A weary Arnav entered the house to find Kavya running around the living room, and Akaash chasing her, trying to tickle her. As soon as she saw her Uncle, she ran towards him and caught hold of his leg. "Chachuuu" she squealed in excitement, "What did you bring for me?" she asked, looking at his travel bag. Arnav smiled at her and carried her in his arms. "It's way past your bed time princess, what are you doing up so late?" His voice was strained and Akaash knew something was bothering his little brother. "Chachu, tomorrow is Sunday, No school. So Mommy said that I can sleep by 10' o clock." She said in a hurry, and once again asked Arnav what he got for her from Greece. Arnav looked at Akaash to help him come up with an excuse. Of course, he couldn't tell the little girl that he had gone abroad for a business deal, and had no time to go shopping to buy anything for her. "Sweetheart..." Akaash walked up to them and took her in his arms, "Chachu has just come back from such a long way and is very tired. So why don't we let him rest, and open those big bags tomorrow morning to find out what he has got for you?" She pondered over the idea, and looked at Arnav apologetically. "Sorry Chachu, I did not know you were tired. You sleep now. I'll take my present from you tomorrow" She said with a genuine smile. Arnav was in awe of how understanding the little one was. He ruffled her hair and kissed her cheek. Just then Payal entered the scene and greeted Arnav, who returned the warm smile. Then she took Kavya in her arms and went upstairs to put her to bed.
"Something wrong?" Akaash asked after Kavya and Payal were out of sight. "Everything's wrong" Arnav said, running a hand through his hair. The servants came and took the luggage to his room, while Akaash just followed Arnav to the study. Once the door was shut, Arnav took a deep breath and walked up to the cabinet to pour a drink. "Would you like one?" he asked and Akaash nodded. Arnav was good at masking his expressions and if he appeared worried, it meant something was horribly wrong. Silence prevailed, and none of them spoke. Akaash took a sip of his whiskey and said, "Vinod Raizada is out of the house." Arnav looked at him, with no surprise. "So finally you learnt that he was a slimy jerk?" he asked, and Akaash just smiled at the colourful tag Arnav pasted on their beloved uncle. "Yeah, but I'm happy that I learnt it on time. I found him wandering in the study, trying to open the drawers. I asked him to leave, then and there since..." Arnav nodded absently as Akaash spoke on. His worries were greater for now. It was only when Akaash called Arnav's name twice that he focused on what he was saying. "I said I wanted you to decide about what is to be done with Vinod?" Akaash said, now worrying about Arnav. Arnav swirled the contents of his glass and gulped it down in one shot, after which he squeezed his eyes shut as the alcohol burned down his chest. "Chop him to pieces and feed him to the dogs, for all I care. Do what you want about him Akaash, I've nothing more to say"
Akaash placed the glass with a force on the counter and walked up to him. Holding him by the shoulders, he gave him a light shake. "What is wrong with you, damn it?" Arnav started blankly at Akaash, and what happened next shocked him beyond limit. Arnav's eyes moistened and slowly tears fell off his eyes. The next minute Akaash knew, Arnav fell to the ground and let out a wretched growl and cried. Akaash only hugged him tight, as Arnav shivered in anger and pain. They said nothing, but sat in each other's embrace till Arnav was a little calm. "Did something go wrong in Greece? Khushi? Is she okay? Are you both okay?" Akaash asked, and Arnav swallowed the lump in his throat. "She wants to break up, and it's all my fault, Akaash" Arnav gritted his teeth as he wiped the tears. Akaash fell silent, while Arnav continued in a choking voice. "I... we... we made love... and I acted like a jerk... o gosh Akaash, she was so hurt. I hurt her so bad" Akaash shushed him. No matter how big he was, Arnav was still his little brother. And today, he could see the little child in Arnav, when he came to him with his worries. It was just like the time when the four-year old Arnav had fallen from the cycle, and had come wailing to Akaash. Akaash just patted his head. "Tell me in detail, Arnav. What happened?" Arnav was too broken to realize that he was crying like a child. His chest hurt and all he wanted was to get that burden off him. He wiped his tears with the sleeve of his shirt and looked into Akaash's eyes to tell him everything.
Khushi reached her home which was dark, which meant her Dad was not yet home and was working late in the office. She looked at the watch, it was quite late. The moment the cab halted in front of the house, Hari Kaaka came running out and greeted her, helping her with the luggage. She went straight to her room and fell crying on the bed after locking the door. "Beta, should I serve dinner?" Hari Kaaka asked her from outside. She wiped her tears and lied to him that she had eaten already. When she asked about her Dad, Hari Kaaka told her that he would be coming home next morning since he was out of town. She frowned. "Papa could have at least informed me" she murmured to herself in hiccups, and later remembered that she had turned off her phone. With that, came the memories of Greece, Arnav and his former lover Priyanka. She felt as though her heart was repeatedly stabbed. Feeling suffocated, she knew there was only one person who would understand her - Rohan. She switched on her phone, only to be flooded with call alerts and messages. Two missed calls from Papa, Forty Seven from Arnav, One from Rohan and One from the residence landline phone. Twelve messages, all from Arnav saying: Sorry, Please talk, I love you, I'm sorry, I need to talk to you and so on. She held her phone close to her heart. Did he truly love her, or was he just annoyed with the fact that she walked away from him, hurting his ego in the process. She knew she loved him and also knew that he loved her. But was his love true? If it was, why did he just leave her all alone in the morning, and then behave cold as though it meant nothing to him. Fresh tears streamed down her eyes. She dialled Rohan's number, but before she could call him, she cut the call. Rohan had his own share of problems with regard to Anjali and her health. She could not be so selfish to trouble him with her story. She knew she had to suffer in silence. Hari Kaaka knocked on the door. "Beta, don't sleep hungry. I'll bring you dinner." "I don't want dinner, Kaaka. I just want to be left alone" she said in a muffled tone, as her head was in her pillow. Hari Kaaka left without saying another word.
"What the f**k is wrong with you Arnav? Who the hell leaves like that? That too, a sensitive girl like Khushi?" Akaash banged a fist against the wall. It was true his brother had messed up big time. "I know I screwed it all up, and I tried talking to her, but she did not listen to me!" "Shut up, Arnav! What else did you expect from her? Her reaction was natural! You acted like a jerk, now suffer!" Akaash was fuming. He knew how messy a relationship could get due to a single misunderstanding, and he himself had been in hell for the past seven years. Now his brother too was walking on the same road, and he could not let him go through the pain that he himself went through. After moments, Arnav spoke up. "I left her alone in the morning, and I was a complete bas***d to do that. And now, I lost her, forever." Arnav took a deep breath, and after moments of silence, he continued. "Maybe this is what I deserve for fooling around with so many women. You kept telling me a million times to mend my ways, but I never cared to listen. Today, I know how all those girls must have felt when I played with their feelings. I deserve this pain Akaash. And Khushi deserves happiness. She does not deserve me. She deserves someone who would love her unconditionally, and would never hurt her by..." Arnav's statement was cut off when he felt a sharp sting of a slap on his face. It took a few moments to realize that Akaash had slapped him hard and had to blink twice to focus on what he was saying. He saw Akaash staring at him with white anger. "You're right Arnav. You deserve this pain. But Khushi doesn't deserve all this. She loved and still loves you. You'd have to be blind not to see it. And don't give me all that shit saying that she will get someone better and stuff. Be a man, walk up to her and tell her how you feel. Don't repeat the mistakes I made seven years ago. Go to her before it is too late. Tell her everything that you have locked within this frozen heart of yours." He pointed his finger to Arnav's chest. "Open up to her Arnav, make her trust you, make her fall in love with you all over again. She needs to know what is going on in that thick skull of yours. And don't you dare give up. Raizada's never give up. Keep that in mind" Somehow, Akaash's slap and words made a huge impact on Arnav, and he immediately walked out of the door. "Where are you going now?" Akaash asked. He was worried if Arnav would go out for a drink and end up worsening the matter. "I'm going to Khushi's house" he said, picking the keys from the table. Akaash looked at the clock. "Arnav, it's 11.30! It's too late!" he called, but Arnav had already walked out.
Khushi woke up with a start from her sleep when she heard a loud sound. The repeated knocks on her bedroom door made her feel like someone was banging a hammer on her head. She had just fallen asleep half an hour back, after freshening up. "Hari Kaaka, please. I don't want dinner" she yelled in irritation. Sometimes he could get more protective than her own Dad. The knocking stopped for a few seconds and then started again. "What the hell?" she muttered and got out of the bed. Knotting the peignoir over her knee length night gown, she opened the door with a frown. All her expressions drained and only shock was pasted across her face when she saw Arnav standing at the door. What shocked her even more was that his eyes were red rimmed. Did he cry for her? She saw Hari Kaaka peeping behind his shoulders and giving her a look which said, "I tried, but could not stop him" She took a deep breath, after asking Hari Kaaka to go downstairs so that they could be left alone. Once he went, she looked at Arnav who looked like a child who was grounded. "Can we talk?" he asked her to which she replied, "There's nothing left to talk Arnav. Your coldness said it all. Anyway why do you care about me when you have girls like Priyanka falling all over you?" She could not hide the anger in her voice, and to her surprise, Arnav smirked at her. She felt irritated and helpless as he spotted the jealous streak in her, which proved to him that she still did love him with all her heart. "Arnav, please go" Khushi said and was about to close the door, but Arnav held his arm against the door, and after struggling in vain, Khushi gave up and let him inside.
Arnav entered her room. He recollected the last time he was here, witnessing her in her Violet piece. His inner devil smacked his head. "Even when she's upset and you're the sole reason for it, you think of ravishing her, you hopeless rascal!" Arnav had to shake his head to get that thought off. But the sight in front of his eyes betrayed his thoughts. She sat at the edge of her bed, crossing her arms at her chest. The way her hands were pressed against the most beautiful part of her body seemed to be very inviting to him. The sheer peignoir was only tempting him to look what was beneath that scrap. Not that he did not know. Oh, he so knew how she looked sans clothes. He had seen her last night, and the image of her naked body was now engraved in his mind. "Oh stop it already, you horny beast! It's less than 24 hours and you're already lusting for her body. Such an insensitive soul you are!" Khushi noticed Arnav walking towards his head, with a small smile on his lips. Her mouth formed a perfect O when he took his jacket off and unbuttoned the first two buttons of his shirt. "What are you doing Arnav?" She swallowed hard as she asked with nervousness. He put his jacket on her. "I'm trying to cover you up so that when we talk, it is a little... less distracting." Her eyes widened when she caught the meaning of his words, and she pulled his jacket closer to her, as though it would prevent him from looking at her.
She looked away before he could see the light blush on her cheek. Despite her hurt feelings, she could not ignore the masculine scent of his body that was trapped in his jacket, which now lingered round her. She could feel his warmth round her. "Why are you here, Arnav?" she asked him in a soft voice ignoring all the fluttering of her heart, and the pain in her tone hurt him beyond words. "I came here to say sorry" She thought he was mocking at her and was about to retort, when she saw the same pain in his expression that she was going through. She wanted to hold him in her arms as she could not see him broken like the way he was right now. But he had hurt her too. Her mind was torn between asking him to leave, and holding him tight. She felt all of her wounds opening up again. The passionate night, the cold morning, the lips of that strange woman on the lips of the man she loved, the same lips that had shown how mesmerizingly beautiful passion could be. She felt her breath burn in her lungs. "Arnav" she said rising up. "Please leave. I have nothing to hear from you. Not after the way you behaved..." her words seemed to have lost meaning, and she forgot what she wanted to say when she felt his lips against hers. The kiss was not feathery or gentle. It was rough. As rough as the storm in the sea. As rough as the waves hit the rocks. As rough as the hail in the thundering monsoons. When he parted from her, it took her a few seconds to realize that she was still within the confines of her room, and was not transported to a magical world of stars that burst in shimmers. Arnav smirked when he saw her stuttering and trying to remember what she was saying earlier. He too was affected by that kiss. "And that was the only way to shut you up" he said. Actually he lied. He had been dying to kiss those berry lips ever since he saw her opening the door to him. She looked at him, with her mouth still parted. He held her shoulders and made her sit on the bed. "We need to talk honey. And I promise, after you hear me out, I will respect the decision you make. But you need to give me a chance to speak." She simply nodded, while he took a deep breath as he sat on the chair in front of her, taking her hands in his.
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon
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