Chapter 148: Broken

Flashback

Sheharzaad was in her room. Her eyes were fixed on the lines she read. She had invested her entire concentration into her book. She had always been hardworking. Studies had been her first priority since she wanted to make her parents proud one day. The only way she could think of now to make them proud was to get her name registered at the top of the list in her class. The relatives often used to criticize her parents because they had a daughter as their only child and not a son. She wanted to silence those people by making herself successful.

Her concentration didn’t waver as she continued highlighting the important topics from her book. The knock on the door made her turn towards it. She saw her mother entering, and a smile made its way onto her lips.

“Come, Sheharzaad. I have to show you something.”

“What is it, Mama?”

“Come. See for yourself.”

“But… I am studying.”

“Oh God, Sheharzaad! Come out of these books for once.”

“I want to study so that I can shut Aunt Ayesha up.” Ayesha was one of their neighbors. She had visited their house yesterday, and during the conversation, she had mentioned multiple times that they only had a daughter and should think about their old age. She was a mother to three sons and took great pride in having them, though all three were jobless.

“Oh, come on, Sheharzaad. We can’t take everyone’s words to heart,” her mother said.

“But Mama, do you even look at her sons? They have nothing—neither face nor a job.”

“Forget her. Also, our face is given to us by God, so we shouldn’t make fun of anyone’s looks.”

“I am not making fun of their faces. And so are daughters. Daughters are given by God, so why do people make life difficult for the parents of daughters?”

“I understand you, Sheharzaad. Forget her and her words. She talks uselessly, and her useless words should not be taken to heart. Now come with me. I have something to show you to lift your mood.” Her mother held her daughter’s hand, leading Sheharzaad to her room.

As soon as Sheharzaad entered, she noticed piles of clothes turned over the bed. The cupboards were open, and the clothes from those cupboards were on the bed.

“What is this, Mama?”

“My wedding clothes. Come. Let’s see together.” Her mother’s voice held excitement. They both sat on the sofa as her mother retrieved a purple ankle-length velvet frock.

“Look. This was gifted to me by your father. After our engagement, we were not allowed to meet until our official wedding. But, me being me, I used to go out on secret dates with your father. He gifted me this dress on one of those dates. I remember the day vividly. He wasn’t earning much in those days, but he still managed to get me a beautiful dress like this. We sat in a local café, with people sitting around us giving suspicious glances. They thought as if we had eloped,” her mother laughed as if remembering a specific incident. “It wasn’t common in that time for a young girl and boy to sit together. But your father never cared about what people thought. His parents were against this marriage, but he fought against the odds, went against his parents, just to marry me. This beautiful dress is a testament to our love.”

“Wow, Mama! This is really beautiful. Can I borrow this from you for an event? This dress doesn’t look decades old at all. It is really beautiful.”

“All my clothes are yours if they fit. Look at this.” Her mother retrieved a red lehenga. “This is my wedding dress. It was given to me by my parents. They surprised me. They didn’t let me see my wedding dress. They went with your father to shop for me. They told me if I didn’t like the dress they chose, they would buy me a new one. At first, I had doubts since it was my wedding dress, but when my parents revealed it to me, I was shocked. It was so bright, elegant, ethereal, regal. I loved it, and I still love it.”

Sheharzaad took the long red veil of the wedding dress and wore it over her head. She stood before the mirror to see how her mother’s wedding veil looked on her. She looked as beautiful as her mother did in that dress.

“Red is your color. Wear this on your wedding.”

“I will wear your wedding dress on my wedding, Mama. It is really pretty.”

“Nothing is as pretty as my daughter.”

“Mama,” Sheharzaad turned towards her mother, “will I find my prince charming like you did? Will someone ever love me the same way Father loves you?”

“You will, my daughter. I know you will. Someone whose love will be far greater than the love your father has for me. You’ll be his wife, and he will give you all the love and respect you deserve. He will be like a handsome, charming prince, just as they describe in stories.”

And Sheharzaad looked back at the mirror, imagining her wedding day with a smile and a red veil on her head—without realizing the horrors she would be facing in her future.

Flashback ends

Sheharzaad looked at the decorated room. Her heart clenched with the memory. This room was decorated, but it wasn’t because she was becoming someone’s wife. She was becoming someone’s mistress. Her heart pained. She wondered what state her mother would be in if she ever witnessed a room being decorated for her daughter to please someone’s sexual desires. She was becoming his mistress.

At last.

She was going to get ruined.

The remnants of her dignity and life were going to be shredded tonight.

The thought broke her.

And she wondered how long this night was going to be.

Would it be as long as she had spent in his office? Or longer?