Mehrya SS : One Last Chance Part 16 Updated 30/5 - Page 59

Part 12:

He sent the last mail for the day and closed his laptop. Finally, he was done for the day. He dialed Riya and told her to schedule all his appointments for tomorrow after 11 as he would be late to the hotel.

Shaurya was waiting for the lift all the while thinking about Mehak's reaction when she saw him and Aashima together. Maybe Rajeev was wrong and she too was angry seeing her in his arms, but he could be right too. For the last couple of days, all his moves to irritate her had backfired. She wasn't reacting the way he wanted her to. After he broke her heart, he thought she would cry or get upset and maybe would leave his job but she did nothing of that sort. The next day when he had met her, there was no anger, no accusation of betrayal. What he got was a pure professional reaction from her which bothered him to a great extent.

No matter how many times he told himself to forget about her and concentrate on his work, everything that he did would lead him back to thinking about her.

He remembered his Maa's words "I know there are a lot of questions in your mind and I would suggest you to start looking for the answers yourself."

It is said that mothers are never wrong and he too believed as far as his mother was concerned, so he decided that he would ask about it to Mehak directly. He checked his watch. It was 8.15 and she might have surely finished her shift and left for the day. There was no point in calling her up now because he was confident that she wouldn't answer his call. If she could ignore him on his face in front of others, she was capable enough of ignoring him on the phone too. So, he finally decided to talk to her the next day.

The lift door opened and he entered in. The door was about to close when somebody shouted from outside "Stop. Stop, please". He pressed the "Door Open" button and continued checking his mails on his phone without even bothering to see who had entered the lift.

Mehak (in a panting tone): Thank you so much for stoppin...

She stopped the moment she saw that it was Shaurya who had stopped the lift for her. She thought of stepping out of the lift but then decided to stay there.

Mehak thought: If I will go out now, he would think that his presence affects me and I wouldn't want him to know that so, I will stay here and act normal.

Shaurya was happy rather than being shocked seeing her. He thought she had left. It was the perfect opportunity to talk to her in the lift - firstly, she wouldn't have a chance to ignore him and secondly, there wasn't any distraction around.

Shaurya smirked: So Ms. Sharma, working late today?

Mehak: Yes Sir.

Shaurya: So how was your day today?

Mehak: Good Sir.

Shaurya to himself: Ask her directly...Iske speed pe gaya toh floor aa jaayega but iske answers nahi..

Shaurya: So Ms. Sharma how did you find Aashima?

Mehak in surprised tone: Ehhh?????

That question honestly surprised her.

Shaurya: Ehhh kya kar rahi ho..I asked what do you think about her?

Mehak: She is good Sir. She has achieved so much at such a young age; no wonder she is very talented.

Shaurya prodded further: And beautiful?

Mehak looked at him surprisingly: Ye..Yes, she is very beautiful!!

Mehak thinking: What is wrong with him? Why is he asking me about Aashima? Agar beautiful hai toh hai, main kya karo usmein? Idiot kahin ka!

Mehak thinking: Hey Maata Rani, why is this lift going so slow? Please please jaldi se ground floor aaye and main iske questions se bach jaao...Please please!!!

Suddenly, there was a loud bang and the lights went off. For few seconds, they both didn't understand what happened. The lift stopped.

Shaurya said in a concerned tone: I guess it has stopped working. Don't panic Mehak.

Mehak irritated: I am not panicking Shaurya.

Shaurya: I am just saying coz the lights are off and tum dar...

Mehak: I am not scared of darkness.

Shaurya angrily: Ya ya mujhe pata hai ki tumhe andhere se darr nahi lagta...bas aise hi puch raha tha..Itna attitude mat dikhao. Now just keep quiet and let me see how we could get out of this.

Mehak angrily: I didn't utter a word Shaurya!! You are the one who is making so much noise!

Mehak stood in her corner and watched Shaurya trying to press various buttons on the panel. After few minutes, the lights came back. They were relieved. He tried pressing few more buttons hoping the lift to start but it didn't move. After banging for 15 minutes on the lift door, he finally gave up and stood in the opposite corner of the lift.

Shaurya frustratingly: Damn, its not working. Where is the staff? Idiots, morons..All have become deaf!

Mehak (irritatingly): Why are you shouting so much? I am sure someone might have realized by now that the lift is stuck and they would come to help us..So relax!!

Shaurya screamed: Relax? Are you crazy Ms. Sharma? We are stuck in the elevator. Do you understand what it is! If they don't get us out soon, we might die of suffocation coz there won't be any oxygen left in here for us to breathe.

Mehak simply laughed: Are you nuts? I mean did you ever go to school Shaurya?

Shaurya: What the hell Mehak!

Mehak shouted: What what the hell? Haven't you learnt that you need to stay calm and not panic in such situations. And itna chillaoge, toh jitni oxygen bacchi hai, who bhi khatam ho jaayegi coz of u. So just shut up and sit quietly in once corner.

Shaurya shouted: Mehak you can't shout at me like that?

Mehak (sarcastically): I just did. Well, I am not going to waste my energy on you. I am going to save it and sit here quietly waiting for help. You are free to do whatever you want!

Mehak removed her sandals and sat in the opposite corner of the lift. She took out her phone to check for any network. She had to inform her family somehow about the present scenario. She didn't want them to be worried.

Shaurya tried pressing few buttons on the panel for 10 minutes but finally gave up.

Shaurya angrily: This is so bloody frustrating..I hate this..We pay them to do regular maintenance of these lifts, wonder what these engineers do...Apna kaam thik se karna aata hi nahi inn logon ko...Let me get out of this lift first, the first thing tht I am gonna do is fire those morons..Good for nothing those guys are!!!

Mehak simply ignored him and checked her phone for any missed calls. Shaurya was pacing back and forth in the lift. When he saw that Mehak wasn't paying attention to him, he grabbed her phone and said: I am not talking to the walls here Mehak, so you better stop ignoring me!!

Mehak got up and snatched her phone from Shaurya. While snatching, she unknowingly scratched Shaurya on his hand with her nails.

Shaurya screamed: Ahhh...What the hell!

Mehak shouted: Sorry!

Shaurya: I got hurt coz of u and tum mujh par hi chilla rahi ho...Wow kya zamaana aa gaya hai!! You have forgotten your manners Ms. Sharma..Really your behavior surprises me at times.

Mehak angrily: And tumne jo kiya...How dare you snatch my phone? Don't you dare touch my things..It was a reaction for your action and for tht scratch on your hand, you know it well it wasn't intentional so, stop throwing accusations at me.

Before Shaurya could think of something to say, she pointed her finger at Shaurya and said: Just keep quiet and sit down. Agar tum chup chap nahi baithe na, toh you have seen my nails..I will scratch them on your face and trust me, I will do it coz I am damn irritated!!! So do not test my patience. Understood!!

Shaurya left with no option and no answer to retaliate quietly sat in the opposite corner facing Mehak. He started fidgeting with his phone for sometime. Mehak closed her eyes and rested her head against the door.

Due to his busy schedule, Shaurya had missed his lunch. He had just one cup of black coffee in the evening. He started feeling a dull, gnawing pain in his stomach due to hunger. He tried to distract himself from thinking about some random things but the cramps would just not stop. He looked at Mehak who was sleeping peacefully.

Shaurya thinking: Main yahan bhook se marr raha hu and she is sleeping peacefully.

Shaurya: Ahhh...

Mehak wasn't sleeping but had only closed her eyes resting for sometime. When she heard Shaurya, she threw him a questioning look.

Shaurya: I m hungry.

Mehak closed here eyes and went back to sleep. Seeing that she wasn't bothered, he said: I am hungry, this time louder.

Mehak made a face and searched for something in her handbag. It would take her 1.5 hours to reach home from the hotel in the evening hence, she would always carry something in her bag to eat. She remembered she had kept a paratha wrapped in a foil in her bag before leaving.

She gave the paratha to Shaurya and closed her eyes.

Shaurya: What is this?

Mehak (her eyes were still closed): Poison.

Shaurya shouted: What!

Mehak: Paratha hai kha lo...You said you are hungry so now keep quiet and eat it.

Shaurya: And what about you? Arent you hungry?

He was genuinely concerned for her and she could feel that from his voice too.

Mehak: I am not hungry. You can have it.

Shaurya wasn't convinced: If you weren't, then why did you keep it in your bag? Did you know that we would get stuck in the lift and I would need it.

Mehak looked at him frustratingly: Tumhari problem kya hai..I always carry something in my bag to eat. At times, I feel hungry while going back home and off late, the traffic has been very slow moving in Delhi so I keep it for emergency purposes. Convinced ya aur bhi kuch kaho?

Shaurya: Fine, then lets share this. You will have to eat half of it.

Mehak: No I don't want it..I am not hungry. You can eat it. Now please stay quiet and don't talk.

Shaurya angrily: Why are you telling me to keep quiet all the time? I wont have any of it...I am dividing it into half...Tumhe khana hi hoga.What if you feel hungry later? Tab main kya karunga?

Mehak: Tumhe kuch karne ki zarrorat nahi hai Shaurya...But I know you..Itni asaani se manoge nahi. Fine, divide it and give me the other half but I wont eat it now..

Happy that she was ready to have half of it, Shaurya divided the paratha and gave the rest to her. She carefully wrapped in the aluminum foil and kept it in her bag.

Shaurya was eating the paratha and realized that he was smiling. There are good cooks but there are some who no matter what dish they make, it always spells magic and such was the case with Mehak. Although she was handling the desert section at their hotel, she was an expert in cooking all the dishes. Moreover, she was a quick learner and would always experiment to try out new dishes. Her paratha brought a smile to his face and made him think too. He looked at the last bit of it in his hand and asked her: Why did you give me this?

Mehak had heard his question but pretended to sleep. She knew that if she answered him once, he wouldn't keep quiet and would ask her more questions.

Shaurya: I know you are listening Mehak, you hate me right? Wouldn't seeing me in pain make you happy? You could have easily lied saying that you didn't have anything to eat but you offered it to me..Kyun?

Mehak (frustratingly): Coz you were hungry Shaurya.

Shaurya looked at her and spoke: I still don't understand.

Mehak said frustratingly: What is there to not understand? You were hungry and I gave you something to eat - plain simple..Why are you making it so complicated? Dekho Shaurya, I may not show it but main bahut pareshaan hoon..My family doesn't know that I am stuck here. They might think that I am on my way home and I can't even contact them and let them know about my whereabouts..So please shaant raho! Main pehle hi bahut tensed hoon.

Shaurya smiled sadly: Family...so nice to have someone who care for you and are concerned for you..You don't have one but so many family members who always stand by you no matter what...ISC ke waqt se dekha hai maine unhe...they pamper you and your siblings so much...All of you share an amazing bond..But not everyone is so lucky Mehak..

Mehak angrily: Shaurya maybe tht is why you hate them so much especially Kanta chachi.

Shaurya: I don't hate them Mehak.

Mehak was getting irritated with this conversation now coz he was involving her family. She didn't know how and when the conversation veered towards her family.

Mehak (irritatingly): Oh really! Maybe you love them so much that you sent my uncles to jail for no fault of theirs but maine uske liye bhi tumhe maaf kiya tha Shaurya..

Shaurya looked at her and smiled: I honestly don't hate them Mehak..I feel jealous when I see them coz you have them and I don't..

Mehak: What are you talking about?

Shaurya closed his eyes and rested his head against the elevator wall. He said: I too have a big family but we don't love each other..We pride ourselves in hating and bringing each other down. It's a like a competition who throws more insults and taunts at each other and mind you, you have to keep on innovating yourself and come up with new insults all the time...Its very difficult but if you have to win it, you need to ace up your skills.

Mehak looked at him surprised. There was some sort of pain in his voice. They had never discussed anything regarding his family before maybe coz she knew that he wouldn't like talking about it. She knew that Karuna Maa was his step mother and his real mother had died when he was 12 years old. She couldn't stop herself from feeling sorry for him.

Mehak : Shaurya..

Shaurya smiled sadly: Families are so important na Mehak...and especially parents. You lost your parents at such a young age but you never felt alone. Your chachis and chachas made sure that they were always there for you. I may not like your Kanta chachi coz I find her too opinionated and dominating but I cant deny the fact that she loves you the most maybe more than her own son...Am I wrong?

Mehak simply nodded. He was right. Everyone knew that Kaanta chachi loved her more than Mohit. Maybe her own mother wouldn't have loved her as much as she does. She felt proud that she was indeed very lucky to have such an amazing family.

P.S. Tht was indeed a very long chapter!!!Sorry if it was boring. Apologies!!!😊

I havent written the next chapter at all so the next update is going to a bit late...please bear with me!!!Off to reading stories of my amazing ZKM ff writers!!!