Zipping the suitcase close, Khusi sighed tiredly, pushing herself to her feet. Her eyes raked over the almost empty guest room, in which she had shifted to 3 weeks ago, since the day Bhaskar made the relentless disclosure.

Till day before yesterday there were numerous boxes lying around the room, carrying all of Khusi's stuffs. The truck driver had come yesterday and took everything away, already starting it's venture. 

Khusi was lost, empty and dead from inside. Her tears had stopped pouring in the last few days, after crying on several occasions, specially seeing Sanjana in her apartment getting pampered by Bhaskar.

Both the women hadn't talked to each other. Sanjana felt ashamed that she uprooted a family apart, and Khusi, though loathed Sanjana, couldn't bring herself to blame her entirely.

You can't clap with one hand.

Khusi hadn't bothered to contact her parents, nor knew whether her in-laws were aware of the situation. Though she highly doubted they would be concerned about her.

Swallowing a painful lump down her throat, she took the final item that belonged to her. A picture frame, containing her and Bhaskar's picture, captured on their 1st anniversary. Fresh tears swarmed in Khusi's eyes and her face scrunched into an ugly frown as she slumped down on the bed and sobbed silently for her loss.

She wasn't just leaving her husband behind, she was leaving the love of her life behind. The love with whom she had dreamt of growing old and sharing her happy years.

Perhaps, in another life.

*******

Walking out of the room, Khusi took a deep breath. She had vowed to never cry infront of Bhaskar the day he broke her heart. He wasn't worth her tears.

A calendar notification pinged on her phone and she quickly checked it, her eyebrows furrowing as a cynical smile appeared on her lips.

17th February. Her wedding date.

A scoff left pass Khusi's lips. It was quite ironic that she was getting divorced on her wedding date.

Grasping the telescopic handle, Khusi pulled the trolley down the hallway, another bag tucked on her shoulders. 

"She doesn't want any alimony, she had made that clear."

"Okay, the fake documents regarding Khusi and you living separately from last year is also prepared ... " 

Voices rang from the living room, one belonging to Bhaskar and another to Mohit, their divorce lawyer and Bhaskar's friend. She didn't know how Mohit managed to prepare the legal documents so fast, but she was thankful to him.

Tolerating Bhaskar and Sanjana was getting devastating for Khusi, every passing day. Her heart had silently bled.

The moment she stepped in the living room, the voices disappeared, welcoming Khusi with booming silence.

Three set of eyes zeroed in on her. Sanjana excused herself grabbing a glass of juice, her eyes downcasted, and walked into the room which used to belong to Khusi for the last 3 years. 

Bhaskar shot up on his feet, and his friend Mohit passed Khusi a thinned lip smile, which Khusi didn't return.

"Khusi, here, have a seat."

Bhaskar was about to touch her shoulder when she quickly jerked herself back, passing Bhaskar a seething glare.

"Mrs. Goswami. You need to sign here." 

Khusi sat down beside Mohit on the couch, her fingers tremoring as she grasped the pain in her hands. Her stomach clenched violently and her palms started sweating as the gravity of the situation set in.

She was signing her divorce papers. A permanent separation for the one man she had ever loved in her life. Her heart beated furiously against her chest and she fisted her dress, unable to stop her quivering hands.

Bhaskar saw the contemplation on Khusi's face and he knew how to handle it. Mohit silently stood up and let Bhaskar sit beside Khusi.

For a tiny spam of time, Khusi eyes settled on Bhaskar, looking for what, she didn't know. Hope maybe? A sign, any indication that he too would be in terrible grief with Khusi's departure.

But the last rays of hope disappeared as soon as Bhaskar uttered his next words. It felt like harsh slap against Khusi's cheeks, as if someone had poured a bucket of ice water on her.

"Don't you love me Khusi? Didn't you say you can easily give up your life for my happiness? This is the only thing I want Khusi. Only thing which will make me happy. Your signature on those papers."

Khusi didn't need to be told twice. Harshly wiping the tears that had leaked down her cheeks, she morphed her face into a cold look, every sign of any emotion vanishing from her visage, and signed the documents bitterly.

When it was time for Khusi's departure, Bhaskar decided to see Khusi off. Sanjana stood on the balcony of the apartment, looking down at the result of her blunder from the third floor.

"Where are you going exactly?" Bhaskar asked, as he tried to grab her trolley, for loading it in the dickey of the taxi. Khusi didn't give him any answer and loaded the suitcase herself, after dumping her bag in the passenger seat.

"Don't forget the deal." That was Khusi's last words to her ex-husband, before the cab roared to life and left the apartment premises.

Pulling the old sim card out of her phone, Khusi threw it out of the car window as it rode over a river bridge, and inserted the new sim card she had got just a few days ago. 

*******

The cold crisp air slapped against Khusi's cheeks, as she rubbed her gloved palms and tucked them beneath her arms. The sun was up a long time ago, but the day was dull and stygian.

"Mrs. Khusi?" A voice rang behind Khusi and she swiftly turned backwards glaring at the ward boy who was standing there with a broom and mop.

"That's miss Khusi Mukherjee," Khusi clipped, glowering at the boy.

"I am sorry ma'am. I assumed you might be married cause you've vermillion on your hairline and sakha pola clasped around your wrist. Um ... your quarter is ready," the teenage boy stammered, taking a step back.

(Nuptial bangles in Bengali culture)

Without bothering to reply, Khusi sauntered away from the balcony and strode inside the quarter arranged by the school authorities, slamming shut the door. Her harsh gaze fell on the set of bangles around her wrist and she brutally yanked them off, flinging it across the room.

Dumping her luggage on a chair, she sat down on the iron bed, the bedsheets icy. Goosebumps pimped on Khusi's body, a notification from the bank pinging on her phone. Her new account was verified and the old one was closed.

Sighing deeply, her eyes fell on the window of the room. Pushing herself on her feet, she touched the window pane and hissed at it's iciness. Dead and crispy branches of trees slapped furiously against each other, and snow started raining down the sky.

She was stuck here, alone and deserted. Despondence and melancholy enveloping the city.

The iron bed creaked as soon as Khusi slumped down on it and cupped her face. Tears were threatening to break out of her eyes, but she shook her head, her nose flaring with emotions choking her. Her throat tightened with a lump forming in it.

How ironical it was that she hated wintry and chilly places , but now, had no choice but to live in one.

*******

Vote and Comment, 🌟💬

if you're liking my story. 🥰😇

See'Ya ❤️✨