Give Your Heart a Break

Twenty-four

This is the ninth date in seven months for her, fighting in multiple cases she has filed to seek justice. They are upset yet hopeful that the court will stand with the righteous and not remain blindfolded.'Case number 122,' the man announces.Both the lawyers stand up and take permission to proceed.'Your Honour, I would like to bring to your kind attention that it is not true that the CCTV cameras were installed only for her. It was a mere coincidence that they were installed before the wedding. We have a witness—the person who installed it. I would like to call him,' says Mr Rastogi.'Permission granted,' the judge says.'Is it true that you went to their house and installed it?' Mr Rastogi asks the witness.'Y...yes I did,' the young man hesitates.'That's it, Your Honour. Hence, all the allegations against my client Mr Bali and his family are invalid. Thank you,' the lawyer returns to his seat.'Objection, My Lord!' says Mr Bhardwaj.'I have some questions for Mr...,' he asks.'Permission granted,' the judge says.'Atif Mohammad,' the witness tells him his name. Agastya looks at him with rage in his eyes.'Do you have any proof to show when you installed the cameras?' Mr Bhardwaj questions him.'Sir, I can get it but kindly grant me some time,' he states as if he is prepared what he has to speak.'Okay, thank you.'The man nods and goes back to his chair.'Please give us some time, Your Honour, I have some evidence to share in the next hearing,' says Mr Rastogi.'Please keep things ready before you come for the hearing. The court shall not entertain such misdemeanour henceforth,' the judge reprimands him.Mr Bhardwaj interrupts, 'Your Honour, I have something to bring to your kind notice. Mr Bali and his family had filed an application in August 2017 that Mrs Addya escaped their home, but I want to highlight that Mr Bali had gone out of town with Addya in January 2018. That means, the application is invalid, and it was filed without any knowledge and consent of my client. Here is the evidence—the pictures which were clicked. I must add that Mr Bali tried to get rid of them but forgot to remove them from Addya's cellphone, which have the original date and time on them.'The lawyer presents the photographs to the judge.He continues, 'Also, Mr Bali and his father simply filed the application for Addya leaving home, even though she hadn't. She was unaware of this act and she was tortured brutally by Mr Bali. He filed a case for divorce to get married to someone else, without her knowledge. Everything was happening right there in front of her and they forced her to run because, on paper, Addya had already left home. That is how deceptive Mr Bali and his family members are. That's it.''Can you provide some relevant proofs apart from these pictures? The date and time on the pictures cannot always be verified,' the judge looks at all the pictures and hands them over to his stenographer who keeps them in the drawer.'But...' before Mr Bhardwaj can say anything, Mr Rastogi pitches in, 'Your Honour, this is irrelevant information. Moreover, I have something else to share regarding the case. Mrs Addya had started her career with Indian Airlines, and she was fired from her very first job with immediate effect. The reason was that she was drunk on duty. Here are the documents.' The lawyer presents the report to the court.Everyone looks at Addya and things change dramatically. Impatiently, Addya stands up in her place and shouts, 'Sir, that is not related to this case.''Please respect the decorum of the court and whatever you want to say, speak here,' the judge announces and points to the stand.Agastya and his lawyer did not know about this and are afraid of how it will be represented; they look unsettled.'Sir, this case is not related to my past work experience,' she states.'It is important because that speaks volumes about her personality and character...'Before the plaintiff's lawyer completes his words, Mr Bhardwaj interrupts, 'You do not need to talk about her character here.' And he continues, 'Your Honour, he is trying to mislead the court. I need to discuss this with my client and we need some time.''Proceed.'Hopelessly, he closes his file and waits for the judge to announce the next date.'Next date—18 April.' The judge hits the gavel. Agastya looks for Atif Mohammad before he takes Addya home.EAddya feels like she is trapped in a dark hole. She should have told her lawyer these things when he had asked everything about her life. She knows it will weaken her case now. She feels like she is drowning.In the worst time of her life, petty things that never mattered in the past matter more than the present. She forgot that burns always leave their mark. So does our past—a deep scar.EEveryone has a past. We all have stories we never wish to share with anyone. Addya did not know that her stories would become a baggage in her future. Addya closes the door of her room and lies down on her bed, pretending to be unwell. She is not afraid of answering Agastya or her mother's questions, she just does not wish to talk about anything at the moment.Agastya knocks on the door three times and opens it. Addya leans against the bed and Agastya sits on the bed. 'Why did you hide this from the whole family? You didn't even share it with me?' he asks her. Agastya does not know how to come out of what has happened in the court today. Whenever things seem to settle and stabilize, something crops up. Addya feels helpless and regrets hiding this from Agastya.Addya had joined Indian Airlines after she had graduated because she wanted to join the aviation industry. Though her family had been reluctant, being the oldest in the family, she had convinced them and had started her training in Delhi. Everything had been going fine when one day she had been out with her friends on her birthday and her friends had forced her to drink. Next day, she had a breath analyzer test before boarding a flight. In the test, 0.01 per cent alcohol was detected and she had been suspended for three months. So, she had resigned and had joined another airline to give herself a fresh start. She had taken a pragmatic step that had seemed the best thing to do at that time, so she never told her family about this incident. But she had never wanted to hide anything from the person she was married to. So, she had shared it with Bali and this is what it had resulted into—she had received misery for her honesty.Addya shares this with Agastya.E'Addya! It's okay,' Agastya says, no longer frustrated after listening to the real story. However, he is still worried about what had happened in court and how it had impacted their mother.'But I was not fired, I was suspended, and it's written in the letter,' Addya says and remembers the time when everyone had judged her after the breath analyzer test. It had flashed before her eyes when the lawyer had recounted it in the court to malign her character.'It's written that you were found indulging in alcohol on duty. Do you think that makes the situation easier?' Agastya tries to reason with her. He cannot think of a solution. He wonders how the smallest decisions can make such huge impacts in life.He adds, 'I always tell you that if you are suffering, speak out or call a doctor or a therapist. You cannot simply believe that you can resolve everything. Getting help for mental health is as important as calling the police after a murder.' Agastya looks into her eyes and continues, 'So, help yourself before someone else picks on you—before it is too late.''I don't know what others would do in this kind of a situation,' Addya says and then turns silent.'Well, you sleep, let's see what we can do,' Agastya gets up, covers the baby with the blanket and switches off the lights. The door closes.Reaching for the bedside lamp, she stops and withdraws her hand. The photograph of her father is facing the room. She stands there every night before she goes to sleep. It has always faced her, not away from her. Addya fights her tears but feels a growing lump in her throat and a painful sting in her eyes. Everything around her becomes irrelevant. Staring at the reflection in the mirror across the bed, she falls asleep.