The chartered buses came to a stop in front of the Golden Palm hotel. Soon, everyone was standing in front of the hotel. Each supervisor made sure that they had the kids assigned to them and they made their way into the hotel in groups of four.
Khushi held Amber's hand in her right and Aditya's hand in her left and walked behind Arnav and the three kids assigned to him. Once they picked up their keys, they all made their way to their rooms to unpack and get ready for the list of events.
Angad walked into Kripa's room two hours after arrival. He'd brought Kripa, Anjali, and Arnav with him.
"Hey...Anjali will watch the kids. We need to discuss a few things before the show tomorrow." Kripa explained.
Khushi nodded and walked to the small conference room. The four sat down and got straight down to business.
"Alright so the show is going to be bigger than we thought. All the tickets were sold." Angad exclaimed. "I know the kids are ready for their performances but they're not ready for the media."
"Media?" Khushi wondered out loud.
"Yeah. It turns out that the owner of the hotel has notified the media of the event and the media will be here to cover it." Arnav explained calmly. "They just want to shine some spotlight on the good this hotel is doing by hosting this charity event and also on the big shots that have bought tickets for the show. They just want to interview some kids and some staff about our organization."
Khushi looked alarmed and went quiet. Kripa looked at Arnav and then at Khushi.
"Khushi...Aditya and Amber don't have to answer any questions. They will choose the kids randomly anyway."
"Adi, Amby, and myself. I don't want to be shown on TV in any manner...nor do I want my name or photograph mentioned in any of the newspapers or magazines." Khushi said flatly.
"But you..." Angad started but stopped when Khushi gave him a glance.
"I'll cancel it."
"Cancel what? " Arnav and Kripa demanded simultaneously.
Angad looked at Khushi apologetically. "The performances. She has one with Adi...and a solo..."
Arnav was surprised and didn't care to hide it from showing on his face.
Angad folded his hands on the desk and leaned towards Khushi. "You can't cancel them Khushi. Adi is very excited about it. And your solo is very important...there is a speech associated with it. And no one can learn it in one night's time."
"I'll do the performances as long as you somehow ensure that me or my kids won't be mentioned in the media."
"That will be difficult considering you that you're the manager of the place!" Kripa said, slightly annoyed.
"I didn't sign up for the media, Kripa!" Khushi lost her temper for a reason she couldn't fathom. "And if need be, I will resign from my post but there is no way in hell my children or I am going to be mentioned in the media."
"Khushi...try and be reasonable..." Arnav started but Khushi cut him off.
"Be reasonable? You want me to be reasonable?! This is all because of you! You know very well that if I'm mentioned in any of the Indian newspapers or news channels, the entire family will know where I am! You know that Akash will come here to find me! What do you think will happen when they find out about Amber and Aditya?" Khushi blurted out without realizing what she was saying.
She stood up in a huff and walked out of the cabin. The remaining three exchanged uneasy looks.
"Do you think she realized that she blurted that out in front of us?" Angad said looking at the exit Khushi had taken.
Instead of answering his question, Arnav stood up. "I'll work something out to make sure that the media doesn't get a hold of her, amber, or Aditya." He said as he walked out too.
Kripa looked at Angad. "How long is this going to go on? We need to tell Khushi that we know the truth."
Angad sighed heavily. "You know...I thought I was helping them but I'm not sure anymore...I feel like I'm making things worse."
'It's because we're expecting lies to support us. If we tell her the truth...maybe we can talk to her about things and try to clear some of the mess" Kripa explained.
"You're right...let this show finish...we'll figure something out."
On the day of the show, Arnav knocked on Khushi's hotel room a couple hours before the show. Khushi opened the door and frowned at him.
"I'm only here to tell you that I've taken care of the whole media reporters thing. I've talked to the camera crew for our show and they won't be recording any of your performances. The recording will be sent to the media channels so that they can take segments they want. The reporters won't be allowed in the show itself. Instead, we'll have a press conference right afterwards. You, amber, and Aditya won't attend it." Arnav shrugged, indicating that he'd finished talking.
Khushi blinked a couple of times to let all that information sink in. She nodded slightly once the words had registered. Arnav started to walk away.
"Mr. Raizada?" Khushi called out.
Arnav froze in his track and turned his body halfway to face her, expecting an outburst. Instead, she nodded at him again.
"Thank you." She said in a surprisingly gentle tone.
Arnav's heart merrily jumped into a sea of relief. He smiled slightly. "Just doing my job, M'am."
And with that he walked away. A ghost of a smile appeared on Khushi's face. She ushered herself and her children down to the hall where their program was taking place. Amber gave her mother a hug around her legs and joined Kripa in the audience. Prateek and Kripa went back stage to get ready.
Arnav, on the other hand, took a seat next to Kripa, feeling exhausted.
"I had no idea event management was so much work!" Arnav panted.
Kripa giggled. "You've done a great job with it. Now you can just sit back and enjoy the show."
Arnav turned to her to give her a look but his eyes caught amber looking at him. She looked intrigued.
"Oh hey." Arnav's exhaustion fled and energy filled his veins upon seeing his daughter.
"Hi Buddy. You're not dancing?"
Arnav shrugged. "You're not dancing?"
Amber shrugged just like Arnav had. "I don't dance. Mom and Adi do."
Arnav smiled to himself. Kripa smiled at him lovingly.
"She has taken after you." Kripa said quietly enough for just him to hear.
Kripa excused herself and walked away. Arnav took the seat next to Amber. "So what are they dancing to?"
"I don't know. It's supposed to be a surprise."
Arnav's next sentence was interrupted by an announcement by Kripa.
"Good evening ladies and gentlemen. I would like to welcome you all to the annual Hope Charity Event." Kripa paused to let the applause subside.
"I want to thank you all for showing your support and attending this event. I would also like to thank the owner of the Golden Palm, Mr. Khurana, for hosting this event."
Applause rang in the auditorium once again. Kripa gave a short introduction and the organization. She talked about why the show was important to them and what it would mean to the children at the orphanage.
"Now, every single performer has put in a lot of work and effort behind this and Mr. Arnav Singh Raizada has done a fabulous job of putting everything together! I hope you all enjoy the show. Let the fun begin!"
And with that the show started. Once Kripa had made the announcement, about fifteen kids led by Angad gave a stunning performance and earning a very much deserved applause. A few performances followed the opening performances and Arnav found himself getting a little restless. Where were Khushi and Aditya? Had Khushi changed her mind about performing?
But then his worries were put to rest with Kripa's announcements.
"And now a beautifully designed performance to portray how important the role of a mother is in a child's life...a mother becomes such a huge part of any child's life that even when she's not around, he's able to sense her presence...please put your hands together for Khushi Singh Raizada and her son, Aditya!"
Video # 1: Performance starts at 3:59)
As the two took a bow, Amber jumped out of her seat and clapped whole heartedly for her mother and brother. Arnav found himself speechless. He had no idea she danced so well. And He absolutely had no idea that Aditya had inherited that skill from her. Before he'd realized it, he was on his feet, applauding them too.
Kripa half ran across the stage to give the two a hug. After praising their beautiful portrayal of the mother-child relationship, Khushi and Aditya walked off the stage. A few more performances followed but Arnav's mind kept repeating his memory of his wife and son.
He snapped back into the presence when Kripa announced the last performance of the day.
"Please put your hands together once again for Khushi Singh Raizada and Angad Khanna!"
Arnav sat up straighter and glued his eyes to the stage.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCHlcuovaRA
Angad and Khushi walked off the stage without a word. The crowd was silenced by the intense performance. A single spotlight hit the center of the stage and Khushi reappeared.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubvsxcaWGG8
At the end of the performance, the crowd solely burst into applause. The stage stayed dark for a couple of minutes until a spotlight illuminated it.
Angad walked into the light. "Seems horrible doesn't it? And that was just a performance. There are hundreds of thousands of women who go through this in reality. Our goal was to just raise more awareness on the issue. A big number of these children in our centre are somehow related to domestic violence. Some were left here so that they could be free of the violent life. Some were left here because they were born out of such hatred. Some were left here simply because men didn't want to have that responsibility. We have someone here with us who wants to share her story with you all."
Arnav's hands clenched into fists. He knew it would be Khushi who would be sharing her story. He wasn't angry at her or upset with her that she was going to put this out in public. It was just that he wasn't ready to hear it from her point of view.
But to his surprise, it wasn't Khushi who walked onto the stage. It was Anjali.
"Good evening everyone. I don't know where or how to begin this. I haven't planned a speech because I wanted this to be as authentic as possible...straight from my heart. But I'm not sure the world is ready for that yet. I don't think the world is ready to hear about what it feels like for a woman to be beaten, to be used as a physical object to satisfy a man's needs, to be raped and then left out on the streets to die. There is no torture greater than this...especially when it's a loved one who puts you through it. The one who was supposed to love you, cherish you, and protect you. The one who vowed to keep you happy when you married him."
Arnav's heart was sinking lower and lower into his abdomen. What was left of his self-respect was leaving him slowly.
"Yes we hear of these assaults when it happens to a girl on the streets but women who are married and are put through this by their husbands rarely report it. Why? Sometimes it's for love, sometimes it's for the sake of their children. Sometimes it's to save herself from further shaming and sometimes it's simply out of fear. I was a victim of that fear. I didn't report him, I didn't confront him. Then one day I found out that I was carrying a symbol of his assault. Every woman is the happiest in her life when she finds out about her first pregnancy...I didn't get to experience that joy. Instead, I felt grief and hurt and pain because I knew that my first child would forever be a living symbol of what I've lived through.
So I took the weaker path. Rather than fighting for my respect, I headed to an abortion clinic. On my way there, I ran into a lady. As per her request I won't share the name with you but she was, is and will be my inspiration for going ahead in life. She told me her story. She went through something similar but the only difference was, when she found out she was pregnant, she had enough courage to leave and start a new life. She had enough courage to give birth to her twins and raise them to be angels. Now you can see me standing before, sharing this experience. It's not easy to do this but I want to for all the women out there who may be suffering from this situation! It's not impossible to escape. It's not impossible to live your own life. You just need to find the courage. You have the courage, just accept it and take a stand."
Kripa walked onto the stage with a few other staff members. "It all starts with a profanity. Then maybe a jab, a push, a shove...a slap...a punch...a kick...a murder. It's like a habit. The more you let it happen, the weaker it will make you. Majority of our children, like Angad mentioned, are left behind because of some reason related to domestic abuse. If we can minimize domestic abuse, we will automatically minimize the number of these children who have such an unfortunate childhood."
As the rest of them closed the speech, Arnav's ears were ringing. Tears were burning his eyes. He got up and started heading towards the washroom backstage. There he saw her. Standing at the edge of the stage, out of the audiences view. The rest of the performers were on the stage for their final bow. Khushi, however, was trying to wipe her cheeks with her hands.
Without thinking about it, Arnav walked up to her and held up his handkerchief. She looked up at him and had a sudden urge to embrace him and cry her heart out. Thoroughly disturbed by the urge, she stared at his face, not quite able to understand or explain the tears and pain in his eyes. Automatically, she took the handkerchief from him and dabbed at her face.
When she looked up to thank him for the hankie, he was gone. She looked around and didn't find him. Angad, Kripa, Anjali, Sur, Prateek, Amber, and Aditya showed up back stage for a group hug. Khushi joined the celebration of the success of their show.
"Okay guys! To the conference hall we go!" Kripa ushered them towards the hall were the press awaited them. Angad stayed back to speak to Khushi.
"Are you alright?" Angad asked her.
Khushi looked taken aback. "Yeah. I'm fine."
Angad placed his hands on his sister-like friend. "Khushi...you're a terrible liar, you know that right?"
Khushi gave him a sad smile. "I know. Sometimes I still try."
"So tell me...what's wrong?" Angad knew very well what she was bothered about. He just wanted her to come out with the truth.
"Let's talk later. You need to be at the conference. It's very important for our organization."
"You won't escape this, you know. I'll come pick you up after the conference. We'll go out. And don't worry about the kids. Kripa will watch them."
Angad gave her a quick hug and walked off to the conference hall. Khushi sighed and headed to her hotel room.
Just like he'd said, an hour and a half later Angad showed up at her hotel room's door. Khushi opened the door and started at him bewildered.
"What? I told you we're going out." Angad shrugged.
"Yeah. Anjali offered to watch the kids. The three of us need to go and party. We deserve it after all the work we've put into this organization!" Kripa chirped.
Khushi decided that it was a good idea to go and spend some time with her friends. She needed to distract herself. The entire time she'd been sitting in her room after the show, she couldn't erase memories of the past from her mind, nor could she stop remembering Arnav's tears backstage.
After Khushi had gotten ready, the three headed to the nearest nightclub. Angad ordered a round of shots for himself. Kripa took one and placed one in front of Khushi. Khushi shot her a glare.
"I know you don't drink. But one doesn't hurt." Kripa smiled like an angel.
Khushi shook her head and sat there. Angad and Kripa looked at her for a few seconds before exchanging a glance. They had made an entire plan and Khushi had very easily played into it.
"You know Angad...I agree that the show was great today but Anjali's story made me sad. Poor girl. She has gone through so much in life. Can you imagine someone else going through it?" Kripa said formally.
Khushi had an instant flashback of her own experience. Her hands clenched into fists. Kripa and Angad continued discussing the topic and it made it harder for Khushi to think straight.
The night had been rough for her to begin with and now this. She had come out to distract herself from these memories but now the memories were jumping in front of her eyes. At last, frustrated and broken by recalling and reliving her horrendous experience, she took the shot which was pleasantly sitting in front of her.
Kripa's eyes widened. Yes they wanted her to take the shot but she hadn't actually though that Khushi would do it.
Angad continued the drama. "Yeah. I'm glad she left him."
"But she still loves him you know." Kripa added oil to the fire.
Khushi took another shot and this time followed by two more. Before Angad and Kripa could make her remember anymore, Khushi was crying.
Kripa swore audibly. "Angad...make her stop. We were only supposed to let her drink enough for her to spill the truth to us! This is too much!"
Angad grabbed the 10th shot out of Khushi's hand and tossed it aside. "Enough Khushi! Stop."
"NO!" Khushi pushed him away. "You two are right! I...I need to get out of my shell! Kripa..." Khushi drawled, "You wanted to me to meet a nice guy right? You know what...I will meet one right now!" Khushi laughed and cried at the same time. "Right here! Watch me! Watch me okay? Watch!" Khushi sniffed and wiped her face.
She got off her seat and made her way haphazardly into the dancing crowd. Kripa started to follow but Angad stopped her.
"You stay here and do what you're supposed to. I'll go after her."
**
The next morning, Khushi woke up with a skull-splitting headache. Someone was banging at her door. She groaned and rolled out of bed only to realize that she was still in the clothes from last night. She squinted and tripped her way to the door. When she saw through the keyhole, she saw Angad giving her a huge toothy smile. She groaned once again before opening the door.
Before she could say anything, he dangled her room's key in front of her face. Khushi squinted and blinked until her eyes adjusted to the brightness of the hallway. Then, her eyes focused on the key.
"What the--. How...why...what?" Khushi took the key from him.
"I didn't know you could party like that Khushi! You're good. You need to stop being so rigid. Anyway...the buses are waiting for you downstairs. You have ten minutes to get ready. Your bags are already packed. Aditya and Amber are already downstairs with Anjali."
And with that, he walked off. Kripa put a hand to her throbbing temple and dragged her feet to the bathroom. She couldn't understand why she'd woken up feeling so crappy. In fact, she realized with an alarming slowness, she didn't remember what had happened last night.
On her way to the lobby downstairs, she recalled taking two shots at the club. She groaned.
As soon as she got onto the bus, Kripa held up a glass of lemon juice and two pain killers for her. Without asking or arguing, she took the two pills and drank the lemon juice. Her eyes caught Arnav and he looked worried.
She looked away and saw Angad beaming at her. She narrowed her eyes at him and stomped over to him. She took the seat next to him.
"This is all your fault! You ordered those shots!" She said through clenched teeth. "Ugh...I don't understand how you people drink so much...I only took two shots and my head feels like it's going to explode."
Angad looked at her as if she were crazy. Then he realized...she didn't remember that she'd taken nine shots. Not two. Boy was she in for a surprise!
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