One— Christie
[“Hey Christie! Come baby; let’s go to that side of the park. There’s a secret lovers’ point. We will enjoy,” he whispered in her ears. Christie’s eyes widened,” What? Why? This is a way better place. Eew! That corner is dark and desolate. I don’t feel right going there. Please Aarav, let’s enjoy our evening here.” Christie said with a puppy eyes.
“Please, Christie, p-l-e-a-s-e?” Aarav shot his killing puppy eyes.
Christie pouted, “You always kill me with that look, not fair. Okay fine. Let’s go. Let me see you lover’s point too.” She smiled and got up. They started walking towards the lovers’ point. There, among the darkness, stood a few wooden cabins. All of them were lit up by husky lights inside. Aarav smiled naughtily and pinched her in her waist as they approached one cabin probably booked for them. Christie sniffed her nose and hit him in his arm playfully. They entered the cabin. Aarav locked the door and then turned back and smiled intently at her. Christie frowned a little and asked,” What happened to you Aarav? Why are you smiling creepily and looking at my back?” she smiled at turned back only to face few more men, smiling crookedly at her. Her eyes widened. “Wha—“they grabbed her arms before she could do anything. Her screams were muffled by a cloth-piece. Then they tore her clothes and Christie shouted—]
“NO!” Christie snapped up, screaming, only to discover herself on her comfy bed. She was having cold sweat all over her body and she was panting for breath. She frantically moved her right hand and switched on the bedside lamp. She felt her body pining for some water. She grabbed the jug on the table and gulped down all the water. She felt a bit calm. Then she folded her legs and brought her knees to her chest. She curled her hands and embraced herself, sobbing. Within a few seconds, the sobs bursted out into muffled cries. She dug her nose in the depth of her knees and kept crying vigorously while those memories kept flashing inside her. Her head throbbed with ache after some time, but she dint care; she was crying her heart out.
After some minutes, she rose up. Her face was flushed and pale from all the crying. Still, tears were flowing down her cheeks, but her wails and moans had stopped. She felt her heart aching and it was difficult for her to breath. She mentally cursed that person like hell for making her life a hell. And begged to herself in a wet voice,” Christie…please…stop…it’s been a long time since that…and you are still immersed in that pool? Seven years are a long time, isn’t it? You have to fight Christie. You are strong Christie…you will overcome…in fact, you have already overcame that past, right?”
As soon as she spoke those words, she realized that she had been soothing herself with these lies every night all these seven years. But her nightmares won’t stop. With this realization, her eyes filled up again with tears. But she quickly rubbed them off. She thought that she should get over this now. Again, after a few minutes, she lifted up the glossy sleeve of her thick nightdress. She brushed her fingers across her skin, pondering over the secrets it hid under the ‘flawless’ brownish skin. Again tears streamed down her ‘immaculate’ wheat-coloured cheeks. She laughed sarcastically , thinking about the words ‘perfect’, ‘flawless’, ‘immaculate’, which did not apply to her. Again she pulled the jug and let the drinking water gulp down her oesophagus.
Christie pulled aside the heavily embroidered curtains and looked through the glass panes outside on their garden. The chilly winds shattered the cold panes. The bluish white moon shone its last rays brightly on the snow covered trees and brushes. Outside noises couldn’t be heard inside. Hence, she just sat on the sit-by window and looked. It was three in the morning by the grandfather clock’s huge bells. The thicket of snow on the green proved that it snowed heavily throughout the night. Darjeeling in December experienced this and it was pretty common. Somehow, Christie felt the morning that was due in a few hours ‘would change’ her life. She could not intuit on the thought that it was for her good, or worse times were still due. Contemplating on the thoughts, her eyes gradually heavied and she fell in a deep slumber; her head gradually touched the cold tinted glass of the huge window. A smile lit up her face in the sleep; probably she thought the next morning was going to be a ‘new morning’, in her gloomy and grey life.
~*~
“Good morning dad!” Christie cheered at her dad, Alec, who already occupied a place on the table for the breakfast. She climbed down the stairs to reach the dining table.
“Good morning Chris!” he greeted back cheerfully, drowned in the newspaper he was reading. “You did not sleep properly last night, did you?” he added, still focusing on the paper.
Christie bit her inner cheek-muscle in order to avoid the tension that built up inside her and answered,” Why? No! I slept pretty awesome dad. W-why are you asking d-dad?” she stammered a little at the end.
“Christie!” his low baritone startled her a bit.” Look, you have never been able to lie properly to me, have you? Why to pretend when you know the fact? I know I’ve grown old and now I’m in a vegetable condition, but do you think that my mental strength has reduced with age? No, dear daughter! I can still sense you fighting the demon nightmares alone at the dead of the night. I will always be able to sense that, even if I’m out of this house. I wish I could embrace you like I used to do even a year back and console you. I am sorry Chris, I am really very sorry.” His head stooped; his shoulders drooped and she felt that his eyes had moistened up.
She ran and hugged her father warmly. She said in a wet tone,” No dad! No! Please, don’t be sorry. That was a game of destiny. I have to face the consequences alone only. What else can I do? And you have been the strongest pillar throughout this whole time. You are still the same dad. Now leave all these pessimistic thoughts and let’s move on. Like, have the food dad, it’s getting cold.” She released her dad and arranged the food. The father and daughter duo gulped in the food. Christie had always feared this under her skin: confronting her father. He would always catch all her charades since childhood. She always thought that her dad could even sense when she was going to do what. He was a retired advocate and was only sixty two then, but a terrible accident had soaked all his physical strength out. She always regretted only one fact, her father was incorrigibly bed-ridden, and she could do nothing about it. This thought always corroded her soul with remorse.
Amidst the silent scrunching of food, in came a stout, sequestered man of forty. He had cunningly shining narrow eyes and a receding hairline. He coughed gently. Christie snapped her head up and said formally,” Yes Sundar kaka* (uncle), you want to say anything?” Christie looked questioningly at Sundar Sharma, their manager. He smiled at her and said,” Ma’am, actually the new lodger has arrived. He is standing in the porch. If you two could go and meet him…”, “You go uncle, we are coming.” Christie interrupted him. He nodded and went away.
Christie pushed the wheelchair containing her dad outwards. She rolled it and brought him out of their enormous doorway to the porch outside. At one shady corner, their shiny black old sedan rested. She brought him to the place where the man was standing. She could see a young, tall, flesh-tint colored man standing beside the car. The sun rays blazing from behind him barred her from seeing his face properly. She narrowed her eyes to prevent the sun rays from directly blinding her. As she rolled her dad, the man became clearer to her. She could see he was wearing a thick black jacket, combined with thick black pants. The black look was only augmented by the black sunglass on his eyes. When she finally reached him, he opened his glasses and Christie’s gaze fell on his icy blue pool of emotions. She was hypnotically locked in that gaze. She admired the male face in front of her. His brown hair was set with gel. Still, the chilly breeze let some fringes fall upon his forehead, which only made him look cuter. And, his eyes, his icy blue gaze sent shivers down Christie’s spine. She had never seen such dark blue eyes before. It was exceptionally blue, she thought.
The man greeted with a dashing smile which revealed his pearly white dentures,” Hello! I am Lorenzo Nicolson, your new tenant. And you…” he forwarded his hand which Christie grabbed and shook and greeted back,” Christie. Christie Jameson, nice to meet you Lorenzo!” she smiled widely.
“And this is my father, Alec Jameson.” She pointed at her dad.
“Hello sir, glad to meet you too.” He smiled at her dad. Alec greeted him back.
“Come, let me show you the way to your lodge.” Christie offered and signaled her manager to take her father away.
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A/N
So this is the first chapter. Hope you people liked it. Please support my statement with your comments. Do point out my mistakes honestly.
What do you feel about Christie and her past? And also, what do you think about the new tenant guys? Do let me know. Will update surely sooner. Stay fit. Bye!
In the next chapter, our new entry will get his share of thoughts to share with us. So, be ready for that, sweeties.
Keep Smiling…