The story begins in a village called Haripur. An old yet heart-rich village. Every corner here brimmed with the fragrance of happiness, as if even the earth wore a gentle smile. It felt as if time stood still in this place, yet there was a quiet momentum in the pause—houses were starting to be built with bricks, some families now owned bicycles, and the school a few miles away had become the first step towards children's dreams.
In Haripur lived the beloved of us all—thirteen-year-old, proud Gudiya—Ruchika Chaturvedi. Her grandfather, Prashant Chaturvedi, was the sarpanch of the whole village. Whenever there was any trouble, his doorstep was the first to be knocked. His words, in most matters, were the final verdict.
Ruchika's grandfather loved her more than his own life. Her father, Rakesh Chaturvedi, was a hardworking farmer, and her mother Diya—the one who had lovingly given Ruchika her name. For Ruchika, her name was no less than a prize, especially because it carried a glimpse of her father. Often, when the peacock's cry would disturb her sleep in the morning, Ruchika would join her father in the fields. Coloring her hands with soil, feeling the dew on the crop—this was her world.
In those days, there were no mobiles, no WhatsApp. If news needed to be sent, only letters were the means, with words that seemed to throb with every heartbeat. Haripur never spoke out loud, yet every night and every morning had its own story.
Everything was perfectly fine—or perhaps, that's what everyone wanted to believe.
But sometimes, in the middle of happiness, the cracks of fate appear quietly, without warning. That's what happened, on that one night when the entire village slept peacefully, unafraid, wrapped in their own worlds…
The next morning, when Ruchika woke from sleep, the silence outside seeped into her veins. She could not hear the chirping of birds today. There was no knock on the door. It felt as if even the wind was hiding some secret.
What had happened in Haripur that night?
In front of Ruchika's eyes was a scene she never wished to see, not even in her dreams…