Chapter 12: Dil Duffer
Samrat sat at the table quietly drinking his morning coffee. His eyes scanned across the restaurant silently watching the other patrons. He noted that some were in deep conversations, some were laughing giddily at jokes, and others calmly eating their breakfast. He took a deep breath as he took his glasses off and pinched the bridge of his nose trying to relieve the tension he felt in his body. It had only been a few weeks since he made the deal to save his company and instead of sleeping peacefully at night he was wrought with sleepless nights and nightmares. "Good Morning Samrat." He looked up and saw Nandini standing in front of him. "You seem tense...especially for someone who saved his company from the brink of closure."
"What do you want Nandini?" he grumbled.
"Always with this same expression Samrat," Nandini replied as she sat down shaking her head. "You should be at ease. I haven't asked for anything. The contract states it specifically...you are still majority shareholder...I would have to convince three of the board members to hand over their shares to me to get the 51%...and that is nearly impossible. And didn't I give you two new hires in the international sector? How are my nephews doing...Arjun and Neil? Do you find anything unsatisfactory with their work?"
Samrat gave a glare but answered, "No, Arjun and Neil are both outstanding workers. But you still haven't told me about this special request? What is it that you want? Mark my words if you try anything---"
Nandini laughed, "Making demands? Are you really in any position to do so? BirdSong holds a special place for me...and my late brother. Does Piyali know I'm back?" She watched Samrat's expression at her question and smirked, "Seeing how pale your face has just become I know my answer."
"What had happened...in the past...you misunderstood..."
"Misunderstood? Is that what you call it? Late night phone calls...weekend getaways...dinner dates? My, my, my...would Piyali understand that?" Nandini inquired with raised eyebrows.
"That was in the past. This contract we have was suppose to be a business deal...not something personal," Samrat replied heated.
"Oh, are you insinuating this is some grand revenge plan?" Nandini questioned with a laugh. "My you do have an active imagination Samrat. If I was here for revenge you wouldn't be able to eat let alone sleep." Samrat put his glasses back on and took a nervous sip of his coffee. "I'll tell you soon this special request, but until then don't try to threaten me...I know all your secrets," Nandini said. "Don't make me say what I know about that night."
He looked at her trying to remain calm despite how his stomach was churning horribly. The palms of his hands were becoming sweaty and he felt unbearably warm. "I was set up. If there was any shred of evidence you'd have shown it to the police," he replied. "What happened was a tragedy. Stop trying to blame me for every misfortunate of the Mehra family."
"And Sid considered you a friend..."
"Don't act like the saintly sister Nandini. You took advantage of him for your own business means," Samrat rebutted. "Sid was blinded by his love for his little sister. Don't think I don't know your secrets."
Nandini tightened her lips at his words and then gave a pleasant smile, "We'll be in touch." Samrat watched as she left feeling a sense of relief for the moment.
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Radhika sat in the passenger seat of the Mahindra XUV and sighed to herself. She couldn't believe that after everything that had occurred last weekend that she was back to square one with Arjun. He was back to his moody argumentative demeanor. Somehow she got assigned to a weekend assignment to go location scouting with Arjun. The drive had started out positive until it was blatantly obvious that they were lost and he refused to stop and get directions. She tried to re-coordinate the GPS but it wasn't working. It kept trying to direct them to a road that was closed due to repairs.
Radhika reached over on the dash and turned on the radio only to spark the ire of the driver who immediately turned it off. "I'm trying to concentrate."
"On what Arjun Sir? The empty road? I'm bored. We've been driving for hours now and you still won't pull over and ask someone directions," Radhika retorted.
"As you stated it's an empty road. Who would I stop and ask?" Arjun replied.
Radhika's eyes spotted a small roadway stop with a little food stall and people waiting for the local bus. "Sir! There on the left..." She watched as they drove right passed the stop. Her eyes narrowed at him, "Why didn't you stop?"
"We're fine," Arjun simply replied.
"Fine? This is fine, Sir?"
"Stop yelling you're giving me a headache," Arjun said.
"I'm not yelling," Radhika pouted. "I'm just talking."
"You're being argumentative. Just be quiet we'll get there."
"Who knows when that will be...2am or Monday when we should be back in the office," Radhika mumbled.
"Don't think I didn't hear that. We will arrive soon. Today, Friday and no later than that," Arjun sternly stated.
(Dheere Dheere Se from the TV serial Tere Sheher Mein Click to Hear)
"Yuhi bewajaa...dil mein rahi betabiyaan...Yeh ishq hain...saanson mein hain jo ab rawaan...Aja ab likh de afsanaa...Dil hogaya tera deewaanaa...Dheere dheere se meri zindagi mein aana...Dheere dheere se mere dil ko churana...Tum se pyaar humein kitna hai jaane jaana...Tumse milkar tumko hai bataana..." Radhika softly sung and hummed.
"Do you not understand the meaning of being quiet?" he sighed.
"Since you won't let me listen to the radio I thought I just sing songs softly to myself." Radhika defended. She then noticed the coffee thermos he was drinking from, "Sir, how much sleep did you have last night?" She innocently tried to stare past his aviators to see if he had circles under his eyes.
"Really Radhika?"
"How many hours?" She continued. "You only drink from this coffee thermos when you've had a late night."
Arjun turned his head glancing at her briefly before moving back to the roadway. "Enough."
"Pull over...I'll drive."
Arjun laughed at her command. "I've seen you drive. We'll end up in a ditch somewhere. No absolutely not!" He then suddenly yawned loudly.
"And if you have it your way we will drift into oncoming traffic and be in a worse situation then in a ditch," Radhika sternly rebuked. "Sir, at least sleep for a couple hours on the side."
Arjun yawned again at the mention of sleep and he begrudgingly pulled the vehicle to the side of the road. Just as he was leaning the seat back he heard Radhika's voice offering another suggestion. "Why don't you stretch out in the back seat? It's better than sleeping here with the steering wheel in the way." Arjun clenched his jaw at her but didn't argue and got out of the car and moved to the back seat. A simple satisfied smile appeared on Radhika's face.
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Teji carefully adjusted the lens on the D7200 Nikon DSLR capturing a perfect shot of a tree with leaves blowing in the wind. He showed what he had captured to Zubin who nodded his head in approval as he quickly replied to an email. "I'm so glad I wasn't assigned to go with Arjun Sir and Radhika," Zubin said closing his laptop. "Can you imagine the car ride? And the entire weekend?"
"I once had to ride with them. It was the most uncomfortable 20 minutes of my life," Teji replied.
"I think Piyali Ma'am assigned the out of city location scouting so those two were forced to work together and work on their relationship."
"Or maybe because the last two product campaigns that they did were a super hit," Teji said. "They may not always agree with each other but they get the job done when it counts."
"I suppose," Zubin mused.
"I heard it was Samrat Sir who actually suggested that Arjun Sir and Radhika work together," Kritika said as she sat down on the park bench. Both men stared at her with surprise. "What?"
"You sure know your gossip around the office," Zubin replied.
She chuckled, "Like you don't either? And Teji you act all quiet but I know you've seen and overheard things...you just choose not to tell anyone until you have to."
Their conversation was interrupted when they saw Sam and Neil return with coffees and their bagged lunch for the day. Sam handed everyone their drinks while Neil gave them their food. "So we're going to split up after lunch. Zubin, Teji, and Kritika you guys head up north and Neil and I will hang around this park area. We'll meet back at the office at 5:30pm." A murmur of yeses and confirmations that everyone understood the rest of the day's plan were heard around the group.
Neil took a big bite out of his sandwich and chewed quietly. He looked on in surprise when Sam gently dab the side of his mouth with a napkin. "Sauce," she simply explained. He nodded and then reached over and grabbed a few chips from her bag.
"Neil you have your own," Sam replied.
"I know but I think I should have chosen the flavor you have instead," Neil said as he crunched down on the potato chips. He then reached over and grabbed a few more.
Sam snatched the bag away and pouted, "Neil, eat your own chips..."
"Come on give me just a few more...you can have some of mine," Neil bargained.
"I don't want any of yours. That is why I got these instead," Sam replied as she blocked his hands from taking any more of her chips.
Teji, Zubin and Kritika just looked on with wide eyes. "Looks like something is brewing between them..." Kritika whispered.
"Why is everything happening with the new guys? " Zubin inquired.
"Maybe because they are cuter?" Kritika teased.
Putting his arm around Teji's shoulder he asked, "What's wrong with Teji and me?"
"Leave me out of this please," Teji said as he removed Zubin's arm. "I don't need to get involved in some office romance...if it goes wrong...I don't want to have to deal with awkward situations at work."
"You both aren't seeing anyone and we still deal with awkward situations at work. Like the day our entire International Marketing Department walked out on us, that one day when Samrat Sir and Piyal Ma'am fought in the meeting, Arjun Sir and Radhika disagreeing with the focus on the Maybelline submission, and Sam and Neil fighting over coffee at the cafe..." Kritika listed causing both the men to nod their heads in agreement. "Our office is full of drama."
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Radhika gently smiled as she adjusted the rear view mirror checking to see that Arjun was still fast asleep. She couldn't see his face but seeing how he was lying very still she knew he was sleeping. Her eyes returned to the road ahead as she continued to drive towards their destination. She had managed to get the GPS to calculate new coordinates during the first 15 minutes of Arjun's nap. Radhika re-adjusted the mirror and monitored the roadway around her. She had driven for about an hour when she noticed through the rear view mirror a truck in the distance. It seemed to be catching up on her position traveling faster than it should be.
Her eyes narrowed as she saw the truck driver start to flicker his lights. She refused to speed up and continued driving the normal speed limit. The truck attempted to pass her car but had to quickly slow down and get back into the left lane because there were a group of cars traveling on the right side. Radhika could see that the truck was literally riding her bumper and honking angrily. Just as she rounded a curve the truck attempted to pass her again forcing her to hug the edge of the road. The steering wheel slipped swerving the Mahindra to the left. The tires noisily rolled off the asphalt and onto pebbles and small tree branches on the side. She heard a thud and a bewildered groan from the back seat as the bumpy ride continued.
"Wh-what happened?" Arjun said as he lifted himself up from the floor. "What's going on?" He glanced to the front and saw Radhika sitting in the driver's seat gripping the steering wheel tightly. "Why are you driving?" He then saw the truck next to them and commanded, "Slow down. Radhika slow down. Slow down..."
As the truck slipped in front it slowed just enough forcing Radhika to slam on the breaks. The steering while pulled to the left again and the Mahindra came to a bumpy and dramatic full stop as the front wheel rammed into a large rock. Arjun slammed into the back side of the passenger seat with a grunt. "What the hell..." he grumbled as he pushed himself upright. "What makes you think this was a good idea? Didn't I tell you already?"
Without a single reply to his questions Radhika left the car leaving the door wide open. "Radhika, I'm talking to you." He got out and closed both doors commenting, "And don't leave the door open like that. If a car were to drive by it would get taken off. Radhika..." Arjun rounded the front of the Mahindra and saw her inspecting the tire. "Radhika..."
"It's a flat Sir," she simply informed.
"Great...Just Great!" Arjun responded as he rubbed his forehead and exhaled loudly looking away extremely frustrated. "And the spare isn't even in the car!" When he turned around again he saw Radhika walking down the side of the road. "Where are you going?" He quickened his pace to catch up. As he came closer he saw a car driving dangerously close to the side of the road and Radhika wasn't paying any attention. Arjun quickly reached out and grabbed her pulling her further inward as the car drove pass.
Radhika laid her head quietly on the hard surface for a few seconds before her mind processed what had just happened. She could hear the steady heartbeat against her ear. Her eyes lifted upward as she felt Arjun's arms loosen their hold around her. "Arjun Sir..." she meekly uttered.
Arjun looked down at the girl in his arms in mild shock at their proximity. They way her eyes were staring up at him was unnerving. But it didn't take long for his anger to suddenly seep in and he gripped her shoulders. "Just want do you think you are doing? Where were you going? Walking away like that...Do you even know how to walk?"
Radhika backed away from him and frowned, "I was going to get help. We passed a rest area a few kilometers back. And I knew you would be angry so I didn't say anything."
"Even if I was angry you don't just walk away like that without a word. And the cars on this road are being driven by a bunch of mad people...that truck and now that stupid white car. Do you have any idea what it would do to me if I saw you get hurt?" He saw her eyes widened and it took a moment for him to register what had come out of his mouth. In an effort to correct himself he added, "To have to explain to your parents...and Sam, Neil...and everyone at BirdSong...what happened. That one of your bright ideas got you in trouble?"
"I was just trying to help. I got the GPS working and I figured I could drive while you were sleeping. You were so tired," Radhika replied.
Arjun took a deep breath and started walking. Without looking back he simply asked, "Well, what are you waiting for? We have to get to the rest stop before the sun goes down."
Radhika smiled and began walking. She was surprise to feel his fingers wrapped around her wrist and looked up wondering what he wanted. "Over there," Arjun stated as he moved her further away from the road. "Walk inside."
Radhika obediently followed his orders. They walked for a few minutes before she curiously peeped, "You're not mad anymore...Arjun Sir?"
"Save your energy Radhika. All the talking is only going to make you thirsty and we left our water bottles back in the car."
"Yep, still upset," Radhika softly mumbled to herself.
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Neil looked through the camera lens with a soft grin as he took various snap shots of his surroundings. Everything seemed to be interesting under the gaze of the camera. The trees, the flowers, the people, the sky, the ground all seemed to be inspiring him to immorality capture their image. Or maybe it was the company by his side. Neil gently zoomed over to the right and watched as Sam chatted with a flower vendor. His lips automatically curled upward as he saw her laugh and animatedly speak. His eyes just couldn't leave her.
Auni Pauni Teri Harkaton Pe Khul Ke Hansta Hua
On your crazy behavior, it openly laughs
Aadi Tedhi Teri Aahaton Pe Aahein Bharta Hua
Even on the slightest sound of your footsteps, it sighs
Pehle To Sensible Sa Yeh Meera Deewana Dil Tha
Earlier it was sensible, this crazy heart of mine
Kya Isko Ho Gaya Na Jaane Kya Hua
I don't know what has happened to it now
Neil followed Sam through the lens taking snap shots as she talked. He watched as the flower vendor gave her a small bouquet when she bid him farewell. He grinned as she accidentally bumped into a balloon seller causing a handful of balloons to escape. They floated effortless up in the air coloring the sky. Sam handed him the bouquet and then held her ears deeply apologizing. The balloon vendor smiled in forgiveness and handed her a free red balloon. Sam walked a few more paces before she saw a cute little girl out at the market with her mother. Sam gifted the red balloon to the little girl and continued walking.
Sochta Hoon Raat Bhar
I think about it all night long
Kyun Hua Hai Dil Duffer
Why has this heart become a duffer?
Bin Bataaye Is Kadar
Without any notice and in this way
Kyun Hua Hai Dil Duffer
Why has this heart become a duffer?
Neil lowered the camera and walked closer following behind Sam with a mesmerized smile. He saw that she was not paying attention to her surroundings and she was about to trip. He ran towards her hoping to catch her before she hit the ground. A pop of marigolds filled the sky before they gracefully fell downward onto Neil and Sam. Neil grinned as he had made it in time to catch a hold of Sam. His left arm cupped her back while his right hand was resting gently on her side holding her close to him. Their eyes were caught in an unknown trance even while Neil carefully brought her back on her feet.
Sochti Hoon Raat Bhar
I think about it all night long
Kyun Hua Hai Dil Duffer
Why has this heart become a duffer?
Bin Bataaye Is Kadar
Without any notice and in this way
Kyun Hua Hai Dil Duffer
Why has this heart become a duffer?
Sam tenderly reached up and brushed some orange flower petals off of Neil's head making the moment even more intimate. She then tried to walk away when Neil pulled her back. Sam giggled and twisted her arm breaking free running off into the crowd. Neil tried to chase after her when the religious craft vendor said something to him. He bowed his head in apology and immediately bent down to pick up the flowers. Once he was done putting them back in the wooden basket he quickly walked away in search of Sam. He stood in the middle of the marketplace looking to and fro trying to decide which way he should go. He suddenly felt two hands covering his eyes making him smile. He turned around and saw Sam's lively face her eyes beaming with mirth. "Neil..." she said placing her hand on his cheek affectionately.
"Neil...Neill...Neil!"
Neil blinked and looked up from his camera to see Sam staring at him with wonder. "What are you doing?" she inquired. "I've been calling you to come over to the other side of the market but you just continued standing here. Come." She grabbed his arm and pulled him behind her. "So I've been talking to some of the vendors and got some really good ideas for the ad..." Neil sighed to himself rubbing the back of his head wondering where and why his mind had wondered into some Bollywood song break daydream. "Neil, hello are you listening to anything I'm saying?"
He looked up and nodded, "Yes, Sam. Got some ideas for the new ad..."
Sam smiled and continued talking about what they could do to enhance the message their client wanted. Her phone suddenly rang interrupting their conversation. Looking at the caller ID she immediately picked it up and answered, "Did you guys make it there yet? What? Wait, what happened? Radhika you are breaking in and out...the signal must be bad here...wait..." Sam motioned Neil who understood that she was going to step around the corner in the hopes of getting a better signal.
Neil walked over to a snack vendor and ordered himself a chai and a pack of Parle-G biscuits hoping to clear his head. He looked in the direction that Sam had walked away and sighed. Lately, he was looking at Sam in a different light. He knew where this was going as he had been down this path before and it never ended well for him. The only consolation was that Sam did not have a love interest. Her life currently revolved around her family, her friends, and BirdSong. Neil took a sip of his chai and ate a biscuit. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't see the little girl standing in front of him until he felt a gentle tug at the end of shirt. Neil's eyes went wide and he immediately squat down to talk to the little girl who appeared to be lost. "Yes Beta?
"I'm hungry," she simply stated.
"Where are your Mom and Dad?" Neil inquired.
The little girl shrugged her shoulders but stared intently at the half eaten biscuit in his hand. Understanding the situation he replied, "Wait a minute." He stood up and ordered another packet of Parle-G biscuits. When he received the new packet of biscuits he bent back down and gently opened it for her. "Here...eat Beta. So where are your Mom and Dad?"
"I don't know. I don't have any," the little girl replied as she hungrily ate the biscuits.
"Orphan..." Neil softly uttered to himself. His expression immediately saddened. His attention was soon diverted when another little child appeared. "He's my brother," the little girl replied. Without ever so much as a thought Neil ordered another packet of Parle-G biscuits for the little boy. And before he knew it he was surrounded by several more children clamoring for the same.
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Radhika sat on a bench at the little road stop with her cell phone pressed to her ear explaining what had occurred in the last few hours to Sam. "So, we're just waiting for someone to take us back to the car and change out the tire."
"Who doesn't even keep the spare in the car?"
"Apparently the spare also had a flat and Arjun Sir was going to go get another one but just hadn't had the time this week," Radhika replied.
"Have you guys eaten yet?"
"No not yet. But don't worry Sam...there is a dhaba here. We'll pick up something from here," Radhika reassured.
"Okay, well, let me know how things are going."
"Well do," Radhika said before hanging up the phone. She got up and walked towards the counter of the dhaba to see what they were offering. She turned when she heard her name being called. She saw Arjun tap his watch and motioned that they were leaving. "Okay Sir...I'll be right there," she replied. Radhika then returned her attention to what she could order and receive in an instant. Her eyes fell on the trays filled with already fried samosas and pakoras. "Two samosas and a bag of pakoras please," she ordered.
The man standing behind the stall looked at her nervously but took her money and began to fill the order. He gave her the bag of samosas first and then hesitantly stared at the two trays of pakoras trying to decide which one to take from. He eventually decided to take from the fuller tray and filled the medium sized brown paper bag half way. "Thank you Ma'am." Radhika took the bag from him and ran off to find Arjun before he left her behind. The man behind the counter breathed a sigh of relief once she was out of sight.
"Thanks for watching the counter for me, Rohit. I never should have agreed to that special order...it has caused me nothing but pain. Did anyone come by?" a man with a thin bread inquired as he came walking in from the back.
"Just one person but they just wanted some samosas and pakoras," Rohit replied.
The man with the thin bread glanced over at the two trays and questioned with concern, "Why are their two trays out here?"
Rohit shrugged his shoulders, "Cook brought them out here. You normally have two trays out here, right?"
"We do but the half filled tray is silver and the other tray has a green paint mark on it...that's not suppose to be out here that's suppose to be back inside." He groaned, "Get these back inside. We're going to have to make more."
"Why?" Rohit asked unable to understand what was going on.
"The tray marked with the green paint are the special pakoras that someone ordered for their party."
"What's so special about these pakoras?"
"Special pakoras..."
"Special pakoras?" Rohit repeated.
"Special pakoras...they are mixed with bhang, you idiot!" he explained with exasperation.
Rohit's eyes widened, "You mean...I just sold some girl some bhang pakoras?"
"Yes."
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Sam sighed as she hung up the phone with Radhika. She prayed the rest of her friend's trip would go smoothly. She knew the type of relationship Radhika had with Arjun and if things got any worse on the trip it would make working together even more challenging. She shook her head sadly. She just couldn't figure out why those two just loved to butt heads with each other.
As she turned the corner heading towards the snack stalls she paused in mid-step unable to believe the sight before her. Neil surrounded by children tossing biscuits at them. Her eyes narrowed realizing that Neil had no idea at this very moment someone was behind him trying to unhook the DSLR camera from the strap around his neck. She ran towards him and shouted, "Neil! Behind you!"
Neil turned around but it was too late as the thief had ran and that too with the camera. Neil watched with surprise as he saw Sam go chasing after the thief. Neil tried to move only to be stopped by some children clinging onto his legs. He tossed over a wad of cash to the snack stall and commanded, "Give them whatever they want." With those words the children let go and he ran as fast as he could to catch up with Sam. "Sam! Sammy!"
Sam was closing in fast on the man in front of her. She dodged and jumped over things being tossed behind as the thief was trying his best to create obstacles so he wouldn't get caught. His plaid shirt was almost within reaching distance. She lunged forward and grabbed his shirt pulling with all her might. Unfortunately, all she got was a plaid shirt in her hands. She tossed it behind her and continued running. She saw the man take a sharp left clipping the side corner of a fruit vendor's cart. He slowed down and hobbled forward clutching his side. Sam took advantage of this opportunity and started to hurl whatever fruit she could at the thief. His head bobbled as it got knocked with an apple. Sam got closer and grabbed a hold of one of the camera straps and pulled hoping to get the Nikon back.
Neil arrived just as he saw Sam get pushed to the ground. His fists clenched and he tackled the thief. They both fell into a vegetable stand. Neil grabbed a hold of the man's blank tank and hoisted him up so he could punch him. He delivered a solid right hook sending the guy tumbling down. Neil was caught off guard when the thief hopped back up and punched him hard across the face. They then exchanged a series blows with one another. Eventually their fight was stopped by four police officers who came onto the scene. Sam immediately inspected Neil's bleeding lip. "Neil..." she said with worry.
"I'm fine Sammy," he replied trying to sound cool even though he felt like his head had been smacked by a cement truck.
"This is fine?" She pulled a handkerchief out of her bag and gently dabbed it against his lip. She drew back in apprehension when she heard him gasp and wince in pain.
"All right, everyone is going down to the station," announced one of the officers.
"Wait, why are you looking at us?" Sam heatedly inquired. "He's the thief not us. He's the one who tried to steal the camera. We were only getting it back."
"By running through the entire market and destroying that fruit seller and that vegetable seller's cart? Why does everyone think they can be Salman Khan, Ajay Devgan, or Akshay Kumar?" The office looked at Neil and motioned with his baton, "Come on Heropanti..."
"This is not fair. We are the innocents in all of this. I'm going to report you this is unjust treatment!"
"Sammy, it's okay. Let's just go down to the station and we'll get this resolved. Don't worry," Neil reasoned. He knew how emotional she could get and didn't want the situation to get worse than it was. The irritated look on the officer's face was evidence enough that they should simply do as he asked.
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Five hours later Neil and Sam were standing in Piyali's office with Teji, Zubin, and Kritika. The trio had worried expressions while the duo just stood silently. The atmosphere felt rather grim. Piyali stood up from her desk and calmly ordered, "Teji, Zubin, and Kritika you may leave. Good work on today's assignment. I will see you on Monday." The trio immediately said their farewells and quickly left the office. Piyali watched the glass door slowly sealed shut before she addressed the remaining two.
"Mom..." Piyali raised her hand effectively silencing Sam. "I think this is the first time in history I had to bail someone out of jail. Sam, what were you thinking? "
"They were mistreating us. They were treating Neil like some criminal. I was merely exposing the truth!"
"You don't start throwing tantrums at the police station," Piyali sighed.
"And for the record I wasn't arrested. They just put me in lock up for me to cool down," Sam explained. She turned sharply and looked at her companion who's cheeks were growing puffy and red.
Neil suddenly exploded into laughter unable to keep it in any longer. "That is a scene forever etched in my memory! It was quite entertaining to see the officers get so flustered."
"Even the vendors agreed at what happened. And I did say we would compensate them for their loss. There was no need to put Neil in with the rest of the criminals for 2 hours...I mean seriously a charge for fighting in public? That's just ridiculous."
"I must say Piyali Ma'am...you were a very smooth talker," Neil praised beaming a bruised but bright smile. "Are the Khanna women all like this...fearless?"
Piyali shook her head at him and smiled knowing very well he was flattering her. "Neil..."
"Sorry about the camera," he replied looking at the broken D7200 Nikon DSLR on the glass desk top.
"It isn't and unfortunately won't be the last time a camera was broken. We have another. I'll go get it. And Sam well you please attend to Mr. Malhotra's wounds? He received them because of you."
"Of course Mom, you didn't have tell me that," Sam answered and quickly pulled out the first aid kit from a cabinet.
Neil sat down on the couch and turned towards Sam waiting for the ointment to be applied. He reeled back with a pout when she slapped his shoulder. "What was that for? I'm wounded here."
"That was for being an idiot," Sam sourly replied. "I can't believe you got so distracted by those children. Didn't you realize that they were involved?"
"Involved? But they are just children."
"They were doing it on purpose. I know you've been away for 8 years but I am surprised you forgotten. Things like this happen here."
"I'm of the thought you help people," Neil simply answered.
"Just like Chashni," Sam replied.
Neil's eyebrows went up again and he rubbed his shoulder, "What was that one for? You already hit me once."
"That was for fighting. Why were you fighting with him?"
"Why? He pushed you down Sammy. And you were chasing him and throwing fruit so don't try to defend yourself that you wouldn't have put up a fight. I can't see you get hurt. I'd do anything to protect you." He winched as she placed a dab of ointment on his bottom lip. "And why were you raising such a ruckus at the police station?"
"Because I can't see you mistreated. I won't ever be able to forgive them for locking you up. Nor will I forgive that jerk of a thief for hitting you."
Neil grinned at her response. He gave her his profile as she worked on his bruised left cheek. "So tomorrow we will probably need to meet up and finish the assignment?"
"Yes. Let's have breakfast at Candies and then head back to the park and marketplace to get those photos again."
"Sounds like a plan," Neil said in agreement.
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Hope you guys enjoyed that.
And if you all were wondering which song inspired the title of this SS...it is Dheere Dheere Se from the TV serial Tere Sheher Mein (TSM) and not the movie Aashiqui. Though the song from TSM was inspired by Aashiqui's Dheere Dheere Se as the they use the same chorus...so I guess the title is partly inspired by the original song 😆
I use to watch TSM and it was the only show that I was watching after DYM ended. Unfortunately TSM suffered a tragic twist to the story thanks to yours truly SP 😡 (my Mantu and Amaya 😭) and I basically stopped. I don't know if any of you guys watched TSM.
Anyways, I just loved the song. Both versions...the female version sung by Hiba Nawah, the actress who played Amaya (thought I found the lyric reciting was a little too cheesy but she's not a professional singer so they probably made her recite that part)...the male version sung by Shaan. I just love Shaan's voice ❤️
I hope the SS is living up to it's main title 😳
So let's recap:
We have Arjun + Radhika + bhang pakoras! 😲 what could possibly happen now? 😆
Sam and Neil have to go back and get all those pics they lost. Will they be able to do that without incident? Or something else will happen to them? 😕
If any of you are in the States...Hope you have a Great Thanksgiving! And if you are going Black Friday shopping hope you find what you want and don't get stuck in the crowds 😃
<<< On to the next Chapter Chapter 13: Kuch Kuch Hota Hai >>> 
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
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