Chapter 36 - Beete Lamhein

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“Holy shit! What happened here?” Purvi exclaimed seeing the disheveled state of Taani’s room.

“It started with him throwing a pillow at me and then I did the same and now here we are an hour later!” Taani huffed and swept all the pillows off her bed.

“Who?” Purvi asked, confused.

“Me!” Juno rose up from beneath a pile of sheets.

“Tum dono kar kya rahe ho?” Purvi narrowed her eyes on them.

“Kuch nahi.” Juno corrected his hair and made his way to the door. “Taani mera ek group call hai abhi. I’ll see you later.” He left.

“What’s going on?” Purvi looked at the closed door and scratched her hair.

“Hmn?” Taani looked at her with a blank face.

“You and Juno?” Purvi raised her brow.

“Have you lost it?” Taani flared her nostrils.

“What?” Purvi chuckled and sat on her bed. “He did have a thing for you.”

“Can you not?” Taani sighed and held her head.

“Fine.” Purvi rolled her eyes and looked at the mess in the room. “Yeh sab kya hai?”

“He was just trying to cheer me up. Then we started bantering and the next thing I know, we were throwing pillows at each other.” Taani let out a small chuckle and shook her head.

“That still doesn’t explain the condition of this room.” Purvi pointed out.

“Pillow fight mein room ki yahi halath hogi na?” Taani rolled her eyes at Purvi.

“Haan par tere wardrobe ka samaan aise bahar kyun pada hai?” Purvi asked.

“Juno! Idiot! I completely forgot what I was doing before he came in!” Taani slapped her forehead.

“It must have not been important if you forgot about it.” Purvi shrugged her shoulders.

“Haan..” Taani mumbled thinking about it. “Anyway tu bata kya kaam hai?”

“Bas aisehi. Akeli baithi thi toh yahan aagayi.”

“Arjun ka plan kab cancel hua? He didn’t even tell me that he cancelled his weekend plan.”

“Haan usko kuch urgent kaam aagaya tha.”

“Kaam!” Taani sighed. “Do you think mujhe Ayush ko kuch gift dena chahiye?”

“Ayush?” Purvi raised her brow.

“What? He has been very supportive and I want to let him know that I appreciate whatever he has done for me.”

“Can I be straight with you?” Purvi asked.

“Yeah.”

“I want nothing but happiness for you. But before you move on from your past, I just want you to get a proper closure.”

“Pur..” Taani tried to interject.

“Let me finish.” Purvi stopped her. “I heard what Rey said when he broke up with you. But it just doesn’t sit well with me. I know it was a d*ck move but for some reason whatever happened, it feels off. I mean I might have a biased perspective because of how helpful he has been to me. Par yeh sab mere hisab se thoda absurd hai. Which is why I just want you to not have any questions left unanswered.”

“Move on?” Taani let out a scoff. “This is probably the first time I haven’t been an emotional wreck having a conversation about him.”

“Which means you have taken a step ahead.” Purvi squeezed her hand and smiled.

“Do you really think that I’ll be able to move on and love someone else?” Taani looked at her.

“Definitely! Thoda time lagega but eventually it will hurt less.”

“The first step would be to find that f*cking ring and throw it on his face!” Taani flared her nostrils.

“That.. a.. that would be a good start.” Purvi was taken aback by her response.

“Subah se dhundh rahi hoon. Mil hi nahi rahi hai!” Taani huffed.

“Kahan rakhi thi?” Purvi asked.

“If I knew I wouldn’t be looking for it!” Taani gritted her teeth.

“Don’t get mad at me. I’m just trying to help.” Purvi pouted.

“Sorry. It’s just ki poora room check kar liya hai and it’s nowhere!” Taani sighed.

“Okay, let’s work together.”

“Hmm.” Taani nodded.

“I remember ki tu usse locket ki tarah pehen rahi thi beech mein.”

“Yeah, I didn’t want to spoil it.” Taani smiled, reminiscing. “You know Ayush thought that I was single back then.”

“Don’t tell me he hit on you? My, my ladko ki line lagi hai tere liye!” Purvi chuckled.

“Shut up!” Taani rolled her eyes. “He did not directly hit on me but apparently he was very vocal about it. To a point where Sharon thought that I was cheating on Rey. Look how the tables have turned.” She let out a scoff.

“Now don’t be bitter towards her.” Purvi stopped her immediately. “She was just looking out for her friend. The same way she has been doing for the last three months.”

“Kya matlab?” Taani squinted.

“She has been worried about you. Voh tujhe directly approach nahi karna chahati thi for obvious reasons, but she is happy to know that you are doing better now.” Purvi explained.

“She asks about me?” Taani was surprised.

“Everyone does.” Purvi smiled.

“Everyone?”

“Everyone!” Purvi nodded.

“Okay now I feel awful. I just assumed ki voh sab Rey ki side.. I mean.. You saw the launch.. and..” Taani was baffled.

“Rey is still a friend to them. Which is why no one has directly approached you as they feel you might not be comfortable about it. But they all care and want you to be happy.” Purvi informed.

“Rey was not wrong when he told me that they are a great bunch of friends to have!”

“I can attest to that.” Purvi nodded.

“Why is my life such a mess Purvi?” Taani dropped her head low. “Something has to go wrong when I’m the happiest!”

“Stop being this negative, please!” Purvi stopped her from spiraling. “Focus on the task at hand.”

“Ring!” Taani started looking for her ring again.

“When was the last time you remember removing it?” Purvi tried to help.

“Wahin toh problem hai na Purvi. I have never removed it after I made that promise to him!”

“Never?”

“Never!”

“Toh kisi aur ne nikali tere finger se voh ring.. without you noticing?” Purvi furrowed her brows in confusion.

“You mean Bhai? I mean he is the only one filled with pure hatred towards Rey.” Taani asked Purvi.

“You know.. I want to say that he can never do that. But jaise voh uss din ke baad se behave kar rahe hai.. he could..” Purvi agreed with Taani.

“No!” Taani opposed. “Bhai aisa nahi kar sakte. I know he is mad. But he..? No!”

“Well then think!” Purvi shrugged. “Who held your hand and slid the ring off your finger?”

“Rey.” Taani spoke softly with knitted brows. “He was holding my hands very tightly when he was apologizing.”

“Haan par usse almost three months hone aaye hai. Are you sure, tune teen mahine se ring nahi peheni hai?”

“I don’t know.” Taani thought. “Three months? Already?”

“Okay don’t stress too much. I’ll help you clean this mess up. Kahin na kahin toh mil jayegi ring. Don’t worry!”

“Maami, you took your medicines?” Armaan asked Juhi.

“Haan.” Juhi nodded.

“Jhoot mat bolo. Wahin padi hai!” Armaan grumpily walked up to her and made her take the tablets. “Yeh lo.”

“Tum office nahi gaye?” Juhi asked him.

“Abhi bas nikal raha hoon.” Armaan smiled at her and left the room.

“Hasi ke peeche apne saare gham kyun chupa raha hai?” Juhi muttered.

“Voh aisa kuch nahi kar raha.” Rannvijay told her sternly. “Aur yeh medicines maine kabke nikal rakhe the, kyun nahi liye?”

“Tablets khake thak gayi hoon.” Juhi sulked.

“Toh jaldi theek ho jao na.” Rannvijay smiled softly.

“Hojaungi.” Juhi turned on her side and pulled the blanket over her head.

…

“Armaan yaar enough!”

“Kya hai Sid? Stop behaving like a child!”

“You too!” Sid huffed.

“See!” Armaan rolled his eyes and got back to his work.

“Lunch time hai yaar. Chal na!” Sid wailed.

“I’m not hungry!” Armaan looked at Sid sternly. “Aur mujhe bohot kaam hai. So please.. you carry on.”

“I came here all the way from Cuffe Parade just to hear this?”

“Technically you ran away from New York because you were an insecure a*s!” Armaan shut his eyes close in regret as soon as the words left his mouth. “Sid.. I..”

“No you’re right. I’m stupid to have thought that you might need some company. I’ll see myself out!” Sid walked to the cabin door.

“Sid ruk!” Armaan ran behind him and closed the door before he left. “I didn’t mean that. It’s just that.. forget it. Let’s go somewhere for lunch.”

“I know ki tu CEO ban gaya hai toh bohot kaam hai par thoda khud pe bhi dhyaan de.” Sid smiled lightly at him.

“I’m sorry. Mujhe voh New York wala comment nahi pass karna chahiye tha.” Armaan apologized.

“You were not entirely wrong. But I just want to close that chapter permanently and never look back.”

“You’d be making a huge mistake.”

“What if that was the right decision?”

“Running away is never the right decision!”

“It was in my case and you’ll agree with me sooner or later.” Sid opened the cabin door.

“Bha..ai..” Swayam stood outside the door awkwardly smiling at them.

“Tu yahan?” Armaan raised an eyebrow at him.

“Haan.. voh aapse kuch baat karni thi.” Swayam looked at Armaan and then at Sid. “Akele.”

“No no no no no no.” Sid opposed. “We are going for lunch. Kaam baadmein!”

“Par..” Swayam tried to reason.

“NO!” Sid yelled.

“Shut up Sid. Kuch important hoga.” Armaan tried to reason.

“No means no!” Sid flared his nostrils at Swayam.

“Bhai aap lunch karke aajao. I'll wait.” Swayam chuckled seeing Sid grin from ear to ear.

“I’ll be back in twenty minutes.” Armaan told Swayam as he exited.

“Twenty minutes? Seriously?” Sid rolled his eyes at Armaan.

“Main aa raha hoon na.” Armaan glared at him.

“Badi meherbani!” Sid joined his palms together mocking him and walked towards the exit.

“Canteen yahan hai!” Armaan stopped him.

“I know!” Sid kept walking. “Hum bahar ja rahe hai. And I’ve already made the reservations so just zip it!”

“I hate you!” Armaan said between gritted teeth.

“AB kahan hai?” Sharon walked into the cabin. “And what are you doing with his chair?” Sharon squinted.

“How does he make it look so easy?” Swayam asked, caressing the chair.

“Huh?”

“We were scrambling to meet deadlines. And now the academy is also not a cakewalk.” Swayam explained.

“Meko toh yeh nahi samajhta ki voh itna kaam karte kaise hai? Whenever I’m here, he is in a meeting with someone.” Sharon shook her head.

“Abhi Sid ke saath lunch pe gaye hai.”

“Abhi is in town?” She wondered.

“Abhi as in now at lunch with Sid.” He shook his head.

“Oh..” She chuckled.

“Tu kyu aayi?”

“To check on him. Roz lunch ke liye yaad dilana padta hai.” She shook her head and took a seat.

“I want to help him but voh baat hi nahi karna chahate.” Frustrated, he pulled another chair next to her.

“Honestly Swayam, he doesn’t need our help. He is doing fine by himself.”

“What makes you say that?” He was confused.

“I just know!” She smiled at him.

“If you say so..” He shrugged his shoulders.

“Ek minute, main toh lunch ke liye puchne aayi thi. Why are you here?” She squinted at him.

“Voh uh..” He hesitated and closed his eyes shut knowing very well that his hesitation would anger Sharon.

“Why. Are. You. Here?” She enunciated each word as she glared at him.

“Sharon please.. I’ll tell you later. Let me have a word with him first.” He sighed and opened his eyes. There was confusion all over Sharon’s face, which she was trying hard to cover up with anger. “Please?” He pleaded.

“Fine! I’ll wait here.” She crossed her arms across her chest. “You should know better than to keep things from me!”

“I am no..” He let out a large puff of air and pressed his lips together. “Yeah!”

…

“Ssup?” The door opened wide.

“Dude!” Simmi placed a hand on her racing heart. “You scared the sh*t out of me!”

“Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you.” He chuckled. “I wasn’t expecting anyone to be here. So, jab room engaged dikha toh I had to check.” He went on to explain.

“It’s fine Vicky.” She smiled at him.

“Tu Sharon ke saath lunch pe jaane wahi thi na?” Vicky asked as he remembered their conversation from morning.

“I think she bailed on me.” She pouted.

“Don’t worry, main hoon na!” Nil barged in and smiled widely from ear to ear.

“I’d rather starve than go out with you.” Simmi mumbled loud enough to reach their ears.

“Ouch!” Vicky commented.

“Anyway..” She ignored his comment and started to pack her backpack. “Can you please shut down everything and lock the rehearsal hall, Vicky? I need to leave.”

“Sure will do.” VIcky nodded.

“Simmi!” Nil called out as she walked past him. “Wait!” He ran behind her.

“What?” She asked, tapping her feet impatiently. Nil’s mouth opened and closed as he contemplated his words. “Speak! Will you?” She demanded and rolled her eyes.

“What’s the matter with you?” He finally managed to form a sentence.

“You can’t be serious!” She huffed.

“You’ve been ignoring me for the last couple of weeks.” He pointed out.

“Kyun? Bura lag raha hai?”

“Simmi stop it! I can tell something is bothering you. So please, talk to me.” He urged and took a step close to her.

“YOU.. are the last person I want to talk to.” She took a step back and glared at him.

“Sim..” He took another step towards her and lightly cupped her face, wiping the lone tear that had escaped her eye.

“Stop pretending that you care, please.” Tears sprawled down her eyes as she leaned onto his hand.

“I’m not!” His voice was soft. “I do care for you. More than I let on.” He leaned forward and placed a gentle peck on her lip. “Trust me.”

“I can’t.” Her lips grazed against his. “Just let me be.” She held his arm which was cupping her face and slowly peeled it off.

Nil just stared at Simmi’s teary eyes as she slowly walked away from him. He felt uneasy. He wanted to chase after her, stop her. But all he did was stare at her back as she walked out of the academy gate.

…

“Here is your brother, returned safe and sound!” Sid chuckled as he walked behind Armaan into his cabin.

“Shut up!” Armaan scowled at him.

“Thank you. It was very kind of you.” Swayam smiled and played along.

“Don’t you worry. He has been well fed. Now he can work through the remainder of the day.” Sid informed pulling the best straight face he could muster.

“If you don’t shut up and f*ck off within the next two minutes..” Armaan glared but was stopped by Sid’s chuckle.

“Take care.” Sid hugged Armaan and left.

“Idiot!” Armaan smiled, shaking his head and turned to Swayam and Sharon. “So what brings you two here?”

“I don’t know. Ask him! Apparently he has something important to discuss.” Sharon narrowed her eyes at Swayam and faked a smile when he looked at her.

“Aapse akele mein kuch baat karni thi.” Swayam looked at Armaan ignoring Sharon’s piercing gaze on him.

“Sure.” Armaan looked at both of them and nodded at Swayam. “Sharon?” He then gave her a knowing look.

“You can’t be serious!” Sharon stormed out of the cabin exasperated.

“It better be serious.” Armaan chuckled lightly at Swayam.

“It is.. I think.” Swayam replied unsure.

“Kya baat hai?” Armaan asked.

“I didn’t want to bring this up with you but I didn’t know kis se..” Swayam hesitated.

“Come to the point.” Armaan stopped him from blabbering.

“It’s about Rey!” Swayam remained silent as he studied Armaan’s face.

“Wha.. t.. ab.. out.. Re..y?” Armaan managed to ask after the initial silence.

“He has emptied more than half his bank account and..”

“What?” Armaan was confused.

“Main tax filings check kar raha tha..”

“Shut up!” Armaan inhaled deeply a couple of times. “You don’t start a sentence in that tone and say you have news about Rey! You scared the shit out of me!” Armaan held his head as he calmed himself.

“Bhai!” Swayam yelled. “Aap aisa soch bhi kaise..? You have got to take a break!”

“I’ll think about it.” Armaan shook his head. “Anyway, what were you saying about his bank account?”

“It looks like he is zeroing his account.”

“Haan toh makes sense with his move and all. Voh abh permanently London shift ho gaya hai toh yahan ke accounts kyu rakhega?” Armaan reasoned.

“I don’t know. Something feels odd. This isn’t him.” Swayam shook his head.

“Tell me about it.” Armaan scoffed. “If he had feelings for her, why did he push me to her? Main breakup karke aa gaya tha. Usko itni mehnat karke yahan laane ki kya jarurat thi?” He rolled his eyes.

“Sharon feels like all this is a fabricated lie. And somewhere I’m starting to believe her now.”

“But then again he had decided that he would marry the girl who Maami chooses for him. So it made sense that he suppressed any feelings he had for Riddhima.” Armaan continued ignoring Swayam.

“What?” Swayam clicked his fingers in front of Armaan’s face to break his trance.

“It makes sense. Nahi?” Armaan looked at Swayam.

“Matlab Sara was right?” Swayam mumbled.

“About?” Armaan caught onto it.

“According to Sara, Rey and Riri had sex on the eve of Riri’s birthday and probably all this has gone downhill from there.”

“That’s not true!” Armaan threw his head back and laughed at the absurdity.

“Okay, Sara ke khayali pulao ko bhi ignore kiya toh bhi yeh sab bohot ajeeb hai Bhai. He has completely cut everyone off and lied through his teeth about staying in touch. Sometimes I wonder if he really is in London!” Swayam rolled his eyes and scoffed.

“You know what, ask the CA to send his bank statements. Let's see if we get any answers.” Armaan pondered.

“Can we keep this between the two of us?” Swayam requested Armaan.

“Yup, I don’t want to give out any false hopes.” Armaan agreed. “Just handle Sharon.”

“I’ll try.” Swayam let out a chuckle. “Although she might murder me for the stint I pulled.”

“I hope I see you tomorrow.”

“Sorry!” Sneha rushed in. “I had to drop Yuv at Raj’s place.” She huffed as she sat herself across Shivam. “And..”

“Relax! I just got here ten minutes ago.” Shivam smiled at her.

“You don’t have to lie to me. I’m what..” She checked her watch. “Forty-five minutes late! Holy shit!” Her eyes widened.

“It’s alright.” He shook his head. “Kuch order kare? I’m starving!” He passed her the menu.

“Same here!” She smiled and both got engrossed in the menu.

“This looks so good!” Sneha smiled at the waiter.

“Tastes even better.” Shivam dug in the food instantly.

“Aaram se.” She giggled as she wiped the corner of his mouth. “You’re as messy an eater as Yuv.”

“I’m not five!” He frowned, making her chuckle.

“It’s good to see you after so long.” She smiled sadly at him.

“It's just.. I mean with Taa..”

“I’m not asking for any explanation.” She held his hand. “How is she?”

“She’s broken.” He looked down. “And I feel so helpless. Main chaha ke bhi kuch kar nahi pa raha hoon uske liye.”

“You being with her is more than enough.” She assured him.

“I’m sorry. I don’t want to unload my frustrations on you.”

“You need a medium to vent as well na.” She squeezed his hand.

“Sneha, I..”

“Please don’t!” She stopped him.

“I wasn’t.” He shook his head and let out a chuckle. “I don’t want you to bear my burden. It’s not fair to you.”

“I am their wedding organizer. It’s only fair.”

“Aisa kabhi pehle hua hai?”

“Never. This was a first. But such clients were also a first for me.” She shook her head thinking about her time with them.

“Matlab?”

“When I first met Rey I was surprised with how nonchalant he was. My first impression of him was that he didn’t want this wedding. I mean he was so aloof. While I was constantly in touch with Taani and getting her ideas and gauging what she wants.” She smiled, thinking. “But later he kinda grew on me. Annoyed me, yes, and made me make way too many extra designs. But he knew what he wanted and had the complete flexibility with regards to Taani.”

“Why do you say that?”

“You remember her engagement lehenga?” She asked. He nodded yes. “Like everyone else he too loved the red one. Which is why he selected black for himself. But on learning that Taani wanted pink, he was all in to change his sherwani to complement hers.”

“Yeh toh har koi karta hi hai na?” Shivam was confused.

“Not just that. Rey was a pillar for Taani when she went to invite her sister. Like I’ve seen grooms be supportive but the extent to which he went was something else. I mean he got the jeweller to make the ring of Taani’s liking kyunki uska mann aagaya tha? Like who does that?”

“And yet he betrayed her!” Shivam rolled his eyes at the irony.

“How have you been dealing with all this?”

“I don’t want to keep any relations with anyone who is close to him. And I hope ki baaki sab bhi yeh kar sake.” He sighed.

“Kya matlab? Who is Taani in touch with?” She furrowed her brows.

“She had a run in with Rannvijay uncle once.”

“Hey..”

“Main itna bhi selfish nahi hoon. As much as I want to cut ties, I don't want another father figure to be taken away from her.”

“Then who were you talking about?”

“Sid! He is still in touch with Armaan and voh Taani ka dimaag bhar raha hai.”

“Sid aisa lagta toh nahi.”

“He isn’t. But when it comes to his best friend Armaan, usse aage piche kuch nahi dikhta. I mean he rushed home the minute he learnt about Armaan.”

“You have a lot of angst built inside you.” She ruffled his hair lightly.

“Therapist banne ka soch rahi ho kya?”

“Not a bad idea. Filhal tumhari life mein therapist ke alava kisi aur ke liye jagah dikh nahi rahi hai.”

“Sorry. Tell me about you.” He took her hands in his. “How was the Bali wedding?”

“It was more of a Barbie wedding. Everything was bloody pink, from food to clothes to decoration, everything pink. I mean the bride wanted the sand to be pink as well. Thankfully we managed to talk her out of it.” She shuddered at the thought.

“You could have put a tarp and then pink sand on it.” He chuckled lightly.

“I wish!” She rolled her eyes. “Madam ki requirement thi ki top layer normal sand ho and as you walk the indents in the sand be pink. Main phir bhi maan jaati ki tarp pe pink sand and uspe regular sand but that b*tch didn’t want tarp! Maine toh uske saamne haath jod diye!”

“I hope you got paid well.”

“Don’t worry, I charged her a bomb!” She giggled.

“Nice!” He smiled.

…

“Tujhe smile karna yaad hai?” Sid popped his head into Taani's room.

“Tu yahan?” Taani was surprised to see him.

“Excuse me?” He shot daggers at her.

“Itni raat ko tu ghar pe kya kar raha hai?” She asked.

“Tu dinner ke liye bahar aayi hoti toh you would know ki main shaam se yahin pe tha.” He snickered and walked off.

“Siddo!” Taani ran behind him to the living room.

“Ah Taani!” Tanya called out to her. “Main ab bas tumhare kamre mein aane wali thi.”

“Kya hua mumma?” Taani asked.

“Kal hum sab dinner ke liye bahar ja rahe hai. So you better be back home early from work. I do not want to hear any excuses!” She warned her.

“Mumma kal meeting..”

“Taani!” Tanya looked at her sternly.

“Theek hai.” Taani nodded as Tanya went into her room.

“Kitna jhoot bolne lagi ho?” Sid shook his head and sat on the couch.

“I’m not in the mood for dinner.” She pouted and sat next to him.

“The rest of us are. And you are not going to spoil our mood!” He sneered at her.

“Fine!” She rolled her eyes. “Waise tu aaj dinner ke liye ghar pe kaise?”

“Shivam nahi tha na toh socha yahin kar loon dinner.” He smiled.

“What is up with you and bhai? Jabse tu aaya hai, you both have been at each other's throat!”

“Mujhe tere bhai se koi problem nahi hai.”

“What?” She was confused.

“Oh wait, your dumbass doesn’t know shit of what’s going on!” He slapped his forehead.

“Haan.. voh.. main..” She felt guilty for being aloof.

“Shivam has asked, no wait, ordered me to break ties with Armaan. And there’s no way in hell that’s happening!” He flared his nostrils. “Also agar tujhe bhi Armaan se problem hai toh abhi hi bol de. I will happily walk away from here. I’m tired of the same argument!”

Taani stared at Sid blankly, processing the information.

“Fine.. I’ll leave then.” Sid got up.

“Siddo!” Taani held his hand and pulled him back on the couch. “I’m sorry.” She looked at the floor.

“Tu kyu sorry bol rahi hai?” He pulled her into a side hug.

“Meri wajah se bhai ne voh sab bola. If I had not been so self..” She wiped the tears.

“Stop it. Isme teri koi galati nahi hai.” He rubbed her arm.

“Par voh aisa kaise bol sakte hai?”

“He feels awful ki voh teri koi help nahi kar pa raha. And probably that’s why he is lashing out”

Taani widened her eyes at him, shocked by his words.

“Don’t give me that look! Those were Armaan’s words when I told him about Shivam.” He explained, making her chuckle.

“And what were yours?”

“Shivam is being a little b*tch and he has no right to tell me who I can and cannot speak with!” He flared his nostrils.

“Now that sounds more like you.” She hugged him tight and then separated.

“But to be fair, I do understand Shivam. He just wants to look after you. Bas uska tareeka thoda extreme hai. Aur main Armaan ke paas bhi..”

“Siddo, you don’t need to explain yourself.” Taani stopped him. “I’ve seen what Armaan bhai means to you and how much you care for him.”

“I care for you too. It’s just ki baaki sab itne negative hai yahan when it comes to their family ki I can’t stand it!” He gritted his teeth. “I want to beat the living shit out of Rey for the step he has taken. Par uske decision mein baaki sab ki kya galati hai?”

“But voh hai uski family na.” Taani looked at him.

“As in?”

“They might be angry now but eventually they will forgive him.”

“And why shouldn’t they?”

Taani looked at him dumbfounded. She had no answer to his question.

“Waise ye kal ke dinner ka plan aise suddenly?” She asked after a while.

“Tu office jaati hai na?” He asked.

“Huh?” She asked, confused.

“Matlab date pe dhyaan hota hai ki nahi?” He shook his head.

Taani pulled out her phone and checked the date. “How could I forget papa ka birthday?”

“Chill, I’m sure this isn’t the first time that you’ve forgotten his birthday.” He chuckled and hit her head lightly.

“Tumhare already dinner ke plans the?” He looked at her.

“Haan matlab every year hote hai.” She broke eye contact.

“As in?” He furrowed his brows.

“Woh actually, aaj papa ka birthday hota hai. So, we all go to his favourite restaurant for dinner.” She said softly.

“Damn!” He closed his eyes and rested his head on his hand. “I’m sorry.”

“Huh?” Taani was startled as Sid shook her.

“Kahan kho gayi thi?” He examined her face as she was lost in her thoughts.

“You know Siddo, you were right.” She smiled slightly at him.

“About?” He raised a brow at her.

“He hurt me and completely crushed my soul. But what will I gain by holding grudges against him?”

“Holding grudges? What? When did I? Huh?” He was confused.

“You asked na ki why shouldn’t his family forgive him. They should and they probably will!”

“I am so lost right now Taani.” He looked at her blankly.

“I’ll explain.” She chuckled lightly. “Do saal pehle main ek college project ke chakkar mein papa ka birthday bhool gayi thi. And after a series of events I landed up with Rey at Worli seaface. Tabhi he had asked me if I missed him and I told him what papa used to say.”

“Which was?”

“To not dwell on the past and carry the happy memories ahead. So why am I..”

“Dwelling?” He smiled.

“I mean I am hurt but what good is staying sad going to do?”

“You’d be just punishing yourself.” He looked away from her.

“I know this is going to sound stupid coming out of my mouth, but you should move on.”

“Yeah It does as I’ve already left my past behind!”

“Siddo, tu bas bhaag aaya hai jaise main aayi thi New York.”

“Stop deflecting!” He stood up at once.

“I’m glad that you’re looking out for me and Armaan bhai. But who is doing that for you?”

“Tu aise ekdum se theek kaise ho gayi?”

“Ekdum se kahan? It took me three bloody months to have a conversation about Rey and not bawl!”

“You’re brave.” He smiled at her.

“You as well.” She smiled back.

“Nope! I’m a coward who ran away.”

“Main bhi toh bhaag aayi thi engagement ke..” Taani stopped as a realisation hit her.

“I grew out of love and it wouldn’t be fair to continue our relationship.”

“You’re lying.” She shook her head.

“I’m sorry Taani.” He squeezed her hand.

“I don’t believe you.” She freed her hands from his.

“My ring!” She touched her empty ring finger. “He removed it that day!”

“Who? When? What?” Sid knitted his brows.

“I have been looking for my engagement ring and he was the one to remove it. Again.” She mumbled.

“Again? Rey?” He asked.

“Haan.” She nodded. “Par kyun?”

“To end it?”

“Toh voh apni nikal ke mujhe de deta. Meri ring kyun li?” She furrowed her brows.

“I can ask Armaan to look at his place. Shayad wahin gir gayi ho.”

“Don’t trouble him.”

“It wouldn’t be..”

“Siddo.” She looked at him sternly.

“Fine!”

“I can’t imagine what he must be going through. His fiancee and his brother hurt him. I’m glad he has you.” She passed him a sad smile.

“Everyone is healing in their own way.” He smiled.

“Kaash sabke ways aise peaceful hote.” She glanced over to Shivam’s room.

“Why don’t you tell him that?”

“Kaise? He was very skeptical about this rishta and he had warned me. A lot! Uss waqt nahi suna aur yeh galati kar baithi. He had an intuition which I easily brushed off. Meri himmat nahi hoti bhai se kuch bhi kehne ki.”

“Tu pagal hai kya?” Sid snapped at her. “This has nothing to do with any intuition. Rey is a great person. Aur maine yeh Armaan se bhi kaha tha and I’ll tell you the same, all this happened because of Riri. Voh na unn dono ki life mein aati aur na yeh sab kaand hota. She cheated on Armaan with Rey and ruined all your lives!”

“What do you mean by cheated?” Taani squinted at him.

“Forget it!” Sid rolled his eyes.

“Siddo, I need to know the truth.”

“I’m not even sure if that’s the truth.”

“I’m waiting!”

“Apparently, Riri had gotten intimate with Rey on her birthday.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“Like I said..”

“No, no! Her birthday was before his and he was here for his birthday. Agar kuch hua hota toh he wouldn’t..”

“Wouldn’t what?” Sid raised a brow. “Did you two..?”

“Can we please stop talking about Rey? It still hurts to talk about him.”

“We have been talking an awful lot about him. So come up with some better excuse.”

“I’m not comfortable talking on this topic.” She fiddled with her thumbs.

“Got it. I won’t. But it’s clear now ki Sara ne kuch galath matlab nikala tha.”

“Sara?” She scrunched her nose in confusion.

“She had seen them lying almost naked in his bed on her birthday. Not just that, they were high through the roof!”

“He has shown the decency to tell me to my face that he grew out of love. If what you’re saying is true, he would have done the same when we met on his birthday. He would not have kissed me back if he didn’t love me.” She shook her head.

“What makes you think it wasn’t out of guilt? People do do that.” He clenched his jaws.

“Siddo what exactly happened between you and Ty? He is such a lovely guy. What made you cut ties with him?” She examined his face.

“Taani, you’re such a lovely girl. What made Rey cut ties with you?” He scoffed and rolled his eyes.

“I wasn’t good enough for him.” She gave a sad smile.

“Don’t you dare think that about yourself!” He glared at her.

“Okay then tell me what makes you break up with someone?”

“I could never find another partner remotely close to Ty. But he already has someone who is more important than me in his life. He was making plans to visit the cabin with Joe while he was there with me. And not just that, usko pata tha ki mujhe Joe se problem hai phir bhi voh uske saath roz lunch ke plans banata tha. If he can’t be considerate about my feelings, why should I be in a relationship with him?” He flared his nostrils and clenched his jaws.

“You could have talked to Ty about it.”

“It’s not like I didn’t try. But according to him I was being insecure. Agar mera boyfriend mere alava kisi aur ke saath time spend kar raha ho toh main kyun na feel karu insecure? Aur tum logon ko aisa kyun lagta hai ki main bhaag aaya hoon? He wasn’t going anywhere and I was not interested in seeing him with Joe. Tu bata agar Rey London nahi gaya hota, toh would you have been okay to run into him and Riri?”

Taani leaned over and hugged Sid tightly. He hugged her back as tears pooled his eyes. He needed that warmth and understanding which she provided in that hug.

“Sid, stop it! Gimme my phone back!” Purvi yelled.

“I miss you baby.” Sid read the message. “Awww!”

“Sid!!” She flared her nostrils and tried to snatch her phone back.

“I miss you too baby.” He typed reading out loud. “Even if you’re not here, I still feel like there’s an Arjun right next to me.”

“Good one.” Juno chuckled.

“You guys are pathetic! Gimme my phone back!” She gritted her teeth.

Purvi’s phone rang and Sid handed it over to her.

“Juno..” She answered as she looked at a confused Arjun on her screen. “Argh! Sorry! F*ck!!” She pulled her hair in frustration.

“Juno? What the hell?” Arjun replied from the other end.

“Arjun, main tujhe baad me call karti hoon. Dimaag kharab kar rakha hai mera dono ne and I’m extremely late!” She ran to the door.

“Cut karne se pehle love you toh bol ya voh bhi Juno ko bolke jane wali ho?” He pouted.

“I love you.” She stopped and smiled.

“I yove yov.” Juno mocked as she ended the call.

“Tum dono ko subah subah koi kaam nahi hota?” She glared at them.

“Tujhe late ho raha tha na?” Juno smirked.

“Bye!” She slammed the door shut behind her.

Purvi impatiently pressed the lift button multiple times and waited tapping her phone in her hand. The lift slowly ascended and halted on the seventh floor. The door opened and she took a step ahead only to bump into Shivam walking out of the lift.

“Sorry.” They both said in unison.

“Shivam bhai aap kahan gaye the?” She furrowed her brows.

“Haan voh.. uh main.. voh.. walk pe gaya tha. Morning walk!” He smiled nervously.

“In kapdon mein?” She scanned him from top to bottom.

He looked at himself and back at her. She narrowed her eyes at him and he broke eye contact. He knew he wasn’t going to fool anyone in his attire. Jeans with a dishevelled dress shirt and a vest hanging on his hand are definitely not fit for jogging.

“Bhai?” She squinted “Is that a hick..?” She noticed a discolouration on his neck and gawked at him.

“What?” He asked, confused by her reaction.

“Nevermind, good morning. I hope you had a great walk!” She turned to the lift controlling her smile.

“Tu abhi tak yahin..” Sid stopped as he saw a confused Shivam standing in front of him.

“Tu bhi yahan kaise?” Shivam mocked emphasising on yahan.

“What is that supposed to mean?” Sid took offence to it knowing well what Shivam was alluding to.

“Kyun? Tujhe apni behen se jyada bahar walo ki nahi padi hai?” Shivam smirked.

“Toh tu bhi apni behen ka katne ke baad bahar jaake apni gardan katva raha hai!” Sid rebutted, wiping the smirk off of Shivam’s face.

Shivam walked into the house covering his hickey while Purvi stood staring at Sid ignoring the open lift door.

“Lift chali jayegi maate! Fir mereko mat boliyo!” Sid rolled his eyes and pointed at the lift.

“Yeah, sorry. Bye.” Purvi was flustered.

…

“Mansi ma’am ki car nahi dikh rahi. Which means I’m good. Jyada late nahi huyi hoon.” Purvi breathed a sigh of relief.

Purvi made her way into the office. Her phone rang and it flashed Arjun’s name. She smiled widely and answered the call.

“Where are you?” Arjun asked.

“Tujhe kya hua?” Purvi was confused.

“Kidar hai tu?” He asked again.

“Just office pahuchi hoon. Kya hua?” She knotted her brows.

“You’re late!” He reminded her.

“Yeah I know. But Mansi ma’am abhi tak pahuchi nahi hai office so I’m fine.” She giggled.

“I doubt that.”

“Why do you sound so weird? Aur phone kyun kiya hai?” She was annoyed.

“Just wanted to know where you were. We’ll talk later.” He ended the call.

“What?” She stared at her phone.

Purvi turned the corner and bumped into Armaan. The file in his hand flew open and all the papers fell out. He clicked his tongue in annoyance and sighed looking at the papers and then at her. He bent down to gather the papers. She quickly picked up the file and tried to grab the papers before him.

“Main kar lunga.”

“I’m almost done.” She grabbed the last few papers and hurriedly kept them in the file. “Here you go.” She forwarded the file and smiled at him.

“Thank you.” He acknowledged her.

“Armaan bh.. Sir.” She called him.

“Yes?” He raised a brow at her.

She kept looking at him blankly, unable to form a sentence. This was the first time in three months that she was facing him one-on-one.

“Yes Purvi?”

“I’m sorry.” She snapped out.

“It’s okay. I was on my way to arrange these anyway.” He pointed at the file.

“I can help you with it.” She offered.

“Nahi, yeh mess mujhe hi sort out karna hoga.” He had a faraway look.

“Aap theek hai?”

“Haan. Kyun?” He squinted at her.

“Voh Sid keeps telling ki..”

“He loves to exaggerate.” He cut her off.

“Exaggeration or not, you were hurt.”

“Purvi..”

“I’m sorry if I’m crossing a line, but you look disturbed and I hope you are looking after yourself. Aur yeh jo Rey se related kaam hai voh aap kisi aur se bhi karwa sakte ho.” She read Rey’s name on top of a couple of papers.

“Don’t worry about it. I’m good.” He lowered the file to his side where she wouldn’t be able to read it.

“Agar main aapse kuch kahun toh aap bura toh nahi manoge?” She was hesitant.

“Well that depends..”

“Yeah..” She looked away. “It’s nothing.” She shook her head and took a step.

“Purvi.” He stopped her. “Kya kehna chahati ho?”

“I don’t think it’s my place to tell you..”

“Speak up.” He folded his arms and waited for her.

“I had this same talk with Taani recently.” She looked at him for a brief second and then looked away. “Aap jab bhi move on karo uss se pehle ek baar try to find out the reason for his actions. Rather their actions in your case. I feel like you need to get a proper closure before you can truly move ahead in life.”

“You were there na, when he left? You heard the reason.” He replied.

“I was also there when he brought her here to mend things between the two of you. And believe me, these two never gave out any vibes which were more than friends.” She informed and studied his face.

“What did she say?” He asked.

“Who? Ri..?”

“Taani!” He stopped her. “What did Taani say when you told her this?”

“Nothing.”

“How is she handling herself?” He enquired.

“She is trying her best.”

“Hmm..”

“I’m sorry if I overstepped.” She apologised. “Mera koi intention nahi tha yeh sab old baate bolke apko hurt karne ka.”

“I’m not hurt.” He denied.

“You look disturbed or maybe even lost.”

“Yeah I have a meeting right now. So just ussi ke baare mein soch raha hoon.”

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

“No, no, it’s fine. Meeting chalu hone mein abhi thoda time hai. But I should head on inside and so should you.”

“Yeah, I’ll see you around.” She smiled and walked away.

…

Armaan kept knocking his head on his knuckle as he stared at the two sheets of paper in front of him. He occasionally glanced at his phone to check for any new notifications. He picked up one of the papers and read through Rey’s latest bank transactions. He highlighted those and looked at the other paper. There was one huge transaction on it which he kept going back to. He highlighted it and kept the paper back on his desk.

“Bhai papers mile?” Swayam barged in and examined the cabin. “Oh you already went through them?”

Armaan looked up when the door opened and leaned back into his chair. He gestured to Swayam to take a seat in front of him and slid the papers across to him.

“Maine kaha tha na ki voh apna account khali kar raha hai.” Swayam read the entries.

“Hmm.” Armaan agreed and picked up his phone as it rang. “Yeah. Okay. No worries I understand. Sure I’ll wait. Just try to get that information as soon as you can.” He ended the call.

“CA?” Swayam asked. Armaan nodded. “Kya kaha?”

“I had asked him to check a few things for me. But usse abhi tak full information nahi mili hai.” Armaan informed and sat straight.

“Full information?” Swayam was confused.

“Yeh,” Armaan pointed at the last entry on the sheet. “Rey ka London wala account nahi hai. So I asked the CA to find out about this account. He told me that it’s not a London account.”

“I had my doubts about London.” Swayam sighed. “Toh kaunsa account hai?” He further asked.

“He’ll get back with it.” Armaan informed.

“Yeh kya hai?” Swayam looked at the other sheet which Armaan had laid on his desk.

“Read.” Armaan rolled his eyes and laid back into his chair making it squeak.

“Bhai!” Swayam groaned. “Change karwa lo voh chair!”

“Haan.” Armaan bobbed his head.

“Yeh kya do-teen naye ghar khareede hai usne?” Swayam chuckled dryly as he read the transaction amount.

“I have no idea but this looked weird to me. Thought you might know something.” Armaan replied, still in the same position.

“Kisko yeh amount transfer ki hai voh samjha?” Swayam asked, scratching his head to remember if he had any conversation with Rey regarding any purchases.

“I don’t have a name yet. But this was about five months ago.” Armaan sat back straight again. “What’s the date again?”

“Twenty second September.” Swayam read.

“That's right before Kiara's birthday. Rey uss waqt Melbourne mein tha.” Armaan recalled.

“Are you sure he hasn’t purchased land there?” Swayam raised his brow.

“Ek minute. Gimme that.” Armaan read the transactions again. “He should have used his miles to keep this hidden.” He shook his head.

“What?” Swayam squinted.

“Isne ek local trip mara tha when he was there.” Armaan informed.

“Yeh aapko kaise pata chala?” Swayam scanned the sheet.

“Rey was going on a day's trip somewhere. Rahul was terrified then as he thought ki Rey aur gifts buy karne ja raha hai. But Rey had given some work excuse. And this is a typical kiosk transaction for ticket booking. I’ve seen these a lot in my bank statements.” Armaan pointed. “Also that amount is usually the flight ticket for domestic travels.”

“Gaya kahan tha yeh?” Swayam wondered.

“Beats me!”

“Sharon ko puch ke dekht..”

“Don’t involve her. Yet.” Armaan quickly stopped him. “I mean we are just speculating and I don't want to raise her hopes.”

“Hmn.” Swayam agreed. “Kiara ke birthday ke baad kya hua tha?” He thought.

“I got sick and he had to travel to London on my behalf.” Armaan recalled.

“Then we forced him to come here for his birthday and after he went back he was radio silent.” Swayam added.

“Till he made that announcement.” Armaan sighed audibly. “Nothing seems out of the ordinary.”

“Bhai uss account ke baare mein pata lagao. That’s a huge sum of money which he has transferred.” Swayam insisted.

“I’m trying.” Armaan leaned back into the chair making it creak.

“I’m going to throw that chair away!” Swayam glared.

“I kinda like it.” Armaan smiled.

“Yeh kyu call kar rahi hai?” Swayam wondered on seeing Sara’s name on his phone. “Haan bol.”

Armaan picked up his phone when a message popped on his screen. He raised his brow as he read it and quickly sent a thank you in return. He locked his phone and furrowed his brows trying to make sense of the information which he had received. He waited for Swayam to finish his call, which much to his annoyance was not ending.

“Yeah, I’ll check with her. Bye.” Swayam ended the call and sighed.

“All good? Sara panicking again?” Armaan asked.

“It was Sharon. Usse Manas se kuch kaam tha and since her phone isn’t working toh meko call kiya.” Swayam shook his head. “I’ll go and meet her after this.”

“She is on leave. Indefinitely.” Armaan informed.

“What?” Swayam widened his eyes.

“I mean for a year.. but.. yeah.. same thing.” Armaan shrugged his shoulders.

“All good?”

“Call her when you get time.”

“Yeah.” Swayam nodded. “Also, koi lead mile toh batana. This is too absurd.” He pointed to the paper.

“Look at this.” Armaan showed the text which he received.

“WHAT! Why? How?” Swayam stared at the phone aghast. “He didn’t!” He shook his head. “Are you sure?”

“That account is of Sydney School of Dance.” Armaan nodded.

“Why would he pay them?” Swayam scrunched his nose.

“I think you will have to consult with Sharon and the rest of the team with regards to this.” Armaan suggested.

“Par hum..”

“Sab details mat dena, just tell them that you found this out as you had to cross check this large transaction to see if it was legit.”

“What has Rey done?” Swayam rubbed his forehead.

“Figure it out and get back to me. As abhi tujhe nikalna hoga.”

“Kyun?” Swayam was confused.

“Sid will be here any moment and I really don’t want..”

“Yeah, got it.” Swayam stopped him. “Main bhi Manas se..”

“Parul. She has come in as a substitute.” Armaan informed.

“Got it!” Swayam nodded. “I’ll get to the bottom of this.”

…

“What is wrong with you? Phone utha nahi rahi hoon matlab busy rahungi na!” Taani answered the call and saw Purvi grinning at her. “What? Aise daath phad ke kyun hass rahi hai?”

“Hi!” Arjun came into the frame and smiled widely.

“Tu kab aaya?” Taani was surprised and her lips curved into a light smile.

“Purvi bohot miss kar rahi thi yaar meko. And I couldn’t see her sadness. Toh main aa gaya!”

“Yeah right!” Purvi smacked him in the head.

“What? You weren’t missing me?” He squinted at her.

“Bohot jyada kar rahi thi miss.” Purvi leaned on his shoulder.

“Guys office mein ho yaar. Behave.” Taani scowled. “Ek minute tu wahan kya kar raha hai?” She raised her brow.

“Guess who is gonna be finally working together?” Arjun butted heads with Purvi.

“You shifted?” Taani smiled widely.

“Dekh terese jyaada Taani khush hai.” Arjun teased Purvi.

“Tu uska senior banke thodi aaya hai!” Purvi rolled her eyes.

“What is happening? I’m so lost.” Taani furrowed her brows.

“Parul got an offer to fill in for Mansi ma’am as she had to take some personal leave. She accepted it and since I was the only one working with her, she got me a job here as well.” Arjun explained.

“That’s great! I’m so happy that you’re back. Don’t you dare go back now!” Taani warned him.

“Not planning to.” Arjun pulled Purvi closer to him.

“Jaane bhi nahi dungi main tujhe!” Purvi leaned her head on his shoulder.

Taani felt a pang in her heart on seeing them together. She maintained the smile on her face to not show the void that she felt.

“We’ll catch up in the evening. Abhi mujhe bohot kaam hai.” Taani ended the call.

“Comfortable?” He asked as she settled on his lap.

“Very!” She replied.

“Why am I thinking about him?” Taani shook her head and got up from her seat.

“Heading for lunch?” Ayushman asked from behind her.

“Huh?” Taani was startled but recovered quickly and nodded.

“Chalo phir.” He led her to the cafeteria.

“Aaj tum lunch itna late kar rahe ho?” She asked as she sat in front of him.

“Haan subah se calls chalu the. Abhi free hua hoon.” He stretched his neck making it crack.

“Good that you remembered to take a break.”

“Sab teri tarah itne workaholic thodi hote hai.” He teased her.

“I am not a workaholic!” She widened her eyes.

“Oh stop denying facts!” He mocked her.

“I’m not though.” She murmured.

“Hello!” Adah waved at them. “Can I join?”

“Sure.” Ayushman smiled at her.

“Ayu..” Adah started.

“Sh.” He looked at her. “Ayush.”

“Ayu ekdum sona munda sound karta hai.” Adah shook her head. “Anyway, Ayush, yeh jo naya hotelier ka project aane wala hai, voh kaun lead karne wala hai?”

“Kyun? Tujhe karna hai?” He cocked his brow at her.

“I would love to!” Her eyes sparkled.

“I’ll let Akash know to give you additional responsibilities.” He smiled at her.

“Thank you!” She almost jumped up in joy.

“And you were calling me a workaholic!” Taani muttered under her breath but they both caught it.

“I’m just grabbing the opportunity before someone else gets picked up.” Adah defended.

“I don’t pick favourites!” Ayushman stated.

“I don’t like such personal favours!” He sounded annoyed.

“Taani?” Adah waved her hand in front of her. “Kahan kho gayi?”

“Kuch nahi.” Taani just smiled at her.

“Waise Adah, just for your information, ek society ke interior ka project just land hua hai.” He looked at both.

“Voh tie-up with that builder?” Taani asked.

“Yeah.” He nodded.

“I would still prefer the hotel one.” Adah stated.

“Wasn’t Mansi ma’am fighting you for it? Mujhe toh laga she got it.” Taani wondered.

“She had to back away. Ek saal ka sabbatical leke voh ispe kaam nahi kar paati.” He informed. “I swooped in at the last minute and finalized the deal.

“Oh right I heard about it.” Taani said.

“She is going on a vacation with her mom. A girls trip is what she called it.” He chuckled recalling it. “So yeah, that project is going to start soon.”

“Taani!” Adah nudged her. “Don’t ask the man to spell it out for you.”

“Sorry?” Taani was confused.

“He’s asking if you’d like to join the project.” Adah stated.

“I mean you already have a lot on your plate. But let me know. You both still have time.” He informed them.

“Sure will do.” Taani smiled.

…

“That’ll be it. I’m looking forward to it.” Armaan smiled and ended the call.

“Finally!” Sid sprung up from his chair and walked over to the desk.

“I’m exhausted!” Armaan cracked his neck and leaned back into his chair.

“Do you know the trouble I go through everyday to come here on time just to get your ass to have lunch? Well, that’s exhausting!” Sid pointed out.

“Toh mat aa na.” Armaan bit back a chuckle.

“Fine kal se nahi aaunga. Waise bhi meri value hai kisko?” Sid cribbed.

“Kyun nautanki kar raha hai?” Armaan sat back up straight.

“How hard is it for you to appreciate what I’m doing?” Sid huffed.

“Kiske saath jhagda hua hai?” Armaan folded his arms across his chest.

“Forget it. I..” Sid stopped abruptly as he saw a paper peeping from beneath a file. “What the hell is this?” He pulled it out.

“Sid wapas de.” Armaan snatched it out of his hand.

“Why are you doing this to yourself? I know ki voh tera bhai hai but all this is just going to trouble you.” Sid pointed out.

“Sid chod na please.”

“Fine. I’ll keep shut. Waise bhi mere opinion ki value toh hai nahi kisiko bhi. Tu yahan yeh leke baitha hai aur voh gadhi wahan. Mera hi palla tum do idiots se padna tha?” Sid huffed.

“I can’t just let go man. The more I think about it the more absurd this all seems. I have to get to the bottom of it. For my sanity.” Armaan made him understand.

“How can you still trust them?”

“Sid please just drop it.”

“I’m not angry. I’m genuinely asking. Itna sab hone ke baad bhi how are you two still trusting them?”

“Two?”

“Haan. I had a chat with Taani yesterday and she was obsessing about her engagement ring. Which by the way, just check if you can find it, Rey ke ghar pe.”

“Uski ring Rey ke ghar pe kyun rahegi?” Armaan was confused.

“She thinks that Rey removed it from her hand.”

“Main dekhta hoon.”

“Only if you’re okay with it. Don’t go looking for it for her sake.” Sid warned him.

“You need to stop worrying about me so much.” Armaan smiled at him.

“Well then you need to stop doing stupid things!” Sid pointed at the paper.

“I should have kept it away before you came. Main janata tha you’ll freak out if you saw this.” Armaan shook his head.

Sid narrowed his eyes at Armaan and muttered a few curses under his breath.

“Tujhe pata hai kal I kinda slipped up and told Taani what Sara said about them two hooking up.”

“Tu..”

“Aage toh sun.” Sid stopped him. “She straightaway denied it. Aur bol rahi thi ki agar aisa kuch hua hota toh he would have told her. Like what?”

“She is still in love with him.” Armaan passed a sad smile.

“Yeah and I want to whack it out of her head. But like you, it’s going to be a difficult task.” Sid sighed.

“I don’t think that would even be possible. I know in my heart that she still loves me.”

“You’re being delusional!” Sid shook him. “Snap out!”

“Tu baat toh aise kar raha hai jaise tu Tyler ko bilkul bhool gaya hai.” Armaan cocked his brow.

“Jitna main usse bhoolna chahata hoon tum sab yaad dilate rehte ho.” Sid flared his nostrils.

“I know he has hurt you, Sid.” Armaan walked up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. “But please be a bigger man and forgive him.”

“He doesn’t even think he is wrong in any way.” Sid couldn’t help the quiver in his voice.

“Come here!” Armaan pulled him into a hug. “Stop suppressing your feelings. You too got your heart broken. It’s okay to be sad. Mere saamne aise khush rehne ka natak mat kar.”

“I love him, Armaan.” Sid broke down. “Even after all this, I still love him!”

“Hey.” Nil smiled at Simmi.

“What?” She locked her phone and looked at him.

“Umm..” Nil kept looking at her.

“Kuch bolega?” She was annoyed.

“Abh kya kiya isne?” Vicky joined them.

“He doesn’t need to do anything specific to annoy me!” Simmi rolled her eyes and walked away from them.

“Why do you trouble her so much?” Vicky looked at Nil.

“I trouble her?” Nil asked aghast.

“Yes!” Vicky nodded.

“Like she hasn’t messed with my brain!” Nil muttered and walked away as well.

“Mr. Swayam Shekhawat!” Sharon yelled, gaining everyone’s attention. “Why have you called us here?” She glared at him.

“Let everyone come.” Swayam smiled nervously.

“Who else is left?” Neha looked around.

“Sara?” Swayam furrowed his brows.

“Tune D3 ki meeting bulayi hai. Voh kyun aayegi?” Bharat reminded him.

“Haan right. Sorry.” Swayam shook his head.

“Baat kya hai?” Neha asked.

“I recently found out something and..”

“And you thought that we are finally worthy of knowing about it!” Sharon snapped and rolled her eyes at Swayam.

“Sharon yaar please.. I genuinely didn’t know what to make of it.” Swayam looked at her and she looked away.

“What did you find out?” Vicky asked.

“It’s about Rey.” Swayam looked at everyone. “He uh..” Swayam trailed, not knowing how to word it.

“What about him?” Simmi asked.

“From September to the day he left in December did any of you have a conversation with him regarding anything to do with Sydney or SSD?” Swayam questioned.

“It's about the routine, isn’t it?” Nil scrunched his brows together. “Ussi ne voh D3 ka routine SSD ko diya na?”

“Main routine ke baare mein toh bhool hi gaya tha. Well at least that confirms that he actually went to Sydney.” Swayam mumbled.

“We kinda already know that Rey leaked that routine. Is that what you found out?” Aashi questioned Swayam.

“Not really..” Swayam scratched his head.

“Will you just say already!” Sharon crossed her arms across her chest.

“Our CA informed us that there was a large transaction from Rey’s account last September. He wanted to cross check it with me.”

“And?” Vicky raised a brow.

“Well the account he transferred that money belongs to Sydney School of Dance.” Swayam informed.

“Why would he do that?” Sharon wondered.

“Yeah, wasn’t the beef settled?” Simmi added.

“We exposed that piece of shit for falsely accusing D3 of bribing their ex-instructors! And he had taken his case back.” Nil affirmed.

“I just know that Rey paid him. Kyun kiya voh mere samajh nahi aaraha.” Swayam rubbed his forehead.

“Did he pay to settle the case?” Sharon knotted her brows.

“But why after he took back the case?” Aashi wondered.

“He didn’t speak with anyone regarding it?” Swayam questioned hoping for some answer.

“Yaad hai voh toh hume uss case ke baare mein batane bhi nahi wala tha. I think Sharon forced him to do that. Toh abhi agar usne khud yeh handle kiya hai, toh it doesn’t surprise me a bit!” Vicky shook his head.

“You will not face any problem when it comes to the academy. I’ve made sure of that.” Rey gave a weak smile.

“Rey!” Sharon said through gritted teeth. “Do you remember what he said when he was leaving?” She looked at Swayam.

“He assured us that we won’t face any problem with the academy.” Swayam closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. “I am going to kill him the next time I see him!”

“Taani!” Tanya called for her.

“Haan, I’m ready.” Taani walked out of her room.

“Good.” Tanya smiled at her.

“I’m sorry about yesterday. Voh main aaj ki date bhool gayi thi.” Taani lowered her head.

“It’s alright bachcha.” Tanya caressed her head and made her sit next to her on the couch. “Aur yeh dinner bhi koi compulsion nahi hai.”

“But it’s our tradition!” Taani interjected.

“Traditions evolve.” Tanya made her understand. “Tomorrow if you go and settle in another city or a country, kya wahan se aaogi Mumbai? Also what if the restaurant shuts down?”

“Then why were you forcing me yesterday?” Taani pouted.

“Kyunki, it has been so long that I’ve seen you leave the house apart from when you go to work.”

“Mumma kahin jaane ka mann nahi karta.” Taani looked away.

“Par aise sara din ghar pe rehne se kya hoga? Main samajhti hoon ki you are still hurting, but you need to make an effort to make yourself feel better. Hum sab yahan hai to look after you, par jab tak tum nahi chahogi hum kuch nahi kar payenge.” Tanya held her hand and made her understand.

“Kaise? It’s been three months and I still keep having flashbacks of him. He was always so good to me toh aisa kya hua ki he did that to me?” Tears ran down Taani’s eyes.

“It’s only been three months. Grief ka koi time nahi hota. Yash ko gaye aath saal hogaye. His memories sometimes creep up to me too. I’ve learned to smile at them. You will too, eventually.” Tanya pulled Taani in a side hug and pacified her.

“Do you think I rushed into the relationship?” Taani asked after a while. “I mean this was the first proposal for me and I accepted it straightaway. Should I have waited?”

“Were you truly happy when you said yes? Be honest with yourself.” Tanya asked. Taani nodded. “Then it doesn’t matter. And even if you would have rejected and waited for someone else, toh kya guarantee hai ki that relationship would have lasted?”

“So all relationships are doomed?” Taani raised her brows.

“I didn’t say that. Meri baaton ka galath matlab mat nikal!” Tanya hit her lightly.

“But if relationships don’t last forever then why get into one?” Taani raised her shoulders.

“Because love makes you want to spend whatever time you have together. Love is a beautiful emotion.”

“Love sucks!” Taani made a face.

“I second that!” Sid walked in and heard Taani.

“And who broke this beautiful heart?” Tanya squinted at Sid.

“Kisi mein itni himmat kahan jo mera dil tod sake?” Sid pulled up his collars. “I’m usually the one breaking hearts Maasi!”

“Yeah right!” Taani mumbled and rolled her eyes at Sid.

“Achha? Toh kis ka dil tod ke aaye ho?” Tanya chuckled lightly.

“Armaan ka!” Sid grinned from ear to ear. “Finally usse realise hua ki usne mere pyaar ko thukarake kitni badi galati ki hai!”

“Haan haan isiliye teko dhakke maar ke cabin ke bahar nikala tha, nahi?” Arjun walked in along with Purvi.

“Arjun!” Taani went in for a hug.

“I missed you.” Arjun hugged her back.

“What did you do to him? He was in such a bad mood for the rest of the day.” Purvi shuddered thinking about the meeting they all had post lunch.

“I’ll take care of it.” Sid looked guilty. “I’m going there later.”

“Sab aagaye?” Shivam walked out of his room and looked around. “Juno kahan hai?”

“He’s not well. I tried a lot but he doesn’t want to come.” Taani huffed.

“Let him rest.” Tanya smiled.

“Let’s leave then?” Shivam picked his car keys. “Who else is driving? Hum ek car mein fit nahi hone wale.”

“Siddo?” Taani held her keys in front of him.

“Main teri khatara nahi chalane wala!” Sid backed away.

“I’ll drive us.” Arjun volunteered.

...

“Sid, tu aaj raat pakka nahi hai ghar pe?” Arjun asked.

“Dekh ghar pe sirf main aur Purvi nahi rehte.” Sid held back his smile.

“Chup be kaminey!” Arjun smacked him.

“Purvi..” Sid turned in his seat to look at Purvi. “Be mindful haan. Kahin awaaz sunke Juno ko aisa na lage ki tum usse bula rahi ho.”

“Sid!” Purvi took a second to register his words and then threw a couple of punches at him. “What the f*ck?”

“Jun.. Arjun yaar gaadi rok. Let Sid come with Bhai and Mumma.” Taani sneered at Sid.

“Juno ki itni aadat hogayi ki mera naam bhool gayi?” Arjun wiped his nonexistent tears.

“Juno easily rolls off the tongue.” Taani pouted guiltily.

“That’s what she said!” Sid muttered.

“What is wrong with you?” Taani glared at Sid.

“Aisa hi kuch bola hoga tune Armaan bhai ko.” Purvi said.

“Dekh, I had just gone back to check on him a last time before I left. We got into a discussion and he was being unreasonable about some stuff and I got mad at him. Aur fir gusse mein I calle..” Sid stopped and shook his head. “Chod. I’ll sort it out.”

“He wouldn’t be mad if you called him something. You must have said something mean to someone he cares about.” Taani stated.

“Tu badi jaanti hai Armaan ko.” Sid mocked.

“Rey bhi..” Taani stopped and looked out of the window ignoring everyone.

“Anyway.. I was hoping to seek refuge at your place?” Arjun looked at Purvi.

“Kya hua? Uncle aunty khush nahi hai with your return?” Purvi asked him back.

“Nahi yaar voh ghar ke peeche wale road pe kaam chalu hai and it’s impossible to sleep at night.” Arjun shuddered.

“Matlab tu roz ghar aane wala hai?” Sid narrowd his eyes.

“I mean.. I don’t mind.” Arjun winked at Purvi through the mirror.

“Eyes on the road mister!” Purvi playfully smacked him.

“Rental agreement banvane bolne wala hoon main Maasi ko. Har koi muh uthake aajata hai ghar.” Sid huffed.

Taani giggled lightly listening to their conversation. She still kept looking at the passing street lights.

“What say Taani? Ban jau main bhi tera neighbour?” Arjun asked her.

“You can but it would be an unnecessary expense.” Taani replied.

“Dusra koi solution hai?” Arjun asked dejectedly.

“Hai na. A very simple one!” Taani turned to look at him.

“Wapas Pune jaa boli na toh I swear I’ll murder you with my bare hands!” Purvi glared at her.

“Shut up!” Taani chuckled. “Arjun tu apna room sound proof kar de. Trust me you’ll sleep like a baby!”

“Tha..nks!” Arjun looked at her cautiously and then at Purvi and Sid.

Sid had his brow raised as he looked at Taani. Purvi looked at them with furrowed brows and then turned to Taani with concern. They all were surprised to find Taani acting normal. Just a couple of moments ago she had instantly shut down on the mention of Rey’s name. Yet now it seemed that she had forgotten where she pulled the sound proof room reference from.

“I’ll think about it.” Arjun smiled at her.

...

"Taani, you haven't touched your food." Tanya gave her a stern look.

“Sorry, I’ll be back.” Taani got up from her seat and walked out of the restaurant.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Sid followed her out.

“There was a reason I didn’t want to come here.” Tears rolled down her eyes.

“Taani, baat kya hai?” Sid pulled her into an embrace and rubbed her arm.

“The last two years around this time we had problems with our relationship and somehow on this day, things just sorted themselves out. To be honest, I was hoping for that to happen again. I feel awful for wanting that." Taani sobbed.

“Taani yaar..” Sid stroked her hair. “Kab tak tu aise feel karegi? You need to make peace with the fact that he is not coming back into your life.”

“Nahi ho raha hai na Siddo. Yahan aake all those memories have resurfaced and I can’t..”

“Toh chal, let’s leave.”

“No! They all want me to be present. I don’t want to be selfish.” She sniffed.

“You’re allowed to be. You need to do stuff that makes you happy.”

“Kabhi kabhi sochti hoon ki kaash last year New York se aane ke baad, we didn’t get back together. Itna dard toh nahi hota tha.”

“Aise toh tu eventually bolegi ki you shouldn’t have gone to meet him in the first place.” He teased her, earning a smack on his hand.

“That’s true. I shouldn’t have agreed to this rishta.” Taani shook her head.

“I don’t agree with that. Yes, he has caused you heartaches and made you cry but he has taught you how to love. You always ran ten feet away from guys and after you met him, I’ve seen you befriend people easily. So I wouldn’t agree that you shouldn’t have met him. Every relationship imparts knowledge. You should allow those teachings to reach you.”

“It’s easier said than done.” She scoffed.

“Always!” He too joined.

“Andar chale?” She looked at him. “I don’t want to sour my other relationships because of a failed one.”

“On one condition.”

“What?”

“You will force yourself to smile whenever you think of him.”

“And that’ll help me how?”

“Teko try karne mein koi problem hai kya? Nahi kaam kiya toh kuch aur soch lenge.” He smiled.

“Okay! Yeh karke dekhte hai.” She smiled and walked back into the restaurant with him.

"Mumbai mein kab tak rukne wale ho?" Tanya looked at Arjun.

"Aunty I'm not going anywhere this time. Bohot hogaya long distance. I just want to be with her all the time." Arjun held Purvi's hand and kissed her cheek.

"So when's the wedding?" Tanya smirked.

"Wedding?" Purvi gawked at her.

"Haan." Tanya smiled.

"Abhi tak kuch socha nahi hai." Purvi smiled back.

"Mom aaj hi toh yeh vapas aaya hai. Kuch plan karne ke liye unhe time toh do." Shivam added.

"Isse kuch bhi plan karne time kahan lagta hai. Abhi aate time hi bohot kuch plans ban rahe the." Sid teased.

"Sid!" Purvi glared at him as her cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

"Shivam bhai, plans toh hum bana lenge but if you guide us on some spontaneity, it'll be really helpful." Arjun smirked lightly.

"Spontaneity?" Shivam raised a brow.

"Haan aap jaise subah subah jeans and shirt pehen kar morning walk pe jaate ho, voh spontaneous hi hota hai na?" Arjun smiled widely at Shivam.

"What am I missing here?" Tanya looked at Shivam.

"Nothing!" Shivam sneered at Arjun.

"Bhai aap jeans pehen kar morning walk pe jaate ho?" Taani was surprised.

"Shut up!" Shivam huffed. "Like you don't know what they are talking about." He rolled his eyes.

"She actually doesn't." Sid chuckled.

"What?" Taani asked, confused.

"Yeh chote bachcho ki sunne ki baat nahi hai." Sid cooed her.

"Shut up!" Taani smacked his hand away.

"Waise aaj kal kaafi late nahi ho jaata hai ghar aane?" Tanya raised a brow at Shivam and smirked lightly.

"Mom? Even you?" Shivam pouted.

"Kyun main andhi hoon kya jo mujhe yeh sab nahi dikhega?" Tanya smacked him lightly. "Kab milwa rahe ho?"

"Mom please?" Shivam squirmed under her gaze. "We're still figuring out.."

"Relax. You can share whenever you're comfortable." Tanya smiled warmly at him.

"Bhai, why is everyone acting like they don't know who you're with?" Taani whispered to Shivam.

"Tujhe pata hai?" Shivam squinted at her.

"Sneha! Who else could it be?" Taani stated matter of factly.

"It is her. But there is a lot more to it. And honestly we're figuring out some complexities." Shivam whispered back.

"I'm happy for you." Taani squeezed his hand.

"Please be happy for yourself too. You deserve it!" Shivam pulled her into a side hug and kissed her forehead.

The live band started playing. The song managed to bring a nostalgic smile on everyone’s faces.

Chand lamhat ke vaaste hi sahi
Muskurakar mili thi mujhe zindagi
Teri aagosh mein din the mere kate
Teri baahon mein thi meri raatein kati
Aaj bhi jab voh pal mujhko yaad aate hai
Dil se saare gamon ko bhula jaate hai
Dard mein bhi yeh labh muskura jaate hai
Beete lamhein hume jab bhi yaad aate hai

Taani had a dreamy smile on her face. This was probably the first time when she was listenting to the song and not just merely hearing it. She looked at the singer holding the mic close as the music slowed. It took her back to the previous year where she had somehow mustered up the courage to sing in front of a live audience.

"Shayad uske liye main kaafi nahi thi." Taani muttered lightly to herself as her eyes moistened.

Hello

I'm not sure what to say but I still have to fill up this space. So I'm just going to blabber something. Smile if you happen to read it. Also, please share what you like or dislike about the chapter. I love reading comments. Honestly reading comments makes me happy and makes me want to keep writing.

I'll probably disappear from IF for sometime now that I have posted, that has been a trend. But you can definitely catch me on the gram. I do tend to check messages there, more often than here.

: @taarey1025