Unalome: It is a symbol for the journey to enlightenment. It kind of represents that the path isn't always straight, perfect or even the right direction. Our paths are often filled with missteps, lessons to learn and suffering before we get to our destination.

A beautiful soul on Twitter had posted this with a picture and I found it very apt for this story. Hence the name.

Now let's get into the story.

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"Sorry sir avangala kaapatha mudiala.", the nurse informed Surya who was too numb and wrecked by that point to even react to that shattering statement.

People always said that life was unfair but how unfair is something that no one ever talked about.

In a matter of few hours, his beautiful, happy and perfect life had crumbled into a meaningless black hole.

How do people ever accept reality when it was as brutal as it was to him at this very moment? How was he supposed to live after the girl who meant everything to him was dead?

It had always been their life, their dreams, their happiness, their sadness, their success and their failures. There was not anything in his life that did not include her. Not until this day.

So, why wasn't it their death and just hers?

What did he do to deserve this pain that would suffocate him just enough for him to keep fighting for his breath?

"Avangala vandhu paarunga sir...", the nurse tried to bring his lost soul back but there wasn't anything left in him to live this pain.

*Flashback in Italics*

It was love at first sight. He was in tenth grade when she had joined his school as an eighth grader.

"8 C Class ku epdi na ponum", the new girl asked, and he was happy to walk with her to the classroom she had mentioned.

"Anna nu lam koopdadha. I am Surya.", he introduced himself.

"Priya", she extended her hands which he was happy to take in his and that was their first touch.

A random meet had become the start of their forever. She was his serendipity and he was hers.

After 10 years of being in love, they got hitched an year ago in an intimate family ceremony and their first anniversary was just a day away.

He was at an important client meeting when she had called and immediately after he had called her back.

"Priya ma... Car la pogum bodhu call edukaadha nu evlo dhadava solradhu?" , he was deeply disturbed just like every other time she took calls when she was driving.

"Oru nimisham pesardhula enna aaga pogudhu?", she argued.

"Please ma...", and before he finished the thought he heard a loud sound and the call dropped.

*Flashback ends*

And now she was no more.

Maybe if he hadn't called her back, would she be alive?  Was he the reason she was dead?

He couldn't stop his spiralling thoughts from taking over his sanity. Replaying that split second decision a million times over, he was drowning in his own guilt.

"Enna en di Ipdi vitutu poita... nee illama na irundhu  inga enna panradhu?", he grieved and lamented to himself with no one to comfort or console.

***

"Avanga epdi irukanga sister", Nila enquired to the nurse who had stopped by to take her vitals.

Glistened eyes of the nurse were plenty for her to gather that girl who hit her was not yet out of danger and, that made her heart palpitate with tense and anxiety.

The nurse not knowing if she should just conceal the truth given the situation, stood muted for a good few minutes.

"Please sister... neenga ipdi edhuvum solama irukardha paatha.. enaku rombha bayama iruku. Please sollunga...", she implored.

After a lot of contemplation and making sure that her vitals were stable, the nurse decided to divulge the truth.

"Avanga erandhutaanga ma...", nurse informed Nila with grief.

Unable to process those words, Nila shook her head in denial.

"Sister summa solaadeenga... avangalku onum aagadu.", Nila was confident that it was a prank of some sort.

"Illa ma... avanga nijama erandhutaanga. Paavam ma andha ponnu. Yaarku Enna ezhudhirko... kadavul irukaara nu sandhegama iruku ma. Un vayasu dan ma irukum."

A sharp pain found it's way to her heart.

*Flashback in Italics*

It was an exciting day. One more day until she leaves to the US.

She was driving her two-wheeler, humming a happy song with the fresh scent of damp mother earth filling her senses.

Out of nowhere she was hit by a car and the next thing she knew was being out of the operating theatre as her wrist bone was deeply injured in the accident.

Only hours ago, she had been so angry on the person whose reckless driving had cost not only her future but almost her life too.

When she inquired about the situation, she had gotten to know that the car that hit her had actually saved her.

A truck out of control had hit the car after she fell and the woman who was in the car was now very serious and fighting for her life.

Though she hadn't met this person yet, she had saved her life and started to pray for her to recover.

All she wanted at that point was for the unknown fairy to be safe.

*Flashback ends*

She was no more. That girl saved her and in turn lost her own life.

A knife was ripping her apart and she couldn't scream. All she could do was feel cry her heart out.

"Na avangala....", she chocked as a lump of sorrow begun to close her throat. Unable to control her overwhelming emotions that were rolling into tears, she wept.

"Paak... paa... paaknum", she stammered.

"Ippo paaka mudiyaadhu ma ... avanga husband ippo dan paaka poirkaaru.", the nurse tried to convince Nila while she was bawling her eyes out with uncontrollable tears.

"Please kootitu ponga.. enaku avangala paakanum.", she whimpered.

Maybe if she had stayed home and not stepped out, maybe if she did not take that road, maybe if she had been quick to react, the other girl would be alive by now.

The nurse felt moved by Nila's incessant tears and now that her parents were away to bring her food, she agreed to take her.

After helping Nila onto a wheel chair, the nurse stared to push her towards the ICU.

"Purushana ipdi thavikka vitutu andha ponnu ipdi poiduche. Andha sir evlo paavam.", the nurse lamented her thoughts out in a low tone which only broke Nila more.

Why was life so unfair?

She had no answers. Just a million questions that will haunt her forever.

***

"Priya... vaa namma veetuku polam. Nee aasa patta madriye namba anniversary ku neraya surprise plan panirken... Va polam", Surya tried to wake his wife up and truly hoped that she would.

Miracles do happen they say and all he wanted was one.

Could he just wake up from this nightmare?

The door opened and a girl on a wheelchair with the nurse's help came in. She looked vaguely familiar, but his mind was in no place to think about that.

"Ivangala dan...", the nurse started but that was more than enough for Surya to understand that this was the girl his wife had hit.

He very well knew that his wife had been at fault. However, all he could do was blame the girl who was still alive, for taking away his most precious and treasured possession ever.

Before he could say anything, she started to speak.

"Ungalku enna paka pudikala... pudikaadhu nu theriyum.", she sobbed.

"Naa en uyiroda iruken... avanga en illa... enaku therila... avangalku badhila naa dan andha accident la sethurkanum... ", she grieved and agonized over the unacceptable situation.

"Avanga .... ", and without the strength to finish her thought, she fainted and lost her consciousnesses.

***

One week later, Nila was back in her room at her home but, her thoughts were still deluged with the face of a man who absolutely wished she were dead instead of his wife.

His eyes had accused her. Beneath all his tears, she saw that he hated for her to be alive and his wife to be dead.

"Nila maa.. ", her dad's soothing voice startled her.

"Appa", she tried to smile and sit up straight, but she was still too weak for that.

"Nee rest edukanum ma. Rombha mosama adi paturku. Operation aagirku. Elam seri aaga time agum... aana seri aidum ma", he caressed her head and comforted her, but she was too pre-occupied to hear even a single word of it.

Lost in her thoughts that she failed to notice that her mom had walked in.

"Enaku avara paakanum pa. Atleast dhoorathla irundhu...", she blurted, totally out of context.

"Nila ma.. nee indha accident lendhu veliya varnum na.. avangala pathi marakkanum.", her mom's voice broke her out of trance.

"Epdi ma marakardhu?", her voice cracked, and a tone tear slipped out of her eye.

***

It was exactly three weeks since she had left him forever. In a world with billions of people he felt all alone.

Being back at their home and knowing that she would never be here with him ever again ripped his heart apart.

Life without her was just void. With her memories flooding his thoughts, he hadn't slept more than an hour a day in the past three weeks.

His body was close to shutting down and unconsciously his eyes were closing down when the doorbell rang.

All he had was two friends in total and they have been frequently checking up on him. Even after he refused to take any help, they always showed up. Though he wasn't in the mood for any company, he couldn't really ignore.

He forced himself to get off the couch and walk over to the door.

After taking a couple of minutes to mask his agony and pull back his tears that were threatening to roll down at any moment, he turned the handle of the door.

The one person he never wanted to see ever again. The one face he wished to forget.

"Leave", he was about to slam the door on her face.

"Please", Nila's puffy, reddened eyes were pleading him.

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Thoughts?

Not sure if it's good. Have been wanting to explore a relationship that started with hate.

Hope it's Atleast decent 🙈🙈🙈

PS: For anyone who might have any confusion
AK as Surya
SK as Nila