The moment the door opened and Shaon entered the room, a wave of fear washed over me. It was only natural to feel scared. Just a few days ago, I had heard about my friend Thoma’s wedding night. She got married only ten days ago. She is fifteen—a year younger than me. Thoma told me her husband had hit her that night. The reason was bizarre; apparently, her husband wanted to untie her saree, and she resisted. She also mentioned he did some "bad things" to her that she couldn't even bring herself to speak of. What could those bad things be? I didn't know much about all that. But would Shaon *da* (brother) hit me? He is supposed to be a good person.

The sudden sound of the door closing snapped me out of my thoughts. Shaon didn’t look quite normal, though it was hard to tell in the dim, hazy light of the room. Was he sick? He was already late coming in. I could have easily slept for two hours in that time. It was now midnight.

At 10:00 PM, Shaon’s mother—my mother-in-law—had dressed me up and left me sitting here. The wives of Shaon’s cousins had all told me, "Don't fall asleep, make sure you wait for Shaon." I had just nodded in response.

The elders of the house—Shaon’s aunt, his paternal aunt (Pishima), and a few others—had advised me, "Give your husband whatever he wants tonight."

Husband meant Shaon *da*. But what could he possibly want from me?

So, I asked them back, "What will he want? I don't have anything with me!"

All the women in the room burst into laughter. His aunt laughed and said, "Sister-in-law, she is talking like an absolute child! 🤣🤣" Shaon’s mother, however, gave me a stern look.

"Maybe village girls understand a bit less," chuckled one of Shaon’s cousins.

"She’ll understand everything tonight. Anyway, everyone please leave now. Let me send Shaon in," said his aunt.

Everyone left with sly smiles on their faces. I still couldn’t grasp what was happening to me. Before leaving, they turned off the main lights. I don't like the dark, yet I sat there. The faint glow of the fairy lights felt somewhat comforting.

Anyway, back to the present.

I got up from the edge of the bed and walked over to him. Shaon was leaning against the door.

I asked, "Are you alright? Are you feeling sick?"

He looked at me with soft eyes but offered no reply.

I asked again, "Should I call someone?"

Without waiting for an answer, I reached out to open the door. Suddenly, he grabbed my hand. Panic seized me.

I heard him whisper, "Don't go. Stay with me."

Hesitant, I replied, "Okay."

But Shaon just held my hand, remaining slumped against the door. I didn't know what to do. Were we going to stand like this all night? After a few minutes, I gently pulled my hand away and started walking back toward the bed.

That’s when Shaon spoke up: "Was it all an act? Was it all a lie?"

I turned around, completely baffled by his words. Was he drunk? Is that why he was two hours late?

He muttered a name under his breath, but I couldn't catch it. Then, he began taking steps toward me. Paralyzed, I stood there, unable to process the situation. Before I could realize what was happening, Shaon pushed me onto the bed.

"What are you doing?" I cried out.

Shaon pinned both of my hands down against the bed.

"Let go, please! It hurts. You're hurting me."

He gathered both of my wrists into the grip of one of his hands. With his free hand, he abruptly pulled the *anchal* (veil) of my saree away from my chest. Everything was happening so fast that I burst into tears.

"Please let me go. What did I do wrong?"

Shaon placed his hand on my waist. A violent shiver ran through my entire body.

Weeping bitterly, I said, "You are a horrible person. Let me go, it hurts!"

Shaon suddenly released my hands. I immediately tried to push him away, but I lacked the strength.

Using his fingers, he wiped the lipstick off my lips. Trying futilely to push him back, I cried, "Shaon *da*, please leave me alone."

My body felt incredibly weak. I hadn't eaten anything since morning, and now this. With the last ounce of my strength draining away, the world went black, and I fainted.

When I opened my eyes, it was morning—around 7:30 AM. My head was throbbing. I looked around, trying to figure out where I was. Suddenly, the memory of last night flashed back. Horrified, I looked down at myself. A shawl was draped over me. I quickly sat up and adjusted my saree. Shaon wasn't in the room. Where did he go?

What truly happened last night? I couldn't remember a single thing after losing consciousness. I hurriedly freshened up and went downstairs. My aunts and my mother-in-law were busy preparing breakfast.

Seeing me, Shaon's aunt smiled warmly and said, "Awake so early?!"

Before I could answer, his paternal aunt chimed in, "You don't have any work down here. Go back upstairs to Shaon."

Only Shaon’s mother wasn't smiling; she looked deeply worried.

By 8:00 AM, everyone else started coming down for breakfast. Shaon’s mother turned to me and asked, "Where is Shaon? He hasn't come down yet. He is never this late."

One of Shaon’s cousins joked, "Is every day the same as today?"

Everyone laughed.

I thought to myself: *Shaon da isn't upstairs, and he isn't down here either. Where could he be?*

I spoke up, "He isn't upstairs."

"What do you mean he isn't there?!" my mother-in-law shot a piercing glare at me.

"Where is he?" asked his aunt.

"I don't know," I replied.

I felt trapped. Why was everyone interrogating me? After how he treated me last night, I had absolutely no desire to know his whereabouts.

His aunt frowned and pressed further, "What do you mean you don't know? Wasn't he with you last night?"

I stammered, "He was, but..."

"But what?" my mother-in-law grew increasingly anxious, realizing no one had any news about her son.

What was I supposed to say? How could I explain that I knew nothing after fainting? Besides, last night’s events weren't pleasant enough to share with anyone.

His aunt tried to soothe the tension, "Oh, sister-in-law, calm down. He probably went out for some work. It's not like he's a toddler whom someone would kidnap."

Everyone sat down to eat, except for my mother-in-law. She insisted she wouldn't eat until her son returned. I had been starving since yesterday; I couldn't afford to skip another meal just because of him. So, I sat down and started eating. My mother-in-law clearly didn't appreciate it, judging by the scowl on her face. But frankly, I didn't care at that moment. I needed food.

While everyone was eating, the house phone rang. My mother-in-law rushed to pick it up.

"Hello?"

"Yes, hello Ma... it's me."

"Shaon? Where on earth are you?"

The whole room fell silent, listening intently while pretending to eat. His aunt whispered, "See? You were driving yourself crazy with worry for no reason."

From the other end, Shaon said, "I have come to Dhaka. I had some urgent work."

It felt as though the sky had collapsed on his mother’s head.

She yelled, "What?! Where are you? Is this marriage a joke to you? Today is your wedding reception! When did you even leave?"

"Ma, please. You practically forced me into this marriage, fine. But I really cannot do these rituals. I just can't," Shaon replied.

"You are coming back today!"

"My project starts today. Bye, Ma. Love you."

Everyone stopped eating and stared anxiously at Shaon’s mother, trying to figure out what was wrong. Since everyone had stopped, I stopped eating too.

My mother-in-law turned to me with cold eyes and said, "Mila, come upstairs with me."

I wondered what I had done wrong this time. Did Shaon *da* lie about me over the phone?

"What happened, sister-in-law?" the aunts asked in unison.

Shaon’s father asked, "Where is he?"

"Your son is in Dhaka," she snapped back. "Mila, come upstairs right now," she commanded sternly.

"The girl is eating, why are you dragging her away?" Shaon’s father intervened.

"Mind your own business. Mila, upstairs," she ordered.

I left my food and followed her. The aunts trailed right behind us.

I was brought into Shaon's room and made to stand.

"My son left, and you didn't think it was necessary to inform me?" my mother-in-law demanded.

I replied in a helpless voice, "I truly don't know when he left."

"It takes at least five hours to reach Dhaka from here. If he is already there, he must have left in the middle of the night," she reasoned.

His aunt asked, "Did he not come to the room last night?"

"He did."

"When?"

"He came at midnight."

"That late? I sent him up at 10:00 PM! He left on his wedding night? Wow. This is a complete mess. Today is the reception. What are we going to do now?" his aunt exclaimed.

"There won't be any reception. We don't need any celebration," my mother-in-law said furiously.

"What did he do when he came at midnight? Did he leave immediately?" his aunt questioned.

How could I possibly tell them what he did to me... no, never. I could never utter those embarrassing things. So, I lied.

"Yes, he left almost immediately."

"And you didn't call anyone?"

I remained silent, looking down.

Shaon’s mother sighed in exasperation, "How is this girl ever going to run a household with him?"

"What's the point of blaming her, sister-in-law? Is your son the type to ever listen to anyone?" his aunt remarked.

Ignoring everyone, Shaon’s mother stormed out of the room in a fit of rage.

*To be continued...*