She closed her beautiful green eyes, glimpses of her father take her to the market appeared, her mom feed her home made ice cream emerged, her teenage friends walking across the garden in Sinjar collecting flowers made her smile.
Another deep breath as she pulled the trigger, peace prevailed and ended her three month ordeal. The three months of horror from her abduction by the evil heads to her being sold in the market place, the old man checking her teeth, stomach and eyes, her being snatched, shared and eaten like a piece of meat by a pack of wolves night after night in the name of what they called religion that permitted to do so.
She smiled again peacefully as she pulled the trigger one more time this time harder than before. The strong, over sized body that stole her identity, her confidence, her right to pray lay lifeless in front of her, she stamped it, kicked it and ran faster than her tender feet could.
Peace as she learnt in school was freedom from disturbance and for her peace now prevailed as she saw the border of her village like a horizon she could reach, the rescuers waiting to relieve her.
Peace is not always a positive connotation. As the last emotion of Navras, I bring forth peace in a different light. Again a non-fiction, a reality of todays’ times. Thousands of Yazidi women are taken as sex slaves by the ISIS terrorists who believe their religion permits killing men and abducting women. August 2014 saw a mass massacre of around 5000 Yazidi’s in the Iraq town of Sinjar.
I pray for people suffering and may God grant them peace always.
A big thank you to Shashank for standing by, being there patiently though restless is his synonym through the entire series. Will make up for all the lost time j. Read an equally powerful emotion on his blog here.
And a very big thank you to all my friends who provided constant motivation through reading all posts and posting comments.
Bībhatsam (बीभत्सं) Disgust, Aversion is a very strong emotion. It takes something huge for an individual to be pushed to a point of disgust.
Shashank wrote a very heart melting take on Kaarunya. As I always say he is one of the few fictional writers who can evoke a treasure of emotions with his pen (hope you make up for this one j). I have high hopes on Bibhastam as well.
“You see that rope?” the film director asked Nick as both looked up the sky scrapers to a rope that connected one building to the other on the 20th floor, “If you walk that rope without harness you on board my crew for the film.” He continued with a sheepish smile.
Nick was wary of the danger it involved but he thrived on thrill, “Yes, I’ll do it keep the contract ready.” He confidently said.
The rope was thick and heavy but it was too breezy, he picked a long metal pole in his hand to balance the weight and wind as he wiped a thin sheet of sweat from his brow.
A crowd gathered in the buildings on the ground as he delicately stepped on the rope balancing himself through the pole, the crowd went silent when he walked and wooed when he swayed, his body went cold in the last steps as he completed the challenge.
“What were you thinking while walking the rope.” asked one of the spectators, “No thought, I just saw a chair with stunt director written on it is all I saw, I never saw the rope or the challenge.” he responded.
Did we have a lot of choice on W, no we didn’t realized how difficult alphabets and emotions could be 🙂 Shashank writes a brilliant post on the word, click to read it here.
She was feeling everyone stare at her as she walked into the canteen to have tea.
“Do you see her bob cut hair?” Shilpa whispered.
“And where’s her cigarette, didn’t see her pack since morning.” Viral added.
“That’s what rehabs do, don’t they? They get you rid of certain habits.” Shilpa chuckled again.
Avoiding all the talk Ananya darted her way to the farthest table of the canteen. She looked at her watch, it was just 16.00, two more hours to go and she can avoid all talk and leave office, she thought to herself. Ananya felt utterly disconcerted.
Just a table away, “Look Ananya is back, wo…she looks different.”
“Yeah, she looks hotter with the new look.”
“No I mean, looks like her rehab rumor and 3 month sabbatical sounds real now.”
“Wasn’t she involved with that fair guy?”
“Of course she was, in fact he left her I hear.”
“Anyway she is not worth it, sad, depressed.”
In trepidation and feeling the rejection again, Ananya grabbed her tea cup with both hands and closed her eyes squeezing the cup hard trying to meditate and count from 10 to 1 as the therapist had instructed in case she felt anxious and needed to avoid negative thoughts.
10…
“Why can’t we be together Ananya?
09…..
“My parents would never agree to me marrying a non-Brahmin, Karan.”
08…
“We love each other, tell your parents nothing can come between us.”
07…..
“Why don’t you understand, my parents have told me to be away and not talk to you.”
06….
“Tell those pricks, enough is enough. Stop getting emotionally blackmailed. Or else I will lose it.”
05….
“Why lose it Karan, don’t say a word to my parents okay?”
04….
“They are, in fact they are the worst parents anyone can have, and they don’t understand your wishes. I will show them what I am; they need to be taught a lesson.”
“Ananya, I have lost it. Listen I don’t want a thing from you. Just get lost you stammering b**** and ask your parents too. You don’t deserve me. You are nothing but an incomplete sick stammering woman. I leave you now.”
01…..
“K..K…K..Karan…..”
00
“A…Ann..Annnaya.”
Ananya slammed a tight slap on his face as she opened her eyes in rage. She was pulled back to reality. He stood there holding his red cheek, tears welled up.
“Yooou staaammmer? Whattt’s youuur n…name?” Ananya asked looking straight into his eyes.
“R..R..R…Rohan.”
Ananya’s anxiety melted in a second. She had met someone who was like her, a mirror image.
“D..D…D..Do yyou want tea?” The conversation had just begun between the two incomplete halves.
Note: Neither Ananya nor Rohan with their stammering were never incomplete, incomplete were those who could not understand them. The complete them would never face rejection.
“there is nothing I want to write from Q” I said, “And I am not giving up the challenge” after all he gave me quizzical as the emotion, like seriously…noway! So back to the challenge, “Whats for R?” And I gave a list of emotions, After rejecting a lot of emotions we zeroed in on Rejected and am sure after a super quizzical post Shashank will come up with a super post on rejected, hop in here for more.
“I don’t think I want to meet anyone or get engaged, please ma phone whoever you have called and ask him to return ” Ananya yelled as she banged the door of her room.
The break up was not fresh anymore but the memories were, she couldn’t come to terms with the idea of moving on.
She sat on the floor resting her face on the table where she had placed a house of cards her ex had made for her weaving fragile emotions of togetherness with a weak foundation.
The door opened after a light knock and Rohan entered with a pleasant smile, “Hi this is Rohan, care for a friendly talk?”
Ananya looked at a still smiling Rohan who held his hand towards her as the fragile cards flew with the zephyr of a new beginning.
“Whats the F word?” Shashank inquired. “Fragile!” I said with all certainty still thinking did I get the question right. “Fragile?” a question with an emocon I didn’t understand. “Can’t fragile be an emotion?” that wasn’t a question, it was a statement you don’t have a choice we got to write on Fragile 🙂
A difficult emotion “Fragile” read a completely different take here.
“No there is no way to meet, he will be in the transit lounge; you can’t go there and visit him.” said the airport authority to a dejected Ananya who had traveled specially to meet Rohan for a few hours before he left for his business travel again.
An Indian officer was silently observing her anxiety, after much apprehension let her in to the transit gate G9.
After thanking the official copiously and not believing her stars she texted Rohan and waited with bated breath shifting her weight from one foot to another.
She could hear her heart pounding, her hands sweaty, trembling and extremely nervous waiting for Rohan whom she would be seeing after years, their love still intact.
Their pleasure knew no bounds as he stood there happily smiling, they embraced each other the longest they could, he absorbing her in his arms tighter feeling the rhythm of their heart dance in delight.
“Women don’t leave men like that in real or in fiction Shashank.” a little annoyed I announced. “Oh, you didn’t get it he kills her.” he said grinning with a sense of achievement on Emotional Intelligence. “Still its unfair, I tried to defend but in vain.” To read more on the C for Content hop on to Shashank’s post here.
Giving no serious thought D is for Delight and for a super delightful dose of 55 word fiction hop on to his post here.
Wish you a very Happy Easter to all my blogger friends. I am writing this post from a small town of Bellagio, Italy where I sneaked in with my Gujju gang for Easter holidays (promise a travel post on it).
“Happy Birthday Tina!” Shashi hugged his sixteen year old daughter and handed her a nicely wrapped gift.
“Wow, what is it dad?” exclaimed Tina with all excitement and tore open the wrapper that her dad had almost taken half an hour to pack.
“Oh it’s an iphone, wow dad, so love you. I really wanted this, I feel so content in life.”
Shashi’s mind stuck to that one sentence, of being content in life, the drudgeries at work, a hefty alimony, a home loan, he didn’t know what being content in life was.
He placed his hand on her daughter’s head and then walked out of the room planning the next steps after receiving the pink slip that evening from his boss.
If B was for Bravery then C has to be for Content, said Shashank in his over excited tone. I agree, I said thinking do we have a difference of opinion, well let’s see 🙂 So our take on the same emotion Bravery were like chalk and cheese and well accepted. To read his thought on Content click here.
The cold stares and constant murmurs made her feel uneasy.
She had overnight become star albeit in an unpleasantly unique way.
Girls would peep into their phones and back at her and boys in groups would make sleazy gestures and drop pickup lines.
Walking up the podium she adjusted the microphone and bravely spoke, “dear friends, yes the girl in the MMS is me, I had sex, consensual sex to rest all rumors, it’s just that I trusted the wrong guy and all I say to you is don’t lose faith as I feel I will be loved again and this time truly.”
The auditorium went silent before she greeted the chief guest who applauded her for accepting it bravely and seeing life positively.
Hope you felt the grip same as I did in Shashank’s post on Anger, for the next letter we have chosen B for BRAVERY. For another intriguing flash fiction see what his magic pen has woven here.
Every night she would give in, surrender to his painful ways which he called making intimate love.
He would crush her, squeeze and tear her flesh night after night as her shrieks would echo the room; he would laugh feeling superior at the passionate moans.
It was when he turned his back for another carnal act when she stabbed him in the back seventeen times with a kitchen knife.
Her buried anger gave her the strength to stop the beast once and for all from killing her soul.
“My heart fills with disgust and just can’t fathom the guts the wretched woman has to kill her husband and run away”, the inspector told the constable examining the body lying naked in a pool of blood.
The start of A-Z challenge (http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/) and my first emotion on the EmoIntel theme is A – Anger. to feel the emotion in a different yet unique way read Shashank’s take on anger here.
My post The Case of the Missing Wife was to end in one part, however on demand and for my friends I try my hand at the concluding part. Hope I do some justice and is a good read. For part one please read here .
“What is your wife’s name?”
“huh….” A startled Rohan looked blankly at Nirman, the officer in charge.
“An…An…Ananya…” He said petrified.
Dragging the hanging light bulb straight on his face, he shouted again, “And yours?”
“Mine…I…I don’t know.” He said with a feeble voice placing his hand on his eyes to avoid the blazing light.
“Look, my wife is not there, please find her, we came by car from Mumbai to Pune.” He continued pleading.
“Sir, the forensic report is out.” Another officer, Ravi whispered in Nirman’s ear.
“Get his clothes off and try to get any DNA trace of his wife, hair strand, nail, and skin anything from his clothes. Call Dr. Sridhar to crack this nut.” He walked out leaving Rohan and Ravi in the room.
“Remove your clothes and leave them on the table. I will be back.” Said Ravi.
“What have I done officer?” Rohan asked worriedly.
Ravi took his clothes leaving him naked in the cell. He left him for almost 30 minutes, sometimes humiliation works in getting the truth out.
“Where are his clothes? Get him his clothes now.” Said Dr. Sridhar as he entered the cell seeing Rohan coiled in a corner naked.
“Don’t you worry son. These people cannot harm you. Here take these clothes.” He offered a fresh pair.
“So what is your name son?” he asked pulling out a pen and a paper.
“Mine…I think I know…” he tried thinking hard, “Rohan…..that’s my name…I think.”
“And your wife’s? She was with you right in the car?”
“Yes, Ananya, we were in car, together.”
“Who was driving?”
“I drove her to Pune.”
Sridhar looked at the FIR which said the woman was in the driver’s seat.
“What time was it when you reached Pune?”
“I don’t remember, it was late and dark.”
“Did you park the car in the underground parking or outside the hotel?”
“I don’t remember, sir.”
“Ok, don’t stress. So which room did your wife choose?”
“No, it feels things are fading now. The receptionist asked me something and I looked at her and she nodded but said nothing.”
Just then Nirman barged in, “Did this jerk speak up? When some of his nails will be pulled or fingers cut he will blurt all.” He said looking straight at Rohan.
“Look son, try to tell me, once it goes out of my hands, I won’t be able to help you.” Dr. Sridhar pacified him.
“I really don’t remember doctor, I wish I did. Why do you say these things? Rather than finding my wife, you are questioning me?” Rohan almost broke down and started sobbing loudly.
Dr. Sridhar looked at Nirman and passed the note that mentioned,
Post Traumatic Amnesia – disoriented – confused, highly distractractable, difficulty with thinking, memory and concentration and afraid, dis-inhibited, agitated and emotionally labile, hallucinating.
As the last resort to get him back to reality, Nirman placed a packet and some photographs in front of him. “Are these yours or your wife’s?”
“Yes, where did you get these, this ring, this mangalsutra its damaged, melted..this watch I gifted her..He picked the photo of a seared body….”Ananya….” He shouted recognising the face from the burnt contours.
He uncontrollable cried for hours before accepting and getting back his reality.
“Hope you denied the travel to your boss for the project Ananya?” retorted Rohan.
“No, I haven’t, it’s a big opportunity honey, I think we should think about it.” She explained.
“No way, it’s for 6 months for God’s sake, you cannot go, period. No discussion.” He flared.
“Yes, you rule my life, don’t you? Where am I ever asked my decision ever? You say no means no.”
“Stop it Ananya, you know that’s untrue.” He shouted but she continued her nag.
“When have I got the freedom to do things, like you decide I should come to Pune, so I should. Do I have a choice?” there had been no pleasant talk since the time the project opportunity had come.
Rohan being short tempered had lost it by then. He pulled the emergency brakes and hopped out of the car. “Why don’t you understand, I can’t live without you. Just go I will walk up to the hotel; take this car and go where you want. You are free now.” Were his words before stepping out?
Ananya tried to release her seat belt and move to the driver’s seat in a rage. A multi-axle trailer sped honking behind her as she tried to move to the driver’s seat. Rohan on the other side of the road turned and tried to run towards the car seeing the trailer speeding close. Before he could get anywhere closer the trailer collided with the car and caught fire. Rohan froze at that instance, he was shocked, shaken, he just turned and started walking.
