𝐒𝐚𝐤𝐬𝐡𝐢 ~ 𝐇𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐟𝐞 |𝟏𝟖+| - Chapter 5: Chapter 5

Author's POV:-
A car stopped with a hard force as both Arjun and Sakshi bummed in front and she walked up with a startle.
'Thikh se chala nahi pata gari ..yah mujhe hi ab sikhana parega haaa??' Arjun shouted making Sakshi flinch.
("Can't you drive properly…or now I’ll have to teach you, huh?")
'Maaf kar dijiye sahab woh age bara gaddha tha..isliye aisa karna para..' the driver apologise.
("I’m sorry, sir… there was a big pothole ahead, that’s why I had to do that.")
She fixed her saree properly as she didn't know how did she end up sleeping and that too in his shoulder. She moved slightly to make a distance between them.
Arjun then got outside as they reached their house. He comes over on her side as he open her door.
'Ghar aa gaya hain ..bahar aa ja ab..' he said making her slightly nod.
("We’ve reached home… now come outside.")
Now both were standing at the door and buaji was doing their aarti. She fed her some sweet and then to Arjun.
She then hold her chin making her look up 'Bahu toh dikhne mein bohut pyaari hain..bas thori lambi height ho jati toh bariya lagte mere Arjun bete k sath'
("Our bahu looks really sweet… just wish she were a bit taller, then she’d have looked perfect with my Arjun beta..")
She taunted sarcastically but Sakshi kept her mouth shut.
'Chale andar bua ji yah aise hi hum dono khare rahe yaha raat bhar??' Arjun asked with straight face making her chuckle.
("Shall we go inside, Bua ji, or are we going to stand here all night?")
'Haa haa beta bilkul...par pehale ghar ki bahu ayegi andar..' she said making Sakshi dip her leg on the liquid mixture of alta and milk before pushing the kalash filled with rice.
("Yes, yes, beta, of course… but bahu will enter the house first.")
She was then brought to their mandir as she asked her lit diya in front of the god.
'Yeh tere Sasur hain...aur yeh saas ...pranam kar le..' bua ji said.
("This is your sasur and this is your saas...tale blessings from them..")
Sakshi looked at her mother in law's picture for a moment before joining her hands and taking aashirvad from both of them.
The moment Sakshi stepped inside, her breath caught.
The room was huge — much larger than her own at her maternal home. The bed was covered in crisp white sheets, adorned with garlands of fragrant flowers, and the soft glow of fairy lights added a dreamy hue to the space.
Just then, Kajal, their housemaid, walked in with a tall glass of haldi-wala doodh.
"Wahan rakh de jake," Buaji instructed sharply, waving her hand dismissively.
(" Leave the glass of mile there on that table")
Once Kajal left, Buaji turned to Sakshi, holding a folded bundle — a heavy red saree with intricate golden embroidery.
She handed it over, her smile turning sly.
"Aaj teri suhaag raat hai... pata hai na suhaag raat kya hoti hai?"
Buaji asked pointedly, her voice dropping suggestively.
("Tonight is your wedding night… you do know what that means, right?")
Sakshi’s hands gripped the saree tightly as she nodded, her face flaming red.
Of course she knew... but how was she supposed to say it aloud?
Buaji leaned closer, her voice low but firm,
"Toh yeh pehen lena... sajh-dhaj ke rehna. Teri shakal utni bhi khaas nahi hai... mera beta jo bhi karna chahe, use karne dena... bilkul gussa mat dilana."
("So wear this… dress up properly. Your face isn’t that special anyway… let my son do whatever he wants to do, don’t make him angry.")
Sakshi's heart pounded erratically.
"Jab usse gussa aata hai na... toh use khud bhi nahi pata hota woh kya karne jaa raha hai... samjhi?"
("When he gets angry… even he doesn’t know what he’s going to do… understand?")
Buaji finished with a meaningful smirk.
Before Sakshi could react, she pointed towards the glass of milk.
"Aur haan... doodh ka aadha glass use pilana... aur aadha khud pee lena. Aaram milegi."
("And yes… give him half a glass of milk… drink the other half yourself. It’ll help you relax.")
Sakshi simply nodded.
Satisfied, Buaji gave one last instructive smile and stepped out, locking the door from outside with a click that sounded almost ominous in the heavy silence.
Now, left alone, Sakshi sat stiffly in the middle of the massive flower-decorated bed, clutching her saree in trembling hands.
Her heart raced. Her palms were cold and clammy.
Buaji’s words echoed again and again in her ears — "use gussa aata hai toh...khud bhi nahi pata woh kya karne jaa raha hai.."
("When he gets angry… even he doesn’t know what he might end up doing...")
Sakshi’s throat went dry. She whispered to herself,
"Agar baat nahi suni toh woh kya... mujhe maarenge?"
("If I don’t listen to him… will he hit me?")
Her mind, innocent and inexperienced, whirled with half-told tales she had heard from her elder cousins about
"suhaag raat".
("Wedding night")
"Maine suna hai ki aaj raat pati kuch karte hain apni biwi se... jisse ki bohot dard hota hai... agar naa karun toh aur bhi dard hota hai..."
("I heard that on the wedding night, the husband does something to the wife… which causes a lot of pain… and if I say no, it hurts even more...")
But what kind of pain?
No one had ever told her that.
Only cryptic warnings, awkward giggles, and half-spoken sentences.
She hugged herself, staring down at the rich red saree lying across her lap.
On the other side,
Bua ji handed Arjun a piece of white cloth, making him frown in confusion.
"Yeh kya hain?" he asked.
("What is this??")
"Safed kapra hain, jo tujhe aaj raat zarurat padegi," she said simply.
("This is a white cloth—you'll need it tonight.")
"Haan woh toh mujhe dikh raha hai ki yeh safed kapra hain... par iska main karunga kya?" Arjun asked, genuinely unable to understand her intention.
("Yeah, I can see it's a white cloth… but what am I supposed to do with it?")
Bua ji looked at him with disbelief.
"Kya karunga iska matlab? Aaj suhaag raat hai... toh log iska kya karte hain?" she taunted.
("What do you mean, what are you supposed to do? It’s your wedding night… don’t you know what people use this for?")
Arjun’s brows furrowed, but as the hidden meaning of her words sank in, his eyes widened in pure horror.
"Aapka dimag theek hai ya woh bhi bech diya hai? Aapko lagta hai main is bakwaas cheezo mein mein maanta hun?" he gritted his teeth, shoving the white cloth back into her hands.
("Are you in your senses, or have you sold that too? Do you really think I believe in all this nonsense?")
Bua ji, unfazed, again pushed it towards him.
"Chahe tu maane ya na maane, yeh ek rivaaz hai... sab log karte aaye hain apni shaadi ki raat. Tujhe bhi karna padega," she said firmly.
("Whether you believe it or not, it’s a tradition… everyone follows it on their wedding night. You’ll have to do it too.")
Arjun glared at her with pure anger. But then, as always, Bua ji started her emotional drama.
She cupped his cheeks, her tone suddenly soft.
"Tujhe yeh sab bakwaas lagta hoga beta, par ek aurat ke liye yeh bohot hi mahatvapurna cheez hota hai... Agar aaj yeh baat main nahi, tera maa kehta, toh kya tu mana kar pata?" she said with a fake sadness that pierced somewhere deep inside him.
(You may think it’s nonsense, son, but for a woman, this is a very important matter… If it wasn’t me but your mother telling you this, would you have refused then?")
Arjun's jaw tightened.
He knew exactly what she was doing.
She always used his mother's name to control him — and she knew it worked every time.
"Jaa, ab apne kamre mein... teri biwi tera intezaar kar rahi hai," she said, patting his shoulder before walking away.
("Now go to your room… your wife is waiting for you.")
Arjun stared at her retreating figure, his hands clenching the white cloth tightly.
"Aap aur Maa...?" he chuckled bitterly under his breath.
"Aakash aur zameen ka farq hai dono mein... Bas maa ki badkismati thi ki unki shaadi is rakshaso k ghar mein ho gayi thi..." he muttered, tears brimming in his furious eyes.
(There’s a vast difference between my maa and you..It was just mom’s misfortune that she ended up marrying into this house of monsters...")
"Mujhe apni hi biwi ke liye rakshas nahi banna chahata, jaise aapke bade bhai bane the...
("I don’t want to become a monster for my own wife… like your elder brother did...")
"Mujhe bas itna dukh hai ki mere andar ek janwar ka khoon daudta hai... par main maa k jaise hi hoon. Kyunki maa ne hi mujhe bara kiya hain.. seekh diya haim insaaniyat kya hoti hai..."
("What hurts me most is that a beast’s blood runs through my veins… but I am like my mother. Because she was the one who raised me… who taught me what humanity is.")
"Aur jo kuch aapne aur baba ne mere maa ke saath kiya tha... woh toh main zindagi bhar nahi bhoolunga."
("And what you and baba did to my mother… I’ll never forget that for the rest of my life.")
His fists clenched harder, the veins on his arms taut with anger.
"Baba ko apne kiya ka saza mil hi chuka hai... Aur ab, ab aapki baari hai Bua ji..."
( Baba has already paid the price for what he did… and now, now it’s your turn, Bua ji...")
"Main bas isliye chup hoon, kyunki mere hath mein aapke khilaf abhi bhi saboot nahi aaya... Par jis din aa jayga..."
("I’m only silent because I don’t have the evidence against you yet… But the day I get it...")
He let the sentence trail off dangerously, a fire burning in his chest.
"Us din aapka khel khatam, Bua ji..."
("That day, your game will be over, Bua ji.")