Chapter 21
[MEMBERSONLY]
[NOCOPY]
Chapter 15
Perplexed complications...
Confounded,
bewildered by road blocks...
Life
seems to have them to no end...
Seething
and raging to see some sense...
But
perplexities never seem to bend...
Trust the university people to
mess up things, he thought angrily as he chucked his organizer at the
closet and sat on the recliner. Things weren't going as he had planned and if
this continued the same way then he might had to end up being penniless and
homeless and that would be seriously pathetic in a place like California.
Linguistics was never a huge earner unless you made a serious name in
the society and proved your skills in the field. Until and unless that
happened, people in the field always struggled to get a translating job, some
job to make their ends meet. Novel writing was a great idea but it also had its
own limits. No one appreciated your work till some money, and mind, huge
amounts of money, were spilled to each and every individual involved in book
publishing, editors, publishers, cover photographers etc..., and teaching, well
that post was overflowing with candidates and the universities weren't ready to
shell out some extra thousand dollars to appoint a new staff to teach. Well...anything
to left to say?
It was never an easy job and to a new
graduate, impossible. Linguistics, study of languages was a huge field with
thousands of people graduating a year. With so much of competition, life was
never simple. It was the same for him. It had been a year since he had come America on a small project of translating some old Hebrew books in the
central library, California, USA and after that one job, many other small odd
jobs that he did never fetched him enough money to make a decent living. Many
days he had to go on a single burger for the whole day to save money to buy
food for the next week. It was troublesome but he didn't complain for he had
chosen this field with much passion, vigor and a whole lot of arguments.
His family never appreciated such a meager job
with no financial security, but as a child, languages were the only thing that
caught his eye. It had excited him to learn there were hundreds and hundreds of
languages across the world and it had become the thread of social connect and
communication and it had itched him discover the beauty of what connected
billions of people together. And his fate was his choice. He had graduated with
a Masters in Linguistics from JNU and had taken off to fulfill his dreams to
California.
But as they say no life comes without a
package of unavoidable problems, his excitement had considerably worn off after
coming in terms with the amount of pain he had to go through in order to follow
his passion yet he didn't hinder. He was always a fighter and didn't really appreciate
the idea of asking help from his family nor his friends. He had managed
somehow.
As he sat dejectedly after another failed
interview, he started weighing his options. Not
much...! When he was informed of this interview, he was really excited but
all his hopes crashed as his self esteem butted in. He would have got a job
today if he would have accepted the fact that the work was granted on the basis
of recommendation rather than his own talent but he felt that if he had
accepted the job, he would have insulted himself. It was too much to bear to
see your talent being given less importance when compared to money and fame. It
pained him.
He sighed glumly as he got up and opened
his near empty refrigerator for a bottle of water. While he was emptying the
bottle, his phone buzzed in his jeans pocket and he took it out to see his
sister calling. One ray of sunshine, Nandkishor smiled as he lifted the call,
"Hey sis...sup?"
"Heyya NK..." Lavanya said cheerfully,
"how was your interview today?"
"Don't ask..." he replied sadly,
"pathetic..."
"What happened?" Lavanya asked, worried,
"you didn't get the job?"
"Nope..." NK said as he closed his
fridge with a snap, "I didn't take it..."
Lavanya sighed, "Why?"
"Again the same reason..." NK muttered,
"The work is too much and the pay isn't high...
"NK..." Lavanya chided, "If it goes on
like this then it would be too bad..."
"I know La..." NK muttered feeling
miserable for having to lie to his sister, "I understand the difficulties I am
in. But I am trying. If something worth comes up then I will definitely take
it."
"Should I send you some money?" Lavanya
asked knowing full well what her brother was about to answer. He always denied
her financial overtures but today he surprised her, "yes please...thank you. I
have some rent to pay and the owner will chuck me out if I don't pay by this
weekend and looking at the situation, I don't think any jobs are going to come
by soon."
Lavanya wiped her tears as she replied,
"yes... I will send it. Don't worry..."
"Thanks, La..." NK said gratefully but
felt a little hurt to have asked her to bear his expenses. But he was helpless.
He had to ask her this time. This one time, he promised himself as he looked
the clock. 12: 20 PM and his stomach was rumbling.
"La...I am going out for lunch," he
said, "shall I call you later? I have lots to talk to you..."
"Sure, bro..." Lavanya smiled softly,
"call me after your lunch. I am free..."
"Okay..." NK said and hung up as he
walked out his apartment to the burger shop nearby.
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Love at first sight?
Seriously Akash?
As Akash drove back home, these were the
constant thoughts that plagued his mind. Considering his simplicity and his
nature, it was highly unlikely of Akash to believe in all these nonsense, over
the top Bollywood cliches of falling in love the instant a girl smiles at you.
Seems ridiculous, he chided himself as he honked loudly and scared a pedestrian
out of his wits.
Akash was not alien of dating, having
girlfriends and all. He had gone out with a couple of girls from his college
but none of them impressed him. He was always on a complete different
wavelength from them. Make up, hot guys, the awe, everything seemed really
silly to him. People with some substance, mental and intellectual maturity
caught his attention. He valued people with wisdom, wit and a whole lot of
common sense. Unfortunately, girls that he dated never fell into that category
and he always realized that after speaking to them. Like how thunder sounds
after lightening, some people appear bright before they talk...this one
statement from Arnav had his insides rolling with laughter and probably that
was one of the best advices he had had from his big brother.
Akash always preferred to confer his private
life with Arnav. Not his parents, brother or his sister in law but only Arnav. With
Arnav life somehow seemed not frazzled and easy. Probably because Arnav never poked
his nose into other people's business nor he had any curiosity in learning
about what his family did or would do. It always felt very safe and secure when
Akash discussed his emotions with his brother who seemed to have solutions to
every problem in the world. His deep chocolate brown eyes were enough to calm
your nerves and soothe you but ironically, they held so much of pain in them
which were perfectly masked within by his unfazed attitude. His peaceful demeanour,
albeit marred by constant self battles, did the little trick for Akash. He got
that assurance from Arnav who seemed more like a best friend, like a teddy bear
you took to sleep which heard every woe, every hard feeling, confusions, and calmed you without words. Arnav truly was
an ocean, mysterious, roaring yet serene.
Arnav
had an uncanny and amazing ability of reading people. He would guess in just
minutes about how they were. But it was extremely difficult to talk to him. He
had so neatly maintained the aloofness that it was hard to dig up a
conversation with him. But Akash being the clever one had devised a smart plan
in his late teens. He had started writing paper messages and sneaked it into
his brother's room before he was home. Arnav would always reply to them. This
was a practice even when Arnav was not at home. But only the method differed.
It was digital. Akash would send him an email, explaining his problem and Arnav
would patiently reply back in his own time. These two brothers always stayed
connected through some means by not embarrassing or annoying each other.
When Akash felt those strange feelings
when he first saw that girl in the temple, he was sure he had fallen in love.
But as the seconds passed, his mind itched to make some sense out of it and he
had already come to conclusion that whatever that he might have felt in the
temple was purely situational and not really solid. But he was still confused
and this was a perfect time to seek advice from Arnav and this time, as Arnav
was home, he would sneak another paper message to his brother's room. Akash
knew he would answer it...
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Sometimes simplest of the things make their lasting impressions on us.
They are not over the top, extravagant or grand that just manages to catch our
eye. Subtle yet profound they are. They reach our hearts, make their
place deep in our souls and leave a gaping hole, reminding of our
incompleteness without them.
Some might think that Arnav was being
too much. Who would groan over for a girl for 15 years, when that love
blossomed at an age where there was no foundational maturity and intense level
of understanding and compatibility. It was just plain sense of belonging. Yet,
the bonds that were formed in that age where innocence was brimming proved
eternal for him for the connections, the relations between their hearts were
pure and untainted from the harsh reality of the world. Nothing except
companionship and mischief mattered.
Arnav always believed that it was
mischief that brought two people together and strengthened their friendship.
Only with the ones you are comfortable with, you will be able to pull amazing
pranks with ease, without offending them or feeling awkward and it was very
important not to be awkward with your partner. Because that would ruin the very
beauty and depth that bond signified and it was always mischief and fun that
connected Arnav with his friend. She was his partner in crime, clearly a menace
and an absolute nuisance to deal with. Nonetheless, she was his.
No matter how much time had passed since she
had passed away, she always affected him. Distance really didn't matter for
these two even when she was infinitely away from him and he was not going to
meet her any soon. All that mattered was that satisfaction, that sheer bliss he
experienced whenever he just merely thought about her. She made him complete
and she was unparallel. No one had ever come close to what she was even though
he had a very primitive, undeveloped and hazy image of hers as a kid. That
exuberance, that zeal and that point-blank smartness was still undefeated by
anyone. If she would have been alive today, she would be one hell of a woman.
As he stood there, staring disdainfully at his
own face that was being reflected on the sun kissed surface of River Yamuna, he
couldn't help but think what she would have thought to witness him kiss another
woman. Would she have felt bad? Would she have felt disgusted? Or would she be
happy that at least he was moving on? Did she want him to break the walls and
free himself out? Arnav had no idea...
He wanted to move on. He desperately wanted to
get out from the chains of self restraint and guilt and taste the air of
freedom and liberation. Yet, something, some small damn thing in the corner of
his heart was stopping him. It was making him impossible to break himself free
from that intense attachment he had with his childhood friend. Sadly, all the happy memories, his carefree,
joyous childhood had chained him to his past because escaping into his memories
was preferred over dealing with the cruel world for Arnav...
Chi...Why are they eating each other's
mouths???
I don't know...is it so tasty?
Looks like it, Rinnie...look at them! They
don't seem to stop at all! I bet it is all creamy and stuff like cream bun else
why would eat like that?
Do
you think we should try? Will our mouths be as tasty as theirs?
As Arnav jolted back from the memory
lane, his heart felt heavy. The kiss he shared with a stranger unknowingly had
reminded him of those memories of his first kiss with this best friend. In sheer
curiosity of tasting the mouth, they had unknowingly bonded themselves in a
very intimate way, something that neither of them had understood in an age so
tender and innocent. That kiss wasn't characterized by raging heart beats,
laboured breaths or raw passion. Underneath that action was cuteness, purity
and gullibility. It was childishness that seeped out of that action and neither
of them probably had any regrets about it because they didn't understand the
magnitude of their acts. It was pure adorability and Arnav terribly missed
it...
Thinking of his best friend brought those
tears back into his eyes and a feral rage rose out of him for everything that
was wrong in his life. The scream that followed echoed throughout the desolate
land, rippling the waters and reaching the heaven...that scream carried all the
anguish of his heart, all the agony of his soul and all the sufferings he had
endured...the scream pierced the tranquil air, shredding the calmness into
pieces as Arnav sank onto the ground, his eyes wildly searching for some peace,
some love and his heart praying the nonexistent, non believing god to have some
mercy on him...
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"Do you have any idea how worried, how
terribly scared we were looking at you in that condition? What if something had
happened to you? What the hell is wrong with you?" Khushi cringed as Diya went
on hurling angry words at her. From the moment Diya had yanked her out of her room
to give her first aid, Khushi had been awarded with a nonstop commentary of how
irresponsible her behaviour was. While her younger sister was practically
howling at her, her father was, at the moment, trying to subdue the volcano that had
burst in the house due to combined fury of her aunt, her mother and her sister
downstairs.
Squinting at her tiny steamroller of a
sister, Khushi cautiously voiced her appeal, "Sorry...Diyu..."
"Sorry?" Diya turned to her in a flash.
She almost, well almost looked a lioness, "Sorry? Just a damned sorry for your
madness, Di? What if something happened to you?"
"I said I am sorry..." Khushi muttered
resignedly, throwing her heavily bandaged hands up in surrender, "I was just
extremely angry and couldn't control myself."
"Angry at what, Di?" Diya started her
barrage of irate questions again, "angry at what that you chose to give your
safety the least importance! Angry at what that you chose to cross the threshold
of stupidity and idiocy! Angry at what, Di, care to explain?"
Khushi knew her sister was extremely
pissed off with her at the moment and no amount of cajoling would cool her down
but she couldn't bring herself to explain the reason of her fury and rage. She
hated to discuss her personal life with anyone; it didn't matter whether it was
her sister. She just couldn't elucidate that someone, some loser of a stranger
had a crossed a very serious line with her. She couldn't explain that someone
had insulted the very feeling of intimacy for her. It was extremely hurting...
"Di, I am asking you something..." Diya's
irritated, stiff voice sounded. Khushi had to do something to escape her
suffocating scrutiny. Think Khushi! Improvise, she thought hardly before she
blurted, "It sometimes gets overwhelming to think you are an orphan, Diya...it is
too much too bear..."
Whatever anger or irritation Diya had on
her childish, idiotic specimen of a sister, it just vanished in an instant and
was replaced by unflinching love and sympathy as she went and crashed to her, trying
to calm her anguished sister, "I am sorry, Di...I really am..."
Khushi was more than glad that Diya
bought her lies and she just chose to ignore all her worries at least for some
precious moments with her dear sister. She hugged her tighter and muttered,
"Mistake is mine, Diyu...you don't have to apologize me...but do me a favour.
Let us end this here, please..."
Diya didn't want to burden her sister
with anymore emotional pains than that of what she already had. So she simply
nodded and hugged her even more tightly, letting her tears spill out freely.
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"Are you serious?" Chris sounded almost
jubilant, still trying hard to absorb the recent news Amanda broke to him.
"Yes, dead serious..." Amanda replied, a
small smile playing on her face looking at Chris's disbelieving expression,
"this is a huge opportunity for both of you. I think you will enjoy..."
"Positive," Chris beamed. "But you sure?"
Amanda grinned warmly, "Yes, I want you and
Khushi to take the lead of this one. By
the way, it is in India..."
Chris jumped in joy, "Yes! I am going to
meet Gupta quicker than I thought! Yes! Thanks Amanda! Love you so much!"
Amanda clucked her tongue incredulously, "You guys don't date each other
yet act like hormonal imbalance teenagers if you are away from each other!
Damn...how is it even possible...?"
A serene yet overjoyed feeling crossed
Chris's young, boyish face," That only a best friend can understand!"
PRECAP:
Mind your attitude woman!
I will not! Who the hell are you to command me? What rights do you have?
The same right you have for shouting at my sister! You better not insult
her in front of me or you have to bear my wrath. When I get angry, I don't
think you bear a chance. So just shut up!
Stop
it! It's not worth it! Stop...
A/N: Still confusin', right??? :D :D Enjoy! By the way, how was it?
Your reaction
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Comments (19)
Heyya peeps! I know I am terribly late and I am on a tight schedule again...Had exams and now have a field trip and work to be done so I dont have much time to reply to all of your wonderful comments...Please dont feel bad and stop commenting. Once I get back from the tour, I promise I am going to reply to all your comments :) Till then happy reading and A VERY HAPPY, CRACKLING DIWALI!
10 years ago
Welcome buddy :D Glad u love the story :D Thank u :) As to why Khushi's mom, aunt and Payal hate her, I am coming to that :) The past is slowly being curtailed and I think you'll get ur answers :)
10 years ago
Welcome buddy :D Glad u like the story :)
10 years ago
I love your story and the dynamics between all your characters is very well played ,lot of hidden layers in all of them they all have grey tones in their lives ,can you clarify why khushie mom aunt and payal hate her ,?and her past .i feel she is Arnav best friend from childhood but she was orphaned and shashi adopted her .
11 years ago
Just caught up with all of the 15 chapters on recommendation from shruti21. She made a post recently regarding new writers & their stories. I can't thank her enough because the ff's that she have listed are all phenomenal.Coming to your ff, it's really interesting & totally different from all of the stuff that I've read so far on the forum. Looking forward to reading more of this gripping story. Keep up the good work :).
11 years ago
nice updateupdate soon
11 years ago
The introduction of NK - La's struggling brother. Both bro and sister need to find alternatives to be happy. Nk in his career and LA in her love life.Aakash and his reliance on Arnav for guidance. Arnav's words guide him and he has not regretted following them. His trust in Arnav is so immense that he plans to discuss his feeling of "love at first sight" with him. As per Aakash Arnav is good judge of people and is never wrong? Then why is Arnav so harsh towards Khushi who seems to be a good person? Does he fight his feeling of an attraction towards her? As he cannot allow another girl is his life because of sad end to his childhood love.Liked Khushi - Diya bonding. Looking forward to Chris & Khushi's meeting.Like the way you cover so many characters in a single update. Enjoyed reading.😊 akaps2013-10-10 08:39:56
11 years ago
part 15nice part...poor Khushi...Dia is really so sweet...and Aakash hope he doesnt fall for this Paayal...cont soon dear...
11 years ago
read silver lining after long time.. tell you.. still enjoyed it.. i love this story.. it is very easy story but still loves it.. so two strangers kissed each and found to be responding too then too they got the message there have to be be something between them which they felt while sharing the kiss.. both stubborn gave up that feelings because of their big fast egos.. hope they both recognise their feelings and give themselves a chance.. both will have wonderful life together.. looking forward to it.. well akash is falling for payal.. thus payal have slightest idea about what crime she have committed.. shyam is not to be trusted and payal is in mess.. loved the updates and looking forward to read more.. thanks for pm 😊
11 years ago
Chris is coming to India?? should be interesting.. waiting for AK to meet..
11 years ago