Chapter 32

Chapter 32

The Lucknow Ashadaan was a smaller place than the one in Delhi, yet Arnav felt the same positive energy while walking around. The Raizadas had reached a little earlier, while Sumer and Payal had been at Ashadaan since early morning. Arnav appreciated the efforts the two had put together, to decorate the entire orphanage, transforming it into a fairytale venue. The blue and white drapes that fluttered all over, the fragrant white orchids, and the light music that softly drifted around, created a very romantic ambience. The weather was slightly chilly and the sky a little cloudy, too. Children were running around, excited to see their badi maa and even more enthusiastic to see their Khushi Di. Arnav was quietly observing this wonderful place, where his Khushi had grown up. This was her home, for most of the years of her life, where his mother had first met her and showered her with immense love. It made him feel warm and fuzzy and an intense craving to see Khushi just burst forth.

As if on cue, the Sharmas arrived along with Khushi. The entire Raizada family walked towards the entrance to welcome them. As greetings and hugs were exchanged, two people were lost in a world of their own. Khushi took in Arnav's appearance. He looked dapper in an electric blue bandgala jacket teamed with a simple white shirt and black trousers. Blue was her favourite colour on him. It suited his personality and name. However, what took her breath away was the way he was looking at her. His eyes roved over her entire form, raising prickly goosebumps all over her skin. Seeing the appreciation and love clearly etched on his face, she suddenly felt more beautiful than ever. She could not believe how drastically her life had changed in a matter of six months.

Arnav could not take his eyes off her. She looked exquisite in the electric blue anarkali suit. The pink of her dupatta added vibrancy to her entire persona. With minimalistic makeup and jewelry, her face was glowing with contentment. At this moment, she truly looked like her namesake... happiness. He was impressed by Payal's work, too. Soon, AR would have one of the most creative fashion designers of recent times, working with them. Khushi's dress was stunning and he thanked her and Sumer mentally, for forcing his outfit on him. He had refused to wear anything other than his formal suit. However, the duo had almost blackmailed him into wearing the blue jacket. Now that he stood beside Khushi to take the blessings of their elders, they looked like the perfectly colour-coordinated couple.

Everyone gathered around them, as they sat on a small podium. Arnav simply watched his mother and Nani, giving a huge pile of gifts to a blushing Khushi. She was fed her favourite delicacy... jalebis, as each of the Raizada women hugged her warmly and welcomed her into the family. The Sharmas then came over to do the tilak and to gift Arnav. They extracted a promise from him, to keep Khushi happy forever. All of Ashadaan cheered loudly, as the children flocked around their Khushi didi. Arnav simply watched Khushi being showered with love from the entire staff and the bunch of naughty children. Here was a bond much stronger than any blood ties. These children were bound to each other by the harsh reality of life, by their need for love and a hunger to survive. However, above all, their love was also clear and pure, so palpable and so infectious, that it engulfed him from all around, causing his throat to constrict.

Lunch was a lavish affair, as Sumer had been in charge to select the menu. The crazy foodie in him had gone a little overboard with the spread, but no one was really complaining. The children were having a party with their badi maa and Khushi di. Arnav had to literally plead with Payal to find a way to get Khushi away from the entire gathering. They were not letting her out of their sight, even for a minute. With a lot of plotting and a little help from Nani, Payal had managed to drag Khushi to a secluded corner, behind the main building. "Payalia, what are you doing? Why have you brought me here?" Khushi asked, annoyed at being dragged away from all the fun. "Hi," she heard his husky voice from behind her, instead of a response from Payal. She swirled around to look into the most amazing set of brown eyes, that always did take her breath away.

Payal walked away quietly, giving the lovely couple some privacy. "You look beautiful, Khushi," Arnav whispered close to her lips, leaning into her. Khushi gasped and moved away. "Stop it, Arnav. Someone will walk in on us. They will be looking for us... we can't meet like this. You should not have called me here, Arnav. What is everyone going to th..." Her rambles were interrupted midway by Arnav's slow, sensuous kiss. He snaked his arms around her slim waist and pulled her into himself. His fingers combed her silky hair, as he tasted her essence. All Khushi could do was cling onto him, as he held her close and drowned her in his love. It was a few minutes later that he moved away and said, "Don't you want to show me around your home? I want to get a glimpse into your childhood, angel." Khushi looked into his eyes and took a few seconds to get out of the passionate daze that he had spun around her. She smiled brightly at him and pulled him along with her, to show him around.

For Arnav, the next half an hour was a peek into the life of little Khushi. The gardens, the swings, the tiny rooms, the bathrooms, the study center, the library, the kitchen, the dining room... just about everything had a story, a memory and a little part of Khushi. Arnav reveled in the abundant joy on her face, as she reminisced about her younger days at Ashadaan. She took him around to one particular spot, which was right at the back of the vast orphanage property. Arnav wondered why she had got him there. It was a secluded area with a few benches, shaded by thick trees. He looked at her silent profile, wondering what had suddenly made her so pensive. Just as he was about to ask her, she turned around and said, "This is the place where I used to come in the nights, to sit and watch the twinkling stars. The two brightest stars, were my parents and I would talk to them for hours, telling them every tiny detail of the day that went by." Her voice trembled and his heart constricted with pain.

He pulled her to himself, as she rested her head against his chest, taking comfort in his arms. "Khushi, I am sure they are proud of you today. Their daughter is priceless and I promise them, that I will treasure her forever. I love you, angel." He wiped away her tears and decided to change her mood. It was their big day and happiness was all he wanted to see on her face. He pulled out his phone and said, "You know what? When I was a little kid, I would sneak around mom and dad's room, while they played old songs and then..." He played a song on his phone and placed it on the nearby bench and continued, "...and then when a Shammi Kapoor number came up, I would dance like a maniac, jump around the entire house, scattering pillows." Just to show her what he was talking about, he started dancing wildly to the song, that was now surrounding them.

Aajkal Tere Mere Pyar Ke Charche Har Zubaan Par
Sab Ko Maloom Hai Aur Sabko Khabar Ho Gayi

Humne To Pyar Mein Aisa Kaam Kar Liya
Pyar Ki Raah Mein Apna Naam Kar Liya
Do Badan Ek Dil Ek Jaan Ho Gaye
Manzilen Ek Hui Humsafar Ban Gaye
Aajkal Tere Mere Pyar Ke Charche Har Zubaan Par
Sab Ko Maloom Hai Aur Sabko Khabar Ho Gayi

Khushi looked at the man in front of her, dressed in elegant clothes, dancing wildly, just to bring a smile on her face. Despite the tears that pricked her eyes, she could not help but giggle at his craziness. She joined him in the madness, shaking like Shammi, unknown to two pairs of eyes, that were watching them. Sumer captured these lovely candid moments; as Payal stood beside him, content to see her best friend happy. A short while later, they walked over to the blissful couple and cleared their throats loudly. Khushi quickly moved away, embarrassed at this intrusion while Arnav smiled happily at the duo. "If you have had enough of some privacy, Naniji has requested you all to grace the gathering. Everyone is demanding dessert, and they are waiting for you to come and cut the cake," Payal said swiftly. Khushi looked at Sumer and teased, "I am sure Sumer has forced you to come check on us, so that he can attack the cake, right?"

Sumer gaped at her, overacting with his expressions and said dramatically, "You too, Brutus? I thought you would be hungry again after this dance routine, and this dusht kamina, would not allow you to eat anything... and this is what I get in return for my loyalty?" Khushi laughed loudly, while Arnav smacked him in the back. "Let's get out of here, before I punch you Sumer," Arnav said jokingly as the group started walking towards the main building. Khushi held Arnav's hand and pulled him to walk behind Sumer and Payal. She whispered softly, "You know, Arnav, this was the same place, where I first started liking old Hindi music. While I sat looking at the stars, our headmaster would play music on his radio, which would fill the silence in our lives." He looked at her intently and replied, "Then, I am glad to have made a new memory of this place in your heart, angel... which now includes us together along with your parents and Bollywood music." He raised her hand and kissed it softly, leading her to the joyous gathering that awaited them.

The rest of the afternoon was a chaotic affair with laughter, chatter and love in abundance. The children were having a gala time too, with Sumer and Arnav deciding to play a match of cricket with the boys. After an early tea and refreshments, the Raizadas decided to head back to Delhi. It would be safer to reach before midnight, and hence they took leave from the Sharmas and the entire Ashadaan family and headed back home. The journey back was fun with Sumer and Arnav constantly bickering, which had the girls in splits. Even though everything seemed to be going in a perfect direction, Arnav felt something amiss. He wondered if he should tell Payal about something that had been nagging him for a while now. She had not told Khushi anything about Shyam yet, and he did not want Khushi to come to know from anyone else. He had this bad inkling that things were going to go sour with so many secrets being kept from Khushi. The matter of Shyam was crucial and also the fact that Akash was in love with her. As the men dropped their ladies home, he had a chat about his apprehensions, with Sumer, who assured him that with time, things would definitely be all right.

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"Hey Akash, its Anjali here. I am still awaiting our ice cream date," Anjali spoke hesitantly, into the phone. "Ohh...hmmm... I am really sorry, Anjali, but I am extremely tied up with work these days. Maybe, I will treat you the next time we all meet? Is that okay?" that had been Akash's curt reply. Anjali sat with folded legs on her bed, pondering over the conversation she had with Akash a couple of weeks ago, when the entire family had gone to Lucknow. She had wanted to meet him and maybe get to know him a little better. However, he had completely closed up on her and had yet again, snubbed her friendly advances. What was his problem, she tried to decipher. He behaved well with Khushi and Payal. Then, why was he so curt and formal with her? Maybe, he took time opening up to people; she tried to convince her injured heart and decided that with all the functions and family get-togethers coming up, they would soon become good friends, if not anything more. With that thought, she sprinted out of her room to chat with her brother, who seemed to have very little time for her these days.

"Bhai, tell bhabhi I need ten signed copies of her book to give them to some more of my friends." Arnav peeked at his sister, who had sprawled over his bed and was looking at him seriously. "Why don't you tell her yourself, Anjie? You speak to her almost everyday and she comes around at least four times a week. That is a lot of time to make this tiny demand," Arnav teased his sister, knowing for sure that this would rile her up. "Hawww bhai! Stop being so nasty. You talk to her every hour and meet her everyday. Doesn't that give you more opportunity to make this TINY demand?" she quirked one eyebrow just like Arnav and responded in a serious tone. Arnav laughed out loudly, impressed with his sister's quick wit and also her adorableness. She was sharp and would do well when she joined AR Designs... that is, if she decided to, he thought. Somebody cleared their throat at the door and the brother-sister duo turned around to see Khushi smiling at them.

"Khushi!" "Bhabhi!!" both Arnav and Anjali screamed together, making Khushi laugh at their drama. Arnav was in front of her in two strides and kissed her on the cheek making her blush at his PDA. Anjali groaned and said, "Bhai!! Yahan ek bacchi hai... jispe bura asar ho raha hai!! I don't want to see all this, ok? And bhabhi..." She pulled Khushi to sit besides her and continued, "...We were just talking about you. I want signed copies of your book to give them to my friends. They have heard a lot about the book and have wanted to buy one too. I told them I can get one signed by the author herself... Could not tell them that you are my bhabhi yet!! But, once you guys are official, I am going to boast about this to the entire college and then half of your books are going to be bought by me." While Khushi always thought that Payal and she could blabber the most, seeing Anjali talk, she knew how wrong she had been.

"Maa called me home for dinner and here you are, scaring me with your plans Anjie," Khushi teased as Arnav sniggered and Anjali sulked. Looking at her sad face, Khushi put a hand around Anjali and said lightly, "Of course you can have the copies Anjie. I will send them along with Arnav, when I meet him tomorrow. Will that be ok?" Anjali squealed happily and hugged Khushi, "I knew it, bhabhi... you are the best! Thank you and I love you!!" Saying that, Anjali made a crazy dash to the door to tell her friends. Arnav walked towards her and propped on the bed, pulling Khushi along with him. "Don't be too nice to her, angel. She will take complete advantage of your pampering and make you dance to her tunes," Arnav warned Khushi jokingly. "Like the way she has her dear bhai dancing, am I right?" Khushi teased him in return.

His gaze turned from amused to hungry, as he moved in closer and whispered close to her lips, "Are you teasing me, Khushi? Mujhe nahi pata tha Khushi Kumari Gupta ko chidhana bhi aata hai. I thought you were a sweet, innocent angel." She gasped at his closeness, his warm breath fanning her face. No quick retort made its way to her mouth, as he took it in a delicious kiss. With their tongues meshing, hands clutching, breaths mingling, the atmosphere turned heated. The couple forgot the world around them, as the only thing that existed was their love for each other. Arnav pulled away from her, catching his breath and straightening her hair. "Khushi, Maa was asking about how we plan to accommodate the Ashadaan kids and the elite guests on our list. Do you have any suggestions?"

Khushi pondered for a moment and said, "Well... I think, let's keep the children away from the media and the party. We can set up a few games, food and some entertainment for them, in the back garden. I don't want the media to question or trouble them." He nodded in approval. It was best that they kept the innocent children away from the ruthless media and the high-class society. Not all would understand the sentiments of the Raizada family towards Ashadaan. He placed an open mouthed kiss on her lips and pulled her up, "Come, let's go and meet Maa. She has been asking me a hundred questions, to which my only reply has been... I don't know. Ask Khushi." He laughed and so did Khushi, as they walked hand in hand towards the dining area where a delightful dinner had already been set up.

There were two more weeks for Diwali and a lot had to be done. An engagement of the Raizada heir was not going to be a simple function like what Khushi was used to. Along with Payal's and Anjali's help, she was getting prepared for the grandeur of the event. Payal was serving her notice period and would be joining AR Designs post Diwali. Arnav had already given her the first assignment and that was to design Khushi's engagement dress. Not that Payal needed to be told, but now she had a boss to please too. Ananya and Devyani had been discussing the guest list with Khushi, coaxing her to invite anyone she wanted to, without thinking twice. Her only tiny demand had been the children at Ashadaan and the Sharmas. The dinner and discussion went on till late in the night with a bunch of happy people, retiring to bed completely excited about the wonderful days to come.

Chapter 33

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