Marriage By Curse – 14. DREAMS

14. DREAMS

Sanchi ascended the royally decorated stairs and made her way down the corridor housing a couple of rooms. She peeked into the first room and found it empty. She then made her way to the other room. She paused when she heard some voices.

‘Yes! That’s it.’

It was a very feminine, overly melodramatic voice. She also heard a grunt of disapproval. She froze when the sound reached her ears. She could identify the voice anywhere. She silently prayed that the person behind the unlocked doors was not the very person she thought. She silently reached the doors and pushed them open with shaky hands. Her world tumbled down when she saw the scene in front of her. Her husband was lying on the bed and a skinny, beautiful girl with long legs and very curvy body was on top of him. She appeared to be kissing him and his hands were on her shoulders. Sanchi gasped at what she saw and ran from there as fast as she could. Tears were freely flowing down her face and her chest was tightening. It felt like her heart had broken into pieces and these pieces were piercing her very form. She collapsed on the floor of an unknown room and wept for her broken heart and her broken trust. She was so distressed about the fact that she could not get out of this marriage!

Sanchi woke up with a start. She was breathing heavily. Her chest still felt tightened and she could still feel the physical pain from her dream. Dream, that was probably the wrong word. Nightmare was a far suited word. Although Sanchi knew that what she saw was just an imagination, she could still not help but entertain the fact that the heartbreak and the feeling of distress was very much real and she could feel it till her bones. Sanchi wiped her sweat adorned forehead and gulped the water in the glass that was kept on the bedside table. She took in a long calming breath and then got out of the bed. She went to the washroom and showered again as the sweat was making her clothes stick to her body.

After changing into her cute bunny nightie that lasted till her knees, Sanchi stood in the balcony and let the salty cool beach breeze dry her recently wet hairs. She leaned on the railing and her mind, like a preplanned programmed machine, drifted off to the thoughts about her strange dream. On a very close introspection did she notice that the stairs, the corridor and the rooms that she saw in her dream were not known to her! She did not recognize them as Kabir, Veer or Karan’s house. The surrounding was very much different and she was not sure of the fact that a place such as that existed. Sanchi shook as the image of a girl on top of Kabir lingered in her mind for more time than she was happy about. She could not help but reminisce about Kabir’s words on their so called date.

“I am a man Sanchi and I have my needs. I can control for months but to leave my pleasurable activities for a year, I will not be able to do it. I do not want to commit infidelity and I would love to derive this pleasure from my lawfully wedded wife.”

Sanchi winced as she thought about the possibility of him not being full filled by her and hence searching for ways or rather willing girls to satisfy him. Sanchi’s eyes welled up when she thought about that fact and before she could push her tears back, two of them made their way down her red cheeks. Just as she was going to wipe them, she felt a finger on her jaw. The tear slid down on the finger and rested in the shape of a sphere on the tip of it. Sanchi saw Kabir in her peripheral view and she instantly wiped the tears and looked away from him. She felt his presence beside her but she did not have the courage to face him. What would she tell him? She was crying over a very stupid reason and she knew that her excuse was laughable. Just as she was about to turn and leave, she felt Kabir’s hands on her shoulders, stopping her from making her escapade. He however did not turn her around and lodge her with questions. He gave her time to breath and calm her mind which was definitely rampaging through many thoughts at the same time, her eyes being the proofs.

Sanchi tensed under Kabir’s touch and he could feel it. He still held her and slowly turned her around when he saw that Sanchi’s shivering had toned down a bit. Their eyes connected as soon as he turned her around and he could clearly see the hurt that reflected from her eyes. He was confused as he did not remember doing anything hurtful to her.

K: Sanchi what happened?

Sanchi kept quiet and shook her head to dismiss his question. Kabir sighed and slid his hands down her arms to her hands. He held onto her hands and tugged them to get her close to him. The wind was starting to become chilly as the dusk was about to change completely into dark night sky. Some stars were also visible in the faint after light.

K: We promised to be honest to each other, remember?

He said and waited for her to tell what was bothering her. He knew that she was mentally debating over the issue as her brows furrowed and she pursed her lips, something she did only when she was deep in thought. He slowly slid his hands on her waist and pulled her closer to him. She was cold, he noted.

Sanchi meanwhile was debating to let her curiosity take over. She wanted to ask him a question but she did not know about the reaction that she would get from Kabir. She felt warmth envelope her and then she realized that Kabir had pulled her close to him so that the chilly winds would not get her. She found this very considerate of him and amidst this whirlwind of emotions, she found herself spilling out her question to him before she could contemplate any further.

S: Would you ever cheat on me Kabir?

Her question was met with a raised eyebrow from Kabir. He wondered why this suddenly came into her mind. He had never told her something remotely close to cheating even in a teasing way. He stared at her for a few seconds as he could make out the regret on her face for asking this question. He immediately sprung into action. He could not let their conversation drop because of his self-introspection.

K: Sanchi, I told you on our date that I would never cheat on you. Why are you asking me this question suddenly?

He asked her softly as he did not want to chide away her progresses. Sanchi looked down. She could not tell him about her weird dream. She remembered that all the dreams that she had before her marriage were very blurry and she would forget them without a second thought but this particular one was very much clear and she could not forego of it even if she so badly wanted to.

S: If I see you in a compromising position with someone else then what shall I do?

She asked as she knew that this question was inevitable. She was well aware of the fact that this marriage was something that was going to stay with them till their very life ended. She did not want to live a life where her husband was not really hers!

K: Don’t run away. Stay there and wait for my explanation. I promise Sanchi I will never willingly hurt you.

He said as he tightened his hold over her waist and gave her a deep kiss. It was not a passionate kiss. It was a way for him to show her that he would never break his promise. Sanchi felt his honesty seep through his every gesture towards her heart. She sighed after they broke the kiss and she finally relaxed in his arms and leant onto him. She rested her head on his chest as she replayed their conversation in her mind. She concluded that the dream had a very high scale negative impact on her thinking towards this new building relationship. She decided to forget this dream and focus on her husband who was actually being sweet to her right now.

Kabir let her go and pulled her inside the room while soundlessly closing the balcony door behind him.

K: Get ready, Marc’s team will arrive soon. Some snacks are kept on the couch as you did not have your breakfast so better have them before we leave because the dinner is going to be late.

He left after collecting his clothes from his wardrobe. Sanchi looked at the clock and her eyes rounded as she saw that it was 7 in the evening. She had slept through the whole afternoon! The ceremony was going to start at 9:30 so the time was not the issue but she still could not believe that she had slept so much. She was elated that Kabir had actually bothered to keep a check on her eating and also arranged snacks for her so she would not feel hungry. All her doubts regarding Kabir had started to diminish as she devoured the heavenly delicious breakfast.

Soon she was parted from her tempting snacks and made to sit on the chair in front of the dresser as the team Marc had sent began to do their wonders on her and transform her into a different person who sometimes even surprised Sanchi.

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Mumbai

Maharashtra

India

Mr. Ashish Chaurasiya, one of the members of board of directors of ‘The Amulya Pvt. Lt. Corporation’ made his way up the stairs that led him to the attic of his splendid house. He was slowly walking up the stairs with the help of the handrail. Old age was getting the best of him, he thought as he continued his journey. After an excruciating twenty minutes, he finally made his way to the door which led to the attic. He pushed open the door only to be met with a pile of dust suspended in air. He coughed several times but proceeded to make his way into the unkempt room none the less. He could have easily avoided this unfortunate and unpleasant encounter with the dirt but he was bounded by the wish of his grandfather.

His grandfather, Mr. Krishna Chaurasiya, was the founder of the Amulya Pvt. Lt. Corporation. He had put in his blood and sweat to the very foundation of this multinational company. He had also opened the school ‘Amulya Vidyalaya’ in Pune. He was a noble soul and was respected by all. Ashish, the disciplined grandson, was asked to carry out the last wishes of his grandfather.

Ashish still distinctly remembered the day he lost his grandfather. The wrinkled and punctured with needles hand of his grandfather had held onto him tightly and asked him to listen to his instructions carefully and follow it when the correct time came.

‘There are things that would require to come into light after many years of my demise. I have regretted one decision throughout my life. I know that I cannot undo the past but I want you to keep this key as this key is the only way to secure the future.’

He said while secretly slipping an old looking key into the young hands of his grandson. He placed the key on his palm and closed his fingers into a fist. He looked into the glassy eyes of his grandson and gave him a heartfelt relieved smile.

‘This key will find its purpose after sixty years of my death. I want you to go into the attic of the house and open the diary with the help of this key. Do it on this very date after sixty years.’

He had then once again bestowed Ashish with one of his toothless dazzling smile and then breathed his last.      

Ashish was shaken from his memory when he heard a rat scurrying past one of the tables and in the process dropping a box that created a loud thumb much opposite to the silent atmosphere that had captured the room since years. The attic was closed shut after the death of his grandfather. He had ordered no one to enter the attic even by mistake. It was as if the attic was forbidden. The house members found this weird at first but then as the course of time followed, the attic was forgotten and not even considered a part of their house. Ashish however could not forget it. His curiosity had found him standing in front of the doors of attic innumerable times but then the trust-laden words of grandfather would reverberate in his mind and he would turn around and leave. Today, though, all his questions were going to be answered.

He sighed and went to the fallen box and bent down to pick it up. He hissed at the sudden pain in his back. He was fifty-five years old and now his body was not that strong to bear the stress of common activities such as bending. He slowly got up and placed the box on its initial position.

Something inside the box caught his attention. It was a dusty leathered vintage diary. He shakily took that diary out and examined it. It was a brown leathered diary with a string tied around it. He also saw the key shaped imprint on the front page of the diary. He took out the key his grandfather had given it and examined the patterns on it. The key seemed to be a perfect match with the diary. He slowly placed the key on the imprint and was astonished to see the string untie and the diary opened to the first entry inside it. He stared at the diary in awe and fear as it was the first time that he had seen something akin to magic.

He had heard numerous rumors that his grandfather was associated with black magic but his family always had an opinion which was inimical to the rumors. He realized that the rumors were not entirely false as he now stared open eyed at the diary. He took in a deep breath and went near the table where the diary was kept and sat on the dirty chair not caring an iota that his costly house clothes were getting soiled. He apparently had much important things to focus on. He steadied his shaky hands that were absolutely not shaking due to his old age and hung his head low as he began to read the first entry of the journal.

1^st April, 1918

‘Amulya Vidyalaya’, my dream school has been working in full fledge from six months now. The children are very sweet and they are loving the school. The parents are happy and the staff is also putting in a lot of efforts. Whenever I see these small kids with a huge smile on their faces, my heart melts and I cannot help but wallow in their joy. I love to see them laughing and studying without the burden of the world.

I just can’t help but be afraid of the fact that these very kids would be affected by the recent news that I have received. I have committed a big mistake. I should have taken into consideration about the details and back ground of the land before deciding to construct the school. THE LAND IS CURSED! I just came to know from the investigation team that I had personally hired to look into the matter after hearing the murmurs of the nearby villagers.

I had gone to the nearby village to gain more information but no one could be of much help. I could not bear to see these innocent children suffer and thus I made up the mind of closing down this school and breaking the structure. As eerie as it sounded, the building did not even budge when we tried to break it. It was like the JCB could not even touch it. We then ordered crane but it was also of little help. Even the compound yard was not broken by it. I was appalled by this situation.

I launched a full stream study into this land. We gathered information about the history of this land as it was the only thing that could hopefully be of some help to us. We rummaged through the history section of each and every library and at last got one book which was associated with the place in an old library in Delhi. It was more of a manuscript and we had to hire a translator that could convert the Sanskrit in the manuscript to the Hindi. The result was a very painful story of a village that was vanished under some consequences. It was a story of a ‘Vidhvan’ (wise man) and his wife who had strange dreams which would often change into reality.

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Hello Everyone,

I know that I am late and I am extremely sorry.

I was actually going to keep this story in purely romantic genre but the concept of curse was not getting along with my plot so I thought to change it a bit. I hope that you like the mixture of thrill and romance that is going to be in this story.

Please share your views with me. I would like to know about your idea on this incorporation.

Thank you for reading.