Chapter 2

Avantika

@AeDilHaiMushkil

Hey guys, I'm back with Chapter 2 of this SS.. Firstly, a biiig thank you hug to everyone who's read, liked and commented on the previous one!!    

I'm absolutely overwhelmed by the amazing response.. Hadn't expected it!! Especially since this wasn't planned out unlike my FF.. 

Anyway, here's the 2nd Chapter.. There will be one more Chapter to this one, which will be posted on Friday.. 

Hope you enjoy reading it..   And yea, do not forget to leave your feedback below.. Would love to read frm you.. 

                                          ~Chapter 2~

It was nearly evening. She hadn't left her desk since she'd entered the room in the morning.. She looked over to the desk opposite hers, silently thanking Shree for taking the day off.. She had the entire cabin to herself, and it was much needed, today of all days! 

She grabbed her bag and fished out a mirror.. She saw her reflection in the glass and was mortified! What had she been doing all day? She looked like a wreck.. Her eyes were red and swollen from the tears she had been shedding all day.. Her throat was sore, and she was sure she had almost lost her voice by now! She wiped her face with a tissue and quickly dabbed some face powder; and looked into the mirror.. This would do for now! She picked up her bag and left the office..

She took the elevator down and was walking as if possessed, not caring to even glance up at her name being called out by Chottu. She walked to the taxi stand, waited there for a few minutes and felt her patience wear away.. She grumbled and began walking in the direction of her apartment.. She had just taken a few steps, when raindrops started falling on her head.. She glanced up at the sky.. Perfect! Just perfect!

It had started raining cats and dogs.. It had gone from being a short shower to a heavy downpour! She couldn't help but relate her current situation to the water droplets falling on her skin.. She kept walking however, the rain not affecting her resolve.. She saw people taking shelter under a tree or under the roof of a roadside shop; but she had nowhere to go! 

She walked a few metres and saw a man examining the tyre of his car..Her mind drifted back to the day when she had met him for the first time; her senses were on high alert already, since it was her first case. And then he had walked in uninformed and had stealthily started his investigation.. She still remembered, his sharp reflexes kicking into action as he had her cornered within a matter of few seconds, leaving her completely immovable and helpless.. 

She walked a few steps ahead and sat down on a stone bench on the pavement, overlooking kids play. She saw a baby girl, trying to climb the little fence, but falling short coz her legs wouldn't reach the fence.

'Yahan aao..' 'Upar Chadho..'

'Uske baad koodna bhi hai, Sir?', a slight chuckle escaped her throat at that memory.. How she had agreed with Chottu that throwing him off the terrace of that high-rise wasn't a bad idea afterall!

She gathered herself and started walking again, not caring to wipe the tears flowing down her cheeks, since no one would notice them, since it was raining anyway.. She saw a bunch of college girls twirling and enjoying the rains, when a guy friend of theirs snatched one of them away, obviously for a little private chat..

She remembered him gripping her arm and sweeping her away from the dance floor; only to assign her a damn task! Nonetheless, he had unknowingly held her, completely unaware that the seemingly casual action of his, had made her heart leap out of her chest!

She heard a car honk behind her and the young man wave his hand at her.. She moved aside and realised that she had reached her destination. She walked past the watchman who had stood up and greeted her, not gracing him with her dimpled smile this evening!

She took the elevator and reached her apartment. She stood outside the door, the dripping water from her drenched clothes and her hair falling onto her newly bought kitty doormat.. She fished out her keys and inserted one into the keyhole.. She let out a sigh and frowned her brow as the door refused to open. She tried another one, and heard the lock click.. She sighed with relief and was about to pull the key back, when she felt cold fingers grip hers!

                                              *Flashback*

Arjun had returned home after dropping Riya off at her apartment. It had become a part of his daily routine now and he never complained. Besides it wasn't really safe for her to travel alone at night.. Well who was he kidding? Riya Mukherjee could beat the crap out of a guy, if he dared to lay a finger on her!

He slumped down on the couch and rubbed his temples.. Today had been a tough day at work. They had broken their heads over a lead all day, only to have figured out that they were being tricked all along.. However, their cumulative efforts had paid off and the criminal was now behind bars..

He shut his eyes and saw a familiar pretty face flash in front of them.. She flashed one of her dimpled smiles, then knit her eyebrows together and disappeared!  He opened his eyes with a jerk.. 

'No Arjun! This isn't right! You cannot betray Roshni's memories.. She loved you.. She needs justice..Remember your heart is broken.. You can't give her what she needs.. She yearns for your love.. You don't have it yourself!'

'But Riya? No!'

'Yes, whatever you feel for her, has to be given up.. You cannot risk these affairs of the heart, once again.. You won't be able to bear it again..'

'And well, Riya.. Riya deserves all the happiness in the world.. Don't give her heart false promises, promises, you know you wouldn't be able to keep.. She needs someone who will cherish her for the rest of her life.. You and her, are just not meant to be!'

                                         Kayi khwaab dil tujhko le kar sajaaye..
                                         Par khauf yeh bhi kahin par sataaye..
                                         Gar yeh bhi toote toh phir hoga kya re..
                                         Mujhe raas aati hain khushiyaan kahan re...

                                         Kyon dil ko dukhana bewajah .. Madno re..
                                         Kyon dil ko dukhana bewajah..
                                         Phir aansu bahana ik dafa..
                                         Phir aansu bahana ik dafa..

                                         Main hoon shab, tu subah
                                         Dono jud ke judaa..

                                        Main hoon lab, tu dua
                                        Dono jud ke judaa..

                                        Madno,. Mashuko.. Dilbaro..

                                        Madno Re!!

He felt his phone vibrate against his chest and quickly answered it, without caring to look at the screen. One line uttered by the person on the other end had made his nerves throb, his jaw muscles had clenched and he gripped the handset with both hands,

'Mujhe woh lead chahiye Sir!' He had mentally made a note of the address given to him by the Police Commissioner. He hung up the phone and felt the world come to a standstill.. Sikandar was back! The intelligence agencies suspected that he had moved his base back to India and they had gathered quite a few leads.

Many within the Department and outside had been waiting for years to settle their score with him. However, the Commissioner knew if there was someone who could bring about Sikandar's downfall, it was only one man, ACP Arjun Rawte!

Besides, he had a reason far greater than the others. Sikandar had brutally murdered his wife in front of his eyes, and had permanently scarred a part of him forever! And he needed revenge; revenge for his wife's death, revenge for having robbed him off his companion only 6 months into their marriage, for being made to live a life worse than death!

Arjun walked to the table and gulped down a glass of water. He slumped on the floor and let out an animalistic roar. His tensed muscles started relaxing after a while and his dilated pupils contracted. He knew he had to gather himself up; because this was no ordinary case, where he could connect the dots and book a criminal by his 'out-of-the-book' thinking. This was Sikandar he was going to deal with! And for that, he needed to preserve every ounce of physical and mental energy within his body.

 He sighed and walked up to the master bedroom to change.. The hot shower did the trick; he felt much more relaxed now. He grabbed a plate from the kitchen and emptied the bag of take-away food he had brought in. Heating it up in the oven, he began gobbling his food. His eyes drifted to a portrait of his beautiful wife, hanging in a corner of the living room. He left the table, his meal having been forgotten and walked up to the wall. He carefully unhooked it and sat down on the couch, clutching it with both hands.

He moved his fingers tenderly over her face, and she seemed to smile back at him and the very next moment, he felt a soft hand grip his arm. He turned sideways and saw Roshni resting her head against his shoulder!

He kept the portrait aside and tenderly kissed her forehead, 'I'm going to do it Roshni.. I'm going to get you justice.' He saw her knit her eyebrows, 'And what after that, Arjun?' He raised his head and looked at her surprised, She had never asked him this before.. He nodded slightly, 'Kya pata uske baad, ek din main tumse milne chala aaon..'

And she immediately placed her other palm on his lips and shook her head vigorously. He saw her eyes brim with tears and before he could lean forward to wipe them off, she raised her hand to stop him. 'Nahi Arjun.. Dobara aisa kabhi mat kehna.. Tumhe jeena hai.. Mere hisse ki bhi zindagi tumhe abhi jeeni baaki hai..' 

He nodded his head in negative, resembling a child. She cupped his face in her palms and looked him in the eye, 'Tumhare aage abhi bohot lambi zindagi padi hai.. Tumhe abhi bohot kuch dekhna baaki hai.. And you can't just throw your life away, just like that!' He glanced up and saw her smiling..

She pointed towards his heart, 'Apne dil ke darwaaze khol do, Arjun.. Aane do usse andar.. Bohot reh liye akele.. Ab aur nahi! Aise akele saari zindagi nahi kaati jaa sakti.. Aur kaatni bhi nahi chahiye, jab ek khoobsurat humsafar tumhara haath thaamne ke liye khada ho!'  He looked up at her shocked, which was soon replaced by guilt.

Roshni hadn't missed it, 'Kissi ke chale jaane se zindagi nahi ruk jaati, Arjun.. Mera aur tumhara saath bass kuch ki palon ka tha.. Humne jitne lamhe saath bitaaye hai, unhe humesha apne dil ke kissi kone mein qaid karke rakhna.' His eyes had brimmed with tears. He felt her begin to rise, his eyes widened and his heart started beating frantically, 'Mat jaao na Roshni!'

She patted his head affectionately, 'Mujhe jaana hoga Arjun.. Tumhare dard ko kam karne ke liye, mujhe tumse door jaana hoga..' He nodded his head again, silently pleading with her, 'Tum mere dard ki wajah nahi ho Roshni, na kal thi.. aur na kabhi hogi..'

She moved her fingers lovingly through his hair, 'Tumhare sach ko na maan ne se, haqeeqat badal toh nahi jayegi na.. Aur phir main tumhe akele thodi na chode jaa rahi hoon..' He gripped her palm even tighter and she sat down, 'Roshni main.. I'm sorry!'

She cupped his face again and wiped a lonely tear which was slowly making its way down his cheek, 'Nahi Arjun.. Tumhe sorry kehne ki koi zaroorat nahi hai.. Balki aaj toh main bohot khush hoon.. Ke mere jaane ke baad bhi koi hai jo tumse mujhse bhi zyada pyaar karegi, tumhara khayal rakhegi, tumhare har dard ko baantegi.'

'Riya ne tumhe dobara jeena sikhaya hai Arjun.. Anjaane mein hi sahi, ussne tumhare dil mein ek khaas jagah bana li hai.. Tum laakh mana kar lo, par tum uski taraf pehle din se kheenchte chale jaa rahe the.. Uski muskaan, uske aansoo, uski pareshani, uski sharartein, uski har choti se choti baat tumpar asar karne lagi hai.. Tumhe phir se pyaar ho gaya hai buddhu!' and she hit his forehead playfully and smiled amidst her tears.

Arjun smiled at her, 'Kya?? Pyaar? Nahi Roshni.. Thats not possible! Mujhe dobara pyaar kaise ho sakta hai? Haan yeh sach hai, ki main Riya ke liye kuch feel karta hoon.. Shuru shuru mein, mujhe usse chidh thi, jab bhi woh mujhe sympathy bhari nazron se dekhti thi.. Lekin phir dheere dheere, pata hi nahi chala ki kab woh meri zindagi ka hissa ban gayi.. Lekin pyaar.. Tumhe koi galat fahmi..'

She cut him again, 'Koi galat fahmi nahi hui hai mujhe.. Aur tum itna darr kyun rahe ho? Apne emotions se kyun bhaag rahe ho? Tum bhi jaante ho, ki tum jo Riya ke liye feel karte ho, woh mehez attraction nahi hai Arjun! Bohot gehra rishta ban chuka hai tum dono ke beech.. Bass, ab baari hai, ki tum dono apne dil ki baat ko suno aur usse samjho.'

Arjun rested his head on her shoulder, 'But Roshni I love you too..' She held on to his arm and rested her head forehead against it, 'Jaanti hoon.. Lekin tum Riya se usse kahiin zyada pyaar karte ho..'

'Aur haan, tum jiss dard ki baat kar rahe the na, uss dard ki sirf ek hi dawa hai, aur woh hai Riya ka pyaar! Usse apne aap se door mat karo.. Jaao, aur usse apne dil ki baat bata do.. Go Arjun!'

And he felt soft lips land on his forehead; he jerked his eyes open and found himself still standing in front of Roshni's portrait in the dark room..

He had made up his mind. He walked back to his room and opened the laptop bag. The first thing he had done, was to type out his resignation.. He had to resign from the ETF, though he would very much be a part of the Police force.

He had paid a visit to the Commissioner, the very next morning and had discussed the details of their new case. Having assigned jobs to his assistants, Arjun had gone to the ETF Headquarters to hand in his resignation. Things were going just as planned, when the unexpected happened!

She had found out! He grinned inwardly, 'Both the women in his life had him wound around their little fingers.  Roshni had been slightly manageable, but Riya Mukherjee was going to be a tough nut to crack!'

And well, he being himself, Arjun Rawte loved challenges!! 

My Ariya Index!