..Mushkil Bada Yeh PYAR Hai !
[-A Passionate Love Story]
Part -25 [1/2] {Black Monday-2}
{Banner made by AASHi [aashizin]}
[A]
As she was walking towards the Conference Room, GUNJAN was feeling sad. She did not know where she was wrong... was she wrong in talking to MONISH when she should have been working?? Maybe,that was it... but then it was 'Lunch Time' wasn't it?? Gosh... simple things seem so complicated some times... she shook her head as if trying to shake the thoughts out of her head and quickened her pace so she would reach the Conference Room sooner. She had to make sure everything was perfect... she did not want to give SAMRAT Sir any chance to shout at her again. saying her small prayer, she entered the Conference Room.
By the time SAMRAT reached the Conference Room, GUNJAN had ensured everything was in place. Each seat had a file neatly placed in front of it on the huge table. Other members were waiting for SAMRAT and as he entered, he was greeted by GOOD AFTERNOONS !! And as he took his seat, his PA handed him the file that needed to be referred through the meeting. SAMRAT was trying to avoid looking at her, but she being so close to him had the undesired effect on him. He looked up into pretty eyes that showed no hurt, no fear...only confidence that she had done what had been asked of her successfully. As his eyes traveled to her lips, he saw that they sported the same smile that could do wonders. As GUNJAN moved away from him, his trance was broken. The meeting started, with GUNJAN giving a presentation that was flawless. Every word she said, every figure she quoted made complete sense and the members present at the meeting were totally dumbstruck. The SHERGILLS were definitely on the verge of gaining another Big Contract...
SAMRAT though was lost... in his thoughts. The episode in his cabin at 'Lunch Time' was still disturbing him. That phone call made by MONISH and the fact that GUNJAN had agreed to meet MONISH after office hours was still not able to leave his thoughts... ((Kya MONISH aur GUNJAN ek dusre ko jaante hain...? Woh aaj shaam kyun mil rahe honge...? GUNJAN ne usse mana kyun nahin kiya...?? Kya GUNJAN bhi usse pasand karti hai...?? Kya woh sach mein waisi hai...jaisa main soch raha hoon...?? par,mera dil yeh kyun nahin maanta... Uski aankhen kuchh aur kehti hain...Woh kyun mujhe auron jaisi nahin lagti...but,...Mujhe kya farq padta hai agar woh donon ek dusre ko Date karna chahte hon...?? Yeh baat mujhe kyun itna disturb kar rahi hai?? GUNJAN-MONISH ki closeness se mujhe kya problem ho sakti hai...? Main uske liye kuchh feel nahin karta...she is only my P.A.,that's all...wait,Personally na sahi... professionally mujh par iska effect pad sakta hai. Kahin GUNJAN ne MONISH ko hamare saare Official aur Clients details de diye toh...?? Yaa...It may be possible.Woh aisa kar sakti hai... Main yeh risk nahin le sakta...Mujhe kuchh toh karna hoga...par kya?? Kaise rokun main unhen milne se...??))
SAMRAT hardly paid attention to the meeting. His attention was dominated by thoughts that would enable him to think of something so he could stop GUNJAN from meeting MONISH... for a totally professional reason... SAMRAT reminded himself again and again... purely professional reasons...otherwise what she does after office hours is none of his business. This thought and a frown creased his forehead. But, he brushed all other thoughts aside. His thoughts were interrupted by the applause.
All present were impressed by her work and appreciated her efforts. They congratulated her for making this meeting successful. GUNJAN was overwhelmed by all the appreciation, but she only wanted to hear her Boss appreciate her efforts. She looked at him. But, he was busy telling Mr.SHARMA to complete all other formalities and without giving her a glance, SAMRAT left the room. No words of appreciation... not even a nod of appreciation. GUNJAN felt bad. She did not expect accolades ... but, just a 'WELL DONE, MISS BHUSHAN ' would be enough.But, this is how her boss was. She had been stupid enough to expect him to say a word of praise for her. Sighing, she picked up her 'Note Pad' and her file and left the Conference Room.
NANDA HOUSE
RAHUL was busy with his packing. He was to fly to SINGAPORE the next day. He was checking the list given to him by GUNJAN so he did not miss anything. Opening his cupboard, he took out other necessary stuff when his eyes fell on a 'Photo Frame'... which had a recent photo of GUNJAN taken when she had returned home... her bewitching smile and sparkling eyes always made RAHUL's heart skip a beat. He picked it up and looked lovingly at the pic... his PINKI looked so pretty...so simple yet beautiful... he was taking this pic with him... he turned around with a smile on his face when, he heard his Mom call out his name... he quickly turned around and kept the frame back from where he had picked it up. Closing the cupboard, he turned around to face his Mom...
RM - Oh ! Packing kar rahe ho...? Ho gayi hai yaa main kuchh help karoon..?? (asked in very concerning tone)
R - (smiled) No Mom ! Packing toh ho gayi hai..actually,last night GUNJAN ne kar diya tha...Main toh bas yun hi check kar raha tha.
RM - Oh ! agar GUNJAN ne pack kiya hai Re-check karne ki bhi zaroorat nahin...woh tumhen aur tumhari zarooraton ko tumse behtar jaanti hai. (said proudly)
R - (Blushed very badly) I know Mom ! (after a little pause)...Waise, Aap kuchh kehne aayin thi shayad...?
RM - Arre, Haan ! Main toh bhool hi gayi...woh actually,Aaj Prof.GOYAL ki beti ki 'Mehandi Ceremony' hai..aur unhone hum sab ko invite kiya hai...Main kehne aayi thi ki,tum evening mein ready rehna aur GUNJAN ko bhi call kar keh dena ki,woh time se ghar aa jaaye...phir,hum sab saath hi chalenge...
R - (with smiling face) Ok..Mom,Keh doonga..Don't worry !
SHARDA Jii smiled and left the room. RAHUL heaved a sigh of relief as he turned around and opened the cupboard again to take the frame out . He looked at the pic...unable to stop smiling... ((Toh PINKI tum saath nahin aa rahi toh kya hua,tumhaari tasweer toh mere saath aa rahi hai...jo hamesha mere paas hogi.(smiled again) Waise jaane se pehle ek saath 'Mehandi Ceremony' attend karna 1 achha shagun hai...Aur,chance mila toh kya pata aaj tumhen propose bhi kar doon...phir,toh SINGAPORE se aate hi hamari 'Mehandi Ceremony' hogi..(blushed).Waise,I really want to see your face expression...Jab main tumhen apne dil ki baat kahoonga...Main tumhaare woh sharm se red hue chicks dekhna chahta hoon...Jo,main kabhi bhoolna nahin chahoonga...)) He flopped on the bed, the pic held close to his heart.. his eyes closed... lost in the dreams... dreams he had been seeing since he understood the feelings he had towards GUNJAN were more than 'JUST FRIENDS' ones. His face had a huge smile..
-----------------------------------------------------------------------[B]
SHERGILL GROUP of Co. (H.O.)
Leaving the Conference Room, a tired GUNJAN made her way back to her cabin. The meeting had gone well, she was happy. But her Boss's behavior was getting so weird by the minute. She entered her cabin and kept the file and Note Pad on her desk and sat on the chair. She felt weak...maybe, hunger was to be blamed... she thought. Keeping her hands folded on the desk, she kept her head on them and closed her eyes...((Oh God ! Finally,Yeh meeting bhi khatam hui ab toh (Opening her eyes and looking at her wrist watch) 3.30 ho gaye...kaafi bhookh lag rahi hai...Ab Canteen chalna chahiye...Iss waqt toh wahaan jo kuchh bhi mil jaaye woh hi kaafi hai... warna aaj toh 'Vrat' jaisi situation hai...))
She stood up and picked up her bag. She was about to leave the cabin and had almost reached the door when she had to turn back and run towards her desk... the desk phone let out it's shrill ring...it sounded shrill to GUNJAN as she now had a slight headache, again because of hunger. But it was not the ring that made her run back to receive the call... it was because she knew who it would be... and she was right. As she picked up the receiver, SAMRAT's arrogant and rude tone hit her ears...
S - GUNJAN,Cabin mein aao,immediately...
G - Ji...Ji... Sir ! (she said worriedly)
Waiting to hear nothing else, SAMRAT had slammed the receiver down. Slowly, GUNJAN kept the receiver down and sat on the chair again... she was scared... SAMRAT had been finding faults with her since morning... ((Ab kya hua hoga...? Kahin...Kahin... RAHEJA's File ke baare mein toh baat karne ko nahin bulaya?? (looking so tensed) Oh God ! Please,unhen...Report pasand aa gayi ho...warna,aaj phir se kafi daant sun ni padegi...Subah se toh unka bad mood hi dekh rahi hoon.Please God ! Ab aur nahin...aaj toh already mera quota full ho gaya hai,,,Kahin aisa na ho ki,1 month ke baad dene waala Resignation letter mujhe kal hi dena pade... par..ab Canteen...?? Koi bat nahin,baad mein chali jaaoongi...abhi shayad SAMRAT Sir ko zyada zaroori kaam ho,pehle unse mil leti hoon...)) With quick steps, GUNJAN ran towards her boss's cabin. She knocked on the cabin door, waiting to hear her boss give her permission to enter... as she entered...
G - Good afternoon Sir !
SAMRAT did not reciprocate... It was as if she did not even exist. He did not so much as even look up from his lappy. She did not know what to do...SAMRAT had not told her anything over the phone... just ordered her to be here... and now...he was not even acknowledging her presence.She was hurt... but she did not dare to ask him what was it he wanted. She just stood silently... waiting for her boss to speak up. After what seemed like eternity for GUNJAN, SAMRAT did her a favor by looking at her ,after 10 min. In his harsh and rude tone, he said... "Miss BHUSHAN ! Maine tumhenyahaan kisi kaam se bulaya hai...Statue ki tarh khade rehne ko nahin...Achha hoga agar tum time waste karne ki jagah kuchh work kiya karo... Hamein yahaan labourious employee ki zaroorat hai...kisi lazy person ki nahin... (His voice had risen... he was almost yelling at her)
GUNJAN was startled when she heard him speak. She did not know what to say... she wanted to say that he had not told her what was it that she had to do... he had not specified anything... then how would she know?? But she was too hurt by his behavior...that added to her fear of him ... to say anything... tears brimming in her eyes...all that she could manage to say in a low tone was... "Sorry Sir..!"
SAMRAT was ignoring all this... maybe he had realized GUNJAN was hurt...or...maybe not... but he was sure that what he was doing was right...for him to reach his goal. He was busy searching for some file... at least that is what he tried to show... in the same rude tone he dropped the bomb on her..." Its ok...any way,Aaj evening mein hone waali meeting mein tum mere saath hi rahogi..." (said strictly)
GUNJAN looked at him with a start... the meeting...at THE AMBASSADOR... and she had to be with SAMRAT... but how could she?? After thinking, she gathered the courage to speak... in her soft tone, she said... "But,Sir woh meeting toh evening mein 7 baje hai...aur main...
S - (cuts angrily) Main Kya Miss BHUSHAN...?? SHERGILL's ka kaam tumhaari Time-Table ke according schedulized nahin ho sakta...Tumhen pata hai,woh meeting hamare liye kitni important hai...Aur,tumhen saath chalne ko iss liye keh raha hoon kyunki,tumne uss Project par work kiya hai...Tumne hi Report banai hai... toh tum woh presentation zyada better way mein explain kar sakti ho.waise bhi mere paas time nahin hai ki,main ab woh Report read karoon...
G - I understand Sir...par main after 6'O Clock nahin ruk sakti...Mujhe permission...
SAMRAT banged his fist on the desk, as he stood up angrily...pushing the chair behind so fiercely that it hit the wall behind. Leaning on the desk and looking angrily at GUNJAN... he continued... his voice high pitched...
S - Permission...? Permission for what...?? Main tumhen mere saath Date par chalne ko nahin keh raha, jo tumhen apni Family ki permission chahiye...1 important meeting ko attend karne ke liye keh raha hoon...agar tumhen yahaan work karna hai...toh yahaan work ko hi apni priority deni hogi. Waise bhi SAMRAT SHERGILL ko naa sun ne ki aadat nahin...Maine agar keh diya ki,tum mere sath chal rahi ho...toh,iske baad kisi kisi dusre question ka koi scope nahin ... Main tumse pooch nahin raha..tumhen bata raha hoon...ki,tum aaj mere saath evening mein meeting attend kar rahi ho...so,go now.
He had flung the glass filled with water angrily on the ground as he spoke... he glared at her... GUNJAN was absolutely shocked to say the least.She looked at SAMRAT... his eyes blazed with anger... she knew she had no say in the matter... she never had any say in any matter... she was his employee and his orders had to be followed... she simply nodded and turned around to leave. She was about to open the door when she heard SAMRAT speak to her again. She stopped and faced him...
S - Aur Haan, Mr.SHARMA se "KIWISH INTERNATIONAL" ke last 3 yrs. ki Balance Sheet aur Fund Flow Statement le kar uske saare figures verify kar lo...Mujhe,kal woh full Report chahiye.Its Urgent. and he again got busy with his files... GUNJAN did not utter a word. She left the cabin and she saw the staff look sympathetically at her.
She had been facing the brunt of SAMRAT's bad mood since morning. She faked a smile at some of them as she made her way back to her cabin. She entered her cabin and sat on the chair... the hurt in her heart taking the form of tears in her eyes... she slowly wiped the stray tears that fell on her fair cheeks... his statements hitting her hard every time she recollected them. They had refused to leave her thoughts...((Woh mere saath aisa kyun kar rahe hain...?? Aakhir,aisa kya kiya hai maine , jo woh mujh se itne naraaz hain...? Subah se sirf unke diye hue kaam hi toh kar rahi hoon...Lunch tak nahin liya...phir bhi unhen lagta hai main lazy person hoon...but,Why...??
Unhone 1 baar bhi nahin poocha ki,maine Lunch liya yaa nahin...? par...par,woh yeh kyun poochenge...? Kahin mujhe yeh sab iss liye toh itna zyada bura nahin lag raha ki,main unse kisi tarah ki expectations rakh rahi thi...? Haan...! shayad yehi wajah hai...Mujhe unse kuchh expect hi nahin karna chahiye tha...Work appreciation bhi nahin...He is only my Boss ,Unhen sirf apne kaam ki fikr hai aur kisi cheez ki nahin... Kisi ke emotions... kisi ki feelings...unke liye koi importance nahin rakhte.. aur shayad yeh sahi bhi hai... (feeling very sad) Main yahaan rahoon na rahoon...kisi ko koi farq nahin padega...sab kuchh waisa rahega jaisa pehle tha... Kal meri jagah koi aur hogi... yehi cabin...yehi routine... aur yehi SAMRAT Sir... without any change... She could not understand why this thought of especially SAMRAT not missing her was hurting her...why her heart was sinking with this one thought...
Par...aaj...?? Aaj toh unke saath Hotel jaana hoga.Kya karoon main...? RAHUL kabhi bhi permission nahin dega...Ulta mujhe uss se bhi daant sunn ni padegi...par,permission toh leni hi padegi...warna,SAMRAT Sir,aaj mujhe nahin chodenge... Ufff...Kahaan aa gayi hoon main... Kaash,maine yeh Job join hi nahin ki hoti...par,Ab jab tak iss office mein hoon...yahaan ke rule toh follow karne hi honge...Pehle RAHUL ko mana kar permission leni hogi...phir,Mr.SHARMA se file collect karti hoon.))Though she knew what was in store for her after she spoke to RAHUL... she made that call... as her delicate thumb pressed the call button, her heartbeats increased... after just 2 rings, RAHUL received the call...
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R - Hello ! PINKI...!! Kaho abhi kaise call kiya...? Kya meri yaad aa rahi thi... (said in teasing way)
G - (said shockingly) Hello ! par tumhen kaise pata chala ki,yeh meri call hai...? Hamare Phone par toh 'Caller ID' nahin laga hua hai...
R - Well,tumhaari call ko pehchanne ke liye mujhe kisi 'Caller ID' ki zaroorat nahin (said proudly) so,yeh sab chhodo aur batao ki,Call kyun kiya...? waise,main abhi tumhen call karne hi wala tha...
G - Kyun...? (asked softly)
R - Woh,aaj Prof.GOYAL ki beti ki 'Mehandi Ceremony' hai naa...wahin jaana hai.Mom ne kaha,tumhen call kar bata doon ki,time par aa jaana...Hum sab sath mein hi chalenge. (said happily)
GUNJAN felt awful. Here was RAHUL and the NANDA's who were waiting for her to get home so they could go for the 'mehandi ceremony' as a family. This would have been their first family outing after a long time. She too would have loved to. But she had this horrible task of telling RAHUL that she would not be able to make it... add to it getting permission to attend the meeting with SAMRAT. She did not know how she was going to break this news to RAHUL. But she had to... ((Oh ! Ab kya kahoon...? 'Ceremony' mein jaana bhi zaroori hai...par, yeh meeting...?? ))
R - (said in little caring tone) Hey ! Wassup ?? Tum chup kyun ho gayi ?? Anything else..?? Baat kya hai...?
G - RAHUL...woh aaj evening mein RAHEJA's ke saath meeting hai...wohi RAHEJA jinki Report humne banai thi,SAMRAT Sir chahte hain ki,main woh meting attand karoon because,mujhe uss Report ki detail zyada achhi tarah se pata hai...toh...
R - (cuts with a serious tone) Kab hai woh meeting...??
G - Wo..woh..aaj shaam,7 baje.
R - Destination...??
G - THE AMBASSADOR ke THE SOCIETY Resturent mein.
R - WHAT...?? No way,Tum kahin koi meeting attand karne nahin ja rahi ho (said in ordering tone) Uss KHADOOS ko clearly mana kar do.Kaho kisi aur ko apne saath le jaye. (said strictly)
G - Par,RAHUL...maine unhen kehne ki koshish ki thi...par,woh toh kuchh sun hi nahin rahe (said innocently) Aur,phir..aaj unka mood bhi kaafi kharaab hai,agar dobara kucch kahne gayi toh phir se... (stopped immediately)
R - WHAT...?? Kya usne tumhen daanta...?? Look,tumhen koi zaroorat nahin hai uss se darrne ki,yaa uss ki fizul baatein sunn ne ki..tum abhi issi waqt resign de kar ghar aao. Uski himmat kaise hui,tumhen daantne ki...? (said very angrily) Aur,tumne usse kuchh kaha kyun nahin...? Though his voice had a higher than normal tone, it was out of love and concern for GUNJAN. He could never tolerate anyone speaking harshly with HIS PINKI... he could bear anything... but this. GUNJAN , on the other hand knew how RAHUL 's temper flared at very mention of SAMRAT. Though she was expecting this response from RAHUL and she had prepared herself for this kind of reaction... when RAHUL did speak, she was a wee bit scared. But now began her very difficult task..calming him down. She spoke in her normal, soft tone
G - No RAHUL ! Wo...woh... Unhone daanta nahin...Actually,aaj kaafi saari meetings hain iss liye thode se disturb hain.Meeting mein sirf help ke liye chalne ko kaha hai... (Thankfully, RAHUL could not see her... he would have caught the lie.)
R - Par,GUNJAN..phir bhi...
G - (cuts,softly) RAHUL , Please ! Sirf aaj bhar...waise bhi main SHERGILL's mein sirf agle kuchh dinon ke liye hi hoon.Nahin chahti ki,yahaan se jaane se pehle kisi ko koi complain karne ka chance doon.Tum bhi toh yeh nahin chahoge... Please,RAHUL... Her soft tone added with a hint of pleading would do the trick... she knew that... and top it with her 'PLEASE'. RAHUL could never refuse her when she said that word.
R - (after a little pause) Ok...par,sirf aaj bhar .aur,yeh baat uss 'KHADOOS' ko bhi bata dena...
G - (said happily) Thik hai bata doongi...Thanx RAHUL.
R - Waise meeting kab tak chalegi...? Kya main pick-up karne aa jaaoon...?
G - hummm... I think,8 toh baj hi jayenge...aur,tumhen aane ki zaroorat nahin. Main kisi Taxi se aa jaaoongi...Don't worry ! Tumhen Uncle-Aunty ke saath 'Mehandi Ceremony' mein bhi toh jaana hai...
R - No Way..! Main wahaan akela nahin jaaoonga...Mom-Dad toh apne friends mein busy ho jaayenge, main yun hi bore ho jaaoonga.Tum aa jaao phir,saath hi chalenge.
G - (smiled) Main toh aaj kaafi thak gayi hoon...Please,aaj Uncle-Aunty ke saath chale jaao... warna,unhen bura lagega. Waise... tumhein wahaan jaana chahiye...shayad khud ko akela mehsoos na karo...kyunki,kaafi girlz hongi wahaan... (said teasingly) Kya pata koi tumhen...
R - (cuts with fake anger) Oh ! toh kya main tumhein aisa ladka dikhta hoon...?
G - Well...Isme kuchh galat bhi toh nahin... Aakhir,kisi ko toh dhoondhna padega...
R - Mujhe kisi ko dhoondhne ki zaroorat nahin...Mujhe jise dhoondhna tha woh mujhe mil gayi hai... Aakhir,tum ho naa...!! Meri saari search ka 1 and only1 Result...(said frequently...in very easy way)
G - Means...?? (Said confusiongly) Main samjhi nahin...
R - ((Oh God ! Itni badi duffer hai,Itna clear toh keh diya...well aur bhi clearly kahoonga...par,iss tarah phone par nahin...Tumhein apni baahon mein le kar...)) He was smiling ... and the smile got wider with the thought of him proposing to GUNJAN... he wanted to make that moment special for her... and so to end the topic there itself, he changed the topic "Woh sab baatein baad mein...but,tell me tum ghar kab tak aaogi?"
G - 8 baje tak toh meeting hi khatam hogi...I think,9 yaa 9.30 toh ho hi jaayenge.
R - Thik hai,Main thodi der se jaaoonga...agar tum jaldi aa gayi toh saath mein hi chalenge... warna,BATRA Aunty ke ghar par duplicates keys rakh doonga...tum wahin se le lena.
G - Ok...thik hai...Achha ab phone rakhti hoon...Mr.SHARMA se kuchh important files leni hai
R - Ok..then,Bye take care. He disconnected the call... finally... even if as a hint, he had today done what he had wanted to do for a long time...tell GUNJAN about his feelings for her... his real feelings for her... he was lost in his dreams...
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-->>> Down The Cursor <<<--.Edited by SIZZZLER - 14 years ago
Kumkum Bhagya
Anupamaa
267