Author's Pov

The Soothing sound of the tabli and the ghungroo filled the school as a bunch of girls danced in their dance room

Dressed in the costume, Shivangi tugged her white Dupatta on her waist as she danced to the rhythm of tabli and tanpura with grace and devotion

Sweat beads covered her forehead and a few strands of hair covered the side of her face but still, they couldn't decrease her outshining beauty and only add on to it

When suddenly the bell of the school rang bringing a stop to the beautiful sound of the ghungroos

Performing her last namaskar as a sign of being grateful to the earth, she turned around to see her friends

Shreya and Medhavi at one of the corners, busy chit-chatting while removing their ghungroos

She was about to go towards them

When she heard the sound of her teacher calling

" Shivangi, I want you to stay after the class rest all can leave, it's home time!"

Bidding goodbye to her friends she went towards her dance teacher once everyone had left

" Yes, Miss-"

" The Intercultural folk dance event is arriving soon, other dance teachers have given me recommendations of several girls but I believe you can perform much better than the rest of them-"

And Shivangi just nodded her head, knowing exactly what her teacher was referring to

" You must understand, this event is very important Shivangi!

Many schools will be participating in it, and important people like politicians, ministers and big businessmen will also be present to witness it. we have to give our best performance!

Not only will it be beneficial to our school but this will also open many doors for you after 12th, Don't you wish to be a professional dancer?"

Shivangi nodded again, not that it mattered if she had said a no, her teacher would find her ways to convince Shivangi and get into this competition

" Yes? So I am considering this as a yes! you will be in the lead performing Bharatnatyam and the rest of the girls doing kathak behind you got it?"

" Miss when is the event?" Shivangi asked in a calm voice, now if she was being chosen might as well work hard

Besides dancing was her passion!

" A week from now, now you can leave" Said Priya Ma'am the dance teacher, as she wrote something in the school diary while waving her off to leave

Shivangi rolled her eyes but only once she had exited the room, Obviously she wouldn't want to Priya Ma'am to see this and lose her 'obedient-good girl' tag in front of her

as much as it sounded miserable to some, the tag did had it's own advantages!

Carrying her bag from her classroom, she first went to the washroom and changed her clothes after which she went outside

Nearing the exit, she saw her friends waiting outside with their bicycles

"What happened? Took you time to come out?"

Medhavi asked, while Shivangi settled herself on her bicycle she pushed her hair behind and tied her hair into a rough bun

" Nothing much, just about the competition she told me to be in the lead," She said sighing as she pedaled, and the three of them started making their way

" Man! The intercultural folk dance event is just a week away! I am so nervous!" Shreya commented

" Yes and if we are feeling so anxious, imagine the load Shivangi's gonna have on her head! Priya Ma'am is one heck of a teacher and the event in itself is jus-just sounds so thrilling! Like I heard state ministers and CEOs of big companies would also be there like woah!"

Medhavi said making Shreya laugh while Shivangi just shook her head, nearing the cross Shivangi brought her cycle to her stop and looked behind at her friends before saying

" It's fine I can do this, WE can do this! And for sure we all will rock this gurl!!"

and the three of them high-fi! after some more talk, Shivangi took her leave as she was getting late, her father would probably question if she got any late than this so she pedaled her cycle to her home route

Her home wasn't very far away, she soon arrived at her home. keeping her bike aside as it was almost evening, she rushed inside her house and screamed

" Papa!"

A man in his early fifties turned around, a smile formed on his face across his beard smeared with some fine white hair and some lines creased around his eyes

" Agyi meri beti?"

He asked but before she could answer, she quickly went and hugged him

" Haan Papa!"

" How was your day, my dear?"

" It was nice, Papa," Shivangi said smiling as she looked up at her father. her father might be growing old but that still couldn't outshine his tall height and the beautiful smile on his face

He was the most handsome man and amazing chef in this world to her

" Come soon for dinner, I have prepared your favorite meal"

" What Papa?" Shivangi questioned while almost on her way up the stairs to the first floor where her room was

and what she heard made her eyes widen

" Chole kulche!!" She retorted surprised, No wonder she was met with a beautiful aroma of chole the minute she entered her house and she rushed back toward her father

kissing him on his cheek she thanked him by hugging him again

" Thank you so much, Papa, I love you! Papa, just wait for a few minutes I'll be down soon" Saying that she rushed back up and made her way to her room

Going inside, the first thing she did was hug her teddy because she was so happy

the rules were simple

Food was equivalent to love in Shivangi's life and no food equals no love

Besides food was her first love- no sorry second love!

As her first love would always remain her parents

Looking towards the nightstand she found the picture of her parents

Her eyes went on her mother, grey eyes that smiled back at her and a smile crept on her face too

Though not a happy one unlike her mother's in the picture

Chandni was her name.....a beautiful name for a beautiful woman

Sadness lingered in her heart and she suppressed it with a sigh as she whispered softly

" Hope you are doing fine, Ma wherever you are...."

with that, she left for the washroom to take a shower

it had become a daily routine to come meet her mother the first thing after coming from school

Turning on the shower, rain-like droplets of water showered over her as she stood there underneath naked. The lukewarm water calmed her muscles as she bathed in the water

A sigh of relief after a tiring day erupted out of her mouth and somehow she lost herself thinking about her past while leathering herself with soap

She was only 5, very young when her mother was snatched away from her

She remembered that day when her father returned, she was in her Bua's (Brother's sister) house as her parents had gone off for a trip

that look on his face horrified to depths and fear filled in his eyes, his t-shirt was painted in blood

he was hiccupping while explaining to Bua, how Chandni was kidnapped by a bunch of goons on their way to the trip

Her father tried to fight them but there were just too many

she even remembered the mentioning of guns and knives amidst their conversation and how he had a deep cut around his belly, probably by the knife used on him

that day was perfectly etched in her memory even though she wouldn't have understood a single thing her father had said to her Mausi

But she remembered that was the first time she saw her father cry miserably

He cried for his lost lover, the pain of not having saved his wife

Amit filed a complaint against this to the police but for months they couldn't find her,

The hope for finding her was dying with each passing day when ultimately it died that day

When they declared her mother dead, Even though there was no legal proof that supported that her mother was dead the police rather chose to rest the case than take beef with the goons

Since then her mother has been missing and for the world she was as good as dead

But Shivangi still believed her mother was here, just not here with her but somewhere in some part of this world

Turning off the shower, she tied a robe around herself, and with a towel, she dried her long lustrous brown hair. Dusky brown just like that of her mother's,

Shivangi was a replica of her mother

Chandni was a divine beauty of her time and so was her daughter

it would be a lie if Shivangi said she didn't get proposals from guys and praises for her beauty regularly

She could recall from as young as 7th grade, the first time she was asked out by a guy 5 years older than her! Many times Guys who shared a class with her had a crush on her too

many tried their luck as well, but Shivangi wasn't interested in dating, she was more interested in bringing herself to her feet and making her father proud

She wanted to see a smile, a genuine smile on his face because she knew every smile of his had a hidden sadness

He misses his wife, he still loves her and will always continue to... She knows

And as much as she looks up to her father for his faithful love she couldn't help but feel sad every time she saw her dad alone in his grief with no one to share

Sitting by the mirror, she applied some cold cream on her face and watermelon-flavored lip balm on her lips

Before she went to wear her purple hoodie and pajamas. Hoodies were love! And she was a big fan of baggy clothes!

Not that she didn't like dresses that brought out the more feminine side of her but still baggy clothes had a different place in her heart

And soon she rushed down to have her dinner and spent some time with her Papa dearest

_____________

Shivangi's Pov

It was night time, the moon was shining in its full glory as I looked outside through the window

deciding to take a break from the romance novel I was reading, I decided to take a stroll downstairs to fetch some water

I was making my way downstairs when something caught my attention,

Papa's room light was on, I decided to go and check on him once if everything was fine

" Papa" I called seeing him sitting at the edge of the bed as he continuously looked outside

he might have been taken aback as he looked in deep thinking while I climbed on the bed and came beside him

" Kya Hua? Papa" I asked keeping my head on his lap and he softly grazed his palm over my hair bringing a smile to my face

" Nothing, dear...." he answered softly

" Papa, you looked like you were in deep thinking....."

" It's nothing I was just thinking about work.....how was your day in school? Did anything happen" My Papa I asked, one thing I loved about my Papa was he always asked me about my day like a mother

I smiled and said

" Not really Papa....The dance teacher told me about some intercultural folk dance event for which she had selected me as a candidate"

" That's very nice, dear I am sure you'll do well"

When suddenly I sat up, looking towards him I said

" Papa, you'll come for this event, right? just to see me, Pretty Please!!" to which he smiled looking at my childish antics

"Of course, I'll, dear"

I again laid back on the bed, as I rested my head on his lap, we stayed quiet for some time enjoying the serenity of quietness of the night when I again opened my mouth

" Papa, Massi (Mother's Sister) once told me, Ma was also very passionate of dancing.....was it true?" I asked rather scared because I know how my father's expression would become at the mere mention of Ma

He would become emotional but mostly guilty and I looked up to see his face but he deciphered no expressions as he said

" Yes, it's true...." I carefully looked at his face trying to read his emotions, there was no guilt, no sadness just cold

I further questioned

" Papa, How was Ma like when she used to dance?" His eyes softened this time as he looked at me this time and said

" When she used to dance, she looked like a fairy bestowed on earth, an apsara..... every time her feet moved on the earth it felt like the earth was blessed and her every move was a definition of perfectness and fineness...."

Hearing that my eyes widened, I was quite amazed as I said

" Wow, I am sure she must have had plenty of admirers for her dancing!"

" She did......but not for her dance," Papa said but I couldn't hear the rest of it as he mumbled in a very low tone

Ignoring it, I again looked at him smiling as I said

" I wish I would become as fine in dancing as she was! It would be so amazing don't you thin-"

When suddenly my papa screamed taking me aback,

" Enough Shivangi!"

I instantly stood up, climbing out of his bed I looked into his eyes to find them blood red, his his eyes filled with rage

Why was he angry all of a sudden?

" W-What? B-But Papa"

When he again silenced me by saying

" Enough, You would never become as perfect in dancing as she was! I won't let that happen! at least till I am alive! Now go to your room and sleep"

and without hearing any further I left his room, rushing through the stairs as I made my way to my room in the dark

I didn't understand one thing...

Why did Papa behave this way with me?