Part # 21
The next few days were no better. Ashna was still avoiding Adil, thanks to those weird thoughts that she was having every now n then. She actually imagined him wid her here n there, sumtyms he was merely staring n smiling at her whereas sumtyms he was talking to her adorably.
Ashna was getting more n more disturbed wid her own thoughts!! She dreaded wat these thoughts cud imply to and so she was irritated. This showed clearly in her behavior, especially wid Adil. So in order to relax her a bit, he wud often send off Shekhar to help her. But that worsened the matter for Ashna, as her work wud be done sooner wid the help of Shekhar and that meant more spare tym wid more weird thoughts!! So finally Ashna called him up.
Ashna: Tumhari problem kya hai? Mere kaam ke liye to tum Shekhar ko bhej dete ho!! Then wat am I there for?
Adil: I just want him to help u. Textile me waise bhi tumhe koi experience nahi hai, upar se tum aaj kal itni disturbed rehti ho to maine socha it wud be helpful for u.
Ashna: U wanted to help me? (she asks genuinely)
Adil: (replies coldly) I just wanted to help my company do well. Aur tumhare yu pareshan rehte ye thoda difficult ho raha tha, so I thought Shekhar will prove gud.
Ashna finds herself at a sudden loss of words as he bluntly replies that his concern had everything to do wid the welfare of his company and nothing to do wid her. For sum strange reason she felt upset as lines of disappointment was clearly drawn on her forehead.
Ashna: Actually u may be right. Main shayad thik se kaam pe concentrate nahi kar rahi hu. But I assure u ki main tumhe shikayat ka aur mauka nahi dungi.
Adil: Hmm. And wat abt the thing that was troubling you?
Ashna: Nothing much. Bas thodi confusion hai, I'm sure I'll figure out everything soon. But then, my trouble is hardly ur concern, ryt? (she asks weakly half hoping that he wud say no)
Adil: Take care Ashna. Bye!!
And he hangs up without taking note of her question. Here Ashna, who is already upset, looks at the phn in her hand and slowly her facial expression changes from being upset to angry!!
Ashna: Stupid!!
In anger, Ashna switches off her phn and puts it in her bag. Just then a piece of paper falls from there and she picks it up to realize it was the same paper where she had listen Adil's gud n bad traits!! In the top center she had written Adil Rachand. Now Ashna takes a pen, puts an arrow in btwn Adil & Raichand and then writes STUPID. So now its Adil STUPID Raichand.
"Hmm, now its f9. Stupid is certainly ur middle name."
And she smiles to herself while staring at his name fondly. In a matter of seconds she drifts to his thoughts. She imagines his face as to how he wud react if he was actually called Adil Stupid Raichand. She knew he wudnt be angry or offended, he was above such trivial issues. But he wud definitely twitch his lips making an extremely adorable expression on his face; an expression enough to melt her insides!!
Just then Ashna feels a hard knock on her forehead which brings her out of the trance and she quickly touches her forehead.
Ashna: Ouch!!
Shekhar: Thank God u r out of ur dreamland.
Ashna: I was in no dreamland. And c'mon u didn't need to do that.
Shekhar: Achha? Main 3 minute tak door pe knock kar raha tha. Phir socha kahin tum bhi Adil ki tarah gir vir to nahi gayi, so came in. Lekin nahi, madam to apne dreamland me thi, pata nahi kya sochke muskura rahi thi. Maine bulaya to bhi nahi suna!! Phir jaake tumpe knock kiya and here you are, finally out of ur dreams!!
Ashna: Bas bahut hua. Abhi aur embarrass karne ki zarurat nahi hai. On the contrary u can thank me kyunki shayad kal se tumhe yaha aake mere hisse ka kaam nahi karna hoga!!
Shekhar: Why is that?
Ashna: Abhi abhi Adil se baat kii maine. I guess I can manage now.
Shekhar: Are you sure? Listen, I can always cum n help u ok? Its no big deal for me!!
Ashna: I knw Shekhar. Its very nice of u actually. But u already do a lot more than u need to. And Adil already takes u for granted.
Shekhar: (laughs) Well, uska ek lauta dost hu main. I guess ye hum dono ka haq hai. And trust me I wud not share this privilege wid anyone!!
Ashna: (smiles) Ek baat puchhu Shekhar? (and he nods in a yes) How is it that Adil has only one frnd in you? Maine kabhi kisi aur ka zikr nahi suna!!
Shekhar: Tum kyun khamakha meri solo position ke pichhe pari ho?
Ashna: F9, I get it. U don't want to answer!! (and she makes a face)
Shekhar: Adil is right. Tum baccho jaisi ho!!
Ashna: Huh!! (and she turns away her face)
Shekhar: (sighs) Adil is not a very social person Ashna. Iss society ko usne bahut kareeb se dekha hai. That's why he knws he needs to shield himself from it. But I was lucky!! Main Adil se uski zindagi ke sabse khubsurat phase me mila tha. That's how we are frnds!! Lekin wo phase bahut kam waqt ke liye tha, isliye koi aur dost nahi bana!! Aur main thoda shy types tha pehle, so even I was not really frnds wid anyone!! We kinda fitted for each other!! (and he smiles thinking abt that tym)
Ashna: U really care for him ryt?
Shekhar: Yup, I do. I do care for him a lot.
Ashna: Hmm, and trust me, u care so much that u give me complex!!
Shekhar: (laughs) Complex!! U r funny Ashna. (she was smiling at being complimented when he says the next line) U knw I never portrayed u like that!! But I am glad to be surprised. You are just perfect for Adil. Anyways I'll take ur leave now. See you later!! Bye. (and Shekhar leaves)
"Perfect" (she whispers the word to herself and lets out a small smile)
At RGI
Adil is inside his cabin, staring into his laptop. Yesterday only, he noticed his camera which had photos from Heer's wedding. He went to get them printed, but not before copying sum specific photos in his laptop!!
So now here she is, in front of his eyes as finally he has the means to stare at her without bothering abt anything!! Most of the photos were taken from a third angle, as he took them quite secretly. A few were exceptions though where she had posed wid Heer and once wid him too!!
Adil looked at their pic for a while, comparing it wid her other photos!! Her glowing smile was clearly missing when wid him, but thankfully she wasn't frowning!!
Adil then moved away to his fav pic. In this one, she had unknowingly turned towards his direction when he was clicking and so it captured her eyes!! Her intoxicating eyes!!
Jiya re jiya re ye jiya ne kya kaha
Nazro ne nazro se yun jaane kya keh diya
Laagey na laagey na laagey na jiya'
How much he loved her eyes when they looked at him!! He loved every look that they gave!! Whether it was an angry stare or an innocent confusion, he loved them all as long as they were directed at him & only him!!
Tore Ankhiyo'n se naina laage re
Naina laage re
naina laage re
Adil's eyes gradually closed to sink in her image. He tried to remember her every attitude as much as possible, so that he cud cherish them to his heart's content.
And as soon as he closed his eyes, she cropped up in his view. Hers was the face he wud always see with his eyes closed!! And his heart wud always skip a beat as her eyes wud gaze into his. How cud he ever get over that gaze!!
Naino main aate ho kyo mora Balama
Tum hi batao kaise kate ratiyaa'n
Naina lage re
naina lage re
Tore Ankhiyo'n se naina laage re
Naina lage re
naina lage re
[Movie: Soundtrack]
Adil still had his eyes closed when Rishabh's sudden voice shook him back to reality.
Rishabh: Listen wo...one sec!! Tum dhyan me the kya? With ur eyes closed and all?
Adil: How many tyms do I have to tell you? U must knock before u enter!! Tum aur Rashi, dono me se koi meri baat nahi maante!!
Rishabh: Yeah right!! U r telling me, Rashi doesn't listen to u? Chamchi hai wo tumhari, duniya rahe na rahe she won't care, bas uska AB rehna chahiye!! I mean seriously, she is a mental case when it comes to you!!
Adil: Shut up!! Behen hai tumhari, dhang se baat karo!! And again, am sure tum ye sab kehne to nahi aye the yaha, right? Then why don't we talk sumthing effective? C'mon quick, tell me wat is it?
Rishabh: Yeah, u must have to get back to ur meditation na? Chalo, I'll be quick. Take a look at this!!
And he continued to discuss his doubts wid Adil. In the middle of their discussion there is a knock at the door. At Adil's approval the person entered the cabin. It was the new recruit Poonam Arora. As she entered fidgeting wid her file, she uttered a hardly audible 'Gud Afternoon' to both Adil & Rishabh!! Adil nodded in acknowledgement and asked her to proceed.
Poonam: Wo Sir...I...I had...had sum d-doubts!! Tyagi Sir aur Sh-Shekhar Sir dono me se k-koi nahi hai.
Adil: Actually am discussing sumthing important wid Rishabh. Aap zara bahar w8 karo ok?
Poonam hardly managed a nod and was abt to rush out when Rishabh spoke up.
Rishabh: One minute!! (to Adil) We r gonna take long while I think 5 mins wud do for her!! Won't it, Ms. Arora?
Poonam: Yes Sir. Actually mujhe kuch file locations nahi mil rahe hai. And I am supposed to finish the work before lunch!! (she says nervously to Rishabh)
Rishabh: Its ok!! He can help you!! (he points at Adil)
Adil: Okay then, (to Rishabh) U w8 here and I'll just be back. (to Poonam) Chalo!!
After a minute or two Adil comes back to find Rishabh smiling mischievously!! Adil ignores the look and takes his seat. However Rishabh doesn't let go.
Rishabh: So? Ashna knws?
Adil: What? (he was confused)
Rishabh: Yehi ki hamari nayi recruit tumhe dekhke clean bowled ho jati hai.
Adil: What rubbish? (he was a lil outraged)
Rishabh: Arre seriously!! Didn't u see her stammer?
Adil: Yeah, but I think she has sum speech problem!!
Rishabh: (laughs) Speech problem?? Seriously?? U think so?
Adil: Cut the crap Rishabh!! Lets get back to work!!
Rishabh: No no, one sec!! Usne mujhse bhi baat kii, u heard that?
Adil: (sighs) Yes. So?
Rishabh: So, did u hear her stammer then? (as Adil begins to think Rishabh answers for him) Nah, u didn't!! Kyunki wo sirf tumhe dekhke stammer karti hai.
Adil: Fine!! Wats the big deal? Darr jati hogi, I mean she might get nervous!!
Rishabh: (laughs again) Darrti nahi hai, ghurti hai wo tumhe!! She literally stares at you wide-eyed!!
Adil: Achha? And how do u knw it? Wo mujhe ghurti hai aur tum usse? C'mon Rishabh bachkani baatein chhoro and get back to sum serious business ok?
Rishabh: U are undoubtedly a hopeless case. U never find amusing things amusing, huh!! Anyways, where were we?
And they continue wid the discussion.
In the evening Ashna was sitting by the pool side. Even she had grown fond of this place. None really came here, and when Adil wasn't home there was hardly any chance of any1 coming here!! Though the huge mansion had many places where Ashna cud find sum tym wid her solitude, this particular area was exceptionally calm and soothing!!
Ashna closed her eyes to relax and let her thoughts finally float in, she needed to deal wid her own self!! But a voice jerks her back!!
Rishabh: Arre tum yaha kya kar rahi ho?
Ashna: Main? (she was suddenly taken aback seeing Rishabh there, as she never expected him)
Rishabh: Haan tum. One sec, kahin tum bhi meditation to nahi kar rahi? Pata hai, wo bhi meditation kar raha tha. One more sec, kahin ye tum dono ki koi romantic telepathy to nahi hai, jahan tum uske bare me sochti ho aur tumhare bare me sochta hai. Ur thoughts collide and sumthing magical happens!! Is it like that?
Ashna: What?? What on earth are u talking abt? (she was damn confused) Ye 'wo' hai kaun?
Rishabh: Arre tumhara husband!!
'
Ashna: Adil? U think main Adil ke sath telepathy kar rahi hu? C'mon Rishabh, mobile phns kyun invent hue phir? And wats wid this 'wo'? I thought he is my husband, but ek adarsh patni ki tarah to tum behave karte ho, not taking his name and all.
Rishabh: (makes a face) Eww!! Its nothing like that. Its just mujhe uska naam baar baar lena pasand nahi, unless its essential. So u can chill alryt? He is solely yours!!
Ashna: (giggles) Okay fine!! Waise tum yaha kya kar rahe ho?
Rishabh: Ah, nothing!! Bas tehelte hue aya tha!! And just noticed you to socha hello bol du.
Ashna: Hmm. When did u get home?
Rishabh: Bas kuch der pehle. Meherbaani hai apke pati ki. Khud bhale hi der tak ruke, bakiyon ko office hour tak hi rokta hai. Though bechara Shekhar aksar phas jata hai uske sath!!
Ashna: Hmm, but trust me. He (Shekhar) enjoys it.
Rishabh: I knw. In fact u shud be concerned abt Shekhar. He is seriously obsessed wid ur husband. (he jokes)
Ashna: (laughs) That's nice to knw. Anyways, tell me how is work going? Hard to work wid Adil?
Rishabh: Hard? Erm...actually I like to work hard as long as I work!! So its f9 wid me!! I appreciate his way of working!!
Ashna: Hmm. So u guys r managing well without me?
Rishabh: I donno. I never knew how it was when u were there!! But guess its f9. Shekhar had a new recruit also and she is very gud wid her work. So I am guessing all is f9!!
Ashna: Oh!! Actually Rishabh, I think I'll go to my room now. Excuse me pls!!
Ashna walks away towards her room and in the way she grabs a large chocolate bar of Bourneville. Reaching her bed, she starts opening the bar and takes a bite. She stares at the bar for a while and then remembers its tagline: "You don't just buy a Bourneville, you earn it."
Ashna: Well, I didn't earn it, just bought it. Huh!!
And she takes another bite when the door opens and Adil enters!! He rests his gaze on her for one second and narrows his eyes a bit as she was eating chocolate at this hour.
Ashna: Tum itni jaldi?
Adil: Hmm. Actually mujhe phirse nikalna hai.
Ashna: Phirse? So tum dinner karke aaoge?
Adil: Yes, I think so!! Btw, as u had wanted, kal se Shekhar wont be there to help u. In fact he is going to Nainital tomorrow. Mere kehne pe usne apna trip delay kar diya tha, but guess he can go now. U'll manage ryt?
Ashna: Yes!! Don't worry. Tum bhi to RGI achha khaasa manage kar lete ho. U got Rishabh as my replacement and I heard abt sum new recruitment also!!
Adil: In case u dont realize, I have always managed RGI. Jab koi nahi tha, kuch nahi tha tab bhi. Anyways how do u knw abt new recruitment? Shekhar ne bataya?
Ashna: Nope, Rishabh ne bataya!!
Adil: Rishabh? (and he remembers Rishabh's nonsense talks in the afternoon and Adil assumes that Rishabh told all those things to Ashna as well) Gosh. Listen, he often talks nonsense. Pata nahi aaj usse kya ho gaya. She doesn't stare at me!!
Ashna who was abt to take her last bite of chocolate, stopped her hand in the midway and looked up.
Ashna: Who doesn't or rather does stare at you?
Adil: (suddenly realizes that she didn't knw) Ah...nothing!!
Ashna: Nothing?? Gud!! Nothing is always gud. (and she takes her last chocolate looking away)
Adil: I think I shud just get changed and leave. Bye.
"Why did I need to clarify? Of course she wudnt care!!"
In just abt five minutes, Adil leaves while Ashna sees him leaving from the corner of her eyes!!
"Nothing...my foot!! Huh. Wat does he think? I care??"
U think u don't?
Asha looks up to find herself sitting in front of her wid a knowing smile on the face. Ashna quickly realized she was again hallucinating like she had done wid Adil few days back!!
This side of the bed is crazy!! From today onwards I am sleeping there!!
And she gets up from the bed blinking her eyes tightly, but the image of herself doesn't fade away, instead she laughs!!
C'mon Ashna!! Adil ek imagination tha, so he faded away!! But I am a part of you!! I wont fade away.
Part of me? Okay, I get it!! I am going crazy!! May be I shud have checked the expiring date of that chocolate!!
Very funny!! Listen, I am well aware of ur humorous side. Because I am You only!! But chuck all that now!! Coz am here for sumthing important. I am here to make u hear me clearly!!
What?
Yes!! Actually am the smartest part of you!! So I have all the answers to ur confusions!! Main tumhe kabse batana chahti thi, lekin u always hush me up. But I was fed up at being hushed. Isliye aise ana padha!!
U have answers? I mean I have answers?
Yes we do!! And the million dollar answer is "You are in love wid Adil".
Love? Wid Adil? (she laughs a lil awkwardly) This is the funniest and craziest thing I have ever heard!! (Ashna touches her forehead now) I am sure mujhe bukhaar chadhne wala hai. That's why I am seeing such stuff!!
Bahut hua ignorance dear!! Main aur khudko chhupa nahi sakti. I need to live this feeling!! I need to live this love!! And for that, u must accept it. Embrace this love!!
But this cannot be love!! U knw it. I knw it. We both knw it. This is Adil we r talking abt. Main usse...(she doesn't even utter the word 'love') No, this is insane!! Aisa kaise ho sakta hai?
Well, Love & Logic don't go hand in hand, do they? But for ur sake, let me remind u of sum instances!! Zara yaad karo Ashna. Tumne ye shaadi kya sochke kii thi? Yehi na ki tum Adil ko bahut dukh dogi? (Ashna nods) Lekin tumne aisa kabhi nahi kiya!! Kyun?
Kyunki Papa uspe bahut bharosa karte the!! And kuch waqt uske sath rehne ke baad mujhe laga main ghalat bhi ho sakti hu as so many ppl were in awe of him. So I thought I shud w8!!
And ur w8 never got over!! Kyunki tum usse hurt karna hi nahi chahti thi. Along wid so many ppl, even u were in awe of him!! U admired him and his love for his loved ones!! And u wanted to be a part of that. Tum uske pyar ka hissa banna chahti thi.
This is sheer rubbish!! Ye sach nahi hai. Aur ye ghalat bhi to hai. How can I fall for such a man who doesn't care for me at all? He hurt me, then why wudnt I want to hurt him?
Tum khud batao!! Do you want to hurt him? Kya tum chahti ho uske sath kuch bura ho? (Ashna doesn't answer) U knw wat. U don't need to answer. Coz I knw the answer. Its NO!! U never want to hurt him. And its becoz u care for him. Becoz u love him!! And that's why u feel jealous when u think of him wid sum1 else!! That's why u want him to care for u, you want him to miss u. Tum gussa hoti ho to wo gussa tum uspe nikalti ho, apni har khushi tum usse share karna chahti ho. Jab wo tumse jhooth bolta hai to tumhe bura lagta hai, kyunki tum uske zindagi ka sach banna chahti ho. Tum uska pyar chahti ho kyunki tum usse pyar karti ho!!
Ashna bites her lips but doesn't deny this tym!!
But I don't knw him completely. Aaj bhi usse samajh nahi payi hu main. I knw there is more to him.
So? How does it cum in btwn ur acceptance of love? Apne pyar ko accept karne ke baad bhi tum usse jaan sakti ho. Usse samajh sakti ho. Waise bhi usse janne ke baad bhi ye pyar hamesha pyar hi rahega, hai na?
Lekin wo? Wo mujhse pyar nahi karta hai. He just cares for me the way he cares for everyone!! Ryt?
Now I cant answer this question!! Iska jawab Adil de sakta hai. Main to sirf wo bata sakti hu jo hamare mann me hai, lekin tum ignore kar rahi thi.
This feels strange!!
And we both knw this strange feeling is called Love!!
But hey, you are a part of me!! And u cant be out of my body!! So all this is not real. This IS my hallucination!!
Now u talk sense!! But does this fact change ur feelings? (she winks and fades away)
Ashna keeps rooted to her spot as if in a trance!! She bites her lips as she finds herself at her wit's end. Whatever happened a while back was so unreal. Her mind was definitely playing games wid her. May be she was thinking too much abt these stuff for a while. May be she shud haave just relaxed and let it all be the way it is.
But then as her inner self said, Wud it change anything? That was just a ploy of her mind. But was it all a lie? Wasn't this the very thing she was ignoring since so many days? Ashna knew the answer was Yes!! But how can she deny it now when she just stared at the mirror of her own emotions!! It was all spelled out. Love was spelled out there!! How can she deny it now?
Ashna dropped on the nearby couch, gathered herself in her arms and supported her chin against her knees!! She kept awake as her eyes refused to close. Rashi had knocked on the door in btwn to call her for dinner, but Ashna had just managed a 'later'.
The clock soon struck 12 and Ashna heard Adil's car arriving as there was perfect silence. After a while, Adil entered the room and Ashna looked up.
Adil: Kya hua tumhe? Maine suna tumne dinner bhi nahi kiya!! Are you alryt?
Ashna just nodded her head and kept staring at him as if she just wanted to see him.
Adil: You don't seem f9 to me!!
Adil went closer to her to chk her forehead. As soon as he touched her, Ashna closed her eyes and a droplet of tear escaped her eyes. She quickly wiped it while Adil took back his hand.
Adil: You r burning!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Edited by Sumi_162710 - 14 years ago
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