As usual, Aarav was strolling around the park. He loved being in nature where no one could disturb him. His thoughts were clear, positive and mood felt better.
Smiling faintly, he took out his phone and snapped a selfie, wanting to remember the peaceful afternoon.
Just as he lowered his phone, it began to ring.
Grandmother flashed across the screen.
A smile instantly spread across his face.
"Grandma!" he answered cheerfully.
There was a brief silence.Then a familiar voice spoke.
"Hello, Aarav."
The smile on his face slowly faded. It wasn't his grandmother.It was his stepmother.
"Oh... it's you," he replied quietly. "Is everything alright? How's Grandma?"
She hesitated.
"Aarav... how are you feeling today?"
He frowned.
"I'm fine. But that's an unusual question coming from you." He let out a small, uneasy laugh. "Is something wrong? How's Grandma?"
Silence.
" Aarav. "
"Please just say faster."
" I don't how to say this . But "
His heart began to race.
" She actually....is.."
His grip around the phone tightened.
" What happened? " He asked once again
Another pause.
Then came the words that shattered his world.
" YOUR GRANDMA...PASSED AWAY. !!! ".
Everything around him fell silent.
The laughter of children.
The chirping birds.
Even the wind seemed to stop.
He stood frozen, unable to process what he had just heard.
"No..."
His voice barely escaped his lips.
"No... what are you saying?"
His breathing grew uneven.
"Didn't... didn't she wake up?" he asked desperately. "The doctors said she was stable. She was getting better..."
"I'm so sorry, Aarav," his stepmother whispered. "She passed away last night."
He shook his head, though she couldn't see him.
"No... that's not possible."
His eyes filled with tears.
"You should have called me."
Her voice trembled.
"I know... We were in shock. There were relatives to inform, rituals to arrange... By the time everything settled, it was already morning. I'm sorry."
Aarav remained silent.
He couldn't speak.
He couldn't think.
He simply stared ahead, as though denying reality would somehow change it.
After a long silence, she spoke again.
"We'll perform her final rites tomorrow. If... if you want to see her one last time...come home."
His heart clenched.
The call ended. Aarav slowly lowered the phone.The words echoed relentlessly in his mind.
PASSED AWAY.
FINAL RITES.
They felt unreal.His grandmother wasn't just his grandmother.
She had been his mother, his protector, his home.
She never treated him differently from his elder brother. She loved him with a unwavering devotion, always making sure he felt wanted in a family where he often questioned his place.
After his grandfather passed away two years ago, she had slipped into a coma.
The doctors had done everything they could.
But perhaps,
A part of her had left with the man she had loved all her life.They had been inseparable - Soulmates.Maybe she had simply grown too tired of living without him.
Or perhaps,
She had stayed just long enough.
Long enough to know Aarav had finally found the courage to walk away from the family that had never truly accepted him.
Long enough to believe he could survive on his own.
Only then,
Did she let herself rest.
The thought shattered whatever strength he had left.
His knees weakened.
Memories flooded his mind - her gentle smile, the warmth of her embrace, the way she would stroke his hair whenever he cried.
He couldn't believe she was gone.
He didn't want to.
Deep inside, a small part of him still whispered that there had been some mistake.
That if he hurried home...
He would find her waiting for him.
Without wasting another second, Aarav booked the earliest flight to Nepal.
He threw a few clothes into his suitcase with trembling hands, barely noticing what he packed.
There was only one thought in his mind.
I have to see Grandma.
The flight to Nepal felt endless.
Aarav sat by the window, staring at the endless stretch of clouds, yet seeing nothing. His mind replayed the same words over and over.
Your grandmother passed away.
He wished he could wake up from what felt like a nightmare.
By the time the plane landed, exhaustion had settled into every part of his body.
He collected his luggage and stepped outside the airport.
The familiar air of home greeted him, but for the first time, it felt cold and unfamiliar.
Without wasting another moment, he hailed a taxi and gave the driver his home address.
The journey was painfully silent.
Soon, the taxi slowed to a stop.
"We're here," the driver said softly.
Aarav paid the fare, picked up his suitcase, and stepped out.
His eyes immediately fell upon the crowd gathered outside the house.
Dozens of people stood in the lawn, dressed in plain white and muted colours. Some spoke in hushed voices while others sat silently with tearful eyes.
His heart sank.
He had known what awaited him.
Yet seeing it before his own eyes made it terrifyingly real.
For a long moment, he remained frozen beside the gate.
Then, taking a slow, unsteady breath, he forced himself to walk forward.
Each step felt heavier than the last.
It was as though every footstep carried him closer to a truth his heart desperately wanted to deny.
As he entered the lawn, conversations slowly faded.One by one, people turned to look at him.Some lowered their heads in sympathy. Others simply watched in silence.
No one spoke.From inside the house came the sound of quiet prayers, broken only by the muffled sobs of grieving relatives.
His pulse quickened.His chest tightened.
Suddenly he didn't want to go any farther.
He wanted to turn around.
To leave.
To pretend none of this had happened.
He wanted to call his grandmother and hear her gentle voice answer as she always did.
He wanted to rest his head on her lap while she stroked his hair and told him everything would be alright.
But there was no turning back now.
Gathering what little courage remained, Aarav stepped inside the house.The cries grew louder.The scent of incense filled the air.
Then....He saw her.
Everything around him disappeared.
The voices.
The people.
The world itself faded into silence.
Only she remained.
Wrapped in a spotless white cloth, she lay peacefully on the floor.Her eyes were gently closed.Soft cotton rested in her nostrils.
A few glass bangles had been placed upon her chest.
The red vermilion still adorned the parting of her hair, and the small gold nose ring and earrings she always wore remained untouched.
She looked peaceful.Almost as if she were simply asleep.
Beautiful.
Like a bride taking one final journey.
Aarav's lips trembled.
"No..."
The word escaped as little more than a whisper.
His suitcase slipped from his hand and hit the floor with a dull thud.He slowly walked towards her and knelt beside her.
His trembling fingers reached for her hand.
It was cold.Far colder than he had ever imagined.His heart shattered.
Without another thought, he wrapped his arms around her and buried his face against her chest.
For years, that embrace had been the safest place he had ever known.
It had always been warm.
Comforting.
Home.
Now....Only silence remained and unbearable coldness.The tears he had been holding back finally broke free.
He sobbed uncontrollably, clinging to her as though refusing to let the world take her away.
He had cried countless times before.
But every single time she had been there to wipe away his tears.
To hold him close.
To tell him that everything would be alright.
Today there was no comforting hand.No gentle voice.No lap waiting for him to rest upon.For the first time in his life, he truly felt alone.
For a long time, no one dared to interrupt him.
The room echoed with quiet sobs as Aarav clung to his grandmother's lifeless body, unwilling to let go.
His stepmother knelt beside him first.
"Aarav..." she whispered, placing a trembling hand on his shoulder. "Please..."
He didn't respond.
His elder brother tried next.
"Come on, Aarav..."
Nothing.It was as though he couldn't hear them.
Or perhaps, he simply refused to.
How could he let go of the only person who had never let go of him?
Minutes passed.
Then slow footsteps approached.
A middle-aged man stopped beside him.
"Aarav..."
His voice was calm, yet heavy with grief.
"Beta... ( Son )". The single word made Aarav freeze.
His tear-filled eyes slowly lifted , standing before him....was his father.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
It was the first time Aarav had ever heard that word from his father's lips.
His grandmother had spent years trying to convince him.
"He's your son too," she would often say.
But he had never listened.
Until today.
A bitter smile formed on Aarav's lips.
How cruel life could be.
The one person who had wished to hear that word spoken was no longer there to witness it.
His father swallowed hard before speaking again.
"Let her go, son."
His voice cracked.
"It's time for her to rest."
Aarav looked back at his grandmother.
His trembling fingers gently brushed a strand of grey hair away from her forehead.
"I'm sorry, Grandma..." he whispered.
"I'm not ready to say goodbye."
With shaking hands, he slowly released her.
It felt as though he wasn't letting go of her body but instead he was letting go of his entire world.
The family quietly prepared for the final journey.
Relatives gathered around as her body was carefully lifted onto the bamboo bier, decorated with white cloth and fresh marigold flowers.
Aarav walked beside her in silence.
Every step felt unbearably heavy.
When they reached the cremation ground, the rituals began.
The priest chanted sacred mantras while family members offered flowers, rice, and prayers.
Aarav stood quietly, listening without truly hearing.
His eyes never left his grandmother.
After the final prayers, the priest looked towards Aarav's father.
"It is time."
Everyone naturally expected him to step forward.Instead, his father remained still.Then, slowly, he turned towards Aarav.
"She always said you were the child closest to her heart."
His voice was quiet.
"You loved her as much as she loved you."
He stepped aside.
"I think...she would have wanted you to do this."
The priest nodded in agreement.No one objected.Not even his elder brother.They all knew. She had raised Aarav with a mother's love.
With trembling hands, Aarav accepted the burning torch.
The flames flickered softly against the evening sky.For several seconds, he couldn't move.His vision blurred with tears.
This wasn't simply another ritual.This was goodbye.
Forever.
He slowly walked towards the pyre.His hands shook so violently that he almost dropped the torch.
"I hope...wherever you are grandpa is waiting for you."
A tear rolled down his cheek.
"And I hope.....you're finally happy again."
Taking a deep breath, he lowered the torch.
The dry wood caught fire almost instantly.The flames slowly spread, growing brighter with every passing second. Everyone around him folded their hands in silent prayer.
But Aarav remained standing.Unable to look away.The fire consumed the wood piece by piece.
To everyone else,
It was the end of a life.
To Aarav,
It felt like watching his childhood, his happiness, and the safest place he had ever known disappear into ashes.
The flames reflected in his tear-filled eyes until nothing remained except glowing embers.
He didn't cry anymore.
Some grief was simply too deep for tears.
A part of him had burned with that fire.
And he knew no amount of time could ever bring it back.By the time they returned home, dusk had settled over the sky.
The house that had once echoed with his grandmother's laughter now stood still in an unsettling silence.Relatives quietly gathered in different corners of the house, speaking in hushed voices.
Aarav walked past them without saying a word.No one stopped him.They knew exactly where he was going.He slowly pushed open the door to his grandmother's room.
A familiar scent greeted him the moment he stepped inside.Her room smelled exactly as it always had - a gentle blend of sandalwood incense, jasmine oil, and the soap she had used for years.
For a fleeting second, he forgot everything.
It almost felt as though she would walk in at any moment, smiling warmly as she asked,
"Have you eaten, Aarav?" His lips trembled.
He quietly closed the door behind him. Everything remained exactly where she had left it.Her neatly folded shawl rested on the chair.
A small bottle of medicine stood untouched. Time had stopped inside this room.Slowly, Aarav sat on the edge of her bed.He ran his fingers across the blanket.
It was cold.
He lowered his head and closed his eyes.
"So this is what it feels like...to lose home."
Silence answered him.
After a while, he stood and walked towards the wooden wardrobe she had treasured for years.
He gently opened it's door.
Inside were neatly arranged sarees, each folded with the same care she had always shown.
Without thinking, he picked one up.
The familiar fragrance clinging to the fabric instantly broke whatever composure he had left.
He pressed it against his face and quietly sobbed.
"I miss you..."
His voice barely escaped as a whisper.
"I already miss you so much."
When his tears finally subsided, he carefully folded the saree and placed it back exactly where it belonged.
As he looked down, something caught his eye.A framed photograph rested on the lower shelf.He picked it up.It was an old picture of the three people he loved most.
His grandfather stood proudly behind them with one arm wrapped around his grandmother.
Little Aarav sat between them, grinning from ear to ear while both of them looked at him with nothing but love in their eyes.
"What happened to us...?" he whispered.
A tear slipped down his cheek and landed on the frame.He hugged the photograph tightly against his chest.For several minutes, he simply sat there.
Remembering birthdays.
Family dinners.
Stories his grandfather used to tell.
The afternoons he spent sleeping in his grandmother's lap.Those memories felt so close yet impossibly far away.
As he returned the frame to the wardrobe, he noticed something tucked neatly into the back corner.
Three envelopes.
Each had his name written in familiar handwriting.His breathing caught.
One envelope bore his mother's handwriting.
The second belonged to his grandfather.
The third --- His grandmother's.
His hands trembled as he reached for them.He stared at the envelopes for a long time.There were countless questions buried inside them.Questions he had spent years asking himself.
Perhaps ,the answers had been waiting here all along.
Yet...
He couldn't bring himself to open them.
Not today.
His heart had already shattered once.He wasn't sure it could survive another truth.Carefully, he slipped the three letters into his backpack.
"When I'm ready,I'll read them." He murmured.
The room grew darker as evening faded into night.
Without changing his clothes, Aarav lay down on his grandmother's bed.
He curled into himself, clutching the photograph against his chest.Within minutes he fell asleep. A sudden scream tore through the darkness.
Aarav jolted awake, breathing heavily.
His heart pounded wildly inside his chest.The room was almost completely dark.
Frightened ,he instinctively called out,
"Grandma..."
No answer.
He swallowed , "Grandma?"
The cool night breeze drifted through the half-open window.
Reality crashed into him once again.
She wasn't asleep.She wasn't downstairs.She wasn't in the kitchen.She wasn't anywhere.
She was gone.
Forever.
A fresh wave of tears filled his eyes.He buried his face into her pillow.
Though her scent had already begun to fade...
It was enough.
Enough to make him feel close to her for one last night.
Eventually, exhaustion overcame grief once more. Still clutching the photograph to his chest, Aarav quietly drifted back to sleep.