Chapter 16

16

Arnav entered his cabin impatiently wondering if he should call Khushi.

But why should he call her? He could not ask her if she had seen the gift. Or even if she had, why had she left it there? But where did she go at this time of the day?

Disturbed & frustrated, Arnav walked straight up to his desk and kept the box on the top. He was about to take the box out of the brown paper when he heard a familiar voice behind him.

"Hi ASR."

Arnav turned immediately to see a smiling Lavanya sitting with her toned legs crossed on the sofa across the room. Her rich-red, cap-sleeve, knee-length pencil dress made a striking contrast to the black leather of the sofa. A thin belt around her waist accentuated her hourglass figure to the maximum.

Red. Rich Red.

But all that came to Arnav was, "Calvin Klein."

Red did not turn him on.

A gorgeous woman in red only took him back to an evening by the pool – reminding him of the woman who could enchant him without revealing even an inch of her body. After that vision in that simple red sari, no other woman can turn him on even in red. No one. Perhaps in any color at all.

"Hi Lavanya. Welcome back."

"Thanks ASR," Lavanya stood up and walked up to him, still smiling, "How have you been?"

"Fine."

"I have been trying to call you for two days but you never picked up."

Arnav hardly noticed her pout.

"Ah. I think I missed your calls. Anything important?"

"No. Not really. I was .. kind of .. missing you."

Missing you. Arnav's eyes instantly fixed on hers to understand what she really meant. He felt kind of taken aback by her use of words. She seriously could not have meant that. They have been out only on a couple of dates and they have not even discussed anything. Surely, she was not expecting anything from him yet.

 Arnav suddenly started to feel very defensive. He could not have possibly given her any wrong idea.

"Oh. It is good you are back on time. Sooo… see you in show?"

"Yeah, sure. Are you picking me up?"

"Pick you up? Ah. No, I can't. I will go straight from office. Aman can arrange transport for you, I think, if you need any."

Lavanya frowned & did not hide her disappointment – or perhaps, resentment.

After her little chat with Khushi, she had thought about it a lot and then decided to approach ASR herself. As soon as Simran informed he was back, she decided to sort it out. She could not afford anything complicated in her life right now – definitely not a complicated relationship. She liked ASR. But if he was not serious about it, she really did not want to be stressed over that. She could very well live without a not-so-relationship thing – and that too with her boss. She had no intention to jeopardize her career over a fling.

Besides, she would prefer a little heartache now than a big heartbreak months later.

"That's fine. ASR! But tell me something. Honestly. Are you avoiding me?"

"Avoiding you?"

"Yes. I mean you did not pick up my calls for last two days. Well, Khushi told me you lost your phone but that was only last night, right? So I was just thinking if you are trying to brush me off. We are both adults, ASR. There is no point beating around the bush. If you think it is not working, let's talk and end it like adults. You don't have to be evasive…"

Alarm rang through Arnav's mind as Lavanya mentioned Khushi. He hardly heard anything after that. What did Khushi tell her? And moreover, what did she tell Khushi? A strange shiver ran down his spine stirring a feeling of apprehension. He did not like it at all.

"I did not avoid you purposefully, Lavanya. But it is true that I cannot promise you anything committal, if that is what you are talking about. And to be honest, this – you & me – is really the last thing on my mind right now. So, yes, perhaps, it is better, we don't go on dates anymore."

Rejection always tasted bitter no matter how much rational it was.

Lavanya heard him putting in plain words what she had been fearing for last few days. She lost herself for a few seconds but quickly recovered. She knew it was coming and it was for the best.

Arnav understood. He did not know why but he added more in a much softer tone.

"I don't want you to be disappointed later, Lavanya. And .. we were never into anything official anyway. Right?"

Arnav had always admired Lavanya because of the strength of her character. He felt a prick of guilt but he knew it was for the best. He liked her but if she was looking for commitment he knew he could not give it to her.

 And who was he fooling?

Had he not known what liking someone really meant, would he really care to say those things to Lavanya right now – right before the most important AR Fashion Show till date?

The kind of "like" he had had for Lavanya or any other woman basically meant nothing. He now knew the real kind of "like" – the heights of it, the depth of it, the colors of it. No woman stirred that kind of feeling in him – not Lavanya, not anyone else.

Only one woman had redefined the feelings for him.

The woman who had made him want to listen. The woman who had made him love colors. The woman who had made him watch a Salman Khan movie. The woman who had made him jump through a window. The woman who had made him crouch under a bed. The woman who had made him obsessed with blush.

The woman who had made his world lemony fresh.

The woman who had taught him to say "Sorry".

"Lavanya, I am sorry, if this has anyway disappointed you. I never promised you anything, did I?"

Lavanya could not but feel surprised at the tinge of softness in Arnav even when her heart felt kind of soared.

"No, ASR," Lavanya half-smiled, "You did not. But a woman always wants surety, certainty. So I just wanted to be sure so that it did not get any worse later. I am happy we talked and we sorted out. Everything is fine. Don't worry."

Arnav bit his lips. Another break-up. The first break-up that made him feel bad. Where were all these feelings all these years? Who opened the bottle?

Who. The thought again brought back the alarm ringing in Arnav's head.

"Lavnya, what did Khushi tell you?"

"Well, she just told me you lost your phone and she found it. And that she forgot to tell you, I had called."

"Ok," Arnav waited holding his breath for her to tell more.

 He was not disappointed.

"I actually told her we were seeing each other," Lavanya finally said hesitantly, feeling slightly embarrassed, "I am sorry, ASR. I was just thinking about us and I think I got a bit impulsive. And I thought she should know .. being my PA .. so that we could, you know, manage things better. I will update her the next time I see her. I am sorry. Hope it is ok?"

Arnav felt his mouth suddenly going dry. He managed to nod his head but for the first time Lavanya saw his face losing its color. His well-know deadpan face was replaced by a visibly shaken up expression.

"Are you alright, ASR?"

"I am fine, Lavanya."

"I am sorry, ASR. I did not think this would bother you so much. We never talked about keeping this completely private. I know your PA always kept track of your dates. So I thought it was ok."

Arnav suddenly started to feel the temperature of the room rising. Beads of sweats started running down his cheeks as he clenched his fists. A strange kind of dizziness enveloped his senses. He was not even sure why he was feeling this way – devastated, alarmed .. panicked. He turned and went round his desk to sit in his leather chair – fearing he would fall down any moment. Did his sugar level down? Why the world suddenly started to spin?

"Lavanya, I will see you in the show. It is good we are even."

Lavanya understood he wanted her to leave now. Though his face had his signature indifference back, she could feel something was not right. He seemed bothered. She shrugged slightly.

"Ok, ASR. Take care."

Lavanya was about to turn when her eyes suddenly caught hold of something wrapped in a brown paper lying on ASR's desk. It was hidden behind him all this while. Curiosity took over her as she could clearly see the sea-green ribbon and could almost make out the black gift box under the wrapper. Wasn't it the box that was on Khushi's desk?

"ASR," she exclaimed even before she realized.

Arnav looked up to her – a bit startled by the expression of her voice.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Not now, Lavanya."

Lavanya knew ASR would not talk any further. She stared into his eyes for a second and then shrugged again mildly. She turned and started walking towards the door as her brains kept busy fitting the puzzle. Could it be .. ?

Hell! She did notice Khushi went white for a microsecond when she mentioned about them dating. She thought she misunderstood! And here, ASR turned white too! And that box .. she could not be wrong. This was the same box! Did it mean ..? Shoot!

Lavanya was not sure how she felt. There was a strange mix of emotions running through her as she came to a conclusion. There was a tiny prick of jealousy somewhere but more than that was the excitement of the possibility of something so impossible.

ASR. Chamkili.

How could this have possibly happened? That too in just a week?

Devi Maiya sighed a breath of relief. Good that this girl was smart. Though her time speculation was not right. Just in a week? D'oh! Of course, not!

Lavanya could not but turn again on her heels as she was about to leave the room.

"ASR. If that box is what I think it is, you better make sure it reaches her.. And if you ever need me to talk to her, I am here."

She noticed the slight sign of surprise in his face and no sign of denial at all. That he did not glare at her, was enough to infer that ASR indeed was killed.

"Don't screw up," she murmured before she left.

"Don't screw up," Devi Maiya echoed her, nodding her head vigorously, since she could not agree more.

Arnav watched dumbfounded as Lavanya threw her little advice on him and left the room with a meaningful smirk.

Was he that much obvious?

Arnav ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. Whether his vulnerability was that evident, was a far less significant matter right now. All he could think of now was Khushi.

Did she reject the gift because of what Lavanya told her? Did she leave because of that?

Arnav's hand reached for his phone in reflex. But he stopped before he was to press the "call" button.

Why was he calling her? Why did he feel like knowing if she was fine? Why did he feel like giving her an explanation?

"Dammit, Khushi Kumari Gupta," Arnav's frustration heightened.

He hated her. He hated her for everything she was doing to him. He felt like he did not know himself any longer. He was never at loss of words. He was never confused. He never lacked reasons. This one woman had messed him up big time. He hated her.

The phone kept ringing on the other end as Arnav pressed the "call" button.  No one picked it up. He kept calling her again & again for almost half an hour. All he could do was walk across the room impatiently, throw the phone here & there a number of times and pick it up again, curse repeatedly – but nothing calmed him down.

He hated her. And he needed her to pick up the phone.

After which felt like a millionth time, he could finally hear the voice that instantly soothed his heart.

"Hello."

All the time he heard the phone ringing, he kept thinking how he was going to curse her .. blast her .. tell her how much he hated her. He finally got his chance.

"Kahan ho tum? Aur phone kyun nehi utha rehi thi?"

"Woh, I am in temple."

"Do you have any idea how scared I got? Why didn't you pick up the phone?"

"Woh, I did not notice.."

"Don't you ever do this to me again. Samjhi tum?"

"Ji. I will talk to you later."

"No! Don't you dare hang up the phone. Kahan ho tum?"

"I told you I am in temple."

"Which temple?"

"Why do you need to know?"

"Khusi. Stop fussing. Tell me exactly where you are."

"I am in Devi Maiya's temple near my home. Happy?"

"You stay there. I am coming."

"Why?"

"Because I want to."

"Dekhiye, Arnavji. If you have anything to say, you can say it over phone. You better not waste time. The show is only few hours away."

Arnav hated her for making him so frustrated all the time. Why did she always have to disagree with him?

"Don't play with my patience, Khushi. Stay where you are. I am coming."

Khushi kept staring at her phone as Arnav hang up without letting her say another word.

Why did he sound so worried? And why did he want to come here?

There was nothing to talk between them. Nothing beyond work. Not anymore.

Not being able to control her emotions & tears, Khushi had run to the temple to find solace.

Only her best friend could ease her heart, she knew. She poured her heart to Devi Maiya and finally decided that enough was enough. There was no point crying over something that was never there.

What was really there between them? Just some moments. Just some weak moments.

Just some really weak moments.

Khushi could feel her phone vibrating for a long time but she did not feel like talking to anyone. She placed her case to Devi Maiya. She gave her logics and refuted that herself. She thought about the whole situation from every angle possible. And finally, she promised, she would start everything afresh. She would forget everything that she thought mattered. She would make sure she never let herself feel that way ever.

All those meant nothing. Arnav Singh Raizada meant nothing.

When she finally had made some peace with herself and decided she could move on, the Laad Governor had to barge in again.

"Devi Maiya," Khushi whined helplessly, "Aap kya chahti hai? Why is he calling me now? Why did not you give me enough strength to not pick up the phone?"

Devi Maiya smiled.

She wanted exactly what her crazy devotee wanted.

As Khushi sat on the steps and waited anxiously for Arnav to appear, Devi Maiya too waited anxiously with anticipation.

It was time for a showdown.

"Don't screw up," Devi Maiya murmured.