Wedding

Wedding

Mina, according to Devi aunt was a beautiful girl. She was always sincere, modest, honest and kind. She was amiable so she was a matter of concern in Devi aunt’s office. She worked there for two years. She was admired by everyone. Her job was to keep the office spic and span. In the afternoon, when everyone was in office, she had to run on errand and get official documents of the office photocopied. She would serve them tea and snacks. When the staffs had work at home on special occasion, she would be invited because she would help them in all the way she could. She did not expect anything from them, however, she would not reject it if she would be given anything. She would take it happily.

She would return back to the office in the evening because it had been her home soon after she started her tenure as the peon in the office. Her evenings would be mournful because all those episodes of her past life would haunt her every moment.

She bore the child when her mom was abroad to work. It was her half brother who seduced her when she was just sixteen. Her room was next to him. She would  be home all the time and serving her step father who was in his late seventies. He used to be a British Army when he was young.  Soon after he got retired he had moved to a small town near Butwal. He was still very strong and would go around the town chewing beetle nut in the mornings and evenings. It was his favorite habit that he developed after he moved to this town. His wife who was in her early sixties was bedridden by the paralyses because of the excessive work that she had to do while she was in village. He had a great desire to spend his time with his wife after his retirement. But as she became bedridden he started looking for another woman who would give him company. One Saturday, when he was in Mohini Cinema in Butwal to watch Saino movie acted by Bhuwan K.C. and Deni Denzongpa and Tripti he saw her sitting in the sit next to him. Their eyes met then and again. They both felt that they were in love. She was allured by him so they met outside the Cinema at a tea shop and chatted for sometimes. She gave him her address. Right from the next day they started seeing each other. He went to her place near to Triveni everyday on his bicycle. She would come out of her house with her Doko and ask her mother-in-law to look after her four months’ baby daughter. Two weeks after they started seeing each other, they eloped.

 Her half brother whose room was next to her was always allured by her physique. She bore a short round nose with beautiful black eyes which her half brother liked most. He often praised her complexion with his friends and bragged that he would do anything to seduce her. He would ask her to prepare tea for him and asked her to bring it to his room. When he would get a chance, he would caress her hair and embrace her. He would stroke her back time and again which she would take as her brother’s care and tenderly love for her.

 It was a year after her mom had flown to Bahrain for employment.  She was alone at home. Her step father had gone for his usual evening stroll. Her step brother called her in the room with a cup of tea. She prepared a cup of tea and went to her brother’s room. He asked her to sit next to her after she gave him the tea. He slowly started caressing her hair. He slowly stroked her back. He moved her hands up and down. She now knew the intention of her brother so she tried to shout out but could not because her brother covered her mouth and threatened to kill her if she told anyone about that. She could do nothing but lie silently cursing herself and her brother. After thirty minutes the hideous monster went out and she lied there with tears in her eyes.

 

It was mid January. Her mom had been back from Bahrain in her annual leave. She was home for two weeks. The winter had chilled the valley. They were on the top of their house basking the sun. She was talking to her old aged husband. Mina was next to them sitting on the mat of hay. Both the mom and her step father had noticed that she had lost the charm in her face for some weeks now. They had felt that something is wrong with Mina. Mina seemed to be worried. One could trace anxieties in her face. She had no interest in food or anything else and spent most of the time alone for more than three weeks.

After around thirty minutes or so, a person from the next tole came to call her step father. The old man with his cane on his hand climbed down and went out. He told them that he was going till Krishna Chowk and would be back in thirty minutes. Mina had been quiet till then. She wanted to tell her mom about that but was not able because either the situation was not favorable or there used to be someone in the house. Thinking that it was the best time to talk about the situation, she told her mom that she wanted to talk about something serious matter. Then she took hold of her mom’s both hand told her that she did not have period for two months now. Her mom felt a cold feeling run through her spine.  She could not respond for a while. She took long breath two times and said, “How did it happen?” She narrated the incident with tears in her eyes.

 After a week, one early morning, she asked Mina to get ready. She told her that they were going to Palpa.  They, she, Mina and her old husband, boarded the bus to Waling.  The bus ran through the fog and thick mist of Terai. The road was straight now and the horizon was far behind. There was hardly anyone on the road. They reached Butwal after an hour. They got off at Prithivi Chowk.  

Mina had visited Butwal couple of times earlier with her father. So she knew they were in Butwal so she asked her mom why they had got off at Butwal. Her mom told her that they were there for her health check-up. They went to  Siddhakali Nursing Home. They entered the nursing home. Her father and she rested on the bench outside reception while her mother went to the receptionist. Her mom had a brief talk. Then her mom and she went into a room where there was a lady in white robe. Mina could easily guess that she was the doctor who was going to examine her. The lady in white robe instructed Mina to lie on the bed. She lied on the bed and followed the doctor’s instruction like a child does. After having examined her, the doctor gave her a pill and had her eat it.

Her mom left for Bahrain, after a month of their visit to Siddhakali Nursing Home. When her mom left for Bahrain, she started to be hunted by the same incident time and again. She tried to forget everything but could not. Her friends and neighbours, who now knew little about the incident through her brother’s friend, would ask her if they really had been to Palpa with her mom and all sorts of questions. She had no answer to all those questions. She would pretend that she had not listened to them and tried to ignore them. But, when she would be back at home, she would remember the same thing. Most of the time, it would be so intolerable and she would burst into tears. The reminiscences of the incidents were lying here and there in the house. Though her brother had fled to Kathmandu then to Dubai some days before Mina had told about the incident to her mom, the monstrous image of her brother always troubled her. She cursed herself for having been born as a daughter; she would curse herself for trusting her hideous brother; she would curse herself for not having gone to the police and reporting about the incident (which of course could bring some solace to her pain).

One night, after three months her mom had been back to Bahrain, she decided that she would leave the house to search for the succor so she could heal the pain that lied inside her. The next morning, before her father got up, she left the house. She came to Bardghat town. She rested under the big Peepal tree, opposite to the traffic police office. She was crying hopelessly when Devi aunt met her.

She started working in Devi aunt’s office as a peon. In a month, she became the favorite character in the office because of her dedication in the work and also because she was pleasing as well as beautiful. Some people in the office came to know her stories from different sources. So, they asked Mina about the incidents. She narrated the incidents one by one to Devi aunt and others in one of their meetings. After some months, Devi aunt asked her if she wanted to get married. Mina agreed. Thus, there was a search for a decent boy who would be ready to marry Mina without any dowry.

After some days’ search, they found a boy of 23 who lived in a village near Parasi. The boy said that he wanted to see the girl first. So, they made an arrangement for the boy to see Mina. The boy talked to Mina briefly and told Devi aunt that he was ready to marry Mina.

So, Devi aunt raised fund from everyone in the office. She contributed ten thousand rupees. So, the marriage day was fixed and things were made ready.

The wedding day finally approached. The boys’ party came to Daunne Temple. They gave a call to Devi aunt. Devi aunt replied that they would be there in half an hour or so. Devi aunt and her team went to office to see if Mina was ready but Mina was not there. They saw the wedding dress and other things in her room. But, she was not anywhere in the office. They asked with people around the office if they saw Mina but nobody said they did.

Two months later, Devi aunt heard that she was noticed somewhere near Gaindakot, Chitwan.