Chapter 38
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Chapter 36:
The days before the exams passed in a daze for most of KMA. It wasn't unusual to see cadets muttering to themselves as they walked down the halls or even as they sat eating their lunch, memorising all of the facts and figures they would need to pass their written tests. Most of the time everybody could be found in the library or the canteen, reading books and writing down notes. All their teachers could do for them was to provide moral support and answer questions. Raj purposefully kept away from Naina, knowing that she didn't need to be distracted right now.
Everybody was so busy that they had hardly any time at all to prepare for the graduation ball, which would be held the night before their actual graduation. While some cadets chose to take an afternoon off to go shopping, others requested their parents to send an outfit from home, not wanting to take any time off study. Pooja was glad that she didn't have to worry, because along with a sherwani for Ali, his sisters had sent her a beautiful salwar kameez to wear. Naina had just been considering whether she should ask her parents to send her an outfit, when she entered her room after a long day of study to see a box sitting on her bed.
Curiously, Naina opened it and gasped in delight when she saw a gorgeous orange and pink sari inside, with some matching bangles. Seeing a note underneath she quickly picked it up to read.
'Naina, I know it's not too fancy, but your beauty has always been in your simplicity. A small present for my best cadet.'
Raj hadn't signed his name, but Naina knew immediately who the present was from. Squealing in happiness, Naina held the sari up against her in front of the mirror, marvelling at what a good choice he had made. She was so excited that it didn't even occur to her that she had no idea how to wear a sari.
Placing it carefully back in the box, Naina ran out of the room intending to go and thank Raj immediately. On the way out she crashed into Pooja who was just on the way to their room before dinner.
"Careful Naina, you almost injured me with such a fast outgoing!" Pooja told her with a smile, "What's the hurry?"
"Go and see what's on my bed and then you'll understand!" Naina told her with a grin, and without waiting for a reply, ran off again in the direction of Raj's office. Naina was long gone when Pooja opened the box, but the rest of the girls' hostel could hear her shriek with delight that her friend had gotten such a lovely outfit for the ball.
Naina didn't stop until she reached Raj's room, flinging the door open without bothering to knock. At the sound, Raj looked up from the book he was reading and smiled, knowing exactly why Naina had come to see him. Quickly she closes the door behind her.
"Thank you," was the first thing she told him, still grinning in happiness. "It's the most beautiful gift I've ever gotten."
"I'm glad," Raj tells her, standing up from the chair, "Because it's the first gift I've ever gotten you."
Naina realises that he's right, it is the first gift she's ever received from him. "Well it's perfect," she tells him, "Where did you find the time to go and get it without me realising?"
"Well madam, you've been so busy with your exam preparations that it was quite easy for me to sneak out of the academy and go shopping." He tells her.
"It's good you gave it to me today, I was about to call my parents and ask them to get me something." She tells him, "After all, there's only five days left until the ball. I know we have a day after exams end but I didn't want to wait until then in case I didn't find anything."
"I haven't had to chance to ask you, you've been so busy with exams. Who are you going with to the ball?" Obviously Raj and Naina couldn't go together, as it would've exposed their relationship. Raj trusted Naina, he was happy for her to go with anybody, but the inner boyfriend inside him still wanted to know beforehand and hoped it was somebody he would approve of.
"Why? Are you getting jealous?" Naina asks him teasingly, "Afraid that I'll go with somebody better looking than you?"
Knowing perfectly well that she was trying to make him jealous, Raj fixed a stern look on his face. "Don't even try that with me, Naina, you know I'm not the jealous type. But yes, I want to make sure that you're going with somebody… suitable."
"Oh…. 'suitable'", Naina continued, still teasing him, "And what would that be? Completely ugly? Blind? Or maybe forty years old and bald?"
Raj shrugged, it didn't sound too bad to him.
"So Major, what are you going to do if my date wants to dance with me?" Naina continued, "What are you going to do if he thinks I look as good in that sari as you think I will?"
Taking measured steps towards Naina, Raj watched in amusement as she backed away slightly, wondering if she'd taken the joke a bit too far. Reaching out to grab her hand, Raj spun her so that she was in his arms, placing his hands on his waist to make sure she couldn't escape.
"Well…." Raj drawled, drawing the word out slowly. "It wouldn't matter to me, because I would still know that you're mine," leaning down, he kissed her cheek, "and only mine." He stopped and considered for a minute, "But yes, if he seemed to be touching you too much, or in the wrong places, or maybe even at all, then I might have to break his arms."
He grinned down at her to let her know he was joking, well, half joking.
"Oh God," Naina exclaims dramatically, "In that case I'm not letting Yudi anywhere near you before the fresher's ball. I can't have you scaring off my date when it was such an effort to get one."
Raj stared at Naina, wondering if he'd misheard her. "You're going with Yudi?" he asked incredulously.
"Why? Is there anything wrong with Yudi?" Naina asked him, raising one eyebrow, "Are you insulting my date?"
"No, not at all!" Raj told her hastily, "In fact I think you've made a perfect choice. I'm just a bit surprised that's all…"
"Well think about it, how many options do I really have?" Naina asked him, looking at it from a practical position. "Obviously I can't turn up with you. I didn't want to go with Huda, as he's only recently exorcised the ghost of his obsession with me. Besides, he won't have any trouble getting a date. Alekh is going with Neelu and Ali is going with Pooja. That left Yudi and I without dates, so we decided to go together since neither of us can go with who we'd really like to."
Raj doesn't make a comment about Naina's last statement, he knows perfectly well what she's referring to. They've never discussed the bond that they've both noticed between Shalini and Yudi, feeling that it's best for those two to work it out themselves without any interference.
"So who are you going with?" Naina asks him, placing her arms around his neck, since Raj's are still around her waist. He begins to sway with her in his arms, dancing to imaginary music.
"Shalini, who else?" he tells her with a slight shrug.
"Who else?" Naina says in the same joking tone, "Should I be jealous now?"
Raj laughs, "Well considering that there's only two eligible women on the academy staff, and the other one is Lolitaji, who did you think I was going to go with?"
Naina laughs at that, imagining Raj going to the ball with Lolitaji, and Suriji glaring at him the whole night.
"Well good choice," she tells him, "At least this way I won't be worried about whether your date is flirting with you all night."
"So are you going to save at least one dance for me?" Raj asks her, taking one of his hands off her waist to grab one of her hands, so that they're now in a dancing pose. Slowly he begins to waltz her around the room, and Naina giggles, as he spins her around.
"Well, I think that we could probably manage one dance without anybody suspecting anything." She tells him. "That's if your date can spare you."
"I'm sure that she will," Raj replied, "But the real difficulty is going to be resisting you for the rest of the night."
Naina smiles at him, blushing slightly due to his words and Raj dips her suddenly, then keeping her in the same position, leans down to kiss her.
"A good luck kiss, for the exams." He tells her, and then swings Naina back up again.
"Then I'm certainly going to come first." She tells him, "But just make sure you don't get this carried away at the ball," she warns him, "I would hate to have gotten this far only to be discovered the day before I graduate."
"Well it'll be difficult to resist, but I should be able to control myself." Raj tells her, "And besides, why do you think I'm going with Shalini? If I start forgetting, I know she'll pull me back into line."
Naina laughs, agreeing with him. She doesn't mind Dr Shalini's interference because she knows that Shalini is only trying to protect them.
"But, uh, Raj…" Naina begins to say hesitantly.
"What is it, Naina?" he asks her.
"Come to my room half an hour before the ball starts," she tells him, looking up through lowered eyelashes "I want you to be the first one to see me wearing the sari."
With a last longing backwards glance, she leaves Raj and heads back to the mess to join Pooja, smiling at herself while she imagines his reaction.
Raj stands there in a daze for a moment, and sighs at the thought of Naina wearing the sari he has bought her. Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, he decides he's very thankful that she's graduating in less than a week. At least after that he won't be breaking any rules when he has these types of thoughts about her.
Until then, he's just going to have to keep his feelings under control.
Well guys, next update will be the ball, and in case you're interested, here is what they'll all be wearing:
Naina: http://www.tisaya.com/product_detail_image.asp?id=460
Pooja: http://www.tisaya.com/product_detail_image.asp?id=514
Neelu: http://www.tisaya.com/product_detail_image.asp?id=617
Shalini: http://www.tisaya.com/product_detail_image.asp?id=606
Raj: http://www.diwansaheb.com/glpcat/clnt_prd_ep.pl?pcid=72&cloc =13957_10032636_13950&iid=10015302
Ali : http://www.millionairebombay.com/product_info.php?products_i d=42&osCsid=1d5b744176159c2a9354452576d94a86
Huda : http://utopianvision.co.uk/bollywood/fashion/?catid=5&prodid =MZ05104
Alekh: http://utopianvision.co.uk/bollywood/fashion/?catid=5&prodid =MZ0458
Yudi: http://utopianvision.co.uk/bollywood/fashion/?catid=5&prodid =MZ006101
The days before the exams passed in a daze for most of KMA. It wasn't unusual to see cadets muttering to themselves as they walked down the halls or even as they sat eating their lunch, memorising all of the facts and figures they would need to pass their written tests. Most of the time everybody could be found in the library or the canteen, reading books and writing down notes. All their teachers could do for them was to provide moral support and answer questions. Raj purposefully kept away from Naina, knowing that she didn't need to be distracted right now.
Everybody was so busy that they had hardly any time at all to prepare for the graduation ball, which would be held the night before their actual graduation. While some cadets chose to take an afternoon off to go shopping, others requested their parents to send an outfit from home, not wanting to take any time off study. Pooja was glad that she didn't have to worry, because along with a sherwani for Ali, his sisters had sent her a beautiful salwar kameez to wear. Naina had just been considering whether she should ask her parents to send her an outfit, when she entered her room after a long day of study to see a box sitting on her bed.
Curiously, Naina opened it and gasped in delight when she saw a gorgeous orange and pink sari inside, with some matching bangles. Seeing a note underneath she quickly picked it up to read.
'Naina, I know it's not too fancy, but your beauty has always been in your simplicity. A small present for my best cadet.'
Raj hadn't signed his name, but Naina knew immediately who the present was from. Squealing in happiness, Naina held the sari up against her in front of the mirror, marvelling at what a good choice he had made. She was so excited that it didn't even occur to her that she had no idea how to wear a sari.
Placing it carefully back in the box, Naina ran out of the room intending to go and thank Raj immediately. On the way out she crashed into Pooja who was just on the way to their room before dinner.
"Careful Naina, you almost injured me with such a fast outgoing!" Pooja told her with a smile, "What's the hurry?"
"Go and see what's on my bed and then you'll understand!" Naina told her with a grin, and without waiting for a reply, ran off again in the direction of Raj's office. Naina was long gone when Pooja opened the box, but the rest of the girls' hostel could hear her shriek with delight that her friend had gotten such a lovely outfit for the ball.
Naina didn't stop until she reached Raj's room, flinging the door open without bothering to knock. At the sound, Raj looked up from the book he was reading and smiled, knowing exactly why Naina had come to see him. Quickly she closes the door behind her.
"Thank you," was the first thing she told him, still grinning in happiness. "It's the most beautiful gift I've ever gotten."
"I'm glad," Raj tells her, standing up from the chair, "Because it's the first gift I've ever gotten you."
Naina realises that he's right, it is the first gift she's ever received from him. "Well it's perfect," she tells him, "Where did you find the time to go and get it without me realising?"
"Well madam, you've been so busy with your exam preparations that it was quite easy for me to sneak out of the academy and go shopping." He tells her.
"It's good you gave it to me today, I was about to call my parents and ask them to get me something." She tells him, "After all, there's only five days left until the ball. I know we have a day after exams end but I didn't want to wait until then in case I didn't find anything."
"I haven't had to chance to ask you, you've been so busy with exams. Who are you going with to the ball?" Obviously Raj and Naina couldn't go together, as it would've exposed their relationship. Raj trusted Naina, he was happy for her to go with anybody, but the inner boyfriend inside him still wanted to know beforehand and hoped it was somebody he would approve of.
"Why? Are you getting jealous?" Naina asks him teasingly, "Afraid that I'll go with somebody better looking than you?"
Knowing perfectly well that she was trying to make him jealous, Raj fixed a stern look on his face. "Don't even try that with me, Naina, you know I'm not the jealous type. But yes, I want to make sure that you're going with somebody… suitable."
"Oh…. 'suitable'", Naina continued, still teasing him, "And what would that be? Completely ugly? Blind? Or maybe forty years old and bald?"
Raj shrugged, it didn't sound too bad to him.
"So Major, what are you going to do if my date wants to dance with me?" Naina continued, "What are you going to do if he thinks I look as good in that sari as you think I will?"
Taking measured steps towards Naina, Raj watched in amusement as she backed away slightly, wondering if she'd taken the joke a bit too far. Reaching out to grab her hand, Raj spun her so that she was in his arms, placing his hands on his waist to make sure she couldn't escape.
"Well…." Raj drawled, drawing the word out slowly. "It wouldn't matter to me, because I would still know that you're mine," leaning down, he kissed her cheek, "and only mine." He stopped and considered for a minute, "But yes, if he seemed to be touching you too much, or in the wrong places, or maybe even at all, then I might have to break his arms."
He grinned down at her to let her know he was joking, well, half joking.
"Oh God," Naina exclaims dramatically, "In that case I'm not letting Yudi anywhere near you before the fresher's ball. I can't have you scaring off my date when it was such an effort to get one."
Raj stared at Naina, wondering if he'd misheard her. "You're going with Yudi?" he asked incredulously.
"Why? Is there anything wrong with Yudi?" Naina asked him, raising one eyebrow, "Are you insulting my date?"
"No, not at all!" Raj told her hastily, "In fact I think you've made a perfect choice. I'm just a bit surprised that's all…"
"Well think about it, how many options do I really have?" Naina asked him, looking at it from a practical position. "Obviously I can't turn up with you. I didn't want to go with Huda, as he's only recently exorcised the ghost of his obsession with me. Besides, he won't have any trouble getting a date. Alekh is going with Neelu and Ali is going with Pooja. That left Yudi and I without dates, so we decided to go together since neither of us can go with who we'd really like to."
Raj doesn't make a comment about Naina's last statement, he knows perfectly well what she's referring to. They've never discussed the bond that they've both noticed between Shalini and Yudi, feeling that it's best for those two to work it out themselves without any interference.
"So who are you going with?" Naina asks him, placing her arms around his neck, since Raj's are still around her waist. He begins to sway with her in his arms, dancing to imaginary music.
"Shalini, who else?" he tells her with a slight shrug.
"Who else?" Naina says in the same joking tone, "Should I be jealous now?"
Raj laughs, "Well considering that there's only two eligible women on the academy staff, and the other one is Lolitaji, who did you think I was going to go with?"
Naina laughs at that, imagining Raj going to the ball with Lolitaji, and Suriji glaring at him the whole night.
"Well good choice," she tells him, "At least this way I won't be worried about whether your date is flirting with you all night."
"So are you going to save at least one dance for me?" Raj asks her, taking one of his hands off her waist to grab one of her hands, so that they're now in a dancing pose. Slowly he begins to waltz her around the room, and Naina giggles, as he spins her around.
"Well, I think that we could probably manage one dance without anybody suspecting anything." She tells him. "That's if your date can spare you."
"I'm sure that she will," Raj replied, "But the real difficulty is going to be resisting you for the rest of the night."
Naina smiles at him, blushing slightly due to his words and Raj dips her suddenly, then keeping her in the same position, leans down to kiss her.
"A good luck kiss, for the exams." He tells her, and then swings Naina back up again.
"Then I'm certainly going to come first." She tells him, "But just make sure you don't get this carried away at the ball," she warns him, "I would hate to have gotten this far only to be discovered the day before I graduate."
"Well it'll be difficult to resist, but I should be able to control myself." Raj tells her, "And besides, why do you think I'm going with Shalini? If I start forgetting, I know she'll pull me back into line."
Naina laughs, agreeing with him. She doesn't mind Dr Shalini's interference because she knows that Shalini is only trying to protect them.
"But, uh, Raj…" Naina begins to say hesitantly.
"What is it, Naina?" he asks her.
"Come to my room half an hour before the ball starts," she tells him, looking up through lowered eyelashes "I want you to be the first one to see me wearing the sari."
With a last longing backwards glance, she leaves Raj and heads back to the mess to join Pooja, smiling at herself while she imagines his reaction.
Raj stands there in a daze for a moment, and sighs at the thought of Naina wearing the sari he has bought her. Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, he decides he's very thankful that she's graduating in less than a week. At least after that he won't be breaking any rules when he has these types of thoughts about her.
Until then, he's just going to have to keep his feelings under control.
Well guys, next update will be the ball, and in case you're interested, here is what they'll all be wearing:
Naina: http://www.tisaya.com/product_detail_image.asp?id=460
Pooja: http://www.tisaya.com/product_detail_image.asp?id=514
Neelu: http://www.tisaya.com/product_detail_image.asp?id=617
Shalini: http://www.tisaya.com/product_detail_image.asp?id=606
Raj: http://www.diwansaheb.com/glpcat/clnt_prd_ep.pl?pcid=72&cloc =13957_10032636_13950&iid=10015302
Ali : http://www.millionairebombay.com/product_info.php?products_i d=42&osCsid=1d5b744176159c2a9354452576d94a86
Huda : http://utopianvision.co.uk/bollywood/fashion/?catid=5&prodid =MZ05104
Alekh: http://utopianvision.co.uk/bollywood/fashion/?catid=5&prodid =MZ0458
Yudi: http://utopianvision.co.uk/bollywood/fashion/?catid=5&prodid =MZ006101
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