CHAPTER 74
In the Forest
Omkara who couldn’t sleep and sees others are sleeping hugging their partners except Ishana who is sleeping on Swetlana’s lap… He realised ShivIka and PriVeer are not there and decided to find them… He walks out from the hut and sees four of them in a deep discussion… He walks towards them but they didn’t aware of his presence and involve in their talk… He just stood without disturbing them and listens to their conversation silently… He feels bad to know about Madhu but still he feels proud of IshRan and the Raichands for taking care of Madhu as one of their family member… He is about to leave from there when their last sentence caught his attention… He turns towards them in shock and breaks his silence…
Om: What?? Ishana is married?? (ShivIka and PriVeer turn towards him in shock… They didn’t expect him to know about it like this)
Shivaay: Om?? You…
Om: Is Ishana married?? (Goes towards him and holds his shoulder) Tell me, Shivaay… Is she married?? (With hurt filled voice)
Shivaay: (with tear filled eyes) Om…..
Om: Don’t lie to me, Shivaay… I heard everything… So, this is the truth that you want me to know from her, right?? (Tears started to make their way out from his eyes… AniPri already started to cry… Shivaay tries to hold him but Omkara holds his shirt) Why, Shivaay?? Why?? Why it’s always her?? (Burst into tears)
Shivaay doesn’t has answer for his question and he just hugs him and cries… AniPri too hug them… Ranveer feels bad looking at them…
Om: (breaks the hug) But, how Shivaay?? They said that she supposed to marry him that day… Then, how come she is married?? And no one aware of it?? (Shivaay looks at Ranveer and he signs him to tell him… He knows that it’s no point of hiding it from him anymore)
Shivaay: That is what they have been told, Om… But, the truth is Ishana and Dev already married that day… (Omkara is shocked)
Om: That means she lost him after their marriage??
Shivaay: (nods) After few minutes of their marriage… (Omkara sits in heart broken… Shivaay hugs him) Please, Om… Don’t fall weak… You have to be strong for her…
Om: How, Shivaay?? How I will stay strong?? Her life ends right after it got started… How much she has suffered this years?? She hides everything inside her and pretends to be happy for her family… Her situation was more worse than me… Why the God is so cruel that this poor girl has to suffer like this?? Since small she suffered… Her own father sold her… That Ashok caused Swetlana’s abortion but the blame took by Ishana… Someone else involved in Gauri’s accident but again that blame goes to her only… And, this one some more… In her life, she only faced more miseries than happiness… (Shouts) Why??? Why only her?? These many pain and sorrows for this one girl… What wrong she did that she has to face all these?? (Cries)
Annika: (cups Omkara’s face) Don’t be like this, Om… If you fall weak like this, then how the pain can be removed from her heart??
Prinku: (kneels beside him) Yes, bhaiya… You only said that you will become her healer… How you will heal her pain if you are broken like this??
Om: But, this pain is too much for her, Prinku, bhabhi… Even, I can’t bear it… How she…??? I don’t know how to heal it this pain…
Annika: You can heal it, Om… (Omkara looks at her) With your love… Your love is the only healer for her pain… For that, you have to make her to say about her marriage to you…
Om: (shocked) No, bhabhi… I can’t hear it from you also, how I will hear it from her??
Ranveer: You have to, Om… This is the only way if you want Ishu in your life… She is not accepting your love because of this only…
Om: But, she won’t tell me…
Prinku: You have to make her to tell you, bhaiya… She is having pain and guilt in her heart… You have to remove them from her heart… Her guilt can be removed if we proved her innocence in Gauri bhabhi’s death… But, it’s not easy to remove her pain… Only you can rid off the pain…
Om: How her family will bear this pain?? You all know how precious she is for them… RaDuKa and Swetlana treating her as their daughter… How they will react if they know this truth?? Arjun can’t stand a single scratch on her… How he will bear this truth of his sister?? And daadima is relieved because she is thinking that Dev died before the wedding… Siddharth and NiTiMi, how they will react?? And Karthik, will he able to stand what happened to his mother?? Madhu is thinking that she got Ishana’s fiance’s heart… How she will take if she knows that heart belongs to Ishana’s husband?? All of them will be shattered, Shivaay… (Cries holding his head) How we will pacify them, Shivaay??
Ranveer: That’s the reason why Ishu and me hiding this matter for these years… Ishu can’t see her family shattered… So, she hide all of her sorrows inside her heart… I’m the only one aware of this… Her family will be shattered if they know their Ishu is a widow who lost her husband on her marriage day…
Om: No!!! Don’t say that word again, Ranveer… (All look at him in shock) She is not a widow… And I won’t let her to become a widow… As long as I’m alive, she won’t be a widow… (Gets up from his place and wipes his tears) I will make her to confess the truth of her marriage… I will marry her and bring colours in her colourless life… I will fill her maang with sindoor again… Mangalsutra which was removed from her, I will make her to wear a mangalsutra on my name… I will take saath phere with her again… The red colour which she is hating now, I will make her to love the colour once again… I will throw all the pale colours from her life… Only colours will be there in her life… (ShivIka and PriVeer smile proudly at him… He looks at them…) I fell weak just now but not anymore… I have to be strong for her… If she can bear those pains inside her for these years, I can bear it for one day… Tomorrow, I will make her to confess it to me… It’s my promise… As long as Omkara Singh Oberoi is alive, she won’t be a widow… She is already my wife since I accidentally filled the sindoor on her maang at the temple that day… I just need to marry her with full rituals and declare that she is my wife to this world… (Shivika and PriVeer hug him)
Shivaay: I’m proud of you, Om… I was worried how you will react after knowing about this…
Om: Why?? Did you think that I won’t accept her after knowing about this?? Is my love that weak?? It’s getting more stronger only, Shivaay… I won’t leave her even if the world is against her…
Annika: No, Om… He didn’t say about that… We were worried that you will break down again… We didn’t doubt your love… We already told you before…
Om: When did you know about this??
Shivaay: The same day when all of you get to know about Ishu being the reason behind Gauri’s death… (Tells him everything)
Om: (looks at Ranveer) It must be very painful for you too also, right?? Seeing your friend’s sister in that state… (Ranveer looks at him with tear filled eyes)
Ranveer: I was the one asked Dev to marry her as soon as possible… But, I didn’t expect it will end in tragedy… I wanted to protect her from Shivaay but I myself become the reason for her misery…
Prinku: Don’t blame yourself, Ranveer… Whatever happened was destined to happen… No one expected that…
Om: Shivaay, don’t let her family to know about it… They can’t bear this truth… (All are shocked)
Shivaay: What are you saying, Om?? They have to know this one day…
Om: Why they have to know if this can shatter their happiness?? Swetlana is pregnant some more… They got a happiness after these years… Why we have to ruin it by telling this truth to them?? Shivaay, it’s not wrong to hide a matter for someone’s happiness… Ishana did that for these years… And, we are going to do the same too…
Ranveer: Om, if one day they got to know about it, it will be more difficult for them…
Om: (thinks a while) Fine… If like that means, we will disclose this matter after my marriage with Ishana… Till then no one from her family should know about it… (Shivika and PriVeer look at each other)
Shivaay: Ok, Om… We will do as you said… (Smiles) I can’t believe my brothers and sister are very matured now… Om, Prinku, Rudra…. Om, how about Rudra?? Can we tell him??
Om: We will tell him tomorrow… Not only him but our family as well… They have to know about it… But, we can’t tell daadi because daadi is very much close with Savitri daadima… She might blurt out to her…
Annika: Jhanvi aunty already know about it… We only have to tell others in our family…
Om: What?? Mom already know about it??
Shivaay: Yes, Om… I’m the one told her and Annika because they were upset with Ishu for causing Gauri’s death…
Ranveer: So, Om, what are you going to do to make her to tell you??
Om: You will know tomorrow… I might need to hurt her to make her say the truth… But, that is the only option I’m having and I swear this will be the last pain that she will face… I won’t let any pain or sorrow to near her again… But, I need all of your support for this… (Shivika and PriVeer smile at him)
Shivaay: (hugs his arm tightly) We all are with you… (Omkara smiles and hugs him while AniPri hug each other… Ranveer smiles in happiness)
Suddenly, they hear a scream from the hut and they run towards it… They see Ishana breathing heavily while others are calming her…
Raghav: (pats her cheek) Ishu, Ishu, open your eyes… Nothing happened… We all are here… Look at us… (Ishana opens her eyes and sees Raghav)
Ishu: Jiju!!! (Hugs him while Raghav caresses her back calming her down)
Dush: (in a slow voice) I think she had her nightmare… That’s why she is reacting like this??
Om: (surprised) Again??
Rudra: What do you mean by again??
Om: Before you all came here, she had her nightmare too… Her state was same like this…
Arjun: Strange… Usually she had her nightmare once only while sleeping… She will be fine after that… But, today she had it for twice… (Rubs his forehead in confusion)
Raghav is still calming Ishana… She back to her sleep after a while… Karan makes her to lie on Swetlana’s lap…
Raghav: She is fine now… She just had a nightmare…
Dush: Raghav, Karan come out… We need to talk about something… Not only you both but all the guys…
Karan: Ok… Girls, take care of Ishu… We will be back in a while… (The girls agree and the guys go out from the hut)
Raghav: What happened, guys??
Dush: Om wants to say something… (Looking at Omkara) Tell us, Om… (Omkara narrates them everything happened since they enter the forest… All listen to him carefully…)
Om: I think she has been here before…
Shivaay: But, why she has to come to this forest??
Karthik: I think she didn’t come here alone… Maybe, Gauri was with her too… The girls she saw in her dream can be both of them…
Sid: Maybe Karthik is right… But, why they have to come to this forest??
Rudra: Bhaiya, O said that bhabhi told him that the two girls were running like wanted to escape from danger… Maybe, they have been chasing by some people and they enter this forest to save themselves…
Ranveer: There is a possible what Rudra saying is right… But, the question is that person’s enmity is with Gauri or Ishu??
Shivaay: Both!!! (All except OmSid look at him in confuse… Shivaay narrates to them about their meeting with Ashok)
Arjun: That means that man is the one caused Gauri’s death??
Sid: Maybe yes…
Shivaay: That man is having enmity with Oberois… But, we don’t know who is the man…
Raghav: But, how Ishu involved in this?? You said the man told Ashok that Om and Ishu are his enemies….
Shivaay: We don’t know… But, I’m sure something has happened that day…
Om: Most probably, Gauri is murdered that day and Ishana became the victim of the situation… They made it look like an accident which done by her…
Dush: Poor girl… She doesn’t even remember the event but blaming herself for everything…
Shivaay: Ok… We will discuss later after we go back… Let’s go inside first… (All leave inside)
Inside the hut
The guys go inside and see the girls are sleeping uncomfortably in their sitting position… They feel bad to see them like that but they have no other way… They too take their places and sleep after a while…
Next morning
Omkara wakes up first and sees all are still sleeping… He looks at Ishana who is sleeping with her head placing on Swetlana’s arm… He smiles a little but soon it vanished recalling his talk with ShivIka and PriVeer last night… He didn’t expect her life ended before it got started… Unknowingly, his tears started to come out from his eyes… His thought is broken when he sees Ishana almost slipped from Swetlana’s arm… He immediately rush towards her and holds her face before hitting the ground… She doesn’t realise it and still continue her sleep… He makes her lie on his lap and caresses her face… He imagines her in a bridal attire and smiles thinking of it… But, the smile disappears when the thought of her losing her husband after her wedding came into his mind… He feels pain in his heart thinking of it…
Om: (thinks) Poor girl… How much she has went through in her life?? But, she accepted everything silently… Not even once she blamed the God for making her life miserable… But, I blamed God for everything… (He closed his eyes and his tears dropped on Ishana’s face but he doesn’t realise it…)
Ishana opens her eyes feeling wetness on her face and surprised to see Omkara in tears… She gets up from his lap and holds his face…
Ishu: What happened?? Why are you crying??
Om: (doesn’t want to worry her) No, I’m not crying… Actually, this place is quite dusty and I think it went inside my eyes… That’s why these tears…
Ishu: Really?? (Omkara nods) Why I feel that you are lying?? Your face is telling me that you are disturbed about something… Tell me the truth… (Pulls him closer)
Om: (thinks: Oh, no!! She can read my face… I need to divert her or I will break down in front of her…) (Gets an idea and pulls her closer) So, you can read my face?? (Ishana nods) So, it must be telling you what I’m feeling right now towards you… Can you read it?? (Looking at her intensely… She feels shy and pushes him… She gets up and tries to move but Omkara holds her hand…) Where are you going without answering me?? (He too gets up from his place)
He walks towards her and she walks backwards… Ishana doesn’t realise that Rudra is sleeping there and she accidentally steps on his feet making him to scream loudly… Ishana is shocked and fell on Karthik who is sleeping beside Rudra… He too screams loudly… Both of their scream wake everyone up…
Shivaay: (rubbing his eyes) Why you both are screaming like this??
Rudra: Someone stepped on my feet…
Karthik: Someone fell on me… (Looks at Ishana who is sitting on his legs) Ishu maa, you??
Ishu: Sorry, Karthik…
Omkara lifts Ishana from Karthik and makes her to stand properly…
Om: Are you ok, Ishana?? (Ishana nods)
Rudra: O, both of us in pain here but you are asking Ishana bhabhi?? (Holds his feet in pain)
Ishu: I’m sorry, Rudraa… I didn’t notice you are sleeping here… Is your feet hurting a lot??
Rudra: It’s ok, bhabhi… I can bear this for you… But, bhabhi, you were sleeping there… Then, how you came here?? And, O, how did you able to help bhabhi quickly?? (IshKara look each other and recall what happened just now) Haan!!! (In a teasing tone) I know, you must have started your romance in morning itself… Bhabhi wanted to escape from it and this all happened… Right, bhabhi?? (IshKara feel embarrassed while others laugh) So O, you are the one to be blamed… We are in pain because of you…
Om: Just shut up!! You lift a lot of weights in the gym and build your body like this… But you can’t bear these 10 kgs of weight… (All look at him in confuse)
Arjun: 10 kgs???
Om: I’m saying about your darling sister’s weight only… (All are surprised to hear it from him…)
Ishu: (pulls his arm) What do you mean?? I’m 10 kgs?? Am I looking like that??
Om: I’m sorry… Are you less than that?? (Ishana is shocked again… While others started to laugh)
Ishu: Stop teasing me, Zulfi Singh Oberoi…
Om: I won’t, Miss Skinny…
All: Skinny??? (They laugh again)
Karthik: I agree with that, Om… Ishu maa is skinny… (Laughs)
Ishu: (fake anger) Karthik!!!
Tia: Stop teasing my skinny baby… Oops!! I mean Ishu baby…
Ishu: Di!!! You too?? (Sulks)
Shivaay: Hey… Hey… Stop teasing my sister…
Sid: Haww… We forgot the great SSO is here to protect our Ishu…
Swet: Ok… It’s enough of this teasing session… Let’s go back first… Our family must be waiting for us…
Annika: Yeah… Luckily, Shivaay already informed our family that we might not come back last night… Or, they must be worried by now…
Shivaay: Let’s go back now… I think we can find our way out now… (All started to leave from the forest)
Precap: Omkara to hurt Ishana!!!