A boy with a gift: part III
Please read the part I and II of the short story first, before starting with the third. You will find them right below part III.
The wind was cold, the sky dark but it unequivocally brought a sense of freedom to Sumitra. She was sitting alone on the terrace. Her hairs blew with the evening breeze, her mind all consumed into the incidents that happened two weeks back. The pain and trauma was still there, wounds were fresh. Anyone else was incapable of understanding of what she was going through. All her life she wouldn't even hurt a fly, let alone murder a family member. She was apalled and disgusted at the sense of liberation she had, simultaneously feeling excruciating pain of losing her husband. She kept playing the good old romantic and passionate days of her marriage in her head, leaving out the dreadful past few years for there was no stimulus to remind her of it anymore. She felt guilty of doing something so terrible knowingly, not taking into account the human nature of defence. It was all disgrace, depression and angst inside her.
She heard someone walk up the stairs, she tucked her hairs behind her ear and wiped her tears with the saree. It was chottu with two old cups of hot tea. He brought one for her and another for himself. He was a much needed delight to the painful sore eyes of Sumitra. Sitting beside her blowing over the cup, he asked:
"Amma, kya soch rahi ho?"
Sumitra smiled and replied:
"bas yahi ki tu kitna bada aur samajhdar ho gaya hai." She looked at the sky and thought to herself that she wasn't all ill-fated and alone after all. She had a son with an angel's heart. She asks:
"kaisa hai tu munna? nana-nani ko pareshan to nai karta na?"
Chottu replied by shaking his head into no. Sumitra wrapped her arms around and hugged him.
Sumitra was only 29. Too young to have an 11 year old child, isn't it! She was married off to Dev at a very young age and soon she had chottu. After few years of marriage, Sumitra and Dev grew apart. Dev fell into bad company and took to drinking every night. He would come home and argue and abuse both the woman and child. Things grew worse as he left his job and started drinking all day, all night. He wasted all his savings on alcohol and gambling and the frustration of this caused him to physically abuse his family. Sumitra knew her life wouldn't get better anytime soon, so she secretly sent her son to Jaunpur, so that at least chottu could expect something better from life. It was very painful for her, to separate from the only person she loved so much, but she followed her instincts and did the needful.
Over the years, Sumitra was not only financially wrecked but also a social pariah. She took to doing household work in the neighbourhood which provided her with just enough to put something in their belly twice everyday. She was a hardworking woman but labouring all day while facing all the mistreatment and insults from the society, followed by mental and physical abuse from her husband at night was too much for even her. She wanted to run away but with chottu in hand she couldn't do it. After sending him to Jaunpur she had an opportunity, but everyday the thought of probably never being able to see chottu stopped her. One day her only good friend from neighbourhood persuaded her to do it. She even offered her husbands help to flee to the nearby railway station at midnight. The plan was to run to Mumbai and find some work to do over the time and stay there forever. After a hard discussion, Sumitra agreed. Tuesday night she would flee on the Bombay mail, leaving behind her painful life forever.
To her dismay, Dev came home early that evening, all drunk and mad as usual. But something was off that night. The plan to flee the village had leaked. More so the fact that a man from neighbourhood was helping, creating the illusion that Sumitra was having an affair and was about to run away with her lover. Dev had heard all that at the bar and was infuriated.
He came in and asked for money, as usual Sumitra refused. So he started abusing her and let out the fact that he knew about her plans to elope with her lover tonight. He called her a whore, a disgrace to the society, and so much more. Sumitra couldn't take it anymore. For the first time ever she fought back, verbally. She cursed him, called him shameless inhumane eunuch who cannot respect his woman and provide for his family anymore.
All the neighbourhood was out, entertaining themselves with the pain and suffering of this crazy family. Dev lost his mind. He grabbed her by hairs and slapped and punched her until she fell to the ground. Refusing to let go this time, Sumitra reached for the rod lying under the cupboard, and even though her right intentions were to only defend herself, she bashed the rod into his head with all her strength. She felt revenged as if she made him pay for all the injustice he had done to her in years. But to her shock, that one blow hit all the right spots at the wrong time, it was blood everywhere and the monster fell, forever.
The wind was cold, the sky dark but it unequivocally brought a sense of freedom to Sumitra. She was sitting alone on the terrace. Her hairs blew with the evening breeze, her mind all consumed into the incidents that happened two weeks back. The pain and trauma was still there, wounds were fresh. Anyone else was incapable of understanding of what she was going through. All her life she wouldn't even hurt a fly, let alone murder a family member. She was apalled and disgusted at the sense of liberation she had, simultaneously feeling excruciating pain of losing her husband. She kept playing the good old romantic and passionate days of her marriage in her head, leaving out the dreadful past few years for there was no stimulus to remind her of it anymore. She felt guilty of doing something so terrible knowingly, not taking into account the human nature of defence. It was all disgrace, depression and angst inside her.
She heard someone walk up the stairs, she tucked her hairs behind her ear and wiped her tears with the saree. It was chottu with two old cups of hot tea. He brought one for her and another for himself. He was a much needed delight to the painful sore eyes of Sumitra. Sitting beside her blowing over the cup, he asked:
"Amma, kya soch rahi ho?"
Sumitra smiled and replied:
"bas yahi ki tu kitna bada aur samajhdar ho gaya hai." She looked at the sky and thought to herself that she wasn't all ill-fated and alone after all. She had a son with an angel's heart. She asks:
"kaisa hai tu munna? nana-nani ko pareshan to nai karta na?"
Chottu replied by shaking his head into no. Sumitra wrapped her arms around and hugged him.
Sumitra was only 29. Too young to have an 11 year old child, isn't it! She was married off to Dev at a very young age and soon she had chottu. After few years of marriage, Sumitra and Dev grew apart. Dev fell into bad company and took to drinking every night. He would come home and argue and abuse both the woman and child. Things grew worse as he left his job and started drinking all day, all night. He wasted all his savings on alcohol and gambling and the frustration of this caused him to physically abuse his family. Sumitra knew her life wouldn't get better anytime soon, so she secretly sent her son to Jaunpur, so that at least chottu could expect something better from life. It was very painful for her, to separate from the only person she loved so much, but she followed her instincts and did the needful.
Over the years, Sumitra was not only financially wrecked but also a social pariah. She took to doing household work in the neighbourhood which provided her with just enough to put something in their belly twice everyday. She was a hardworking woman but labouring all day while facing all the mistreatment and insults from the society, followed by mental and physical abuse from her husband at night was too much for even her. She wanted to run away but with chottu in hand she couldn't do it. After sending him to Jaunpur she had an opportunity, but everyday the thought of probably never being able to see chottu stopped her. One day her only good friend from neighbourhood persuaded her to do it. She even offered her husbands help to flee to the nearby railway station at midnight. The plan was to run to Mumbai and find some work to do over the time and stay there forever. After a hard discussion, Sumitra agreed. Tuesday night she would flee on the Bombay mail, leaving behind her painful life forever.
To her dismay, Dev came home early that evening, all drunk and mad as usual. But something was off that night. The plan to flee the village had leaked. More so the fact that a man from neighbourhood was helping, creating the illusion that Sumitra was having an affair and was about to run away with her lover. Dev had heard all that at the bar and was infuriated.
He came in and asked for money, as usual Sumitra refused. So he started abusing her and let out the fact that he knew about her plans to elope with her lover tonight. He called her a whore, a disgrace to the society, and so much more. Sumitra couldn't take it anymore. For the first time ever she fought back, verbally. She cursed him, called him shameless inhumane eunuch who cannot respect his woman and provide for his family anymore.
All the neighbourhood was out, entertaining themselves with the pain and suffering of this crazy family. Dev lost his mind. He grabbed her by hairs and slapped and punched her until she fell to the ground. Refusing to let go this time, Sumitra reached for the rod lying under the cupboard, and even though her right intentions were to only defend herself, she bashed the rod into his head with all her strength. She felt revenged as if she made him pay for all the injustice he had done to her in years. But to her shock, that one blow hit all the right spots at the wrong time, it was blood everywhere and the monster fell, forever.
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