Laughter in Darkness
A suspense, romantic and psychological thriller
By
Kotra Siva Rama Krishna
“Nothing happened. If you are still feeling sleepy go into the room and take rest on the bed there.” Rajesh said.
“Rajesh” frowns gathered on the forehead of Tanuja. “We both have been talking on the bed and suddenly there has come a change in me. Did I behave oddly with you?”
Instantly Rajesh looked into the face of Rose and then once again looked into the face of his wife. “You did not behave oddly. Everything is alright. Don’t think about anything unnecessarily and take rest.”
“No, Rajesh.” Tanuja got off from the chair. “I can remember that I behaved oddly. I talked something vehemently with you. But I cannot remember what I have talked. Please let me know all about that.” Looking into his face, she asked him.
“Rajesh, tell her everything. There is no problem.” Rose said.
“Alright then, I will tell you. Sit in the chair again and relax yourself.” Sighing heavily Rajesh said.
Still looking surprisingly into the face of Rajesh, Tanuja once again slumped herself in that chair. Then in a measured tone Rajesh explained to her what she talked.
“My god! I just cannot believe it.” with a shocking expression on her face Tanuja said. “It has happened more than twenty five years back! How can I ask about that baby now?”
“That has to be known to you only. Moreover you alleged that I killed your baby to marry you. In fact the miscarriage happened in the six months of your pregnancy and the baby was half the way out. You have been taken to our hospital only after the miscarriage was started.” Rajesh said to her.
“Oh, Rajesh, I am very sorry. How can I blame you like that? So graciously you came forward to marry me.” Looking with a sorrowful expression in her face, Tanuja said. “I just cannot understand why I behaved like that and why I talked like that.”
“Don’t worry about it too much. Something subconsciously forced you to talk like that and you have no bad opinion on your husband and you don’t want that baby now.” Vinod said.
“It is absolutely ridiculous! How can I ask for that baby which was stillborn more than twenty five years back?” Tanuja said still with that worrying expression in her face. “What still I cannot understand is why I behaved like that.”
“I already told you something subconsciously forced you to talk like that. Stop worrying about it.” Rose said.
“But what that something could be? How anything in the universe can force me to behave like that?” looking into the face of Rose, Tanuja asked her.
“It is true that you loved that Sasank very much. It is true that you wanted some sign of him with you. Subconsciously you have that wish always in you and that is what made you behave in such a way.” Vinod said.
“Vinod, you said it just right.” Looking appreciatively into the eyes of Vinod, Rose said.
Tanuja nodded her head helplessly. “That Sasank was a very nice guy and I loved him a lot. It is true of course that I wanted so much to keep that baby with me as a reminder of Sasank. But when it has been lost like that I understood the situation. Alright, I agree with what you have said. Subconsciously I was obsessed with the thinking of that Sasank and baby and talked like that. But why suddenly on this day and in this house only?” she looked into the face of Vinod with a questioning expression.
“Mind is a very complex thing in the entire universe. We never can say why it behaves in a certain way in a certain place. It is really difficult to say what made you talk like that.” Vinod said.
“Vinod sir is once again very much reasonable.” Neeraja said. “The most surprising thing in the entire universe is the mind itself. No one can understand why and how it behaves and make us behave oddly at times.”
There was silence once again and everyone there was listening to the sound of the rain.
‘I am feeling fear that I may behave like that again.” With a fearful expression in her face Tanuja said. “I have already made my husband feel bad. I am feeling very much fear I do behave in the same way again and make him feel worse this time.”
“It would not happen like that. Don’t feel fear so.” Rose said with a smile on her lips. “If you ever behave like that again, just tell me. I do put you under hypnosis and give you suggestions not to behave like that at any time in future.”
“Yes, Dr.Rose is an expert in hypnotism. She cured many patients through hypnotherapy.” Neeraja said.
“To that matter, Vinod also is an expert in hypnotism. He took my husband fifty years back and made him remember his childhood.” Looking into the face of Vinod, Tanuja said.
“Then it can be done by Vinod himself. You just stop worrying about it.” taking Tanuja’s right hand into her hands and squeezing it gently, Rose said.
“Alright” Tanuja leaned back in the chair and closed her eyes.
“Come we three go into our room and take rest there.” Taking her mother’s hand into her hands, Sameera said. “Now I also shall be with you and see there will be no problem to you.”
Tanuja silently got off from the chair and then the three went into their room.
&&&
“Oh, I just cannot understand any of this” Sunanda said looking into the face of Anand. “Whatever explanation has been given, I just cannot understand Tanu aunt’s behavior.”
“Some things are not easily understandable. Better we don’t think about them much.” Anand said. “Just remember how you behaved when that Sasank came on to you when we visited this place last time. Can we explain how it has happened at that time?”
Aravind laughed on hearing that and Sunanda and Anand turned their heads and looked into his face.
“Yes, at that time this gentleman froze that Sasank in the sea in his eyes.” Sunanda said. “He so cleverly exorcised that spirit from me then.”
“I did not exorcise any spirit. I just made you believe like that. It was also your subconscious made you behave like that then.” Aravind said. “How many times I have to say this to you?”
“Aravind if you too say like that I am helpless.” Sunanda said. “You have belief, knowledge and skill in paranormal. Why don’t you believe it was Sasank?”
“Even I have trust and knowledge in paranormal, I don’t say everything like that as paranormal.”
Rose, Neeraja and Emily were talking in themselves little away sitting in chairs and Arjun and Madhuri were playing with Vinod. Without moving from the chair, Vinod was trying to entertain them both.
Anand was about to say something more but then they have heard thumping sound on the doors there.
“Who it is at this time? We are not expecting anyone now.” With a surprising expression in his face Anand said and got off from the chair. “I go and see.”
He went near to the doors and opened them wide. His eyes became wide with surprise when he had seen Ratnam at the entrance.
“Ratnam, you” with a surprising expression in his face, Anand said.
“Yes, I want to talk to you people. May I come in?” Ratnam asked him with a low voice.
As Ratnam was talking like that remaining people there also went near to the entrance.
“Oh, please come in. No problem.” Inviting him into the house, Vinod said.
Ratnam slowly entered into the house and all they came into the verandah again.
“Where is Rajesh sir now?”
When all of them were seated in the chairs there, still standing in that place, Ratnam asked them.
“Rajesh is taking rest in his room.” Vinod said. “He has become very much upset with what you have said in the afternoon.”
“I should not have talked like that at all.” with the same small voice Ratnam said once again. “I am very sorry for that.”
“Its alright. Please sit in that chair and relax yourself first.” Showing a chair nearby with his index finger, Vinod said.
Ratnam sat in that chair troublingly.
“Now tell me what you indeed want to talk with us now?” Vinod asked him.
All of them there were looking eagerly into the face of Ratnam then.
“I felt very much bad that I talked like that then. So I want to apologize to Dr.Rajesh for the way I have talked. So I came.” Ratnam said.
“So it is not true that grandma was cremated while she was alive, is it?” looking straight into his face, Rajesh asked him.
Ratnam hung his head and remained silent.
“Tell me, it was not true. She was not cremated alive. Grandma was dead by the time fire put to her body”. Vinod asked him again.
“I cannot comment anything on that.” Ratnam perched his head up and looked into the face of Vinod. “There was no mistake of you people. All the signs of her then were indicating that she was dead, but she was not. She was on a soul journey. I just cannot convince you people about it, so please don’t ask anything about it.”
Vinod remained staring into the face of Ratnam as he did not know what to ask.
“But there was no fault in Dr.Rajesh in thinking that his grandma was dead. I should not have said it like that and upset him so.” Ratnam said.
“That Rajesh likes you a lot because you served grandmother and look after our necessities. He has no anger on you at all.” Aravind said.
“I know that he is a very good person. I know his anger would not last long.” Ratnam said. “Anyhow I don’t want to disturb him now if he is sleeping. Please tell him when he wakes up that I have come here to ask for his apologies. Sometimes I am just having no control over me and don’t know how I am behaving. So, I don’t want to come here again.” Ratnam got off from the chair he sat.
On hearing that Vinod, Rose and Neeraja looked into each other’s faces.
“Ratnam, please sit. There are matters we do want to talk with you.” Vinod said to him.
“Oh, please don’t try to detain me sir. I am feeling fear that I may lose control on me again. If I lose control over myself, I just talk in the way I have talked in the afternoon.” With a fearful expression in his face, Ratnam said.
“No problem whatsoever. One psychologist and two psychiatrists are here to deal with you in a gentle way if you start behaving oddly. Please sit in the chair again and relax yourself.” Sunanda said.
Then Ratnam looked into the face of Sunanda and there came a dramatic change in his facial expression. He just remembered how he enjoyed her youthful parts furtively with his eyes previously. It was just like she was offering herself to enjoy her beauty with his eyes. Ratnam involuntarily slumped himself in the chair again.
“Why you are feeling fear that you may lose control on yourself? From when you started behaving odd like this?” once again keeping his face in his gaze, Vinod asked him
“I don’t know. I cannot remember anything particular.” There came a very much troubling expression in his face.
“Don’t worry. We can help you. We can cure you from your problem. Just tell us why you started behaving odd and when it has happened in you?”
(I hope that you enjoyed upto here. I shall publish the next chapter as soon as possible. Please don’t forget to rate and review.)
