Chapter 32

shrattila

@shrattila

Hello

Sorry for yet another delay. Last week was rather busy with doctor's appointments, cleaning the apartment, making space for another and a long weekend. Family at home = no time to write! 

To the readers who are eagerly waiting for some Rabba Ve moments between Arnav and Khushi - you will have to wait a couple of chapters more. Unfortunately, they need to realize each other's presence and importance before they can fall in love. Please bear with me and I promise you wont be disappointed.

This is a rather short update but I didn't want to keep you waiting too long. I promise to have another one up on Monday, that will be longer.

Until then, eagerly awaiting your feedback!

Also, I have proof read this chapter only once, with my older one screaming in the background - so please do forgive and spelling and grammatical errors that may be present here. 

Chapter 29

Arnav and Anjali shared a rather awkward sibling relationship with each other. True they had always been there for each other during the trying and testing times and professionally they worked together very well, but on a personal level it wasn't very evident that they doted on each other.

Anjali liked to spend whatever little time she had away from work with her husband and her daughter. Arnav had always been a loner. Even when Anjali was not married, they lived in separate apartments. It was a rare occasion when the brother and sister would meet for dinner and talk about personal things. Arnav liked his space and Anjali never intruded on his privacy.

It therefore came as quite a surprise to Anjali when Arnav arrived at her home unannounced and stated he would for dinner. That comment, made Shyam look up from the huge file he was pouring over at the dining table, waiting for dinner to be served. It took Anjali a while to collect her wits, ask Arnav to sit next to Shyam and rush to the kitchen to order the maid to make some more chapatis and an extra sabzi for the "uninvited guest".

During the course of dinner, Arnav tried his best to do something he had never done before in the thirty years of his life - make small talk with his sister, his brother in law and his niece. Awkward as it was, he tried his best and soon gave up, figuring it was harder than he thought it would be.

His next strategy, it seemed was to hastily finish dinner and take leave when Shyam offered to walk him to his car.

The Jha's owned one of the few remaining independent homes on Barakhamba Road in New Delhi and Arnav's car was parked right next to the main entrance which would be a 10 minute walk from the front door.

Autumn had set in, and dead leaves were drifting, making their way to the ground and the weather was balmy. After a few moments of silence, interrupted by the crunching of dried leaves under their soles, Shyam asked: "What's bothering you?".

And not knowing any better, Arnav countered: "How did you know that Anjali would be the best life partner for you?"

"I didn't"

"Then what made you marry her?"

"Its not that difficult Arnav. There were some things about her that I liked - she was smart, educated, cool-headed, compassionate.."

That comment drew a chuckle from Arnav. "Anjali and compassionate? I thought she was known as the "Dragon Lady".

"She still is. But inside that tough exterior is a very compassionate person who does small things to help people. I don't know how many have noticed, but Anjali always buys the afternoon meal and tea for all the typists who sit outside the court, whenever she has a hearing."

"Really?", genuinely amazed at his sister's gesture and even more at that fact that he didn't know this about her.

"Yes. Both you brother and sister are quite similar in that respect. You both want to portray your ruthless side to the world, but there is another softer side, that you keep hidden, fearing the world will take advantage if they find out. I suppose it was your way of dealing with life after your parents passed away.

"But I digress. So there were some things about her that I liked and admired. But for the rest of it, we both worked very hard on this marriage. We still do. It isn't easy for us - two very strong personalities that we are. But we keep at it.

"It isn't the case that we both agree on every little thing that comes along. We still have discussions that lead to disagreements and eventually arguments. But at the end of the day, it is important to realize that we will have to respect and accept each other's point of view. That's the only thing that will keep this relationship and this marriage intact."

And just like that they were standing next to Arnav's car, brother in laws of seven years, talking to each other for the very first time. As Arnav turned to get into his car, he heard: "Have a safe drive back Arnav. Good night."

When he turned to look, Shyam was already making his way back home. The front door was wide open with a faint silhouette of Anjali visible through the yellow light that emanated from the background. She was waiting for her husband to come back.

"So..?", asked Anjali, as soon as Shyam stepped through the threshold.

"Arnav is in love", he said, without bothering to look at the stunned expression his wife was giving him. "Although I doubt he knows it himself right now." 

Chapter 30: http://www.india-forums.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=4343261&PID=140143491&#p140143491