A new beginning

I promised, I will still be there
taking care
in best and in worst
in wellness and dispair.

"You came" she whispered,"I thought you were gone forever."

"I could not."

"You should have."

He looked at her shrunken figure lying on bed. Tears burned his eyes. She was once the most alive creature, and now she is worst that a dead. HIV killed her even before her death. He walked up to her bed, took the chair and sat close to her. She cringed as he took her palm in between her hands. She haven't had a company in last 5 months apart from her nurse. Intimacy suddenly felt strange to her. he felt her shiver at his touch, but he didn't let go her hands. She felt fragile.

"Don't alienate yourself from us Mansi."

"It was you who left me." She turned her face to other side, as a lone tear tickled down her face.

"I know, am sorry." 

"Why did you come back? It was tough, but I was finally at peace with everything and everyone." She sobbed. "Oh, why did you come back?"

"I had to. I lost my peace of mind. never for a minute I had been without guilt. The house felt so lifeless and haunted without you. Every nook and corner of it is filled with your love and laughter. Every time we do something to keep ourselves happy, it always ended with if only you were there...."

Every moment of their togetherness flashed in front of her eyes like a movie roll playing. She looked at him. He looked shaken as if he has just realized she was dying. She felt his tears drenching the back of her hand.

"Am sorry Mansi. I am so sorry for letting you down. I promised to be with you in better and in worst. But when the worst came, I chickened out. You always said I was so unlike others. You were wrong. I acted like everyone else. Am sorry."

"Its okay Shree. I forgave you long back. You did what you thought right."

"There's someone else who is desperate to see you."

She looked confused and turned her head eagerly to the door. Just then the door opened and a small, doll like figure walked in. Mansi gasped.

"Naira"

Looking at her 5 year old daughter gave her a mixed feeling of pleasure and pain. The last time she saw her was when there was a noise and shouting everywhere in the house over her disease, and she was hiding in a corner. That night she was dragged to this nursing home and she didn't see Naira until now.

"Mommy" 

Her voice seemed like music to her ears. She stared at her transfixed as she walked to her bed.

"Mommy, how are you?"

Mansi suddenly withdrew her hand as she felt Naira's touch.

"Don't worry mommy, papa told me I will not get ill by touching you. All I will get is a lot of love." 

And with this she hugged her mother, she had so missed hugging since last fie months. Mansi hugged her daughter back, tightly, crying shamelessly. She looked at her husband with gratitude for letting her have this pleasure in her last hours.

"I guess I will leave you both for mother-daughter time. But only as long as I finish the formalities." Shree said getting up.

"Formalities?"

"Mommy, we are taking you home." Naira squealed.

She gave Shree a questioning look.

"Don't look at me like that. She is right, we are taking you home." He took her hands again, and almost whispered "I, we, want to take care of you. We have missed you a lot and now we want you back. The house seem impossible to live in without you, and the life seems so tough to go through. You have a long life to live sweetheart. And I will not let you die before that, not like this."

She smiled with tears in her eyes. This no more feels like an end, it has started to feel like a new beginning instead.




This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda