Barmer, Rajasthan
1950

.......After 3 months

She was gazing into the mirror unblinkably trying to recognize the girl she is seeing in the mirror. Eyes which was full of glitter and mischievousness, which never stopped dreaming about her beautiful future with her husband her  family now has lost its charm, her natural blush now gone, isn't a newly wed bride glowing like a moon but in her case its vice versa her face has lost its glow as if she is mourning for someone's death... Can't they see the sadness in her eyes or they don't want to because they know it already and the reason too...yes they know, she can feel it, but they behaves like everything is going good and smooth just like any other married couple. But that's a white lie. She still can't forget what happened with her couple of weeks ago...that night, which changed every dynamic of her life, she was still thinking when she saw another figure in mirror. Sunidhi jeeji, that's what she calls her, her husband's first WIFE, her sorrowful eyes, she misunderstood that as the pain of having another women in her husband's life at first, she was wrong but now she understood that sadness in her eyes which shows the same pain as she has in her eyes now a days. They both are sailing in the same boat which is in middle of the ocean, don't know how to survive, only thing they can do is wait, wait and endless wait.

Sunidhi gave her a weak smile and was about to enter in Naina's room when gayatri devi comes there with their so called Husband, Kunwar Abhimanyu Rai Chauhan. "Sunidhi tum yaha kya kar rahi ho".?

"Wo maa saa Naina ke liye..." She stopped in between when Gayatri Devi eyed her as if warning her, of her mistake then Sunidhi quickly corrected her mistake "hamara matlab hai ki Sunaina ke liye khat aya hai shayad Rajpurohit jee ka hai"

"Hmmm....thik hai ye khat tum Abhimanyu ko de do wo apni patni ko de dega...tumhe or bhi kam honge..jao" She handed over the letter to Abhimanyu and left from there.

****
"Ruko Sunidhi" Gayatri devi stopped her her "tumse kaha gaya tha na ki Sunaina ke kamre mein dakhil mat hona fir bhi tum...chahti kya ho akhir tum kyu hamare bete ki khushiya barbaad karna chah rahi ho"?

"Ye aap humse keh rahi hai maa saa hum apne hi pati ki khushiya unse cheen na chahte hai!! Aur aap kya kar rahi hai maa sa kya apka jee hamari zindagi tabah karke nahi bhara jo uss bechari ko bhi aap log is daldal mein ghaseet laye"? Sunidhi said in astonishment.

"Sunidhi bhulo mat ki tum kis se bat kar rahi ho, apni zaban ko lagam do nahi to humse bura koi nahi hoga"

"App se bura koi ho bhi nahi sakta hai Hukum" she gave a sarcastic laugh "or Hum chahe bhi to kaise bhul sabkte hai ki ap kaun hai. Aap sachai ko bhul gayi hai shayad magar hum nahi!!! apki nazrein beshak apni jhuti shaan ki wajah se dekh nahi paa rahi hai lekin humne ba-khubi tareeke se dekh liya hai, Chauhaan khandan ki tabahi..chahe kitni bhi koshishe kar lijiye paap or jhut ka ghada ek na ek din zaroor bharega. Hamari to majboori hai lekin Sunaina usey abhi shayad ehsaas nahi hai magar jis din usey uske pankh mil jayenge na wo iss sone ki kaid ko tod kar udd jayegi or sath hi sath mitti mein mil jayega Chauhan khandan ka naam kyunki aap taash ke patto ka ghar bana rahi hai jiska bikharna nishchit hai, ab bhi samay hai iss honewali tabahi ko rok liye....iss pehle ki bohot der ho jaye". And she left from there leaving behind a speechless and fuming Gayatri Devi.

*******
Paranam Baba sa,

Apka khat mila, hum yaha khush hai. Sab humara yaha bahot ache se khayal rakhte hai or humse bahot hi pyaar karte hai hai. Abhimanyu bhi thik hai. Yaha humare bolne se pehle hi hamari har khwahish puri ho jati hai bilkul kisi rani ki tarah...haha kaise bhul gaye akhir ab bum RatnaMahal ki Choti Rani hai.

Lekin koi mahal, naam, rutba aur shohrat apki kami, laad, pyaar or dulaar ko pura to nahi kar sakta na...hume aj bhi wo din yaad hai jab apne hum jaise anath ko apne ghar me jagah di thi kya rishta tha apka or hamara kyu hume itna pyaar diya jab khud se alag hi karna tha to kyu hamesha ladkiyo ko hi apna ghar chorna padta hai kyu hum apke pas nahi reh sakte the? maa baap apni beti ko paal pos kar pyar dular ke sath bada karte hai taki kal ko koi bhi anjana ake apna hak jatake usey le jaye, ek hi jhatke me purane sabhi rishte kyu piche choot jate hai? Jab khud se alag hi karna tha to kyu itna pyaar badhaya kya hum itne bure hai baba sa?

Duniya ke liye bhale hi hum Sunaina Devi ho gaye ho lekin apke liye hum aj bhi apki wahi choti si gudiya hai apki Naina hai. Aapki bahoot yaad ati hai, agar samay mile to apni iss beti se milne ajaiyeg.

Apki Naina.

*********
"Makhan kaka ye khat hamre baba sa tak pahonchwa dijiye ga".

"Ji choti Rani, ho jayega"

"Makhan kaka hum apse naraz hai".

"Kyu? Maaf kijiye rani sa humse koi galati ho gayi kya? Hum maafi chahte hai"

"Dekha aap fir baar baar wahi galati dohra rahe hai,...humne apko kitni baar kaha hai ki hume hamare naam se pukara kijiye choti rani keh kar nahi aap bade hai hamare".

"Ye aap kya keh rahi hai, agar hukum ko pata chala to wo bahot gussa karengi".

"App unki chinta mat kijiye hum maa sa se bat kar lenge, ek kam kijiye jab koi aas pas na ho tab ap hume hamare naam se pukara kijiye".

"Ye thik rahega, Naina bitiya, ahh..hamara matlab hai Sun..."

Cutting him in between she said " nahi..Naina thik hai...itne dino bad apna naam sunkar acha laga aisa laga jaise kisi apne ne pukara ho" she said with sadness while he gave her a sad smile which she reciprocated "acha kaka ye to bataiye ki yaha aj kya ho raha hai hamara matlab hai ki itni saari mithaiya or pakwaan koi mehmaan ane wala hai.." she asked getting confused.

"Ha ane wale to hai lekin mehmaan nahi raja sahab ke bhateeje hai, unke mata pita ke dehant ke bad wo isi mahel me pale bade huye hai kuwar sa ke sath hi" he explained.

"Acha...lekin wo hamari shaadi mein nahi the or hamari shaadi ko 3 mahine ho chuke hai ab tak mile nahi...kya wo is shaadi se na khush hai ki hum unke bhai ki dusri patni..."

He cut her in between " arey nahi nahi bitiya ap galat samjh rahi hai, wo to dill ke bahot hi ache hai kabhi kisi ka bura tak soch nahi sakte hai or rahi baat unki unupastithi ki to wo fauj mein hai jis waqt apka biha hua wo sarhad par desh ki suraksha mein viyastha the lekin ab unhe lambe samaye bad chutti mili hai isiliye raja saheb ne kaha hai ki wo ab zada der na kare or fauran yaha chale aye, kal tak wo pahonch jayenge". He said all this in a excited voice.

Naina asked curiously " apne unka naam nahi bataya".

"Arey haa mein bhi kitna bhullakad hu sab kuch bataya diya lekin sabse zaruri cheez bata bhul hi gaya. Unka naam hai, Rajveer Singh Shekhawat". She couldn't understand why but his name gave her a ticklish feeling inside her stomach.