Gun and Guitar-a RANTARA ff(note at pg150) - Page 8

Chapter 5

"ha thik hain mai... Aap ko chinta kar ne ki koi zarrorat nahi, yahan sab kuch barobar hain. Haan bhai bhi ekdum jhgakas hain..." A man said holding the phone. They are inside a small dark room. Raghu was seating on a bed just some few inches away from that person. Raghu's eyes were all fixed on the clear night sky which could be seen through window. His eyes were bit amused, god knows whom he was searching in that stars. "bhai, mai ka phone hain..." the guy said turning towards raghu who didn't even noticed the words. "BHAI..." now he said quite loudly. Raghu's feature jerked up and he looked to that 2^nd person with slight irritated eyes. "ha mach mach kya huya?" he asked. "arey bhai kab se kahe raha hoon ki mai ka phone hain aur tu kuch kaheta hi nahi..."mach mach said. "mai ka phone? de mujhe." Raghu jumped from bed and came near him. MM passed the phone to him. "haan mai bolo.." raghu asked. Someone gave some instruction to him in the phone. "thik hain mai... aap ka kaam ho jayega.." raghu said. And then he cut the phone. "kya kaha mai ne?" MM asked. "kuch nahi kaal wo aman bhai se milna hain.." raghu said. "kya kaal hi?!" MM asked quite surprisingly. "arey haan... iss mein itna bawal kyun macha raha hain...kabhi na kabhi to milna hi tha... issi kaam ke liye to hum Kashmir aye hain..." raghu said and moved forward to his bag and he took out a wrapped parcel from that box. "chalo kaal iss dabbe ko aman bhai ke hathon mein de de fir wapas apne Mumbai...sala dum ghoot ta hain iss thand aur baraf mein..." he whimpered. "job hi bol bhai.. Kashmir hain bari khoobsoorat...yahan ki hawaien... kya bole to pollution free... " MM continues to say. "hawaien??!! Ya yahan ki mulgiyan?" raghu asked twitching his lips into an indicating smile. "kya bhai tub hi na..."MM tried to deny. "haan mujhe achi tarah se pata hain teri niyat... iss gharwale ke larki sath kaal gappe maar raha tha.. dekha maine..." he teased. "arey apun to bas hulchul puch raha tha uss ka.. kya hain na..." MM stumbled. "haan samajh gaya apun.. " he let out a mocking smile. MM thought to shut down his mouth for his sake. He knew it was quite tough to defeat him in talks. Raghu kept that box on the table. MM's eyes got fixed on the box. "bhai ek baat bata..." MM asked, "tujhe kya lagta hain iss dabbe mein hain kya?!" he finished. "arey apne ko kya pata?! Mai ne kaha ki dabba Kashmir kea man bhai ke hathon bhejna hain... ab dabbe mein kya hain ye apun jaan ke kya karega... waise bhi mai ke kisi kaam ke liye aaj taka apun koi sawal nahi pooche..." Raghu exclaimed. "bhai kabhi tune socha... mai ka dahina haath hain tu... Uska sab se bara payada... unke sare bare bare contacts or superi ke liye tujhe bhejta hain... aur usi mai ne tujhe bas ek mamuli dabba bhejne ke liye... jo ki ye kaam to koi bhi kar sakta tha..." MM asked confusingly. "ab mai ne kaha hain to karna to parega na... cha lab tu apne bheje mein jyada gol mat paka...nahi to pressure coocker fat jayega... Aur wapas jane ke liye ready ho ja..." raghu said. MM looked at his face silently. These guy trusted daya mai so blindly that he was ready to die or to kill anyone for her sake. Just because daya mai gave him shelter and food in his childhood when everyone threw him away. The whole world knew raghu as a brutal killing machine who didn't have any mercy. But mach mach knew how vulnerable he was from inside. His bitter past, when he was wandering in roads and seeking help for his ill mother. But no one helped him. Sometimes he really felt bad for his bhai. He even asked so many times, "bhai tujhe kabhi man nahi karta ki ye sab chor de, ye marna marna aur ek solid si life jiye..." . but each and everytime raghu answred him, "mach mach... Iss dhande mein andar ane ka darwaja to hain par bahar jane ka nahin... Iss life ko apun ne khud chuna... Aur kya fayda uss life ki jaha log mujhe bas thokre marte hain... Hath mein pistol ho na, to log kam se kam izzat to dete hain..." He sealed his long lost heart so many days ago and mach mach always prayed that once a miracle would happen and someone would open that lock. "arey mach mach apne sweet dream se bahar nikal... Aur aman bhai ko phone laga...teri ruksana abhi ghar pein nahi hain." Raghu's word made him to come out of his thoughts. "bhai tu phir se..." MM whimpered. Raghu again let out that croocked smile. "bhai mere ko ek sach baat bata... mujhe pata hain tujhe in sab baton mein koi interest nahin hain...par kya Kashmir ki koi bhi cheez tujhe pasand nahi ayi??" MM asked. Suddenly raghu's orbs got fixed on the lantern hangin from the wall. In that lantern light, two luminous hazel light flashed in her mind and suddenly his croocked smile broaded into a pleasant mild smile. "bhai?.." MM saw the change in his expression. "CHURAIL!!..." he just uttered a single word. "kya churail...?!! Bhai tu thik to hain na?dekh raha hoon jab se bahar se aya hain ajeeb se batein kar raha hain!" MM asked worriedly. "arey tu ja na..." raghu said scratching his hair in a vague try to hide his smile. MM escaped from the room with confused look.

Next day,

"what? Why can't we rehars today?!" antara asked holding her cell in her ear. "what can we do yaar... this decoraters and light men have to visit today... They would examine the stage and whole collage for function. So no plce for rehars!" afreen informed from the other side of phone. "but we only have two days!! How can give break in our reharsh?" antara said. "antu I was saying that... Why don't we meet at salimar garden?! That place is quite and lonely... we can easily rehars there..." afreen proposed. "gr8 idea... So we are meeting in salimar garden afte an hour... " antara said.

Raghu was standing at a corner supporting the old chinar tree. Aman told him to meet at salimar garden in this place. He was standing there for half an hour but no tress of aman. He was impatiently stomping his feet. "ye aman bhai ab tak ayein kyun nahi?" raghu whimpered. Suddenly his eyes fell at a distance where he could c the bunches of rose flowers where a girl was standing wearing pink salwar. Whose hazel eyes were moving hear and there in search for some one. His breath suddenly got resisted and his eyes glued at the spot.

Precap: his face moved forward. Antara felt some shiver in her spine. His black eyes, so close... She was feeling an unknown terrpr and also excitement.