It was a lonely moonlight night. Sandhya was sitting by the small pool behind the house. It was the last night. Tomorrow would be different. The bags had been packed. The kids had got admission in a reputed boarding school at Dehradun. They would be leaving tomorrow morning.
The heavily laden bakul tree, with its white flowers, kissed the pool and spread its heady fragrance around. Theres was a home made by love. And today it was that love that with its absence was making a home a house again. Sandhya reflected on the events of the last few years. It had been a classic love story. They had met in college, on the first day, when she had sat at her hostel gate, lonely, excited, sad, and most importantly missing her mom. He was walking by, and stopped to ask what happened. She joined him for a walk after that and the walks went on longer and longer, till by the time they left college they were inseparable. Sandhya and Mridul, Mridul and Sandhya; two bodies but one spirit. Mridul was a musician and a writer and a poet. Actually she thought, he was gifted in very special ways. More than she could fathom.
It was but expected and with blessings of both the families a fairy tale wedding was held. After the wedding, they moved to this city and started building their dreams from the bricks of reality. On the first day she had asked him to carry her over the doorstep. Sandhya smiled as she remembered that day. He, unsure of what to expect, carrying her gently in his arms as if afraid to drop the precious bundle, she arms gaily around his neck. As he gently carried her across the doorstep she had made a small notch on the door with her nails, and said,
"This is to remind you who is the boss". They had collapsed laughing on the floor.
Their fairy tale life was soon assailed by the everyday reality of living. Individual quirks that were cute once, were now nerve jarring. Mistakes blew into disasters and talk consisted of a non stop shouting match. In the midst of this in the time when things were still fine two bonny babies made an appearance. They had been the heart and soul of the family. Now they were being packed off to boarding school......
Sandhya, felt tears rolling down her eyes. The frustration of it all. The uselessness, the stupidity of it all. It had been a fairy tale romance, it deserved a fairytale ending. But she knew it was not to be. A barrier had been created. One that was too difficult to surpass. They hardly spoke. If they did it was to argue. They hardly..... She sighed....it had been long....really long....
A slight movement on the side of the pool roused her from her revere. It was Mridul. Standing there with his violin. His eyes asked her permission to sit beside her. Despite her head saying no, her heart said yes. It was like the old times. They were sitting together on a moonlight night, feeling the warmth of each other's bodies as the cold autumnal wind blew. Sandhya shivered slightly. And without any warning, Mridul wraped her in the shawl that he had.
"Tomorrow we part, but that doesn't mean that today I don't take care of you". Typical of him. As they sat in the moonlight, Sandhya glanced up at the ruddy cheeks, the stiff lips, the hawked nose, and those brilliant eyes. He was handsome, had always been. And still was.
On the other side of town, their respective lawyers were furiously working at the divorce settlement. Eveything would be divided. But can a soul ever be divided?
They sat for what seemed like the whole night. No words were spoken. Tonight none were needed. When they rose from the dew laden grass, it was early morning. As they walked to the front door, Mridul held Sandhya's hand in his. And as they crossed the threshold, Sandhya was in his arms, and she made the notch a little more deep.
The lawyers were called and asked to forget about the proceedings, there would be no divorce. The school in Doon was informed that the kids were not going anywhere. And the house....ohh....it became a home again, with laughter and joy ringing everywhere......
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