Chapter 14

As Arnav came home late, later than even his usual late, 5 days after they had all come back from the farmhouse, he saw, as usual, Di & Rohan sitting at the main hall of Shantivan, with Naniji saying something to Rohan. He was about to bypass the hall to go up to his room, when Anjali called him up, asking him to come down soon after freshening up, so that she could serve dinner for him. Arnav sighed as he looked over at Rohan. If he came down for dinner, then undoubtedly everyone would join to chat around him while he ate, then as Rohan would start for his home, he, Arnav, would be expected to walk with him as he had done for the last four days without exception. But frankly, he had decided last night, that he was done! Arnav Singh Raizada didn't mope around for anyone. & he certainly didn't do the rounds of anyone's house, certainly not the house of some immature kid who couldn't even face him after they had shared just a kiss. No matter how poignant, stirring, earth-shattering, or downright disturbing, in its intensity, that just-a-kiss might have been, a little voice on his head added.

Arnav shook his head & said curtly, "I am tired. Tell HP to bring dinner or whatever up to my room." As he was about to brusquely walk-off to the stairs, Rohan spoke up, "So Akaash was telling the truth then?" As Arnav turned slightly to face him, not entirely breaking his stride, Rohan elaborated with a twinkle in his eyes, "You know, about your new bromance with someone called Aman. I am not anymore the only one for you?" As he said that, he tried his best to look mock-sad, but he failed miserably & as Anjali rolled off over Nani's shoulder, both of them giggling, Rohan started laughing in a low guttural tone that was a unique sound due to his unusually low baritone. As Arnav shifted his eyes on Akaash to glower at him, Akaash immediately sobered up from his laughter & got to his feet & spluttered, "Bhai, they made me crack. I didn't wanna say anything. But you know Di.. She was adamant about knowing what kept you glued to the office all day long."

Arnav took a threatening step toward Akaash, & asked in a deceptively soft voice, "& Aman keeps me glued to the office all day?? Not anything else like, say, work, maybe?" & he saw Akaash quickly going & standing behind his sister & Dadi, & then he said in an accusatory voice, "But you have become so tight with him since we came back from the farmhouse! Always in your cabin, engaged in deep conspiratorial conversations & all!" But by the end of it even Akaash couldn't maintain his serious face & burst out laughing. As Arnav was about to blast him off, starting with a caustic, "Very funny..", Rohan interrupted them by putting up his hands in a surrendering gesture, & said in a voice laced with suppressed laughter, "Cut it out guys. It's late. I have to go, so let me just inform Arnav quickly."

As Arnav looked at him with a blank look not knowing what to expect, Rohan continued, "Amma-Bauji are going to Lucknow tomorrow.. to inform all the relatives who had been invited to Payal's wedding about the situation & invite them to Anjali & my wedding instead. & I couldn't even get the day off, so after I drop them off at the station, I'll have to go to the office for the whole day. & my Buaji can only come after Amma-Bauji reach Lucknow. That'll be the day after tomorrow or maybe the day after that. So Payal & Bachchi will be alone the whole day tomorrow."

Arnav didn't know why he suddenly felt that pang of unease at the thought Khushi being all alone & vulnerable, but he suppressed it harshly & looked at Rohan with carefully schooled features which expressed nothing more than mild curiosity. Rohan looked at him with narrowed eyes as if his lack of more concern was unusual & continued in a vaguely distracted voice, "So Anjali was saying that she'd go & spend some time with them tomorrow & as the house will virtually empty at the night too, she might even stay the night, so that Amma-Bauji feels better about leaving the girls behind like this." Then Rohan looked at Nani & said in a respectful voice, "& as Anjali is Naniji's responsibility, I thought she might feel uncomfortable about Anjali staying overnight with no elders present, so I invited Akaash to stay over too. He'll be there to protect his sister." Rohan finished with an affectionate grin at Akaash, not really noticing the pride that shone in Nani, Anjali & Arnav's eyes, directed at him & his righteousness.

Then suddenly out of the blue, to everyone's sheer incredulity, a steady voice boomed, "I'll come over too. Di is my responsibility too. Besides, it's been so long since I had a camping out with Akaash & you, although it'd be more in-house camping' That is, if anyone has no objections..?" He asked in such a menacingly calm voice that, even if everyone had an objection of their own for their own unique reason, none voiced so.

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Khushi finished her assignment that was due tomorrow & also scanned the one she had done for Lavanya one last time. It had taken her almost 5hours to finish both the assignments, but she didn't see what else she could do. It had been like that since she had been in standard 7, all of 12. It wasn't that La was too stupid to do her own assignment or homework, she was just too lazy to do it. Besides, she had from a young age learned that she had Khushi to rely on. & once that knowledge was settled, La never really saw it necessary for her to do a single assignment or homework. But Khushi really didn't mind that much. She welcomed the double exercise & wasn't really bothered with marginal extra work. She got up from her bed, carefully making her way out of the chaos of books & notebooks scattered around her whole bed. She hadn't been out of her room since she had come in here to work on the assignments after sharing an extremely fun lunch with her Jiji & to-be Bhabi. Anjali had of course told her that Akaash & Arnav were gonna be staying over the night with her too. & that had been the deal maker for Khushi. She had excused herself shortly after that & shut herself in the room telling both Anjali & Payal not to disturb her as she was studying.

When it had been dinner time an hour ago, Payal, Rohan & even Anjali had come to call her for dinner. But she had said from behind the closed door that she would eat when she was done with her work despite being actually very hungry after working for so long, but she didn't think she'd be able to eat anything if Arnav was seated at the same table. She didn't know whether it was right or wrong that she was avoiding Arnav after making out with him like that in the farmhouse. She didn't even care how it seemed to him. But there were two things she knew for sure. Arnav Singh Raizada never hid his aversion to any kind of serious committed relationship & Khushi Kumari Gupta was never interested in anything other than the very serious kind of committed relationship. So whatever had prompted them both that day to cling to each other like that, had to be discouraged right now. Before anyone of them foolishly got so involved that it would leave a scar for life. & Khushi had a nagging feeling that if it at all happened, between herself & Arnav, she would be that fool.

As Khushi silently stepped out of her room to go down to have her dinner, still lost in her unhappy thoughts, as soon as she stepped on the landing, she heard the sound of happy giggling & cheerful laughter floating up from the hall downstairs. She would have thought all of them had gone to sleep by now. It's nearly 12.45am, for Devi Maiyya's sake. Khushi tip-toed to the ledge of the landing & peeped down to see who all was still in the hall. & to her acute annoyance the first thing she saw was Payal & Arnav sitting in the small settee beside the couch Anjali & Rohan were snuggling in & Akaash was lounging very casually on the bean-bag chair beside the other side of the settee. & Khushi didn't know what they had been doing the whole evening as she had stupidly confined herself in her own room thinking Arnavji might want to pursue her to talk her, but by the looks of it, she might not have bothered at all. Because right now he was rapturously gazing at Payal while she was telling something to him in between her giggles & animated hand gestures.

Khushi flung away from the ledge as if it was something contaminated & without even trying to muffle her footsteps, stomped into her room & shut the door with a thunderous clash.

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As Khushi heard the Grandfather clock in the hall chime two times indicating it was 2am, she clutched her stomach which was now gnawing with hunger. She should have accepted the dinner plate that Payal had brought up for her before they all went to bed, but she had been too angry at her own sister to even say good night to her properly, let alone accept food from her. She had even declined Rohan & Anjali's concerns for her, saying she was just too tensed about her assignment submission tomorrow to eat anything, & she knew from the way Rohan's eyes narrowed that he didn't buy her excuse for e minute. Khushi Kumari Gupta never said no to food for anything! But he had just let it go after he had noticed the furrow between her brows & after a quick peck on her, he led Anjali away from her room.

Now that she heard the growls coming from her stomach again, Khushi got up from her seating position & after a moment's hesitation, got down from her bed & was out of her room, going down the stairs to the kitchen in less than a minute.

As she was sure everyone had gone to bed hours ago, she didn't even bother to change in anything else, but her usual worn-to-pieces navy blue pajamas with light green stars strewn allover, that she had been wearing since she had been in college, but made her look like she was a schoolgirl.

She needed food & she needed comfort. & nothing spelled comfort food for Khushi Kumari Gupta like Jalebis did.

After reaching the kitchen, she took out the frying wok, tongs & skimmers needed for the frying of Jalebis. As she was about to keep them over the stove, the tong slipped from her hand & dropped on the floor with a loud clang. With a sigh she kept the remaining items in her hand over the cook top carefully, so as not to drop anything else. Then as she settled everything securely over the stove, she bent down to pick up the tong, & as she came up with the tong in her hand, she found herself directly gazing at a pair of narrowed slits of molten brown eyes looking at her with unmistakable anger in them.

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Khushi immediately closed her eyes tightly shut & prayed to Devi Maiyya that maybe it was all a nightmare of hers, but the next moment she was forced to flutter her eyes open as he shook her hand briefly. He again hissed furiously, "What are you? Some camel? You can't wish me away just by closing your eyes, Khushi!" & Khushi could just continue to look at him with a fearful expression on her face as she was firstly just too surprised to find him like this in the kitchen at this time, standing before her. & secondly, she was also quiet out of shame, because his accusation that she was avoiding him was painfully true.

But as soon as she felt Arnav twist her wrist to turn it behind her, effectively pulling her closer to his body, she felt the rage building within her, & as she looked up at his still hard eyes, she felt the tension of the past 6 days finally catching up with up with her & she snapped, "What?? What is your problem? This is my house, still! It's not sold away yet, no thanks to you. So I can roam through all over it, at whichever time I feel like it, & you don't have the right to say anything about it, samjhe aap? & why would I avoid you? I didn't even know you wanted to see me or talk to me." Self-preservation now made her lie blatantly. "I am here now. Tell me. What is it you wanted to say to me that's so important that you're now accusing me of avoiding you for it?" & with that she sent a silent prayer up to Devi Maiyya that she would rob the Laad Governor of speech.

Arnav watched at her glaring eyes, her fuming expression & her flushed face for a few seconds. Then his free hand rose up to touch her pink cheeks, & his thumb brushed a few loose tendrils away from it, as he leaned closer & whispered in a calm voice, "I just wanted to know, tum theek ho?"