Being pregnant was getting tough on her. Her mood swings was so evident to Arvi that she refused to enter the room and talk with her. But seeing what Meghna was going through to bring my progeny into the world certainly gave me a greater appreciation of her. I wanted to be there as much as possible but I couldn’t get any leave from college. I wanted to do whatever I could to help our little kiddo come into this world, kicking and screaming like a champ.
Five months passed, when I finally managed to get a leave from college. I tried to help her through the morning sickness which was perhaps the worst part of pregnancy. Moreover it was getting difficult to get her to eat something cause mostly whatever she ate, she felt nauseated.
There were days when we would discuss about the future of our baby. The possible names, trying to guess if it were a boy or a girl. One Sunday moring we went to the shopping mall in the nearby town to buy a bassinet. It was so beautiful, with a springy swinger, to rock the baby all day. I often found arvi , play with her doll in the bassinet while none of us were in the room. Everything was going pretty normal. VERY NORMAL.
One morning I got an unexpected call from the college. One of my colleague had died in a car accident. I immediately rushed out after giving Shanti necessary directions about the medicines, and also to take care of her. I left, never expecting the obvious.
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I drove as fast as I could. Seeing the uncountable number of missed calls from our landline,I called her thrice, she didn’t pick up the phone. I wondered if things were alright. When I reached home, the entrance was locked. Fortunately, I had the key. The living room was darker than ever, I almost tripped over the coffee table. Lost in the blinding darkness, I kept calling her, every now and then tried my best to reach out to her, but …….
My cell phone was ringing, I took a moment to realize that. An unknown number kept blinking , THE DEVIL’S MESSAGE.
Me: Hello.
“Dadababu, its me.”. I recognized shanti’s voice , choked and terrified.
“What happened Shanti, are you alright. Is Meghna okay? Where are you people?”
“We are at the local hospital dadababu. Please come fast.”
That was all… I heard. The phone was dead. A pretty perfect time for my battery to die. I knew what to do next, but I didn’t know what to do after that. My inner fears struggling with my physical sense of responsibility which forced me to go.
“There is no hurry. Perhaps the worst has come true.” I thought as I was driving through the lonely and peaceful night.
Night had fallen fast upon the land. No more than hours ago the sky was painted with hues of red, orange and pink, but all colour had faded leaving only a matt black canvas with no stars to be looked upon. The darkness was thick and the headlight of my car hardly lit the path .
Other than the darkness and me, all that seemed to exist was the chilly wind that’s harsh bite could be felt through my cloak. I could feel the hairs on his arm raised and the bite of the wind had left its mark in the form of small bumps that were tingling on my arms, but its bite was more than flesh deep.
Shanti stood at the gate, with Arvi in her lap. Her eyes bore a testimony that she had been crying for a long time. Seeing me, she immediately controlled herself, and spoke in the same choked voice.
“Dadababu, I am sorry. I couldn’t do my duty. I couldn’t take care of didi when I should have.”
“Is she fine?”
“She is but…”
“But?”
“The BABY…”
I couldn’t stop for her to complete, and rushed towards the emergency ward.
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