It has never felt so good in this house earlier. Even when the clock strikes 5:30 am and the alarm goes on, I do not murmur. I do not complain. I wake up with a smile carved onto the lips. Unwrapping myself from a baby sleeping position like a parcel meant to seal out the gnawing cold, I stretch my back letting out an unintended faint cry. This dark grey, overcast morning with its biting cold winds pelting against the window froth through my skin and makes me shiver in smiles. You can hear the nagging sounds of the aggravated motorcyclists speeding down the damp street in a rush. The harsh weather is surprisingly no obstacle for me to wake up from my profound sleep for the artee to be performed at six. I cross my arms over my chest, slowly letting both hands roll over from the shoulders to the forearms to feel the moment. The cold air amalgamated with my warm body threatens the desire to remain in this position for the whole day. I smile. I smirk. I laugh in the bare. Yesterday was a victory, a victory to be cherished and remembered for a lifetime.

Allowing my gaze to saunter over Sheraad, I notice how he is still sound asleep. It looks like he is not even aware that the night has passed and that he has been sleeping for more hours than usual. I notice how his snores are louder compared to other normal days. His eyes closed are a little creasy as well. His mouth is half open with a large amount of drool spilt on the mattress just next to his mouth. He snores again and consistently does it again and again. This is totally abnormal for the very reason that if Sheraad snores, it is usually just a dimmed snore that does not even disturb anyone sleeping next to him. The second reason to find this uncommon is that Sheraad never drools. This is the first time that he has drooled while sleeping. Instead, I'm the one who drools and is always scolded the next day to "soil" his bed. He would always tell me that I am a dirty kind of a person for spilling stinking saliva next to him. I notice how drops of sweat scroll down his forehead. How can someone sweat so much in winter? This is totally abnormal. 

Suddenly, he flinches in sleep. He lets out an irregular cry. Agitated, he moves here and there as though fighting a certain vision that he is held captive of. He swings his hands in the air as though fighting something menacing that has jumped on top of him and he is fighting it to escape alive. He jiggles to the right again and sighs in exasperation. He battles to wake up. His chest pounds even faster. I watch him for a while not knowing what to do, frightened that he may as well scold me if I try to do something and that wakes him up. Uncalculating, I put my hand on his sweaty forehead and pat him to sleep. With each caress, it looks like it soothes him back to normal. He goes from turbulent in sleep to silent and unmoved. His stressed creasy eyes relax back to normal. It looks as though he sighs in relief and his soul strolls freely in the lane of dreams. I sigh. Glancing over the clock that indicates 5.45 am, I precipitously wake up from the bed, leaving Sheraad to sleep. It's almost time for the artee and I surely do not want to be late to hear the harsh words of the mother in law which instantly ruins my mood. 

I run to the bathroom and take a quick shower. Speedily putting on my clothes, I run downstairs to the house's temple. I hurriedly arrange for the necessary stuffs for the veneration before the mother in law comes downstairs. I hear the sound of water running down the tap in mother in law's room. Even the light is on- This is usually the signal to me that she has woken up and is coming to me. With the veneration plate filled with the sacred items, I wait facing the mother in law's room. A while later, she comes out as expected. Draping properly the tip of her saree like a veil covering her head, she lifts her gaze to spot me already in place. I notice that uncontrolled happy expression on her face that she tries to conceal. I smile at her. She walks straight to me, constantly trying to walk in that extra large saree which is as well too long for her.

 "Are all the things in place?" she asks. 
"Yes mother in law." I nod, while pointing the veneration plate. 
"Good. Let's begin the artee before it's too late. Plus we even have to prepare breakfast. So better start." She says. I nod.

Performing the artee every morning has become common practice to me now. During my first few days in the house, it used to be so difficult to understand all these and to recall the order that the prayers should be performed. On the bright side, now mum in law is not even needed for me to do it. Plus, she has been spotted to be a little happier with me than usual these days. At least, for some events, I have not been scolded and she did let that unmanageable happy emotion pop up on the face when I did things as per her orders. I guess that's a good sign. After the recitation of the prayers, I go to her to give her some "Prasaad" which is God's offering. I have been taught that you can refuse everything but you cannot refuse God's offering. Else it is considered as bad omen since the Deity's blessings reside in it. After taking a bit of the "Prasad", she gestures to me asking to go upstairs and to wake Sheraad up. I heed to her. 

Sheraad is still sound asleep, still drooling. I wait up a minute thinking about whether to wake him up or not. What if I wake him up and he scolds me again? Especially after last night when he will realize I changed his clothes without his permission? What if he slaps me again? No. No. But the mum in law asked me to wake him up. If I don't wake him up then she will scold me for sure. Besides, I can hear her climbing the stairs, probably coming up to check on us. As soon as I had convinced my mind that it is a better option to wake him up than aggravating things, Sheraad starts moving. He moves to the left a little, about to fall off from the bed. Swiftly but instantly, it seems like the adrenaline has been sensed and he realizes he is about to fall off. He startles and all of a sudden, his eyes are wide open as though they have just been electrified. He stares at me with those shocked eyes. Panic-stricken, I stay still. Less than a second latter, he relaxes his eyes and look at me with a gaze of "Ohh it's her. Never mind." and rolls his eyes lazily. He presses his temples and winces. He sighs in pain. I look around trying to find something to do; conscious about the fact that he hates it when I stare at him for no reason- "Like a fool" he would say.

Wiping the mirror for no reason, my eyes disobediently but slyly, check on him. Rose, what are you doing? I hear.He is a monster. And monsters are not meant to be checked on. They are meant to be fought against. They are meant to be defeated. You do not check on a beast to see if he is fine. I do not respond to that. 
He presses his temples again and again as though trying to recall some things. I neither say anything nor go to him. I just wipe the clean mirror again and again. He does not notice. He suddenly shrieks in pain, still wincing. My heart drops the beat for a second. I again slyly glance on him. Coming in a slow pace mostly lurching, the mother in law goes to her son worriedly as she spots him sitting in a painful position. She pats his back and tries to talk to him. 

"Are you okay son?" she asked. 
He is silent. He does not reply. He simply shrieks again. She pats her back over again. 
"Are you sure you're okay son?" she repeated. 
"Yes mom, just that I have a strange hangover and a bad headache." And he stops short in shock as though he has just recalled something that was not meant to happen. "Wait a minute." He says. "But... but... why don't I remember anything? I only remember I had a few drinks at..." he stops, skips that detail and continues: "But why can't I remember any details about what happened after the drinks? How did I get home? Mum, how did I get home?" 
"I don't really know. I was sleeping when I heard your dad in the living room. And there you were, lying on the sofa partly in blood." She replies. 
"ohhh...b.." and before he could end his sentence, father in law interrupts him. 

Engrossed in each other's conversation, we did not realize when father in law came and eavesdropped as well. 
"I'll tell you how you got here! But first of all answer me a question." He said with a severe look. He moves to Sheraad and sits next to him. I wipe the clean mirror again. 
"Who made your drink at *his voice drops* yesterday?" It is so visible that he has purposely dropped his voice for me not to hear anything. 
"You know... the person who is usually there? She made me a drink." Sheraad says. 
I hear a silent "shhhh" from my father in law. So, it's a she and not a he. But where does he go every night? How did he hurt himself as well? I am so curious now. For lengthy minutes, they have a little argument and then my father in law's voice starts rising as he starts scolding Sheraad. 
"How many times do I have to tell you to not exceed the speed limit when you drive? How many times more will you run people under your wheels and I'll have to cover your mistakes by paying for their treatments? How many times more will my friend have to accompany home while you lie drunk and wounded on the streets with the car crashed into some trees?" shouted the father in law. My eyes grow big in awe. Darks secrets are being slowly unveiled. These are things I could never know until today. 

"Oh dad, don't start again. I already have a headache. Don't be another one." 


"This is a last warning Sheraad. I've told you so many times that if you're going there *the voice drops again* you ...As for your headache and that loss of memory, you know better than me why you are suffering from it." 
 and father in law leaves the room and slams the door behind him. 


"Rose!" exclaims mother in law. 
Alarmed, I turn to her. 
"Why are you cleaning things that are already clean? If you want to know about all that we are talking, you just have to tell us." 

At those words, she gave that peculiar smile which means *Do it again. And you'll see what we do to you!* 

I remain unmoved, waiting for her to continue. 
Showing the index finger, she threatens: "I know you have heard everything. I know why you were cleaning an unblemished mirror for no reason. Your ears were with us and nowhere else. If I come to know that you've repeated these talks to anyone else, you'll see what we do to you!

" 
"Yes mum." I reply.

 
Disinterested in remaining next to her, I walk to the back of the room looking for my clothes. Mother in law's voice can clearly be heard till there. She is still trying to talk to Sheraad and advise him. Advise him about what? Well I don't know and I don't think I should be interested to know. *Ringtone goes on.* Turning back, I find Sheraad's mobile next to the tub. A spontaneous reaction without any thoughts came up: to pick the phone up. Just as I take the mobile in my hand, Sheraad appears to the back. He stares at me and frowns his eyebrows. He stares at his phone in my hand and stares at me again, dead into the eyes. My hands start shaking. I draw one step back as he makes one step forward to me. I draw another one back and he draws one closer. His eyeballs enclosed with red veins reflect devilish anger. I move backwards again and find myself pinned to the wall. He gets so close to me till his forehead collides against mine as he stares at me like a vexed wolf. Snatching his phone from my hand, he keeps it on the table behind. He takes out his belt from his degraded colored jeans and straightens it in his hands. I look at him shivering and shout: "No! Don't beat me. Don't." Tears rolling down my cheeks, I get on my knees screaming and begging not to be beaten. He does not say a word. He does not respond. Taking the belt with great force, he simply whips me like a master whipping his donkey to move forward.

*******

My dad had always told me: "But people are not difficult. Just like in mosaics, you need different bits all differently colored but singularly entangled to one another for a beautiful finish, people are the same: Different from each other but beautiful altogether in the end." Now, I question this statement dad! On what basis did you make this statement? You must not have seen people close enough to come to this conclusion. You are wrong dad! You are wrong! *I shriek in pain.* Not all humans are beautiful. Some are dirtily rooted like this man, Sheraad. In fact, you know what dad, you have overlooked those humans who are actually beastly inhumane. This man Sheraad is a thumbtack living on my blood, a parasite that I need to get rid of at any cost. But I cannot go back home. Daughters are not meant to return to their maternal house after marriage. It is seen as a disgrace for the family. Every time thinking about mother Anita, I ignore this option. But in here, I am dying. I am slowly perishing in an unrecognizable body that I once used to call mine. This body has become my tomb and his punching bag. He does not seem to have a heart pounding in his chest. Has he not realized I was the one to take care of him on the previous night? Was it such a sin to touch his mobile that he has beaten me up this much? He is not human dad. He is not human. He is a monster. He is.