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Chapter 45

“Sometimes you need a human to get into your deepest painful memories, not a diary to feel appreciated.” [Jacqueline]

[Third Person’s POV]:

Remo: “I don’t know what to say to that.”

He wasn’t sure what to say to her. Because any word he would say would never suffice nor could reduce what she had lost, forever.

Jacqueline: “You don’t have to say anything, Remo. The fact that you are listening without judging me is enough.”

Remo: “Okay.”

Remo: “What happened the second time?”

Jacqueline: “We had servants in the house, out of which one was responsible for taking care of me. So one night she went to the ground floor to fetch some water when she heard hushed voices of my grandparents as well as uncle from the drawing-room. She tiptoed to the room and eavesdropped on them. They were discussing how they will kill me tomorrow, and then will beat mom and chase her out.”

Her fingers quivered, her eyes welled up with tears. It was a painful memory for her that she never shared with anyone. She was too young to remember it. But every time she heard it from her mother, it would hammer her heart into pieces.

Remo: “What happened later?”

A sigh left her mouth as she typed again.

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Jacqueline: “The servant informed my mother about what she heard and mom warned dad about it. But Dad didn’t choose to believe her. The next day, Dad went to his duty, and Mom asked Our servant to hand me to our neighbors. Our Grandparents took me back and we’re trying to make me a child who was not even one-year-old swallow fritters. Mom said I was crying, and hearing my voice she immediately came down and s*****ed me away. She said, my eyes were blood red and my mouth full of fritters and I was unable to breathe. She said she had to stuck fingers in my throat to get that out. That was when her patience broke and she took me to the first floor but they started screaming behind her. She tried to lock the door but they stopped it when she moved her neck behind. She found everyone coming behind her with wooden sticks and that made her make a run for it when Dad arrived. He forgot to bring his receipt book and had to come back after an hour of traveling. He got sus***ious when he found one servant standing at the gate and he was not letting Dad inside the house. Instead, he was asking what Dad wanted. So Dad pushed him aside and went in when he found Uncle almost hitting mom from the back with the wooden stick. Dad stopped him but ended up getting beaten by his younger brother, Mom’s clothes were ripped by them and neighbors helped her to cover. Daddy wanted to register a case against his family, but mom refused to say they were still his family.”

Remo: “Oh, That was one adventurous and horrible experience your parents had gone through. They are amazing.”

Jacqueline: “Thank you.”

Remo: “I don’t know why, but I am happy that you are healthy and alive. I am even glad that your parents protected you with her life. Where did your parents stay after that?”

Jacqueline: “My parents went to stay in Moradabad with my maternal Grandparents. We stayed there for 4 years and then came back to stay in a rented house.”

Remo: “Oh. Why did you go back to Delhi?”

Jacqueline: “Well. My paternal aunt. Dad’s sister’s husband cheated on her and got married. Things were going south for our paternal family. So dad has to come for his sister.”

Remo: “Oh. It seems you have gone through a lot Jacqueline. I honestly admire you, here I was stressed and thinking that perhaps I am the most unfortunate person in the world. But you showed me today, maybe everyone is struggling with something that we don’t know about. I am sorry for judging you before even knowing anything about you. I promise I won’t ever judge you again.”

A beautiful cage of being taken care of, formed around her heart. Her eyelashes fluttered. It felt good to share her grief with someone. Someone who didn’t hate her, someone who didn’t mock her, or someone who didn’t believe she was too sentimental. And the most precious thing about it was that she shared it with a human and not her diary.

Jacqueline: “It’s Okay. I am good now. How about you? What exactly did your grandparents do?”

Remo’s eyes Flashed with bitterness. It was a sensitive topic for him. Remembering those incidents always cuts the deepest. Nevertheless, since Jacqueline had shared her deepest pain, it became a duty that he did too. No matter what was the depth of his deepest fears.

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Remo: “You Know Jacqueline It’s during the worst storms of our life, we understand real people. When I was 2 years old, our grandparents chased us out of their homes for no reason. He even s*****ed the money my dad used to earn at that time claiming that it was rent for the years they lived with them. We had to sleep in Church for three days without food and then as if heaven had taken pity on us Dad’s Friend found us in the church and he took us to his home, where we lived in a single room. It was Our kitchen, bathroom, sleeping room, and playing room.”

Remo was unable to forgive his grandparents, no matter what. The life they had to live there was the worst. Four people sharing a single space with a very limited amount of resources. How many days his father would only have one meal so that they could have the two meals per day. The whole school mocked him for being poor. There were no relatives, nothing. Forget about the toys he should have had when he was little. He spent his entire childhood with a single red toy car that his father’s friend gifted him, other than that, there were no toys. He had felt the pain deep in his bones, for seven years they lived life the same as beggars. Perhaps a little better than beggars because he was going to school even if it was for free. He wouldn’t have such an unpleasant childhood if his grandparents had shown a little kindness to his family. His father wasn’t a vain man, but he was blinded by his parents. He was an employed man but all his salary was given to his parents. In the end, his father’s blind love had left them with nothing. Not even a penny.

A ping from the phone brought his attention back to the phone.

Jacqueline: “Oh People who go through the worst are the strongest Remo. I believe it was the experience that made you, so I am not going to say sorry to you for something that made you, you.”

His eyes fixated on her text. He found he cannot remember when was the last time someone said something so heart-touching to him.

“How did your parent’s relations change with your grandparents?”

Remo: “We have spent 7 years in that single room, and I will always be grateful for His kindness. He even helped Dad to open a small shop with his money, and Dad’s efforts finally paid off. When we purchased a bungalow for us, our grandparent’s love started developing suddenly, their visits became more frequent and they said they were guilty. My parents chose to forgive them, it turned out they needed money the next day for something, and Dad gave him cash without any issue. I think my parents had chosen to ignore the fact that they came back to us for money.”

Jacqueline: “I don’t think they have ignored the fact Rem. I just believe they are strong enough to give everything they have to people they love even if they are aware of their real intentions.”

“It’s toxic for them though, and they will realize it soon. And I hope when that happens you can pick their pieces and start over.”

Remo: “That’s a beautiful way to see things, Jacky. But I just wish they don’t waste their time on those leeches like that.”

Jacqueline: “I will pray for you Rem. I will pray they can let go of this toxic love before anything happens.”

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Remo took a deep breath and admired her texts before typing again. His eyes were close to crying. He felt like she was hugging him without any physical touch.

Remo: “Thank you for talking with me Jacqueline. Before talking to you, I felt lonely even though my family was surrounding me. Perhaps it was because they didn’t choose to understand me. And You did! Now even though I am alone, I feel loved. Maybe being understood by someone is the best feeling in the world.”

Jacqueline: “Isn’t that what friends do?”

Remo: “You are the best person I came across, Jacqueline. Thank you for being here.” Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.

Jacqueline: “Hush. Stop saying thank you again and again. It makes me feel like we are formal friends.”

A smile formed on his lips and a tear finally rolled down on his knuckle. The tear that he was trying so hard to restrain from flowing. it was the best feeling he had in years when he was perfectly happy from

inside. His hand moved to his heart and he realized it was beating. She proved to be a thread that pulled him to reveal his deepest painful memories.

*******

Dear Readers,

Happy Reading

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