History repeats itself. But in such a cunning disguise that we never detect the resemblance until the damage is done.
For a moment, Anirudh and Bondita were taken aback by the abrupt vehemency of the situation. They saw the metamorphosis of Mira's expressionless face. There was plain horror written on her when she had seen her reflection... and at that moment both Bondita and Anirudh realised the intensity of the damage... the sudden accidental damage!

"What did you do?" Bondita almost shrieked out in a suppressed voice.

Anirudh was still blank.
"I didn't... I was just trying to... Bondita I just... It's just ink!!".

"I know that Anirudh... She doesn't! She's a child!" Bondita replied back.

Anirudh hung his head low as the words cut deep into his mind, making every syllable count.

"I'll fix it... " He finally said slowly as he looked up to meet Bondita's eyes. "Don't worry... I'll talk to her."

Anirudh stormed out of the study as Bondita stood inside alone... She turned her face towards the bookcase and rested her head on the glass reflecting her beautiful shadow. She muttered an unheard prayed in silence.
'Hey Maa Durga... Please...!'

....................

"Miraaa..." Anirudh knocked at the guestroom door as he heard a soft voice echoing from inside.
"Come in." Mira had said softly.

Anirudh walked inside slowly as he saw Mira sitting on her bed, hurdled up, gathering her knees together as her chin rested on them. Her forehead was still smeared with the red ink that Anirudh had accidentally brushed on her.

"Mira... Why didn't you clean you face... Ink is chemical... It leaves strain!" Anirudh tried a make a conversation.

"So why didn't you...?" Mira blankly replied as her eyes pointed towards Anirudh's cheeks.

"I'll take a bath now... And Bondita has already gone for one." Anirudh paused. " Why don't you clean your face as well! See.. what I have got for you."

Anirudh handed her a flat glass bottle with some blue shimmery liquid in it.

"What's in it?" Mira asked curiously as her eyes were scrutinizing the content.

"It's called shampoo... It washes away all strains... You can also wash your hair with this... makes it smooth!" He added as his face reflected a radiant smile.

"Is this what Bondita didi uses on her hair?" Mira asked.

"Not exactly... She has her own bottle. This one is mine.." he smiled.

"Better" Mira replied as she took the bottle from his hand.

Anirudh slowly neared the bed and pulled a chair to sit beside her.

"Mira... I hope you understand what happened back there was an accident..." Anirudh spoke slowly, trying to choose his words with utmost care.

Mira nodded her head in silence.

"I don't want you to feel bad... I want you to understand that this is just a color... Like any other color... And you are free to wear and use this color as and when you wish."

Mira was quiet. She looked up at Anirudh's face, furrowing her eyebrows as Anirudh held her hands in his, trying to explain his point to her.

"Mira... I want you to understand that you were a victim of child marriage and child marriage is a sin... I don't believe in such marriages and hence to me you are not a widow." Anirudh paused as she stared blankly at his face.

Her straight expression was difficult for Anirudh to read. He had explained difficult concepts and ideas to Bondita before, and with such ease... Then why was it so different this time!!

He sighed deeply and started to speak again.

"So Mira... Tell me this... You want to eat a guava, so you get one from the tree... But, it was a raw one and you couldn't eat it... Then you threw it away, and called it a bad one, a poor one... So now Mira, is that the guava's fault?"

Mira nodded her head slowly.
"No... It's not..."

"Exactly... So do you understand now what I'm trying to say?" Anirudh asked excitedly as his excitement was subdued by Mira's expressionless face.

"Anyway... My point is... To me you are not a widow, because you were not married in the first place. Whatever happened to you when you were a child was a crime. So, I don't want you to think much about the red ink on your forehead. I don't want you to feel guilty about any colour that you wear because you are not a widow."
Anirudh stood up, confused about his own explanation, as he saw Mira sitting in her position impassively fiddling with the bottle of shampoo in her hand.

"Alright, so I'll leave then and you freshen up..." Anirudh said awkwardly as he briskly walked out of the door.

........................

"So did you talk to her?" Bondita asked Anirudh as she stood infront of her stand mirror, drying her dampened hair with a pink towel. She had just taken a bath and was wearing a knee length pink bathrobe.
Anirudh had knocked the door and insisted in coming in, as Bondita let him enter before she could change into something more conventional.

Anirudh was sitting quietly on the couch. His head lay back as his eyes were closed in thoughts. He hadn't cleaned his face yet and had come up straight to Bondita after his one way conversation with Mira.
"I did... I guess..." Anirudh replied without opening his eyes.

Bondita turned around at his answer.
"So? What did she say?" She asked.

"Nothing.." Anirudh replied as he exhaled a breath that was held for a long time.

"Nothing?" Bondita asked again. "What exactly did you tell her?"

"Well I told her not to feel bad... That child marriage is a sin and ideally she is not a widow... So she shouldn't have any inhibitions towards any colors in particular." Anirudh paused as he opened his eyes to look at Bondita.

"God... Bondita... You are so pretty..." He added.

"Uff... What else did you say?" Bondita pulled a chair positioning herself to sit infront of him.

"What? Bondita, I know it's a big thing for someone who considers themselves to be a widow, to get smeared by red color... She might had just thought it to be a sin... So, I explained that it's not a sin.." Anirudh explained again as his eyes tried to understand the restlessness in Bondita's expression.

"So you didn't tell her anything else?"

Anirudh shrugged his shoulders.

"Barrister Babu... You had smeared that red ink on her empty forehead... Do you even realise what it might have connoted to her young mind?" Bondita asked. "I've seen the way she looks at you... What if she starts to believe...." Bondita couldn't complete her sentence as Anirudh jumped up from the couch with a violent shudder...

"WHAT? Are you implying that.... Noooo..." Anirudh growled as he pressed his forehead firmly with his hands.

"Bondita... How can she!! She is a child.." Anirudh turned and looked earnestly towards Bondita.

Bondita was quiet as her eyes gave out a forlorn expression.
"She is a child with a child in her Barrister Babu." Bondita murmured instead.

"You know what I think of her..." Anirudh paused. " To me.. Mira is the sister that I never had..!"

Anirudh didn't wait to hear Bondita's response... And Bondita didn't speak either. She saw him storm inside her bathroom and he slammed the door with a loud thud.

Bondita sat silently as the splashing sound of the water grew inside the bathroom. She was contemplating the unforseen future as she suddenly heard the washroom door to open.
She looked up in surprise only to find Anirudh standing there with a bubble-clad naked body.
His expression was stern as he spoke to Bondita from inside the bathroom.

"Now... You either tell her we're to be married, infact we're married in a way... Or I'm going to drag you here with me and do inexplicable things to you...
And yes, I think we should be staying in the same room from now on!" He said as he slammed the door back leaving Bondita gaped at the combination of the view and the words.

......................
..........................

Guys,
Please let me know how you want Bondita to handle the situation without hurting Mira... !

Don't forget to vote and follow. ❤️