Wrote something after a long time. There are no more parts to this and I hope you people will like what I tried. :)
"So what do you watch these days?" He asked as he flipped through channels.
"Oh.. nothing really. I don't find that much time." She said absentmindedly.
"Busy girl, eh?" He teased her.
She smiled at his attempt to ease the tension in the room but the truth of the matter was that her head was too full of his presence to give much thought to anything else. He could be watching one of those ridiculous saas-bahu sagas and she probably wouldn't bat an eyelid.
"Oh, come on Maanvi. We're meeting after.. God how long has it been?" She looked at him at that and their eyes met. Of course both of them knew how much time had passed since they had had a proper conversation.
"Give me that." She said in a clipped tone as she reached for the remote control.
He held his hand away from her, grinning in the process, feeling a slight sense of pleasure as she rolled her eyes.
"Virat."
"Maanvi?"
"I'm not in the mood for one of your games."
"I thought you loved games."
"Well I don't anymore." She snapped, making him grin all the more. That was more like his Maanvi.
She continued to look at him crossly but he simply shrugged,
"You want it so much, you can get it yourself."
She couldn't help but grit her teeth at that. Trust him to still be able to irritate her like no one else did.
He wriggled his eyebrows at her now,
"No fight left in you?"
She made a wild lunge for the remote at his words but he still managed pull his hand away, laughing as he did so.
"It's my house! Give it back!"
"And that is supposed to change my mind because?" He said standing up now as she continued with her attempts to wrench the device from his hand.
"You haven't changed a bit!" She said as they circled around the room now.
"Yeah?" He said, moving towards her now so that she was forced to take a few steps back,
"You're every bit as idiotic as I remember."
"Well atleast you still.." He made to say, as he continued to edge closer, the remote control still tucked safely away. The next thing he knew she had tripped over the sofa, grabbing him by the collar so that they both fell flat on it.
"Ow!" They cried out simultaneously.
He tried to get up now, massaging his forehead as he did so, only to realize that his leg was trapped in hers so that he fell back again.
"Hold still, will you?" She grumbled.
"Fine." He said, his voice muffled against the cushion.
She tried in vain to free their legs, swearing a little in the process.
"Can I try now?"
He raised his head to look at her now and their noses touched, each becoming aware of the proximity they now shared.
Something passed between them in the few seconds they simply looked at each other and a rush of longing flooded her as she looked into his eyes. She could hear the sound of her own heart thudding against her ears as her gaze flitted towards his mouth and looked up to dimly register the unmistakable desire in his eyes. He leaned in closer and her mind went blank. She was going to have a heart attack. She was sure of it. This wasn't happening.. It couldn't. No sooner had she thought that, she felt his lips brush gently against hers and a soft gasp escaped her and she turned away immediately so that his lips pressed against her cheek instead. He was smiling. She was sure of it. It was exactly the kind of thing he would do, she thought with a slight sense of annoyance. Her turning away clearly hadn't discouraged him either and her breath caught in her throat as he kissed her neck now. "Virat.. Virat stop." she finally managed to get something coherent out. "Why?" He murmured. "Its.." "Not right? I know you're not a prude." He said, finally lifting his head so that she felt a momentary sense of relief. The fact that they were still completely entangled was an entirely different matter ofcourse but as long as that mouth was nowhere near her skin, she could still hope to get a sensible word in."What is it?" He frowned now, propping himself up against an elbow as though this happened every day. "I just.." She tried again, struggling to find the right words. Really what was she supposed to say? That she didn't want him? She might as well say that the sun didn't rise in the east while she was at it. He seemed to have read her mind because that was his next query. "Are you saying you don't want me?" A laugh couldn't help but escape her then, surprising him.
"If it were only want it wouldn't be so complicated would it Virat?' She said, smiling a little. He looked slightly taken aback and she took the moment to untangle herself from him and he let her. "That was always the problem wasn't it Virat?" She stood up now with her back to him, "I was always in love with you and you.. You were always busy running away from it." She said, turning to look at him again.
He was sitting up now.
"What if I've changed?"
"Have you?"
"You wouldn't be a fling Maanvi."
"You're right.. Maybe I wouldn't be. But I know you Virat... No secrets remember?" A wry, almost bitter smile spread across her features.
"That was 5 years ago Maanvi."
"And you're still not ready to settle down. And I don't think you ever will be. You love your independence too much Virat."
"But I also love stability. That was the best part of having you as my bestfriend.. You were the only steady part of my life Maanvi."
"And?"
"And I miss that. I miss you. I miss having someone who understood me, who could look past my flaws and see what little goodness I was capable of, who saw me.. Me."
"And yet we still drifted apart."
"We were fools then. And we were scared too."
"And are you not scared now? Does the idea of committing not suffocate you anymore?"
"I don't know." He said, standing up as well now. "I don't have all the answers Maanvi but unlike you.. I'm willing to try."
"Well I'm not. I can't gamble with my heart like that Virat." She said, turning away.
"You see that's your problem right there." He said, coming to stand behind her.
"It's not just my lack of commitment Maanvi, it's you being too scared to allow someone in, all the way."
She closed her eyes as his words rang true.
"Can you blame me?" She finally said as she turned around. "What would happen Virat if we did give it a shot? We'd date a year? Or maybe two? Then what?"
He smiled at her words.
"You don't understand Maanvi. I missed you. You were the most important part of my life and I let you get away. Not a day went by when I didn't think of you, didn't miss you. You're not.." He stopped now as if resisting one final urge to run away all over again, "You're not the only one who was in love." He finally let out.
Her eyes widened at that.
"The only difference.." He said, feeling stronger and stronger, "The only difference was, you had the strength to accept it. I didn't. I was a coward. I would always tell myself that you deserved more but I always knew that that was just an excuse I gave to myself so I wouldn't have to commit to something deeper." A strange feeling was enveloping him now. For all his craving of independence, he had never felt so free in his life. Emotions did that perhaps. They could cage you and suffocate you but once you let yourself feel them, there was nothing more liberating in comparison.
"And yes..." He said, stepping closer and taking her face in his hands "Yes we'd date a year or two.. And then some more.. And a little more until.."
"Until what?" She asked, her own voice barely rising above a whisper.
"Until I ask you to marry me. And if by then I have earned your trust then I hope you will say yes."
"What if I say it now?" She asked quietly, trying not to betray the emotion that engulfed her then.
"Well then," He said, smiling at her as an odd light appeared in his eyes "I guess we have a wedding to plan."
Good? Bad? Let me know!
Maham.
Bindi
Udne Ki Aasha
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
