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Hey everyone! This is a three-shot on Rikara about Gauri's confession of her fake pregnancy, and the consequences of the same. Kindly ignore the spelling mistakes 😳
Part One
"Humey aapse kuch kehna hai, Omkara ji" she whispered in a timid, hushed tone. He brushed the knuckles of his fingers against her cheek, and cupped her face with a small smile. "I know Gauri. Samajhta hoon main tumhe. I understand you've not yet coped with the loss, and trust me, main bhi kabhi kabhi sochta hoon ke agar woh haadsa nahi hota, toh things would've been different." He leaned closer to her and placed a faint kiss on her forehead, to which she heaved a breath with her eyes closed. Holding her arms, ever so lovingly, he made her lay on his bed, their bed, and lying next to her, he tucked those loose strands of her hair behind her ears. Heaving a sigh, he spoke, "Uss bacche ko khoney ka ghum mujhe bhi hai, Gauri. Aaj bhi uss din ke bare mein sochta bhi hoon, toh..."
Omkara left his sentence incomplete as he recalled that fateful day when the doctor announced the awful news to him. He had recalled how happy he was to know that the baby in her womb was a girl. Even if he hadn't discussed it out loud, not even with his brothers, Omkara had already begun dreaming about his unborn daughter, back then. However, his happiness was short-lived when, the very next day, he received the dreaded phone call from Bhavya, asking him to rush to the hospital because Gauri had fainted after an intense uterine pain. His heart had been shattered to pieces when the doctor had told him that she had suffered a miscarriage because the embryo's heartbeat had stopped functioning. And when he had entered the private room in which his wife was admitted, and had seen her pale face lined with a thin film of sweat, he felt like he'd been punched in his gut. Although he hadn't been in love with Gauri back then, he had surely begun to see her in a new light, solely due to their baby that was conceived as a result of his intoxicated state. The news of the baby had slowly made him question his opinion he had of her, and he'd slowly begun to realise how wrong he'd been when he'd named her a gold-digger, a home-wrecker and a characterless woman. Her devotion and adulation towards him had made his heart flutter with pride, and something akin to love, at times.
And suddenly, the reason that had bound him to her was lost. In the hospital, he hadn't said a word, and neither had she. With bitter tears in their eyes, he'd simply wound his arms around her with no words spoken between them. It was only a week later that he'd found out the ugly truth about the conspiracy behind the miscarriage- his BuaMaa. The woman whom he loved so dearly, as much as he loved his own mother, had caused the death of his own baby, just because it was a baby girl, and not a boy. The venomous confession she'd spew to Gauri had been recorded on tape where BuaMaa had proclaimed that she'd made Gauri drink a concoction because she wanted her Ratan to be back, and that the baby girl in her womb had ruined her evil intentions. BuaMaa hadn't had the slighted guilt about killing that child, and when confronted, she'd laughed about the same. The family had been too late to realise that BuaMaa needed medical help and therapy post Ratan's death, and that realization had come with a price; a price that was paid in return for the life of his unborn daughter.
Presently, his grip around her body tightened as his thoughts drifted back to the incident that claimed his baby's life. Only when he felt her shudder, he immediately loosened the grip with regret on his face for hurting her with his tight hold. Looking into her eyes, he cupped her face and said, "Anyway, I'm sorry I brought that topic up. Nahi karenge baat uss bare mein." Holding her hand in his, he kissed the knuckles of her fingers.
Gauri looked into his eyes that were misty and distant, and a new wave of guilt passed over her. Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine that her one lie would lead her to spin a web of lies, each lie being covered with another lie, causing so much of pain to her and everyone around her. She had never been pregnant. She was forced to lie to avoid being thrown out of the house by BuaMaa, once Omkara had been back from coma. And had she been thrown out of the Oberoi Mansion, it would be impossible for her to protect her Omkara from the evil intentions of his BuaMaa. The only reason she could think of, was to announce her pregnancy- a lie that had the slightest possibility to be proved true, all because of that intoxicated drink which lead to Omkara trying to be intimate with her. And although, there was no physical relationship established between them in that moment, it was easy for her to blurt out this lie because BuaMaa believed Gauri blindly that she was pregnant with Om's child. Such was BuaMaa's desire to receive Omkara's child into the world. It was easier to make Omkara believe her because he did not remember what exactly happened between them and to what extent. And then began her web of lies- something which even Bhavya became a part of, unintentionally. Gauri had made up her mind several times to disclose the truth to Omkara, but stopped every single time because he wouldn't even think twice before dragging her out of his house for lying to him and his family because of his hatred for lies; he would never consider her intentions behind lying to him. And once BuaMaa would learn the truth, she would certainly plot other ways to harm Omkara, and Gauri couldn't let anything happen to the one who had saved her life, as well as her mother's life. She was indebted to the man who married her, and she would go to any extent to protect him.
But she had never imagined Omkara being so emotionally attached to the child; a child that did not even exist. He would take frequent breaks from his work and make sure that she was fed every hour despite her refusal and hatred towards fruits and milk. He would roll his eyes at her request for having spicy golgappas, but would make sure that her cravings were satisfied by the end of the day. He used to stay awake till late night, and once Gauri would dose off' to sleep, he would settle next to her on the bed, and talk to his little one, as well as reciting some deep meaningful poetry. He would rise early morning so as to accompany her for those morning walks that were supposedly good for the expecting mother and child. He even woke up in the middle of the nights to check on her. The one time when she had high temperature due to the change in climate, he sat next to her for the whole thirty seven hours. And when she'd recovered, he'd made sure that everything she needed was within a hand's reach, and had arranged for staff to take care of her when he wasn't around for a few hours. In short, he treated her like a delicate princess. And every new day brought a new level of guilt in her conscience.
"Hum ab yeh aur nahi kar paayenge, Bhavya", a teary-eyed Gauri had once told her sister-in-law, "Omkara ji ke aankhon mein jo main bacche ke liye pyar dekhthi hoon, uss se hamara dil toot jaata hai. Hum ab iss jhoot ke saath aur nahi jee sakthe. Humein jaldh se jaldh iss jhoot ko khatam karna hoga." And so, when Bhavya and she put their heads together to think of a plan and when the gynaecologist unsuspectingly revealed the gender of the child to the family, her heart ached once more to see the happiness on Omkara's and the whole family's face. However, that also brought forth the sinister side of BuaMaa. Bhavya had warned Gauri to be careful around BuaMaa, knowing that the lady could go to any extent to harm the unborn child. And that was exactly what happened. A tall glass of green concoction was sent by the staff for Gauri, saying that Daadi had specially prepared this for Gauri's health. She had immediately emptied the drink down the drain after Bhavya had seen BuaMaa mixing something in it, and had pretended to faint, after which, she was taken to the hospital. With Bhavya's help and much to Gauri's chagrin, the doctor had agreed to stage the miscarriage drama too. She knew that the news would shatter the hearts of the whole family, but she hadn't expected to be pained so much herself. She hadn't expected Omkara to break down in tears. And his tears, all due to her lies, caused her as much pain as a stake piercing her heart would.
Once she was brought home from the hospital, and when the family had allowed Gauri to be alone in the room and rest, BuaMaa had crept into the room and confessed the whole episode of why she had killed the unborn child by tricking Gauri to drink the concoction and how she wanted Ratan back, after which she would seek revenge from Omkara by avenging Ratan's death. The plan had worked, after so many months of weaving numerous lies, and the whole confession was caught on tape. Dolly Bua's evil intentions were exposed, after decades of pretence. Gauri recalled the shock and hurt registered on Omkara's face as he confronted the woman he called Mother about the death of his unborn daughter, and the sinister laugh she cackled. BuaMaa was sent away to a psychiatric centre for treatment, and finally Gauri succeeded in protecting her Omkara. Her mission of bringing BuaMaa's true colors to light had come to an end, and along with that, her time of stay in the Oberoi Mansion too was over.
After packing her bag with a heavy heart and bitter tears, she knew she had to tell the truth to Omkara and the whole family. She knew she would be hated for it, but it would be a sin to keep them in the dark. When she had resolved to speak the truth to Omkara, a truth that would probably shatter him and cause him to never trust another soul ever, the truth about how she was never pregnant at all, she had found him sitting on the floor, in the dark corner of the pool side, staring at the moon. She walked to him in slow strides and just when she had reached him, he had looked at her with so much of pain in his red-rimmed eyes. When she had told him that she was leaving his house forever, like he always wanted, like she had promised herself, he held her tight in his arms and broke down. "Nahi Gauri, mat jaao. BuaMa ne jo mere saath kiya, hamare saath kiya, hamare bacche ke saath... Uske baad main toot gaya hoon. Jisko main Maa kehke bulata tha, unhone hi mere saath itna bada dhoka kiya! Aaj mere zindagi ke andhere ko tumhari roshni ki sabse zyada zaroorat hai, Gauri. Kya tum bhi mujhe chhod ke chali jaaogi?" Gauri had to swallow her tears and her truth, and despite her burdened conscience making her guilt-ridden, she had hugged him back with all the strength left in her while he muttered a million sorry's for not trusting her and for all the pain he had caused her. That night he had slept by the pool-side in her lap, and she had known that her lie had to be brought out to him on some other day.
Three months had passed since that day. And over time, Omkara's eyes that had begun to reflect something very close to love had begun to scare her. And as he had once labelled her, she had begun to turn selfish and greedy; not for his money, but for that affection. He was a changed person since that day. Gone was the Nandi Bail that she had once termed him. This was a new Omkara- a glimpse of what she had seen during the days when she was pregnant; a side which was warm, loving and sensitive. She had grown accustomed to his touch, hugs, and kisses, and now she craved for more. Even though her guilt consumed her and that guilt was reflected by moving away and turning down Omkara's display of affection, he continued to shower her with much more care and nicety. And today, when he was being so loving, while the pain of the loss of his daughter still evident in his eyes, she couldn't take it anymore.
"Hume aapko kuch kehna hai." She heaved a breath as he looked in her eyes with a soft smile and said, "Bolo na..." Clearing her throat, she said, "Uss miscarriage ke bare mein aapse kuch baat kehni hai." He shifted an inch away from her, still holding her in his arms, and with a slight frown on his forehead, he said, "Gauri, uss bare mein baat karne ki zaroorat nahi hai. I'm sorry... I know mujhe uss baat ko dobara nahi chhedni chahiye thi, but I know ke mujhe jitna dard hua hai hamare bacche ke khoney se, uss se kahin zyada takleef tumhe hui hai." She placed her finger on his lip to shush him from talking. When he kissed her finger, she moved her finger away. "Omkara ji, meri baat suniye... Humne kayi mahino se aapse yeh baat chhupayi, lekin... lekin ab humse aur bardaasht nahi hota." She closed her eyes, knowing she wouldn't be able to look into his eyes "Humne aapse jhoot bola tha, aur ab hum iss jhoot ke saath nahi jee sakte" She paused talking for a second as she heard him say in a serious tone, "Kaisa jhoot?"
Closing her eyes, she whispered to him, "Aap ne sahi kaha tha, Omkara ji. Hum kabhi garbhvathi the hi nahi" And with that, she felt the grip of his arms loosening around her, and the loss of his warm, gentle hold.
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Part Two - Page 4
Part Three- Page 6
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