Short Story Domestic Violence – Orange
Photo credit: clarita from morguefile.com
Her eyes stopped at the orange bars around the balcony, the clothes that hung on it and the dry brown ground beyond it. The orange colour, seemed to mock her, twinkling in it’s vibrance, it ridiculed her. She tried to ignore it as she went about her chores. She sighed and bent forward to dry more clothes. As she straightened she froze, from the corner of her eyes, she could see a pair of hands approaching her. Her limbs went numb and throat dried up in fear. She felt the pressure on her back as they pushed her over and she began her free fall towards the ground. She tried to stop, hang on to the orange bars. But the pair of cold hands let her loose again…the beast had struck.
And then the sickly thud on the ground, blood oozed out of her head and mouth. The wailing ambulance, the stretcher and her baby, Leena, crying over her limp form; she heard it all. She heard the doctor whisper about the arms which broke on contact, the bruises on her cheeks and the multiple fractures to the skull and the body. She lay in a swarm of bandages for what seemed like years.
And then, after months in the dark, cold room she finally returned home. As she entered she saw smiles on everyone’s face, welcoming her or so she thought. She flitted from one room to another waiting for Leena to get back from school. She wanted to hold her to the warmth of her bosom, feel her soft skin against hers and sing to her softly as she ate. After months of being away, she would finally have her sunshine in her arm, she smiled smelling baby powder in the room. As she sat day-dreaming, she heard Leena scream. She rushed just in time to stop the pair of hands from banging Leena’s head to the wall. She pushed the bewildered beast back and stood like a rock between Leena and him. Her hands crept to the bamboo stick standing in the corner, she pulled it out and beat the beast up….black, blue and orange..
The beast turned back and ran out of the room screaming! It felt nice, she smiled and turned to look at Leena. She took her in the arms, wiped her tears, soothed her wounds and put her back to sleep. Sometime past mid-night they all trooped in, the family and her beastly husband. She could hear them whisper, “Bhaiyaji, bhoot hai, Nalini ka bhoot hai! Woh wapas aa gayi hai!“
She laughed and it echoed in the house, the troop scampered away. The next day saw pandits, poojas, purohits, sholakas….but nothing could send her away. She had come back….come back from the dead…. come back as a ghost to guard over her child.
As she sat on the orange bars, the balmy wind of May revived her. She felt alive for the first time.She looked back at Leena sleeping peacefully and wished she had retaliated earlier…..beaten the beast up earlier….overcome her fears earlier and been alive for her child……she knew the bright orange still mocked her, but this time she wouldn’t see it!
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