Chapter 15

Batool Imran

@nav_bat

He could see that off handed look on her face, that composed form of hers crumbled, something was odd about her, he thought, not that he was much concerned but their was part of him that nagged at him to know what was that was troubling her. Chucking the thought momentarily out of his system, he followed her inside and together they picked the materials which was fortunately for them could be easily handled with the two of them carrying enough supplies in both of their hands.

"The hard boards left", Arnav told her perplexed, drawing her out of the silent mode she had escaped into as she looked at him briefly and then away, her mind still in a very non functional condition.

"We can't come back for it after we have dropped these", she said in a quiet tone, to which he hesitantly nodded, now getting more and more concerned with the weird way she was behaving. He couldn't understand why it troubled him, but it didn't really feel right, to see her in what looked like a shattered state, lost in some world that he actually didn't know off. Still he let the thought remain at the back of his head, and walked outside the door with him now stunned that she had not even cared to inform her mother that she was going.

"Aren't you going to tell your mother that you are going?" he asked incredulously, with wide eyed pupils as she shook her head and replied back in a quiet voice, "She knows.", not offering anymore of an explanation, not that he thought she owed him one anyways. Now there was no more doubt that she wasn't fine, and though something in him yanked at him to ask her he suppressed the demanding part of him, and walked quietly through the street, and to their own street, stealing glances at her as she kept her gazed fixed on the road underneath avoiding any possible eye contact with him. From somewhere their was distant intuition inside him that she was weeping to herself, but as he looked at her he discarded the thought out of his head, as their was not as single tear making its way down her eyes, just a blank expressionless face.

He rung the bell, and Anjali promptly opened the door giving a bright smile to Khushi, who gave a small smile of her own, as Arnav led her in to the room, they dropping their materials on the far end of his room, the space that was unoccupied with any furniture. Anjali and Aakash exchanged glances at each other, like Arnav sensing that something was not right about her, even though they did not know much of her, anybody could tell from her blood drained face that she was going through a difficult emotional phase.

Arnav looked at her again, now seeing parts of her face shining due to the silent tears flowing down them, which she quickly wiped away, trying her very best to make as little eye contact with his curious eyes.

"We need to go back to get the hardboard", he said the silence killing him, as she for a brief second looked up catching his breathe, and then silently nodded, him leading her way out of the room and back outside the main door. Arnav was about to go out of the main door where she was waiting for him, when Anjali kept her hand firmly on his shoulder stopping him dead in his tracks.

"What happened to her? Did you do something?", she asked worriedly, her eyes fixed at a bedraggled Khushi.

"How am I suppose to know, I didnt do anything.", he growled back at her irritated, and stomped out of the house, towards where Khushi was standing, the two of them making their way through the endless lane back again.

"Anything?", Aakash stood behind Anjali who closed the door, and she turned around and shrugged giving him a unsatisfactory look, and pulled him towards the kitchen, tussling him to have her help with the food.

Now back at Khushi's place Arnav held the large hard board with his two stands, as Khushi opened the main door of her room, and briefly looked at her mother still sitting in a broken state sticking to the door. Tears flew down her eyes, but she wiped them away, before closing the door behind, and walking towards Arnav who was holding the hardboard. She tried to take it from his hand but he held it firm in his grip, trying to catch her eyes in his but she refused to look in them.

"Leave it, I'll pick it up.", he said with such finality in his voice, that she had to back away, and let him carry it outside, closing the back door behind as once again they made their way down the street.

They had entered the lane he lived in when he saw her weeping to herself, this time not soundlessly but making minimal sound. She looked disconcerted walking like that, no firmness in every step she took, he noticed, the way something so wrong about her, he couldn't contain the curiosity erupting in him.

"Gupta, are you alright?" He asked her, keeping the plank down, and keeping his hand on her shoulder, stopping her from walking any further. She pulled up a small smile across her face and nodded, beckoning him to come along. He did so still not convinced, as her un sustained attitude was just becoming more and more disturbing for him now. Seeing a white washed bench, outside one of the houses, and an idea struck him, and he kept the heavy hard board down, which was now cutting through the skin on his palms having them turned rosy red.

He carried the hard board to the bench, and made it lean against the side hand rest, as he sped towards Khushi who obliviace to his actions was walking away in a reverie of her own.

"Gupta, come with me.", he said and hesitantly put his arm around, much to her surprise but she didn't say anything and did as he was directing her to. He led her to the bench and made her sit, sitting next to her, her still refusing to say anything of substance.

"You can take your time to collect yourself Gupta, then we will go home." He informed her and waited for her to say something but she didn't say anything instead sat silent looking up at the sky above, and then down at her thighs what seemed to him like she was recollecting some memories. Moments past like that with her silent and him waiting for her to relax but he felt she needed something to guide her through it, she didn't feel herself, and if she didn't, it would be no use getting her to work of the project. She wound't be working in right mind and that would be disastrous. Besides, he didn't know why but he was genuinely concerned about her right now.

"You wanna share?", he offered, hoping that she might say something. The last time he had been in such a strained situation was back with Karan, but that was a long time back, and then he was his best friend, it was an entirely different case with her being in his place. He had no or very little experience with girls, his sister-brother banter was a successful one and they would always catch up on to each others life without including him.

Her eyes were glistening like pearls, as she finally looked into his eyes filled with concern for her, and moved her self closer to where he was sitting the corner of their thighs rubbing against each other. Seeing her actions he slightly flinched mildly scared now, she was frightening him now, it looked like if he as much touch her she would break before him in a hundred pieces, but he need not do that, because she was already broken.

"Whatever that is, that's bugging you will be alright", he made a feeble attempt to calm her down, keeping his hand on her shoulder, as she sobbed breathlessly, not being able to control the rush of emotions inside her threw hers arms around him shaking him to the core. It would be an underestimation to say he was shocked, because he felt something that was way beyond that degree of surprise. She clutched on to the red and white striped hoody, her hands completely wound around him, as her tears wettened the cloth covering his upper side of the shoulder where her head was resting now.

"Why, 'why did he' have to come'. back", she said between endless sobs, confusing him further, but instinctively he was now coming out of the shock of it, and wrapped his arms lightly around holding her to him, but not as fiercely as she was.

"Paa'why did he have to come back'after he destroyed everything..why..why..cant..he leave..us ..in..peace..leave me and Maa alone..does he think..we need him..we do not..because we..are financially dependent on him..does not mean..he can come and crash our..worlds when ever he wants to..why..doesnt..he go..gett lost..with that wh**e of a wife of his..whyy..", she blabbered after senselessly, making Arnav shiver with the horror of his words, as his hands now held on to her tighter, with her continuously crying. He didn't know there were so many layers to her, so many troubles with her, not every person can me judged in one meet..he was after all wrong about her. She had become hard, because of what she had to go through, if he couldn't make it any easier for her, he absolutely had no right to make it hard for her either.

"I was ten..when Maa told me about his second marriage. I didn't belive it at first..I couldn't understand how times had changed so quickly..and then..he came later..to tell me I was still his daughter..and he loved me..but he woudnt spend time with me..he insisted on getting custody of me..but Ma refused..and the court bound him to financially assist me and Ma..but from them..that day..I lost me Pa..he's dead for me..he's dead..then why does he return..what does he wanna show..that he loves me?,.I don't..I never cant..hes nothing but someone who ditched on my mother..someone who pulled my life and tangled it within..itss roots..I can..never forgive him..", she said hugging him tightly, as more tears wettened his hoody, making the moisture of them touch his skin, sending down sprawling sensation down his perfectly shaped body. He was motionlessly hugging her, not knowing how to console her since it was not wrong to admit, but she had simply rendered him speechless. He couldn't find words to pay his condolences, to her, she had been through too much, whatever he said would be nothing but words to her now. After all he didn't know how it felt to be without a dad, and pain in the heart of being brought up by a single parent, and backed up by a person who you hate.

They sat their in the same position as she hugged him tightly, her finger nails gripping his flesh through the light cotton hoody. Slowly the pressure of it eased out, as she opened her eyes and realized what she was doing, get flustered all of a sudden and loosened her hold on him as he mechanically did the same, realization seeping into his brain as well. Moving her hands away from him, she pulled away from in a hurry and inched backwards from where he sat her vision still blurry looking very much flustered, and more than that highly embarrassed.

"I..I..am..reall.y..sorry..", she mumbled, catching her breathe, her voice still choky due to all the tears she had recently shed.

"Never mind...happens", he mumbled, struggling for words, trying to think with a clear head after what had happened minutes ago. Other than his sister it was technically the second time he had willingly hugged a girl, instead of previous times the girls had thrown themselves on him, but well he had never returned the gesture, however today he felt different. Today he felt proud of hugging her back, what words could not do maybe actions could.

"I ..didnt..mean too'I have been..too whiny", she sighed looking away from him, as he tried to think of something to say in reply.

"It's alright. (she looked up at him with questioning eyes and he knew what she was worried about), your secret is safe with me, I wont say anything to anyone.", he assured her and she smiled at him finally wiping her tears away, her face now dry, as she looked into his eyes merrily. Taking both her hand into his, she locked her gaze with his, and said gratefully,

"Thank you for everything"

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Regarding The Title

Times Change- This title according to me goes very aptly with the events of this chapter. Times change, implies on to new horizons, not only for Arnav and Khushi but also figuratively speaking, of how it takes only seconds for something to change. I minutes a life can be made and destroyed. Just like Khushi's she hadn't imagined ever when she was young, that her father would re marry and leave them, but it had all happened changing her life forever. You also saw how Arnav and Khushi's relationship has also developed, long lost are the days when they couldn't as much look at each other, and now there is a new kind of gratitude and care for each other that is evident in their actions. The way they both realize that they might have made mistakes judging each other, and not either one of them is as hoarse as the consider them. Secondly, taking into account Anjali and Aakash surprise of Arnav's reaction is also a fine example of how things change, and anything can happen in a matter of minutes let alone hours. This is a significant chapter in terms of how all the characters have deeply evolved from their original states, and grown into knowing eachother better. Aryan Gupta scene was also significant, it shows of how a wife had been juggling her life and sacrificing every bit of it for her family, but only a few events can change everything. How Aryan Gupta's one decision has changed his life and earned him his daughter's hatred.

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Events In The Chapter

Well, this chapter did not considerably take me a long time to write, I don't know how, however at times I was going at a shortage of words re using the same words again and again decreases the effect of a story. Anyways, this chapter had a lot of things going on, sorry for no Karan and Vivek scenes, I can't jam them in between out of nowhere. I guess there will be some scenes of Khushi-Vivek in the next chapter, though may not be verbal but I can't say anything for now. Everything changes once I star writing. You saw sibling concern here, mother-daughter concern, family feud, a devastated Khushi, a caring Arnav, and a very considerate Arnav-Khushi not for only themselves but for others too.

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Precap

"Now dont whine, shout, cry or howl", he instructed her firmly, slipping his hand underneath her foot as she looked at him with a mixed expression of annoyment and gratitude.

"I am doing nothing of that sort, Raizada", she said vexed, as he cleared away the blood from her largest toe her slightly flinching due to the pain it inflicted, and placed her hand on his shoulder gripping it tightly, as the pain of the wound seethed into her.

"Precautionary", he remarked slyly, as he continued to wipe the blood clean looking at her giving him a flustered look.

"I am not a normal girl", she informed him, to let him know of her real worth, and have him considering her as the normal female.

"Absolutely not. I was never under that vain impression. *pause* I always knew you were nuttier than other girls" he smirked wickedly at her receiving a death glare from her.

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P.S: So I finally updated, that to two long chapters? No dont be fussy and start complaining about updating a lot sooner, because well this update itself took me a lot of time, and I guess the doze should last you enough for a week or two to the least.

Please leave back your comment, and likes as mcuh as possible, since I dont want a no for an answer,, everybodies got holidays now, right?

Love you all,

Batool😳

Chapter 8: Plastered Sentiments