The Apollonian and Dionysian: (AR) - Complete - Page 15

Originally posted by: sisgeo

i dont know what to say...reading you're ff's is gr8..its staright forwarded.no cliff hangers...........

Cant even begin to fathom what Armaan must have gone through. It was totally tragic. Atleast Ridhima had someone to take care of her, her family support was what kept her sane. But Armaan did it all on his own.

Originally posted by: NiksAngel

Hey,

Thanx a lot for this part......removed many of the misconceptions i had abt the FF.......altho i won't say i was happy for this part.....its was damn depressing n m already depressed from morning but i assure u tht i will now very happy n eager to read the other parts u'll update......

Thanx for ur consideration......i appreciate it....!

Originally posted by: imshveta

Cant even begin to fathom what Armaan must have gone through. It was totally tragic. Atleast Ridhima had someone to take care of her, her family support was what kept her sane. But Armaan did it all on his own.

Nice work.

Thanks for the PM

Shveta

Originally posted by: spln

Hello Ling! (interesting ID name btw)

got recommended t this one by a friend, who's opinion i can usually trust =)

shall read and comment super soon (despite the delay already)

oh and, call me nj =)

adios!

Originally posted by: Riddss

heyyy dear,
awesome part
thanks for PM.

love
Riddss

Chapter 9: Home is where the family is

Armaan woke up at the sound of buzzing cell phone in dead middle of the night. It was the duty nurse who wanted to report condition of his patient which he had asked her to do so. He knew that once up he could never go back to sleep yet he had asked her to call him at two in the morning. He strolled to the kitchen and took out milk from fridge. As he closed it, he saw pictures of him and the gang pasted on it which brought a smile on his face. He remembered the day Nikki and Abhi had visited which had changed the outlook of his house.

"You live in this dump?" Nikki had asked Armaan after taking one look around his house. Abhi did a double take while Armaan smiled.

"Yes. Not up to your standards?" He asked her.

"I didn't mean it as an actual dump Armaan. It is too clean. It's too sterile. It doesn't scream 'Armaan lives here!'" She finished.

"Houses can do that?" He asked her. Of course he knew that people tended to personalize the place they live in and where they work. He had seen it in all his friends' houses and rooms. He didn't give much thought about doing the same thing to his house.

"We are going to give a makeover to your house Armaan." Nikki said in a final tone. Abhi shrugged at Armaan helplessly.

"And then will it scream 'Armaan lives here!!'?" He taunted her. She merely huffed and ignored him.

"Abhi we are leaving", Nikki decided. Abhi the stringent administrator who could handle any kind of crisis in the hospital was merely nodding his head when Nikki was around. When Armaan had asked him he had said that with Nikki he didn't have to be the responsible one always. Nor did he have to be the decision maker. It was nice when someone else made decisions for a change and he was only asked to follow them. Armaan had nodded in understanding then.

"Apparently we are leaving Armaan." Armaan waved a goodbye to both Abhi and Nikki from his patio and then Nikki shouted.

"Armaan we are going to come back soon; with supplies." Before Armaan could ask what she meant by that, Nikki had left the place in a breeze. Whatever she was up to was definitely something out of the ordinary.

In two hours Nikki and Abhi had returned to Armaan's house along with Atul, Anjali and Rahul along with lots of supplies. Muskaan and Riddhima were working that afternoon so they would come by once they finished works. Atul and Rahul were to return back to hospital for the graveyard shift. Nikki had even drawn up a plan and assigned tasks for each one of them.

"She is hanging around with you little too much Abhi. She is practically acting like a boss", Anjali had whispered to Abhi to which he had grinned.

"Guys will start painting this place first while we delicate ladies will ensure that you guys do your job right and will also change the look and feel of the place. Understand?" Nikki addressed the room with hands on her hips. Secretly Armaan thought that she could become much better administrator than Abhi. She had the charm, the arrogance which boosted her confidence and the personality to pull it off. The guys saluted her in response and picked up the cans of paints and the location assigned to each one of them from Nikki's plan which was currently laid down on kitchen table.

By evening the whole outlook of the house had changed. Paint was yet to dry but gone were the whites and grays. Nikki had chosen warm shades for the walls and all the white curtains were taken down and replaced with shades complimentary to the color of walls. Armaan was impressed with the way his house now looked. He hadn't paid much attention when he was painting but now he could see odd trinkets placed all over the house. There were many photo frames on the wall minus photos.

"Riddhima will put in photos to the frames which are all over your house. I have changed upholstery of most of the furniture. And I have also donated your bed spreads and pillow covers to orphanage." Nikki said casually.

"Why?" Armaan was now surprised. Changing color of walls was one thing. But changing upholstery and bed spreads were entirely different thing.

"They were too dull. I know you like white and that's why your bedroom is done in lighter shades. I have retained couple of white bedspread sets for keepsake but managed to put in brighter and darker colors. Come, take a look", she invited into his bedroom. He was surprised to see the way it looked now. It looked more spacious, brighter and there were lots of personal touch to the room. There were empty photo frames in the bedroom too. He smiled at Nikki and ruffled her hair.

"I don't know how to thank you for all this Nikki."

"Buy me a meal at the place I want and we will call it even. What do you say?" She smirked and held out her hand. He let out a chuckle and shook on it.

"Alright. All of you are invited to the meal which I will be treating for; when and where will be decided by Nikki." Armaan said seeing everyone.

Once everyone had left, Armaan sat on the patio with a cup of coffee and thought about everything that had happened in past months. His life had changed its direction the moment he had joined the hospital and he was happier in the past few months than compared to his entire lifetime. He had friends who had just managed to change his entire house just so that he has brighter days. His girlfriend was stopping by with more supplies to make the place even more livable and lovable. He loved his work and the life he currently had.

He had helped Abhi to plan and execute rural reach program which was one of the main reason he was hired. The program was launched couple of months ago and it had picked up momentum. He hadn't realized the knowledge he had managed to gain in UN without realizing that he was learning about many things. When Abhi invited him to a brain storm session, he was surprised at his own passion when it came to volunteer work. Shashank had accompanied them when they surveyed the villages and the older man gratefully thanked him for everything he had done to Riddhima. Armaan was surprised at such straight forward words from the elder doctor but he knew that he couldn't speak so freely at his house or hospital. There were lines in relationships which cannot be crossed. Armaan had humbly accepted Shashank's appreciation and changed topic to put Shashank out of the spot. The bond he shared with elder Guptas was something he wished he had with his biological parents.

In next thirty minutes Riddhima had come with a bag full of photos and Muskaan carried cutlery.

"Why would I need a mug which has Mickey Mouse design on it?" Armaan asked as he looked through the stuff Muskaan had spread on kitchen table.

"Who said it's for you? That's mine", she grabbed it from his hand and hung it on the holder above the counter.

"There is a standard cutlery set which you can use on a daily basis. But there are eight mugs specifically for each one of us. We will use only these when we come here", Muskaan explained the reason for odd shaped and odd colored mugs. The contrast in them was sharp and oddly it represented everyone's personality. Muskaan really had an eye for details.

"Okay, my job is done. I have to rush Armaan. I am meeting Rahul for coffee before he goes to work. You will drop Riddhima home, will you? It's getting late", Muskaan rushed about his kitchen doing last minute arrangements of dishtowels and spare spatulas.

"Sure, I will do that. Thank you for everything Muskaan." He told her honestly.

"Why thanks between family?" She buzzed around for few more moments and dashed out before he could formulate a reply.

It was the first time one of the group had actually voiced what he was already feeling. The closeness he had felt amongst his friends was equivalent of that of a family.

"I have finished putting photos to the frames Armaan. I have to put some stuff on your refrigerator. Why don't you go take a look around the house?" Armaan was actually waiting like a child to see the finished product.

There were pictures of him with the gang everywhere. There were also photos of only him and Riddhima on the table next to his bed along with one photo where in the entire gang was making funny face at the camera. It was only one of the handful of days when the entire gang had gotten off which he was sure Abhi had pulled some strings to achieve that, had visited amusement park. Everyone was surprised to know that it was the first time he was visiting amusement park but no one voiced any answer to that. By now Armaan had told everyone about his childhood. He didn't find a reason to hide it from them.

He knew why Nikki had insisted on having so many pictures all over the house though at that time he had feigned ignorance. He wasn't an idiot and neither was she. She hadn't argued with him but had annoyingly sniffed at him and went about her work. She had seen through him and understood the serious abandonment issues he had experienced in his childhood. All the pictures around the house were reminders that all his friends were here to stay. They weren't leaving him and they didn't allow him to leave them too. In the living room the big picture frame had the entire gang along with Riddhima's family and Shubhankar. It was taken on his birthday which was planned by his friends at Abhi's townhouse. It wasn't a big party but everyone who mattered to him was invited.

He found Riddhima sticking some more pictures and funny quotation magnets on the refrigerator.

"It's amazing what you guys have done for me", Armaan said.

"It was all Nikki's idea Armaan. We are just her helpers." Riddhima laughed. She took a look around the kitchen and sighed. It looked wonderful.

"Has she always been like this?" Armaan asked.

"She is incredibly possessive of her friends. We allow her to do what she wants because her intentions are good. She had been through so much in her teen years and when she pulled through, she appreciated life and people more."

"What happened to her? I hope am not prying." Armaan asked.

"No, it's alright. She thinks you already know about it anyway. She was a teen alcoholic. It was classic case of ignored child and in her late teens she fell into wrong crowd. I met her when I was still a student in the hospital where we work."

"Oh?"

"Her head was cracked open after she had fainted from excessive drinking. After one week stay in hospital, she turned into a new leaf. Well not immediately but she had decided to give up drinking. Her recovery was fascinating to watch. We didn't go to same college but started meeting often. She has been my friend ever since." Riddhima reminisced. Armaan nodded in response.

"How do you like your house now?" Riddhima asked him.

"It screams 'Armaan lives here!!' and doesn't look like a dump anymore." He replied with a grin. Riddhima looked at him questioningly and asked, "Dump?"

"That's what Nikki called my house before its makeover." Riddhima grinned back at him.

"It has been a wonderful two years Riddhima. I am glad I chose to come to his hospital." Armaan said after few moments of silence.

"I am glad you came here too", she responded.

They toured the house together Riddhima prattling of stories behind some of the old pictures which were taken before they met Armaan. The gang had made him a part of theirs which hadn't even involved him. It was a great gesture which misted his eyes. He simply listened to Riddhima talk and basked in the resonance of her voice around the house. When she stood on the patio ready to go home, he pulled her into a gentle hug.

"I am finally home Riddhima." Riddhima smiled at him brilliantly.

To be continued.