I Belong With You part 30 updated (Arsh ff) - Page 23

awesome parts...

beautifully written...

loved shona alot....

thnx for the pm............

part 25

Shona laughed delightfully as she grabbed a handful of pure from her bowl and threw it in Shilpa's face. She froze a little, but her cheeky smile was still playing on her lips as she waited for her Mommy's reaction. Shilpa froze as well, trying to stay patient.

"I think she's full," Sapna stated and Shilpa turned and glared at her as she heard the amusement in her voice.

Shilpa looked back at Shona and took the bowl from her. As she did that, Shona's forehead crumpled with wrinkles and she started crying, holding her tiny hands out to get her bowl back. "Baby, food is not for playing," Shilpa tried to explain as she had done it many times before and some of the times Shona seemed to understand her.

Baby Shona had started the day very cheerfully, Armaan finding her chewing her blanket and smiling at him when he bent over her crib. Though she was still in a good mood, Shona didn't want to understand her mother's lectures this time. She kept crying and asking for her bowl.

Sapna came beside her high chair and took the bowl from Shilpa, giving it back to Shona. Shona calmed down in that moment and her entire attention focused on it as she stuffed her hand inside and smudged her fingers with food. She took the fingers to her mouth and started eating them, smiling at Sapna as she said to her, "We'll take the bowl if you're no longer hungry."

Part of the food she had grabbed ended up into her mouth but also on her cheeks. She leaned forward and served herself with more while Shilpa tried to feed her with the spoon. Shona let her mother feed her with it, but her attention was still over the bowl, carefully filling her fist with pure. After she swallowed what Shilpa had given her, Shona also ate from her hand and playfully slapped Sapna with the rest of the food, laughing delightfully at the impact and when Shilpa discreetly started laughing as well.

"And she's no longer hungry," Sapna stated, wiping her cheek.

Shona whimpered again when Sapna took the bowl, but this time neither of them was going to let her play with the food.

"That was enough, Shona," Shilpa said as she grabbed a rag and started cleaned Shona's face.

Armaan stormed inside in that moment, dressed and ready to leave to the hospital. He walked straight to Shona and cupping her tiny head with one hand, he leaned forward and kissed her. "Look at you," he laughed her sticky cheeks. "You look and smell like an apple pie."

"She loves having her hands in the food," Shilpa stated with an overwrought sigh.

"That's not such a tragedy," Armaan laughed. "She's nearly 6 month old and she already has an idea of how to feed herself. You should feel proud of it."

"I feel proud that I have food in my hair," she groaned. She took a lock of her hair and looked with disgust at the apple pure that had started drying already in her hair.

Armaan took that lock of hair and smelled it, smirking at her. "At least you're using natural products," he chuckled teasingly. "Your moods don't coincide all the time," he stated with a knowing look towards her and towards Shona.

"Weren't you hurrying somewhere?" she asked him, slightly annoyed.

"I am hurrying now," Armaan laughed and quickly kissed her on the cheek before he kissed Shona again. "Have a nice day, Sapna," he smiled at her and turned heading to the door. "I'll see you later, Shi!" he called from the hallway.

Hurrying out the door, Armaan didn't have time to notice the taxi leaving their driveway and the person walking towards their house. Only when he bumped against that person, Armaan noticed Muskaan. He stared at her for a moment, not surprised of her unexpected visit, but surprised of her so-soon visit, as only a few weeks had passed since her last visit on Christmas Eve.

"Dr. Malik," Muskaan grumbled, shaking the snow his shoe had imprinted on hers.

"Dr. gupta, I am sorry," he said apologetically.

"Is Shilpa still home?" she asked, glaring at him.

Armaan nodded. "She's in kitchen with Shona and Sapna."

"Have a nice day, Dr. Malik," Muskaan said simply and walked past him, towards the house, not expecting a reply from him.

Armaan trailed towards his car and stopped, looking back at Muskaan. Just then he noticed the big paper bag she was carrying. 'Another present for Shona', he thought, smiling. Armaan didn't have time to contemplate over that as he had been called in to the hospital and that was also the day when he wanted to present his article for a medical journal. He got into his car and drove away in a hurry.

Sapna was washing the dishes, Shilpa was looking for a bottle of water in the refrigerator and Shona was picking up the leftovers from her bib when Muskaan walked into the kitchen. Shona continued growing and at nearly 6-month old she had started prattling a little, among the other things she had learned doing, like serving herself with food. When Shona felt her grandmother's presence, she looked up and stopped prattling.

That drew Shilpa's attention as well, who gasped when she turned and saw Muskaan. "Mom," she said, surprised.

"Armaan let me in," Muskaan said, smiling at Shona.

"What are you doing here?" Shilpa asked her and quickly changed it as she knew how much that question annoyed her mother. "I wasn't expected to see you so soon," she stated.

Muskaan put the bag on the table and took off her coat. "I am flying to Paris for a conference and I wanted to make a stopover in Seattle to give Shona something," Muskaan answered. She smiled politely when she saw Sapna and walked over to her, holding her hand out. "Muskaan gupta," she introduced herself.

"Sapna Shah," Sapna shook her head. "It's an honor to meet you."

It wasn't in her character to ignore respectable people like Sapna, but Armaan knew it and Shilpa had suspected something. Muskaan gupta was secretly but truly and madly in love with her granddaughter. She left the courtesies for later as nothing and none was more important than Shona in that moment.

Shona was very familiar with the faces she used to see everyday and had a friendly smile for everyone, but she also had a short memory, and though it hadn't been long since Muskaan' last visit, she didn't seem to remember Muskaan. She whimpered once when Muskaan put her hands around her waist and picked her up from the high chair, her body becoming tense once she was in her arms.

"Did we have apples for breakfast?" Muskaan asked her granddaughter in a smooth-spoken voice as she smelled her face.

Shona whimpered and put both hands on Muskaan' face, pulling back to be able to stare better at her. Muskaan let her doing her thing and waited until the stare was over and Shona smiled at her.

"Shona," Shilpa decided to try and feel more comfortable with her mother's new attitude and take part to the reunion.

Shona turned and looked at her mother.

"That's grandma," Shilpa said, pointing to Muskaan.

Shona looked back at Muskaan, staring for a moment only before she giggled and greeted her grandma, playfully slapping her face with both hands.

"And we're sticky like candy," Muskaan smiled, taking the baby's hands and holding them in a light grip. "How is she doing on solids?" she asked, none in particular.

Shilpa looked at Sapna, who motioned for her to answer as she turned and continued washing the dishes.

"She's doing well. She had a little diarrhea the first week, but it wasn't anything serious so we kept giving her solids," Shilpa explained. "She loves anything that contains carrots."

Muskaan had taken a seat down at the table with Shona on her lap and just nodded at Shilpa's answer. "Has she tried meat yet?" she asked, running her fingers through Shona's short curls.

"Not yet," Shilpa answered. "We're planning on introducing it next week."

The silence fell awkwardly over everyone as Muskaan didn't insist in finding out more about Shona's nutritional plan or healthy status. She knew her granddaughter received the best care possible, so any topic over this was pointless.

She had seen the change, Armaan had seen the change too and Shona was now calmly sitting in Muskaan' arms, playing with her fingers, so Shilpa decided to take a step forward in her relationship with her mother and probably, to have a talk to her as Armaan had suggested to. "So..." she said, clearing her throat. "Another present?" she asked, looking at the bag.

"Oh," Shilpa's question made her realize she had forgotten about it. Muskaan took a medium size puppy, fawn and with long ears and blue eyes, out of the bag and showed it to Shona.

"You're spoiling her," Shilpa giggled discreetly.

Muskaan looked at her daughter with a frown, disagreeing. "Nothing from what's considered educational and entertaining is pampered."

What Shilpa had gotten to see yet was the writing the puppy had on its paws and its stomach.

At first, Muskaan showed the toy to her granddaughter and Shona analyzed it carefully before she leaned to grab it.

"Squeeze its paw," Muskaan said and, taking Shona's hand, they squeezed together its paws. In that moment, the puppy started saying something and Shona startled and started crying.

Shilpa was very surprised and smiled at her mother's helpless look when Shona started crying. "The voice scared her," she explained, coming over to them. Shona turned and clung on her mommy, asking to be taken away from the talking creature.

"I didn't think about that," Muskaan mused, watching the toy- which in the meantime had ended its speech.

"That's ok, Shona," Shilpa walked around the kitchen, trying to make Shona stop from crying. "That's just a friendly puppy," she explained.

Being further from the scary creature, Shona looked carefully around her before she decided it was safe to stop from crying.

"Wanna bet she'll be afraid of clowns?" Sapna giggled, rubbing gently Shona's back. Shilpa shuttered at the word 'clown'. "See?" Sapna laughed knowingly.

Muskaan was muffling her laughter behind her hand, but not good enough as Shilpa heard her and looked at her curiously. "Besides clowns, Shilpa was terrified of grass when she was very little."

"Afraid of grass?" Shilpa and Sapna asked in the same time.

"That's right," Muskaan nodded. "She stood up on her feet herself when she was 11-month old and she was doing it smoothly when she was indoors, but she was screaming until she was turning blue each time we were taking her outside and wanted to put her down from the stroller."

Shilpa was staring at her, dazzled. First of all, she didn't know that a person could be afraid of grass, and secondly, she was surprised to see the type of memories her mother was still holding about her. She wanted to know her mother better and understand her better. She wanted to have the same relationship with her mother as Shona. They needed to talk, she finally decided.

"Sapna, can you go upstairs and prepare some clothes for Shona and then the bathtub?" she asked her.

"Sure," Sapna nodded. "I can give her the bath," she said and, without understanding the purpose behind Shilpa's request, she wanted to take Shona.

"I'll bring her upstairs," Shilpa stated and glanced to her mother, so Sapna understood and nodded, leaving them alone.

Left alone, Shilpa came to the table and sat down beside her mother. Shona whimpered and frowned at the puppy, so Muskaan put it back into the bag.

"She'll love it later," Shilpa giggled and kissed the top of Shona's head. "What is educational about it?" she asked curiously. "She doesn't need toys or books to learn about hugs and tickles," she said, as those were the words written on the puppy. "You can't learn about them. They come to you naturally."

"Don't say anything more, please," Muskaan sighed and Shilpa could sense a little embarrassment in her voice.

"I won't," she giggled and Muskaan giggled as well.

Muskaan was a very intelligent person and she knew Shilpa very well as they were a lot alike, so she knew what Shilpa was planning. She held her arms out to take Shona and Shilpa placed her onto her lap. Shona leaned against her grandmother's chest and smiled at Shilpa.

"Babies are meant to refresh you and keep you young and sometimes alive," Muskaan stated quietly, breathing the baby's scent in. "I am old and... tired," she added, still quiet. She looked up at Shilpa and smiled. "Keep doing it this way no matter how difficult it gets," she said to her- speaking without meaning words for Shilpa yet. "It was difficult... hard to see you crying after your father, especially after how much you had cried when me and him argued. I didn't stop loving you and carrying about you, I just forgot how to show it," she said, looking straight into her daughter's tearing eyes. She blinked slowly and held back her own tears. "I can't turn the time back now. Now you have a daughter and I have a granddaughter," she went quiet for a moment as she looked down at the table. Muskaan looked up at her daughter again and said, "I am not good at words."

"Me neither," Shilpa muttered.

Both watched the baby as she sucked her thumb and played with the hem of her dress, staying quiet and uncomfortable. Shona noticed the silence and the stares, so she left the hem and looked curiously up at her mother. Shilpa smiled and tucked the hair behind her ear.

"I performed an appendectomy by myself last week," Shilpa stated, trying to break the awkwardness between her and Muskaan.

"I know," Muskaan showed a discreet smile. "I heard it was quite successful," she added. "Richard also tells me about your teaching skills. He's very impressed."

Shilpa giggled embarrassingly. "I am sure he had great expectations from me even before I started working as intern at New York."

"You made a good choice," Muskaan stated. "Seattle Grace is one of the finest teaching hospitals in Washington."

From there, their talk continued smoothly and pleasantly about medicine and some of the memories Muskaan had about Seattle Grace. One question Shilpa still had; one she had never dared to ask. "Is dad still alive?" she asked her mother, suddenly ending the medicine topic.

Muskaan, who was playing with Shona's hair, remained frozen, staring at Shilpa. She quickly came out of the shock and looked back down at her granddaughter, saying, "I think we would have heard if he had passed away."

"Does he..." Shilpa wanted to ask, but couldn't find the strength.

"He lives in Seattle," Muskaan guessed her question. "You're old enough, with children of your own, so you can decide if you want to go talk to him or not."

"I don't think so," she replied quickly.

Muskaan didn't have the courage to look up and meet her daughter's pain -which was plain obvious in her voice- but she did glance once. "I heard he has..." she had started saying, but stopped there.

Shilpa looked up at her mother when she paused and understood what Muskaan wanted to say. He had another family now. Shilpa sighed discreetly and fought against the tears as she took Shona from Muskaan. Shona couldn't read the sadness or she didn't want her mother to keep it, so she laughed and put her head down on her mommy's shoulder, breathing warmly against her neck. Shilpa blamed her father for not coming back to her each time she thought about him. Right now, she wanted to hate him again, but this time Shona didn't let her.

"I haven't seen you all day," Armaan whispered in her ear as he caught up with Shilpa at the nurses' station.

Shilpa dropped the chart behind the desk and then she turned and smiled at him. "That's because of the two surgeries I've scrubbed in so far," she smiled smugly.

"I have a strong competition now," he sighed, faking the disappointment. "Everyone wants you and your interns."

Shilpa smirked at him, "You're not good at competitions," she said teasingly.

Armaan frowned. "No more Mister Nice from now on."

"No more Dr. McDreamy?" Shilpa laughed.

Armaan shook his head, "I am no longer Dr. McDreamy or Dr. Nice and Dreamy, whatever you were calling me. I live with you, so I am expecting favors."

"You live with me and I let you give Shona the bath; consider that as favor," she laughed.

Armaan laughed too. "Let's negotiate while we're having lunch," he smiled and showed her the paper bag he was holding.

"It's almost dinner time," she said, checking her watch.

"Let me bribe you with a snack then," Armaan opened the bag and a sweet flavor and vanilla and cinnamon filled the air around them, seducing Shilpa instantly. "There's also a coffee joining these goodies," he added, smirking.

Shilpa just smiled at him and walked ahead, but going slowly so that he would catch up with her and lead their way to the place he had in mind for their snack. Armaan knew Shilpa didn't like being seen in his office in other matter than the professional one and as the cafeteria was too far and their time too short, he pointed to an empty gurney. They hopped up and Armaan put the bad onto his lap, opening it and giving Shilpa her cup of coffee before he served the puff pastries.

"I met your mom this morning," he said, hinting about more information.

Shilpa rolled her eyes at his curiosity, but she still went on telling him, as he was one of her few friends and as he also knew about her relationship with her mother. "She brought a present for Shona. A cute puppy that laughs when you squeeze its paws and says something when you give it a hug. Shona hates it."

"It was a nice gesture though," he said.

"It was," she agreed.

"Of course, no one gives Shona better presents than Armaan," he added, smirking.

"Of course," Shilpa giggled.

Armaan smiled when he saw her more relaxed. "She couldn't stay for too long without visiting her granddaughter," he added guardedly, checking for Shilpa's reaction.

Shilpa didn't look disturbed by his statement; she just looked a little thoughtful and nodded when he said that. "She might even want to move back to Seattle to be closer to her," she said.

"Did she tell you that?" he asked her, surprised.

"No," Shilpa answered, looking at him. She shrugged her shoulders and sipped from her coffee. "We talked and... we had a short talk, but it was ... a good talk. She loves Shona."

"Anyone can see that," he smiled at her.

Shilpa nodded in agreement. "But I couldn't live with my mother again," she said. "She's nice when she visits, but she's not as nice when she lives with you and she becomes bossy and critic."

"Don't worry," Armaan chuckled softly. "If that happens, then you and Shona must move in with me."

Shilpa stared at him in disbelief. "In a trailer," she muttered sarcastically.

"No," he laughed. "I'm thinking about building a house on my land."

That made more sense to Shilpa. She smiled, embarrassed. "My dad lives in Seattle too and he has another family."

Armaan felt the terrible pain in her voice as she said that. He put an arm around her and pulled her closer to him. She obeyed, needing his comfort.

"At least he's back on track now," Armaan muttered absent-mindedly.

Shilpa pulled back from his embraced and looked at him, confused. "What do you mean?"

Armaan was a little confused too and hoped that he hadn't said too much. "I mean... it's good that he solved his addiction to alcohol."

"What are you talking about?" Shilpa frowned and Armaan knew it; he had said too much. "What do you know about my father?" she demanded.

"Apparently a little more than you do," he muttered. Shilpa was staring at him sternly, still waiting for an explanation. "That morning, before I took you and Shona to my trailer, your mother and I had a talk and I told her you were a little confused with her behavior toward you and your daughter."

"You did not," Shilpa muttered, glaring at him.

"I wanted to be helpful," he said defensively. "And I think I was," he pointed out.

"So my dad was an alcoholic?" she asked.

Armaan didn't like being the one telling her that and he regretted he had brought it up. "That's what your mom said."

Shilpa sighed and from that moment, she stopped talking about her parents. She ate one more pastry and sipped from her coffee, both staying silent for a few moments, until Shilpa looked at Armaan. "Do you think it is ok if I buy Shona a puppy?" she asked.

"I think that's a good idea," he nodded.

Shilpa sipped from her coffee again, thoughtful. "I always wanted a puppy."

"I had a miserable childhood with 2 cats that hated dogs and everyone voted for keeping the cats," Armaan sighed.

Shilpa giggled as she heard that. "You weren't such a good boy. After you killed your sisters' dolls, it was obvious that none would vote in your favor."

"I shouldn't have told you about the dolls," he grumbled.

Shilpa giggled and kissed him on the cheek before she jumped off the gurney. "I need to see my post op patients and then I have charts to do. Thanks for the snack."

"You're welcome," he smiled and watched her leaving.

As Shilpa was out of his sight, Armaan drew his attention over the paper bag and looked at the people around him as he ate one more pastry. Between nurses, doctors and patients' relatives, Armaan easily recognized one person. He laughed, not believing who had come to visit him.

"Mom," he beamed, greeting his mother with a strong hug.

Nikki Malik hugged her son, happy to see him. As they pulled back from the hug, she gave a better look at him. "That was Shilpa, I assume," she said, tilting her head towards the direction Shilpa had headed to.

"You assume right," Armaan chuckled.

"She's pretty," she said.

"She's amazing," Armaan nodded. He put an arm around her shoulders and both started walking down the hall, towards Armaan's office. "This is a very nice surprise."

"I hope it is," Nikki laughed. "You found a new excuse for bailing this Christmas. The last time we let you alone because it was after the divorce, this time we decided not to stress you with our reunion again because you desperately wanted to be with Shilpa and her daughter, but I couldn't wait another year to see if you would come to see us or not."

"I am glad you came," he smiled. "And to show you my gratitude, I will even pay for your airplane ticket."

Nikki laughed, shaking her head. "I will be satisfied if I spend a little time with you and especially if I meet Shilpa and Shona. As you can see, I even chose a proper hour to show up. What hour are you and Shilpa finishing today?"

"Well..." he let out a sigh. "Your timing is not quite perfect, because Shilpa is on-call tonight, but you can get to know her better tomorrow. How long will you be staying here?" he asked his mother.

"One day only," she answered.

Armaan looked disappointedly. "Why one day only? What's the rush?"

Nikki shook her head, scowling. "It's great to see you in love again, but try not to forget your family. Your sister Kathleen is due to give birth this week."

Armaan smiled apologetically. "I knew that," he lied.

"Sure," she chuckled knowingly. "Do you have a little time off now? Can we talk?" she asked.

Armaan nodded, saying, "My office is not far."

Armaan walked his mother into his office and both sat down in the couch, next to each other.

"Tell me how are you," she said, cradling his hands in hers.

"I am better than ever," he answered and the sparkle in his eyes confirmed that. "Shilpa is the nicest and sweetest person and Shona is..." he tried to find the words, but he couldn't.

"I see," Nikki smiled.

Armaan stood up and quickly walked to his desk and took one of the pictures he had on it, returning to his mother with it. "This is my favorite," he said. That was the photo with him, Shona, Shilpa and Santa.

"She's adorable indeed," Nikki giggled.

"All the babies are adorable, but Shona is... special," Armaan beamed.

Nikki smiled at him as she said, "You sound like a proud father."

Armaan chuckled. "I guess I do, but you'll see why I say she's special. She has grown up a little since Christmas and her curls are longer now. She eats solids already, she's very active though she can't sit up by herself just yet, but the other day she started prattling and she already distinguishes our voices and she recognizes her name when someone says it. She even eats by herself," he added, smirking. "Not using the spoon, of course, but that's a progress."

"It is," Nikki nodded and watched how Armaan continued talking about Shona.

"She was only a few weeks old when she started understanding us," he said.

"What do you mean?" she asked, confused.

"I mean, each time you were telling her something or if Shilpa and I had a disagreement, Shona always had a feature to express her opinion about what we were talking. I know, that might be in our imagination only, but we like to believe she's special. You'll understand better when you meet her."

"Armaan, what about Shona's father?" Nikki asked.

Armaan was no longer smiling. "What about him?"

"Where is he? Do you know him? Will he come back to his daughter?" she asked.

"He won't come back," Armaan stated, glaring.

"Are you sure?" she asked him.

Armaan hesitated. "He won't."

Nikki sighed and put the photo aside, taking Armaan's hand. "Just be careful, ok? As far as I can see, Shona is your daughter and it will kill you if that man decides he wants to be father for Shona," she said softly.

Armaan looked down at their hands. "I am a little scared of that," he admitted. "But there's nothing I can do right now. I can't stay away from them. It's too late."

"But do you know anything about him?" she asked. "Do you know what kind of person he is?"

Armaan knew Shona's father as well as Nikki knew him. "I do."

"Where is he now?" Nikki insisted on finding more about Shona's father.

Armaan didn't argue, knowing that was her duty to worry. "He has his life in another state. He signed the custody papers and gave up on his parental rights."

"I see," she nodded.

"Don't judge Shilpa for... for the circumstances she got pregnant with Shona. She knows she made a mistake, but now she doesn't regret it," Armaan stated.

"I won't," Nikki agreed. "Before we divert to Shona and Shilpa again, tell me about your work. How is it going?"

"It's going great. I have a fine collaboration with Richard, the other doctors are talented and I am waiting for Richard to announce his retirement," he answered. "Shilpa works here too."

"I think I saw that," Nikki chuckled. "I see that I can't make you talk about something else besides Shilpa and Shona; Shilpa looks younger than you."

"Let's not overreact. I am not that old and she's... not that old either," he said, frowning.

His mother laughed. "I was just saying. You look different from the last time I saw you," she noticed, carefully looking into his eyes, which looked brighter and full of life. "You look younger yourself."

"I feel great," Armaan stated. "Having a baby wasn't on the top of my to-do list when I was married to Addison, but it hurt terribly when she told me she was pregnant and she wasn't going to keep it."

Nikki smiled sympathetically and shook her head slowly. "Addison loves children. She wants to have children. I am very sure of this and that's why I think that baby wasn't yours and this was the reason why she didn't want to keep it."

Armaan had thought about that too, but now it was too late for judgments or hatred. His marriage was over and his life restarted in Seattle.

"You thought about this too," Nikki concluded.

Armaan slowly nodded, smiling weakly. "That's part of the past. How is she?"

"Nancy says she's fine. She works a lot and her private practice is going very well," she answered. "I haven't seen her since the day you two signed the divorce papers. She gave me some calls on my birthday and Christmas, but those were short and too awkward. I read something interesting in the newspaper the other day," she said. "Are you considering a possible surgery to separate two adult co-joint twins?"

"That's right," Armaan nodded. "We've made a medical team already and we've started working on a plan. We just need to find the right Plastic surgeon. We had an option, but he broke his arm in the meantime."

"You need a Plastic surgeon, you say," Nikki's kind features turned into a deep glare. "I am glad you mentioned it. What is going on between you and Rohan?" she demanded in stern voice. "He barely comes to see me and when that happens, he stays a few minutes only and leaves. Besides, when I start talking about you, he changes the subject."

Armaan almost forgot he would have to find something to say to his mother about the cold relationship he had with Rohan. He swallowed the lump he felt forming in his throat and tried to stay composed and not betrayed his lies. "We had some sort of disagreement," he said quietly. Nikki was staring at him, waiting for more. "It's difficult to explain, mom."

"You're a brain surgeon, I am sure you can find a way to explain it. Besides, I am not that dull," she insisted.

Armaan said the first thing that came in his mind at that moment, "We argued because I chose to get involved into a relationship with a single mom."

"You and Rohan never argued over your relationships," she pointed out. "Unless he knows Shilpa and he knows she might be wrong for you."

"He doesn't know Shilpa," Armaan retorted sharply, taking his mother by surprise with his reaction and also making her suspect something.

"You're lying to me," Nikki stated calmly.

"Why do you need to know anyway?" Armaan was far from calm at that point. "We did have a disagreement over my relationship with Shilpa and then both of us were very busy with work and personal life, so we didn't get to talk too much. We're still friends."

"Ok. I am leaving you two alone. I just hope there's nothing serious behind this disagreement," Nikki said.

Armaan hated himself in that moment for lying his mother, "It's nothing. Just nonsense."

"You know better," Nikki half-heartedly agreed to accept his explanation. "Why don't you call Rohan for help to this surgery? You know he is one of the Plastic surgeons in the country," she suggested.

Armaan had thought about that, but because of Shilpa and Shona, he avoided mentioning him to the Chief. Giving a second thought, maybe this would be the right time for Rohan to meet his daughter and decide once for all if he wanted her back or not.

"I heard he's been busy lately," Armaan lied. "I'll try and give him a call though."

"You should do that," his mother nodded. Her instinct was telling her that something serious was going on between her son and his best friend.

As Rohan was out of the topic again, Armaan felt more relaxed and happy again to see his mother. They talked a little bit more, about work, Shilpa and especially Shona. Armaan had to leave his mother alone for a while as he received a page down in the ER. Nikki agreed to go and wait for him in the main lobby.

The page he had received in the ER was from Shilpa and it needed surgery, so both could scrub in. They were in the scrub room, washing their hands after the successful surgery.

"Mom is here," Armaan decided to finally announce her.

"My mom?" Shilpa asked him, confused, not thinking for a second that it could be Armaan's mother.

"No. Mine," he said and looked at her, watching her reaction.

Shilpa stared at him speechless. How could she forget he had a mother?

"Don't panic," Armaan smiled encouragingly. "My mom is the nicest person in the whole wide world. She's even nicer than me," he chuckled, hoping she would taste his sense of humor.

Shilpa forced a smile.

"I am done for today and then I am going out with her, but I want you to meet her first," he said. He dried his hands as he leaned against the sink, pleadingly looking at Shilpa. "Just come with me and say hi. You don't have to say anything else."

Shilpa sighed and washed the soap off her hands. She shut the water and grabbed a towel to dry her hands while she leaned against the sink too. "What did she say about Rohan?"

"She didn't say much. She did notice the cold relationship between us though," Armaan sighed. "I told her only half of truth about Shona's father."

Shilpa gave him a panicked look.

"She doesn't suspect Rohan. I told her that Shona's father had another life in another state and that he gave up on his parental rights," Armaan explained.

"Didn't she ask you why you and Rohan are no longer the best friends?" she asked him.

"She did and I said it was because of a disagreement we had over me being involved in a relationship with a single mom," he answered.

The scrub nurses were also leaving the operating room, coming out to scrub their hands, so Armaan led Shilpa outside. She took his hand and dragged him in a more private corner.

"I am feeling bad, Armaan. I ruined your friendship with Rohan and now you have to say lies to your mom to cover for me. That's not fair to you," she said quietly.

Armaan smiled lovingly at her and brushed his hand against her soft cheek. "I am not sure yet if my friendship with Rohan is over. We haven't seen and we haven't talked yet. I think we'll clear that out later when we'll meet. Don't feel bad because of me. That's not fair to you when I am more than happy to be with you and Shona." He cupped her cheek and kissed her softly, stopping her attempt of protest.

Comforted by his kiss, Shilpa rested her hands on his chest, enjoying his warm breath against her temple. "You say she's nice," she murmured.

Armaan made a step back, smiling at her. "She's very nice," he promised and took her hand.

Nikki was still in the main lobby, reading a magazine, when Armaan and Shilpa got there. She saw his son and stood up, greeting Shilpa with a warm smile.

"Shilpa," Nikki said and gave Shilpa a small hug.

"Mrs. Malik," Shilpa smiled back.

"I was supposed to make the introductions," Armaan chuckled and kissed his mother. "Isn't she lovely?" he asked.

"Who are you asking?" Nikki laughed.

Armaan laughed and pointed to both of them. "I am asking both of you."

"She is lovely," Nikki nodded.

Embarrassed, Shilpa giggled and discreetly elbowed Armaan. "It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Malik. I asked Armaan to tell me some bad things about you and not just the good ones. He couldn't find any."

"That's flattering," Nikki laughed.

"I didn't know you were this cheesy," Armaan laughed teasingly as he kissed Shilpa.

"I can't compete with you," she giggled.

Shilpa was surprised of how easy it felt knowing Armaan's mother. A little fear she did have as she couldn't shake off her head the fact that Rohan was somewhat part of Nikki's family too. She didn't feel comfortable with that thought and that made her feel like a cheater.

"How long will you be in Seattle?" Shilpa asked her. "I am afraid I have to work tonight, so I can't stay long."

"Yes. Armaan told me. I will leave tomorrow evening as in a few days one of my daughters is about to give birth," Nikki answered.

"Oh, I didn't know that. Armaan said something about tones of nieces and nephews, but he didn't say the number was still growing," she giggled.

"Hey, I lost the count. But probably I should get used to having a pregnant sister all the time," Armaan joked.

"Stop making fun of them, Armaan. Procreation is the most sacred thing in the world," his mother scolded.

"She's right, Armaan," Shilpa took her side.

"Men will never understand this because they will never be able to experience it," Nikki said to Shilpa.

"Let me disagree," Armaan cut in ready to explain that… "Nowadays…"

"I don't agree," his mother silenced him.

Shilpa looked amused at the disagreement between mother and son, which despite that, they still looked like mother and son. She admired the relation Armaan had with his mother.

"Now that we're speaking about children," Nikki said, turning to Shilpa. "Do you mind if I go and see your baby today?" she asked her. "Armaan told me a lot of things about her and he showed me a photo of hers, so I am very curious to meet her too."

Shilpa was a little surprised with Nikki's question. The fact that she had asked the permission of seeing her daughter made Shilpa like her even more. "Sure you can."

"That's great," she smiled. "Then I won't stress you more. I will have more time for that tomorrow," she said with a chuckle.

Shilpa wasn't scared of that. She chuckled and nodded in agreement. "I should get back to work now."

"And I will go change the clothes," Armaan said to his mother. "I will back in a few minutes."

"Ok. I will see you tomorrow, Shilpa," she said.

Shilpa just smiled and waved at her, while she left with Armaan.

"I told you she was lovely," he smirked at her while waiting for the elevators.

Shilpa smiled and nodded. "Call me if anything happens to Shona."

Armaan leaned to her and kissed her, "As always."

She frowned and made a step back. "It never happens anything to her," she pointed out.

Armaan stared at her, almost in disbelief. "Would you prefer something to happen to her?" he asked her.

Just then she realized how her words had sounded. "No," she smiled embarrassed. "But I am almost sure that she has an ache or a problem and I have this feeling that you and Sapna hide it from me."

Armaan just smiled. His elevator just got there, so he gave her a quick kiss and stepped into the elevator.

awww....such a sweet part...

loved shona the most...

her antics were sooo cute.....

the whole part was wonderfully written....

thnx for the pm............