Chapter 18

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꧁-------❤︎-------꧂

Author's POV

After hearing the news, Tiasha was left completely stunned, not being able to react as she was trying hard to get the fact that her brother, her only member of her family, her only sign of their parents has left for heavenly abode.

From the college, they immediately left for the hospital where all were there and after performing all the rituals and rites, it was almost 7:30 in the night when everyone returned back home.

Tiasha, without uttering a single word, headed towards the room while Shalini, Raj, Karan and Anamika were with Tiasha's family as they were staying there that night on the request of Shalini.

"Anamika, did Naina go and check whether Tia is ok or not???"

"Yes maami she did"

"Ohhh okay. See I wanted to go but Naina went and even Tiasha didn't want anyone to follow her"

"Maami don't worry. Afterall our Naina is the only one who can handle her bhabi, ofcourse apart from our Neil" Anamika said as Shalini nodded.

"But maami one thing I have to say. Tiasha's behaviour is scaring me. She isn't reacting at all" Anamika looked at Shalini with a worried face as she nodded.

"Same here Anu beti. But we can't tell her anything also. She is shaken from her core. How much pain she is having in her heart that even hearing the news, she didn't shed a single drop of tear. We can't even imagine what she is going through" Shalini shook her head, sighing as they saw Neil walking inside the home, from the doorway with Riddhima in his arms.

"Neil, thank God Riddhima is ok now" Shalini caressed her face which was looking pale and tired due to continuous crying.

"Ruhanika di, take her" Neil said as Riddhima shook his head.

"I won't go mimo. Can I stay with you please??? I want to see mimi" she asked with much innocence.

"No Riddhi. Your mimo already is handling the situation along with your papa and Karan uncle. He need to look after your mimi too. You will meet your mimi later" Ruhanika said sternly as she looked at Neil and then back at Ruhanika.

"But mumma ple---"

"----Riddhi no means no"

"Ruhi di, please don't scold her. She is very young to handle this trauma. Tarun bhaiyya was close to her too" Neil said and looking at Riddhima, smiled, "It's ok baby. Your mimo will stay with you"

"Can we both go to mimi then??? While entering I heard papa and Karan uncle discussing that mimi is sad" she said her eyes brimmed with tears.

"Don't cry princess. If you cry, will your mimi like that???" he wiped her tears while his heart clenched with pain as he recalled Tiasha's state.

"Then take me to her. You see, when mimi will see me, she will not remain sad. When bua naani and naanu died, I heard from mumma that mimi was too sad. But that time I wasn't there. Now I am here na this time. Take me to her please mimo, she will not remain sad" she said as Neil looked at the little angel in his arms and nodded as Riddhima gave a smile.

"Neil please. Don't hear her now. She is a kid"

"And she is a kid that's why I am hearing her Ruhanika di. Kids are the source of happiness and now Tiasha needs someone who is as close to her as her brother. Di, she loves this niece of her way too much" Neil caressed Riddhima's face as both looked at her.

Then he was about to leave the place and to go their room when he saw Naina running towards them.

"Mom" she screamed, panting as Shalini walked towards her.

"Naina what happened???" she asked as she looked at them and pointed her fingers upstairs.

"Bha---bhabi" she uttered as Neil immediately gave her a tensed look.

"What happened to Tiasha??? Naina bhabi what??? What happened to her???" he asked as Ruhanika lifted Riddhima in her arms as Neil walked towards Naina.

"Mom, bhaiyya, I helped bhabi freshening up and as she was just standing at the window, looking at the sky, when I told her I am bringing a glass of water and then---"she looked at them as Neil gave her a blank face.

"What happened Naina??? Now don't tell me she locked herself" Anamika asked, hoping it's not true while Neil looked at her with a shocking face.

"Naina tell us" Shalini spoke up as Naina looked at them.

"You are right Anu bhabhi. Tia bhabi locked the door mom. I called her. But no answer" she cried as all gave her a shockingly look.

"Maami, see I was scaring this only. She's just going on a different zone. I know her maami and she is very emotional person. The way she embraces happiness and jovial she is, at times she can be even left affected. I hope everything is fine" Anamika said as Naina added, "I am sorry mom, I am sorry bhabi"

"Bhaiyya, I am sorry. I thought she will feel better after having a glass of water so I----" she looked at Neil as he hugged her.

"----No no no Naina. It's not your fault"

"I am sorry bhaiyya"

"Nah my sister. Please Naina, don't cry" he said and broke the hug.

Immediately after that, he shook his head, let out a deep breath and immediately ran upstairs, not wasting even a single millisecond.

"Tiasha, Tiasha open the door" he screamed banging the door as Shalini, Karan and Anamika ran towards him.

"Tiasha" he banged it yet again while there was no response from the other side.

While on the other hand, Tiasha was standing at the window, dressed in a plain off-white kurta, with her disheveled hair left open that was falling from the back and was looking at the sky.

Whenever she misses her parents, she used to look at the sky where two bright stars would shine brightly among the rest and it reminded her of her parents because, in her childhood her brother told the two brightest stars in the sky were their parents.

Even today also, two stars were shining brightly in the dark night sky among the rest other stars yet something was different today.

Another star just beside them was shining brightly as it formed a straight line in the sky

Her eyes were constantly gazing at them yet not even a single drop of tear rolled down her cheeks as she felt her soul was snatched away from her.

She was now just feeling like a living corpse

"Tiasha, for God sake open the door bachha" this time Shalini spoke as all were screaming yet the words failed to reach her ears.

"Tiasha open the door. Open the fucking door, damn it. Tiasha, OPEN" Neil screamed at the top of his lungs and banged the door with such a force that the lock was bent a bit.

"Mom, I am feeling so scared now" Naman said and added, "You remember what bhabi once said. She wanted God to take her and she said she can't leave---"

"Just shut up Naman. If you don't want me to give you a tight slap right now, then just shut your mouth" Neil glared at him throwing fire balls through his eyes as Shalini calmed them.

"Naman your brother is not in senses and Neil please, please be calm. If you behave like this, think about Tiasha"

"Calm??? You are telling me to calm. Mom you shouldn't have left her alone. She isn't opening the door. Mom, you atleast know why I----" he stopped in between as he realised what he was speaking while Shalini looked at him shocked as Karan and Anamika exchanged glances.

Then he let out a breath and turned again and was about to bang the door when they heard they lock opening as all turned around when the door opened inwards as Tiasha stood infront of them with an expressionless face.

"Bhabi" Naina and Naman cried and jumped onto her and hugged her tightly as she lost her balance a bit but managed to be steady.

"Bhabi we were so worried for you. You know we were so scared" Naina cried as Tiasha looked at her with an expressionless face.

"I am sorry, I left you there and went" Naina added as all walked towards her.

"Tiasha, bachha are you mad??? Why did you close the door??? Don't you have a mother here??? Don't I feel worried???" Shalini hugged her as she stood there still with her hands against the floor.

"Tiasha I know, infact we all know what you lost that loss is irreplaceable. But dear, don't punish yourself like this. Cry a bit na dear. See, you will feel better" Anamika looked at her with teary eyes as Tiasha looked at her, blank face.

"Don't worry bhabi, I am completely fine. And aunty, don't get worried for me. I am not God's favourite child. He won't call me to him so easily. Afterall, maybe, mumma papa also----"

"Enough" all heard a scream as they looked around at Neil who was looking at the ground, breathing heavily while Tiasha flinched a bit hearing the voice.

He looked up and shot a angry glare at her with his eyes turned moist as Tiasha looked at him, blankly while he walked towards him.

"Neil, Neil----" Anamika tried to call him as Shalini stopped her holding her hand as she shook her head.

"At the end, like always you only have to be back at the same lines. What do you think of yourself Mrs. Tiasha Khurrana??? A queen??? What you lost that we all understand. We all understand your feeling and how broken you are from within. But that doesn't give you a right to break us more" he roared holding her forearm as she looked at him with much surprise.

Finally the person who showed no emotions on her face was now looking at Neil with a surprised look as her eyes gradually brimmed with tears.

"You leave my case. I am a rude, arrogant and heartless person. But just look at these faces. Just look. You so wanna leave them and go. I know what parents are Tiasha, what a family means and I know how it feels to loose a person whom you consider the world, but that doesn't mean Tiasha you will hurt the person who are still looking at you, you like a hope for them" he continued but this time his voice was little softer though was stern enough to bring goosebumps all over her skin.

While they were busy talking among themselves, seeing the situation and anticipating the next moment, Shalini signalled and indicated the others to clear the room, leaving the two alone as all left the room.

"Tiasha, we all know what Tarun bhaiyya was for you. Even if we want we can't take his place and none of us want to. But this dying, death, you are not wanted by your parents, you are unlucky soul these words are not what looks good when you say. Do you even realise what we felt when you locked the door??? I know maybe by always crying doesn't show much pain one has, but you know what mom says, if we burry that inside our heart, it causes a pain and that pain can lead to something which no one can think. Since everything happened, you went numb" his voice was gradually becoming softer and cracked a bit as he continued, "Do you even realise what were are going through??? Do you even realise what I was going----"

Realising his words, Neil immediate stopped in between and looked at her as her eyes were already on him.

Before he could say anything further, Tiasha hugged him tightly, wrapping her arms around his torso as he was left numb for a moment.

"At the end, we finally lost him Neil. I lost my brother. I lost my BHAIYYAAAAA" she screamed as finally a lone tear rolled down her cheeks as Neil wrapped his hands around her back.

Tiasha completely broken down infront of him as her sobs turned into painful cries and tears kept flowing from her eyes as she slid down and finally landed on the floor on her knees as Neil caught her as he too sat on his knees with his hands over her shoulder as she dug her face on his chest.

Finally she opened up her emotions infront of the person whom her heart knew was her support system and cried her heart out, pouring all the pain and hurt that was burried inside her heart since she heard the news of Tarun's death.

"He left me Neil, he left me. You know---you know I knew---I knew that he would leave us but this---this is so early Neil. This was unexpected. Yesterday only he was breathing and his heart was beating. I saw----I saw from the window of the ICU. I know, I know doctor-----doctor told that his health is detoriating. But but he didn't think once, before leaving for heavenly abode. He just left us Neil" she lifted her up looking at Neil as her cheeks were moist and eyes were already red and turned swollen as he felt his soul being shattered while she continued, " He just left us, he just left me, he just left his Tia"

"Thank God, finally she atleast letting out her pain. But but why I am feeling that someone is burning me, stabbing my heart whenever I am seeing each teardrop roll your eyes" he thought looking at her as she hugged him tightly and kept crying.

She kept on crying nonstop as he felt helpless and held her more close to his chest and rubbed her back, trying to calm and soothe her and kept listening to her as she opened her heart to him.

"You know Neil, I was just four and bhaiyya was eleven when our parents died in an accident. A car accident. An accident which I witnessed with my eyes. It all happened infront of my eyes and I couldn't do anything. I was helpless you know. It was such that we all could have died. But mumma and papa saved us. They saved their children, but I couldn't save them. That day, my half a heart was taken away only and then bhaiyya was there who occupied my whole heart. He became my mumma and papa both. He became my family, my world and my everything" she said as tears kept rolling her cheeks yet this time a smile was on her lips as she recalled her past with her brother in their childhood.

"But it's also said right that with happiness, there comes sadness. But I never imagined my fate would be like this. This cruel to take away everyone from me whoever I love.Within a second, my happiness also went away yet again. It went away when the day I knew that my brother, my bhaiyya was suffering from lung cancer. Lung cancer, last stage. Even it was also such a state that even treatments can't do anything" her eyes kept on pouring fresh tears as she spoke.

"Tiasha, but you tried to save him right??? You did his treatment. And in such cases, tell me is death in our hands??? No right??? Tiasha, Tarun bhaiyya was your brother, is your brother and will always be your brother. You remember that day I told you, he will be in our hearts for forever" he said as she looked at him with tears rolling down her.

"Neil, he really left us na??? My bhaiyya really went to mumma and papa. Now even if I wish, I can't hug him, scold him and talk all nonsense with him. Neil, now there is no one who will call me Tia like he did" she added and turned her face towards the window.

"See there at the sky. Today there are three stars shining the brightest in the darkest night sky" she pointed up at the sky as he follows her direction and looked at the night sky as she continued, "See, three of them are together. If you draw a line it feels just like they are walking holding hands"

"This is everything is all that bhaiyya wanted. But here, here he left my hand" she looked down at her hands as she recalled how in childhood she and her brother used to walk holding hands.

"You know Neil what I am feeling. I am feeling that this is a tug of war. I held bhaiyya's one hand and our parents the other and in this war, I lost and they won. In a split of a second, my hand just loosened and he went to our parents. I know the love of parents are more than anything but even I loved him so much Neil. And you know what was my fault, that I didn't go to meet him in the morning" she kept on blabbering as some of her sentences which she spoke was something that she didn't also have an idea about and may sound meaningless to anyone.

Hearing that Neil looked at her shaking his head as he knew what was exactly coming up next.

"I became selfish right Neil??? I chose to go to college right??? Today if I hadn't been there atleast, atleast I could have see him breathing and alive for some moment also. He might have asked about me right??? He must have for sure wanted to see her Tia once??? But no I was not even there"

"No. No Tiasha, no" he said as he pulled her closer to his chest as she hugged him back yet again as tears kept rolling down her cheeks.

"Tiasha don't ever say or think like this. Never again. Tiasha whatever happened it's not your fault. It's no one's fault. Tiasha he breathed his last when we reached the hospital and thus as soon as we got the news we went to inform you. And you think Tarun bhaiyya will be happy to see you like this??? See you blaming yourself??? No. Never" he added, breaking the hug and gently cupped her fair.

As soon as his warm hands touched her cold skin and wet cheeks, Tiasha felt a comfort and calmness from within as she looked at him with her teary eyes while Neil's eyes turned moist too as he kept looking at her with an unknown feeling knocking at his heart.

Before speaking, he quickly composed himself and took a deep breath to stop the tears from rolling down and looked back at her.

"Tiasha, you know your bhaiyya is very proud of you and I am sure you are telling right that you were selfish. But listen. It's not like that. Neither you nor us thought that he will leave us so suddenly. And you know, beleive me, seeing you established and be the person whom you want to be and fulfill everything you and your parents and brother dreamt of, that day I am sure these three stars will shine the brightest because that day in their shine, their happiness, their pride and everything for you will be there" he spoke softly as Tiasha looked at him and then back at the sky.

"Just look their. Tiasha, they were, are and always be with you. Maybe not physically but in your heart, in your soul. They are in you Tiasha and your bhaiyya didn't go anywhere. Your parents didn't go anywhere. They are alive in you and when you will love, they will live with you, they will live in you, forever" he added as both gazed at the stars.

"Yes Neil. You are right....And I promise you mumma, papa and bhaiyya. Your Tiasha, your Tia will one day surely establish herself and as promised that day I will bake your favourite brown sugar butterscotch cupcakes bhaiyya" she said as tears kept rolling down her cheeks.

"You will Tiasha. You definitely will and this time I promise you, I will always be there by your side. I don't know what will happen after a year, this marriage, nothing because I don't believe in this concept only. But I won't let you have any problem here in this house still you stay here and help you to reach your goal, even if we are parting our ways" he thought looking at her as she was looking at the sky lost in her own world.

On realising what he was thinking, he quickly took a deep breath and turned around when he saw it was 11:30 p.m.

"Fours hours, it's been four hours since we reached and Tiasha didn't eat anything since afternoon" he thought and added, "No no. She has to eat something. I remember her brother told staying empty stomach for long she faints quite often and she too have low blood pressure. Yeah. I can't let her fall ill. She can't take it. Wait I have to talk to mom about this"

Then he turned around and looked at her who was staring up at the sky through the

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