Natasha

Gossips were brutal. They spread like wildfire, destroying the subjects in the process. In Tejas's case, his whole neighbourhood knew. They didn't know the true 온라인카지노게임 of course. Just rumors about a student staying late evening to seduce her teacher and vice versa. Eventually his students came to know as well. Most of them stopped coming altogether.

Natasha was relieved. It didn't seem like her neighbourhood received the ear of it yet. Though that didn't stop the derogatory comments she had to hear at home. That they were ashamed to be her parents. That she was a burden to their lives. Going to school wasn't an option either as she had to hide her bruises. Her body ached for a week. When the day finally came to go to school, she was elated. Anything to get away from the four walls of her house.

It was a normal day. Normal if she excluded the sly looks Kaveri threw-- the one who attended Mr Tejas's tuition. Natasha contemplated confronting her but was scared. It wasn't like they were friends either. She vaguely made up her mind to confront her in a few days.

As days went on, she noticed changes in school. They were as small as the weather changing but they were still there. The side glances, the gossip, the avoidance. What became limited to Kaveri extended to her whole class. The girls whom she tagged as 'normal friends' began to distance away as if they would get diagnosed by her disease if they stood close to her. All except for Abhishek.

She remembered coming home one day, begging her parents to change her school after she discovered obsolescent words written on her desk. As usual, she pleaded for her innocence as well. Her mother only resisted harder.

“You'll rot in this school until graduation. It's your punishment for staining our izzat (reputation). Be grateful it's only for two years. A slut like you doesn't even deserve that.”

A slut like you doesn't even deserve that.

Another part of her died that day. With each verbal and physical lash she received, she drifted away from reality. Eventually, Natasha became void. Void enough to go to her room and stare at the wall for hours. Void to pass through the obstructions each day. She felt as if she was in a different dimension away from the world of living. She didn't become a participant, she became the background. The world had pushed that identity down her throat until she was forced to accept it.

She was a slut. Untouched, unnoticeable, unloved.

However, one day, the void became too heavy to carry on her shoulders.

It was a normal day. Getting up, going to school, attending classes, and coming home. No one barely spoke to her. Neither did she bother to. She had since lost her voice to reason. But instead of curling herself to a ball in her dark room, she got up. She got up and followed where her legs took her.

Towards the terrace.

The chilly winter night hit her skin like needles as she opened the door. She felt underdressed in her night tee and shorts but she hardly cared. Her eyes simply focused on the edge of the terrace and what lay beyond the horizon. With each step, she became more determined, more brave. She contemplated on leaving a suicide note, but what was the point anyway? It wasn't like anyone would read it.

It's only natural to leave the world that had no place for a slut like me.

Her world came to a singularity as she stopped before the edge. Her heart soared. Somehow, she managed to sit down on the border without falling. She was six floors above the ground now. Looking down, she noticed the pedestrians who were as small as her thumb and cars that looked like toys. The sight made her nauseous enough to divert her gaze to the starless sky. She wondered if she would atleast be granted heaven if it existed. Hell wouldn't be bad either.

A smile escaped her lips. Happiness purged inside her for the first time in days. She would finally be free.

Natasha closed her watery eyes, her heart beating erratically. She paused, standing between life and death itself. Funny, she almost felt like she could hear something besides the thundering beat of her heart. A voice.

“D...”

It was as small a distant echo. She arched her head behind to make sure she wasn't having hallucinations. Was she dead? The voice called out to her again, somewhat more clearer this time. A girl's voice.

“Didi...”

“Didi...”

“Natasha!”

Something about the sheer power in her sister's voice snapped her back to reality. Her gaze dropped to the ground, just like her heart. The wind changed course, the clock hands moved. Suddenly the height of the building from the ground seemed hauntingly real. Suddenly she was nauseated.

“Didi, what happened? Why are you sitting like that?” Mitali panicked as she saw her big sister, sitting frozen on the terrace floor-- Her arms wrapped tightly around herself, her entire body trembling. She rushed to her at once, wrapping her small arms around Natasha's shivering frame.

Warmth. That's what Natasha felt for the first time in forever, instead of lashes. Warmth that coursed through her icy body as Mitali's hands rubbed up and down Natasha's back while her head rested above hers. Life injected into her veins, even if it was as little as the flickering of a night bulb. Natasha closed her eyes against Mitali's chest, a lone tear rolling down her cheek. It was peaceful.

Maybe, just maybe, I wasn't hated by everyone in this world.

People often boasted they weren't affected by the rumors but that was a big fucking lie. Say, if a dog kept barking on your ears, how long would you play deaf? Could you possibly ignore even if it's bark bled your eardrums? That's what happened when you got into the bad side of society. They didn't talk— they barked behind your back.

Mitali's love saved Natasha that night and it kept her at bay as Mitali stayed by her side since then. Too bad it wasn't enough to shield Natasha from the rest of the world. The hate was too much to bear. She attempted to end her life once more, only to be interrupted. Again. She even tried to cut her wrist when she accidentally found a blade in the bathroom once. Alas, she only managed to scratch a little. Great, she couldn't even die successfully.

* * *

Often at the times of hopelessness, people turned their fate into the hands of God. However, Natasha decided to turn to the devil. The source of her suffering, Mr Tejas. With hurried footsteps, she furiously marched into the lion's den one more time. Consequences be damned. It's not like she had anything to lose anyway. For now, she only wanted to make him suffer.

Not only was his wife absent but Tejas happened to be completely alone in his house. Perfect, just perfect! Although she feared the man but her subdued anger resurfaced as she saw his mughead face. She saw red.

Before the asshat could respond, she responded by spraying a handful of sand she picked from the garden right onto his face. Tejas rubbed his eyes furiously while wailing in pain. It was music to her ears. If that wasn't enough, she balled her fists to throw a punch to his gut, making him stagger to the ground.

“Take that, Tejas! I hope you suffer thrice as much for every second you caused pain in my life. Fuck you, fuck you, FUCK YOU!” She yelled, her eyes bulging with rage. She allowed her anger to seep through her punches, her eyes stained with angry tears. She still wasn't satisfied so she pulled his hair and slapped him hard. He gritted his teeth, seething.

Natasha was just about to throw another slap when Tejas caught a hold of her arms, only to flip her around and smash her to the ground. Her head took a hit, rendering her body defenseless. Blotches appeared in her blurry vision as her mind went blank.

Obviously this gave the mighty Tejas enough time to recover from her onslaught. He wasn't affected by her puny punches. He was simply recovering his stinging eyes from the sand. Before long, he was dragging Natasha by her hair towards the washroom while continuously spewing curses at her. He even threatened to call her parents.

“Go ahead call them, you scum. What worse could happen that didn't already happen? Perhaps I should get myself killed. Atleast then, all blame could finally shift to you and I could watch you rot in jail, you faggot!” Natasha scorned while trying her best to wriggle against his vice- like grip.

“Shut your mouth! As if my life's any better. My tuition went out of business, thanks to you. My wife hates me. Everyone hates me.”

“Thanks to me?! Or your pretty slut whom you shagged behind their back?”

She was answered by a kick in her stomach, knocking the air out of her lungs. By this time, Natasha started to lose her cool as she rubbed her aching scalp, then stomach, shedding bitter tears. Her blood ran cold when she noticed him filling the bath tub with water. Her body automatically tried to move the heck away but he grabbed her. “What are you planning, huh? Leave me already. Leave me, rat!”

“Well, you should have thought  before coming here, cunt.” He replied and grabbed her by the collar. Natasha couldn't help but shoot daggers at him despite shaking to the core. “Ah, come on, students shouldn't glare at their teachers like that. Haven't you been taught manners? No worri— Aaargh!”

If Tejas thought Natasha would just stand there listening to his load of crap, he was dead wrong. While Tejas was still reeling from the nasty teeth bite on his finger by her, she stood by her feet to escape once for all.

“BITCH! The fuck do you think you're going?!” He bellowed, grabbing her by her collar before she could sprint towards the living room. Despite being partially choked by his grip, she spent full energy in getting out but in vain. She felt like a deer being cornered by a tiger. She cast a glance towards the living room. Another glance then another.

No one came. 

What followed was the most excruciating minutes of her life. Tejas was all about teaching his 'favorite student' a lesson. Although she wondered who would torture their student by purposefully drowning their head in a tub full of water. He would shove her head in and kept going until he saw bubbles escaping her mouth. Death closed in on her, but before it could devour her whole, she was brought to the surface, panting loudly for air.

Drown, rise, repeat. Drown, rise, repeat. This torture repeated several times. The sound of water that used to be soothing to her before became claustrophobic. Natasha was surprised her lungs were still working, despite feeling like she couldn't take it anymore. Every breath felt like a chore. Her head weighed a boulder. Still, the motherfucker wanted her to say words. Words.

“Now be a good child and say it,” Tejas demanded, pulling her hair by her scalp while she soundly gasped for air. He pulled her wet face close to his. “Swear that you'll keep my truth a secret from your parents. Don't mention today as well. I bet they will beat you if you do. And swear you would never visit me again.”

“I... Sss... awk!”

She promised she tried. She repeated her answer several times in her head but it just wouldn't escape past her lips. She pointed her trembling hand on the tub and then shook her head in a negative. It seemed like he understood as he let her be. Her chest heaved in and out, her eyes wet with bitter tears as she prepared herself.

“I w-won't tell a-one. Hah-I won come... gain. Ease l-leve me...”

She could barely make out his expression through her fluttering eyelids. Her vision was closing in on her. She wanted to sleep. In her mind, he was smirking maliciously. He seemed to be doing something. Something about being sorry for ruining her pretty face while cupping her cheeks. Or how he wished circumstances were different where she was older and a couple of other things she couldn't register. She heaved a sigh of relief when he finally said he was willing to let her go. She turned around with her limp body.

“Aww, who said you could leave like that?” Tejas pouted. Her face paled more if possible. She shook her head violently, indicating him to stop while he took her near the tub. A cold chill ran down her body as if it were not her own when he hugged her from behind, cupping her breasts. Something came over him that she didn't like one bit. “I'm sorry but I'm enjoying this way too much. Just look at the expression you're making. Like a tigress reduced to a cat. Ah, I love it! I so love it! I'm glad you came.”

“P- please!” Natasha rasped when he caressed her wet face and hair, smiling creepily. She joined her shaky palms together. She had no strength left. This was all she could do and that was her biggest fear ever. “Leave... me... alone.”

“You don't believe me?” He spoke, ignoring her pleas. As if to prove it, he guided her hand right to his  crotch. Her eyes widened in horror as she finally realized what he was getting at. Only a psycho would be turned on by something like this. Her entire body shuddered with fear. Her hand reacted instinctively,  trying to break away from his disgusting grip as far as possible. Instead, the opposite happened as he forcibly made her rub him while he moaned. When she screamed, he only clamped her face against his chest while continuing to guide her hand inside his pants. She wanted to cut her hand and die right then. Thankfully, he left her, only to hold her arm again. “Psst, don't look at me like that. I'm not going to do it even if I wanted to. Can't get arrested na. You shall be spared. But not before this...”

“Nooo— please!” Natasha wailed as he dipped her head close to the surface of the water on the tub. She couldn't decide what terrified her more. Him making her touch his erection or the whirlpool of darkness that awaited inside the water. “I... can't take...” 

“Come on, just one more time! For my sake. Actually two times. I want you to remember what would happen if you make mistakes again. Even if you don't remember, your body definitely will. A lifetime lesson from your favorite tutor.” His laughter sounded haunting to her ears. “Let's enjoy this a bit more, shall we?”

And then, she fell deeper into the abyss of water once again.

* * *

“The fucker did what?!” Abhishek's eyes filled with fury after hearing a bit of what happened to Natasha afterwards. He hit the adjacent wall with his fist. “Saala, behan ke l##da! I'm gonna kill that scumbag and cut his balls—”

“It was my fault, Abhi! I basically invited trouble by going to his house like an oblivious fool. What was I thinking?” Natasha cut off, before covering her mouth to break into sobs.

Somehow Natasha managed to call Abhishek the instant she exited the building, begging him to take her far away as soon as possible. It was all she did before lying on the bench at the nearby garden, half unconscious. She hugged her body as it shivered uncontrollably. Luckily Abhishek arrived in his car within ten minutes. He assessed her condition and quickly covered her with his jacket before taking her to his friend's house.

“Hey, it's okay. Don't blame yourself,” Abhishek spoke softly, bringing her head to his chest as he enclosed her in his arms. Even with the covered quilt, she was quivering. Her face visibly pale.

“Abhi, I'm scared. I'm scared.” Natasha spoke, her voice hoarse as she looked helplessly into his eyes. “I don't want to go home tonight, I don't want to go anywhere else. What if... what if he comes for me? What if he r@pes me? What do I do? I can't bear it. I can't take this! I can't—”

“Shh, calm down, baccha! Nothing will happen to you. I'm here na. I'm right beside you. I won't let anything else happen to you, I swear.”

“Don't swear!” Natasha shrieked, roughly slapping his chest away, thus shocking them both. She covered her mouth, realizing her folly. “I- I'm sorry. I got triggered when you said that. I'm such a mess. Please kill me.”

He looked at her horrified, reaching for her shoulders. “What are you saying, Nat? Please don't talk like this. You're making me worry. Should I take you to a doctor again...?”

It took a while to calm Natasha down. It was taxing and mentally exhausting especially when she kept repeating she wanted to die. How she couldn't find any reason to live in this wretched world? Abhishek was at a loss of words. Somehow he convinced her to eat the food he ordered, hoping she would feel a little bit better. In between, she revealed more bits about the incident. How Tejas enjoyed drowning her to the point where he was aroused. How he made her rub his dick. How messed up could one be? Abhishek thought. Just thinking about Tejas made his blood boil. He advised Natasha to lodge a police complaint against him for torture and molestation but she decided not to. She didn't have the mental strength to complicate her life even more. Neither disappoint her family further.

Understandable, Abhishek thought while watching Natasha sleep exhausted on the bed. Her eyebrows creased even though she was sound asleep. After sometime, he reached out for her forehead, caressing it gently. It made her stir. When she blinked open her heavy eyelids, she saw his face marred with tears. She sat up. “Abhi?”

His shoulders shook as he broke down. “I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I couldn't do anything. Couldn't protect you. Couldn't ease your pain. And now you want to die...”

“That's not true at all,” Natasha shook her head, her glassy eyes mirroring his. “You've been there for me far more than anyone else, I realize that. You're even crying for me... I don't know what I did to deserve that...”

“What nonsense? I'm your friend, you dumbass! Aren't friends allowed to care? You reached out for me at a time when our entire class abandoned me. You accepted me despite knowing about the bad troop I was involved with. You've always supported me and you don't even realize that. Idiot!” He snapped, slapping lightly on her head.

“Sorry,” She hiccuped between her tears. “I'm sorry for involving you in my mess. Don't get mad at me, please.”

“What do you keep blabbering about? Come here.” Saying that,  Abhishek wrapped his arms around her again. She readily gave in, hugging him back tightly. His shirt smelled of male odor and deo. “Even if the whole world abandons you, you still have me. You'll always have me. Remember that. No matter how dark your days get, please don't bear it alone, Natasha. Share your worries with me. We'll bear your burden together. I can't say anything now but I promise your life will get better later on. Just hang on with me.”

“You're not alone.”

He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. It was as if someone had put a balm to her soul. As if she was shown an orb of light at the end of the tunnel. It didn't heal her scars. Her life was still in doom. But it did give her a reason to live.

To live another day.

For once in her life, Natasha let herself go as she sobbed onto him while he let her. He even cried with her and joked about how pathetic they looked right now. For once, she let herself bare. She shared her sadness and her darkest thoughts. She let him know how shattered she was that day. And despite it all, he was still there by her side. To her, Abhishek wasn't just a friend.

He was her axis.

Unfortunately Abhishek had to convince Natasha to go home to avoid trouble from her useless family. Thankfully, none of them questioned her much after noticing her sorry state. Her parents even asked if something was wrong but she simply called in sick and reserved herself to her room.

* * *

When the next dawn ascended, Abhishek took it upon himself to contact a bunch of people, he vowed never to cross paths with again. He was determined to revert back to his former self, albeit for a short while. All for his best friend.

For revenge.

Four days later, Tejas was walking on his way home. It was three in the afternoon that time. He happened to see a Work in Progress sign board that blocked the road ahead of him and a man guarding the sign. It compelled him to take the corner cut. Just when he walked between the buildings, a group of four masked men appeared out of nowhere. Before Tejas could react, one of the masked men gripped Tejas's neck from behind and covered his mouth with a cloth to gag him. The chloroform instantly knocked him unconscious.

When Tejas regained his senses, he was surrounded by five masked men surrounding him in a secluded place. Fear gripped his being but he masked it by asking questions and threats to call the police. Of course his mobile was confesticated by them. None of the men seemed to entertain his barrage of questions. However, when one of the masked men expressed his anger on what he did to Natasha, Tejas understood his situation. He gritted his teeth in anger.

“That little whore. How dare—”

Tejas was met with a bloody punch across his jaw before could finish. Followed by another and another. Abhishek jiggled his hand after he was done while Tejas whimpered in pain.

“Madarchod! How dare you cuss like that after what you did?!” Abhishek spat, his eyes feral.

Tejas snorted. “Are you her minions? You think ya'll will be spared after this. My Chacha is a bloody CA.”

“Ae Chacha! Save your boring threats for some other time. FYI, she didn't order us to do this,” One of the masked men intervened and pulled Tejas by his hair. He directed his gaze at Abhishek. “Shall we start, brother?”

Abhishek who had his face covered (except his eyes) took wooden sticks out of the car and handed one to each masked men. Tejas's face went white as a sheet. He tried to make a run for it, but of course he was caught. Instead, he began to bribe them with money.

“You think money's gonna cover shit? She's traumatized, suicidal and afraid to go near water, all because of you, dirtbag!” Abhishek grabbed Tejas collar, zeroing his eyes on him. “Normally I don't stoop this low but you hurt my favorite person in ways you don't realize. I'll make you regret it.”

Tejas let out a laugh, even intimidating Abhishek for a second. “Not sure if I'll regret that since it was one of my favorite things—’

This time it was another masked man— the tallest one out of the group who swat his wooden stick on Tejas's side, earning a sharp blow on his body. Tejas gasped for air. “Bhai, you certainly picked a twisted fucker this time. Atleast we won't pity while kicking his ass. This shall be fun. Boys!”

The next few minutes passed with the masked men beating Tejas black and blue. Tejas begged them to stop, but they didn't. At times, Abhishek hesitated but then he remembered the crippled state of Natasha and all his rage stormed back in. By the time, they were done, Tejas's face was swollen and his clothes torn. Blood poured out of his swollen lip and other parts of the body. Just not to the point where it was life threatening.

Abhishek crouched down to a limpered Tejas on the ground. He twisted the knot of his stomach hard, making Tejas screech. “You feel that, shithead? That's probably how she felt after getting beaten up by her parents. By no fault of hers.”

Just then, one of the masked man informed Abhishek while holding Tejas's phone. “Bro, done.”

“Wha- are you upto?” Tejas spoke, his voice weak as he blinked through his one unswollen eye.

“Some necessary precautions. Gotta make sure you don't bring us any trouble.” Abhishek then flashed something from his phone that paralyzed Tejas for a second. The evidence for threat included a picture of him with his secret lover, Geeta taken last month, a few screenshots of chats that indicated the affair. “Listen carefully. If we get wind of you doing something fishy, we'll send this straight to your wife and family, understood? Or worse, police. So don't tell anyone about today.”

“By the way, I found a dirty video of him with his lover. Should we download that, too? It's hard evidence.”

“Would love to see that. The woman's got big jugs.”

“Stop! Don't forward that to anyone. That woman has nothing to do with this matter.” Abhishek snapped, stopping everyone from laughing. He got up to take a look at the video and stopped right where the woman was about to take all of her clothes off. “Crop this to seven seconds and forward it. There's no skinship till here... Wait, I'll do it. Who knows what you dickheads will try to do.”

Others laughed in response saying Abhishek was being too boring. A few more dialogues were exchanged. Tejas made the promise. A deal was sealed.

“Ah, before we go, there's one little thing left to do. Consider this our farewell gift. You won't even crawl two miles near Natasha again.”

* * *

“Why am I not surprised?” Natasha laughed it off when Abhishek enacted the fight to her. He even had a picture of a beaten up Tejas. “I know you have the hots for me but this is insane, bruh. Or is this a ploy to get in my pants? If that's the case, then let me offer myself. Ah, truu lubb!”

“Please tell you're kidding me right now. I can't see you that way,” Abhishek replied, crinking his nose in slight disgust. “By the way, we also gave him a little parting gift... A nice kick on his balls.”

Natasha's eyes widened. “My God. You did that? Why didn't you invite me?”

Abhishek frowned, “Not me. I made someone else do it. Now he won't think about approaching—”

He was interrupted by Natasha's arms over him. She sniffed. “Idiot! What about you? Aren't you scared? What if he plots something against you?”

“It would be a lie if I say I'm not scared. Regardless, my gang's strong. We also have evidence against him so we are just hoping he stays put.”

Natasha gave a tearful smile. “Thank you, Abhi. I mean it.”

* * *

Abhishek's noble deeds didn't end there. He did two things afterwards. He met Natasha's little sister one day, right after she returned home from the school bus. He asked if he could talk to her in private which Mitali readily agreed since she knew him.

“I know I shouldn't ask you for a favor, since you're merely a eleven year old kid but you're the only one I can trust from your treacherous family.”

“I'm not as childish as I look, bhaiya. It's about my big sister, right? Just tell me,” Mitali paused to cross her arms, pouting. “And what happened last week? Di looked distraught when she returned.”

Abhishek chuckled at her attitude. “No wonder you are her sister. Fine, I'll tell you everything.”

Obviously Abhishek didn't delve into every single detail. By the time he finished, tears were streaming down Mitali's cheeks. But when he told her how he beat Tejas up, she hi-fived with him. He placed a hand over Mitali's shoulders while crouching down to her height. “I want you to keep an eye on Natasha at home. Please avoid her from doing anything funny.”

“What do you mean by funny?”

Abhishek pressed his temple, looking conflicted, “Like... like harming herself in any way.”

Mitali's face looked forlorn. As if she understood his words right away. Her head was downcast when she added. “I think Di was already doing that when she was on the terrace one night. I was lucky to find her on time...”

Abhishek exhaled a long sigh, placing a hand over his head. “Shit, shit, shit! This is more serious than I thought.”

They talked for a while. Mitali said he didn't need to tell her because she was already keeping an eye on Natasha. Not precisely because of this, but she wanted to be there for her. Abhishek knew he could trust Mitali.

Although this wasn't a permanent solution for everything.

* * *

“Oi, why are you bringing me here? I'm not in mood for a lecture,” Natasha resisted when Abhishek took her to a clinic. A mental wellness clinic.

“Do you know how hard it was to find a decent therapist around  here? I had to take two sessions with Miss Thapa to be sure. And she won't lecture you, she will listen.”

“I know why you're doing this, twat! I'm not crazy, okay!” Natasha defended as he tried to push her through the door.

“No, you're not. You're perfectly fine but still, go! I even paid for your sessions.”

Reluctantly, Natasha went for the session, failing to understand how a mere person was going to solve her mountain of issues.

* * * *

The last two chapters were the hardest ones to write. I don't think I ever wrote a dark back온라인카지노게임 of this kind even in my previous books. I remembered how I took a long break after I wrote half of this chapter and only resumed writing last year. Though I definitely enjoyed writing the revenge scene lol.

Thoughts about her past, her struggles, Tejas and how Abhishek handled it. This is why Natasha can't swim and still gets scared of bodies of water sometimes.

See you in the next chapter. It will continue where this chapter ended and we'll get back to the present. Please vote and comment.