Raghav was in the thick of overwrought, unswerving pertinacity and dilemma.
All together.

The iron gate before him was enshrouded with grime, and his eyes with anticipation. He had knocked the large door, with the knocker, twice yet there was no budge from the other side.

“Hope this turns out to be one." He let out a rough sigh."Mama was completely boozed out, I doubt if he told me the right address.” He muttered under his breath. While, there was no activity from other side, he knocked the door again. Finding, no response he did it again and looked at the lady beside him.

Gayatri all messed up with her own cluster of cogitation perhaps, her face was masked with a facade of sanguinity.

“Dada, Why are you knocking into an empty house? Didn’t you see the board on the wall?” A young man’s voice, descended down their ears, as both Raghav and Gayatri looked to their right. A youth with slight beard on his face, a shirt and Dhoti he wore, stood before his own house, probably.

The two travellers looked towards the place where he pointed, and then Raghav realized his fault. The board that had some lines written on it in the native language.

For rent.

Interested may contact :330-5436785

Alas!

A dejected sigh, escaped his mouth as he wiped his sweat occupying his face. Shutting his eyes, he gulped down his own saliva.

He hated Bijoy for this. Anyways, when did he ever like him?

Taking his lower lip between his teeth, he stared at the gate before him. Soon, his eyes darted towards the man who looked at them, with inquisitiveness.

Walking upto him, Raghav enquired,“Bhai, Do you know where does Kamal Babu, lives?

Kamal Basak?”

The young man looked at him. The house through which he now, peered at them, was a fairly moderate house with a large courtyard and a timeworn gate, as much as Raghav could see. Whereas, Gayatri with elusive strangeness, gazed at him for a good time. As if contemplating the boy present before them.
The man before looked at them, introspectively before asking.

“Your good name?” The boy asked, with frowned brows.

“I-I’m Raghav. Raghav Bagchi, from Kolkata.”

No one can beat the speed of light but as soon as the boy heard his name, he did.
With a slew, he turned back dreaded, and slammed the door in his face. Shambolic, he breathed hard and ran inside his house, as soon as he could.

Raghav was already raged. With his eyebrows pulled closer together and gritting his teeth, maddened and piqued at his behavior, Raghav banged the door, repeatedly asking the owner to open asap. Gayatri stood there numb to react anything.
She questioned her presence there.

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It was 8.30 in night.

The atmosphere was filled with moist and stubborn gale. Till one could look at, towards infinity the city was already shrouded in dark, and clouds hovered around the city, out of the blue.

Amidst the imbrogolio, stood Raghav and Gayatri, the two unknown people and some questions. Nevertheless, one might have already known about the other.

The large courtyard has lost its evening ambience and there stood mortals carrying various mein, comprehending the gentleman's arrival in their house.

“So, You say that she lives with us.” Before Raghav stood, an early sixties aged man, with blood flecked eyes and smokey grey hair. A pale white kurta and Dhoti, he wore. With his demeanor, he looked austere. “Look, young man.

We don’t know, who you are asking about. You’ve entered into wrong house." The old man—Kamal Basak— spoke with a smug face. " I think what you are searching for doesn't hang her hat here.You may go now. Don’t waste our time.”

Raghav took his lower lip in between his teeth, full of himself just because he was tired. Tired of the whole drama the man stood before his very eyes was displaying, the whole journey and the circumstances.
Moreover, his eyes darted towards the whole house, to search for the boy, who had slammed the door shut on his face. There's something brewing in there, he was sure.

“Your time?

And.. what about our time, you people are wasting?” Raghav spoke with anger making upto his posture. “Look. Look at this girl. She’s been there with me since morning, we don't know each other yet without caring about anything, without caring about whom she is travelling with and without a bit of hesitancy, she’s there helping me throughout and...

You say, we are wasting your time!?” An aggravated sigh escaped his mouth. While, Gayatri looked at the chaos before her, with a loss of responsiveness. “Kamal Ji, I know you are hiding your daughter. I very well know, I came to an exact location.

Why would that man slam the door on our faces, then?”

Kamal walked towards him, enraged and held his collar. His menacing orbs gazed into Raghav’s brooding ones.

“Will you go yourself or.. should I throw you out?” He spat his anger on Raghav.

“Before holding my collar, just know that, you don't own any right to do so, until and unless I get what I want." Raghav clenched his jaw, as he bitterly looked at the old man.

Kamal passed him a manipulative smirk,"One can only pretend to be a liege lord, especially when he has came from abroad and wear this tailored coat. But you can't become one. Mind it!"

Raghav frowned and glared at him,"But this doesn’t give you rights to disown me on the basis of my apparel. Don’t deviate from the main topic, Sir!"

"I came here to know about your girl, her whereabouts. Whom you've knowingly yoked with me." He stared at him.
"Leave my collar, I said!” Seeing a deeply enraged man before him, Kamal took back his steps while his gaze was plastered on his face. He let out a frustrated sigh and pulled his hair, sweeping his hands through the smokey grey hair.

Gayatri stood somewhere behind them. Her posture was injected with a driven agitation and guilt. The vicinity made her feel suffocated and her limbs would tremble in fear. Her eyes were focused on the family drama, when a hand tapped her and she looked to her left.

She didn't planned to see them. Again.

Kamal exhaled out his anger as he stared at him. Raghav on the other side, pulled his collar down as his intensest gaze was fixed on the other members around them.

“I know you all are lying and.. and..  I expected this.

But.. what I didn’t expected was a girl who waited for me for years and her disappearance, when I would return back to my home.” He spoke.

“We already told you, I've no daughter named Tori.” In all this time, Raghav had heard the same lines repeatedly. He was dead on his feet and what he wanted at that moment to knock the man before him down. A sigh escaped his mouth as he looked at the house, its structure, thinking what can be done next.

Having no option left, he took his bag deciding to leave. Kamal's back was facing Raghav’s.Raghav shut his eyes and then turned back. Maybe this is where his course of journey ends,only to lose in the end.

“Her name was Taarika.” A voice came out of nowhere. Raghav stood aback and soon turned to look at Kamal, his hand held his bag. But the owner of the voice was a lady, who stood in the corner, probably Kamal's wife. He then, looked towards the inner corner of the house, a young girl and the same boy whom he had encountered at first, talked in hushed voices.

“T-Taarika?” He then enquired.

“The one you are searching for is Taarika." It was when Kamal's voice held him rooted on the ground. “Tori was an endearment for her.”

Kamal turned around to look at Raghav, whose face had already lost its glory.

“My hate for you and your family runs deeper in my veins than my ego.” Kamal spoke and Raghav was staring at him, reading his demeanour. “..Because what your family did to me was terrible.

Your father, Ajit owns the deepest abhorrence within me. You are here, after several years only to kindle the flame into a firestorm." He spat at him."Tell me frankly, after many years, what brought you here?”

“Multitude of choices.” Raghav spoke with a straight face. His already disheveled hair looked wind blown. The environs looked no less than a film, where the main lead is struck in between some choices in a dark night. “Since my childhood, I’ve been tied with a knot which doesn’t loom large in my life. I wasn’t even aware what a marriage is. It didn’t matter to me, until I started growing up and it hit to me  one day, that there’s someone waiting up for me.

Actually, that’s what I’ve been told.

Why?

Why?

So that, my mind shouldn’t get carried away with any of the girl around me, when I was abroad. So that, it always remind me of an unknown and unfamiliar girl  who is already up there for me. Whether I like or not. Whether she like it. Or not.” He responded with a heavy heart. “Maybe, that's what my parents would've thought. I even don't know how she looks like to your surprise.
All because of that foul play of my father and you, Mr Kamal."

“My hands were tied when, I was not in my own country. But when, I’m here all I want is to meet her once because. . . that’s what I’ve planned once I reach here.” He added with a sigh in the end. His coat was in his hand and his off white shirt, was covered with sweat patches. “My mother denied to tell anything about her. She said that she went away with you the day we got married? My whole family knew nothing. But all I know, that whoever I meet, they pretend to know nothing about that girl, but in their hearts lied a secret which they deny to tell.

I don’t know why?

Why, when in all these years I was made to live with a fake conception, and then here I get a double cross?
Not that I'm too mad to live with a girl and marry her in abroad. But this betrayal scrunches up my heart.” He added. “I had to make certain choices when I came here. My family said that I’d become mad.”

Giving a halt to his words, he gazed at the family members. He felt out of sorts and felt lump in his throat. The vien beneath his neck, flicked as he gritted his teeth. There was silence in the ambience as there were, questioning eyes and minds.

“Now that you got to know that you are at right address, tell me, what will you do, if we show you our girl?” Kamal bellowed the man standing before him.

“Divorce.” He stated with confidence outshining on his face. “My signatures are already there. I just need her's. After that, we both can live peacefully.

I walked miles only to get those signatures done on this paper. When there’s no existence of this so-called marriage, why should we live in it?”

From the other side, he saw Kamal spatting anger at him, with an evil laugh which came out of blue.

“As if you were already living.” He smirked at him. “You speak like a lawyer already. But you seem a novice. One who is already entitled as Lawyer, he feels that he knows everything about law and will change everything in one day.” Kamal let out a sarcastic chuckle at him as Raghav clenched and unclenched his teeth.

“Anyways, jokes apart.

You really wish to meet her. Right?" Kamal stood with hands folded across his torso, passing him a challenging look. There was no reply from Raghav’s side.

"Okay then, I will give you this opportunity.  If you have will, then go and search her in this house. If you find her, we will see the power of your choices.” Kamal spoke out and not wanting to indulge more into war of words.

Raghav seemed to contemplate his words before keeping his coat over his bags, as he gradually walked towards the inner most room. He was tired by now, but when he was already in lion's den by choice, why not to show him his power. The relationships he staked in the name of meeting the girl, were the testimony of this visit.

He roamed and searched around the house, berserked. He wanted his search to end at any one of the room. Unaware of the another wicked play of Kamal.

Raghav was haywired and on the other side, questioning his lucidity.

Meanwhile,

“Kamal Babu,

Why don’t you tell this boy the reality? What’s the need to let him search our house?

Why don't-" Kamal’s wife spoke out, irked at Raghav’s actions as she was soon interrupted by Kamal himself. He showed his palm infront of her face, demanding her to stop. In response, she got Kamal’s scrutinizing gaze which spoke profound feelings of disquiet.

“He said he walked miles to search her. What’s harm in searching for some more time?”

✿✿✿

Gayatri looked at the wall before her, while her mind was preoccupied with chaos. She battled her eyelashes as the salty water cascaded down her eyes. The water travelled down her plump cheeks as she wiped them away with the back of her hand. Her other hand held a folded, crimpled paper.

Having no power to deal with the situation occurred a moment before, she came out of the house, only to sit on a bench nearby. The meeting with the old lady had given her potpourri of things to muse upon.

“Never look back to come here ever. Get lost!” A bang and stomping of feet was heard by Gayatri, breaking her trance. It was when she saw, Raghav’s pale and crestfallen face. He was pushed out from the house by Kamal.

Wiping her swollen eyes, she stood up and his eyes met with hers. Both were mingled with ruminating agony.

Amidst all the commotion which took place, he had nearly forgotten about the lady stood before him.

It was only 2 hours left, for the clock to strike 12. The road seemed deserted and the men were retiring back to their homes.
The air smelled moist and the thunder gripped the sky while the lightning dashed off. Gusty winds carrying the scent of the rain, across them.

Slowly he walked towards her, his eyes never left hers, comprehending several questions her tears held. Trapped within their own set of emotions, they felt bereft. Coming before each other, they gazed and he saw her sniffing as well as averting her orbs.

Unable to form their thoughts into words, they stood quiet for sometime.

“May I know the story behi-" Inhaling some air, he spoke but she cut him, before even he could question about her tears.

“So, did you know where is she? Your wife?” She spoke with her slightly cracked voice as she faked a pint-sized smile. With the back of her palm, she wiped the tear stains.Next moment, she saw him sit down with a thud on the bench. Raghav looked as if his whole soul was snatched away. No words came out of his mouth. Her eyes were still watered and after sometime, getting no reply from him, gradually made her way towards the bench.

“Today, the whole fracas made me feel as if, I was in a game and while searching for the quest, I lost myself.” He said with a dejected tone.

She looked at him, bereft of words. The paper in her hand was crumpled a little more as she tightened her fist a wee bit.

“I hated her very presence in my life. My own stubbornness brought me here and in the end of this whole fuss, all I could get to know that they are unaware of her whereabouts.” He sniffed as he stared at his palms."I came here only to know, that she's d-dead."

“By the way, Where did you go with that old lady? You kno-"

“I know them.” She spoke out shutting her eyes, while her face was turned around.

“You know uh—Why are crying?

Did someone said..” He trailed as he saw her with a taut face, deprived of any sensation. Something wasn't right, and shiver passed through him, as a sense of fear crept inside him. Gayatri sat beside him, lost into oblivion. Raghav had to shook her to bring her out of her reverie as, she slightly shuddered.

"The obnoxious hues had already enshrouded that night. Unaware if her destiny, the little girl sat beneath the small roof, bedecked in a vermilion raiment. Her eyes held unimaginable thirst for freedom and her heart was already wailing. She was thrown as a bait in a wicked play of the humans and all her best friend could do was to see her with a dim, stupid look-" She trailed as she looked at Raghav. His face was full of dilemma and curiosity.
“Raghav, Why did you come back again?"

Raghav felt bereft of words. He needed to know who the lady was, before him. With a tone, which was already succumbing by the roaring clouds, he asked.
"Who are you?"

"I do feel we better be strangers." With that she got up and decided to make a move, only to be stopped by him.

"You know Tori?" Raghav exclaimed as he stood before Gayatri. "Tell me, at instant!"

“You brought me back to those memories again, Mr. Raghav Bagchi, which took me years to pull through." She gazed at him, with a perfervid sentiment.

"Tori was like my half soul. Her inexistence has already ripped off my half soul away.

She was my best friend." She spoke looking at him, with watered eyes. In frustration, he ran his hand through his hair. Meanwhile, his eyes caught a paper lying on the bench beside him, as he sat, jaded.

When he took it in his hands, the first words were the last thing he had decided to come across. The words he saw left him flabbergasted at instant.The day had many hidden surprises for Raghav and they were coming like slaps on his face.

It was when, she turned around and saw the paper, which she had accidentally left behind. Before he could open it further, Gayatri had snatched the paper, basically it was a letter. A letter which the old lady has given her. A loud bang occurred in the background.

His eyes held astonishment and hers pain.

“I know you’ve many questions to ask but I feel this matter should be buried here itself. Don't just pull this through your whole life.

My friend Tori. Whom I loved the most is dead now. The world knows her dead now.
That's a fact!

My God! My heart wrenches at this very thought, everytime I remind myself of her." She said."And everytime, I have that girl in my mind.” She saw Raghav getting up, with a sagacious straight look.Raghav had no words to say at that  moment and his head was spinning.

“..and, I've no secrets in my heart about T-tori.” She wiped her tear stricken face and turned around, quoting her last words. Thereafter, she never wanted to see his face. Never wanted to remind herself of this journey. Never wanted to remind herself of Raghav. Because his very face, was now haunting her and did for a long time.

“Will you never meet me again, Gauri?” Her heart skipped its beat as she haulted on her steps. The very name brought her memories back. The very name, passed jitters through her bod.

She looked at him, with a slight painful smile.

“I wish we never meet again.” She answered, dolorous with the developing eventualities.

“Stop.” His voice ragged. “Please, Gauri.”

"Never try to search for me. Nor Gauri. Because, Gauri died with Tori. It is Gayatri who exist now.

Don’t make me your next search.”

She turned and trodded ahead, when she fell some water droplets on her shoulder. It was raining. She looked towards the sky which had turned dark and calagonistic as if it had taken the cue from the scene before it.

Soft tears made down through her eyes, as she roughly wiped them away. Among the rain showers, her heart wailed too loud.
Why did she had to meet him?

Something reminded her, and she turned again to see him. He was sitting with a ruminative, distressed self, soaking himself under the rain, which got fierce within some minutes.

“My ardent apologies for resting my head against your shoulder, today. It was never intended.”

She got lost somewhere in the dark and it was all deserted town in front of him. Darkness all over and he was still, sitting under the rain. Tears were unable to make their way out.

He felt as if his soul broke into million pieces and the rain was doing no good to him. Never knew that revelations would stagger him in this way. It was better that he had never came to this city.

Her words were a persistent chaos in his mind. However, the name he saw on the letter had caused him more anguish. Fraught, he had met her. Met her in search of someone else.

Gauri/Gayatri.
Something he saw on the letter which was held by Gayatri.

It was all unexpected that, he had met the girl whom he had known as Gauri. Unaware her actual name was Gayatri.

Several questions lay ahead him, which seemed inexplicable. The journey had given him much, but at the end of the day, it had given him what he had ever imagined. The parabola of gaiety were replaced by the parabola of glum.

Meanwhile, Raghav and Gayatri were yet again, strangers.

... And he was still the same, a lost traveller.

•••

The end.

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Just Kidding! ;)

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Anyways, the story is yet to begin. A segment of the story is complete.
I hope this chapter was upto your expectations. Thanks to all those who are constantly motivating me with their votes and comments!

Apologies for the delay. :)
Don't forget to share your feedback!

(I don't own any authority over the addresses and phone numbers, I've mentioned in this story.)

Will Meet you soon with next chapter.
Love!