CHAPTER 28
WEEKEND TALKS
Monami pushed open the door to Sid's room. She glanced around, sighing a little. It was empty.
She walked in, glancing around. She sighed again. Her gaze fell on a black bead bracelet, making her pause. She smiled a little, picking it up and running her fingers over it. She paused when she felt a light bump on the underside, turning it over. A chipped edge stared back at her.
'Yeh tune kya kiya?' A 8 year old Sid shrieked. 'Tune gira diya ise. Yeh mujhe Mummy ji ne diya tha.' He glared at her. 'Kyun kara tune yeh?'
A 6 year old Monami stared at him with wide eyes. Tears filled her eyes up, overflowing in an instant. 'Sorry, Sid', she said. Her voice quivered with the sobs she was holding back. 'Galti se gir gaya.' She held her ears. 'Sorry.'
Sid scowled at her for a few, angry seconds before sighing at the cascade of tears that fell from her eyes. He turned the bracelet over, inspecting the damage. 'Koi baat nahi', he said. 'Thoda sa toota hai. Main abhi bhi pehen sakta hoon.' He wrapped it around his wrist. It was pretty big on him but he had found a way to make it stay on his thin wrist.
Monami sniffled. 'Sorry', she whined again.
He wiped her tears. 'Koi baat nahi, bacche. Rone ki koi zaroorat nahi hai.'
'Tu mujhse gussa hai?'
'Nahi. Aa jaa, cartoon dekhte hain. Aur rona band kar. Tears se ghar bharna hai kya, Moti Billi?'
She wiped her tears. 'Mujhe Moti Billi mat bula', she whined, sniffling.
Monami stared at the chipped edge. She had seen it way too many times to not recognize it. It couldn't be a different bracelet. That chipped edge. She would recognize it anywhere.
'Iska matlab... yeh woh hi waala bracelet hai?' She thought, blinking. 'Yeh kaise ho sakta hai?'
'Itne bhi bura nahi hain. I feel like there's more to him that he shows. He's not that bad.'
'Kuchh bhi toh nahi. Mujhe bas feeling aa rahi hai.'
'Shapat toh ho gayi. Ab waqt hai ispar final seal lagaane ki. Aapki saari cheezen ko iss aag ke bhaint chadna hoga.'
She sat down on Sid's bed. "Uss din... phir yeh..." She shook her head. "Monu, yeh jagah trained commandos se bhari hui hai. Ek box nahi badal sakte kya yeh log?"
'Arey, bol toh raha hoon, waisa hi banwaa liya. Bharosa nahi kya tujhe mujhpar?'
"Par Sid ne mujhse jhooth bola?"
'Pehli, tum yeh baat secret rakhogi. Kisi ko yeh bhi nahi bataogi ki wahan par koi tha. Kuchh bhi bahaana bana dena. Siddharth ko bhi.'
"Karan Sir ne mujhe Sid se jhooth kehne ko kaha tha. Ho sakta hai Sid ko bhi yeh hi kaha ho?" She muttered to herself. She glanced at the bracelet again. "Sir ne Sid ko bracelet waapas kar diya? Isliye kyunki yeh Sid ki Mumma ka hai?"
'Agar late ho gayi agli class ke liye, toh yeh note dikhaa dena. Koi kuchh nahi kahega tumhe.'
'Agar... agar Abhi kuchh bhi kare, scratch that- koi bhi kuchh bhi kare jisse tum uncomfortable feel karti ho, toh tum mere paas aa sakti ho.'
'Photos ke liye de raha hoon, woh le sakte ho, par iss kamre ke bahar ke nahi. Aur kisi ko call mat karna.'
A small smile appeared on her face. She stared at the bracelet. "Karan Sir ne humaari cheezen jalaayi nahi. Aur Sid ko bhi bracelet waapas kar diya.'
'Wo bura nahi hai. Nariyal hai wo, nariyal. Upar se sakt, aur andar se soft.'
"Nariyal", she said. She chuckled a little to herself. "Nariyal Shergill."
---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---
"Siddharth", Sanju called.
Sid looked up. He glanced at the others, gesturing them to lead before turning and walking back to her. He smiled at her. "Hi."
She hesitated a little. "Kal Sunday hogo." She glanced away. "Hum kaa keh raho the... tu humaare saath chalego?"
"Kab? Kahan?"
"Kal. Hum tujhe kuchh cheez dikhaana chahto hain?"
His eyebrows raised. A small smile spread on his face. "You mean... aapko mere saath Sunday spend karna hai?"
She paused again. "H-Hum dost hogo, na? Dost toh aise bahar jaato hi hain. Tu... tu seedha seedha bol, na? Tujhe aano hai?"
He grinned. "Of course. Hum kahan jaayenge?"
"Thodi door ek bahut achhi market hai, jahan par alag alag prakaar ka samaan milto hai aur bahut saari cheezen hogo. Wahan chalto hai."
"Wow, sounds awesome." He gave her a thumbs up. "Kal milte hain?"
"Tu... tujhe kuchh kaam hogo aaj kaa?"
"Kal party ke chakkar mein thoda homework reh gaya", he said. "Woh finish karna hai. Koi kaam tha kya aaj?"
She shook her head. "Naa. Hum toh bas... tu... tu aaj training par aayego humaare saath? Extra training?"
He made a face. "Sorry. Aaj nahi aa paunga. Thoda kaam zyaada hai. Aaj bhi sabne bahut saara kaam de diya, kal Sunday bolkar. Aaj skip karna padega." He glanced at his watch. "Ma'am, meri class ka time ho raha hai. See you later?"
She jerked her head down slightly. "Haan, theek hai." He turned around, running off quickly. She stared after him, before sighing a little. She hit her forehead. "Iss borante ke saath hum bhi borante ho gayo hain."
---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---
Knock knock.
Karan opened the door, raising his eyebrows. Koel smiled at him nervously. He glanced around the corridor. Empty. "Sorry", she said. "Faizi se milne aayi thi main. I mean... Faizi Sir se. Woh mujhe unse kuchh kaam-"
"Tumhaara boyfriend hai", he said. "Naam se bulaa sakti ho. Aur milne ke liye koi bahaane ki zaroorat nahi hai." He opened the door wider, letting her in. "Baitho. Main Faizi ko message kar deta hoon." He grabbed his phone, shooting a quick text to him.
"Agar woh busy hai, toh-"
"Busy hota, toh main keh deta", he said.
She nodded a little. It was kind of intimidating to sit with Karan casually, and her eyes moved around the room, trying to busy herself. Her gaze fell on a photo frame, behind him on the desk. He was holding a toddler, kissing her cheek. The girl smiled happily, hugging him back. Her eyes widened slightly.
"Karan Sir..." She started. He glanced up from his phone, raising his eyebrows slightly in question. "Aapki beti bhi hai?" She pointed to the photo frame.
He shook his head. "Beti nahi, meri bhatiji hai", he said. "Bhaiya ki beti."
"Aapke Bhaiya bhi special agent hain?"
Karan stared at her for a couple of seconds, before turning around wordlessly. Koel frowned, staring at his back. "Faizi aa raha hai", he said. "Do minute wait kar lo."
"Sir... maine kuchh... galat puchh liya kya?"
He didn't respond for a few seconds, before he shook his head. "Nahi."
"Sorry. Agar aapko achha nahi laga. Ek baat puchhoon?"
He sighed a little. He turned in the chair again, facing her. "Puchho."
"Faizi aur mere relationship se... aapko koi problem hai?"
"Tum apni personal life mein kya karti ho, usse mujhe koi farak nahi padta, Koel."
"Par Faizi kya karta hai, usse toh padta hai?" She shrugged. "Woh toh aapke bhai jaise hai, na?"
He shrugged, nodding. "Woh kisko dost banana chahta hai, kisko date karna chahte hai, woh uski marzi. Mujhe koi farak nahi padta." His eyes narrowed slightly. "Mujhe sirf iss baat se farak padta hai ki woh khush hai ya nahi. Agar kisi ne use... hurt kara, toh..." He trailed off, raising an eyebrow meaningfully.
"Noted." She chuckled slightly. "Waise, Faizi mujhe kayi baar kehta hai ki aap ko logon ke baare mein kaafi care karte ho. I can see it now." She smiled. "Thank you for the phones. Bala bahut khush tha." He nodded slightly. "Ek aur baat puchhoon?"
He heaved another sigh. "Puchho."
"Aapne humaari cheezen kyun jalaayi?"
"Koel... maine jo kara, uska ek reason hai. Main tumhe kuchh samajhaana chahta tha."
She frowned. "Agar jo aap hume samjhaana chahte the, woh hume samajh hi nahi aaya, toh woh kaam karne ka point hi kya?"
'Yeh karne ka faida hi kya, jab inhe samajh hi nahi aaya jo tum samjhaana chahte ho.'
Karan felt his lip curl up slightly. "Tum aur Faizi kaafi similar thoughts rakhte ho", he remarked. He idly spun the scale on his desk, staring at it. "Cheezen jaanne mein aur cheezen samajhne mein farak pata hai tumhe?"
She frowned a little. He glanced up at her. He flicked his eyebrows up a little.
"Do baatein. Pehli, main tumhe reason bataa doon, tumhe woh reason pata toh chal jaayega, par samajh nahi aayega. Jab tum log uss conclusion par khud, apne reasons, apne observations par pahunchoge, toh woh cheez sirf pata nahi chalegi, samajh mein aayegi."
She nodded slightly. "Aur doosri?"
"Tum sab mujhe 6 hafton se jaante ho. 42 days, including the first day jab tum logon ne shapat li thi. Bahut ghante ek din mein ek saath bitaaye hain." He leaned forward a little. "Logon ko samajhna seekho, Koel. Itne time se jaanti ho. Socho... maine kya kara, kyun kara, kaise kara. Jitna exposure tumhe mere saath mila hai, na, utna tumhe kisi ke saath nahi milega. Isse aadhe mein logon ko samajhna hoga. Consciously try karo. Subconsciously khud aane lagega."
"Aap toh humaare trainer hain. Hum aapko kyun analyze karenge?"
He shook his head. "Tumse yeh kisne kaha ki sirf dushman ko analyze karna hota hai? Apne allies ko bhi utne achhe se hi jaano."
"Kyun?"
Karan heaved another sigh. Koel almost melted in her seat. He almost looked... disappointed. She didn't like it. "You have a lot to learn, Koel."
"Aap disappointed hain?" She blurted out.
His eyebrows raised in surprise. "Disappointed? What? Kis cheez se?"
"That... that I can't answer your questions."
A chuckle drew her attention. Faizi walked in, sitting down on the edge of Karan's bed. "Koel, Karan kisi se disappointed nahi hota. Woh sirf khud se expectations rakhta hai. Rahi baat, questions naa answer karne ki, tum toh cadet ho. Hum nahi answer kar paate iske questions." He slapped Karan on the arm lightly. "Janaab ji strategy expert hain. Inka dimaag jaise chalta hai, waisa humaara nahi chalta."
Karan tilted his head slightly. "Main disappointed nahi hoon, Koel. Maine expect bhi nahi kara tha ki tum yeh questions answer kar paogi. Logon ko dekhne ka nazaraiye itni jaldi nahi badalta." He stood up. "Mujhe kabab mein haddi banne ka koi shauk nahi hai. Tum log apna dekho. Main jaa raha hoon." He grabbed his laptop. "Bye." He closed the door after himself.
Koel stared after him, his words echoing in her mind. His questions, his answers... if that was what a special agent's mind was supposed to work like, she was miles behind.
---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---
Sid hopped up in the jeep, sitting down in the passenger seat. He smiled at Sanju excitedly. "Let's go", he whooped.
She smiled slightly. "Tu badha khush hogo?" She asked, pleased. She pulled out of the parking space, pausing at the interest for flashing her ID.
"Of course", he said. "I like exploring new things. Aur dost ke saath ho, toh aur bhi achha hai."
"Jab hum Mumbai aayenge, toh tujhe bhi hume ghumaana padego", she said.
He grinned. "Of course." He held up a finger in thought. "You know, meri ek ex-girlfriend hai. Usne briefly martial arts seekha tha, when we were together. Kaafi cool place thi. I'll take you there."
Sanju frowned. She glanced at him. "Ex-girlfriend?" She repeated.
He nodded, humming. "Kaafi pehle thi. School mein. Woh college ke liye Delhi shift ho gayi, isliye break up ho gaya."
She forced out a slight hum in acknowledgement. 'Matlab... ise uss ladki se koi bhi dikkat naa hai? Agar ise dobara mili woh, toh...' She shook her head slightly. 'Tujhe kaahe ke laane bura lag raho hai, Sanju?' She glanced at Sid, who was staring at the greenery they passed by. 'Chirkut ne paagal kar diya hogo hume.'
"Parso Bala ka janamdin banana kaisa raho?" She asked after a couple of seconds. He grinned, launching into his tales of the day.
---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---
Faizi slapped a hand over Abhi's shoulder, flicking his eyebrows up as he sat down next to him. "Kya kar rahe ho tum itne dhyaan se?"
Abhi looked up, a grin on his face. "Main parso se free time mein videos dekh raha tha. Monami ko pataane ke liye."
His eyebrows raised. "V-Videos?" He asked in surprise.
"Ladkiyon ko kya pasand hota hai. Kaise uncomfortable nahi karna. Uncomfortable hain toh uske signs kya hain. Kaise gifts dene chahiye. Woh sab."
He chuckled slightly. He leaned back on the wall. "Kya socha phir?"
"Phool", he said proudly. "Main Monami ko bahut saare phool dunga. Uska poora kamra phoolon se bhar dunga."
Faizi winced. He kept a hand on his face. "Abhi... itna overboard mat jao. Phool dene tak theek hai, par poora kamra."
His grin dropped. "Use achha nahi lagega?"
"Hume nahi lagta. Thoda... thoda uska taste dhyaan mein rakho. Use itna zyaada attention bhi nahi pasand." He paused, thinking. "Phool theek hai, par thode kam do."
Abhi nodded. "Sahi baat hai", he muttered.
"Roses de do."
"Gulaab toh sab dete hain. Woh itni special hai, toh phool bhi special hone chahiye, na?" He smiled. "Main koi special phool dekh kar lekar aaunga uske liye."
Faizi shrugged. "Tumhaari marzi."
Abhi grinned at him. "Main saari arrangements karke aaya. Thank you, Sir."
Faizi nodded slightly, smiling at him. He followed him with his gaze. 'Iske inn efforts par full stop naa lagaane par, kahin Monami uncomfortable naa ho jaaye.'
'Tum bas ek baar hume kehkar dekho ki tumhe kisi se door rehna hai, phir agar use door rakhne ke liye use goli bhi maarni padhe, hum woh bhi maar denge use. Hum kisi ko tumhaari marzi ke bina tumhaare paas nahi aane denge.'
He shook his head slightly. 'Humne hi Abhi ki harkaton par full stop nahi lagaaya tha. Humaari galti hogi agar isne kuchh ulta kara. Yeh use uncomfortable naa kare, iska khayal hume rakhna hai.'
---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---
Monami swung her legs as she waited for the milk to boil. Footsteps made her look up. Karan.
He glanced at the pan, grabbing some milk from the fridge. She took it from him wordlessly, adding some to the half-boiled milk atop the stove.
"Hi", she said.
Karan glanced at her, nodding. His eyes swept her up, and he raised his eyebrows slightly. "Kya baat hai? Aaj bahut khush lag rahi ho."
She smiled at him, shrugging. "A-Aise hi."
He chuckled slightly. "Okay. Cadets ke saath bahar gayi thi tum?" She shook her head. His eyebrows furrowed slightly. "Kyun?"
She shrugged. "M-Mujhe k-koi kaam n-nahi tha."
"Toh? Relax karne ke liye chali jaaya karo." He leaned against the counter, next to where she sat. "Kya kara tumne poore din?"
She hummed a little, recalling her day. "S-Subah, th-thodi der p-padhai, ph-phir m-maine ph-phone par ek m-movie dekhi, aur ph-phir thodi d-der a-apne Gappu ke s-saath baat kari."
He frowned. "Gappu? Yeh kaun hai?"
"M-Mera b-best friend. P-Paudha hai."
His eyebrows shot up. "Paudha? Woh paudha jo tumhaare room ke desk par rehta hai?"
She nodded. "C-Cute hai, na?"
"Tum usse baat karti ho?"
She frowned. "Aap m-mazaak u-udhaa r-rahe ho?"
He shook his head. "Bilkul nahi. Tum fictional character par ro, paudhe se baat karo, jo karna hai, karo. Mujhe bas yeh sab samajh nahi aata." He poured the milk in the cups, handing one to her.
"Aapne k-kya k-kara p-poora din?"
"Ghar gaya tha", he said. "Thodi der pehle aaya, phir kaam kara." He sipped his coffee.
"Aap h-head t-trainer ke s-saath k-kya kya kaam k-karte ho?"
He chuckled slightly. "Tumhaara aaj baat karne ka mood hai?" He asked.
Her smile dropped. "S-Sorry", she muttered. "Aapko j-jaana hai, toh-"
"Har cheez ko ulta lene ki zaroorat nahi hai tumhe. Tum zyaada kam bolti ho. Thoda bologi, toh achhi baat hai", he cut her off. She smiled slightly, perking up again. "Head trainer ke saath, main academy ke internal affairs dekhta hoon. Aur jab missions hote hain, uspar kaam karta hoon."
Her eyebrows furrowed. "In-internal a-affairs mein k-kya aata hai?"
"Lambi explanation hai", he said. She nodded, staring at him expectantly. "Usually, military academies mein do types ke head hote hain. Internal affairs ke aur external affairs ke. Jo head internal affairs dekhta hai, uski designation unofficial hoti hai, and generally, use 'head' refer nahi karte. Internal affairs mein academy ki smooth working aur maintenance ke liye sab kuchh aata hai. Security, arms, staff quarters, guest rooms, kis mein kaun reh raha hai, sab cheezen ke records, kaun aa raha hai, kaun jaa raha hai, kaunse agents yahan par posted hai, academy mein soliders ke kitne aur kaunse batches hain, sab kuchh oversee karne ka kaam mera aur Faizi ka hai."
She nodded slightly. "Aur B-Batra S-Sir ka k-kaam?"
"Jo bhi cheezen academy ko bahar se affect karti hain. Kaunse missions karne hain, kaunse agents yahan rahenge, kaunse nahi, kis agent ko kaunse mission par bhejna hai, kis mission par kya ho raha hai, saara paperwork oversee karna, headquarters ko report karna, yeh saara kuchh unke kaam mein aata hai. Main bhi unhe report karta hoon, toh meri reports padhte hain."
"I-Itna s-saara k-kaam aapko aur F-Faizi Sir ko k-kyun a-akele? I m-mean, s-saara in-internal a-affairs dekhna?"
"Humaare under bahut log hote hain. Hum sirf supervise karte hain." He paused a little. "Bigger picture samajhti ho tum? Har section mein log ek chhota sa section dekhte hain. Agar koi aisa banda hota hai jise academy ke baare mein kaafi information hoti hai, toh chances kam hote hain ki koi bhi cheez miss ho." He shrugged. "Itna kaam bhi nahi hota hai. Jab problem hoti hai, tab manage karna hota hai. Warna, sab logon ko apna kaam aata hai."
She nodded again in understanding. "Aap a-abhi bhi m-mission par k-kaam k-kar rahe ho?" He paused slightly. "M-Matlab only if you c-can t-tell. M-Main bas c-curious thi."
"Not actively", he said carefully.
She frowned. "A-Actively m-matlab?"
"Hum usually missions ko active ya passive mein classify karte hain", he said. "Active missions mein humaara goal aur target dono kaafi clear hota hai. Passive mein jo missions humne kare hain, uske hints lekar hum koi aur active mission banaane ki koshish karte hain." She nodded again. "Tumhe bahut shauk hai, na, strategy ka?"
Her eyes lit up and she nodded. "M-Mera f-favorite hai."
He paused in thought. "Extra kaam karogi? Strategy based?" She nodded eagerly. "Kal class ke baad, jab bhi free hogi, mere kamre mein aa jaana. Ise apni extra duty maan lena."
"Th-thank you", she said.
"Do din mein gaaliyan dogi, jab kaam zyaada ho jaayega", he said. He kept his mug in the sink. "Good night."
She waved at him, hopping down from the slab and keeping hers in the sink too. "G-Good n-night."
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