| I'm not crying over the injustice done to me.. My question is, "What was my fault that I was punished to become a demon?" |

~•~•~•~•~

The lightening struck again, illuminating the the room. Gauri put her hands over her ears, the thunder would deafen her after sometime.

'Truth is bitter. But its more deafening when it gets retorted and comes back you, like the thunder', he was facing her now, his eyes red, anger, anguish and agony etched on his expression. She saw him broken, for the first time.

'Omkaraji!', she hurried towards him as he collapsed on the ground, hugging his knees tightly on his chest, 'what's wrong?'

Howling storm hit the closed glass widows creating a rattle, shaking him to the extent when he couldn't but felt helpless.

'Will you leave me again?', he hugged her waist tight, pushing his face in her belly, 'will you leave me alone like them?'

Where is the demon? This man, hugging me as his life depends on me, cannot be the man who kidnapped me, tortured me.. No! He seems as a scared little kid, hiding in his mother's lap to dodge the scary world world around him, she raised her hand silently and ran her small palm over his head.

He started sobbing, 'I didn't do it.. I never wanted to.. It was a prank, just a prank.. I'm sorry Ratan, I didn't mean to harm you.. I'm sorry..'

Gauri knitted her eyebrows and hand stopped on his head, 'Ratan? Who's Ratan?'

Omkara sniffed, 'You too will hate me after hearing that. You'll leave me like all!'

Gauri again started caressing his hair, 'okay I'll not. Promise. Now tell me, who is Ratan?'

Omkara looked up at her with his bloodshot eyes, 'Not Ratan is, its Ratan was'.

*****

Jhaanvi and Grandaunt were sitting together in the garden tea-table, arranging their afternoon teatime.

'Jhaanvi, don't you think our Omki and Ratan would be great friends?'

'Yes, you're right Grandaunt. I was always scared for him.. Nobody wants him to mingle in the family..'

Grandaunt gave Jhaanvi's shoulder an understanding squeeze, 'but I'm proud that you want him to..'

'Help!! Help!! Mumma!!', came little Omkara's voice.

The ladies ran towards the pool, where the two boys were playing and the scene before them made them freeze in horror.

Omkara was at the edge of the pool, trying to give a stick to Ratan, who was struggling to remain at the surface of the pool.

'Ratan.. A bit more, hold it.. I'll pull you out..', Omkara was almost in the pool.

'My Ratan!', Grandaunt jumped in the pool to take his son out who had already stopped struggling. While Jhanvi pulled Omkara away from the pool.

They ran to the hospital taking an unconscious Ratan when CPR and chest press failed. He was taken in and doctors started to try different methods to pull out water from the poor boy's lungs.

Worried Oberois were standing outside in the lounge. Omkara was sobbing in Jhaanvi's lap, Shivaay was patting his back soothingly and a toddler Rudra and Priyanka were balancing themselves by clutching Omkara's topwear, unable to comprehend the intensity of the environment.

Suddenly, Tej stormed in there and yanked Omkara away from Jhaanvi.

'How did he get in the pool?', he asked in a sickly sweet voice of mock affection.

Omkara looked at his toes unsure. It was his mistake too. But mumma taught him to not lie. He bit his lip.

'We were playing. Ratan said he can swim. I didn't believe him and he threw the ball in the pool in anger', he started fidgeting with his fingers, his voice shaking in nervousness, 'he asked me to get the ball.. We started arguing and fighting.. Suddenly I pushed him and he fell in the pool..'

'I tried to save him..', he wanted to say that too, but a heavy hand landed on his cheek and he flew away, hitting one of the chairs in the lounge before falling on the marble floor.

'Tej papa!', Shivaay chided only to be silenced by his mother's screech, 'Shivaay, you don't need to defend for such a piece of dirt!! Brother in-law, I told you for your own good that leave him where he actually belongs. He is not a child capable of a home!'

'Pinky!!', Jhaanvi glared at her seething in anger, but Tej's voice silenced her.

'You are the another reason that he is being raised as a demon. You want him to hate us, right? So that he remains only your son??'

'Tej!!', Jhaanvi looked at him bewildered.

Omkara raised himself slightly. He looked up at Shivaay, but he was pushed away by Pinky. Rudra and Priyanka hid behind Shivaay, hugging each other, terrified of the blood dripping from his forehead and his swollen mauve cheek.

Suddenly Grandaunt shrieked diverting everyone's attention towards the door of critical care unit, 'Ratan!! My child!!', everybody ran inside hearing her wail.

Omkara too followed limping behind Jhaanvi, but his bad, when he neared to Ratan's bed, Grandaunt growled,

'Stay away from my child, demon! I'm sorry Tej I hoped he will change, I forced you, and look at him! He took away my son in gratitude..', she broke in sobs and wails in Tej' s arms and suddenly fainted.

*****

... 'We lost her too after four years. Ratan was her only child that too of her old age. I wanted to apologize.. I wanted to console her', he showed her a picture of Ratan and him sitting together in a swing, 'Ratan was my best friend. I wanted to say sorry and goodbye too.. But they didn't allow me even during his last rites. I just wanted to say what really happened. I just needed a chance to speak the whole truth, but I wasn't given that chance.. I wasn't..', he broke into heart wrenching sobs again.

The faint light coming from the garden through the blurry glass window, allowed gauri to figure his face out, reddened and writhing in agony.. Unspoken words trapped in his black orbs which were now looking like those of a lost kid in darkness.

She crouched down at him, pulling his head in her chest. He hugged her tighter, rubbing his nose on her blouse, wetting the saree draped over her blouse with his tears.

'I don't hate you Omkaraji, I don't hate you..', she croaked, unable to imagine that the well behaved father figure could really be such a monster.

'But, why did they hate you since forever?', she asked puzzled.

'Who wants a threat on their noble Oberoi surname?', Omkara's grip tightened around her, his muscles stiffening in anger.

'What?', Gauri prayed her assumptions to be wrong.

Thunder lightened the room again accompanied by a deafening roar, as he looked up at her again from her chest, his eyes and nose red, nostrils flaring as he croaked,

'I, am the illegitimate child of Tej Singh Oberoi'.

Thunder struck the room again, the glasses rattled violently, as if they would shatter into pieces anytime soon. Gauri bursted in a loud wail and pulled his head back on her heart and he started rubbing her back vigorously.. Two broken souls mended each other despite of the thunderstorms that struck them again and again, scarring them for life.

Who dares to oppose my Omki? He was so much misunderstood.. 😭😭😭

How would Gauri react when she would get back to the party? Will she be able to treat the Oberois the same way she did before??

Happy reading!
With love,
Sarani.