Chapter 27

Bloomie

@bloomie

Part 28 [MEMBERSONLY][NOCOPY]

Ayesha: Arjun sir!! Rathore sir!!!

They turned due to the shouts to see Riya unconscious. They rushed back………………………..

Arjun takes her head in his lap and pats her face: Riya!! Riya!! aankhein kholo!

Rathore: Rawte! Use andar le chalo

Arjun picked her up in his arms and hastened to the break room. He set her down gently on the couch and sat beside her. Liza came forward and checked her pulse.

Arjun(tensed): Liza, kya hua?

Liza: sir, thodi abnormal pulse hai. I think stress ki wajah se…

Arjun(confused): ab kya stress hai use?

Rathore raised his eyebrow: tum Rawte! Tum stress ho uska is waqt

His lady love groaned at his continuous attempts at match-making.

Ayesha: oh god! Rathore sir! Stop!

Vivek stepped forward with a glass of water. Arjun spilled a little water in his hand and sprinkled it on her face. Her face twitched.

Arjun patted her face again: Riya! Riya utho!

She squirmed. Her eyelids fluttered as she slowly opened her eyes. Arjun held her hand.

Riya: Arjun sir…

Arjun gripped her hand: main yahi hu Riya

She slowly took in her surroundings and relaxed.

Chotu: kya Ri, tune toh dara hi diya

She smiled as she sat up: main theek hu yaar, pata nahi kaise…

Arjun glares at her: aakhri baar theekse khaana kab khaaya tha tumne?

Riya: aapne kab khaaya tha?

Arjun is taken aback by the cross question. Rathore chuckled silently.

He clears his throat: toh uh, hum kaam khatam karte hai, tum dono rest lo ok? kuch ho toh bata dena

He indicated the others to leave the duo alone. Arjun rolled his eyes. He waited till the lot of them left the room.

Arjun: tumhe… pata tha?

She had not even been looking at him. Then, how did she know all this? Atleast, that’s what he thought. However, deep down, they both knew. They knew what the other was going through.

Riya sighed: of course mujhe pata tha ki aap ek hafte se sirf chai par zinda hai

Arjun: toh tum bhi nahi khaogi? Dimag kharab hai tumhara?

Riya: thoda-thoda khaati thi par (lowering her eyes) waise bhi raat bhar coffee peene se pet bhara rehta tha

Arjun: raat bhar? Kyun?

Riya: woh, mujhe… sona nahi tha (he looked at her quizzically) jaise hi aankh lagti thi, baar-baar bure sapne aate hai, pehle do teen din toh baar-baar jaag jaati thi lekin fir… sone hi se hi dar lagne laga toh coffee lekar khud ko jaga hua rakhti thi lekin usmein bhi woh sapne meri aankhon ke saamne aate rehte the, kabhi Shree team ko nishaana banata toh kabhi aapko, toh kabhi

She stopped abruptly while tears filled her eyes. Arjun squeezed her palm.

Riya sniffed: marne ke baad aap mujhse kehte the ki… ki maine aapki jaan li hai

Arjun’s heart ached: Riya!

He hugged her tightly mv “I am sorry Riya, main apne dard mein itna ghum ho gaya ki tumhare dard ko dekh kar bhi undekha kar diya” She snuggled into his chest. Once he felt her calm down, he separated a little and asked.

Arjun: kuch aur bhi keh rahi thi tum

Her eyes glistened with water again and she averted her gaze. He hooked his index finger under her chin and turned her towards him.

Arjun: bol do Riya, apne andar aise daba kar rakhogi toh zyaada dard hoga. Tum mujh par bharosa karti hona?

She nodded her head vigorously at the question. She took a deep breath as he waited patiently.

Wiping the tears away she narrated how Shree had threatened her when she confronted him. It was the threat and fear of the consequence that had inclined her most to think of ways to get out. She tells him how he forcefully almost kissed her, how afraid she had been, and how badly she wanted to get out. She narrated how he, after giving the news of Arjun’s death, tried to drug her.

Arjun vaguely recalled seeing something in Shree’s hand as Riya was caught by the guards when they broke in. He cursed himself mentally for cutting away from her. He knew she had barely reeled out from the kidnapping, top it with Shree returning for revenge and his own lie, it was the perfect recipe for a catastrophe.

Riya: mujhe dikhayi deta tha ki.. ki woh team ko aur aapko maar ta tha, aap log mujhse kehte the ki maine aapki jaan li hai aur fir… fir Shree mere saath

She shuddered as she recounted her horrible dreams. Arjun felt a new found anger for Shree. He wanted to shoot him again. Kill him again!

“sahi kaha aapne, aapko aise nahi maarunga, not until you see her become mine”

He gritted his teeth recalling Shree’s words to him. If he had known all of this before, he wouldn’t have given Shree such an easy death. He would have made him beg to be relieved of the torturous life he had been given by his grace.

Riya winced, snapping him out from his thoughts. He realised he was gripping her hand tad bit harshly in his anger. Arjun immediately loosened his hold.

Arjun(softly): tumne pehle kyun nahi bataya Riya?

Riya: main… pata nahi, us waqt mere dimag mein shayad sirf woh log the jinhe usne maara tha, aur is sab ke baad… sach kahu toh hum sab par humla hone ke baad bhi main sambhal gayi thi, zyaada asar nahi hua kyunki aap mere saath the, lekin, humare jhagde ka baad… main bahot dar gayi, (cracking)  mujhe laga ki agar aapko meri wajah se kuch…

Arjun: shh!! (cupping her face) dobara aisa kabhi mat sochna Riya. Tumhari koi galti nahi hai and main tumse vaada karta hun, aaj ke baad main kabhi tumse kuch nahi chupaunga. Please is tarah khud ko saza mat do.

She rested her head on his shoulder while he wrapped his arms around her. They stayed like that for a few moments, cherishing the warmth they had missed in those days. A smile crept on her face. He kissed her head softly. They would have stayed longer if Rathore’s coughing hadn’t disturbed them.

Riya blushed and shifted away immediately while Arjun glared at his friend who was grinning like an idiot on seeing them together

Arjun somehow managed to tame his voice: kya hai Rathore?

Rathore: main bas ye dekhne aaya tha ki tum meri pyaari si research specialist ko tang toh nahi kar rahe

Arjun: get lost!

Rathore leaned against the doorway, crossing his arms and smirking his lips.

Sameer: where?

Arjun: to hell! Aur dobara lautna mat! (turning to Riya) tumhe bhook lagi hogi na? (holding her hand) aao kuch kha lete hai

Rathore watched in amusement as Arjun dragged Riya out with him, conveniently ignoring his presence. The poor girl tries to protest due to him being there but was taken away before she could voice her thoughts. Sameer shook his head and chuckled as he went back to his cabin.

Canteen-

They sat on a table and ordered food. Riya was about to say something when they heard Vivek’s voice.

Vivek: mom chill!!!

They turned to see him sitting two tables away and talking on the phone. He had not noticed them at all.

Vivek: ha maa, aap kyun itni chinta karte rehte ho? (he shook his head at her answer) ha baba ok, maan liya, aap apna khayal rakho ok?..... (his face fell) obviously ma, aap aise kyun puch rahi hai? of course main khush hu, acha main baad mein quarters jaa kar aapko call karunga, mujhe kaam hai, love you! bye!

He disconnected the phone and sighed. He didn’t like lying to her but he didn’t want her to worry.

Riya: oh no! (Arjun raised her eyebrow) are! Woh toh abhi-abhi aaya hai, use kuch pata hi nahi, upar se hum dono ke chakkar mein sab pareshaan the toh kisi ne usse theek se baat bhi nahi ki, bichara. Waise ek baat bataiye, aapko ye thoda chota nahi lagta? Shakal se toh mujhe abhi bhi bacha lagta hai

Arjun shook his head and called out to him: Vivek!

Startled, Vivek looked around. His eyes rested on Arjun and Riya.

Vivek: ji sir?

Arjun: akele kyun baitho ho? yaha aa jao

Needless to say, the lad was shocked at his gentle tone.

Vivek: main?

Arjun glared at him. Riya shook her head as Vivek staggered to them, afraid of his anger. Arjun wouldn’t like kebabs in the haddi between him and Riya but seeing the plight of the new officer, he decided to grant an exception. Besides, Riya was worried too. He didn’t want half of her attention to be divided for it.

The server arrived with their food and Vivek’s juice. Placing them on the table, he left. They started eating and drinking silently, but how long could it remain? Riya was Riya. How long could she keep her curiosity under check?

Riya: ye tumhari first posting hai?

Vivek: huh? Uh ha, main Nagpur ki training ke baad seedhe yaha aaya

Riya: oh, waise tumhari umar kya hai?

Vivek: ji?

Riya: oho age?

His gaze darted to Arjun for a moment but he was busy eating.

Vivek: 22

Riya mv “ye toh sach mein bacha hai” : tumne UG mein hi IPS attempt kiya?

Vivek: um, actually, maine IPS nahi kiya

Riya was confused. Even Arjun glanced at him for a moment.

Riya: matlab?

Vivek: woh uh, darasal main…

His gaze fell on Arjun. Riya realised this.

Riya: are daro mat, bolo, main hu na

Vivek: mujhe bachpan se hi gadgets, computers, technology ka shauk tha. Papa choti umar mein guzar gaye, maa chote mote jobs karke ghar sambhalti thi. And maine technology ko use karke unki help karne ki koshish ki. 14 saal ka tha tabse chote-mote cyber frauds karta tha, paison ke liye… haala ki mummy ko nahi pata tha ki main paise kaha se laata tha

Riya looked at him in shock. Arjun raised his eyebrow. Just what was the deal with ETF Technical experts and criminal backgrounds?

Vivek: ha lekin do saal baad pakda gaya, juvenile hun aur talented hun ye dekhkar woh cyber cell ke Inspector ne bola ki main unki help karu cases solve karne ke liye, woh mujhe paise denge. Main maan gaya. College se dropout ho gaya aur saara time, unki unofficial help karta tha aur waise bhi (making a face) department ke saare systems aur software bahot outdated hote the aur (excited) mere latest toh woh toh bahot khush ho jaate the kyunki sab kuch jaldi-jaldi ho jaata tha. Fir woh retire hone waale the, toh mera khaata toh band ho jaata na? unhone kaha ki agar main chahu toh woh mujhe recommend karenge, agar main training puri karu toh mujhe policewaala bana denge. Aur sach kahu toh sabke saath kaam karke, mujhe bhi field bahot pasand aa gayi thi toh main bhi maan gaya. lekin mujhe ye nahi pata tha ki woh mujhe field ki training dene ke baad seedhe ETF mein daal denge, you know I freaked out so much! Aur pehle din jab mere aate hi Rathore sir ne bola ki Arjun sir

He stopped abruptly realising his surroundings. Arjun didn’t bother to look up from his plate. He never cared and was not going to start then. Riya starts laughing. Vivek shut up and turned his focus to the glass in front of him. He mentally smacked himself for losing control. It was five whole minutes before Arjun spoke.

Arjun: Riya hasna band karo aur khaana khao

With great difficulty, she composed herself and popped the prepared morsel in her mouth.

Riya: waise, tum lucky ho, tumhe pata toh chala ki Arjun sir hai mujhe toh pehle din pata hi nahi tha

He looked at her questioningly.

Riya: us din hum dono ka pehla din tha, hum crime scene par the aur mujhe laga ki ye koi criminal hai jo evidence ke saath tamper kar raha hai aur maine un par attack kar diya tha

Vivek stared at her with an open mouth recalling her stint at the mills. He glanced at Arjun and received another shock. The khadoos was smiling!

And why not? It was one of the most fondest memories of his with her. The day they first met. And were immediately lost in each other’s eyes… well, almost immediately. And then, her clip had gotten stuck on his shirt. That clicked his brain.

Vivek: fir?

Riya: fir kya? Rathore sir aa gaye aur (giggling) hume pata chala ki hum team ka hissa hai

Arjun: tumhari clip kaha gayi?

Riya was taken aback at the sudden question: uh… ghar par hai

Arjun: oh

Riya: kyun?

He shook his head and continued to eat. She felt weird at the change but shrugs it off thinking it to be typical of him and continues to chat with Vivek about this and that till they finished eating. The server takes their plates away and cleans the table. They stood up to go back up. Arjun and Riya washed their hands while Vivek waited for them.

Arjun: tum upar jaa rahe ho?

Vivek: ji sir

Arjun: Rathore se kaho ki main Riya ko lekar ghar jaa raha hu

Riya: par sir main ab theek hun

Arjun: Did I ask you?

Riya: nahi

Arjun: toh fir?

Riya shut up mv “ye achanak-achanak khadoos kyun ban jaate hai?”

Arjun turned his face back to Vivek. He nodded promptly………………………….