First Interaction

'Who the hell has written this?' Anand yelled bringing the house down right in the morning. His shrill voice echoed in the corridor and bounced into the garden.

'Whose that motherfucker? Is everyone dead in this house?' Anand barked deliriously. The voice crashed into the rooms attached to the corridor startling the people sleeping there. Kaka's eyes opened in horror and he jumped out of the bed and dashed out.

'What happened?' Kaka asked in an alarmed tone.

'Bastard see this!' Anand banged violently on the door . 'I want to find out who that motherfucker bastard is?'

'Its me who did this...and the abuses you can keep for yourself,' Pooja answered tersely standing at the door. Anand was stunned to silence, so was Kaka. Though no one had imagined anything about Pooja but this was least expected.

'Dare you talk to me like that....' Anand fulminated in humiliation.

'Do not expect me to be like the woman singing hymns in this room...you will be mistaken,' Pooja answered bluntly. By that time the old woman from adjacent room had walked out and clearly heard the summary inference of her own life from Pooja's mouth, she was surprised how could Pooja be so right even without meeting her. She felt pain but it wasn't unusual for her to be at the bottom of priorities and respect. Infact the old lady felt good and a sense of camaraderie and respite; it felt like emancipation to her.

'My goodness what a foul mouth bitch we have brought in our house...call Papu, where is he? Throw this bitch out?' Anand yelled.

'Papa please calm down...,' Kaka begged and then turned to Pooja, 'did you scribble this on father's door'

'Yes but isn't it truth...I heard him calling me ugly, abusing you...isn't he a foul mouth...if I as a woman in an unknown place can stand up for myself, what stops you from resisting the humiliation that I heard for you?' Pooja responded.

Kaka kept embarrasingly silent making sorry faces of a person stuck in a dilemma and unable to do anything.

'What happened brother Anand?' Kishen came running up through the stairs alarmed by the commotion.

'This is what has happened...' Anand pointed at the door and then looked towards Pooja and cursed, 'what sort of girl you have brought us Kishen...she spits venom.'

Kishen read the words scribbled on the door. And aghast he asked, 'What's this? Your bankrupt father went on his knees and begged me to bring you here and get married to Kaka. And this is what you show of your upbringing. Shame on you.'

Pooja's eyes welled up on her father's mention and she preferred to remain silent but with a defiant face.

'Get out of my house immediately...' Anand spoke in a straight terse voice pointing towards the house gate at the end of the garden. '...immediately I don't want to see your bitch face.'

'Wh..e...re will she go?' the old lady stuttered nervously.

'Anywhere i don't care...,' Anand answered disdainfully.

'Don't worry my bankrupt father was rich enough to teach strength to me ...' Pooja spoke softly to the woman and stepped back to the room.

'What the hell? I did what I could have done. I will take my two sons to the cinema and return back village today only. Let her go and die wherever she want to.' Kishen spoke nonchalantly and took the stairs to go down to his room to his sons.

'Make tea for me,' Anand thundered the order to old lady and castigated Kaka, 'And what good are you standing here. Go and check that she doesn't steal anything.'

'Ok Papa,' Kaka answered feebly and walked towards the room. He reached the door, stood at it and saw Pooja frantically packing things in her bag. Pooja saw him, stopped stuffing her clothes and spoke, 'you can check if you want, i heard your father.'

Kaka nodded to refuse, he was in awe of the girl who had the guile to take on people in an unknown town amidst unknown faces. He so wanted to be like her, the brave and revolting. But couldn't muster even a fraction of courage he saw in the morning.

'Where will you go?' Kaka asked softly, stepping inside the room.

'Infact you should go somewhere. Do you call this life? What stops you? The comfort of these four walls or your impotence.' Pooja shot back.

The words stabbed Kaka touching the raw nerve, 'you get judgemental so quickly. If you are so brave why did you choose to marry a man you didn't knew?'

Pooja picked out a up the bad, slunged it on her shoulder and spoke, 'i will take responsibility of my decision. but are you worried that our namesake marriage in the court will not be held today and you will be again mocked at?'

Kaka stayed silent not daring to stop Pooja as she stepped out towards the cooridoor, however he spoke in a feeble voice, 'we rise by lifting others, not mocking them.'

Pooja stopped, turned around and spoke, 'first let me lift myself and the words that you call mocking are probably a wake up call for you.'