Chapter 34

2 years ago

varshaoforange

@varshaoforange

—Friday, February 4, 2022, 5:15PM—

“Hi, thanks for picking me up,” Imlie said as she got into the passenger side seat of Shiv’s car.

“Not a problem,” Shiv said, “also, did you tell your family about this? Did Mr. Tripathi agree to take me on?”

Imlie sighed as Shiv pulled out of the driveway, “I did tell the family that I’d found a lawyer, but Aditya is acting so stubborn right now, I don’t know if he’ll take my help. Then again, I can just tell him I’m not the one helping him, but you are.” She grinned at Shiv.

Shiv laughed, “Sure, that works. This is my first time working for a client that didn’t actually want to hire me, though. I don’t know if I’m up for it. Also, sorry if I’m speaking out of turn, but Mr. Tripathi seems to be a little…off. If you know what I mean.”

Imlie laughed again, but it was a laugh full of regret. Was she the reason Aditya had turned from the trusting, honest, caring man that he used to be, to what he was today? It couldn’t just have been the fact that their wedding was forced on them by the whole town. It couldn’t have just been because of how Malini had tore them apart. In fact, it couldn’t have even just been because Aditya seemed to believe from day one that she’d been in a relationship with Aryan. Was she the core cause of all this? She knew that even if she’d never met Aditya in Pagdandia a year ago, that he’d still be facing some form of retribution from Aryan. But what if not meeting Aditya, never marrying him, what if that would have prevented him from turning into the stubborn and mistrusting person he was being today? What if never meeting Aditya would have meant that today he would be capable of fighting against Aryan on his own?

Shiv noticed that Imlie was lost in her thoughts, so he tried to change the subject “Anyway, I saw that Aryan was standing in the doorway when you left, did you just have it out with him?” Then Shiv cursed himself in his head for asking such a stupid question, it didn’t even change the subject.

Imlie smiled despite herself, despite the actual situation she was in with Aryan, “Something like that, I think.” Her face felt hot thinking about what happened in that corridor. She couldn’t understand it, she couldn’t figure out Aryan. Why was he so focused on why she had forgiven him, and why did he doubt that Shiv had figured out his strategy with Khanna. Moreover, Aryan’s stare and his brown eyes should probably be made illegal, instead of worrying about the task at hand, all that was running through her head now were Aryan’s eyes.

Her phone pinged and she took it out of her bag. It was a text from Aryan.

ABP: You may not be playing fair with three mothers on your side, but I always play fair. The negotiation with Khanna’s legal team and Bhaskar Times’ lawyers is tomorrow, at 9AM, at our offices. I too would like to see how prepared your amazing Shiv is.

A dozen questions started swimming around Imlie’s head. Was this true? Would Aryan really play fair when it came to revenge over his Jijaji? Even if he was playing fair, what would he try to pull at the meeting? Was it a good idea to have Shiv and Aditya crash it, or should she rely on Shiv’s strategy of letting the lawsuit play out? Her phone pinged again, and it was another text from Aryan, actually it was just the first of a flurry of texts.

ABP: If the lawyer can’t drive you home, I’ll come and pick you up.

ABP: Or I guess you can take an auto.

ABP: Actually, don’t take an auto, it’s not safe this late.

ABP: Just text me when you’re leaving, I’ll come.

ABP: Or, confirm with Shiv if his car is up to date on safety, like has he changed the oil this decade? Are the brakes in working condition?

ABP: Wait, how did he get a license so fast if he just moved here from America?

ABP: Do you still have the emergency button app I downloaded on your phone? Who’s the emergency contact in it?

ABP: The only reason I didn’t come with you is because honestly I don’t want to see Aditya’s stupid face, but I should have come and just wait in the car.

Shiv’s curiosity got the best of him, “You’re very popular, who’s texting you so much right now?”

Imlie was just as confused as Shiv, “It’s nothing…Aryan’s just interested in your driving skills, but I’m not actually sure why?”

Shiv laughed and muttered to himself, “This man could have given Ranjha a run for his money.”

Imlie looked at Shiv, “What did you say?”

Shiv shook his head, “Nothing, nothing. Let him know I drive as well as the next person, and I have a license to drive in Delhi and the U.S. Also, if he asks about the car, it’s new, it’s a lease, but it is new.”

Imlie chuckled, “I will, but also, I just don’t understand him. Are all men like this? One minute they’re angry about something, and then the next they’re smiling and…” Imlie trailed off.

Shiv smiled knowingly (Imlie didn’t notice) and said, “Honestly, I think the reason men are so topsy-turvy with their emotions is that women just spend so much of their time from childhood to adulthood learning how to process others’ emotions and their own. There’s so much more responsibility for them to act a certain way, do certain things, and the like. Boys, and later men, we get too much time to just mess around. Long story short, yea, all men are idiots.”

Imlie laughed, and decided to text Aryan back, because he hadn’t stopped.

ABP: Why aren’t you texting back? You wouldn’t have reached the Tripathis already.

ABP: Mujhe javaab do, nahin to main vahaan aa raha hoon. (Give me a response, or else I'm coming there.)

ABP: If you’ve been kidnapped by a slimy lawyer, text back.

ABP: That was a joke, though if you’ve actually been kidnapped I can just track your phone, as long as Shiv’s not smart enough to throw your phone out the car window.

Imlie: Kya tum paagal ho gae ho? Pahalee baat, kuchh hua nahin, Shiv gaadi chalaana jaanata hai. doosaree baat, mainne tumase pahale bhee kaha hai, chutakule mat batao, chutakule mar jaate hain. Teesri baat, tum jaante ho. (Have you gone crazy? First thing, nothing's happened, Shiv knows how to drive a car. Second thing, i've told you before, don't tell jokes, jokes die. Third thing, you know it.)

ABP: Your jokes aren’t funny either.

ABP: Bye.

Imlie: I’m hilarious, actually. Bye.

Imlie paused for a second.

Imlie: Thank you for playing fair, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to go easy on you…we’ll be there tomorrow.

Aryan: Mazaa aane vaala hai. *devil smiling emoji* (It’s going to be fun).

Imlie: Wait, how do I send a little picture like that?

Aryan: *eyeroll emoji*

Imlie: Shut up, I figured it out. *woman dancing emoji* <- that’s you after you shape up and take the item girl role.

ABP: Let me audition for the hero role, I can do a great Amitabh impression.

Imlie: You really have gone a little nuts, haven’t you.

ABP: I’m fine. Tell Aditya I said hi. *devil face emoji* I’m definitely coming to pick you up, so just text when you’re done.

Imlie laughed out loud. She didn’t know what had come over Aryan these past few days, because he’d been changing even before this Khanna nonsense, but she just hoped whatever happened tomorrow wouldn’t lead to Aryan going backward to who he was when she first met him.

Shiv asked, “What’s so funny now? Does he want me to pull over and drive you himself, is he actually following us here in his car?”

Imlie shook her head, “I don’t think he’s following us. But he does say he’s going to pick me up after, so don’t worry about going out of the way to drop me off after this.”

Shiv nodded, “Gotcha.” He smiled to himself thinking that Aryan was going to have a hard time with Imlie, she was totally oblivious.

They arrived at the Tripathis a few minutes later, and Imlie knocked on the door, Shiv standing slightly behind her.

Rupi opened the door, and immediately hugged Imlie, “Thank you, thank you, thank you. Thank you, Imlie, for coming here. And for finding a lawyer so quickly. Everyone is so stressed, and Adi Bhai still hasn’t come out of his room.”

The amusement Imlie was still feeling from Aryan’s texts vanished almost immediately when Imlie realized why she was here and what she’d have to accomplish. “Rupi Didi, meet Shiv Agarwal. He’s a lawyer, and I met him because I interviewed his sister. Also he’s worked on cases like this before, so let’s just hope for the best. Shiv, this is Rupi Didi, the best big sister any girl could ask for.”

The three of them walked into the living room where the whole family was sitting, clearly not recovered yet from the shock of this morning’s news.

Aparna walked over to Imlie upon seeing her, “Imlie, beta, thank you—“

Imlie interrupted her, “Maa, if we spend the whole evening with thank you’s, we’re not going to get anything done. Let’s get it all finished in one go. You all are thankful that I found a lawyer, I’m thankful that I have such an amazing family, and we’re all collectively thankful to Sita Maiya for giving us a way out of this.”

Aparna laughed, “Pagal ladki.” (Crazy girl.)

Everyone’s eyes turned to Shiv, still standing slightly behind Imlie and Rupi. He was overwhelmed with everyone’s eyes on him, they all clearly knew he was their only chance of getting through this lawsuit, and the pressure was definitely making him nervous.

Imlie turned to Shiv, “Ok, let me introduce you all to Shiv Agarwal. Lawyer extraordinaire, my new friend, and he loves chai and samosas almost as much as I do.”

Nishant chuckled, “That truly is a feat. I’ll tell Sundar to bring some chai and samosas for everyone.”

Imlie beamed, “Yeh hui na baat! Shiv, I just mentioned that because I really want chai and samosas.” Imlie pointed at each family member and introduced them, “Badke Kaka, Badki Kaki, Nishant Bhaiya, Maa, Papa, and you just met Rupi Didi.”

Shiv did a little wave, “Hi everyone. I didn’t really bring any credentials, but as Imlie said, I’ve worked on cases like this, did the opposing side serve the papers today? If so, can I see them.”

Pankaj gestured to Shiv and Imlie to sit down, and he took a large manila envelope and handed it to Shiv. Shiv opened it and started reading it immediately, Imlie looking over his shoulder.

Harish spoke, “They’re asking that Bhaskar Times and Aditya pay ten crores. I’m not a lawyer, but I think it can be split between the newspaper and Aditya in any way…but from what Adi mentioned this morning, I don’t know if the paper is going to pay anything. Do you think we’ll be able to negotiate them down from this?”

Shiv nodded as he reached the end of the first couple pages of the document, “Mr. Tripathi, Imlie told me a little about the circumstances between Aditya and Aryan, the paper’s CEO. But I don’t think it’s going to be a hindrance. Can I meet Aditya? I think I should get some clear background on his reporting so we can start building the defense.”

The Tripathis shared looks amongst each other, Shiv realized this Aditya character was a little more annoying than necessary. Here his family was, worried sick, and he had locked himself in his room.

Rupi said, “I’ll go call him, I’m sure he’ll come down if I tell him we’ve found a lawyer.”

Rupi went upstairs to get Aditya, and Imlie asked if Shiv would explain his his thought process behind the case, and what he planned to do.

Everyone in the room hung on Shiv’s every word as he explained the accusations Khanna was making, the paper and Aditya’s liability here, what he’d seen in other cases he’d worked that were similar, where he thought the holes were in Khanna’s case, and what his strategy was.

Sundar came in with the chai and samosas, and Imlie put two samosas for Shiv and handed him a cup of chai. She looked around at everyone as he stopped talking, “I told you all, didn’t I, I found the perfect man for the job.”

Shiv smiled sheepishly, “I don’t know about that, but I will try my best.”

Radha was in awe of Imlie, she always managed to save them in the nick of time, and even now, when everything seemed lost, she’d done her magic again. “Imlie beta,” she said, “How do you always manage to find a way to fix everything?”

Imlie smiled, “Not everything is fixed, yet, but I have faith in Sita Maiya, she would never dare to hurt my family.”

Then Rupi came downstairs, with Aditya.

“Well well well, looks like the Imlie fan club is holding another meeting,” Aditya said.

Everyone looked to him, and Imlie stood up, hoping for the best but resigned to the worst.

“No, please don’t stop singing her praises now. I wouldn’t want to ruin the party.” Aditya’s eyes fell on Shiv, “And who’s the new addition to the club?”

Shiv stood up too, and Imlie started to introduce him, “Aditya, this is Shiv Agarwal, he’s agreed to take your case. And we were just—“

Aditya interrupted her, “Mr. Agarwal, I do have to let you know, Imlie already has a boyfriend, you might know him, he’s the reason this is all happening.”

“Adi!” Aparna yelled, “Is this the time for this, what is wrong with you?”

Aditya looked at Aparna, “Maa, I just wanted to warn him, lest he get his hopes up—“

Imlie spoke now, “Aditya, no one is here to listen to your nonsense, can you take this seriously? Please, if not for yourself, but for everyone else.”

Aditya crossed his arms, “Forgive me for not really trusting whatever help you’re offering here, considering you’re still defending the root of all this.”

Imlie started, “When are you going to start taking responsibility for your actions—“

Shiv interrupted the two of them, “Mr. Tripathi,” he extended his hand, “I don’t know you, you don’t know me. But I think it’s best if we keep things professional right now. I don’t know exactly what’s going on between you and Mr. Rathore, but based on my understanding of the case, there’s a way to make it not matter. Why don’t you sit down, and just listen to what I have to say? Okay?”

Aditya rolled his eyes, “Why exactly do you want to help me?” He looked at Imlie, “Where did you find him? Did Aryan recommend him?” Aditya knew it was a nonsensical question, Aryan Singh Rathore wanted to destroy him, and whether he had been using Imlie or not to do that, he wouldn’t have found her a lawyer.

Imlie opened her mouth, but Shiv beat her to it again, “I met Imlie after she interviewed my sister for the Bhaskar Times. I was not asked to be on this case because of Mr. Rathore, nor do I know him, I’ve met him, but that’s it. As I said, I don’t know you personally, but I take my work seriously, so when Imlie told me about the case, I spent some time going through your past ten years at Bhaskar Times. You’ve done great work,” Shiv had spent a lot of his legal career coddling clients, so he knew the tack to take with this guy. Aditya Kumar Tripathi was clearly an egotistical man, using his work to wear the mask of someone humble but great. “I think the pieces you’ve written show a clear pattern of a journalist who’s rarely negligent in his work. So shall we?”

Aditya looked at Shiv’s extended hand, and then he met Imlie’s gaze again. She looked furious, but behind that rage was the concern that he’d seen in Imlie’s eyes hundreds of times. He didn’t know if it was concern for him or just for his family, he didn’t care. What he knew at this moment was that she was still the same Imlie he knew somewhere deep down, if Aryan Singh Rathore hadn’t filled her head with nonsense over the past few weeks, he’d still be married to her, they’d have started their second year of marriage happy. He put out his hand and shook Shiv’s, “Fine.”

The three of them sat down, but Pankaj was the first to speak, “Beta, I know you’re stressed right now, but we’ve listened to Shiv’s strategy, and it seems possible to get you out of this mess.”

Aditya didn’t say anything, he just nodded curtly.

Shiv pulled out a notepad and pen from his bag, and clicked the pen, ready to take notes, “Aditya, can I call you that?”

Aditya nodded again.

“Great,” Shiv said, “Can you go through the process you took in writing the article? Every little step, if possible.”

Aditya explained everything, the anonymous email he received, pouring over the documents, verifying the information with various sources, why he chose to quote them on background instead of on the record. Shiv took detailed notes, but it was clear that Aditya hadn’t taken the care he should have. Shiv had worked with a few journalists, he’d met even more because of his sister, and from what he understood about the job, Aditya had been negligent. But Shiv wasn’t, he’d won cases with worse chances before, and this was more than likely to end with a settlement, he’d be able to bring in Aditya’s past work effectively to leverage the damages down. In fact, even if Aryan tried, he wouldn’t be able to separate or eliminate the paper’s liability with Aditya’s, so there was still that route as well.

“Ok, this is all helpful, thank you Aditya.” Shiv said.

Imlie spoke up, “What’s the next step then? Do you draft a response to the suit?”

Shiv nodded, “Yes, that’s what I’d do. But since the suit is being brought against both the paper and Aditya, and we know in cases like this the paper will try to settle quickly, it would be helpful to know if there’s already a settlement conference on the table.”

Imlie had been thinking about Aryan’s text almost non-stop since she’d received it, and she’d decided to take a leap of faith. “I actually know when that is,” she said, “it’s tomorrow at 9AM, at the Bhaskar Times offices.”

Shiv looked at her, amazed, “How did you find that out?”

Imlie smiled, thinking about Aryan’s principles, but she decided to lie, best not to instigate Aditya right now, “I overheard a lawyer at the office talking about it today, with another lawyer. I think it’s probably a good idea to crash it, right?”

“Yea, definitely, I don’t know the general counsel at Mahendra Global personally, Raj Dixit, but I know of him. Khanna made a mistake using him as his personal lawyer for this case, he’s a no-nonsense type of guy. So even if Khanna…or Aryan…have other plans, getting into that meeting and negotiating with Dixit, it won’t be difficult. It’ll be hard to get what we need, but tomorrow’s the first step.”

Aditya narrowed his eyes, he knew when Imlie lied, she played with her dupatta without fail, something was amiss here, “How do you know that lawyer’s information was correct? Or what if it’s a different meeting and you misunderstood?”

Imlie looked him dead on, “I didn’t misunderstand, the information is correct.”

Shiv cleared his throat, he didn’t want this to devolve into a soap opera episode, this guy was more prone to drama than Priya, and she was an actual actress. “Regardless, we should be there. Even if it doesn’t end up happening, it would be good for me to meet with the lawyers working for the paper, we can argue it’s in their best interests to not just settle quickly, but not to separate the cases, the paper wouldn’t want another suit from your end, which is another possibility, Aditya, if that’s something you want to pursue?”

Shiv hadn’t talked about this idea with Imlie, but he’d consulted his boss at the firm, and it was a good nuclear option if things didn’t go Shiv’s way.

“Wait, you want Aditya to sue the paper?” Imlie asked, suddenly concerned.

“Well, no. I don’t think he should actually do that, but it would be a good tool for leverage, if needed.” Shiv looked at Imlie. He could tell she didn’t like the idea, no matter how much she wanted to help this family and Aditya, she probably knew deep down that most of this, if not all, was Aditya’s fault. None of this should risk the jobs of anyone else at the paper. “Don’t worry, it’s just an idea.” He added, trying to reassure Imlie.

Aditya considered this, “It’s a good idea, actually. Above all, Mr. Rathore looks for his profit and loss in every situation. Right, Imlie?”

Imlie glared back at him, “Yes, he does. But you didn’t used to, or have you forgotten that?” Imlie didn’t want to correct him about Aryan. Yes, Aryan loved to talk about his profit, but Imlie knew that profit didn’t supersede Aryan’s honesty, or the respect he had for his employees.

Aditya said nothing.

Shiv, getting sick of the tension ebbing and flowing, clapped his hands, “Great. We have a plan, Aditya, Imlie, I’ll see you tomorrow at Bhaskar Times. Imlie, I don’t know if Dixit or if anyone else present will let you in the room, but if they decide not to, I’ll lie and say I want you to take notes, sound good?” Shiv gathered his things, and then he remembered, “Also, I talked to Chitra, she said she’d reassure Radhika. Also, I think Chitra might convince Radhika to use this to her benefit too, perhaps even intercede on behalf of the paper against Khanna.”

Imlie looked taken aback, “Oh no, I didn’t want that! What if things go worse for Radhika? I mean, I know Khanna deserves everything horrible to happen to him, but I don’t want Radhika to sacrifice anything for that.”

Shiv smiled, this girl was something else. At a point where she should only be thinking about her family, she was thinking about someone she’d only met a couple days ago. In fact, this whole situation told Shiv that Imlie might be selfless to a fault. “Don’t worry, Chitra’s a great lawyer, she would never advise a client to do anything against their best interests. Never.”

Aditya looked curiously at the two of them, in fact, the whole family was confused now.

Pankaj asked Imlie, “Beta, who’s Radhika?”

Imlie wondered how much she should say, but Shiv figured it out before her, again, “She’s another client at the firm. She came to Chitra with a complaint against Khanna, it’s of a personal nature, so I can’t reveal anything. In fact, I don’t even know that much, I just know it’s a strong case. Today’s article put the case at risk at first, but Chitra, a lawyer at my firm, is going to try to find a way out for her client. It’s nothing that will affect Aditya’s case, Mr. Tripathi.”

Pankaj nodded, relieved.

Aditya said, “I knew that Khanna wasn’t a good guy. Shouldn’t the paper be writing this woman’s story instead of trying to settle with Khanna?”

Shiv looked at Aditya, coldly for the first time this evening, “Aditya, as I said, the case is of a personal nature, I’m sure you get my meaning. So any decision to put it in the media, or take legal action, should come from the person who’s going through the situation. Not anyone else. Let’s just focus on your case, for now, shall we?”

Shiv stood up to leave, as did Imlie.

Imlie smiled at everyone, “I’ll call you all immediately after the meeting tomorrow, don’t worry. It’s going to be okay.”

Aparna said, “You two should eat dinner before you go. I mean you’re doing so much for us.”

Aditya, despite himself, perked up at the idea of this. Looking at Imlie over the past hour had confirmed for him that everything was still salvageable. Even if she told herself and him, that she was doing all this only for his family, there was still a kernel of care for him in there.

“Yes, definitely, you two—“

Shiv didn’t want to spend one more minute with this man right now, he was tolerating him because he’d told Imlie he’d take the case, and he thought the Tripathis were decent people. But this man, he didn’t know how he was when Imlie’d met him, or before, but today, he was a stubborn, egotistical, and selfish man. Shiv lied, “Another time, I’m afraid, I have to meet my sister for dinner tonight, actually. I’m sorry. Imlie, shall we go?” Shiv didn’t know why exactly, but he didn’t think Imlie should stay either. Aditya seemed to fluctuate between emotions at lightning speeds, and he didn’t like it. Also, he doubted this family, as kind as they were, knew how to control their son, nor did they seem to understand’s Imlie’s feelings that well. How could they ask her to stay for dinner when their son was hellbent on either accusing her of something or doubting her actions?

Imlie looked at him, “Yes, let’s go.”

Rupi said, “But Imlie, why do you have to go?”

Imlie played with her dupatta, she didn’t want to stay here any longer. She loved her family, she really did, but she was exhausted. Today had felt like a month squashed into nine hours. “Actually, Didi, Kaki Maa is waiting for me. I promised I’d have dinner with her and Arpita Didi tonight. They’re planning a party for some of Kaki Maa’s friends, so…I said I’d help with that tonight.”

Aditya narrowed his eyes again.

Shiv and Imlie made their way to the front door and put on their shoes. Aditya had followed them, as had Aparna.

She gave Imlie a hug, and Shiv watched as Imlie smiled wide and hugged her tightly back, “Imlie, please come and visit again, but also, I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done for this family. I don’t even have the words.” Aparna fought back tears through her smile as Imlie and her broke from the hug.

Imlie smiled and wiped Aparna’s tears, “Maa, if you don’t have the words, I’ll buy you one of those really big dictionaries, theek?”

Aparna laughed, “I cry like this every time you leave, but I’m so happy you’ve found your passion, your footing. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want you to come back as anything but my daughter, okay?” Aparna looked at Imlie knowingly, as Aditya shifted uncomfortably.

Shiv smiled, “It was great meeting all of you, Aditya, I’ll see you tomorrow.” He opened the door for Imlie, and she walked out onto the porch. Shiv followed her. He turned to head to his car, when he heard Aryan’s voice.

“Imlie!” Aryan called. Aryan’s car was parked behind Shiv’s, and he was leaning against the driver’s side, his arms crossed. He stood up straight and said, “Let’s go. Maa’s probably waiting for us.”

Imlie looked at Aryan, and again, despite herself, despite everything that had happened today, despite anything that could happen tomorrow, she smiled. But then put on a serious face, lifted her chin, and made her way to Aryan’s car.

Aditya went to hold her back, however, before Aparna could stop him. He grabbed Imlie’s wrist. Shiv wanted to rip Aditya’s hand off, he’d taken a step to do just that, but Imlie had beat Shiv to it. She pulled her hand out of Aditya’s grasp almost as quickly as he’d grabbed it. Shiv saw Aryan take a few steps forward out of the corner of his eye, only stopping when he saw Imlie had freed herself.

“What are you doing?” Imlie asked, “If you have something to say, say it. Actually don’t, I don’t want to hear it. And definitely don’t touch me.”

Aditya looked stricken, “Why are you going with him? Why are you still living in that house? You know what he’s done, what he’s doing? How can you not see—“

Imlie put up a hand, “Stop. I’ve already given what’s probably the world’s most boring speech on this, just this morning. Sorry you didn’t record it, but I’ll type it out for you if you want and email you. I came here to help my family, if you still need a character certificate from me after this, I can’t help you. Because I don’t need or want to give you one. I’m going, I’m hungry. See you tomorrow.” Imlie turned and headed to Aryan’s car again. Shiv followed closely behind, looking back to see Aparna having to hold Aditya back. That guy, was a major piece of work, Shiv thought.

Imlie reached Shiv’s car first and she turned to him, “Thank you, so much. Shiv, I don’t know what I would have done—“

Shiv waved his hand, “I know I said friends should say thank you and sorry, but you’re laying it on a little thick there, Imlie.”

Imlie laughed, “Sorry sorry—“ then she put her tongue between her teeth, and laughed more.

Shiv looked up at the sky and dramatically said, “Sita Maiya, what do I do with this one? Give me some guidance!” He looked back at Imlie and smiled, then he noticed Aryan approaching the two of them, the man looked downright murderous. Shiv had always been the opposite of his sister; he hated drama. “It looks like your hero is waiting.”

Imlie looked confused, and turned around to see Aryan. She turned around again, “He’s not a hero,” when she knew Aryan could hear them, she added, “he’s auditioning for item girl though.”

Shiv laughed, “What?”

Imlie shook her head, laughing harder now, “Nothing,” she said in between laughs, “it’s just—“

Aryan, even angrier now than he’d been when he saw Aditya grab Imlie, said, “It’s an inside joke. Not worth explaining. Imlie, let’s go.” It wasn’t a question. He absolutely hated seeing Imlie laugh like that with this guy. It was irrational, but he wanted that laugh to be for him.

Imlie stopped laughing and waved to Shiv, “See you, and thank you counsellor, for your excellent advice.” She offered an exaggerated curtsy, because she’d always thought the word ‘counsellor’ seemed more British than necessary.

Shiv smiled and offered an equally dramatic bow, “Of course, always happy to be at your service.” He stood up, waved, and looked to Aryan. Aryan was looking at Imlie with a mix of amusement, frustration, and clear annoyance. Shiv didn’t know why Imlie had said Aryan was good at hiding his emotions, the man was an open book for him. He met Aryan’s gaze and offered him a wave and a smile too, Aryan just lifted his chin and turned around, heading back to his car.

Shiv chuckled and opened his door, he saw Imlie get into Aryan’s car. She may be oblivious now, but the way her mood had shifted in the span of the ten seconds it took her to leave the Tripathis’ porch and get into Aryan’s car, Shiv guessed she wouldn’t be like that for long.

Shiv got in his car and looked in his rearview mirror as Aryan pulled out, he followed suit. As he drove home, he’d wondered how he’d gotten so lucky over the past few days. This might have been the happiest he’d been in a long time, and wasn’t because he was back with his family in Delhi. It was all because of Imlie. He saw Aryan’s car take a left, and he took a right. He briefly saw the car disappearing among the others on the street in his rearview mirror, and smiled. Then he focused on getting home and thought through the best strategies for tomorrow, Imlie had trusted him with this. He’d have to give it his best.