Chapter Five
Kaveri sighed as she leaned back against the headrest of the car. It was painfully exhausting to sit back and let someone else drive, especially because none of these people knew how to do it. Ever since her heart attack, she'd been forced to give up driving and it irked her to be carted around everywhere, like now.
Sanjay had taken the wheel and was dropping her home. She'd gone to the firm to discuss the potential ways things could go now that Ruhi had signed the annulment papers. Both her grandsons were such idiots, she was actually surprised. Rohit, who should have tried to mend things with Ruhi, who was a nice girl from a respectable family, had decided to separate from her. And Armaan, who should be running in the opposite direction of that stubborn girl, was sticking to her like glue.
Nevertheless, Rohit's happiness was of paramount importance to her. So, she would do anything for him, even if it meant giving up the daughter-in-law she always wanted. Once this annulment business was done, she would find another suitable girl for him. After all, who wouldn't want to tie themselves to an illustrious family like hers?
Her thoughts broke when Sanjay manoeuvred the car into the main gate and she saw Abir Rajvansh there. He was sitting on the bonnet of a shiny red convertible, whistling to himself. Of course she'd recognized him instantly despite never having seen him in person, yet she was shocked, and had to squint to make sure that she wasn't seeing things. That he really was there.
The Rajvansh name was synonymous with power and success in the entire country. They came from humble beginnings when Yashpal Rajvansh started a travel agency in Rajkot. His daughter, Meenakshi Rajvansh, stepped in when the business was failing and turned it around, but it had been the unnamed scion of the family, Kunal Rajvansh, who had expanded the business so much that Red Pear was now the most sought after travel service in not just India, but abroad as well. Kunal's cousin, Atul Rajvansh, was one of the most successful names in the Hindi film industry. Atul's sister, Ketki Sethi, was a businesswoman in her own right, and one of the most beloved fashion designers in the country.
But, it was the eldest of the family, Abir Rajvansh, who was the most sought after. He was a philanthropist who owned the largest NGO chain in the country. As a side hustle, he had developed and sold numerous apps that had made life easier for millions of people. All the money he'd earned in those ventures had been funnelled into the NGO by him and his wife, Mishti Agarwal Rajvansh, who was named the co-founder of said NGO.
And, it wasn't just the elder Rajvanshes who were so successful. Their kids and grandkids had flourishing careers in their own right, ranging from India's first Michelin star chef to a bestselling author. In short, the Rajvansh family was synonymous with opulence. She'd never met any of the family members in person, so she was a little surprised to see the patriarch of the family twiddling his thumbs in her lawn. What reason did he even have to be here?
Nevertheless, she wasn't about to question a gift horse in the mouth. This was a great opportunity to network and connect with him. Maybe he needed legal aid. If he tied himself to Poddar & Associates, it would be a huge leap forward for the firm. The Poddars were renowned in Udaipur, but their might paled in comparison to the grandeur of the Rajvansh name. Working with them would bring in more high profile clients from all over the country, which they desperately needed.
It was only after she'd already done it that Kaveri Poddar had realized that she'd been a little hasty in taking all of Armaan's cases and giving them to Rohit. She'd wanted to humiliate Armaan for going against her, while also doing something to please Rohit who had come back home after so many months away. It had seemed so easy to do this, hitting two birds with one stone.
But, after the handover had happened, and clients had complaints, was when she'd realized that she'd made a mistake. In her arrogance, she had believed that all the clients had come to Armaan owing to the Poddar name. She didn't think that it had anything to do with him, but rather, everything to do with her. However, she had quickly realized that was not the case. She'd always known that Armaan was a rather proficient lawyer, but she hadn't realized just how much weight he pulled at the firm. None of his clients were happy with Rohit, barring a couple sycophants who had come for the Poddar name.
In a bid to appease them, she'd also instructed Sanjay to oversee the cases, but even that wasn't enough. Sanjay was nowhere as good at his job as Armaan had been. The quality of work was rapidly slipping to the point where Kaveri had to step in. She was too proud to go back to Armaan and ask for help despite knowing that he would readily agree and wouldn't even hold it against her.
But, finally, here was her chance. If she got into Abir Rajvansh's good books, things could be salvaged. She hated sucking up to people who deemed themselves better than her, but it was part of the job. And right now, she needed Abir Rajvansh much more than he needed her. So, she would do it, even if she despised every second of it.
Hastily, she got out of the car and rushed to greet him. “Mr. Rajvansh.”
He hopped down and gave her a once over. Once he realized who she was, he nodded curtly in greeting. “Mrs. Poddar.”
“What brings you here?” She asked. “Not that we aren't ecstatic to host you,” she added hastily, realizing it might seem rude to speak to him so directly. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Certainly not you,” Abir answered, barely managing to not sneer the words. This was the woman who had made Abhira's life so difficult. For every tear that Abhira had cried because of her, Abir would hate her. Especially because she herself couldn't seem to. It was startling how much Abhira was like Mishti. Despite being subjected to endless taunts, Abhira held affection for the Poddars, much as Mishti had done for his mother and the rest of his family. Maybe, it was the Maheshwari in them.
“I'm sorry?” Kaveri Poddar echoed, confused.
“You should be,” Abir told her. However, before she could question him any further, Armaan came bustling out of the house. “Sorry, sorry, sorry!” He exclaimed, all but running to Abir. He immediately bent down to touch his feet. Once Abir had ruffled his hair in blessing, he stood up and hugged Abir. Abir turned away from Kaveri as if she was of no consequence. Kaveri was stunned at the sequence of events. How did Armaan know Abir Rajvansh? Enough to greet him so familiarly?
“Kitna time lagate ho, yaar!” Abir complained, his previous conversation immediately forgotten. The man speaking to Kaveri's grandson was a completely different man than the one who had greeted her just minutes prior. “Kabse wait kar raha hoon main.”
“Haan, bada wait kar rahe hain!” Armaan scoffed. “Aapne mujhe bas 10 minute pehle message kiya tha.”
“Haan… Toh? Main poore 10 minute se wait kar raha hoon. Tumhe mere time ki qadr hai ya nahi? Log mujhse 2 minute milne taraste hain, aur yahaan main tumhaare peeche 10 minute waste kar raha hoon!” Abir pretended to crib.
However, it was of no use as Armaan saw right through him. “Bas, bas. Yeh fake arrogance wala drama ab kahin aur use karna. Mujhpe yeh kaam nahi aayega aapko bhi pata hai.”
“Armaan!” Kaveri decided to step in. This boy really had lost all his manners once he'd started spending time with that insolent girl. “Yeh kya tareeka hai baat karne ka? Mr. Rajvansh se tameez se pesh aao… Us ladki ki tarah badtameezi se nahi. Chalo ab, maafi maango inse!”
“Dadi Sa…” Armaan murmured, not knowing what to say. Truth be told, he hadn't even noticed her standing there till she'd spoken because he'd been so excited to see Abir. In the past couple of days, Armaan had also surprisingly gotten closer to Abir and Mishti, just like Abhira had. They'd all spent a lot of time together lately, and Armaan could see that the two of them genuinely did care for Abhira and loved her deeply. They also seemed to care about him, even though they were aware of how he'd hurt Abhira so deeply. When they'd extended such a warm welcome to him, Armaan had also done the same.
And while he got along with them really well, this was the first time that Abir had asked to spend time with him when Abhira wasn't around. She was out with Mishti for the day, and Armaan had been sulking all morning, thinking he'd be left to his own devices, now that Abhira wasn't home. He didn't even have to go to work because no new cases had been assigned to him after he'd closed the Rajvansh one. But, Abir had come to his rescue, all but demanding that Armaan go out with him on an errand.
“Excuse me, Mrs. Poddar,” Abir interrupted. “But I don't need you to fight my battles for me. Armaan mujhse kaise baat karega yeh decide karne wali aap kaun hoti hain?”
“Mr. Rajvansh, main bas…” Kaveri tried to defend herself, but Abir didn't let her. “Aap bas kya? Maine toh aapse help nahi maangi? Aap please iss tarah interfere mat kariye.”
Even though Armaan was itching to say something, anything, in defense of Kaveri, he kept quiet. He was aware that neither Abir nor Mishti liked his grandmother, and with good reason. The way she'd treated Abhira was deplorable and had it been some outsider, Armaan wagered that he would also hate that person. But, this person was his Dadi Sa and so, try as he might, he wasn't able to dislike her. But, Abir had no such qualms. In a way, Armaan was grateful. Abir was doing what he seemed incapable of. He was standing up for Abhira in front of Dadi Sa.
“I'm sorry,” Kaveri grudgingly apologized. She couldn't take the risk of Abir writing her off. “You're right. Mujhe interfere nahi karna chahiye tha.”
Abir dismissed her wordlessly and turned back to Armaan. “Tu kar kya raha tha lekin?” He pressed. Armaan blushed, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Oho, Armaan Sa…” Abir teased. “Ab samajh aaya aap late kyun ho gaye!”
“Bas jab dekho mujhe chedne mein hi aapko mazaa aata hai. Aur bhi kuch kaam kara kar lijiye!” Armaan whined. “Ab aapko late nahi ho raha?”
“Pch! Tu baatein bohot karta hai, Armaan!” Abir complained. “Chal ab jaldi! We're getting late.”
Abir walked around the car to hop into the driver's seat. Armaan rolled his eyes when he saw Abir jump through the closed door and sat down in the passenger seat like a normal person. “Lekin hum jaa kahaan rahe hain?” He asked as Abir revved the engine.
“We're buying a house, baby!” Abir shouted over the engine before speeding out of the house, not even sparing a single glance to Kaveri, who was staring at the retreating car, affronted.
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