It is the end of the day's work.i walk out of my office and open the umbrella. It has been raining cats and dogs for hours now and to add to the misery,the winds are blowing viciously. ”rickshaw!”,I scream waving my hand,the auto rickshaw stops infront of me. ”ameerpet”, i say,”200” says the rickshaw driver. For a distance that is going to cost me less than a 50 bucks,200 is a loot. I shake my head and send this one away, then the second, then the third,each one demanding more than the previous. The winds are getting harder to bear and the rain doesnt seem to stop any sooner. This umbrella wont hold for longer, i think to myself, i need to get into a taxi as soon as possible or i will be stuck here till the rain subsides. Another rickshaw stops,this one asks for 150. Though i am not very happy giving in,this one has been the cheapest so far. I nod get in and close my umbrella.
Having nothing to do for the next 45 minutes or so, my mind goes back to the lunch date today. My fiance decided to drop by at my office to give me a surprise and took me for lunch. Tall,dark and handsome would be just apt to define him. Though this man is the ideal husband any girl would want, with his chivalry and charm coupled with good looks,i still cannot get myself to fall for him. I have always believed in the concept of “the one”,always opined that arranged marriages are not nearly as blissful as love marriages, yet here i am, waiting to get married to a guy i barely know.
Yes, he is a good man and yes, he will try and keep me happy, but will am i ready to spend the rest of my life with him? I dont know. I have tried time and again to convince myself that everything will be perfect, but i havent been able to bring myself to believe that completely. Though i have not fallen in love ever before, i have always been waiting for the right man. And one day i learn from my parents that there is a marriage proposal waiting for me and the next day i am already engaged to this man.
A jerk of the rickshaw pulls me out of my thoughts. I look outside to see how far the rickshaw has come and i realise that this is not the way to my house. In an apprehensive tone, i ask the driver which route he is taking me in, but i do not get an answer. I ask again and he asks me to shut up and sit down. I begin to scream for help but the road looks deserted. I get to the edge of my seat,having a thought of jumping out of the rickshaw but i cannot gather the courage to do that. I try to fight the man with the umbrella but he is too strong. He turns back and grabs the umbrella from my hand and gives me a blow to my head. Everything goes black after that, i lose my consciousness.
I wake up in incomprehensible agony, in a pool of my own blood, my clothes torn, my head busted open and my vision blur. I had been raped. I try to get myself to stand, but i feel too weak to even do that. I dont know where i am, i dont even know if i am still alive.
I see someone trying to lift my head. ”what is your name”, ”where are you from”, the man asks, but before i could say anything, i lose my consciousness again.
I open my eyes and find myself in a hospital room, my parents sitting infront of me, their heads buried in their hands and crying for me. I get myself up slowly, still in pain. My mother hugs me as tightly as she can, still crying.”I am so glad you are okay “, she says. But i wasnt okay. I just lost my life.nobody will respect me anymore.people will only look upon me with disgust.i have now become more or less a burden to my parents, i think to myself.
The doctor walks into the room, checks my pulse ,examines the wounds and tells me that i am going to be alright and that i am going to visited by a medical counsellor soon. But a counsellor cannot give me my life back, cannot give back what that demon took away from me.
I am too numb to say anything to a anyone, i simply eat and take my pills and stare at the walls and fall asleep while at it.
I feel a kiss on my head. I open my eyes slowly to see my fiance before me. I wake up quickly n get myself to sit. He sits down before me holding my hands,without saying a word,looking into my eyes
I cannot help the tears that roll down my cheek. I look back into his eyes and it makes me feel alive again.
I realise that i just found my knight in shining armour.
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