Nandini shockingly looked at her sister’s dead body drenched in her own blood. “Anjali!,” she screamed in tears shaking her body violently and took her head in her lap. “Anjali please, please wake up, you can’t leave me, you’re my only sibling, my best friend, my soulmate, we promised we will spend our whole life together, please wake up, you c-can’t l-leave me alone,” she cried hard shaking her. “Anjali please wake up,” she said crying more and more hugging her dead body. Varshini sat beside Nandini. “Nandu, bacha(baby), it’s not your fault,” she said trying to calm her.
“Mom, Anjali went,” Nandini said cryingly still hugging her sister crying on her shoulder. “Bacha, please stop crying beta,” Varshini said caressing her hair, by now she was also crying. Nandini cried even more now. “Mumma I m sorry, I tried saving her but she pushed me away,” she said. “I know, stop blaming yourself, it’s really not your fault,” Varshini hugged a crying Nandini. “Mom, when we will do her funeral, everyone will blame me, I haven’t done anything,” she said sobbingly. “We’ll bury her in the backyard, don’t worry,” Varshini said and they told everything to Nandkishore as well.
Nandkishore came back home to see her daughter for the last time, and then Anjali was buried in the backyard. Nandini watched as they buried her and they were walking away cryingly but Nandini stood there lifelessly looking at the place where she was buried. She sat there on her knees. “I will miss you, I will keep you in my memories forever,” she whispered. “Nandini, c’mon, let’s get you to your room,” said Varshini placing her hand on her shoulder but no response came. She shook her. “Nandini,” she said again and she fainted the next moment.
Nandkishore picked her and took her to her room. “Anjali, please come out, don’t play hide and seek,” she said. “I am here,” said a voice, she turned and saw Anjali. “Anjali, my angel, you came, I knew you will come,” Nandini said and hugged her but she vanished. “Anjali!,” Nandini shouted waking up from the dream and started crying vigorously. “Nandini, beta please,” Varshini said hugging her. “Mumma she was here, she came here, I hugged her, yaheen thi woh (she was here),” she said crying loudly. Varshini hugged her and just then the doorbell rang.
Nandkishore went to answer the door. “Mumma, I can’t live like this,” she said crying even more. “Nandu,” said a voice lovingly and Nandini rose her face from Varshini’s shoulder to see the owner of the voice. It was none other than Manik. He came and sat in front of her keeping his hand over her hand. “Nandini what happened?,” Manik asked and she wasn’t able to speak. He hugged her and she hugged him back tighter caressing her back. “Anjali died, she left us,” Nandini mumbled and he got shocked. He didn’t had sibling but he could feel her pain.
He patted her hair. He blinked in assurance at her parents while still hugging her. “Nandini, you need rest,” he said and laid her on the bed covering her with duvet. Her eyes were really tired. He made her sleep by difficulty. After she was in deep sleep, he went outside closing the light. “Aunty, what happened to Anjali?,” Manik asked but they also couldn’t speak. “OK fine, relax, don’t worry, Nandini will be fine,” he assured them. I talked to Anjali, how did she die? What happened to her? She sounded ok to me when I talked with her. He thought.
He stayed at Nandini’s place that day so that she doesn’t feels lonely. He was sitting in her room beside her while she was sleeping. Suddenly Nandini woke up having the same emotional breakdown again. “Anjali, I know you’re here, please come to me,” she said on the verge of crying. “Nandini,” Manik said holding her shoulders. “Manik, I m going, she loves hide and seek, she might be hidden somewhere, woh haina bohat mastikhor hai (she’s very mischievous),” Nandini said. “Nandini, come in your senses, Anjali is not here,” Manik said. “No Manik, abhi toh idhar thi na, (she was right here),” Nandini said.
“Nandu please,” Manik said. “No she’s here,” she said running out of the room and he ran after her. “Mumma! Have you seen my angel?,” Nandini asked calling out for her mother. “Nandini, she’s not here, God called her, and everything has to go there one day,” Manik tried her best to explain her. She looked at him as if she was physically there but mentally not there. “Ok listen, will you come with me?,” he asked and she nodded. He asked for her hand and she held his hand and they went out.
They sat in his car and drove off. Her gaze was out of the window the whole time. He stopped the car after sometime and that’s when she got out of the sea of her thoughts. He got out of the car and went outside. He came and sat inside. “Look what I got for you,” Manik said and she looked at his hands. “Ice cream, for me?,” she asked like a child and he nodded and gave it to her and she ate. “You too eat,” she said and he took a bite. She giggled as she remembered a childhood moment.
“Nandini, one bite, please,” little Manik said running behind little Nandini. “No, you too didn’t gave me,” she said. “Sorry,” he said but she continued running and he stopped. She was running in a circle and so she collided with Manik and her ice cream fell on the floor and she pouted cutely. “It happened because of you,” she said pointing a finger at him. “Hahaha, I asked for a bite and you started running, wait,” he said and went and brought two ice creams and they ate it together.