the large sea facing glass window.she inhaled the chilled air that was soothing her senses.....completely lost in her thoughts.
The ring of her cellphone broke the silence in the room...she took a deep breathe n picked up the phone.
"Arohi...." a very sober male voice came from the other side.
"How r u?"he asked in a gentle manner.
"Good n yu?"she replied coldly.
"fine"
"If its possible....toh kya hum kal mil sakte hain?" he asked in a desperate tone.
There was a brief silence on the other side then she took a long breath and stated "Fine..tomorrow Four p.m. ."
Without giving him a chance to speak further..she hung up the phone.
On the other side, Arjun....who leaned back in the easy chair,one leg crossed over other,realesed a tired breath...his tiredness was not physical but emotional.
he was not expecting her approval so easily..she had become so difficult and complicated But was it her fault????
.His entire personality had become changed in these two years...not just in looks but in everything.In two years,he realised that the reality of life was that perceptions whether right or wrong influence everything we do..
and his perceptions had changed the course of his life.He became stubborn, indifferent and self absorbed..but was it his fault??
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Two years ago
------------------------
Arjun wearing a formal suit was about to leave for office when Dk came in his bedroom.
"Arjun..mujhe tumse..actually tumhari shaadi ke baare mein kuch baat karni hai" he said hesitatedly.
"Plz Dad" he replied coldly.
"but Arjun...." he tried to say.
"plz....mujhe der ho rahi hai aur waise bhi main already naa kar chuka hoon.."finishing his sentence he left for the office.
In Office
------------
"Hi buddy..Good morning" Salil greeted his friend cheerfully.
"what's so good about this morning" he replied in a little irritated manner.
"Kya baat hai Arjun..aaj subah hi mood off hai...kya phir se uncle ne...." he left his sentence incomplete.
"Arjun...why do'nt yu give yurself another chance??"his question was unexpected and sudden.
"Life never gives second chance to everyone...."he murmured expressionlessly.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------glance at herself in the mirror and came down to leave for the coffee shop where her friend Ash was waiting for her.
"Hi poorvi.." Arohi said and settled herself in the sofa opposite her friend.
"sweetie..yu r only half an hour late." she complained sweetly.
"sorry..." she apologised and ordered hot coffee in the meantime.
"so..tumne kya decide kiya?" poorvi asked curiously.
"about what" she replied soberly.
"About marriage..are yu sure k tumhe uncle aunty ki marzi se hi shaadi karni hai"poorvi inquired as she was worried for her best friend's future.
"i mean..is it right to follow our parents decision blindly ?" she said in a deep and serious tone.
"first thing..i'm not following anything blindly just b'coz it's my dad's decision...tell me, who wants my happiness as much as he does and who knows me better than my parents.I strongly
believe that they know what's good for me and i trust them completly."Arohi explained her point of view.
"but i do'nt understand that, why parents always expect k hum wahi karen jo woh chahte hain....."poorvi replied in a serious tone,taking a sip of coffee.
"well...we r human beings and its natural that we have expectations from life,friends,family.woh humse pyaar karte hain..isiliye humse kuch umeed bhi rakhte hain."Arohi said in a calm accent.
"yeah...aur phir yahi expectations problem ban jaati hain.."
"no....all our resentments,frustations,prejudices are only b'coz we build up unrealistic expectations from others...and in interpersonal relationships the most harmful expectation is to expect
the other person to behave exactly the we want him or her to be..." Arohi replied again.
"yu know Arohi...baaton mein tumse koi nahi jeet sakta......" poorvi winked naughtily.
After the girly conservation both were about to leave when a young man apprroached them.Dressed in a plain white shirt and jeans..he was tall,slim and cute.His smile was lively and fresh like his own personality.
"hope i'm not interrupting...." he smiled and pulled a chair to sit in front of them.
"not at all karan....actually we r about to leave" replied poorvi.
"oh...by the way what r yu doing here."she asked
"well..i'm opening my first ever office for legal practice on the second floor of this building" his voice became excited
"that's great...then yu should give us a treat now." Arohi smiled.
"okay..then see yu both at Taj for dinner" he smiled back.
"oh no..i was just kidding"
"but i'm not...yu've to come and that's final" he insisted.
Poorvi refused for the dinner as she was going out with her parents but Arohi agreed....Karan was one of the her few friends and a very nice human being...not superficial and for her other's happiness
very important..
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Taj palace
Karan and Arohi reached Taj aroung 9'o clock.It was a beautiful and romantic place.soft music ,dim lights and the large windows offered a bearthtaking view of the beach.They selected a table in the corner.
he settled her in the chair and took another seat for himself in front of her.
"Anything.." she smiled.
"so....aage k baare mein kya socha hai Arohi" he asked casually.
"well..after having a management degree..do'nt yu want to be a carrier woman"
"oh no...i just want to be a woman"she smiled and sipped orange juice.
"i'm not too much ambitious for my carrier...aur duniya ki har ladki chahe woh kitni bhi successful ho..uski manzil to ghar hi hota hai.may be i'm sounding orthodox but,its the ultimate truth
and i'm more than willing to accept this".she finally stopped to see his changing expressions.
"yu know..yu r different" he felt really impressed by her.
"And i respect yu for yur dignity ,modesty and yur sense of a adapting things gracefully." his words brought a smile on her lips. mature,sober sophisticated,lovely
"Arohi..yu know why we r here tonight ?" he asked unexpectedly.
she remained silent as Karan's facial expressions changed from casual to serious.
"I just want to ask sumthing without any twists and turns...i've realised that life would be more beautiful if yu r ready to share it with me.."
His question left her answerless.she tried to avoid the look but that was impossible..she never imagined anything like this but Sometimes you have to get to know someone really well to realize that you're really strangers.
"There is only one happiness in life, to love and be loved but ........" she tried her best to answer but silence gripped the atmosphere again.
"i think..i should leave." saying the last words she left...without answering.her silence was hurting ....Spiteful words can hurt your feelings but silence breaks your heart.
And he stood there watching her leave.a sad smile was playing on his lips...his smile was sarcastic for himself."
tum ne dil ki baat keh di aaj ye acha hua,
hum tumhe apna samajhte the bada dhokha hua,
ab kisi se kya kahe apni dastann,bas khuda ka shukar hai ,jo bhi hua acha hua.....
============================================================
business is in trouble and how this marriage could save his name and business as Dk Punj offered him financial help.
Arohi listened everything carefully.
expecting this kind of answer.
sumthing strange and new for her.she always dreamt of a honest life partner who asked her about her happiness out of genuine concern
and not out of superficial politeness.surely..she had made the right decision
she was happy and sad at the same time..afterall she had to leave her family after her wedding.
tears in her eyes.
'will it help'.and doctor answered him..no,but the thought of long life will never come..." Arohi gigled.
properly. he tipped his head back to headrest of the lawn chair and closed
has been opened for us. I've always believed that you can think positive just as well as you can think negative.leave everything on time. Nothing
stays the same forever....and i hope k Arohi se shaadi tumhari zindagi mein khoobsurti bhar degi...." he said in a convincing tone.
Then everything happened at a very fast pace.DK went to Hariprashad's house with the shagun.Arjun's Dad and her sweet Paddy aunty
,brother Aman, Salil arranged all the things
mehndi,sangeet and then.. marriage.everything was perfect...atleast seemed perfect.and leaving her parents house in delhi..the newly wed Arohi was in her own house in mumbai as MRS AROHI ARJUN PUNJ..