Chapter 38

EPISODE-38

 

Navin didn't get up before morning. His fever had calmed down. He was feeling much better. He looked around but could not figure out where he was. He was all alone in the room. He tried to get up and sit but he was still too weak to do that. Naina entered in the room.

"Oh! Good Morning Bhaiyya." She tried to behave in her usual self.

"Naina! Good Morning."

"Ab aapki tabiyat kaisi hai? You know what kal to aapne mujhe dara hi diya."

"Tujhe darr bhi lagta hai?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"Kuch nahin baba....Mazak kar raha tha."

 

Before he could say anything after that, Naina put a thermometer in his mouth. He still had little temperature but there was nothing to worry about that.

"Raj kahan hai?"

"Woh bahar gaya hai... Kuch medicines laane."

 

Naina helped Navin to sit and adjusted his pillow. Meanwhile Rajveer and Abdul also turned up. Naina suddenly started looking disturbed as he entered.

"You are looking much better Navin."

"Yeah."

Rajveer introduced him to Abdul. They exchanged some formalities and Abdul sought their permission to leave. He had to go back for something important. He told them that he would return the following day and left.

 

Three of them loked at each other quietly. Navin looked pensive.

"Kya baat hai Navin? Kya soch raha hai?"

 

"Freedom... Sach kahoon yaar. Main to matlab hi bhool gaya tha is shabd ka. Nahin socha tha ki main kabhi wapas tum logon se mil paaonga. Aur yeh to bilkul bhi nahin socha tha ki tum log mujhe dhoondhne ke liye yahan aaoge. Tujhe dekh ke laga ki main shayad koi sapna dekh raha hoon jo ek pal mein toot jaayega aur jab ise dekha, tab to yakeen ho gaya ki main sapna hi dekh raha hoon."

 

"Hmmmmm.... Mujhe to laga tha ki sirf Neeti pe se apka harosa uth gaya but I didn't kno ki hum logon pe se bhi aapka bharosa uth gaya hai....Oh my God...Neeti... Aapko usko phone karna tha na. Uffo Bhaiyya...main bhooli to bhooli..... aap kaise bhool gaye use."

 

"Arrey haan.... Even I suppose you should call her up." Saying this Rajveer took out the satellite phone and handed it over to Navin.

"Yeh le... Call her up. Hum dono aate hain." Rajveer and Naina left the room leaving him alone.

 

Navin took the phone but could not dial the number. Something stopped him from doing that.

 

Rajveer and Naina strolled in the corridors. They were not allowed to go everywhere. So they were wandering within their defined limits. Naina stayed with him for a couple of minutes but after that she could not bear his presence. She turned to leave but Rajveer stopped her.

"Naina tumhein nahin lagta we need to talk."

She took a minute to answer.

"I don't think there is anything left to talk."

"There is.....I want to talk about Navin."

"What is it about Bhaiyya?"

"I don't think Navin should know ki hamare beech mein kuch bhi problem hain... Not now atleast."

"Hmmmmm......."

"Aaj bhi mere aate hi tumhara reaction.... I saw that but thankfully Navin didn't.... Naina cant we behave normally in front of Navin."

"You really think it's that easy?"

"No... I only think it's not impossible." He replied curtly and left. He returned to Navin without turning back to look at Naina even for once, who was in tears.

 

He saw Navin sitting with the phone in his hand. He hadn't called her yet.

"Navin yeh phone maine tujhe dekhne ke liye nahin diya tha... Neeti ko call karne ke liye diya tha. Why haven't you called her yet? Woh bhi teri call ka wait kar rahi hogi."

 

Navin didn't reply him.

"Is everything alright?"

"Is there anything alright Raj?"

"Tu mujhe seedhi-saadi bhaasha mein samjha sakta hai ki problem kya hai?"

"Nothing yaar..... Bas woh..."

"Navin come clean... What's with you?"

"Main decide nahin kar paa raha hoon ki I should call her up or not."

"Of course you should...I can't see a reason why you should not."

"Raj tujhe dikhayi nahin de rahi hai kya meri condition. She can find better options in her life than a handicapped man."

"Tu pagal ho gaya hai kya?"

"Raj tu samajh nahin raha hai yaar..."

"Navin... nothing doing. Tu use call kar raha hai and don't you even think about something like this. Tujhe Neeti ki fikr hai na... to kam se kam ek baar usse to pooch le ki woh kya chahti hai? Besides you know that she is..."

"Haan Raj pata hai isiliye to confusion hai."

"Navin itna mat soch. Call her up."

"Raj but......."

 

Rajveer himself dialed her number.

"Hello Neeti."

"Raj... Hi.How are you? Kahan ho tum log?"

"Neeti hum sab theek hain. Tu woh sab chod and talk to Navin. Aur ise kuch samjha... Dimaag kharab ho gaya hai iska."

"Kya hua?"

"Use lagta hai ki you can have better options in your life than him... a handicap!!!"

"Phone do Navin ko."

 

Rajveer gave the phone to Navin and stayed back to make sure he doesn't disconnect. Navin was getting mad at Rajveer for telling her all this. He was felling too embarrassed to talk. Finally he started the conversation with a lot of hesitation.

"Hi Neetika."

"How are you?"

"Much better."

"Alekh called me up last night. He told me that Raj aur Naina ne tumhein dhoondh liya hai."

"Yeah."

"Naina theek hai?"

"Haan."

 

And then there was a silence. None of them said even a single word.

Finally Neetika broke the silence.

"Navin tum apna dhyaan rakhna. Aur jaldi wapas aa jao tum sab. Maa ko pata chal gaya hai ki Naina aur maine jhooth bola tha. Baaki ki baatein baad mein bhi ho sakti hain. You take care. Bye."

"Bye."

 

"Kuch nahin kaha hoga usne bhi tujhe. Haina?"

"Raj... Dubara kabhi aisa mat karna."

"Fine. But yeh to bata ki usne kaha ki nahin kuch."

"Nahin.... Sirf itna ki we will talk about it later."

"Great. But I hope you realized that you have hurt her."

"Waise Maa-Baba ko Naina ke jhooth ke baare mein pata chal gaya hai." He tried to change the topic successfully.

"Bas ab yehi hone ki kami reh gayi thi." He was feeling badly irritated.

 

Killing the time was getting difficult. Each one of them had their own problem. Their life was taking strange turns but there wasn't much they could do about it. They could not sort out their problems because their only concern was to save their lives and return. The entire day passed.

 

Next day, as promised, Abdul returned sometime around noon but this time he wasn't alone. Someone accompanied him.