Scarred (E1 – E2)

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1. E1: Scarred

E1 - Scarred

Scarred But Not Barred

The injuries we sustain on our bodies have made us prone to what is known as SCARS, yet the scars that are left on our soul are far more lethal. When there is life, there is hope, although our hearts or souls may have been scarred in the past, yet they will not bar us.

-Train

Pragya was five-year-old at the time. From a poor community, she managed to get a scholarship into one of the most reputable schools in Mumbai. It was a courtesy from the family her mother was a help too. While her mother brought her to work on several occasions, her employer grew fond of Pragya and enquired about her. He was sad to know that such a brilliant and smart girl wasn’t attending school.

One couldn’t blame Divya. She had given birth to twin boys after Pragya and she became breadwinner when the love of her life, their father died. She did several menial jobs but as the pay increased so did their needs. Pragya had been homeschooled before now, with her mother teaching her most of all she knew. Yet she was quick-witted and smart and that was why she caught the attention of Mr. Jade.

Mr. Jade was a European businessman who got married to an Indian woman. She was not just any woman but the heiress to the Amir Empire. He had sought to carry out a farming project in the area and the Amir Empire had been in charge of the construction plans. Passion had tingled with work and voila, they were hitched. Unlike most women, Aliyah Jade had a green heart.

Pragya grew up with their son, Seth. They went to the same school and when his mother wasn’t looking, he shared his toys with her. The only line between them was that they were cut from different cloths.

She excelled excellently at her studies and she was her mother’s joy. She was disciplined and was courteous all the time. She had considered herself as never making any mistakes in her life, little did she know that she was bound to make an honest mistake.

Like every other girl that ever grew up close to any boy, Pragya realized that what she thought was a nameless emotion was actually love. She was 18 when she found out that she had loved Seth almost all her life. That is if you exclude the years before she was the 5-year-old girl whose mom was their help.

The beauty of such teenage love is if it is reciprocated. In this case, Seth was head over heels in love with Pragya. Soon enough, they were in a relationship. Her mother was joyous. Although Mr. Jade thought it was one of those teenage things, he never stopped them from doing what they wanted. The only person who seemed appalled by the idea was Aliyah, though she didn’t show it.

She was sick of it. The thought of a dumpster girl dating her precious son was something that sickened her and it almost made her slit her throat. But like a mother Hen, she would do all it takes to protect her son from the gold-digging hands of Pragya and her pathetic mother.

Pragya and Seth had the most enviable relationship. They had so much admiration for each other and their dreams. Where one was weak, the other waxed in strength. But like every relationship, something was bound to happen.

His mother had forced her husband to send him abroad to foster his education. He was being banished to the States and he knew but no one could stop his mother when she was in her willful state. Soon his father budged and he followed suit. He had wanted to stay in Mumbai and attend whatever college Pragya was going to enroll in and continue their relationship with little distance if fate permitted.

A send-off party was thrown in his favor. It was a lavish one. All his friends from school were invited. His family and some other dignitaries were also in attendance.

Amidst the fact their friends were coming, Aliyah insisted that Pragya joined in serving the food that day alongside her mother. Due to the amount of gratitude she had for the Jades and her love for Seth, she didn’t mind doing so and this blinded her to the fact that her boyfriend’s mother was trying to humiliate her and show her her place.

Seth had his eyes on only one belle in this ball and that was Pragya. Dressed in the server’s uniform and with an apron tied around her waist. She looked lovelier. He just wondered why his mother had asked her to serve when she knew that she was important to him and should be by his side, tonight of all nights.

When she was about to slip past his table, he motioned for her to come to his. When she approached his table, he asked her to take away his plate. Pragya had almost put the dish into the sink when she noticed that something was behind the plate. ‘Meet me at the stables in 15 minutes’. The note read. She quickly glanced at her wristwatch to find out that, that was exactly 10 minutes ago, meaning that she had 5 more minutes.

She quickly left the kitchen through the back door and silently made her way to the stables. She was anxiously waiting for Seth when he entered the stables and closed the door behind him.

“I have missed you all evening,” he said as he embraced her tightly.

The embrace soon became frantic and he kissed her. It was their first time- kissing. It was awkward at first, but Seth had done his homework as he increased the intensity of the kiss. Even though Pragya was a newbie at this, her passion and love were able to generate a response that would make up for the loss of experience.

He began to explore her body in those ways he had always dreamed of and she was too aroused to stop him. When he stopped she was in pain but as soon as she knew why she was hotter. He swiftly made out of the stocked hay, a resting place that could fit for a bed. Taking his queue, she had stripped off her uniforms and he was shocked when he turned around.

Change that, he wasn’t shocked but speechless at what he had seen. Pragya’s body was marvelously sculpted. She had the most wonderful breasts and he grew hard just seeing them alone. He softly asked,

“Are you sure Pee?” She nodded her head and that was all the answer he needed.

He removed his clothes swiftly and Pragya let out a shriek when she saw his penis, it was huge. He giggled and said,

“Don’t tell me that was how I looked when I turned around and found you naked? Besides I am a beauty aren’t I?” She knew that he was only teasing her just so he could get rid of her fright and it worked. He gently lowered them down unto their hay bed and their mating was blissful. It hurt at first for Pragya but what came after erased any pain she had thought she experienced.

They laid there in each other’s arms as they both tried to catch their breath. Soon their heaving had stopped and only the sound of their throbbing hearts could be heard.

“I never knew you had my name tattooed on your pelvis.” She answered with a snort.

“I didn’t know why I got it in the first place but I don’t regret it one bit, seeing how much you like it.” He drew her for a kiss and after the kiss, they were silent again.

“Pee?”

“Yeah?”

“Will you marry me?”

She was shocked, she thought he was joking until he brought out a ring which had their names engraved on it. She agreed to marry him in exchange that he returned soon.

“I will return to you no matter how long it takes me,” he said as they both drifted into sleep.

They had both agreed to keep their engagement a secret. They talked often on the phone. While they were both in different places they found a way to go around their daily activities and still keep in touch.

The weeks turned into months and four months after, Pragya found out that she was pregnant. She didn’t know if she was to be excited or if she was to cry and Seth, why was Seth so far away. Lately, their communication had declined and he was always busy. The decline had affected her greatly and now that she found out that she was with child, she didn’t know what to do.

She called Seth and told him about it and he didn’t sound too pleased about it but he suggested that she tell his parents trusting they would take care of the situation. She told her mother first and her mother kept saying she didn’t know what all the fuss was about and she was happy for the intending parents.

If all parents were like hers. When she had told Mr. & Mrs. Jade about it, only the husband had been excited about it. He said he trusted Seth and Pragya enough to know that the child was theirs but it would have been better if they had made use of protection like a condom or contraceptive.

Aliyah called Pragya a gold digger out front. Everyone gasped at her accusation. She claimed that Pragya was carrying someone’s bastard and was trying to pin it on her son. Pragya left their mansion crying.

It was arson; a premeditated act of starting a fire. It was just like every other evening when Divya and her family ate together and retired for the evening. The first part of their roof to get burnt fell directly on the left side of Pragya’s face. The feel of one’s own flesh burning like meat on a grill was something no one should experience. Soon the whole building started burning.

My Choice

When her mother and twin brothers ran over to her side, they tried to help her with the burn but it was too late. They tried to leave their apartment and make it out of the building. The sound of windows bursting and the heat of the building fire were deafening. As they made it into the corridor, they were trapped. The fire kept closing in on them.

They could hear the shouts of other tenants in the building, everyone was trying to survive. There was an open window behind them. Divya looked at her pregnant daughter and her twins and they knew that the only way out was to jump.

You first dear. Her mother said to her. With so much pain she managed to make a jump. She landed on her side and she rolled over. It was a caravan that stopped her rolling. Before she could pick herself up, the remaining windows in the building shattered into splinters as the fire eventually brought the building apart. The firefighters came in too late.

As she laid behind the caravan, she heard voices in front of it. It was that of a woman and a man.

“Hope you made no mistakes?”

“No madam Aliyah.”

“And the girl and her wretched family?”

“Gone with the fire.”

“Thank goodness my son had the sense to call because he knew I would take care of the pregnancy.”

Pragya laid there motionless, she had lost her voice because of the amount of smoke she had swallowed. Aliyah, pregnancy, etc. God, mama, her brothers, she eventually gave room to the blackness.

When she woke up, she was in a hospital with bandages over the left side of her face. She wondered how she got there. She tried to recall everything that happened and the tears she hadn’t been able to shed for her family rolled down her cheeks with full force. She cried even harder as she discovered she had lost her baby.

Later on, the doctors explained her condition to her and explained how she got there. One of the firefighters had seen her almost dead around the area and had rushed her in. He had taken care of her bills and would be around in the afternoon to see her. The doctor, however, explained that her left face was scarred for life, the only possibility was to carry out plastic surgery.

George was his name, the officer who had brought her in. He offered her home if she was willing and he was ready to adopt her. The deal was that he was returning to Japan soon and he would like her to go with him since she had nothing left here. She wondered why he was being good to her but she didn’t ponder much on it.

When Seth was told of Pragya’s demise he wept. He couldn’t believe that she was dead and gone beyond his reach. Not only her but his unborn child also. In honor of her and her family, his own family conducted a burial ceremony for them.

Murder, but they made it look like arson. The plan was to kill her and her family but it wasn’t that easy. So, they decided to set the whole building with 50 tenants inside, on fire, how tragic.

Before she was to travel to Japan to start a new life with her father, she stopped at the gravesite of her family and on their grave, she swore that the perpetrators will pay.