"Kya farak padta?"
"Kya farak padta? What do you mean kya farak padta? Nidhi, tumhari zindagi ka sawaal tha", he ssaid incredulously.
She just gave him a sarcastic smile. "Meri zindagi? Kise parvah hai meri life ki? Main kya chahti hoon, kya nahi chahti iski kisi ko koi chinta hai?"
"Nidhi, look here, did anyone.. I mean, were you forced into this marriage?"
"Chhodiya na Sir, ab kya fayda?" and she tried to turn away from him.
He took a long step and stood exactly opposite her, "ANSWER ME!"
"Well, not exactly force me, but yes they pushed me into it. They went on and on, about no one else will marry me, what people have been saying, unka ghar se bahar nikalna mushkil ho gaya hai, Shyama aunty tried to explain ke I can't find a better match then you and blah blah blah! Even Anji.."
Ashutosh closed his eyes to get a tight grip on his emotions, "tumne ek baar kaha toh hota phone pe? I would have refused."
She simply looked at him with a cynical expression.
He sighed, "Khair. You are right. Ab in sab baaton ka koi fayda nahi. Raat ho chuki hai, I think we should sleep. You.. I hope you will be comfortable here. I will go out and sleep in the drawing room. I'll just (going to his wardrobe and taking out his tracks and t-shirt) change in the bathroom and .. go"
He was inside the bathroom, before she could even react. Kya mushkil hai? Kisi ko maaloom pada, especially Dadi Bua aur Baba ko, ki Sir bahar hall me soye toh phir nayi mushkil khadi ho jaayegi. Phir se mujhe na jaane kitn lectures sunne padenge. Dadi bua toh .. She and her stupid traditional ideas.
She looked around the room. Then she picked up her bag to put it on the bed, and grumbled to herself, "Kitni heavy hai. Yahan koi hai bhi nahi. Hiraman is too old. Kal subah hi daadi bua se kehti hoon, ke Chhote Sarkar ko yahan bhej den. Mera saara kaam kaun karega yahan?"
Somehow she managed to heave up the bag and panting a bit, tried to open the bag, but the zip was struck. She gave a frustrated groan.
Meanwhile Ashutosh emerged from the restroom, "Kya baat hai, haanf kyun rahi ho?"
"Woh Sir, the bag was heavy" she said and again tried to open the bag but in vain.
He picked up the glass of water from the side table and gave her, "paani pee lo"
She had it and kept the glass back, "Thanks"
"Can I help?" he asked gesturing towards the bag.
She nodded and he unzipped it without any hiccups. Then he averts his gaze and turns his back to her, "Tell me when you are done. I will keep it down and then go."
"Ji. Thanks!"
She opens the bag and finds a sexy nighty with a gown on the top. She mumbles to herself, "ye Anji bhi na, kitna irritate karti hai mujhe. Ye meri bag me rakhne ka matlab kya?"
"Kuch kaha tumne? Any problem?" he asked still waiting in the same position.
"Kuch nahi" she hurriedly picked out a baby blue PJs from the bag and shut the bag and zipped it. "Ho gaya"
He turned around, picked the bag and let it stand in the corner. "You need anything?" he asked as he strode towards the bedroom door.
"No I don't need anything. But, I .. I mean, you need not leave the room.. I mean agar aap chahe toh aap.."
He sighed, "Nidhi.."
"Yahan toh diwan bhi haina? Toh, I think we can manage."
"You sure?"
She nodded, "But will you please go out for 10 minutes, while I change. Mujhe aadat nahi hai bathroom me change karne ki. It would be very inconvenient for me."
"Sure" and he walked out.
He was surprised to see his father and Hiraman still awake, "arre aap dono soye nahi ab tak?"
"Hamari chhod, tu bata kuch chahiye tha kya? Kuch upset sa lag raha hai tu?"
"Nahi Baba. Actually.. Nidhi ne kaha (then realizing it's better to tell them in the morning) I mean, woh change kar rahi thi isiliye.."
"Achchha. Isme itna upset hone ki.. Samjha.. (he signals to Hiraman to leave them alone and the later silently retreats to his room) dekh Ashu, main tere jazbaat samajhta hoon. Lekin who chhoti hai, aur upar se tumhari shaadi jin haalaton me hui hai.. use thoda waqt de Ashu."
Ashutosh is getting more and more embarrassed each moment. "Nahi Baba, aap ye kya bol rahe hai hain, I am not upset or anything, just tired. Main paani peeke aata hoon." and he went to the kitchen and took his time taking out the bottle from the refrigator and gulped the entire contents, first rapidly and then slowly. Realizing that he could not kill any more time there, he shouts, "Baba, aapko paani chahiye?"
"Nahi Ashu."
Ashutosh comes back to the dining area, and says, "Baba der kaafi ho gayi hai, aap so jaiye."
"Neend nahi aa rahi beta. Aa baith thodi der?"
With an inward groan, he took the chair opposite. Samajh nahi aata Baba ko kaise bataoon.
"Ashu parson reception ki taiyyari toh gayi haina? Yeh batao, tum dono kahan jaoge? Woh aaj kal kya kehte hain? Haan honeymoon pe?"
"Baba aap kaisi baaten kar rahe hain. Aap toh jaante hi hain na ke ye shaadi kin haalaaton me.."
"Achchhi tarah se jaanta hoon, tabhi toh keh raha hoon. Main nahi jaanta ke tere aur Mallika ke beech aisa kya hua tha. Na tu batata hai aur naahi Armaan. But you told me one thing quite clearly Ashu, that you cannot get married to her. Main maanta hoon, ke uske saath tera mann-mel achchha tha beta. Lekin the fact is that jin bhi circumstances me hui ho, lekin teri shaadi Nidhi se ho chuki hai. And you need to work to make it work. Isiliye keh raha hoon, tum dono akele kahin ghum aao kuch din. Ek doosre ko samjho, jaano.."
"Baba, please! Aur waise bhi abhi toh mera nikalna mushkil hai office chhodke. (Before his father could protest, he continued) Aur haan Baba, main soch raha tha reception ki kya zaroorat hai? Hum cancel kar dete hain."
The older man is astonished, "reception cancel? Kaisi baat kar raha hai Ashu tu? Ek toh shaadi me kisi ko nahi bulaya aur ab tu.."
"Baba main aapko kaise samjhaaoon?"
"Koi baat hui hai kya beta?"
"Nahi Baba, kya baat hogi?" He is getting increasingly frustrated. All hell would break lose, if he reveals the truth. And if he does not, Baba will just go on and on. He gets up, "Baba, so jaaiye kal baat karenge."
His father sighs, "Okay Ashu, Good night."
"Good night" and he walks to his bedroom, knocks.
"Come in"
Nidhi is dressed in her baby blue PJ's and is trying to fold her saree, but unable to do it. In spite of the tense situation, he is amused at the clumsy manner in which she tries to fold it. After watching her for a minute or two, he offers, "need help?"
She nodded slightly and he came closer to hold one end of the saree, while she catches hold of the other end. They both back away simultaneously, ensure that a proper fold is made at the middle and come nearer again. They repeat the process once and then Nidhi manages to fold the rest on her own.
She puts the Saree along with the other clothes and jewelry in the empty wardrobe which he pointed out earlier. She turns and he says, "you take the bed, and I'll take the diwan."
She nods. He takes a pillow, but leaves the double-bed duvet there itself and takes a quilt from a drawer under the bed. "Good night."
"Good night" she says and plops on the bed. "Sir, AC ka remote? I'm feeling hot."
He gets up and gives her the remote, she directly puts it on 18 degree C. He realizes she is used to sleeping in very cold temperature. Oh no! How will I bear such low temperatures? I never put it below 25! He takes out a thick blanket and goes to the diwan.
It's good that I got this diwan arranged here. Although never in my dreams had I expected this situation. I had thought that maybe she would need some time to get acquainted, to adjust with the situation, adjust with me. I had thought that slowly I will show her how much I love her. But till she accepted me as her husband with all her heart, I can not share a bed with her. I cannot NOT touch her if I share a bed with her. My hands are bound to misbehave sometime or the other. So I thought of this diwan. Socha tha dheere dheere hum kareeb aayenge. Aur shayad woh bhi mujhe chaahne lage.
But now? Ab kya karoon main? Meri toh ye samajh me nahi aata ke why did her family force her for such a thing? How they can force her into an unwanted marriage? I thought she was pampered. That's what Solanki Sir too told me. Toh phir? Is society more important for them?
Armaan and Mallika bhi, kitne galat the dono! Armaan kehta hai, ki main apni khushi ko ek chance doon. Jo hua woh isiliye hua ke kismet me mera aur Nidhi ka milna likha tha. Even Mallika sent me a short email, saying, 'I understand what you must be feeling right now. What happened at the conference was unfortunate to say the least. But, since the marriage proposal has come from their side, and even Nidhi apparently wants to marry you, whats the problem? Ashutosh, ise kismet ka ek ishaara hi samajh lo.'
I wonder what Armaan and Mallika will say now? When they know the truth. Lekin ab main kya karoon? Obviously, I can't force her to stay married to me, can I now? I'll file for a divorce immediately. Since it will be a mutual, and the marriage has not been consummated, the process could be really expedited. Yes the sooner I let go of her, the better it is.
Kal subah court toh jaana hi hai, wahan se office chala jaaoonga, and I'll prepare the divorce papers.
With that, he looked towards the bed, but Nidhi's back was turned to him. Nidhi, tumhe is anchaahe bandhan me zyaada din nahi bandhna padega, I promise you.
Nidhi too not yet asleep. Her disappointment and anguish, at the way her life had taken a turn for the worse, were flowing freely in the form of silent tears. Maine kya kya sapne dekhe apni life ke baare me? Sab chakna choor ho gaye? Aur Baba? Unhe ye khayal bhi kaise aaya? Meri shaadi Sir se? Agree that he is not that old, but still he is 14 years elder to me? FOURTEEN YEARS! Main toh unke saamne bachchi hoon. Lekin Baba ko toh bas us incident ke baad mujhe ghar se nikaalna tha. Taaki woh samaj ko muh dikha paayen. Mujhe kue me dakhelen ya khayee me, unhe kya matlab. Aur Dadi bua? Bachpan se kitne laad pyaar se mujhe paala hai, unhone. Mujhe ek chheenk bhi aati thi, toh unchi neechi ho uthti thi. Aur aaj? Mere saare armaan, sapne bikhar gaye, aur Dadi bua? All she did was give me lectures ' kaam seekh le ghar ka, apne pati ki har baat maanna and blah blah blah.
Even Anji tried to tell me to explain the situation. She told me, 'mom dad barson se jaante hain Mr. Mathur ko. I know it would be awkward in the beginning, but just go with the flow yaar. Mom ko poora yakeen hai ke tu unke saath khush rahegi. Woh tujhe bahut achchhe se sambhalenge.' Lekin Jaipur me jo hua usme meri kya galti thi? Anji kehti hai, 'isme unki bhi kya galti thi Nidhi? Woh toh tujhe help karne ke chakkar me khud hi fas gaye. Zara soch unki toh poori zindagi ka kamaya hua naam, izzat sab dhool me mil gayi. Aur ek pal ke liye soch, agar unhone tujhe bar me us haalat me chhod diya hota toh koi bhi tera fayda utha sakta tha. Aur kya pata, jisne ye sab kiya, uska shayad plan B yehi hota?' I know probably Anji was right, but what about my life?
Lekin Rohan bhi toh nahi maana na? I proposed him and he was surprised. He simply said, 'Jaipur me jo hua, uske baad mere parents kabhi nahi maanenge'. And he simply walked away, never even picked up my phone after that. So, I had no option but to agree to this marriage. Ghar pe rehti toh sab log mera jeena mushkil kar dete.
Chalo achchha hua Sir ne poochh liya aur maine bata diya. Now, there won't be any illusions of any kind.
The next morning Ashutosh awoke at 7:00, his usual time. Shivering a bit due to the low temperature in the room, he goes towards the bathroom rubbing sleep from his eyes, but he stopped in his tracks when he happened to glance at the bed. Nidhi lay sprawled on the bed - legs apart, arms stretched out and the duvet mostly off her. Her t-shirt had riden up a bit, exposing her flat stomach and some of her hair was on her face. So, she sleeps like a kid? The thought brought a soft smile on his face. How can someone be so innocently alluring? And on top of that, she is wearing my favourite color, blue!
As he watched, the hair on her face was irritating her and she carelessly pushed it away with her hand. But a few strands again found their way onto her face and she frowned in mild irritation. He hesitated just a moment before bending down and gently taking the errants strands with a feather-light touch and putting them behind her ear.He saw the sindoor in her hair-parting. Mere naam ka sindoor. Next, his gaze went to the hem of her t-shirt, and he was about to pull it down a bit, when he suddenly came to his senses as her words, "Nahi! Main khush nahi hoon is shaadi se!" echoed in his mind.
With a sigh, he got up and covered her properly with the duvet and she smiled a bit, before burrowing deeper into the duvet. As he went to the bathroom, he chided himself, I can't let myself be swayed by her charms. I just need to get the divorce papers ready asap. Koel ke paas hoga draft taiyar, after all, Mallika used to handle such cases. Agar draft taiyar mil jaaye toh aaj hi thodi bahut details daalke sign kar denge. And we can file it in court tomorrow itself. And in max. 2 weeks, it could be finalized.
He came out of the bathroom and was startled by a crazy ringing sound. He looked around and realized that the sound was coming from Nidhi's phone that lay on the bed. She tried to shut her ears by pressing her pillow on them. With an indulgent smile, he took the phone and went to the balcony. The called id showed 'Anji'. He picked it up, "Hello"
"Uh.. hello, good morning.. ji main Anji, Nidhi ki friend."
"Good morning Anji, I know you are her friend and Solanki Sir's daughter, right?"
"Ji."
"Anji, Nidhi is sleeping that's why I picked up. I hope you did not mind."
"Nahi, main mind kyun karoongi, Mr. Mathur or can I call you Jijaji?" she asked tentatively.
Aap mujhe kis rishte se Jija bulayengi Anji? Jo rishta banne se pahle hi toot gaya?
He said, "Anji, aap ko Nidhi se kuch kaam tha. Was it anything urgent? I mean, use gehri neend hai.."
"Ji I know, isiliye phone kiya. Use uthane ke liye."
"Lekin kyon?"
Anji wondered what to say, she hardly knew him. But now he is Nidhi's husband. "Aaj pahla din haina uska wahan. Toh maine socha use jaldi uth jaana chahiye? Warna she gets up quite late."
"Agar use aadat nahi jaldi uthne ki toh sone dijiye na? Waise bhi main toh thodi der me court hi jaa raha hoon. Ek important hearing hai. Woh uthke kya karegi?
"Aapko jaana hai? Phir toh please use uthaiye na. She should give you tea and breakfast na?" I hope Nidhi tujhe atleast chai banana toh aa gaya hoga itne din me. Daadi bua tujhe sikha toh rahi thin.
"Anji aap chinta mat kijiye, yahan pe Hiraman Kaka hain sab karne ke liye. Nidhi ko kuch karne ki zaroorat nahi hai."
"Lekin.."
Just then, there was a soft knock on the door.
"Anji, main zara aapse baad me baat karoon?"
"Sure" she said and hung up. He kept the phone back on the bed and opened the door. It was HK, "Chai laaya hoon beta."
"Chaliye Kaka, main dining table par peeta hoon." he said as he came out and shut the door softly behind him.
"Lekin Nidhi Bitiya? Woh chai peeyegi yaa coffee?"
"Woh so rahi hai kaka, uthe toh poochh lijiyega"
HK nodded.
Ashutosh had tea with his father, then went to his study cum library and worked for an hour. Then he softly entered the bedroom and got ready without making the least noise. He averted his gaze from the bed all the time. Then he left for the court.
As he reached the court 5-7 minutes before it convened, there were surprised murmurs on seeing him. He went to the advocates' bench and sat down. He was close enough to overhear a conversation that was going on at the other end of the bench between 3-4 lawyers.
"Arre ye Ashutosh Mathur yahan kya kar rahe hain? Maine toh kisi se suna tha ke kal shaadi thi. Of course, it was hush hush. Aur reception kal hai. Apne kaafi colleagues ko bhi invite kiya hai unhone. Lekin kal shaadi, aur aaj savere savere court? Kuch samajh nahi aaya."
"Shaadi? Tum use shaadi kehte ho? Arre woh toh damage control tha yaar."
"Sahi keh rahe ho yaar, it was damage control. Chori pakdi gayi ki toh shaadi ka phanda gale me pad gaya. Ab asal shaadi hoti tab biwi ke saath time spend karne ka mann karta na. Honeymoon wagere bhi.."
Just then, the judge arrived and the court began. After the hearing, which went on for about 90 minutes, he was rushing out of the courtroom when he bumped into a friendly colleague.
"Sorry Raunak, main jaldi me tha" he said apologetically.
"kya baat hai Ashutosh, itni jaldi me?"
Ashutosh was about to reply, when he saw the group that was earlier discussing about him and NIdhi, listening carefully for his response.
Ashutosh didn't even realize what struck him when he gave a sheepish smile and said softy, "samjha kar yaar. Nidhi ghar pe wait kar rahi hai mera. Kal reception me zaroor aana, tab milte hain."
His friend laughed, "You really are smitten buddy. Aur main soch raha tha ke jaipur me jo hua.."
"Aisi koi baat nahi hai Raunak, logon ne khamakha rai ka pahad bana diya, dekha kuch aur socha kuch. Main aur Nidhi toh waise bhi conference se aake apni families se baat karne hi waale the. We were seeing each other for some time. Jaipur me toh kisi ne Nidhi ki drink spike kar di aur main use us haal me akela nahi chhod sakta tha.. Someone played a very dirty game with us, Raunak"
"Oh.." but before Raunak could say another word or ask any question, Ashutosh rushed past saying, "kal reception pe milte hain."
Ashutosh drove to a secluded place as he needed to chalk out some solution to deal with the situation. I am a man, I am such an established lawyer in Lucknow. Agar shaadi ke baad bhi log mere saamne aisi baaten bol sakte hain, toh Nidhi aur uske gharwaalon ne kya kuch nahi suna hoga? Now, I'm not surprised that they wanted this marriage. But phir bhi unhe force nahi karna chahiye tha use shadi ke liye. So, what do I do now?
He thought and thought for a long while. Having arrived at some decision, he reached home.
HK asked, "beta lunch laga doon? Sahib ne bhi nahi khaaya. Tere liye wait kar rahe the."
"Ji kaka, Nidhi kahan hai?"
"Woh toh pagphere ke liye apne maike gayi hai beta", said his father as he came and sat on the table.
"Oh achchha."
"Tu khaana khaake thoda aaram karle, phir use lene jaana hai tujhe"
He nodded and had his lunch. In the evening, he went to her house and was welcome with respect. Since they barely knew each other, his interaction with her family was mostly formal. He was comfortable chatting with Mrs. Solanki, though. Mr. Solanki was busy with some work and was not present there. After having tea and some dry fruits, snacks, etc. Ashutosh left with Nidhi.
In the car, he said, "Nidhi, I need to talk to you."
"Ji kahiye?"
"Hum kahin ruk ke baat Karen?"
"Sure"
And he drove on till he found a somewhat secluded park with benches and stopped there.
They were sitting on one of the benches.
"Nidhi, meri poori baat dhyaan se sunna. Phir soch samajh ke hi faisla karna. Theek hai?"
"Ji" she said apprehensively. Oh God! Ab ye kya kehne waale hain. Anji shayad theek keh rahi thi. Mujhe raat ko bluntly aisa nahi kehna chahiye tha Sir se.
He cleared his throat and began, "kal raat jab tumne mujhse kaha ke is shaadi me tumhari marzi shaamil nahi hai tabhi hi I had decided that we will file for divorce immediately."
"Lekin.."
"Pahle mujhe apni baat poori karne do Nidhi. Ye faisla maine kal raat liya. Lekin aaj subah jab main court gaya toh maine suni logo ki baaten. I don't want to repeat what I heard, but I hope you understand?"
She nodded slightly.
"Well, Nidhi main ye soch raha tha, ke is situation me hum divorce lenge shaadi ke immediately baad toh logo ki baaten aur zubaan aur lambi hoti jaayegi."
She thought for a while, and then said, "Ji aap shayad theek keh rahe hain."
He sighed, "Nidhi I am myself ashamed of what I'm about to suggest. But mujhe toh ye ek hi raasta soojh raha hai. (as she looked at him apprehensively, he continued.) To put it bluntly, since we are already married, let our marriage serve its purpose before we end it."
"Sir? I don't understand"
"Sorry. Let me explain properly. Sab se pahle, we need to convince people that our marriage is not the result of what happened at the conference. (she looks at him in complete confusion, while he continues) Our story would be that, we fell in love (she looks up at him startled) when we started working together. Just a story you understand? (She gulps and nods slightly). And that we were going to get married anyways. For now, we need to act like we are in love and very happy with each other, so that the society will forget and move on. After a few months, we can have fights before our families, then before outsiders and then we file for divorce. This is what I have thought. Tum soch lo, if you don't agree or don't want it, just let me know, I'll file for divorce right tomorrow. Aur apni family ki tum chinta mat karo, I'll present matters in such a way that no one will blame you for divorce. Please trust me."
She just looks at him thoughtfully. He says, "You need not take the decision right away. Take your time and let me know when you reach a decision. Okay?"
She nodded, still in thoughts.
He asked, "Chalen?"
She nodded and got up. As they are walking towards the car. She was ahead and Ashutosh was a bit behind her. Someone calls her, "hi Nidhi"
Oh no! Ye toh pakki gossiper hai aur scandals me Ph. D kar rahi hai shayad."Hi Shruti"
"Nidhi yaar tere saath bahut bura hua aisa suna hai. Yaar agar tera boss tere se favours le raha tha toh theek hai, hota hai ye sab. But you should have been careful na ke kisiko pata nahi chale. Faltu me tujhe us buddhe se shaadi karni padi na. Kaise rahegi re tu uske saath?"
By now Ashutosh also reached and stood nearby wondering how to deal with the situation. He caught hold of her hand, "chalo ghar chalte hain Nidhi."
Nidhi gave him a coy smile, "Aap bhi na. Aisi bhi kya jaldi hai. Let me atleast introduce you. (She entwines her arm in his arm and comes very near to him, touching him. He is totally taken aback by the gesture but manages to control his expression as he gets an inkling of what she wants to do.) Shruti, this is my love and now my husband, Mr. Ashutosh Mathur. And, this is Shruti, mere saath college me padhti thi. Kitaben kam rakhti thi boyfriends zyaada. (Shruti's face is a comical mix of surprise, anger and helplessness. Ashutosh has a hard time controlling his laughter.) Kyun Shruti. Suna hai, teri shaadi hui thi kisi 12th pass ladke se? (she winks) At least ek husband ka toh suna tha maine. Aur bhi hain kya?"
"Oye, buddhe se shaadi tune ki, us high-level conference me apna tamasha tune bana.."
"Shut up Shruti, don't you dare! Ye tu baar baar buddha kise keh rahi hai? Huh? Ye tujhe kis angle se buddhe lagte hain. Khair, chhod dosh tera nahi hai. Tera toh dimaag shuru se hi ganda hai.(Looking at Ashutosh and pulling him away) Chaliye Jaan." Inspite of himself, he could not prevent his blush at hearing the endearment from her lips for the first time.
They got into the car, and he started it. There was an awkward silence between them, and then, both burst out laughing. "Nidhi, you are too much. Kya zaroorat thi?"
Nidhi says between laughs, "You also enjoyed it. Haina Sir?"
He nods and laughs again, "Uska expression dekhne layak tha."
"I know, it was really fun seeing her like that. Dobara mere saamne bhi nahi aayegi kabhi."
The incident broke the ice between them and they entered the house with relaxed demeanors. HK said, "beta chai coffee kuch piyoge?"
They both refused and Nidhi went into the bedroom while, he went to discuss an old case which was originally taken by his father with him. Mr. Mathur too noticed the calmness on his face after long and heaved a sigh of relief.
Then everyone had dinner and everyone retired to their respective rooms.
Nidhi sat on the edge of the bed, "Maine faisla kar liya hai."
He pulls the dressing stool and sits on it, "Are you sure? Koi jaldi nahi hai, aaram se sochlo."
"Ji maine soch liya hai"
"So?"
"I agree with your idea. But ek problem hai. We have to pretend to be in love, but we hardly know each other. So, how do we, I mean?"
"Shaam ko park me toh tumne kaafi achchhi acting ki, then what's the problem?" he teases her.
"Sir aap samajh nahi rahe main kya kehna chahti hoon"
He becomes serious, "I understand Nidhi. I think, we can try and get to know each other slowly. Let's be friends."
"Friends? Sure I could do with a friend like you, Sir" she smiles. The first genuine smile he has seen after their game of chess at the conference.
He smiles back, "Sir? Tum mujhe Sir bulaogi?"
"Toh main aapko kya kahoon?"
"Ashutosh"
"Ji? Ye toh main nahi kar sakti."
"Kyun mera naam itna bura hai?"
She giggles, "Nahi. Lekin aap mujhse itne bade hain, age me bhi, aur professionally bhi, so I can't take your name Sir"
"Phir Sir? Ab ek baar aur.."
"Sorry, Sorry.. Just let me think okay?" And she starts mumbling something, and shaking her head as she dismissed each idea one by one.
He smiles in amusement, "Nidhi, isme.."
"Oh.. please let me think. Beech me mat boliye"
He nods and just watches her antics. Suddenly, she shouts, "Mil gaya! Kumpel.. Kumpel kaisa rahega?" she seems really pleased with the idea.
"Kum..pel? what's that?" he asks wearily, wondering what she is upto.
"You know German?"
He shakes his head, "Achchha toh German word hai"
She nods, "ji, its German for buddy. Friend, you know. Aur sab se bada fayda ye hai ke since not many people know German, woh log kuch bhi meaning nikaal sakte hain." She winks.
"Not bad thinking. But, "Kamp.. what was that?"
"Kumpel"
"Yeah, Kumpel, sunne me kuch ajeeb sa lagta hai."
"Koi baat nahi, dheere dheere aadat pad jaayegi. I like this word!" says she like a kid.
He laughed. "Okay, I guess it's better than atleast Sir"
She pouts, "Aap ko itna bura lagta hai kya ye Kumpel"
Oh she looks so cute when she pouts. Ye ladki meri jaan leke hi dum legi
She breaks his reverie, "Bataiye na, you really don't like it?"
He takes a moment to resume their conversation, "Kya? Kumpel? Not bad actually, hmm .. theek hai."
She is really pleased, "Great!"
"So, you know German?"
"Nahi, ye toh meri ek school friend thi, She had come from Germany, she used to call her friends Kumpel. Bus, tab se hi I liked it."
"I see."
There was silence for the next minute or so, as they could not think of anything else to talk about.
Both broke the silence at the same time, "Tum.." "Main.." and both stopped hearing the other.
"Sorry!", both again said at the same time and then burst out laughing.
"Pahle tum bolo"
"Nahi pahle aap boliye Sir (at his raised eyebrow) Kumpel"
"Main keh raha thi, ke would you like to rejoin the office? I mean.. uh.. you can if you want."
"Sochungi, lekin abhi mann nahi hai."
"And Nidhi, ek baat aur. Apne aap ko kisi bhi tarah ke bandhan me mat samajhna. Okay? You are free to do whatever you want. Mujhe poochhne ki bataane ya ki bhi zaroorat nahi hai. Tum yahan waise hi rehna jaise apne ghar me shaadi se pahle rehti thi."
She nodded and said after a while, "Agar aap ko bura na lage toh main chhote sarkar ko yahan bula loon?"
"Chhote sarkar?"
"Ji who hamare ghar pe kaam karte hain. Mera saara kaam vohi karte hain. Mujhse na, koi kaam nahi hota"
He is taken aback, but recovers, "Nidhi, yahan Hiraman Kaka haina? Ghar ka kaam toh wohi karte hain, so you don't need to bother about anything. You can tell him what you need. Phir bhi agar tumhe chahiye, toh you can call whoever you want. I have no problem."
"Thanks!"
"Achchha, tum kya keh rahi thi Nidhi?"
"Ji. Main.. main kya keh rahi thi..bhool gayi. Yaad aayega toh bataoongi"
"Okay. So, ab? Kya karna hai? You want to sleep?".
"Itni jaldi? I normally don't sleep till 2-3"
"Poori raat nahi soti toh karti kya ho?"
"I watch tv, read books, surf the net. Aap? Aap jaldi soti hain?"
"Yes, around 10-10:30, unless koi case ki drafting baaki ho, which is on rare occasions."
She nods, and then she asks enthusiastically, "Ek baat poochhoon? Why did you choose the legal profession?"
Thinking he said, "Well, actually, it was always Law for me. Since Baba was a lawyer, it was a given that I too would be a lawyer and join the firm ultimately. Pichhle ek-ded saal se Baba ne bilkul chhod di hai practice. Lekin, call it psychological effect or whatever, mujhe kabhi koi aur line soojhi nahi. It was my passion since childhood."
She was listening keenly, when he asked, "Aur tum? Why did you choose this profession?"
"Actually I was never sure about my career. Lekin, bachpan se hi, I used to go to Anji's house na. So, ek baar ghar pe Anji nahi thi toh main Uncle ki study me chali gayi. Wahan uncle toh nahi the lekin ek book khuli hui thi unki. Pata nahi kya soojhi mujhe that I started reading it. Phir uncle aaye and he too explained me what I was reading. Tab se mujhe is profession me interest aane laga. Aur phir koi toh course karna hi tha, so I chose to do L.L.B."
"And what did you do after LLB?"
"I enjoyed my life..ghuma phira aish kiya aur kya" she said with a naughty smile.
He shook his head and laughed. She pouted, "Isme itna hasne ki kya baat hai?"
"Kuch nahi, main kab hasa?" he asks in a half-serious tone.
"Chess set hai kya ghar me?" she asks, with sudden enthusiasm.
"Hai, lekin Baba ke room me. Kal leke aaoonga. Phir hum khel sakte hain."
"Okay, toh abhi kya Karen?"
"Tumhe tv dekhni hai kya? We can go to the hall and watch it on low volume."
"Nahi, usse toh hum mere lappy pe koi movie dekhte haina?" and before he can even say a word, she brought her laptop and settled on the bed, "Aap wahan kyun baithe hain, aaiye na, yahan comfortable rahega"
Though surprised, he too climbed on the bed and both settled side by on the bed, with their backs supported by the headrest.
She keeps her laptop in such a way that both can see. She opens a movie site and starts surfing, "You want to see English movie or Hindi?"
"Uh.. jo tum chaho. Waise I think, English would be better. (looking at the clock) its already 9:40 and hindi movies are longer.
"Okay, (She starts surfing the English movies) Kaunsi movie dekhen? Hmm.." she keeps surfing, when suddenly, he exclaims, "Hey tumne ye dekhi hai? The Omen? It's an old movie. But nice."
She frowns, "Really? What genre it is?"
"Genre? Well, you can say, it's a mystery, suspense, horror.."
"Horror?" she asks as if taken aback.
He chuckles, "Kyun, tumhe darr lagta hai?"
"Darr? mujhe?", she giggles, "No way! It's just that I find the ghost movies too silly and stupid.. Aisi faaltu cheezen dikhate hain logon ko darrane ke liye.. Darrna toh door, I am not even amussed by the silly effects. I get bored."
"Oh okay, I understand now. But ye us type ki nahi hai. I mean its not horror just for the sake of it. I'm quite confident you will like it."
She nodded and clicked the 'play' button.
She was thouroughly enjoying the movie and he started feeling sleepy, as he hadn't slept much the previous night too. Once his head fell to the side and he awoke with a jolt, "tum dekho, I am going to bed. Neend aa rahi hai"
"Good night" she said without taking her eyes off the monitor.
"Good night."
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