Living Without You: 3: Link to Thread 4 (Part 41)

List of Smita's OS:

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/iss-pyaar-ko-kya-naam-doon/2652341/list-of-smitars-os

Living Without You:

Thread 1: (Parts 1 to 17)

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/2972233/ss-living-without-you

Thread 2: (Parts 18 to 27)

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/2990495/ss-living-without-you-part-27-updated

Thread 3: (Part 28 onwards)

Part 30:

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/3001953/living-without-you-3-link-to-thread-4-part-41?pn=13

Part 31:

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/3001953/living-without-you-3-link-to-thread-4-part-41?pn=24

Part 32:

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/3001953/living-without-you-3-link-to-thread-4-part-41?pn=35

Part 33:

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/3001953/living-without-you-3-link-to-thread-4-part-41?pn=45

Part 34:

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/3001953/living-without-you-3-link-to-thread-4-part-41?pn=54

Parts 35 & 36:

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/3001953/living-without-you-3-link-to-thread-4-part-41

Part 37:

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/3001953/living-without-you-3-link-to-thread-4-part-41

Parts 38 & 39:

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/3001953/living-without-you-3-link-to-thread-4-part-41

Part 40:

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/3001953/living-without-you-3-link-to-thread-4-part-41

Thread 4: Part 41 onwards:

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/3024313/ff-living-without-you-4-part-59-last-updated

Part 28 & 29

(All pics credited to uploaders!)

"Debt? That you owe me? What do you owe me? I never gave you anything...I never had anything to give you..." Her voice trailed away as she tried to figure out what he was talking about.

"There are other debts than money, Khushi... Money can be repaid, but... but the other debts can never be repaid."

She looked at him, unsure where exactly he was leading with this conversation.

"The laughter and happiness that you brought to my house and family. How should I repay you for that?"

She just looked at him, speechless.

"Nani and I were at loggerheads all the time. I was on the verge of leaving the house." She drew in a sharp breath. "You brought peace to my house, kept us together. How do I repay that gift?"

"You hid the shameful truth about Shyam because you couldn't hurt Di. You put up with his disgusting behaviour while at RM, and made sure that Di never found out. How do I compensate you for that?"

"You would have thrown yourself down the building when you thought that I loved Lavanya and wanted to get rid of you so that I could marry her. How do I repay that kind of love you have for me, Khushi?"

She looked away from him.

"You brought colour and laughter in to my life. What can I give you in return, Khushi?"

"You left me your stars in the will. How do I repay you for that kind of selfless love?"

"You put up with my bad temper and my insults for a year. You never gave up on me...You love my family like your own. You love even Laxmi & HP. And you put your life in danger to rescue me from Shyam. How do I repay you for all these?"

Khushi looked at her fingers held knotted tight in her lap.

"Shall I give you my life in return, Khushi?" She lifted her head, startled, and looked into melting eyes. "It is a worthless one and you own it anyway. Shall I give it to you?"

Khushi looked away, tears in her eyes.

"Khushi, I told you this once before. There is no you and me, only us. We are not two different people. And we are in this together. You don't have to shoulder all the burden alone."

Khushi remained silent.

"It is a wedding, Khushi. Our wedding. I want you to be happy. I want you to have everything I took away from you the last time we got married. I want you to laugh, dance, be carefree, enjoy spending time with your friends and family... I don't want you worrying about money, running around trying to do everything at the same time... If you want we can order sweets from another..."

"No way. I will make the sweets." Her eyes were filled with fire.

"Khushi..."

"I will make the sweets. I want to make special sweets for you so that you too can enjoy the wedding. I don't trust the others to make sure that they are sugarfree.", she fumed.

Arnav sighed, a smile on his face.

"I am worried about you, and you are worried about me... Khushi, let's negotiate. You can make a list of things that need to be done. I will send over 4 men to do the hard jobs like shifting furniture and decorating the house with garlands and lights. I want you to let me help you in the shop...

AND, most importantly, I want to buy the staples for the next month or so."

"What?"

"Khushi, my family is coming to stay here for 2 weeks or more. They should actually be staying in Sheesh Mahal, but... You know why they don't want to stay there. Even Akash won't step in to it unless and until I do, and that too only because he does not want me to be alone when I go there. We are all going to be staying in your house. Can't you let me pay for the provisions?"

She hesitated. "No, Arnavji. It is not right. They are our family. I will manage."

"I don't want you to manage, Khushi." He sighed. "You leave me no choice. I will arrange for them to stay in some hotel."

"No, no. How can you do that? Arnavji, please don't..."

"Then let me pay the bill..."

"Arnavji!"

"Let me pay the bill."

She reluctantly nodded. He sighed in relief.

"Our firm uses caterers regularly, Khushi. Give me the menu. Let me arrange the caterers. They will give us a discount."

"But I will pay for it."

"Yes. Yes. You pay for it. Just let me arrange it.", he said, making a mental note to pay the full amount in advance so that she wouldn't be able to pay them.

They reached Gomti Sadan. Arnav and Khushi hauled the bags out. Munna and Krishna ran to help them. They stocked all the ingredients in airtight containers in the shop's kitchen while Arnav and Khushi went in to the house. Amma and Buaji were ready with tea for them. Babuji, Buaji, Amma, Arnav, and Khushi, they all sat companionably around the dining table, drinking tea and chatting. After a while, Khushi left the room to check on the shop.

"Bitwaa, It is Madhu's wedding tomorrow. Will you be able to attend it with us?", asked Amma.

"No, I am sorry, Amma. I won't be here. I need to leave for Delhi in a few hours."

"Oh! Your work! That's alright, Bitwaa. When will you return?"

"I will need to stay in Delhi for a couple of days, Amma. I will be back by Thursday, the 25^th of October. Akash called a while earlier. The family will be here by 1 November."

Amma and Buaji were all smiles. Babuji nodded his head, and said softly, "Goo..od."

"Buaji, Amma, Babuji, don't worry about the arrangements for the wedding. I will arrange 4 men to help you here. If you need to purchase anything, just give them the list. Please give Khushi the menu to be given to the caterers. I will arrange it. Akash, Mamaji, and I will be here from the beginning of next month anyway."

They smiled thankfully at him. "We have asked the Punditji to come over. We will fix the dates and time for the sagai, sangeet, mehendi, and wedding today itself. We will start inviting the guests from tomorrow."

"If there are relatives coming from far, just let me know. I will arrange their stay in a hotel nearby..."

"No, no, Bitwaa. They are from Lucknow and Kanpur. The ones from Kanpur can stay with our relations in Lucknow. Don't worry about that."

Khushi came in at that moment.

"Titliyaa, Damadji is going to Delhi. We will get you the sweets from the shop. Why don't you pack it for him so that he can give it to Naniji, Anjali Bitiyaa, Mamiji, Mamaji, Damadji, and Payaliyaa?"

She stared at him, shocked.

res

Part 29

(All pics credited to uploaders!)

He smiled at her before proceeding to his room. She stood shell-shocked at the door of the kitchen watching him walk away. She hadn't expected this. She had thought that they would be together till the wedding. Nearing the stairs leading to the top floor, he turned to look at her. She looked distraught, as though someone had just died. He smiled tenderly.

She came to his room in a while, a big thaili full of packets of sweets for his family in Delhi, all made by her fair hands. He was packing his belongings, talking on the phone in the meantime.

Arnav Singh Raizada! Why do one thing at a time when you could do two?, she grimaced.

She sat on his bed, watching his deft hands as they put the phone down and began to pack in earnest. Soon the room looked naked, his books, clothes, medicines, all tucked into his bag. He took his laptop, zipped it into its cosy bag, and placed it beside his bigger one.

He looked at her, sitting on his bed, looking like a lost kitten in the rain. He walked towards her. She sat unmoving, her eyes on the floor. He touched her hair softly, passing his hand gently over the smooth strands. He put his fingers under her chin and lifted her face to get her to look up at him.

"I will be back on the 25^th."

She counted furiously. Four days!

"Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"Because I didn't want to upset you."

She swallowed. "I need to attend a few meetings in Delhi. They are very important, Khushi. Akash can't handle them on his own. I will be back before you know it."

She compressed her lips. That's what he thought! She felt cheated, abandoned...

She hadn't noticed his face coming closer till she felt the soft brush of his lips on her forehead, like the warm touch of the wings of a butterfly. She closed her eyes, a slave to the simplest of his touches. He caught her gently by her shoulders, and pulled her up to stand in front of him.

He drew a line from her forehead to her nose and down her lips to her chin.

"I will be back before you know it, Khushi...", he whispered. The finger traced the line of her jaw and the rim of her ear. She shuddered.

"Babua, the driver and Amanji have come. They are waiting for you...", shouted Buaji from the foot of the stairs.

"I need to go...", he said, his husky voice reflecting his reluctance to leave her.

He withdrew his hands from her, and turned away. He halted. He could feel his hand being taken in a strong clasp by her. His heart filled with a thousand bubbles of joy. Praying that he hadn't imagined it, he turned to see her holding his hand, stopping him from leaving.

"Arnavji..."

The need in that one word was enough to unman him. He pulled her into his arms, and hugged her with all his might. She passed her arms around his shoulders and neck, clutching on for dear life. He pulled her as close as possible, and buried his face in her neck.

"Will you phone me?"

She nodded, too occupied with him to go in search of her voice.

"Daily?"

She nodded again.

"Bitwaa..." The call came again.

"Khushi, take care of yourself. Don't work too hard. Don't let anything worry you. If you want anything, anything at all, call me. Khushi...?"

She nodded.

He released her and unwillingly, picked up his bags and the thaili of sweets and went out of the room, looking back at her while crossing the doorway.

She stood alone in his room while he went down and bid farewell to Babuji, Amma, and Buaji. The ladies cried all over him, making him promise that he would return at the earliest. They accompanied him to his car, and saw him off. He looked up to see Khushi standing in the corridor outside his room. He got in, and the car moved forward.

Khushi ran to his room and fell on his bed, her face pressed in to his pillow. His scent lingered on it, and she wept uncontrollably.

Her phone pinged. It was a message from Arnavji. She wiped her tears, and opened it.

"Khushi, I Love You!"

Part 30:

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/3001953/living-without-you-3-link-to-thread-4-part-41?pn=13

congrats for 3 thread dear keep rocking

keep going smita! update soon!!

well done smitar👏

awesome update,continue soon

congrats for thread 3

Amazing

You are an awesome writer and spontaneous one too. Congrats on the new thread

Congrats on ur new thread smita ! Fab update as usual!

Khushi is one headstrong woman😵. I know they love each other and she's agreed to marry him but she just cannot let go of her pride. Loved the update😃