Posted:
Okay, first of all - I AM SOOOOOOOO SORRY!!
Have been super duper busy and could not update it in this forum too!!
I have however written a lot of parts after Part 6... So I am just going to go ahead and post one part each day!
Hope you guys like it... and I promise I will respond to your comments individually this time!!
SORRY AGAIN!
Part 7
"Mayank –?" Nupur asked cautiously, placing her hand on his shoulder, he looked at her hand from the corner of his eyes, "What happened to your sister?"
He whirled around, how had she known?
His bewildered expression must have told her what he was thinking because her hand dropped back to her side and she stepped back defensively, " I – I was talking to your mother, and –" she broke off, looking down at the floor.
"And what?" he winced out, walking towards her.
She tore her eyes away from his and slowly stepped back, she knew that she had finally crossed the line that Mayank drew – this topic was off limits and not to be discussed.
"And she said that her children were like his own – your uncle. He never differentiated between her children and his – so I was wondering if you – and you said Vidya Di – I – " she stopped talking and looked up at Mayank – he was no longer glaring at her, he was looking in the other direction – his expression clouded.
Mayank let his eyes drink in the old photograph, he'd had years to deal with Vidya Di and dad's deaths – but Nupur's sudden question made it seem fresh – maybe because he never spoke about it. It was not that he did not like speaking about dad and Vidya Di – it was just that there had been no need to share his childhood memories with anyone.
He was a private person – but today, he'd spoken more about his childhood to another person than he could ever remember.
How in the world had Nupur got him talking?
She followed his gaze – a family photo – a couple and two children. The couple was seated on a chair and their two children were on their arms – the son held by the mother and the daughter held by the father.
The daughter looked about four or five – she held her father tightly and smiled brightly at the camera, her long hair was held up in two high ponytails. Her pink frock had a large imprint of Barbie in the front and she looked exactly like that – like a doll.
Nupur smiled and moved her gaze to the other two occupants of the photograph – her gaze lingered for a few second over the woman before it settled on the charming boy she held in her arms.
The boy was about nine to fourteen months – he leant contently against his mother, his chubby arm was draped around his mother's neck, fat dimpled legs dangling. His big dark brown eyes sparkled with the innocence of childhood, and his open mouthed grin was punctured with deep dimples.
In a trance, she turned to look at Mayank, he walked over to the photo, she followed his movement – as he ran his fingers over the photograph; she could vividly picture Mayank in this photo – holding his son or daughter and smiling at the camera.
Something weighed her down, she turned away in a rush, "When should we leave?" she asked flatly.
Mayank turned to look at Nupur as she stood facing the other direction, her back to him; she seemed to have gone rigid and indifferent.
He straightened, good for him, he thought with a clenched jaw – its better they kept their relationship strictly business, "right after dinner" he answered equally flatly.
Nupur nodded without looking at him, he made a non-committal sound and left the room, closing the door silently in his wake.
Nupur blinked at the closed door, she and Mayank had gone from colleagues to friends and back to the professional indifference within a space of ten minutes.
Sighing, she turned around and looked at the Sharma family – so beautiful and happy – a perfect family.
But something had happened – she knew Mayank now lived with his mother – what about his sister and father then?
She wouldn't ask him – it was none of her business, she told herself firmly – she shouldn't even care.
Her gaze wandered to the little boy in the photograph and lingered on – she couldn't tear her gaze away – Mayank had been such a beautiful baby.
Un-consciously she walked over to the photo and ran her hand over his image, " I don't know why, but I do care"
Nupur watched silently as Mayank hugged and kissed his mother goodbye, "take care, Mayu" his mother told him firmly, her voice laden with love.
Nupur smiled – his mother was so nice and warm – she'd spoken to her for only ten minutes – but she liked her already.
She pursed her lips – and how does matter? Whether or not you like Mayank mother's does not fit into any scheme of things.
" Bye, Nupur" before she could come back from her thoughts and look at who was bidding her goodbye, she was pulled in for a hug, " Thank you, beta" a soft whisper in her ear, " Thank you for being there for Mayu."
It was Mayank's mother –she pulled back and smiled warmly at Nupur, her gaze then shifted to her son - he was busy talking to his cousins.
Smiling at Mayank, his mother turned her attention back to her, "of all the children, Mayu was the closest to my brother. They were more of father and son" she stopped and smiled a bittersweet smile, "Nupur" she said, grabbing Nupur's hand in urgency, "I'm sorry for asking you this, but – try and get him to talk about his uncle, ask him questions, otherwise he will never do it - he did that with Vidya and his father – he never spoke about them after their deaths. I'm worried that he'll keep it all within him and that's not good for him"
His father and sister had died – Nupur thought with a gasp.
"If he'd been with me, I would have never asked you this – but he's going off to Venice and –" Nupur watched as Mayank's mother stopped talking and looked at her hopefully, her hands were entwined tightly in hers.
Nupur didn't even have to think, she placed her arm over his mother's reassuringly, "don't worry, Aunty. I will take care of Mayank" she promised, then blinked, aghast at what she'd said and how she'd put it.
Take care? Mayank did not need taking care – and if he ever got wind of this conversation – he would flip.
"Thank you, beta" his mother said, shaking Nupur off her reverie. Shaking herself, Nupur diverted her attention back to his mother, "thank you so much" she said, cupping her cheek.
Nupur hugged her goodbye, and turned to leave. Her mind numb with what had just happened – about how she'd blurted out that she'd take care of Mayank – she should have said she'd talk to him.
"What was going on there?" Mayank asked, falling into step beside her as they walked outside.
Nupur shrugged, "Just saying bye" she muttered vaguely.
He preened at her, but did not ask her any more questions, "I hope you've packed?" he asked, as he got into the back seat of the car.
"You hired a taxi!" she exclaimed, chucking her bag into the seat and getting in beside him, "of course, am not driving back from Pune to Mumbai at 10:00 in the night" he answered, closing his eyes.
"You should have told me you would hire a taxi while coming back, I wouldn't have even bothered coming here" she muttered.
"I don't remember asking you to come with me" came the flat reply.
She ground her teeth together and turned to glare at him - his head was tilted back against the seat. His hands were crossed at his chest and eyes were tightly shut.
"How grateful, Mayank" she snapped sardonically, tilting her own head backwards and letting it drop against the seat.
" Thanks"
Thanks? Nupur's senses were on high alert, but she didn't open her eyes, " It's ok" she said.
"And I refuse to believe that you did it to salvage your Venice trip – however much you try to convince me on that."
Her eyes flew open, she turned in her seat to look at him, he was looking at her with a teasing accusing look on his face – she smiled reluctantly, this is the chance, Nupur, she told herself sternly, get him speaking, "Mayank, are you – okay?" she asked cautiously, for fear of his reaction.
She waited for the indifference to come – it did not, however, neither did an answer come her way.
Sighing, she fell back against her seat, "In case, you know, you want to, erm – talk – you can talk to me. I, err – wouldn't mind talking. In fact, I would love to talk –"
Mayank chuckled, "yes, Nupur. I know how much you love to talk" he said dryly, "Thanks, but I love my silence as much as you love talking"
She shut her mouth and pursed her lips together, so much for getting him to talk. Closing her eyes shut, she barked, "Am going to sleep, good night"
"Phew! I thought you'd never do that" he teased.
She ground her teeth together, but refused to give into temptation and reply to that comment.
"We'll reach in three hours. Wake up in time" he dished out.
She thought she was going to crack a few teeth if she ground them even more, turning around harshly in her seat, she hoped that she would have 3 hours of uninterrupted heavenly blissful sleep before she was pulled in to ten days of uninterrupted, irritating, sadu, akdu Mayank time.
Nupur smiled out of volition, as soon as the thought slipped out of her mind, it didn't sound all that bad..
Have been super duper busy and could not update it in this forum too!!
I have however written a lot of parts after Part 6... So I am just going to go ahead and post one part each day!
Hope you guys like it... and I promise I will respond to your comments individually this time!!
SORRY AGAIN!
Part 7
"Mayank –?" Nupur asked cautiously, placing her hand on his shoulder, he looked at her hand from the corner of his eyes, "What happened to your sister?"
He whirled around, how had she known?
His bewildered expression must have told her what he was thinking because her hand dropped back to her side and she stepped back defensively, " I – I was talking to your mother, and –" she broke off, looking down at the floor.
"And what?" he winced out, walking towards her.
She tore her eyes away from his and slowly stepped back, she knew that she had finally crossed the line that Mayank drew – this topic was off limits and not to be discussed.
"And she said that her children were like his own – your uncle. He never differentiated between her children and his – so I was wondering if you – and you said Vidya Di – I – " she stopped talking and looked up at Mayank – he was no longer glaring at her, he was looking in the other direction – his expression clouded.
Mayank let his eyes drink in the old photograph, he'd had years to deal with Vidya Di and dad's deaths – but Nupur's sudden question made it seem fresh – maybe because he never spoke about it. It was not that he did not like speaking about dad and Vidya Di – it was just that there had been no need to share his childhood memories with anyone.
He was a private person – but today, he'd spoken more about his childhood to another person than he could ever remember.
How in the world had Nupur got him talking?
She followed his gaze – a family photo – a couple and two children. The couple was seated on a chair and their two children were on their arms – the son held by the mother and the daughter held by the father.
The daughter looked about four or five – she held her father tightly and smiled brightly at the camera, her long hair was held up in two high ponytails. Her pink frock had a large imprint of Barbie in the front and she looked exactly like that – like a doll.
Nupur smiled and moved her gaze to the other two occupants of the photograph – her gaze lingered for a few second over the woman before it settled on the charming boy she held in her arms.
The boy was about nine to fourteen months – he leant contently against his mother, his chubby arm was draped around his mother's neck, fat dimpled legs dangling. His big dark brown eyes sparkled with the innocence of childhood, and his open mouthed grin was punctured with deep dimples.
In a trance, she turned to look at Mayank, he walked over to the photo, she followed his movement – as he ran his fingers over the photograph; she could vividly picture Mayank in this photo – holding his son or daughter and smiling at the camera.
Something weighed her down, she turned away in a rush, "When should we leave?" she asked flatly.
Mayank turned to look at Nupur as she stood facing the other direction, her back to him; she seemed to have gone rigid and indifferent.
He straightened, good for him, he thought with a clenched jaw – its better they kept their relationship strictly business, "right after dinner" he answered equally flatly.
Nupur nodded without looking at him, he made a non-committal sound and left the room, closing the door silently in his wake.
Nupur blinked at the closed door, she and Mayank had gone from colleagues to friends and back to the professional indifference within a space of ten minutes.
Sighing, she turned around and looked at the Sharma family – so beautiful and happy – a perfect family.
But something had happened – she knew Mayank now lived with his mother – what about his sister and father then?
She wouldn't ask him – it was none of her business, she told herself firmly – she shouldn't even care.
Her gaze wandered to the little boy in the photograph and lingered on – she couldn't tear her gaze away – Mayank had been such a beautiful baby.
Un-consciously she walked over to the photo and ran her hand over his image, " I don't know why, but I do care"
Nupur watched silently as Mayank hugged and kissed his mother goodbye, "take care, Mayu" his mother told him firmly, her voice laden with love.
Nupur smiled – his mother was so nice and warm – she'd spoken to her for only ten minutes – but she liked her already.
She pursed her lips – and how does matter? Whether or not you like Mayank mother's does not fit into any scheme of things.
" Bye, Nupur" before she could come back from her thoughts and look at who was bidding her goodbye, she was pulled in for a hug, " Thank you, beta" a soft whisper in her ear, " Thank you for being there for Mayu."
It was Mayank's mother –she pulled back and smiled warmly at Nupur, her gaze then shifted to her son - he was busy talking to his cousins.
Smiling at Mayank, his mother turned her attention back to her, "of all the children, Mayu was the closest to my brother. They were more of father and son" she stopped and smiled a bittersweet smile, "Nupur" she said, grabbing Nupur's hand in urgency, "I'm sorry for asking you this, but – try and get him to talk about his uncle, ask him questions, otherwise he will never do it - he did that with Vidya and his father – he never spoke about them after their deaths. I'm worried that he'll keep it all within him and that's not good for him"
His father and sister had died – Nupur thought with a gasp.
"If he'd been with me, I would have never asked you this – but he's going off to Venice and –" Nupur watched as Mayank's mother stopped talking and looked at her hopefully, her hands were entwined tightly in hers.
Nupur didn't even have to think, she placed her arm over his mother's reassuringly, "don't worry, Aunty. I will take care of Mayank" she promised, then blinked, aghast at what she'd said and how she'd put it.
Take care? Mayank did not need taking care – and if he ever got wind of this conversation – he would flip.
"Thank you, beta" his mother said, shaking Nupur off her reverie. Shaking herself, Nupur diverted her attention back to his mother, "thank you so much" she said, cupping her cheek.
Nupur hugged her goodbye, and turned to leave. Her mind numb with what had just happened – about how she'd blurted out that she'd take care of Mayank – she should have said she'd talk to him.
"What was going on there?" Mayank asked, falling into step beside her as they walked outside.
Nupur shrugged, "Just saying bye" she muttered vaguely.
He preened at her, but did not ask her any more questions, "I hope you've packed?" he asked, as he got into the back seat of the car.
"You hired a taxi!" she exclaimed, chucking her bag into the seat and getting in beside him, "of course, am not driving back from Pune to Mumbai at 10:00 in the night" he answered, closing his eyes.
"You should have told me you would hire a taxi while coming back, I wouldn't have even bothered coming here" she muttered.
"I don't remember asking you to come with me" came the flat reply.
She ground her teeth together and turned to glare at him - his head was tilted back against the seat. His hands were crossed at his chest and eyes were tightly shut.
"How grateful, Mayank" she snapped sardonically, tilting her own head backwards and letting it drop against the seat.
" Thanks"
Thanks? Nupur's senses were on high alert, but she didn't open her eyes, " It's ok" she said.
"And I refuse to believe that you did it to salvage your Venice trip – however much you try to convince me on that."
Her eyes flew open, she turned in her seat to look at him, he was looking at her with a teasing accusing look on his face – she smiled reluctantly, this is the chance, Nupur, she told herself sternly, get him speaking, "Mayank, are you – okay?" she asked cautiously, for fear of his reaction.
She waited for the indifference to come – it did not, however, neither did an answer come her way.
Sighing, she fell back against her seat, "In case, you know, you want to, erm – talk – you can talk to me. I, err – wouldn't mind talking. In fact, I would love to talk –"
Mayank chuckled, "yes, Nupur. I know how much you love to talk" he said dryly, "Thanks, but I love my silence as much as you love talking"
She shut her mouth and pursed her lips together, so much for getting him to talk. Closing her eyes shut, she barked, "Am going to sleep, good night"
"Phew! I thought you'd never do that" he teased.
She ground her teeth together, but refused to give into temptation and reply to that comment.
"We'll reach in three hours. Wake up in time" he dished out.
She thought she was going to crack a few teeth if she ground them even more, turning around harshly in her seat, she hoped that she would have 3 hours of uninterrupted heavenly blissful sleep before she was pulled in to ten days of uninterrupted, irritating, sadu, akdu Mayank time.
Nupur smiled out of volition, as soon as the thought slipped out of her mind, it didn't sound all that bad..
Bade Achhe Lagte Hain
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