SS: Dheere Dheere Se - ArDhika + NeSam ~ 2/13/16 p63 - Page 40

Please excuse any spelling or grammatical errors

**No copyright infringement intended. I do not own the characters but storylines are my own.

Chapter 16: Golmaal

Three pairs of eyes watched intently studying the little gestures, the little looks, and the little nuisances of the two people talking in the office. "Hmmm..."

"I agree Kritika," Zubin nodded in agreement. "They are getting along."

"Isn't that a good thing? No more heated debates and awkward team meetings where Piyal Ma'am talks about things that are really directed to only two people in the room."

"Teji everything is awkward for you. You'd feel awkward right now if Zubin and I started fighting over this coffee cup."

"Well, I kind of agree with Teji," Zubin replied. "Having them get along is a good thing."

"It was for the first week. But now that we are coming to the end of the second week it almost feels unnatural. You'd expect by now they had a disagreement about something but they haven't. Don't you find them getting along a little too well?"

"What do you mean?" the boys asked in unison.

"I mean that they are being so amicable that there is something definitely wrong with them. Like seriously wrong..."

"You mean like one day someone is going to have an outburst?" Zubin inquired.

"Suppressed anger?" Teji guessed.

"Correct. Someone is forcing themselves to have their super smiley face on and one day they won't be able to handle the pressure anyone and someone is going to do something innocent like ask how their day was and then...BAM...completely loses it and starts tossing papers and throwing things."

Teji and Zubin nodded in agreement at her explanation. The three of them then turned their heads back to the office to silently watch again. A pair of bright brown eyes paused in wonder and slowly came forward stooping low to their height and softly asked behind their ears, "What are we looking at?"

Everyone in the office turned for a moment when Kritika let out a scream but then went back to work as if this was a common day occurrence. Teji and Zubin smiled nervously at the person holding a signature Singapore Merlion Starbucks coffee cup. "Neil..."

"Yes," he replied looking at Kritika.

"Um we were just..."

"Getting back to work," Teji answered while Zubin and Kritika nodded vehemently.

"Looking forward to our meeting at 3:00pm to go over ideas for the fruit juice account," Neil replied with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes as he watched the threesome scurry back to work. Neil then entered the far left corner office and placed the coffee cup on the desk.

"Thank you Neil," Sam answered without looking up at the file she was reviewing.

Making himself comfortable in the chair across from her desk he picked up a blue folder and started leafing through the pages. "So, what's your take on Chashni and Arjun?"

"My take?" She looked up from the file and eyed him questioningly. "What about them?"

"Office rumor has it that something may be going on..."

"Is that what Kritika, Zubin, and Teji think? I think it's great that they are getting along."

"Not at all worried?"

"Why should I be unless you know something about your cousin that we don't know? That this is just an act...Arjun isn't acting is he? Chashni will be hurt if she finds out."

"No, I don't think so. Maybe we just have to get use to this development...I think most of the staff have gotten use to their discussions," Neil chuckled.

"Very true," Sam laughed along.

"It's great they became friends. Spares me the nights when he complains."

"He complains?"

"Well, maybe complain isn't the right word to use. He admires her work a lot. I definitely know that. But you know how tough he can be. He hasn't spared me any when he thinks I provided a less than stellar slogan or strategic planning proposal."

Sam nodded, "He can be meticulous at times."

Neil dropped the blue folder back on her desk and sighed. "So, you can't order that cup online huh?"

Sam glanced up from her computer and frowned. "Why don't you just take my cup then?"

"No, I can't do that it's your souvenir from Singapore."

"Had I known you wanted one I would have gotten it for you, but I got you two gifts. No one else got that."

"And I'm very appreciative of it. Otherwise I wouldn't wear it," Neil replied pointing to his black graphic Merlion t-shirt.

"Every day I see you eyeing my Starsbuck cup."

"It's a cool coffee cup," Neil replied. He then noticed Sam pulling out a flash drive from her laptop. "So that is where my Merlion usb went. I was looking for it today."

"Sorry, I need it to transfer some files," Sam explained. "I really should have bought one too. The other one I got was for Manya."

"Heard that your little sis will be visiting soon."

"Yes, but where did you hear this?"

"Piyal Ma'am," Neil answered matter-of-factly.

"When was this?"

"This morning we were having chocolate muffins and coffee together while you were in the meeting with Arjun and Singapore Airlines' marketing team finalizing the presentation date. Excited?"

"Yes, I just found out this morning from Dad. She had emailed him and told him that she was thinking about spending two weeks with us. This year I didn't get to visit her as I ended up taking my vacation in the US."

"I can't wait to meet her. I heard some stories from your Mom."

"Oh great what stories did she tell you?" Sam inquired with worry.

Neil smirked, "That's for me to know."

"Neil," she huffed throwing a paper clip at him. He just laughed at her reaction. It was always amusing to see her irked at him like this. "So where are we going for lunch?"

"The cafe...where we usually go."

"I'm getting tired of the cafe. Let's go out. You're paying though," Sam said as she got up to put some of her files away.

"Why am I paying? You're the boss...shouldn't you be rewarding one of your awesome employees with a paid lunch?" Neil suggested with a cheesy smile.

"You're right. I need to take Chashni out."

"Hey!" Neil pouted. "How many accounts have I finalized since I came here? Three! And I'm the new guy."

"One of them they were already on their way to signing with us," Sam replied.

"But they signed during the week I was hired. That counts for something. Let Arjun take Chashni out."

"Fine. But I get to pick where we are going." Neil leaned back in the chair and folded his hands behind his head with a relaxed smile. "Aren't you supposed to be prepping for a presentation?"

"Finished it."

Sam looked across the room at the staff that had gathered for the special announcement from the CEO. The past month had been particularly grueling for everyone as several large proposals were delivered and some smaller accounts were launched. Even in the tiredness of their eyes there was a sense of happiness in them. The quality of work that was being produced and pushed out was commendable. After enduring several troubling months leading up to the departure of the international marketing department which was essentially half the staff at Birdsong, the new team that had been formed with Neil and Arjun's introduction was becoming quite a formidable one. Everyone was out to prove themselves and was determined to show the marketing community why Birdsong should continue to be considered one of the top advertising companies. She turned to her side and let out a sigh seeing Arjun furiously tapping away on his mobile phone. "It's okay if you put it away for a few minutes."

His eyes shifted upward in surprise having been caught. "The emails won't answer themselves."

"And working so much that it starts deteriorating your health won't do you or anyone else any good." He watched in silence as she took the phone away from him. "Neil wouldn't forgive me if I let you continue and neither would Chashni. Besides have you seen yourself lately in the mirror? Or do you just wake up in the morning and put on some clothes and come to work? You look like a raccoon."

"I'm not the only one who looks like this. Have you seen yourself lately?" Arjun quipped back.

They broke out into friendly chuckles at the teasing. Arjun and Radhika's relationship was not the only one that had seen a change the last few weeks. The long work hours and joint projects both Sam and Arjun had to work on help develop a bond of friendship and respect for one another. Not to mention that they both had to deal with Neil's madness.

"I think everyone needs a vacation," Sam replied. "Or a month...that they can just sleep. This morning I caught Chashni falling asleep while she was brushing her teeth."

"Really?" Arjun replied his mind now at full attention. "Is she not sleeping enough? I mean how many hours does she sleep?"

"Probably the same amount all of us are getting lately," Sam answered. "I've almost fallen asleep while driving. Good thing Chashni was there to wake me up before anything serious happened. We've been carpooling together to make sure one of us doesn't fall asleep."

"That's a good thing. If you need to take a taxi or rickshaw you should do it," Arjun advised.

"And at night? You know how late we stay here some nights."

"You know you girls can always get a lift from me or Neil."

Sam gave a warm smile and nodded, "Thanks."

Neil glanced at his watch noting that it was now 4:01pm in the afternoon. The meeting was now one minute late in commencing. Radhika who was standing next to him looked over wondering what was troubling him. "Late."

"Nervous?"

"Actually yes. I think everyone is a little...after the work week or weeks I should say...any meeting like this people are bound to get nervous. And if it is about what we all think it is about..."

"Everything is going to be fine. Sam and Arjun Sir did their best and whether we get this account or not we have other accounts to focus on," Radhika replied.

"It is a large account BirdSong needs wouldn't you say? Kritika asked joining in on the conversation.

"We still have the Maybelline proposal," Radhika answered.

"They sure are being cryptic about the proposal deadline. They moved it once already and now they are telling us they are doing something different in the way they are handling this campaign. What does that mean?"

"It just means how serious they are in expanding in the Indian youth market," Neil answered. "Don't stress too much about it. We got two extra weeks because of the move and we have nothing major slated which gives us time to strengthen our already outstanding pitch even more." Radhika caught the wink he gave and returned a shy smile.

The soft chats and rumblings in the room silenced the minute Samrat walked into the main entrance way of BirdSong. He bowed his head in greeting as an apology for his lateness. "My apologies for my tardiness. I am sure everyone here is wondering why I called this meeting. And I am sure some of you have already guessed it...yes, this is about the Singapore Airlines account. But before I tell you the results..." He paused and smiled, "This is where you throw imaginary daggers at me for keeping you in suspense at the decision." The room broke out into gentle laughter. "I just want to thank everyone for their hard work. Please give yourselves a round of applause...truly you guys...this team is the best," clapping his hands in acknowledgement. As the applause died down Samrat continued with his announcement, "So Singapore Airlines...has decided to accept BirdSong's proposal. We've won the account guys!" He turned towards Sam and Arjun and grinned broadly. "Arjun and Sam did a fantastic job...another round of applause for their leadership and commitment to the project. And I know we generally schedule these meetings early in the morning or mid afternoon but I today I scheduled it later so we could take a break. I know we still have a lot more work to do. We have the Maybelline account ahead of us but for today...it's Friday after all...it's time to enjoy the weekend. As of right now everyone is off work. We're going to let loose, relieve some of the stress from the past few weeks, and celebrate our achievements today. We are going to party here tonight...I've called in the caterers and a DJ..."

Everyone turned their heads to the front doors and saw a throng of servers come in ready to set up a buffet and mini bar. "Music bajao keh do ye sabse..." Samrat hollered. Out of nowhere one of the back offices opened revealing a DJ along with two assistants rolling his turn table setup and a set of speakers out. "Aaj ki party meri taraf se..." No sooner did those words leave Samrat's mouth the musical intrude of the actual song started to play.

Neil raised his eyebrows at Radhika and tilted his head back in a smug grin inviting her to dance along with him. Radhika smiled in return and they both twisted their wrists at their side and did a pushing motion to the beat of the music mimicking one of the signature dance moves from the song. Kritika and some other employees joined them forming a little dance group.

(Click Here to Listen: Baraangi Bhaijanan - Aaj Ki Party)

Hai celebration, naacho dhana dhan...[It's a celebration, dance ceaselessly]

Music bajao keh do ye sabse...[Play the music and tell this to everyone] Pa Pa Pa Pa Pa Pa...

Hai celebration, naacho dhana dhan...[It's a celebration, dance ceaselessly] Music bajao keh do ye sabse...[Play the music and tell this to everyone]

Neil soon broke away and made his way over to Sam and her parents. He pointed at Samrat just as the main line of the song started. Samrat happily sang "Aaj ki party meri taraf se...[Today's party is in my name] Aaj ki party meri taraf se...[Today's party is in my name]" He then looked at his wife and smirked mischievously, "Chand ko bolo utre falak se...[Tell the moon to come down from the sky] Aaj ki party meri taraf se...[Today's party is in my name]"

Piyali looked away in embarrassment at her husband attempting to romance her in front of everyone.

"Chand ko bolo utre falak se...[Tell the moon to come down from the sky] Aaj ki party meri taraf se...[Today's party is in my name]"

Neil put his hands together and pleaded for her to join them in the celebrating. Piyali took a moment's pause and then relented with a huge smile as she did a dance step with Neil.

Sam was soon dancing with Neil enjoying the masti and playfulness of the office party. They shared an impish exchanged and then cornered Arjun who held his hands up shaking his head refusing to partake in any rhythmic movement.

Machi hai chull, tod ke rule...[I'm excited and feel like breaking the rules] Kare wo step ki gire log daayein baayein...[I want to dance in such a way that people around me fall here and there] Neend bhi gul, jashn hai full...[My sleep is lost, the celebration is at its peak] Naache jamke ke poora floor hil jaaye...[I want to dance in such a way that the whole floor starts trembling]

It wasn't until Radhika teamed up with them did he finally concede and held up his hands bopping a little to the music. He eventually ran off while the trio laughed and continued to dance.

Baaz na aaye, shor machaaye...[I don't want to stop, I want to scream] Party jo na kare usko tata bye...[The one who doesn't want to party tell him good-bye]

Arjun breathed a sigh of relief having escaped the dance floor. He looked back and saw how Radhika was dancing carefree just like the wedding in Goa. His lips automatically curled upward as his eyes took in the beautiful sight before him. He took a step back not realizing someone was behind him. He turned around and apologized immediately. When he looked up he saw to his surprise someone he recognized from his Aunt Nandini's events management company. "Sahil?"

"Arjun..." the man uttered in shock.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm helping out a friend from the catering company...um, don't tell your Aunt about this. I had to take a sick day."

Arjun nodded, "Sure. I understand." He knew his Aunt's company generally used this particular caterer for most events they organized so it was only natural for friendships to form between the staff members.

Sahil looked down at his ringing phone and swallowed nervously, "Excuse me I have to take this."

"Sure. It was nice seeing you again Sahil."

"You too Arjun," he replied and then walked out of the BirdSong office trying to find a quiet place to talk. "Hello? Yes Ma'am everything has been taken care of. Um, Arjun saw me. No, he thinks I'm here to help a friend and that you are not aware that I took a sick day to come here. I told him not to tell you. I'm sorry Ma'am I know you said not to come up but Mr. Dutta ran into some extremely bad traffic. I had no choice. Yes, it's that pile up on the highway. He's on his way and should be here in the next 10 minutes. Yes Ma'am I'm leaving right now."

Arjun stood in front of locker number 12 and took out his black gym bag placing it on the bench behind him. He carefully wrapped the blue towel hanging around his shoulders up behind his head and rubbed furiously drying his wet hair. As he inspected the clothes that he had tossed in his bag earlier this morning he sighed. He had grabbed the wrong clothes from his dresser. It was to be expected considering the work week he had. The entire week had been a blur to him. His days and nights along with the entire office were focused on the Maybelline account. He had to check his phone twice today to make sure it was Saturday and not Thursday like he thought.

Most normal people would have slept in but he headed to the gym to work out. He did his best thinking during these moments and he needed all the ideas he could think of to ensure that the Maybelline account would be granted to BirdSong and not another competitor. There were rumors that Skyline Marketing was a front runner for the account. The CEO was BirdSong's ex international marketing director, Hari Chauhan.

Arjun slipped on the white undershirt and then the short sleeved jean shirt that was definitely too small for him to button up. Luckily it was still fashionable to wear layers. He finished putting on the rest of his clothes and stuffed the two bath towels back into his bag. He waved good bye to some of the gym staff he knew and headed to the parking garage. When he got into the Mahindra XUV he glanced over at the passenger seat and gave a soft grin. The 4 tier tiffin box was nestled comfortable on the leather seat waiting to be returned to its owner. He had been meaning to give it back to Radhika but kept forgetting. This eventually led him to put it in his car.

As he pulled out onto the roadway he decided to swing by Radhika and Sam's rental to return the tiffin. With his current track record he had a feeling the tiffin would sit in his car for another week before it would finally make its way back into Radhika's hands if he didn't return it today. Forty minutes later his car was parked in the driveway and he was ringing the door bell. The tiny grin that had formed along his lips dropped as the door open to reveal a woman he had never seen before draped in a simple sky blue sari. She looked at him with a stern face making him wonder if he had somehow come to the wrong house.

"Hello...is Radhika Mishra or Samaria Khanna home?"

"Arjun..."

"Ji," he replied with wide eyes not sure if she was asking him or simply stating his name for him. He held up the tiffin box in his hands and was about to speak when he was cut off.

"Well come in. You're four hours late."

"Ji?" Arjun replied in a confused tone.

"The sink is this way. I'd expected prompt service but if you really cannot come at the time you stated you would it would be nice to inform the person. I've been waiting all morning." Arjun followed her into the kitchen and stared blankly at the sink. "Where are your tools? I suppose you have to get them from the car. Here I'll take your tiffin and jacket."

Arjun obediently relinquished the items into the woman's care. He was baffled by her presence but knew as soon as he had entered the house that he was in Radhika and Sam's rental place. He could only assume now that this woman in the sky blue sari was related to one of them. "Are you just going to stand there?"

"Um, what's wrong with it?"

"It's clogged and it drains really slowly."

"Clogged?" Arjun turned on the hot water and watched as a pool of water slowly started to collect.

"Are you an actor or model?"

"Excuse me?" Arjun replied looking at the plump woman who he surmised was around the same age of his mother had she had survived.

"I hear many people in Mumbai are actually struggling actors or models that work normal daily jobs waiting for their big break. Is that the reason you were late? On a casting call?"

"Casting call?"

The woman's lips tightened as she looked at him suspiciously before picking up the cordless phone. Arjun looked at her with amusement watching her walk to the far side of the living room to secretively use it. His attention eventually returned to the kitchen sink as he squat down to open the cabinets and inspect underneath.

A few seconds later the front door opened with Radhika, Sam, and Neil arms filled with bagged groceries. "Ma, we're home. Did the plumber come yet?" Radhika was caught off guard as her mother grabbed her arm and pulled her in close whispering, "He's here but he's a strange fellow. I don't trust him Choti. Good thing Neil is here. Ask him to get rid of him."

"What?" Radhika replied with concern. She had left her mother by herself and if what she was saying was the truth her mother could have been in grave danger.

"Neil...Sam..." Radhika said motioning them to come closer to the living room side. "Ma says the plumber is strange. Neil, can you please ask him to leave?"

"Sure no problem Chashni. Let me handle this."

"We should probably report him to the company," Sam suggested.

"If you guys ever need a handy man just let me know. I can get ask Ramu Kaka who he calls and get them to come here. And I have no problems waiting at the house too if you guys don't feel safe. If I can't make it I can ask Ramu Kaka to come here and wait."

"Thanks Neil," the girls replied.

Neil gave them a reassuring nodded and then made his way into the kitchen. He narrowed his eyes at the man lying underneath the sink. He kicked the man's shin making him instinctively jerk upward causing him to bang his head against the sink pipe. Neil smirked triumphantly at hearing the yelp of pain. He then began to shake his head and hand as if he had some nervous twitch and waited for the man to come out from underneath the cabinet.

Arjun was pissed that someone had kicked him in the shin and he had banged his forehead against a pipe. He held his fingers against the winching pain of his forehead and slide his way out to confront the culprit. "Bloody Hell..." he muttered under his breath.

Neil couldn't see the man's face clearly but he suspected that he looked ugly and was some sort of goon. To his utter surprise as he watched the man stand up and move his hand down from his face, the face of his cousin appeared. "Arjun?!"

"Neil?!" he replied back in the same confused tone.

"What are you doing here?"

"Trying to fix the sink. Why the Bloody Hell did you kick me for?" Arjun rubbed his forehead hoping to relieve his pain but it only made it worse.

"Arjun Sir?" Radhika gasped in shock. She then turned to her mother and informed, "That's Arjun Sir my boss. You made Arjun Sir fix the sink?"

"I didn't know he was your boss," Mala Mishra answered in stunned embarrassment.

Sam held her hand over her mouth. At first it was because she was shocked like everyone else but then the hilarity of the situation hit her. She was trying her best not to laugh as it would only make Radhika's mother feel even worse.

"What made you think he was the plumber Ma?" Radhika questioned.

"He has his name on his shirt...it looks like one of those uniform shirts...I opened the door and he was asking for you or Sam..." Mala explained.

"It's fine," Arjun said.

"I'm so sorry, please forgive me Arjun Sir," Mala replied folding her hands in front of her.

Arjun's eyes widened and he quickly walked over and put his hands over hers pushing them gently down. "No need to do that. And please don't call me Arjun Sir...just because I'm Radhika's boss...I'm still younger than you. If anything I should get your blessing." He then bent down and touched her feet. Radhika watched the exchange between them feeling a gentle warmness in her heart. She didn't know why she was happy but she was.

"Stay blessed and happy," Mala replied.

Arjun smiled and then turned towards his cousin. He started to mimic the nervous twitching Neil had been portraying. "What was that?"

"I just thought if you ended up being a tougher meaner guy that I couldn't win against in a fight...if I twitched like that you'd get weirded out and leave."

"Is that so?" Arjun replied.

The conversation paused as everyone turned to look at Sam who couldn't contain herself any longer. She laughed openly pointing at Arjun sputtering, "Pplumber..." Radhika was concern about Arjun's response but when he broke out in chuckles of his own she was relieved. The entire group let out their giggles at the funny situation that had just occurred.

"I know," Arjun said looking down at his shirt, "I grabbed this by accident this morning. This is an old shirt...I would wear it when Dad use to take me to the factory. It has my name engraved on the pocket so I can understand why Aunty thought I was a plumber. I would have thought so too if I saw myself wearing this...a plumber or a mechanic." He then turned to his cousin, "Come on we have a sink to fix. I think I know what the problem is. We'll need to pick up a few supplies from the hardware store."

"What? You can't be serious. Us, fixing the sink?"

"Grandpa was a bit of a handyman around the house. He use to teach me simple things." Arjun then addressed the ladies of the household. "We'll be back shortly." Neil followed his cousin out the door but had a concerned face that this was not going to end well.

Arjun was trying hard to suppress his grin as he took the 4 tier tiffin box back into his hands. It seemed it was destined to be in his possession for a few more days. "Thank you Aunty," he replied.

Mala smiled, "Thank you for fixing the sink. That should be more than enough food for you and Neil."

"Thank you so much. Lunch was fantastic," Neil replied as he touched his stomach. "And we get leftovers too...totally awesome." He then glanced at his mobile phone and looked at Sam. "Still want to catch that movie?"

"Sure."

"I'll take this home," Arjun answered making his cousin smile. "Oh, Radhika do you have the file---"

"Arjun!" Neil and Sam snapped together making him jump a little.

"Dude, it's the weekend. I think we've spent more than enough hours on the Maybelline account at work," Neil berated.

"What did I tell you about work and rest?" Sam added.

Arjun scowled noticing how Radhika was quietly laughing at him being reprimanded. "She had the file," pointing childishly at Radhika.

"Well, um...I was only looking at on Friday for an hour. I haven't touched it since," she defended.

"Choti," Mala sighed shaking her head. "Rest is important. Your health is important." She then looked at the young professionals and asked, "How much sleep have any of you had this week?" The foursome all looked away refusing to answer the question knowing full well it would be disapproved of. "I see. Well, that just means you should all go to bed early tonight." The group simply nodded their heads in response.

Arjun waved his farewell and took his leave. He had just made it to his car when he heard his name being called. It was Radhika she was coming down the stairs with his jacket in hand. "Thank you Radhika."

"Arjun Sir, thank you again for fixing the sink. I'm sorry about what happened."

"I told you already its fine. I should probably go home and change out of this shirt before someone stops me to fix their toilet or car." He watched as Radhika laughed at his joke. He grinned enjoying the smile on her face. He was soon taken aback when he felt her fingers on the right side of his forehead. He winched causing her to apologetically pull her hand back.

"Sorry. Your forehead is still a little red. Place some ice on it when you get home. I hope it doesn't become a noticeable bump."

"If it does I'll just say that this was a result of disagreeing with you on an account slogan." Radhika pouted while he chuckled. "You better go back and take some rest like your Mom said."

"You too Arjun Sir. Don't work today."

"I promise I won't Radhika," he replied before he got into the car and drove away.

• Office stuff
• Mistaken Identity 😆
• The formation of the awesome foursome (Arjun, Radhika, Neil, Sam)
• Family drama - poor Arjun