Devakshi FF: Small Moments
Part 6
Oh no.
No no no no.
This could not be happening to her!
Of all the places in the world, Kushal just had to find her here.
Sonakshi's coffee was ready and the man at the counter had placed it before her already. She gripped the cup tightly and pretended to not hear Kushal at all. She turned around and headed straight for the elevator. But if things happened the way Sonakshi wanted them to, then Sonakshi would never have met Kushal in the first place. So, there was no way in the world that things would go per her wishes now.
Just before Sona reached the elevator, Kushal caught up to her and skid to a stop right in front of her. She had no choice but to look up and continue to pretend that she hadn't heard him the first time. So, she looked up at him and pretended to be slightly surprised and said "Kushal, tum yahan kya kar rahey ho?", but she said this without any hint of a smile. Kushal on the other hand was smiling from ear to ear and seemed overly excited to see Sonakshi there. "Arey Sona! Pata hai main tumhey kab se bula raha tha! Kitna achha lag raha hai tumhey dekhkey. Tum kaisi ho? Main yahan Marketing department me kaam karta hoon. Buss kuch hi mahiney huye hai!" he said, standing too close to Sonakshi.
Sonakshi nodded her head without much enthusiasm and said, "Oh achha. Good to know. Main theek hoon. Par abhi mujhey bohot kaam hai so I'll get going." She all but ran towards the elevator because she could feel panic building inside her chest on being so close to Kushal. Before she could make her grand escape Kushal said, "Oh tum yahan kaam karti hon then? That's fantastic! Ab toh hum har roz mil sakengey!" With an even broader smile on his face. Sonakshi wanted to cry at that. She could not imagine staying around him for five minutes, meeting him every day would be unimaginable. So she gave him a tight smile and said "Mujhey nahin lagta yeh ho sakega. It was nice to see you. Abhi main chalti hoon" and with that she resumed walking to the elevator with her coffee mug gripped tightly in one hand.
But Kushal seemed as persistent as ever. He fell into step beside Sonakshi and said, "Theek hai, At least tumharey cabin tak toh chodd hi sakta hoon" he said stepping into the elevator with her. Sonakshi started protesting but the elevator started moving. But instead of going up it went down to the ground floor. Sonakshi tried to keep as much distance as possible between her and Kushal. After the incident involving him, that had scarred Sonakshi deeply, she felt scared to be alone with him. It made her feel vulnerable. Thankfully there were two other people in there with them. But they got down at the ground floor.
Sonakshi was just about to change her mind and jump out the elevator as the doors closed but just at the last minute a hand came in between the elevator doors and it rolled back to reveal Dev, immaculately dress in a black shirt and grey suit and trousers, with a file in his hand. Sonakshi had never been so happy to see Dev before. If she could, she would have lunged at him to give him a hug, but that would seem highly inappropriate at the moment. Plus, her heart might have just burst if she hugged him because it usually beat at super speed when he was around, though she had not yet figured out why. She must have looked really uneasy because the moment Dev stepped into the elevator with them he looked at Sonakshi and asked "Dr. Bose, aap theek toh hain?" And Sonakshi was surprised to see real concern in his eyes!
"H-Haan Mr.Dixit, I'm absolutely fine." She said with a smile. Then she paused. She was really happy that he was here. So she followed that by a bigger and more genuine smile and said "Good morning Mr.Dixit. Aapka meeting kaisa raha?" Dev was thrown for a second. He just stared at Sonakshi. "Kitni pretty lagti hai yeh smile kartey huye" thought Dev still looking at her. When he realised what he was thinking, he mentally slapped himself. Aloud he cleared his throat and said, "Good morning Dr. Bose. Meeting was fine." In the background, after curiously observing their exchange Kushal spoke up, "Good morning Sir." Hearing his voice Dev snapped his head towards Kushal and for the first time noticed that Sonakshi and Dev were not alone. This surprised Dev even more. He was usually a very sharp observer. What on earth was happening to him?
When he realized that he had still not returned Kushal's greeting, Dev dipped his head slightly in a nod and greeted him back. But when his eyes travelled back to Sonakshi he found she was eyeing Kushal wearily. Instantly, much to his own amazement, his protective instincts kicked in. He positioned himself between the both of them, almost as if he was a shield between Kushal and Sonakshi. Kushal on the other hand said, "Tumhara cabin kis floor pe hai Sonakshi?" Sonakshi kept her eyes on the floor and quietly and replied, "Mr.Dixit ke floor me" while Dev observed them closely. They knew each other, he deduced. But he asked no questions, just observed.
"Main tumharey nichhey waaley floor pe hi hoon. I'll drop you till your cabin. Koi problem nahin hoga." Kushal said while bending forward to look at Sonakshi behind Dev. Sonakshi panicked again and said "Nahin nahin. Uski koi zaroorat nahin." Dev sensing her hesitation and, he was surprised to realise, her fear, spoke up on cue, "No need Kushal. Main hoon naah. Tum jao." His toned left no chance for an argument and Kushal had no choice but to get off at his own floor with a final wave to Sonakshi which she did not bother to return. Sonakshi knew Dev has saved her deliberately. She understood that he had sensed her unease. She feared his questions. But they never came. They quietly got off the elevator and walked towards the cabins. Still no questions. Instead he passed her cabin and made way towards his. Just before he got in Sonakshi called out, "Mr.Dixit?" Dev turned around "Kahiye Dr. Bose?" Sonakshi smiled a small smile, "thank you." Dev showed no expression on his face and just nodded as a sign or welcome and then turned around and walked to Tina to talk about his scheduled meetings.
Sonakshi once again just gaped at the empty space. How could someone be so changeable? He helped her, but seemed indifferent when she thanked him? He was so mysterious. She had never met someone like him. She sighed and turned around to go in. She sipped her coffee and found it had cooled completely. She made a face and decided to throw the coffee into the bin beside her door. She stood in front of the bin contemplating whether to throw it or not, because it would be a waste of money even if it cost very little. But before she could, she heard Dev's voice saying "Dr. Bose, agar aap who coffee nahin peena chahti toh phek dijiye, par kisike shirt pe mat phekna please." Sonakshi snapped her head to look at him only to find him standing at his cabin door with a small, almost invisible smirk. The moment their eyes met, she saw his eyes twinkle with mischief and in the next second the door closed and he was gone.
"Hey bhagwaan" Sonakshi thought. "Yeh Mr.Dixit toh mujhey pagal karkey hi chodengey"
Throughout the day Sonakshi worked like a robot, meeting employee after employee and by the end of the day she had met exactly half of the employees on her list. She was happy with her speed and knew she would be doing just fine. She could have met a few more people if thoughts of Kushal being just one floor below her had not plagued her. It scared her that he was so close to her. He could come into her cabin anytime he wanted and this made her feel dizzy. Now that she had finished all her meetings for the day, she thought back to the incident. She had met Kushal when she was in college. He was a classmate's brother and would often meet with them when they hung out in a group. Slowly Sonakshi and Kushal got to know each other better and in a few months, they were in a relationship. But what Sonakshi didn't know was that Kushal was an A-class actor. Nobody could ever easily know what lay underneath that exterior. And Sonakshi had figured it out too late. She had to bear the brunt of that one incident that still made her feel sick.
She suddenly realised that she was crying and shaking slightly, remembering the incident. She quickly packed her bags put her things back in order, bid a haste goodbye to Tina and rushed out. Her tears just wouldn't stop. She hid them the best as she could and ran to her scooty. She drove like a madwoman and reached home in a flash. She dried her eyes to look normal to her family and then went it. After exchanging hi and hellos she made an excuse of not feeling well and went straight to her room.
Once she was in the safety of her room, she broke down completely. She was scared. She didn't know how she would handle seeing Kushal every day. She didn't want to be near him or alone with him. She remembered how terrible it was in the morning to be alone with him in the elevator. But then she remembered Dev His chocolate coloured eyes. Whenever he was around, a sense of safety washed over her. Yes. Her Mr. Dixit would be there. It wouldn't be bad. She would use him as her shield. She sat up suddenly. "Yeh hya soch rahi hai Sona! Boss hai who tere. Aisi ulti seedhi baatein mat soch" she said hitting herself on the head. But then why did she yearn for a hug from a man she never hugged before?
What was happening to her?
She went down to dinner later having corrected her appearance. She was still scared. But she tried to hide it as much as she could. She pretended to have fun with her family, but her mother saw right through her. "Shona? Tui theek acheesh toh? (Shona, Are you okay?)
"Haan Ma. I'm fine" Sonakshi said with as much conviction as possible. She didn't believe her one bit, but she didn't want to pester her daughter unnecessarily so she let it be. After filling her stomach with some little amount of food, she returned to her room, but could not sleep. Every time she closed her eyes she saw Kushal's smiling face and it gave her Goosebumps. After tossing and turning a million times she heard her doorbell ring. She sat up quickly. It was twelve thirty now. Who could it be?
Suddenly she remembered how Kushal had the habit of turning up at odd hours. Her blood ran cold. She didn't want to open the door. But she would have to. She mustered up as much courage as she could, she tiptoed to the door and opened it apprehensively. And the moment she opened it, her eyes turned wide.
It was him.
******************************************************************
Toh kaisa laga?
Good bad ugly?
Chappal ya flowers?
Do do jo dena hai de do!
I'm waiting for your comments!
Enjoy!
A widow, Gauri met her long lost friend Omkara in a family function, who still ...
Life Journey of two people poles apart in career, status and style. One is the ...
Comments (0)
View all