These are important things you need to know for the story, please read this. They won't be mentioned again unless it fits inside the story: 

1) Many asked what Soham means. It can be taken as a word in Sanskrit -- or rather, special sounds which are connected. It holds a beautiful and deep meaning. When you breathe and become one with things around you... it is defined by a mantra Soham, saying that whoever breathes life inside me and I are one. 

2)  Anirudh and Bondita look the same as their past lives to us and to each other, but to the world, they will look a little different. Perception lies in the eyes of the beholder. 

If you want an example of this, in the latest Matrix movie (Matrix 4), Neo sees himself and Trinity the same way they recognized each other in the past because their soul knows the essence, the truth. However, the way that they look to others is completely different. This point won't be explored in too much detail, so you can just take it as they look exactly the same to each other. 

3) Coronavirus doesn't exist in this world, so don't worry about this here. No masks or social distancing is necessary. 

-- 

"Pati Babu, promise me," she begged, "Promise me that we will meet again." 

He took her hand in his tightly and he told her, "I promise. If this is the end, then we will definitely come back to love each other." 

Tears were in their eyes, but their faces were blurry. It was too hazy to see exactly what was going on. 

"I'm not done living with you. I'm not done loving you," she sobbed. 

He reached to wipe her tears as he leaned closer to her to kiss her. 

Before his lips could touch hers though, Bondita woke up, shivering, her heart beating fast, suddenly wanting to cry. 

Was that a dream or a nightmare? 

Bondita had been having these kind of dreams ever since she was a child, and they just didn't seem to go away with time.

She sat up on bed and rubbed her arms fearfully. 

"Pati Babu..." she whispered the name the woman took in the dream, shivering, the name rolling off her tongue almost as if it was familiar.

Why didn't these dreams go away? Who were these people? Why did they keep coming back, and why was all of this making her so emotional? 

She took deep breaths and said to herself, "Bondita, calm down." 

It was just a dream... 

She glanced at her clock and saw that it was almost seven in the morning. It was time to wake up anyways. 

Bondita got off her bed and went to get ready for her day. 

They lived in a house in Malda, West Bengal. It was big enough for those who lived in the family -- five members, but it wasn't huge. They weren't very rich, and sometimes struggled to make ends meet. 

When she went downstairs, her Mami was cooking breakfast in the kitchen, while her Mama was sitting at the dining table, reading a newspaper. He was dressed up to go to work. 

He cousin brother Prabodh, who was a few years older than her was also sitting at the table, peeling potatoes for his mother. 

The entrance to the kitchen was an open archway, so Mami could see outside and communicate while she cooked.

"Ah, there she is," Mami said, referring to Bondita, "Late as always. It's because of her we're struggling, and she comes down so late all the time." 

Bondita stopped feeling bad with time. She had gotten used to the taunts. 

Ever since her parents passed away when she was young, her Mama and Mami took her responsibility. Her Mama was her mother's brother, and her Mami was his wife. 

"What is the point of even sending her to university?" her Mami went on, "We should have just gotten her married off." 

Although her Mama never really taunted her, he also hardly defended her. Even today, he just stayed focused on his newspaper. 

Bondita bluntly asked, "Mami, why is marriage the solution? Why don't you feel like after educating me, I can make money, and help this family?" 

"Always talks back!" Mami huffed. "Only argues!" 

"Or alternatively, I can find a job, and make a living for myself. I won't need to live with you anymore. Why do I need to get married?" Bondita asked, frowning, "We are given so many opportunities, how can you resort to something like marriage to get rid of someone?" 

Mami glared at her and hissed, "Will you stop arguing! Only Durga Maa knows where she gets that from, because neither of her parents fought like this!" 

Bondita furrowed her brow and was about to say something, when her cousin Prabodh just said, "Maa, let's leave her alone." 

"Does she leave us alone that we need to leave her alone?" her Mami snapped. 

"Sumitra, please," her Mama said, "My ears are hurting." 

This was the most her Mama ever came to her defense. 

"I always cook for her, we pay her bills, take her burden, and when we are looking for a chance to marry her off, she just argues..." her Mami went on. 

That was when her other cousin Timsy came downstairs, yawning, still in her pyjamas. 

"My princess has woken," Mami said happily, and Bondita rolled her eyes. 

Mami didn't even try to hide her affection for her own daughter. Timsy was 20 years old and just a year younger than Bondita -- no matter what Timsy did, it was always correct and perfect to Mami.

"Come and sit, you must be hungry," Mami said, coming out of the kitchen and  wrapping an arm around her daughter's shoulder, trying to seat her down on the table. 

"Mummaaa," Timsy whined, "Are you making the same parathas again? I don't like it!" 

"Beti, I am making something separate for you," Mami said, making Bondita roll her eyes again. Then Mami turned to look at Bondita and said, "If it weren't for Bondita, then I would have made your food sooner. She never comes down fast enough." 

Bondita furrowed her eyebrows, wondering what connection coming down quickly had to do with Timsy's breakfast. 

She was about to say something when Prabodh, her cousin brother stood up and said, "Bondita come with me." 

"Huh?" she asked, confused. 

"Instead of always hanging around with Bondita, you should do something with your life!" Mami snapped at her son, "You're 24 and you still don't have a job! Do you know the neighbour's son got a job at 22 at one of the most reputed firms in the country?" 

Prabodh winced, and Bondita could tell that he was hurt by Mami's words. Although Mami loved her son very much, she was also very afraid for her son's future, because he was having a hard time securing a job.  

"Just come," Prabodh urged, ignoring his mother, and went over to Bondita, placing a hand on her shoulder and leading her out. 

He lead her out of the front door, into fresh air, and he just took a deep breath. 

"I thought you needed to get away from there for a bit," he told her with a smile. 

"Thanks Dada," Bondita said, smiling back. 

In the whole family, only Prabodh tried to take stands for her. Ever since she was young, she had felt a connection to him more than anyone else. 

Prabodh reached into the pocket of his shorts and took out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. He removed one from the box and placed it in his mouth, lighting it. 

Bondita frowned when he smoked. He took the cigarette out of his mouth and offered it to her. 

"Want to try?" he asked her. 

Bondita shook her head. 

"It smells disgusting and it's terrible for your health," she told him, "You should stop too." 

"What can I do Bondita? I have nothing to hold on to," Prabodh said. 

"Dada, I don't feel like that's a reason to turn to these things. If you feel like you're struggling, and you're trying your best, then be happy that you're doing your best. The results were never in your hands," Bondita told him reassuringly. 

"Then whose hands is it in?" Prabodh asked, shaking his head. 

"I don't know. I'm still figuring it out. But I don't think we are so great that we can determine what is best for us. I'm sure there's a reason for all of our struggles," Bondita told him, and she smiled, "But don't worry. You will do well. I'm sure of it!" 

Prabodh just sighed. 

"I have to go and study Dada. My final exams are going on," Bondita said, and then she went back inside to grab her books and laptop to leave. 

When she got ready to go out and placed all her belongings in her backpack, she went downstairs, clearly about to head out. 

Nobody asked her to eat before she left. 

Again, this stopped bothering her a long time ago. 

Bondita went to her best friend Rimi's flat. 

"Mom and dad are at work," Rimi said when she opened the door. "Come in. Did you eat?" 

Bondita shook her head, as she followed Rimi to her room. 

Rimi was her age, and they were both studying the same course -- psychology. They would be graduating from their bachelors soon. 

Rimi was very beautiful, and a lot of boys gave her a lot of attention, but it was very rare for Rimi to hold her attention on one. Whenever Bondita asked about it, Rimi always said, 'variety is the spice of life!' 

"I'll order something," Rimi said, opening her food delivery app on her phone. 

Her laptop was already open on her bed along with some notes. 

"I'll pay for it," Bondita offered, but Rimi shook her head. 

"No babes, I got it," Rimi said, "It makes me feel good. For some reason, I keep feeling like I owe you something." 

Bondita didn't know how to respond. She just smiled gratefully at her best friend. 

Their burgers and fries came fast, and the two of them were munching on them, as Bondita turned on her laptop on the carpeted floor of Rimi's room, opening her notebook as well. 

Rimi was eating and scrolling through Facebook, when her eyes widened and she gasped, "Holy shit!"  

"What happened?" Bondita asked, looking up at her. 

"This guy..." Rimi said. 

"Huh?" Bondita asked curiously, going over to Rimi and sitting on the bed next to her, glancing over at the laptop from beside her. 

Rimi was reading the comments on a local news page on Facebook. 

There was an update titled: A woman files lawsuit over employer for pay gaps between her and male employees. 

"In general, we get paid less than men for the same job," Rimi was saying, "I've only seen women raging... but this man... he sounds more upset than all of the women there."  

In the comments section, other than the outburst by many women, there was one man in there. 

Anirudh Roy Choudhary. 

"Anirudh Roy Choudhary?" Bondita asked, "Didn't that man live last century?" 

They had learned about some great people of those times in history class when they were in school, but the curriculum never went into too much depth about Anirudh Roy Choudhary, or his wife Barrister Babu Bondita Anirudh Roy Choudhary. 

Most of those days, she was absent because she had caught a very bad flu. She had to be hospitalized for two weeks and couldn't even attend school. 

When she returned, the only piece of information that Bondita remembered was that the Bondita and Anirudh from history hadn't lived very long. They had a short life. 

However, she never paid attention to the details. 

The history classes about the 1900s focused more on aspects like partition and independence, so that was where her focus went towards when preparing for exams. 

"Yeah, I never paid too much attention in history class, but I guess it can be a common name," Rimi said with a shrug. 

Bondita read the comment beside the man without a profile picture. 

Anirudh Roy Choudhary had written: 

Wow, we are living in the 21st century, yet there is still a huge gap in the rights of women. How does this make sense? Did the ones before us who worked hard to make a change not do it correctly? This place is absolutely messed up! 

This is WRONG!

Wake up everyone, WAKE UP. FIX THIS. If you can't treat women properly, the women who gave BIRTH to us, then do you think we can have a good nation? 

Without proper VALUES AND MORALS WE CAN'T! HOW DARE THIS ABSURDITY HAPPEN!!! 

Bondita blinked a few times, a small smile appearing on her lips. The anger and obsession towards changing society sounded familiar. It felt like home. 

Why did she suddenly feel alive after reading this? 

Rimi noticed Bondita's reaction and asked, "Should I message him? You seem to like him." 

Bondita blushed slightly, and said, "Of course not... I was just surprised that a man was standing in our support. It's not very common." 

Rimi laughed and said, "Come on Bondu, you are blushing!" 

Bondita's wanted to hide her face behind her hands! What was this feeling? 

"But what about... him...?" she asked, referring to someone else. 

Rimi scoffed and said, "Who cares? You hardly see him. It's barely anything." 

Bondita murmured, "But still, it's something. How can I do that to him?" 

Rimi rolled her eyes and just said, "Fine! You be stubborn! I'll message this Anirudh Roy Choudhary for myself then!" 

Bondita felt a little uncomfortable, but she didn't say anything to stop her. 

Rimi wrote: 

I saw your comment and I felt truly connected to it. You're an amazing man. I would love to have a chance to talk to you some more. 

"I'm sending it!" Rimi said, "Do you want me to mention you?" 

"No," Bondita said, shaking her head nervously.

"Alright fine, I guess I'll flirt with him for myself!" Rimi said, making Bondita feel like there was deep pit in her stomach.  

"How do you even know if it's really a man?" Bondita then asked, suspiciously. "He doesn't even have a profile picture!" 

"It sounds too good to be true right?" Rimi asked. "That a man is advocating for us women, and actually seems to understand our plights?" 

"Yeah..." Bondita admitted. 

"But Bondu, it's a risk I'm willing to take! You've backed out, but I'm going to pursue him," Rimi said, looking at her best friend with a slight giggle. "If you change your mind, let me know. I'll give him back to you!" 

Bondita rolled her eyes in response, and Rimi moved her mouse over the send button. 

Message sent. 

The message had gone to Anirudh Roy Choudhary. 

-- 

Precap: 

"We have proposals from many good families with good girls, who are worthy of being your wife," Anirudh's father was telling him. 

He was at his father's house, where he was being pressurized to get married. 

"Baba, I don't want to get married," Anirudh said firmly. 

"I don't mind it even if you were to have a love marriage, beta," his father said, "But don't keep yourself away from the possibility." 

"No Baba, I don't believe in love," Anirudh said harshly. "Love didn't exist between you and Maa. Love didn't even exist between her and her second husband either! I've never seen anyone who actually loves each other! When love never even existed in our own family, how can I believe in such a thing?" 

Anirudh heard his grandfather's frail voice in the background, as he said, "Love exists Beta... it did exist in our family... a kind of love where they fought for the world and for each other, they fought passionately, and even as they took their last breaths, they did not separate. This kind of passionate love existed in our family Beta..."

-- 

I hope you liked the first chapter! It was more to set the background and introduce you to some characters, but I promise it's about to get extremely interesting very soon! 

I've given a few hints about some mysteries in this chapter, and everything will unfold in due time. 

What are your predictions? I'd love to hear them! 

Do share your comments! Also press star if you're looking forward to more. 

I love you all! ❤️