Chapter-10

Hope, you like this one..❤ It's a bit long than others...

Few months later...

The sun rays shove inside the room from the glass window and illuminated the earlier dim lighted room. They fell on the numerous photo frames hanging on the wall adding more to the glow on the girl's face in them. They fell onto the clock hanging on the wall which now reflects her good time.

They made their way towards the bed where a girl was sleeping peacefully. The sun rays fell on her face which made her squirm her eyes. She turned her face to the other side and continued sleeping.

"Wake up, Zoya..!!!" Her mother's voice echoed in the whole room. She covered her ears with the pillow.

"Ammi...bas do minute.." (Ammi...just two minutes more..) She said pleading and drifted back to her dream world.

"What is this two minutes huh? Wake up now or else.." She said snatching the duvet from her.

"Ammi...please na just two more minutes.." She said taking the duvet from her hands.

"Do you really want to bathe in the bed..?" Roshnaq asked innocently.

"What? No!...What are you planning to do?" She asked uncovering her eyes.

"So, you want a teaser...ok, as you wish.."

"I got up! See.." She said getting up from the bed. Her mother suppressed her urge to laugh her heart out. She has changed totally and the credit goes to only him. He returned their Zoya back to them the way they lost her once.

She missed her!

Zoya went into the direction of the washroom when her mother stopped her by asking, "Where is your phone Zoya?"

"Huh? My phone? It would be somewhere on the bed...Why?"

"Can't you take care of it...once it's lost then your face will be worth watching.."

"Ok...I will take care of it...why are you asking about it..?" She said standing at the door of the washroom.

"Dr. Aditya called me...you have an appointment with him at 3:00 p.m. He tried your phone many times...why do you even keep that if it is of no use.."

"I said na that I will take care of it from next time...I will have to get ready...fast!"

"Do you still need to visit him? He has worked magic..my Zoya is back.." She sniffed and cupped her cheeks. "I told you he is the best we could find...see, you are totally changed now...I missed you!" She said wiping some tears from her eyes. Zoya instantly hugged her and could feel her eyes welling up too. She also missed herself!

"You are so emotional...stop crying in the morning..!" She said and released her from the hug. "Look who is talking..!" Her mother said and they both started laughing. Their laughter echoed in the room. Her mother missed seeing her laugh, missed seeing the liveliness in her eyes, she missed seeing her daughter like this, living her life. Zoya on the other hand missed this too. She missed laughing till her stomach hurts. She missed seeing herself smile. She missed seeing her parent's smile.

"I'm going to get ready and I want pancakes in the breakfast..!" She said moving towards the washroom to which her mother just smiled.

•••

Aditya was sitting opposite Zoya on his desk.

"So, do you want to attend any more sessions or it is fine with you?" He asked leaning on the desk.

"I have changed a lot, that is true and the credit goes to you only...but I don't know if I require any more sessions or not...you tell do I need to improve more?"

"There's a lot of improvement in your case in a really short period of time...but I want to ask one question that will decide everything.." He said expectantly to which she nodded and he continued.

"Have you forgiven him?" There was a change in her expressions and she started searching the answer within herself.

'Has she forgiven him? She surely doesn't love him anymore and she doesn't get nightmares also now...but has she forgiven him?'

"Can he be forgiven?" She asked him with teary eyes yet reflecting innocence. Seeing her inner turmoil he knew what the answer to his question is.

"I know that he can't be...but you have to..! This is how it all works...you know the one who forgives is the one who has the biggest heart and the relief that it gives is one of the most satisfying...I'm really happy to see you changed...this Zoya is totally different from the one I met in our first session.." He said and remembered how she was when they first met. She used to cry at small things and just nodded as an answer. She has changed for good and he could not feel anything more than happy that he returned joy and happiness into yet another person's life. This is what makes him happy and he truly is now!

"You know that I've said this many times and I say this now also that...past cannot be UNDONE...we can do nothing wrong of the dead...if you keep dragging your past in your present then your future can never be joyous..it has been more than a year to that incident, right? When will you leave it in the past.."

"What should I do then? How can I forgive him?"

"Just, drive out everything from your life which reminds you of him...do you have his belongings?"

"Yes...but I can't...how will I?"

"I will help you.."

•••

Zoya gathered up all his belongings in a cardboard box. Her emotions, their good memories, everything just in a box. She didn't know if she was ready to let it all go but she had to for herself. She collected all his pictures, their pictures, his clothes, the gifts he gave her, the love letters...everything which reminds her of him. She didn't know why she was feeling it difficult to let her past go. Why did she want to hold it? But, she wanted to. Maybe, because that was the time she felt really alive.

She was emptying the cupboard of his stuff when her gaze fell on something. Her bridal dress. It was vibrant and radiated happiness reflecting her feelings at that time. She was so much happy at that time to get married to the love of her life. Tears of happiness filled her eyes and she started remembering their official days...the happy days.

"Zoya..." Her mother's voice brought her out of her trance and she hastily wiped her tears.

"Yes Ammi.."

"Beta, Dr. Aditya has come.."

"I'm just coming Ammi.."

She started collecting the items quickly when her gaze fell on some documents. The divorce papers. She picked them up with shaking hands and new tears filled her eyes. She picked up a pen lying nearby on the table and signed on them, completing the legal document.

"Alvida Yash..." (Goodbye, Yash..) She said in a low voice and kept them too in the box atop of her bridal dress.

She started descending down the stairs with the box of memories in her hands. Aditya was seated on the couch and was drinking water. He could see the various emotions on her face and in her eyes. He helped her with the box and carried it down to his car. She sat in the passenger seat lost in her own chain of thoughts.

"Do I really have to give everything away?" She asked him when he sat in the driver seat.

"There's no going back, Zoya and even if you want to I won't let you...it will be good if you don't think about this decision of yours again and again."

The drive was silent and he took stolen glances of her to see if she was crying or not but she was looking outside the window with glistening eyes and a beautiful smile gracing her face which made him smile and then he resumed his task of driving the car. He stopped the car when they reached a NGO and Zoya looked at him in question. They distributed Yash's clothes in the NGO and even donated some items from his stuff which could provide them help. After giving away the clothes, the box was barely full. It now contained some pictures, some letters, some legal papers.

Their next destination was an isolated place among the forest, maybe, but it was beautiful. Aditya guided her through the woods and stopped when they reached near a lake. He took out all the love letters, the pictures and even the divorce papers from the box and dumped them on the ground. He offered her a matchbox and asked her to downgrade everything just to mere ash. She hesitantly lighted the match and burnt down everything...her past. After the pile caught up fire they walked up near the lake and Aditya forwarded his hand in front of her. She looked at him in a questioning gaze.

"Your ring.." He said focusing his eyes on the silver ring placed on her finger. She took it out easily as it was loose and stretched her hand to place it on his open palm.

"He gifted me this on our anniversary.." He saw the ring and unconsciously his gaze fell on something written inside it. When he saw it closely he saw a name written inside it. "Pooja". He read.

"What?" He showed her the ring and asked her to look at it closely. Her eyes widened on reading the name.

"Who is Pooja?" He asked her.

"She was the one with whom Yash was found dead..." She said looking down.

"Then why did he gift you this ring?" He asked out of curiosity.

"He didn't gift it to me...I-I only found it in our cupboard..." She told him remembering Yash's expression at the time when she found the ring. 'How can she be so stupid? Why didn't she paid heed to the signs which her God was trying to give her...maybe she loved him too much...more than she loves herself and she ignored everything deliberately...maybe she trusted way too much...she needs to change her habit...'

"Ok, leave it.." He said noticing her again getting sad.

"Now, listen...you have to do as I say...take this ring and throw it as far as you can, with all your force..." She took the ring from his hand slowly and held it with both her hands, a little close. She placed a light kiss on the ring and looked up.

'I gave you my very precious time...Yash...now you will not get a place in my future...goodbye, FOREVER...I will not let you invade my present anymore...' She thought in her mind.

Aditya let her take her time in letting her past go away from her. He saw determination in her glowing eyes and he knew that he did it!

She didn't let the tears slide down her face. He doesn't deserve her tears. She took the ring in her one hand and threw it with all her force. The ring flew way too far from her and she saw it sinking deep into the water and she felt...light. She turned towards him and found him watching the ring sink.

"Thank you..." She whispered letting all her emotions into just these two words. He nodded with a smile.

"So, what do you plan to do next?"

"I don't know...I'm still confused of what should I do...You can suggest me something..." She said moving along with him towards the car.

"You are asking a wrong person about this..." He chuckled saying this. She too chuckled a bit.

They both settled in the car and drove off. Zoya felt light and she was thankful to him for this. She had doubt in choosing what she will do in her near future but she didn'l let it trouble her because she enjoyed this new feeling of freshness and lightheartedness in her life. It reminded her of her earlier life before her marriage.

"Return your parents the same chirpy, bubbly Zoya which that man snatched from them..."

He remembered his talk from that day when she enclosed her past to him. 'He' returned the same Zoya to her parents and for that she will always be grateful to him!

_________________________________________

Here's the longest chapter I've written till now for this book..Hope you like it...and...one more thing I'm not ending this book anytime soon...I've changed my plans and I have different things on my mind...and I'm NOT separating them!😂

So, Zoya is finally ready to start afresh...and what do you think she will choose? Do tell me in the comments your suggestions...😃

I hope I was able to make you smile through even just for a second because even that means a lot to me!

Love you all and take care...we'll meet in the next chapter..❤