his bahu. He used to feel bad when she cried after having milk or other foods, how she vomited made him sad too. But he was blinded by his foolish, shallow knowledge. It was good for her and the baby he thought.

Why...? Why did he do all this...??!! Why...?!!

The sight of her, her screams were haunting him. He would never forget them...never.
All because of him...

" Maa... Please help my children. I promise... I promise I will be better now. Please help my bahu...help her..."

Sampoorna had been rocking herself sitting on the bed. Tears didn't stop. She herself was pregnant. She knew what it would feel like to Bondita.
Her sister...
She cried new tears. Her baby sister went through so much pain and she couldn't even be there for her. Maybe if she had been a better sister, Bondita would have told her everything, they would have taken care of each other. How lucky was she to get married into her sister's family. They could have lived together, made this haveli a home.

But no. She had to go and ruin everything. Maybe, just maybe, if she took care of her sister this wouldn't have happened.

Sampoorna too was going to be a mother and she understood how hurt her sister was going to be. She prayed to Durga maa to give the couple strength and vowed to herself to be a better sister from now on. It won't be difficult, she knew that. She never was this bad to begin with. It was her conditions that were twisted and fed to her by her mother and she was weak enough to fall in the pit. And she had fallen so deep that coming out neither seemed an option nor safe.

But that would end today. She was going to be her self, her old self. The horrifying morning would sketch out the old Sampoorna. The better one.

Aniruddh sat near Bondita's bed holding her hand. She was asleep. Or an induced sleep as per the doctor. She was given some medications to supress sudden eruption of emotions by giving her something to help her sleep.

" Dada...you need rest too..." Somnath said to Aniruddh.
Batuk could not take his eyes off his Baudi. She was his age but had gone through much worse. He realised today that even if people didn't try to supress them, women had enough on their own to hurt them. The least he could do for the girls around him was be kinder to them. Because nature was not. Try not to increase their problems if he couldn't understand them.

" I am fine." Aniruddh replied without looking up from her face.

" Dada..."

" I said I am fine...!"