Chapter 35

Pearl_Oyster

@Pearl_Oyster

A/N: Not proof read, so please ignore typing errors if any 😉

Part 35

Everything had come full circle for Arnav. Life had brought him to a place where he could feel the same pain which Khushi had gone through three years back. And now when he knew what it felt to get abandoned in a hopeless Jungle with no outlet, he desperately longed for a way out.

It was only after a mind-numbing session of thoughts and conclusions; he could see a ray which would guide him to Khushi.

And this ray was Abhay. A man who had been Khushi's saviour when he had been a destroyer.

But Arnav knew well enough that convincing Abhay of his love was more daunting than convincing Khushi.

But Arnav Singh Raizada always preferred challenging tasks.

~~***~~

After Arnav left, Khushi thought it best to not think of it, rather think anything at all. She engrossed herself in her work.

~~***~~

After the sweet and bitter confession of their love, Abhay and Anjali had decided to spend their day out, celebrating the memorable day of their lives.

As the day turned to dusk, Anjali decided this day was the best day of her so-far life, in some reserved senses.

"Anjali" Abhay called out as she was about to enter the gates of her mansion. He had come to drop her home.

And before she could turn to him, he had pulled her to his chest, and planted his lips on hers.

The kiss ended as Abhay pulled back, giving them chance to breathe.

"I love you, Anjali" He said, his forehead resting against hers.

"I love you too" She whispered back, still under the effects on the kiss.

"Bye" Abhay said and drove back while she stood at the gate for a long time, smiling to herself.

~~***~~

Arnav too, after deciding to pay a visit to Abhay, had indulged himself in his work.

"Arnav Bhaiya, shall I serve the food?" Hari Prakash entered in and asked for the second time in the previous half an hour.

"No, I am not hungry" He answered.

"Just a little? Shall I get some soup?

"No, I told you I am not hungry" Arnav replied, irritated.

"Juice?"

"Get Lost, Hari Prakash" Arnav screamed tearing his gaze away from the laptop and staring the man before him who was now shaking with visible fear.

"Sorry, but I don't want anything" He said in reduced decibels.

HP was puzzled and quite taken aback on earning his first sorry from Arnav and instantly left the room feeling too awkward to respond back.

Just then the door knocked, again.

Damn Hari Prakash! What now? Arnav thought.

"Who is it?" He yelled.

"Bhai" came the voice.

"Snap! It's Anjie" He thought.

"Come in, sweety" He said lovingly.

She did what he said and came to sit next to him, on the opposite chair in the poolside.

"Umm.. Bhai" She started.

"Yes?"

"What do you think of Abhay?" She thought it best to handle the matter in a straight forward manner.

Arnav looked at her and wondered if it was Khushi speaking in his sister's disguise?

"Why Anjie? Is everything alright?" He asked in a derisive way.

"Umm.. You tell na"

"He's a good guy" Arnav replied after a short pause.

"Seriously Bhai? Oh, thank God" She said as radiance broke all over her face.

"But Why?" Arnav asked wondering what good he had said to make Anjali look relieved at once, as though something heavy had been thrown off her shoulders.

"Because I want to marry him" She replied succinctly.

The words felt like a splash of cold water on his face. Just a plain joke' He told himself.

"Anjie, tell me that the joke is over and I am allowed to laugh." He said coldly, in a not-funny-at-all' manner.

"But you said he's a nice guy" She replied, not knowing how to retort back without making him feel violated.

"Anjali, We are not discussing this. Abhay is an okay guy but that doesn't make him good enough to stand beside you, let alone marrying" Arnav gave his verdict.

"I love him, Bhai" came Anjali's firm voice as he made an attempt to leave.

"Love?" He repeated as though it was an alien word for him.

"Yes, Bhai. I love him. A lot" She said, coming forward to take his hand in hers.

Seeing the silence on his end, she further continued, "He loves me too Bhai."

"Anjali, come here" Arnav said as he led her to the chair he was sitting in.

"Listen to me, sweety, and listen me good. I am not against love because I know the feeling. I know what it means to love someone. But what I want to make you understand is that love is a complicated thing. And I don't want you to get trapped in this and hurt yourself in the process" He said, cupping her cheeks in his hands.

Hearing the fears and concern of her elder brother, Anjali smiled weakly.

"I know Bhai, and I understand. But Abhay isn't going to hurt me, ever"

"And how do you know that?" Arnav asked, getting impatient and restless.

The thought of Anjali loving a man sounded weird. Isn't she just a little darling of his? His lil sister?

"I just know, Bhai. And I want you to stand beside me, trust in my trust. Trust Abhay" Anjali said, sounding more mature than Arnav guessed her to be.

"Please Bhai? For the sake of your Anjie?" She requested, tightening her hold on his hand.

"I'll need to talk to him" Arnav replied grumpily, finding it sinful to decline the unadulterated hopes which shimmered in his sister's eyes.

"Thank you, Bhai, Thank You Thank You. I love you so much" She burst in silent tears, lurching forward to hug her brother while he lovingly patted her back.

The reasons for meeting Abhay had grown more intense and urgent.

~~***~~

After dropping Anjali home, Abhay reached his flat, feeling excessively light-hearted. He felt rejuvenated and a permanent smile never left his face.

As he entered the flat, pleasing aroma wafted to his olfactory senses.

He, after a quick change of clothes, made his way to the kitchen and found Khushi, frying Jalebis. As she used her one hand to draw perfect spiral shapes in the boiling oil, her other hand was mundanely busy in eating Jalebis one after another.

"Oh my, I thought I'd be greeted with garlands for finally having the courage to let Anjali know my feelings but here all I find is, a famished soul engulfing Jalebis. Quite interesting!"

Abhay commented as he took out a spiral from the increasing pile and scrunched it with visible bliss.

"Delicious" He said and followed the action of her hands with his gaze as she drew more patterns in the oil.

"That one isn't a perfect spiral. Seems like you have run out of practice" Abhay said pointing to a certain one and quickly drew back his pointing finger as Khushi looked at him.

"You are more than welcome to take the lead and try making a perfect one" She replied making Abhay laugh at her supposed rejoinder.

"You like like you are in a foul mood. What happened? Did Mr. Roy tried to bite your head off with excessive work? Or did he again asked you to meet one of his nephews?"

"Sometimes you make me wonder Abhay" Khushi said, smilingly.

"Really?" Abhay grinned.

"Yeah. With such a limited size of brain, how do you manage to run a company and a girlfriend too?" She finished with a mischievous tone and laughed seeing his reaction.

"That was killingly funny. I can't hold my laughter" Abhay said dourly as he followed her to the living room.

"Are you ever going to ask me?" Abhay said after ten minutes, when Khushi had already settled on the couch with the Jalebi-full bowl nestled in her lap, leisurely watching an interview of Barun Sobti on the television where he talked about his under-shoot movie '22 Yards'.

"Ask you what?" Khushi said, her attention dedicated to that irresistible face on the TV.

"About mine and Anjali's day-out cum date"

"I already know about it" Khushi said as she finally switched off the TV and turn to face him.

"But how? I didn't tell you? Or did I?" Abhay asked.

"Anjali called me when you two were dining at Royals' and she filled me in with the details"

"What? It was you she was talking to? But she told me she was talking to her friend and.. Oh" Abhay said as things settled into his brain.

"What oh?' Am I not her friend?"

"Of course you are" Abhay replied wondering how easy it was for girls to talk in words which wouldn't let the third person get an iota of knowledge about the matter being discussed.

"Girls. Hard to decipher" He told himself.

"So now that you are already well informed about my day, how was yours?" Abhay said, steering the conversation in another direction which reminded Khushi about Arnav.

"My day was good" She said, with a cheerful smile which didn't reach her eyes.

"Oh, I see. That's why you were vehemently frying these Jalebis? Celebrating your good day?" Abhay said, knowing well she was disturbed by something.

"Abhay, I want to talk to you" She said with utmost seriousness, letting down her guards and exposing her perturbed mind to him.

"I am always listening" Abhay replied, taking her one hand in his and pressing it in an assuring, friendly way.

"It's about Arnav" She said and looked up to see a change of expressions but there was none.

Taking it encouragingly, she closed her eyes for a second, arranging her thoughts and started speaking.

~~***~~

Pearl_Oyster2013-11-15 08:26:31