A/N: The response to this story has been amazing! Thank you for all the wonderful comments, you guys are so sweet! :) I'll be sending out PMs a bit later!
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Chapter 2
Aditya was very young when he figured out that people would tell you what you wanted to know if you just asked the right people the right questions. A few years later he also figured that he had a charm about him that won people over and made them trust him with personal information - it was a gift. So he decided that due to the time crunch he was under, and the lack of hard evidence, it was time to put his gift to use and his first target was Pushkar Malhotra.
"Yeh tere bhai ka aur Sumo ko kya chakar hai?" Aditya asked from his spot on Pushkar's recliner as Pushkar stood in front of the mirror fixing his hair. Aditya had cornered Pushkar first thing in the morning and he was hell bent on getting some answers.
"Kyun?" Pushkar asked wondering why Aditya was asking.
"Suman thodi si achi lagnai lag gayi hai, toh meine socha ki kuudnai sai pehle paani ki depth jaanloo. Tere bhai kai muscles ka size dekh kar thoda saa darr lagaya, mere itna sexy face kahin woh body builder kaala-peela na karde."
"Oh bhai, Sumo sai toh tu door hi reh. Bhaiyaa ko pata laga naa toh tera face hi nahi, puri body kaali-peeli kardenge."
"Toh kuch hai dono ke beech mein?" Aditya enquired nonchalantly.
"Hai toh, dono pyaar karte hai ek dusre ko." Pushkar said as he picked up the hair gel off his dresser and squeezed an ample amount into his hand.
"Toh phir pehle unki shaadi kyun nahi ho rahi? Woh dono toh bade hain." Aditya asked confused.
"Bade hain, aur bahut stubborn bhi. Pata nahi yaar dono ki problem kya hai. Actually, pata nahi kyun lekin zindagi unko ladnai ke bahane deti rehti hai. Ek duje ke liye kuch acha karnai ki soch tai hai aur kuch aur hi hojata hai. Phir ladtai hai, lekin ek dusre sai door bhi nahi reh patai. Jaise jaan atki hai in dono ki ek dusre mein, sab ko dikhta hai ki dono ke beech mein pyaar hai, pata nahi in dono ko kab dikhega." Pushkar murmured.
"Bahut gehra rishta lagta hai." Aditya mumbled.
"You have no idea. Bachpan sai hi aise thai, yeh dono naa ek duje ke liye hi bane hai. Isliye bhai yeh rasta tu chod dai, Sumo tujhe bhaav denai waali nahi aur bhaiyaa tujhe chodenge nahi."
Aditya nodded. So they definitely did love each other, now he just needed to figure out the other side of the equation, what was stopping them from admitting it to each other and what was up with their current behaviour?
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"Aunty ji!" Aditya said exuberantly putting his arm around Kamini's shoulder.
"Puttar ji?" Kamini laughed.
"Aapse kuch puchna tha, thoda personal hai, par mujhe pata hai ki iss ghar mein ik aap hi ho jisko sab kuch pata hai." Aditya said knowing just how to play Kamini.
"Haan, woh toh hai, puch puch puttar, ki puchna?" Kamini said happily.
"Yeh Shravan aur Suman ka kya chakar hai?" Aditya asked.
"Suman aur Shravan, tujhe kyun pata karna hai?" Kamini asked curiously, she had noticed that Aditya seemed to like Suman, which was detrimental to her plan of making Ramnath miserable and she didn't want to encourage Aditya.
"Aunty, meri maa naa mujhe cupid kehti hai, matchmaking mein toh naa mein best hoon, aur mujhe lagta hai ki un dono ke beech pakka kuch chal raha hai. Thode dino mein toh mujhe pata chal hi jayega, par meine socha ki process ko thoda fast karleta hoon, aur aapse puch leta hoon. Dono itne dukhi-dukhi ghoomtai rehte hai, ek dusre sai kuch kehte bhi nahi lekin kuch toh hai." Aditya said and Kamini nodded.
"Oye hoye Puttar, kya soch hai teri." Kamini smiled, she figured that Aditya would prove useful. Kamini looked around to make sure that no one was looking. "Shravan pyaar karta hai Suman sai, bachpan sai, mujhe toh 100% lagta hai ki woh bhi karti hai."
"Toh problem kya hai?" Aditya asked, he had known as much already.
"Problem yeh hai ki Bhaisaab, Shravan ke dad, ko Suman pasand nahi hai. Unko lagta hai ki woh bilkul unki biwi - jo bhaag gayi thi - ki tarah hai. Independent aur ziddi. Bhaisaab nahi chahte ki woh iss ghar ki bahu bane."
"Aur Shravan maan gaya?" Aditya asked feeling the anger well up in him, if Shravan willingly let Suman go he was the biggest idiot in the world.
"Hayo Rabba, kisiko batana nahi ki meine yeh sab tumko bataya hai. Thode hafte pehle Suman aur Shravan ki bahut badi ladai hui thi, uski Maa ko lekar, aur tabse Bhaisaab ko Suman sai nafrat si hogayi hai, Shravan nai toh maaf kardiya hai usse, waise bhi bechari toh uski madad hi karne ki koshish kar rahi thi. Phir Suman ka accident hua tha naa jab - toh Shravan toh bilkul pagal hogaya tha, hamesha uske saath hi rehta tha. Lekin Bhaisaab nai usse kaha ki Suman sai door hi rahe, aur Shravan maan bhi gaya tha. Lekin, ek din Shravan nai Bhaisaab ko bata hi diya ki woh Suman sai door nahi reh sakte kyunki woh usse pyaar karta hai - bechara roh raha tha. Bhaisaab nai tab toh uski baat maanli aur usse kehdiya ki agar usse Suman pasand hai toh theek hai. Lekin mujhe naa 100% shak hai Bhaisaab par, unhone zaroor Suman sai kuch kaha hai. Nahi toh Suman aur Shravan ek dusre sai baat naa karein, aisa toh ho hi nahi sakta!"
"Yeh toh bahut hi complicated hai." Aditya murmured realizing the problem ran deeper than he thought. "Par Aunty, Shravan ke dad nai aisa kya kaha hoga Suman ko ki woh Shravan sai door rehna ke liye maangayi...meine dekha tha usko kal, jab Shravan ko car nai hit kiya - itni zor zor sai chila rahi thi, roh rahi thi - jaise woh act kar rahi thi usse toh lagta hai ki woh Shravan sai bahut pyaar karti hai."
"Yehi. Yehi toh nahi pata mujhe puttar." Kamini sighed sadly. "Nahi toh mein kaunsa apne Shravan puttar ki pyaar ki dushman hoon. Bhaisaab naa bahut hi ache lawyer hai, pata nahi kaise phasa diya uss bechari ko. Aur mein toh kuch puch bhi nahi sakti naa, mere pati kai bade bhai hai woh. Lekin beta, tu apni Kamini aunty ke liye Shravan aur Suman ki madad kar sakta hai?"
"You know, mujhe lagta hai ki bhagwan nai mujhe issi kaam ke liye bheja hai. You don't worry, ab mein sab theek kardoonga. Meri maa kehti hai ki jab mein kuch karna chahoon toh karke dikhata hoon."
Kamini smiled gleefully, and thanked God for sending Aditya, he was going to prove to be very helpful in Ramnath's downfall.
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"Yeh Shravan ki mom ka kya scene hai?" Aditya asked Sumo as she chopped onions, he didn't miss how her hand slipped at the mention of Shravan's name.
When Aditya had walked into the Tiwari Villa the first thing Sumo said was "Shravan kaisa hai?" She was itching to go over to the Malhotra mansion to see him with her own two eyes, but she couldn't, not after yesterday. She was supposed to stay away from Shravan, and yesterday she had forgotten all about that.
"Tum kyun puch rahe ho?" Suman asked Aditya, her eyes narrowed.
"Aise hi, general knowledge ke liye."
"Woh unhe chodkar chali gayi thi." Suman answered resuming chopping.
"Oh, acha, toh woh khud Shravan ko chodkar chali gayi." Aditya nodded.
"Itna simple nahi hai." Suman said, she felt the need to defend Nirmala aunty, especially now since she knew how horrid Ramnath uncle was.
"Kyun?"
"Woh Shravan ko chodkar nahi jaana chahti thi." Sumo mumbled.
"Lekin uske dad ko chodna chahti thi."
"I guess."
"Aur Shravan ko yeh pata hai? I don't know why par mujhe hamesha lagta hai ki he definitely has mommy issues." Aditya had figured the reason behind Shravan's cold behaviour, his life didn't seem like it was all rainbows and sunshine.
"Pehle kisinai usse bataya nahi aur ab woh sunna nahi chahta."
"Kyun?"
"Aditya, please, iss baarein mein pehle hi kuch zyada hi keh chukhi hoon." Suman said. "Leave it alone."
"Nahi, mein toh aise hi puch raha tha, Shravan ke dad naa mujhe thode ajeeb sai lagtai hai, you know those andar sai kuch aur and bahar sai kuch aur type." Aditya said and Suman didn't deny him, but the flash of pain in her eyes told her all he need to know. Suman was not a fan of Ramnath, and he was going to figure out why.
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"Hey bro, can I come in?" Aditya said walking into Shravan's room without waiting for the reply, Shravan rolled his eyes and motioned towards the couch. "How's your ankle? Dard toh nahi ho rahi naa?"
"Theek hai." Shravan said shortly as Aditya took a seat on the couch.
"Hey listen, mein tumse sorry kehnai aaya hoon, mujhe tumhari baat sun leni chahiye thi, waise bhi tum Suman ko bachpan sai jaante ho, aur jaise tum dono kal - anyways I am sorry, mein kabhi kabhi thoda zyada hi involve hojata hoon."
Shravan nodded, confused by this sudden change in behaviour. "Waise Shravan, I hope you don't mind me asking, lekin tum dono ke beech sab theek hai naa? Maine kal notice kiya, jab humara accident hua toh Sumo toh jaise - woh aise act kar rahi thi ki agar tumhe kuch hojata toh woh mar jaati - aur phir woh achanak sai aise chali gayi, bye kehne ke bina. Mujhe thoda ajeeb laga."
"Excuse me, woh kaise act kar rahi thi?" Shravan asked, he had been thinking about her behaviour since last night but Aditya's wording shocked him.
"Dude, tum toh gir gaye thai, tumne nahi dekha, lekin woh toh aise bhaagi jaise Milkha Singh Olympics mein bhaaga tha - aur roh toh aise rahi thi ki jaise Nirupa Roy ho. Bilkul pagal si hogaye thi." Aditya said, and it sounded awfully like his own plight when he had seen that car hit Sumo - albeit Aditya's explanation was way too dramatic.
"Acha?"
"Are you sure ki tum dono ek dusre sai pyaar-vyaar nahi karte?" Aditya chuckled hoping that Shravan would catch bait. Aditya smiled internally as Shravan's eyes grew wide.
"Tum aise kyun puch rahe ho?"
"Meri maa naa mujhe cupid bulati hai, mujhe hamesha pata chal jata hai jab do logon ke beech mein kuch kuch hota hai, aur tum dono toh are like Rahul-Anjali on steroids. Toh mujhe laga ki puch hi leta hoon."
Shravan's mind went into over-drive, and he knew that if Aditya had picked up on it, others had too. And he wondered if Suman was among them, did she love him back, did she know that he loved her?
"Pata nahi kyun, mujhe lagta hai ki tum dono ke beech kuch theek nahi hai." Aditya said when Shravan didn't speak.
"Tumhe kya faraq padta hai?" Shravan snapped. "Is kahini ki Tina." He mumbled underneath his breath.
"Padta hai bro! Dekho Suman toh meri dost hai, aur tumhe mein bro bulata hoon, matlab tum mere bhai huye naa - and meri friend aur mera bhai dono itne dukhi-dukhi yahan-wahan ghoomtai rahe toh mujhe acha thodi naa lagega, woh bhi jab ghar mein shaadi ho!"
Shravan's eyes grew wide and he wondered if he had been wrong about Aditya, maybe Pushkar was right and he wasn't such a bad person.
"Mujhe toh laga tha ki tum Sumo ko-." Shravan started but trailed off.
"Pasand karta hoon?" Aditya asked and Shravan nodded. "Yaar, woh hai hi aisi, kisi ko bhi achi lag jaye, par mein cupid hoon, kisi ki love story ka villain nahi ban-na chahta. Mujhe pata hai tumhe meri baatein bahut odd lag rahi hongi, par mein aisa hi hoon bro. Jo mere dil mein hai woh hi meri zubaan par hai, mujhe yeh ghuma-phira kai baatein karna nahi aata."
Shravan nodded because he really didn't know what to say to Aditya. He wasn't about to tell him his life story even though Aditya seemed to not be a threat to him. There was still something about Aditya that bothered him, something more intangible that he couldn't put his finger on, it was almost like some part of his subconscious was trying to tell him something about him but he didn't quite know what.
"Shravan, I hope you don't mind me asking this-"
"Agar mein mind karoon toh bhi tum puchogai naa?" Shravan asked and Aditya nodded with a shrug making Shravan roll his eyes, he motioned him to continue.
"Tumhare dad, woh Sumo sai naraaz hai kya? Tumhare dad ko dekh kar Sumo aise bhaagi - it was weird."
Shravan sighed, Aditya questions seemed to leave him silent. He didn't know how to answer that without disclosing his whole life so he just shrugged. Shravan was confused though, his dad had accepted his love for Sumo, yet he wasn't happy with it, and he kept pushing him to reconsider his decision - but he had agreed. But with the way Sumo acted when he walked in yesterday made him wonder if Sumo somehow knew that her dad didn't approve of her - maybe that's why she was avoiding him.
Aditya sat back on the couch with a slight smile, with the way Shravan's face looked at that point, he was sure that he had asked all the right questions to make him think about his father. Aditya hoped that Shravan was actually as good a lawyer as Pushkar made him out to be.
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"Nirmala Aunty!" and "Mom?" rang out simultaneously from Suman's and Aditya's mouth when Nirmala stepped into the Tiwari living room.
"Adi?" Nirmala asked, taken aback. Suman's eyes widened as did Naanu's when things clicked.
"What are you doing here mom?" Aditya asked confused. "Oh wait! Toh aap Delhi Preeti ki shaadi ke liye aayi hai? Small world!" Aditya laughed.
"Tumhara dost?" Nirmala asked confused.
"Pushkar." Aditya said and he watched confused as Nirmala's eyes grew wide before she sat on the couch, her eyes meeting Suman's wide eyes. Nirmala felt like the floor had been pulled from under her. "Shravan?" Nirmala asked looking at Suman wondering if he knew who Aditya was but Suman shook her head.
"Aap Shravan ko kaise jaanti hai mom?" Aditya asked, his confusion growing by the minute.
Edited by astonm - 9 years ago
Anupamaa
Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon
