FF: Last thing I expected - Mayur. Chapter28 Pg148 - Page 112

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hey kainath!u werent well??wht happened??hope u r fine now...

"Are you the new person drawn toward me?"

by Walt Whitman
Are you the new person drawn toward me?
To begin with, take warning, I am surely far different from what you suppose;
Do you suppose you will find in me your ideal?
Do you think it so easy to have me become your lover?
Do you think the friendship of me would be unalloy'd satisfaction?
Do you think I am trusty and faithful?
Do you see no further than this faade, this smooth and tolerant manner of me?
Do you suppose yourself advancing on real ground toward a real heroic man?
Have you no thought, O dreamer, that it may be all maya, illusion?

Brilliant part Kainath!! OMG i can't believe mayank kissed her nose. Iam absolutely hooked to ur FF. Neev was cute as usual. And Ranvijay coming to his house? What the hell made him come here again. Can't wait for the next part.

Chapter 28

Mayank's fist clenched as he stared into the dark eyes of a man he had no problem with killing.

Ranvijay stood straight, his mouth set in a grim line and his eyes focused on Mayank's. He could practically feel the murderous intent radiating from them.

"Give me one good reason not to beat you to within an inch of your pathetic life for showing your face around here," Mayank demanded through gritted teeth. He took a step towards Ranvijay, ready to kill the bas***d.

"Easy, Sharma," Ranvijay said solemnly. "I've come to make amends."

"I beg your pardon?"

"I've come to apologize for my actions," Ranvijay said in a slow tone. "After you sent me straight to the Ministry two weeks ago, I was incarcerated and then put into a rehabilitation and anger management program. The first goal I have to accomplish is the apology."

Mayank stared at Ranvijay, a man he'd hated since they were boys, and wondered if he should believe him. He decided to state his doubts aloud. "Why should I believe you?"

"Believe me?" Ranvijay snorted. "Can't you see my face, Sharma? It's still black and blue from the beating I received from you a fortnight ago. If I wasn't serious about this, would I have bothered coming here at all?"

Mayank stayed quiet, his fists still clenching and unclenching.

"It seems I was diagnosed with some sort of personality disorder and I'm being treated for that. I know we've never gotten along, but I think you should let me apologize to your wife. I… I feel regret for what I did to her. I was informed by one of the mental health clinicians that at the time of the, er, attack, I didn't feel any remorse for what I had done, but with the cognitive therapy I'm going through, I will start feeling the emotions I should have felt. Guilt being one of them."

"Why should I even allow you into the same room as her?"

Ranvijay sighed. "I told you all I want to do is apologize. You can be present if you'd like, but I want to get this over with."

"You have five minutes to tell her what you'd like to say. That is, if she wants to grace you with her presence," Mayank said flatly.

"Thank you, then," Ranvijay replied with a small nod.

Mayank opened the door to the flat and preceded Ranvijay into the foyer, closing the door behind them. He led him to the living room where Nupur was watching the stupid show with that infuriating dinosaur that Neev loved so much. Neev sat in her lap, singing along to some asinine song about cleaning up.

"Nupur, can I see you in the kitchen?" Mayank asked.

She turned to look at him, and the blood drained from her face when she saw who was standing next to him.

Mayank saw her stricken look and had to stop himself from getting rid of Ranvijay, getting rid of him the violent way, of course. "It's ok, Nupur," he said quietly.

He actually saw when her face turned from fearful to fearless. She whispered something to Neev, leaving him on the couch, and followed them to the kitchen, her back straight and her chin held in a manner that could only be described as pure 'Sharma.'

She leaned against the counter with her arms crossed across her chest and raised an eyebrow as Ranvijay gave her a small smile. She looked at Mayank, relief pounding through her veins when she saw that he was staying and was standing at the doorway of the kitchen, his mere presence comforting beyond words.

"You have five minutes, Rathore," Mayank said curtly.

"Right, well, Mrs. Sharma, seeing as how I don't have much time, I'll just come right out and say what I have to say. First of all, I'd like to give you my sincerest apologies for what occurred between the two of us two weeks ago. I have been jailed, and sent to a rehabilitation facility to treat my mental health issues. I want you to know that even if you don't accept my apology, I'll try my hardest to make sure you know how much I regret my actions."

Nupur glanced once more at Mayank, who was examining his fingernails and scowling. She glanced back at Ranvijay and nodded once. "Good luck with your rehabilitation."

Mayank looked up when that was all she said before she left the kitchen. At Ranvijay's confused look, Mayank suppressed a smile and motioned for the other man to follow him back to the front door. They had no parting words as Mayank slammed the door on Ranvijay's face and walked back to the living room where Nupur and Neev were in their original positions on the couch.

"Is he gone?" Nupur asked distractedly as she stroked Neev's hair, the little boy falling asleep under her caresses.

"Yes," Mayank said as he took the seat next to her. He hesitated for a bit, wondering whether he should do it or not. But the dejected look on her face just put him off and he put his arm around her shoulders.

She didn't say anything, but felt wonderful inside. She felt wanted and protected with him around and just rested her head against him.

It didn't even occur to Mayank to freak out when a large feeling of contentment washed over him. Whenever he had Nupur in his arms, he felt relaxed and at ease with the world. Those were feelings Mayank Sharma was not very used to for the last five years without her.

What did freak Mayank out was the realization that how much he needed Nupur. There were days when he would wake up and she wasn't in her bed to his right, and he would feel this pit uneasiness until she appeared again. He had tried ignoring those feelings initially, but they were getting harder and harder to ignore. He just couldn't stop himself from smiling whenever she bunched up her nose every time she laughed. He couldn't ignore the fact that he hungered for her constantly, even when she was curled up in a chair reading an enormous book in her shabbiest sweats. Even then, he still wanted to be with her and for her all the time. Just enjoy the little moments together, unperturbed.

"Mayank?" Nupur's voice called him back from his thoughts.

"Yeah?"

"Gunjan invited us over for dinner tonight. Do you want to go? I mean, I understand if you don't want to, but I really don't get to see my family and friends very often and I just…"

"Yes, I'll go," he heard himself saying. Why? He really had no freakin' idea.

"Really?" she asked, lifting her head up to face him.

The smile she gave him was enough to explain to him why he had said yes. What a goddamn sap! He was turning soft. Very soft.

"I don't see why I can't behave civilly for an evening. You're always at the manor and I really need to show you that I can act just as well as you do," he grinned.

"You're so competitive, it's really disgusting," she said with her eyes narrowed playfully. "And I actually like going to the manor. Your mother is wonderful to be around. Just because your uncle grunts at me in salutation and ignores me the rest of the time, doesn't mean anything."

Mayank laughed softly, rubbing his side where his wife elbowed him. "You're going to wake Neev up."

"Take him to his room so he can nap in peace," she said, lifting the boy and settling him in Mayank's arms.

"Pushy little thing, aren't you?" he teased, standing up and leaving the room before she had a chance to do him anymore bodily harm. But he still loved it.

"Unca Benji?" Neev grabbed the attention of one of the men as he sat next to him at the dinner table.

"Yes?" Benji replied, always happy to converse with the miniature Sharma.

"Why do Zack and Cody look the same?"

"Because they're twins, mate," Benji explained as he took a bite of Gunjan's cooking.

"What does 'twins' mean?" Neev asked, waiting until he swallowed to ask, because his mummy and daddy had always told him never to talk with his mouth full.

"Twins means that they were born at the same time," Benji said thoughtfully. "They were in their mummy's tummy at the same time."

"Her tummy? How did they get out of her tummy?" Neev asked.

Benji nearly choked on his guava juice, his eyes widening as he realized where this was leading. "Uh, well…"

Neev started giggling uncontrollably, and his cheeks turned pink with mirth.

Benji lifted an eyebrow. "What?"

"Did she poop them out?" Neev asked between gasping laughs.

"Neev!" Nupur's voice came from way down the table where she was speaking to Samrat and Uday. "You do not discuss loo-related things at the dinner table. You know better than that."

"Sorry, mummy. Don't tell daddy!" Neev replied quickly.

"You should be grateful he's in the restroom," she said. "Now, no more disrespectful words during dinner."

Neev gave Benji a mischievous smile. "Was I right, Unca Benji? Is that how Zack and Cody came out of her tummy?"

"No, mate. You are definitely not right. That's not how it happens," Benji said, hearing a snicker from his other side. Apparently Uday was listening to their conversation.

"Then how does the babies come out of the mummy's tummy?" Neev asked.

"You should ask your daddy," Uday chimed in, leaning across his best friend. "He knows the answer."

"My daddy knows?" Neev asked.

He watched his father walk back into the dining room and take his seat next to Nupur all the way on the other side of the long table. With all the Bhushans and Samrat and Benji and Uday's roommate, minus Dia, who was still on tour with Marc Jacobs, assembled in between Neev and his parents, Neev had to use his outside voice to reach his father.

"Daddy, how does babies come out of the mummy's tummy?!" Neev asked.

Complete silence met Neev's outburst. Benji and Uday were holding their sides and keeping their mouths in straight lines to keep from giving themselves away.

"You know you're not supposed to yell at the dinner table," Mayank said with an uncomfortable cough.

"Sorry, but how does it happen? Unca Uday and Unca Benji said you know," Neev explained.

"Benji! Uday!" Gunjan's voice rang out loudly. "Stop corrupting him! He's a darling angel who doesn't need your shoddy influence."

Nupur and Mayank both thought that 'darling angel' was a very disillusioned exaggeration.

"You'd think she'd stop scolding us since we're nearing thirty," Benji said with a sigh.

"Daddy! How does it happen?" Neev asked, his patience wearing out.

Mayank sighed and ran a hand through his hair, shooting the twats a dirty look. "You know how sometimes Santa uses magic?"

"Yes," Neev nodded.

"Well, that's how babies come out of their mummies' tummies. A doctor uses magic and then, the baby appears," Mayank said with an air of desperation.

He ignored the smirks Samrat and Uday were giving him. They could rot in hell. Really, they could.

"Oh," Neev said. "Ok. Is that how I came out of mummy's tummy?"

Everyone's smile disappeared at this question. They all realized that Neev didn't understand that Nupur wasn't his birthmother. Mayank and Nupur shared a look, wondering what to tell the young boy.

"Neev, uh, you didn't come out of mummy's tummy. You came out of Annie's tummy," Mayank said slowly, his heart breaking as Neev's face turned to confusion.

"But Annie is not nice to me and she doesn't love me. Only mummy loves me," Neev tried to explain. "She gives me hugs and kisses."

"Yes, I do love you, Neev," Nupur emphasized. "You didn't come out of my tummy, but I still love you and I am your mummy."

"But how did I get into Annie's tummy when I was a baby?" Neev asked.

"Magic," Nupur and Mayank answered at the same time.

"Oh. Next time, I think that mummy should have a baby in her tummy, and then I can play with the baby, and he can be my new bestest friend with Harsh."

"Actually, if your mummy and daddy have a baby, it would be your little brother or sister," Uday explained. "Wouldn't you like that?"

"Yes!" Neev said with a large smile. "I want a little brother or a little sister! I can play with them and share my toys and teach them how to do everything!"

"Well, if you ask your parents nicely, maybe they'll get you a little brother or sister," Benji added, sharing a smile with Samrat as Nupur and Mayank glared at the two of them, red in the faces.

"Can I have a brother or sister, please?!" Neev asked.

Stifling a groan, Mayank motioned for Nupur to take this question.

Nupur bit her lip, slightly pale, and smiled across the table at her stepson. "Maybe later, sweetheart. It's a very difficult magic and uh…"

"You need to practice?" Benji and Uday asked at the exact same time.

"Oh, dear heavens," Benji sighed.

"We'll think about it, Neev," Mayank said.

"Ok, good," Neev said. He finally seemed satisfied with the answers, because he picked up his fork and dug into the savory food made by Gunjan.

"So Mayank, have we told you how much we love that kid of yours?" Uday asked. "You must bring him around for meals more often."

"Yeah, I'll do just that," Mayank muttered as went back to ignoring all conversations going on around him. He had decided long ago that ignoring things was best when around people he wasn't really still on friendly terms with. He didn't want to hurt Nupur's feelings by getting into a spat with her family. Goodness, his sappiness levels were starting to get out of hand.

Later that night, after a long evening of being surrounded by the Bhushans and the others, Mayank sat on the bed as he waited for Nupur to finish her shower. He sketched in a notebook he kept by the bed, drawing up plans for a building that needed remodeling in Worli.

The smell of verbena and jasmine caught his attention when Nupur walked into the room with her bathrobe wrapped tightly around her.

She grabbed some body lotion and sat on the bed next to Mayank. As she started rubbing the lotion onto her legs, she looked up at him. "What are you working on?"

Mayank's concentration took awhile to return to the thought process of talking as he took in the sight of her wheatish legs and her dainty hands rubbing lotion all over them. "Huh?"

"What are you working on?" she repeated, shaking her head slightly turning pink, knowing exactly where his attention lay.

"Uh, one of the cafs in Worli is remodeling, so they wanted to tear down the building they have now and update to a more sturdy design," he explained, setting the notebook back in the drawer in the bedside table. "I was just sketching, nothing too serious."

"I've never told you this, but I really appreciate what you do," she said. "I mean, I've seen some of your blueprints, and it amazes me. I can barely draw stick-figures, and you're over there drawing functional buildings."

"Oh, well, thank you," he said. "I never even knew I could draw well until my mother found some of my school notes and noticed all the doodles and drawings I had on them. She's the one who told me that I should consider a career in art. Well, you...you've seen them before, right?"

"Why didn't you become an artist?" she asked, moving to the other leg and slathering that up with lotion.

"I'm not sure," he said with a shrug. "I think I wanted to prove to everyone that I wasn't just some snot who would depend on his mother's payroll. I wanted to create my own legacy, to be independent; I guess you could call it that."

Nupur smiled and closed the bottle of lotion. "I should have known you'd pull something like that off. You were always one for doing things your own way, sticking to your own set rules, not bothering about others. That's one of the reasons that drew me to-"

Realising what she was just about to reveal, Nupur's face blanched. She got up from the bed a bit too quickly and ran to her wardrobe. What is wrong with me? Why am I giving myself away? Do I want to send him some sort of a message? That....that I'd want to...start things over, maybe? But, but how...ugh this is all so confusing – what should I do?

Taking her pajamas she half ran to the bathroom, completely evading Mayank's stare the whole time.

Mayank lay back down on his bed, covering his face with his hands. What was going on? Why did he get the feeling that Nupur might be actually leading on to something? Has she...kinda forgiven him? About the past? What's happening? But if she did love me, why hasn't she said anything so far?

Reverting back to his pessismistic ideas, Mayank let out a deep breath. His feelings were definitely one-sided. Damn it. Why did she always do this to him? She'd rub lotion all over her legs, making him go crazy, and then she'd reminisce about what she loved about him, and run away. The build-up of wayward emotions wasn't doing very well for him. He needed to carefully analyze the whole convoluted situation. Without any distractions – namely lotion. And wheatish, lovely, slender legs.

Nupur didn't remember the insignificant walk between the bathroom to the bedroom taking so long. Each footstep echoed off the walls and caused her stomach to flip over like a pancake. She only hoped a plan or even an opening sentence would form before she reached her bed. She needed to justify why she had left that statement about what drew him to her hanging.

What should I do? Act serious and ask to talk? Look pleased and snog him? Or maybe I should let my anxieties out? Maybe he should have the first move …

Why is this so hard? I know the whole truth now, so logically there should be a happily ever after with a big stage kiss. Too much time has been wasted, too many secrets kept and as much heartache as I can stand.

Can I even trust Mayank? … Can he trust me? Can we do this? Can we...can we be Mayank and Nupur once more?

Her heart beating uncomfortably against her chest, Nupur coughed lightly to get his attention. He turned the opposite side, facing her and almost sitting up.

"Hey, I umm...nothing...so well, umm, goodnight then..." he muttered, preoccupied and tense. Looking at his face, Nupur forgot about the unpleasant knot in her stomach and sat down with him on his bed.

"What's wrong Mayank? You look terrified about something...is it work?" Nupur asked, genuinely concerned. Mayank looked up at her, his eyes questioning. How much should I tell her?

"It's well...it's Neev, Nupur. I keep thinking about how close the day of the custody trial is drawing nearer, and I know it's horrible, but I cannot help considering the possibility that I might actually lose him. I might lose my son forever, Nupur. To...to Annie. No one deserves Annie as a mother, and Neev there's no way I can let him be with someone like her. I...I really shouldn't be dwelling on negative thoughts but this whole dilemma frightens me immensely. He's my son, Nupur, my son. What will I do without him?" He ran his fingers through his hair, glancing away.

Nupur grimaced, realising how awful he must be feeling at the moment. A pang of sympathy, mixed with an indescribable feeling washed over her. Licking her lips, she shuffled closer to him, placing her hand on his. They each glanced down fleetingly, before returning to each other's faces. Mayank looked warm and confused, while Nupur said,

"Listen, Mayank and listen well. You are too good of a parent to Neev and the Ministry blokes might be a bunch of dunderheads, but they aren't blind. They have enough skills to spot the difference between you as a father and Annie. There isn't going to be any chance that they consider Annie fit to be a mother to Neev, let alone him leaving you. You've got to stop stressing yourself out about this. It isn't good for your psyche, your mental stability. You don't want yourself going into depression at this stage – Neev needs you the most right now. Just let go of any unwanted notions and enjoy moments with your son, Mayank. This is what life is all about. Loving others and living it to the fullest with your loved ones."

Mayank flushed, looking overwhelmed by Nupur's heartfelt speech. He mouthed soundlessly, the colour returning to his cheeks. "I...Nupur...this was-," he explained.

"I know," she said softly, her hand interlacing with his, surprised at how easy this was.

Her eyes fell to her lap and she concentrated on how warm and moist Mayank's hand felt in hers, wondering if it would be one of the last times she could feel it. She had tried hard to not think about the three months left, but she certainly could not ignore it. She could not live without him. It was one of those obviously impossible tasks. She almost snorted contemplating life without Mayank. She couldn't see anything. Her life was Mayank. There was him and only him in the future. She needed him and she was pretty sure he needed her as well. Is it that simple though? Is it too soon? Can we really make this work? What if we fight more than usual? Do I love him enough to put all the pain behind me? Do I love him enough to trust him completely?

They sat there on his bed in silence for a long time, clutching onto each other. Finally, after what seemed like eternity, Mayank broke it.

"You don't know how wonderful a human being you are Nupur." He murmured softly into her ear. She smiled shyly, her head spinning as Mayank placed a hand on her cheek, his thumb rubbing against the pink, flushed skin. He leant in slowly, brushing his lips against her closed eyelids. She shuddered involuntary, feeling a rush of lust and love engulf her body completely.

She sighed against his soft caress, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, wanting to feel his warm body against hers. His lips travelled down to her rosy cheek, his breath playing on it. They travelled further down, painfully teasing her lower lip as he rested them just a few micrometers away from hers. He was maddening her with his playful actions and she couldn't stand it any longer, they were simply too close. Letting go of her preconceived notions, she pressed her lips to his, leaning in. He enveloped his long arms around her waist, locking her in a beautiful embrace, deepening the kiss.

She smiled against his lips, loving the familiar feeling once more, her excruciatingly heavy burden lifted off her chest. He pulled her closer, if that was possible, as if letting her know this time, not even God could drive her away from him.

It was only when she needed more oxygen did Nupur pull away slowly. Her face was red and her lips felt slightly numb. She motioned for Mayank to lie down and crawled into his arms once he happily obliged. Nupur had never felt so loved or protected than she did right now, lying in his arms, surrounding her with affection and warmth. Both didn't know what this meant, whether were they together or not – they were just enjoying the moment. The breathtaking, magnificent moment.

omg kainath....!!!! thank you sooo much for this update..!!

Made my sunday it did..! hehe

cupid reserved

What a lovely way to wake up on a sunday morning.

To your beautiful and heartwarming update!!

The whole RV thing was awkward for Nupur and the dinner, even more so LOL

what with Neev all set to find out abt hmmm.. storks and related matters 🤣

I loved the way it ended....understanding and love...should it revert back now?

going back wud be sooo unreal :)

my hopes

thank u for updating
Divya