ArHi OS: Unanswered Questions (part 21 page 88) - Page 10

Originally posted by: Vsc94

Update,update,update!

I am just dying to know what else is there in this beautifully penned letter! Suits Arnav to a T!

Meanwhile in London...

Arnav woke up with a start, he heard Khushi calling out for him, and he looked around to realize it was only a dream. He checked the time and sleepily tried to figure out the time in Delhi. His eyes opened wide when it occurred to him that his letter must now be in Khushi's hand and he couldn't lie on his bed any longer. He had knots in his stomach; his heart was beating with a different beat altogether, there was anxiety written all over his face, expectation of something that he awaited eagerly and at the same time warily. He paced in the room in all possible directions, took a long cold shower and walked out of the hotel for a walk. After walking for most part of an hour, he sat down on a bench, resting his elbows on his knees, he held his head in his head, totally exhausted, not by the walk but due to the dread of what was going to happen, what will be her answer. There was emptiness in him that he couldn't figure, he remembered a random song he had heard long time back and it had stuck in his memory for no reason,

I feel this unrest

That nests all hollowness

For I have nowhere to go

And I'm cold

And I feel so lonely..

There is a better place than this emptiness

http://youtu.be/fLgTcI2ZGUw

He wasn't a believer, he denied the existence of a Creator, someone who could control anything and everything, yet right now he wanted to call out to someone in this desperation, someone, anyone...

Slowly he clasped his hands together, closed his eyes and sat there...

Story Unfolds in Delhi

Khushi was on her nerve's ends, all she could think of was the papers in her cupboard, they were the centre around which her life had suddenly started to revolve, and every fiber in her body seemed to be attached to it. Why everyone else was so oblivious to the sudden change that had occurred in her life she couldn't fathom, never realizing that it was only she who knew about the story which lay unread. She could feel someone's heart beating ever so slowly one continent away. Finally Buaji had mercy on her and decided she had done enough to raise Khushi's spirits dampened by Payal's bidai and she was told to go and sleep. Khushi flew towards her room, locked it and ran to the cupboard to take out the letter. Quickly flipping through the pages she had already read she came to the point where she had left...

...Seems I love you too much and that's why I have decided to let you in, into my past.

She breathed deeply and continued...

A large part of my childhood was spent in London, where I finished my studies. My parents and Anjali di lived in India but moved between Delhi and London quite frequently. Not only in Delhi but in London also my father's name was known with respect in the elite circles. However, it hadn't gone to his head, he had always been a hardworking man and continued to work hard and live simple. Maa, the traditional Indian wife supported her husband through thick and thin, not that she was backward, she had a doctorate in Business Management and helped her husband in planning his business strategies but home always stood first for her. I don't remember any nanny attending to me or Anjali Di, our Maa was always there with her loving presence.

My mother and I had special bond, we were more than just a mother and son duo, we were friends. There was nothing that I ever kept from my mother, she even knew how I had this huge crush on Demi Moore when I was thirteen, she had even watched her movies with me, and then it was Catherine Zeta Jones and Madhuri together. She was my confidant in everything, she had secretly taught me how to drive as my father was strictly against underage driving, but she believed that if I was responsible enough I could drive too, she had taken me to my football coaching when Paa didn't want to hear anything about it, he just wanted me to study. Then she had taken him to one of my matches and had shown him how good I was and finally won him over. While I had always helped her bake all her favorite cakes, make arrangements for her parties, assisted her in choosing just the right saree for different occasions. I even used to sit with her while she waited for my father late at night watching old Indian movies, she crying and I laughing.

Anjali di was often in our conversations, for she was the centre of our lives with her sweet and simple nature. No one could help but fall in love with her for she loved everyone without condition. However, her slight disability had left her with esteem issues and she preferred to stay by herself, avoided crowds and parties. Maa and I tried hard initially to make her enjoy all the parties but failed only to realize that she was happy in her own way, with her spirituality, pujaas for everyone at all times. No one could leave the house without aarti. And after Maa Anjali di was my life, I couldn't bear to see tears in her eyes, did my best to keep her smiling, often gave in to her demands of attending one puja after another only for her happiness.

With my father, yes I was a bit reserved but held deep respect for his morals and work etiquettes. I hero worshipped him without letting him know it. I hoped of carrying on his dreams once I finished my studies and always obeyed him whenever he asked me to come and work as an internee in his office. I was treated like any other trainee but I was taught well. My experience in my father's office helped me maintain a GPA of 4 throughout without slogging at nights before exams. He didn't like my laid back attitude, for in comparison to him I got a break in life, my school and college years were easier than his and I found nothing wrong with playing football seriously and hanging out with friends. I had an above decent GPA, what more could he want! This was one point where we often found ourselves at loggerheads with each other. I loved my friends; I enjoyed their company and couldn't think of leaving them. We were such a strange trio!

Aasha, Rohan and I had become friends during our O levels and we stayed together since then. We were inseparable since we gelled so well and our Indian roots kept us together in campuses that were too British for our comfort.

Rohan was a bookworm, nerdy type who was always heading for the library whenever he wasn't on the football field. He had his life planned out for him, in his organizer! We used to have a riot going through it. That never deterred him. But one thing had happened unplanned; he fell in love with someone, who she was he didn't share making one lame excuse after another. We ultimately gave up on that mission. His plan was to marry after he had settled down, and that meant having a house of his own with all the packages. Love had complicated things for him, he now had to achieve everything a tad bit faster, sooner. We all used to plan for him and our plans ranged from establishing a software house to robbing a bank of millions.

Aasha was the true Indian, a total and true desi to the core, she carried her nationality proudly all over the campus, yelled shamelessly in the cafeteria whenever an India vs England match was on to the annoyance of the Brits who could never take her peppiness when they lost. Rohan and I served as her body guards when things got out of control, which was not something that happened rarely. There were so many times that we found ourselves thrown out of different hangouts and bars because of her. Dressed up in flowing kurtas and choridaar she always looked so out of place in the campus corridors amongst all the jeans and skirts, her bangles disturbed the class but she always threw the Freedom of choice card at whoever objected and so dramatically that it didn't look anything less than a court room scene. The two of us used to hide behind our books, but ofcourse in vain as she soon called us as her witnesses!

One place where she was totally different was on the football field, yes we all were in the university's football team, she in the girls' ofcourse, though she tried once to get on the men's team also. With her long hair tied up cruelly in a tight bun, she played football like there was no tomorrow. Often on weekends we practised together and she was better than many of our male colleagues in the field. We studied together, partied together, cried together and laughed together. Our families had come close due to our friendship, Rohan's father had struck a business deal with my father and so had Aasha's.

No one at that time could ever think that our friendship will fall to pieces. And that I will be the reason for it was too hard to imagine, for all along I had been the peacemaker in our trio. I loved life, I could never tolerate anyone being unhappy, I could never hurt anyone even if the other person deserved it truly. I used to gladly give up what was mine to make my friends happy.

Life was good, until one day I was accused of betrayal, and that too in love, she claimed that she was carrying my baby and that I should marry her. Aasha had chosen my parents' 25^th anniversary party to make her move. To this day I remember the look in her eyes as she walked across the hall teeming with guests, towards me and I stood there with my parents. As usual I gave her a bear hug but she moved out of it in a quiet, cold, and distant manner. Immediately my heart sank and my sixth sense rang bells in my head and I dreaded the next words that came from her mouth. Had something happened to Rohan, I had wondered. How naive! And I felt stupid beyond belief when she said all that. I wondered if I was in a bad dream, if aliens had attacked and everyone had gone crazy, yes at that time I was ready to believe anything, anything but that! Slowly and gradually the guests went silent, a wave of shock pervaded the hall, I could feel all the eyes on me which I didn't care for, but the glances that my parents received went through my heart like a dagger. I held Aasha by her shoulders and shook her trying to knock out the craziness that had got her. I yelled at her, "Are you bloody crazy? What the hell has gone wrong with you?"In answer she cried, silently, sobbed uncontrollably and turned to my parents imploring them to do something. "He had said he'll marry me," she blatantly lied, "he tricked me into it and now he is denying all that had happened!"

I had turned to my parents expecting some semblance of trust in their eyes but found disbelief and shock at their son's deeds. I forgot about Aasha and her allegation, all I could see was my parents' reaction, they started to walk away and retreated to the privacy of the guest room in that part of our house. They took Aasha with them, holding her closely, I followed them into the room and tried to explain.

"Maa, Paa she is lying" was all I could say. "Do you think she is crazy to lie about something like that in front of so many people?" Maa shouted at me. "Maa how can you believe her, without asking me even once for any explanation?" I had asked shocked at their sudden estrangement. Aasha pulled out an envelope and I saw a slight glint of triumph in her eyes which she soon shielded. "this is my pregnancy report that I got just an hour ago and came here," she threw one shocker after another. She handed it to my mother who had lost her voice and seemed incapable of movement; she just stared at me in disbelief.

My Maa looked at me with disbelief! it shattered me; I couldn't say anything and walked out of the room. It was a mistake I realized the next day when my father walked into my room and blew a bomb on my head. With finality in his voice he said, "You have done enough damage Arnav and the least you can do now, if you have even a shred of decency left in you, is to marry her!"

Khushi gasped out loud and held the papers to her heart and cried for Arnav. To have your own parents distrust you was painful, she thought. "But was Aasha lying?" she wondered fearfully. "Was Arnav ever in love with her?" she thought as jealousy filled her heart. She stood up afraid to continue, put away the papers as if they were on fire

Originally posted by: dumas

what the hell awesome update this has taken a different turn does that mean arnav is married because he would never break his parent heart and now we know why he want khushi away from him loved it thanks for the pm