CHAPTER 4
In the summer vacation gulaal went to live with her parents in rajipura making an excuse'..wen kesar arrived and found her missing he was shattered he was heartbroken he ran inside and cried bitterly
At night biji came in his room and consoled him "kesar wooh gulaal k biji ko uski jarurat thi naa khet mein bhi kaam laga hua tha isliye use jana pada warna wooh kyu jaati bhala"
Kesar cut her short and replied weeping "mein sab janata hun biji yeah sab behane hain'mein chota hun naa isliye gulaal apni manmaani karti hai'thek hai biji bade hone de mujhe dekhta hun gulaal kaise manmaani karti hai tab uski ek bhi chalne nahi dunga dekhna aap biji dekhna"
And he cried on her laps''.
It was too tough for her but avoidance was the best policy'.this contiued for years gulaal never met him she went away wenever kesar was about to return from his hostel''.at first kesar threw tantrums he kept on asking lots of question but gradually he stopped asking he became quiet in this matter and gulaal took huge sigh of relief she thought her strategy worked''.little did she know a tiny little storm was brewing inside somewhere tht changed their life forever''
Suddenly ratan singh applied the brakes and gulaal came out of the trance'..
Gulaal asked "kya hua veerji"
Ratan singh "kuch nahi parjaiji charwaahe ka jhund jaa raha hai'.. maveshi (cattles) jugali karke laut rahe hain todhi der rukna hoga"
Gulaal noded her head in consent
kesar's car was parked a few meters away from the lake. It appeared dark as the sun was setting in the west; kesar was quiet, he sat motionless inside his car He looked at his fingers grasping the steering wheels and saw his wedding ring tht was presented by his mother in law'.he looked anxious'he was nervous to meet her what if she doesn't understand
''..how will he face her?
His reluctance increased every passing seconds strange he wasn't reluctant in all these years infact he dreamed about her every single night she his subject of desire and passion'.every minute he remembered her every second he breathed her '.every thing reminded him of the wonderful time they were together how important he was to her how dearly he loved her of course he was angry coz of her aloofness but love made all his grudges insignificant''for him all tht matter was her'he passed every day and every night with the hope to be with her forever'though he was the popular boy of his college and lots of gals doted on him but he never cared'' he grew up feeling his life belonged to gulaal as the time passed by his sincere and hidden sentiments began to sink into him''he always liked her he always respected her but as he entered into his adoloscene he sensed something was changing deep inside so profoundly tht he felt twisted up inside with the new feeling of love, attraction possessiveness and obessission'''''..
He still remembered the day wen his last semester were over and he couldn't hold himself anymore
flashback
one year ago sanour punjab
gulaal was standing in the poojaghar she was praying to goddess for the well being of her family of her kesar "hey maata rani hum par aur mere kesar par apni krapa dhrashti sada banaye rakhna"
all of sudden two hands strong yet gentle closed her eyes from behind''
gulaal was taken aback she asked "kaun"
a husky voice muttered near her ears "bata kaun" his soft breath caressed her neck
at once she knew it was him "kesar" she exclaimed
he twirled her around holding her hands out with a grin on his face he said "aur kaun"?
gulaal saw him'' her kesar no longer a chubby boy but a strikingly handsome man standing tall infront of her'' his eyes heavily-browed and penetrating''..smile warm and infectious'...happiness knew no limit the tears welled up in her eyes
she was unable to react she said with tears in her eyes "kesar tu'tu"
he cut her short and cupped her face and said mischiviously "gulaal tu kitne badi ho gayi hai aur yeah kya ankhon k aage kaale gadhe yeah jhuriyaan''.. baal bhi pak gaye'he chuckled "tu bhudhi ho gayi hai gulaal"
gulaal was amused she hit him shoulder and said "acha mazak uda raha hai mera batati hun tujhe" and she hit him again and they both broke into laughter
gulaal said "par tu to parso aane wala tha naa"
kesar replied "haan par kya karu mujhse se sabr hi nahi ho raha tha bas jaise hi mere exams khatam hue bhaag k aa gaya apni gulaal k pass"
gulaal held his hand and said "acha wooh sab baad mein chal chal kar biji se mil"
kesar hold her hand and stopped her "mil lunga pehle jee bhar kar tujhe dekh lene de gulaal" he said ardently
gulaal was taken aback she was clueless she was about to say something but kesar put his finger on her lips and hushed her
he stood looking at her... his passion spoke through his eyes'..he said in low and husky tone "taras gaya tha tujhe dekhne k liye"
he murmured "kitna tadpaya hai tune mujhe gulaal"
he said "I missed u gulaal" he wanted to say how much he yearned for her every fibre of his being yearned to be with her unable to control himself he passed his arms around her and caught her in the wild embrace he murmured "I missed u"
"gosh I missed u so much"
gulaal was confused what was it? Was it a friendly gesture or was it something more meaningful? She felt there was something more'..difficult to understand but there was something in the way he embraced her'..a soft yet firm tenderness as he embraced her his breath lingered gently on her shoulder as he drew her close reluctant to break the intimacy
there was something in the way he looked at her the passionate gleam in his eyes the earnest look tht said as much in silence as in words there was something more than the sincerity in the way he said he missed her'something definetly changed between them gulaal thought as he hold on to her something tht biji even noticed wen she saw him embracing her''''.gulaal looked at biji and she parted with him'.
Later on she brushed it off maybe she was thinking too much'..and she returned to her daily routine soon biji called her to help kesar to unpack his luggage'
Gulaal noded her head in consent and went inside his room she opened his suitcase to her surprise it was a mess
She said to herself "yeah ladka kisi kaam ka nahi hai dekho to kaise kapade rakhe hue hai" looking the heap of crumbled tshirts and jeans
"Uff kanha se shururat karo kuch samajh nahi aa raha"
Kesar who was standing at the door looking at her in daze walked inside sat besides the suitcase
Gulaal looked at him and said "tujhe shehar seekhne k liye bheja tha par lagta hai jo seekhaya tha wooh bhi bhool gaya"
"Yeah koi dhang hai kapade rakhne ka aur yeah kya kachra utha laya hai'biji sahi kah rahi thi tu kabhi nahi sudhar sakta" she said putting his clothes in the almirah
She turned around and saw his gaze was fixed on her there was strange directness in his gaze '..she was nervous she lowered her eyes and asked in low tone "kya baat hai kesar..?
Kesar looked at her intensly he said "gulaal"
Gulaal was nervous now she stood silent
Kesar started walking towards her "gulaal tune itne saal khud ko mujhse door rakha ''..hostel milne nahi aayi'.garmi k chutiyaan mein bhi chali jaati thi''. hamesha bhagti rahi mujhse"
He said while walking'gulaal took back step he kept on moving until she hit the wall kesar looked at her and moved close to her he put his hand on the wall and blocked her '..gulaal was hell scared she was breathing heavingly
He moved his face closer to her and continued "par ab'ab kya karegi gulaal''..ab kaise bhagegi mujhse, kanha bhaag kar jaayegi tu gulaal?"
Gulaal looked at kesar in nervousness his gaze burned her whole existence she was clueless the room was dangerously silent
Gulaal took a deep breath she tried hard to find her breath "tu bhi naa kesar bahoot mazak karta hai" she tried to ease the situation
Kesar looked at her and squeezed a faint smile nodding his head he removed his hand and stood aside she move out of the room quickly before leaving she stole a glance at him and saw him staring her with outmost passion and obsession a thrill ran down her spine and she left
Whole day gulaal kept thinking about him her mind recalled the events of the previous hours and she was perplexed She was lost in her own thoughts'''she recalled kesar words "ab kanha bhaag k jaayegi gulaal" how long could she make him stay away from her''what will she do now where will she go and hide herself where? Her parents were shifted in Sanuar so it wasn't possible for her to make an excuse to live with her parents''.all these thoughts kept haunting her'things have definitely changed for her...
In the evening gulaal went on the terrace to pick up the sundried clothes tht were hanging on the rope she saw kesar was lying contendtly on the charpoi
She looked at him and said kesar yanha kya kar raha hai neeche jaaa yanha bahoot sardi hai
Kesar smiled and said "menu fark nahi padta waise bhi kitne dino baad gao ki taazi hawa kha raha hun…acha lag raha hai
Gulaal smiled and said "thek hai par jyada der mat rukna"
She was about to leave but kesar grabbed her hand gulaal was startled she looked back
Kesar holded her hand and said "oye tu kanha jaa rahi hai beith naa kuch der mere pass"
And he made her sit beside him
He looked at her and said "dekh mein tere liye kyu laya hun" he said while extending raw mangoes towards her
Gulaal smiled in pleasure………….something never changed with time she thought……… stuffing some raw mangoes in her mouth she said "yaad hai kesar pehle tu kaise pados mein rajjo chaiji k ped se kairi churata tha"
Kesar replied naughtily "haan to aaj bhi to wanhi se laya hun" he winked at her
Gulaal was amused she said "kya kesar tu bhi naa…hostel mein bhi kya itni shararat karta tha?
Kesar looked at her and raised his eyebrows "acha pooch to aise rahi hai jaise kuch nahi malum…mein ache se janta hun tu biji se mere baare mein poocha karti thi meri pal pal ki khabar rakhti thi…….. haina"
Gulaal lowered her eyes he was so right he knew her so well…… kesar looked at her…. he moved and put his head on her lap and said looking deep in her eyes "tu bata gulaal…..tu itni dino tak mera bina kaise rahi ?" he said with lots of questions and yearning in his eyes
Gulaal jumped out of her skin his touch his gesture made her shiver she immediately stood up and took a deep breath she said "kesar mujhe kuch kaam hai" and she went out of the sight………
Edited by arti07 - 11 years ago
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