The Rejection

4

Vynace Village

Next day when Aakriti woke up, she found herself alone in one strange apartment. Though, it was as if she was totally comfortable being in that situation, alone, in an empty apartment, and at a strange place. She should be uncomfortable and awkward in a strange place, at an unknown’s house but instead, she felt nice and at peace. She took one glass of water from the kitchen and filled it with tap water. She drank water and sat on a sofa in the living room. Sun’s rays were reflecting on the window, she stood up and went near the window and was watching out of the window. The sight was full of light. Birds were chirping, milk vendor was dropping packed milk packets, newspapers were being distributed by a young boy, who was trying to earn money for his skating class. At the distance on the main road, some school kids were waiting for their bus, some parents were also waiting with them and were complaining about the driver to each other that how he was always late and then to cover up the time, he would drive so speedily. Some vegetable vendors were shouting. It was not a usual sight for Aakriti, she felt all good by watching normal life as she herself never had one. She did not want to run away from there, strange how she had only spent a day there yet she found herself comfortable. She was staring out of the window quietly, when she heard a knock on the door, it was Sameer’s maid. Maid knocked three-four times, then she noticed there was the lock on the door from outside which she did not look at before and then she left. 

It was 9’o clock when a lock was opened by Sia and Sameer. They entered the house and started to search for Aakriti and what she was doing. Sia was feeling guilty about how inhumane and unfair it was, to leave Aakriti alone at Sameer’s apartment without anyone by her side. Sia was thinking about it the whole time on her way and when she arrived at Sameer’s apartment, and when found Aakriti, Sia ran and hugged Aakriti and apologized to her that she had to leave her alone. After seeing Sameer, Aakriti hugged Sia even more tightly it was as if she was scared to see Sameer. Her startled face was back. Sia asked Aakriti, “How did you sleep? Were you comfortable sleeping on the floor? Did you need anything at midnight? Did you wake up in the middle of the night and sleep on the sofa or in the bedroom? Did anyone come and knock at the door? Did you have any bad dreams?” To which Aakriti did not reply anything but just stared at the floor. Sameer told Sia that they should not wait more and police complaints had to be registered very soon. Sia informed Aakriti, “You cannot stay with us here, we will hand you over to police and they will help you find Manan and your family.” Aakriti started crying after hearing that she was not going to stay with them and she had to move. Sia could not stand those tears. Sia and Sameer were staring at each other; they had decided on their way that how Sia would convince Aakriti that she would be safer if she would be in police custody. But Aakriti did not want to leave Sia at any cost, she started crying and she kneels down to Sia, begged her to let her (Aakriti) stay with Sia. Sia was fragile. She broke down seeing Aakriti like that, she started crying too. Meanwhile, Sameer asked Sia to not fall for her emotional drama and they should be doing what they decided to do-Handover Aakriti to Police. 

Aakriti’s eyes were filled with tears she could barely see anything. It was feeling of as she was asked to land on another planet with aliens, to dive in an unknown ocean without knowing its depth, to walk on a road without knowing where it would end and without knowing where it would take her, to start a new life in a place where its local language is Greek to her, to live with people who did not want her and wanted her to leave, to live without people who were meant to be together, it was feeling as if she was locked in a room filled with her fears, and was asked to stay there for life long without getting out. For Aakriti, Sia and Sam were strangers too but they were her comfortable strangers, someone who could she trust and could stay. Aakriti was so scared just to imagine that she would be handed over to someone where Sia would not be there for her. Sameer saw Aakriti but he was never a big fan of her since he had met Aakriti, so Aakriti’s condition did not melt Sameer. But he saw Sia crying, which he could not bear. He comforted her and told Sia, “No matter what, no amount of her drama would stop her going from here. We have already risked enough and she is not saying anything about her or her situation and just kept crying. She has to leave. It is not safe for us to let her stay here. She is in a disturbed state but we are not ”. Sia continued to cry and told Sameer while sobbing that, “But look at her, how could we leave her like this? She does not want to go, and what she does and handed over to some organization or police, and what if she never gets help the way she wanted? She is crying so badly, she barely even knows us still she wants to stay with us. I mean just look at her, how could you leave her. I guess she was destined to meet me and we were destined to help her. Once we make sure she is safe with her people or this Manan guy, she will not ask us to let her stay with us forever. It’s just for some time till we find Manan or anyone who she knows or someone who knows her.” Sameer agreed to let Aakriti stay with them but he had put forward one constraint for Aakriti, that she just told them everything about her, from where she was coming to why was her current situation like that, about Manan, about those Diamonds, everything. The moment Aakriti tries to cry or run like a maniac again or just repeating those stupid words again about her name and that diamonds she would be out of Sameer’s place as well as from their life too. Aakriti’s eyes sparkled again as she was not forced to leave and was allowed to stay at their house, she was even ready with the condition- Sameer had put on forward. She picked herself up from the ground. First of all, Sia told her to take bath and gave her new clothes to wear, and asked Aakriti to groom her hair and unknot all the knots in her hair. Sia showed a way to the bathroom to Aakriti. Aakriti went in and asked Sia how to turn on the shower by pointing her finger at a shower. Sia showed her, way to turn it on and left it in the living room to have a conversation with Sameer. Sameer was in the kitchen, was preparing coffee for him and Sia, Sia came in the kitchen and asked curiously, “Why, only two mugs?” while smirking. Sameer gave a resented face to Sia and without saying anything took out another mug from the cupboard of a kitchen. Sia sensed Sameer’s frustration of letting Aakriti stay. Sia began to justify her side of arguments but nothing worked on Sameer. He just replied, “We have to let know your family about it, we cannot always come up with the story that includes us, losing our keys, and locking ourselves out of the house, plus wedding is near too, we have so many things and preparation to do.” Sia reached to Sameer’s hand and told him, “We will tell them, everything will be fine.” Aakriti came out after taking bath. She was looking so mesmerizing, her hair color was midnight black her hair’s length was till her waist after grooming, she had large black eyelashes, her large nails were clean again off from all the dust, she was wearing fine clothes, pink long peplum top with black jeans, and her face was glowing as if it were not washed by water for months. With long open hair, in a new dress, anyone could hardly imagine that, in which state Sia found her. Now she was looking like a freshly squeezed floral perfume whose broken petals of the flower were found. Her cleaned up beauty could take anyone’s heart away. Aakriti sat on the floor of the living room, and was in search of Sia, Aakriti sat there for a while, after Sia came out of the kitchen while taking two mugs of coffee in her hand and handed one to Aakriti and asked her to sit on Sofa with her. “Thanks, Sia” was the first word of Aakriti after those three murmuring words. When she stood up, Sia herself was surprised to see the beauty of Aakriti, she kind of felt inferior while standing next to her. Sia had oceans of questions in her head, how could someone this beautiful could like that? What might have happened to her? If she is this beautiful, what if Sameer gets attracted to her? No, No... Sameer would not do that to me ever, she calmed herself. Sameer came out of the kitchen, he did not even notice Aakriti, and he saw her when Sia deliberately told him, “Look! How different Aakriti is looking.” Sameer just glanced for a second and nodded and slurp his coffee. Sameer had only got eyes for Sia. “So now you are all set, then why don’t you start your section?” Sameer told Aakriti while putting his mug on the table as he had finished his coffee. 

Aakriti began her section, “Okay..!! First of all, I am really obliged that you decided to let me stay here with you after what has been through I cannot be on myself and don’t want to go anywhere where I cannot trust people around me. Even though I was acting all strange and stupid, you decided to let me stay and even help me, I am so grateful for that.” “If you cannot trust a stranger, how come you trusting on me and Sia”? Aakriti was heckled by Sameer’s question. “Because Sia is the first people whom I had met who did not try to take advantage of me or tried to kill me, ever since I have moved in here.” - Aakriti replied to Sameer while grinning mildly at Sia. OK, go on..!! Said Sameer. Aakriti sighed and continued, “That Manan guy I kept referring to, he is my husband. I and Manan are married for three years. We are not from here, honestly saying I do not even know what this place is, I and Manan too, are basically from Vynace village. That village is so far from here, I exactly don’t know how far, but it is very far from here. My father is a renowned and much-respected person of that place, we are five siblings, I have four brothers and I am an only girl child. I had a very happy childhood, we had a huge house, and it had four floors and a terrace. Each floor was decorated with different shapes of birds, each room was decorated with bird nest shape bed, with pallets wall, flooring of concrete wallpaper, lamps were made out of wood, the clock was made out of tree trunks, river pebbles were used to give it unique look on top of the table, we had candle centerpiece made with birch branches for in our dining room. We were only seven people leaving, my parents and me and my siblings. Though we had roughly around 16 maids and servants, some of them would work in the nighttime, some would work in the morning timing. Those maids and servants were associated with us for a long time, generation after generation they had and still are working for us.