Arhi FF - Pocket Change - Chapter 13- 26 January - Page 4

Ah I am loving the way you are managing both present and past simultaneously! And for them being civil to each other, I guess, that's the thing about old friends(as she became everything else later)...that we tend to fall back in the same routine with them pretty soon...

First of all, thanks for the quick, beautiful update!

Amazin story... Bookmarked it.
Continue soon

N
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Honestly m quite astonished by their regular conversation which happened initially.. Well I dunno wot I expected but certainly it wasn't surely the normalcy between the two.. Lol! The consequent war of words was a natural progress with so much pent up feelings.
That Nikhil is really grating my nerves.. By God! Wot was it with warnings n all!?
There is so much unspoken between the couple.. There is ofcourse a humongous reason for the drastic step taken by her.. One thing which is established with this update is that he doesn't believe in the institution of marriage cuz of his parents.. Also i quite feel this is not a case of any infidelity which initially I thought it to be.. This seems more like the battle of emotions of one another..
Oh well..!!

Your writing is delicious, really. I loved how you managed the transitions from the awkwardness to slipping back into their childhood cocoon, their musical connection...the lyrics blew me away. Beautiful. And then the sudden reminder of who they were now and how the circumstances had changed and the unease was back. I loved Arnav's ribbing -shows their strong bonding as friends. Why doesn't Khushi play anymore?

The phoenix is clearly mindful of the jittery flame, but I don't think it'll mind the complete engulfing at all.

Your Arnav is a fairytale. Can you imagine those Bournvita eyes boring into yours, that baritone crooning to you with such words...sigh. I actually don't mind the mystery...their interactions are gold.

-A

wow such and interesting start, i am loving this story.

Great update VH :)

Originally posted by: Petrichorlove

Your writing is delicious, really. I loved how you managed the transitions from the awkwardness to slipping back into their childhood cocoon, their musical connection...the lyrics blew me away. Beautiful. And then the sudden reminder of who they were now and how the circumstances had changed and the unease was back. I loved Arnav's ribbing -shows their strong bonding as friends. Why doesn't Khushi play anymore?

The phoenix is clearly mindful of the jittery flame, but I don't think it'll mind the complete engulfing at all.

Your Arnav is a fairytale. Can you imagine those Bournvita eyes boring into yours, that baritone crooning to you with such words...sigh. I actually don't mind the mystery...their interactions are gold.

-A

It looks like a whole misunderstanding is between them...I mean if Khushi herself has separated from Arnav, she wouldnt have talked like this...there is more to her story as if she is angry with him...but let see how you unfold...amazing

Chapter 5

Akash Singh Raizada and Shyam Manohar Jha felt a range of emotions as they stepped into Arnav's room that night. Anjali had called her husband frantically that night when they were in a meeting, screaming that something was gravely wrong with Arnav. Shyam worked with the Raizada's as his law firm was associated with them - he handled their legal matters, and thus they abandoned the meeting abruptly, expecting to see a stream of blood and a glistening knife.

Instead, they saw bottles of Merlot lying around Arnav's slumped body, who was half sprawled on the sofa and half on the ground. The last time they'd seen him close to this state was three years ago when Khushi had left, leaving behind photo albums flipped through to death, unshaven beards, and strewn bottles on the floor.

For all his ASR attitude, Arnav was still the same 14 year old - the man-child whose heart was bound by puppet strings, which was held by Khushi Kumari Gupta. Akash exchanged a long-suffering look with his brother in law.

Arnav saw them through his alcohol-impaired vision and frowned. These men were not Lavanya.

"Where's Lavanya?" he asked, voice slurring slightly.

Akash hid a grin as Shyam answered him. "You called my wife and asked her to pretend to be your girlfriend so that you could make your ex-wife jealous." He said dryly.

"I called Di?" He sat up, a little more alert, the surprise working better on Arnav than any bucket of cold water.

"Though I don't know how you could mistake Anjali for Lavanya. Thankfully, she was out with Payal wedding shopping. Poor Payal, with Anjali shooting daggers at Khushi, I don't know how she survived."

"That boyfriend of hers, he's a sure charmer. He sat with Shashi Uncle and helping out with the wedding preparations." Akash said with disbelief. "I'm the one getting married and I just want to run away from it all."

Arnav didn't miss the way Akash averted his eyes, quick to change the topic. Something was up.

Arnav bristled. "He looks like a geek. What does he even do, that he can leave all his work and help his girlfriend's family?"

"Actually, Bhai, he's a doctor."

Arnav snorted. How typical. He looked like a bookish person from the medical field, who exercised at a specific time, ate and slept at the right time.

"We were all talking about Khushi's books, actually." Shyam cut in. "Honest Lies is good, if a little sappy. The plot is so melodramatic. I mean, why couldn't Rehan just confront Ahalya if he thought she was having an affair with Karan? What an idiot."

Akash coughed, muffling his laugh.

"I know right." Arnav deadpanned.

Shyam continued, completely oblivious. "And what is the obsession with the poolside? All the significant exchanges between the two happen there."

"I don't know. Khushi's deep like that. Maybe it's some sort of metaphor. Maybe a sign of how she felt like she was drowning in our marriage and had to leave to survive."

Akash winced. Arnav was about to apologize, knowing it was hard for him choosing between his fiancee's sister and his own family, but Shyam cut him off.

"What do you mean?"

Arnav rubbed his face tiredly. The alcohol was making his head hurt.

"Shyam, how far into the series have you reached?"

"Not too far. I just started the second one. Why? What's going on? I don't know because Khushi's talk is forbidden by Anjali. You know how feels about her."

Arnav ignored the pain in his chest as he questioned Shyam.

"Do any of the characters seem familiar to you?"

He had a blank look on his face and Akash decided to have some fun at his brother's expense. "'Rehan could make therapists conducting anger management sessions rich - if someone could convince him to go without him biting their heads off.' Or how about, Having diabetes was farcical because Rehan had not one sweet bone in his body?'"

An imaginary light bulb lit up in Shyam's head. "You're Rehan?" his eyes widening as Akash nodded, his body shaking with laughter.

A slow, lecherous smile spread across Shyam's face, making Arnav wish he had not got out of bed that morning.

"You have a heart-shaped freckle on your ass?"

Arnav groaned as Shyam neatly dodged the pillow coming his way, collapsing near Akash, convulsing with laughter.

"That was my HIP!"

***

Preeto, I wrote something. -KKG

The final part of Honest Liars is yet to be launched and you started something else? -PS

You're my editor/publicist. You should be thrilled I'm not like other writers who give their agents heart attacks by not meeting deadlines. -KKG

Hey, I'm not complaining. It's just that your impulsive writing only occurs when you have an overdose of him. Speaking of which, how did he take your return? -PS

Terribly. He basically said he wished he'd never married me. -KKG

Harsh. Although, I'm going to take that with a pinch of salt, knowing your tendency to exaggerate. Have you spoken to NK about this? Or Payal? You don't need the added stress right now, especially with the promotions. Is Payal playing the part of a blushing bride to be properly? Oh, and Panache Entertainment has offered to buy the rights of the entire Honest Lies trilogy for a film! Can you believe it? They're considering Barun and Sanaya for the part of Ahalya and Rehan! Need you to reply ASAP. -PS

Slow down, my express train. Yeah, the signing amount is unbelievable. Of course, I agree. Plus, if Karan Johar is directing it, I don't think I can complain. I'll go over the agreements and get back to you. Do you want to read what I wrote? -KKG

Duh. - PS

Growing up, Tamanna had always known her last name would one day be a Rajvansh. Even before Kabir came to Delhi, she wanted to be a part of this family. Her parents were great, loving, but they just weren't around enough, as they both worked in multinational companies. Her parents tried their best to keep her life stable but it wasn't the same. She found herself counting down the minutes until she and Avni, her sister could bike over to Abhay Rajvansh's house. They'd play in his room, creating a ruckus with all the toys until his mother sent them out to Hula-hoop in his driveway. Then Maya Aunty would call them in for peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies, and they'd sit on bar stools in the kitchen while they watched her fix dinner. Mahesh Uncle would come home from work, kiss Maya Aunty gently on the cheek, and pat all three heads. Tamanna would follow the couple with longing eyes, secretly pretending that she was their younger daughter.

But then they came. Kabir and Manasvi. They were Abhay's cousins from Lucknow, and Tamanna's nine year old mind wondered about them. Manasvi was thirteen, a serene, yet kind girl who liked to read a lot but it was Kabir, a quiet, serious little boy whose face was haunted and eyes, too big, too sad who caught her attention. Mahesh Uncle's sister and brother in law had died. At first, Tamanna was jealous of the new boy. He was so smart. So neat, and polite, and perfect. And alone. He didn't want any friends. Maya Aunty adopted him, just like that, when she had put in countless months trying to win them over. But there was something about Kabir that resonated within her. His sadness, his seriousness. He looked so broken, and she wanted to fix that, even at her age.

She knew there was something horrible about his mother's death; because everyone whispered and when she asked, they'd only say "she died." He never spoke about it. As she grew older and learned about life and Kabir, she wanted to know more. But he made it clear which subjects were off limits, and she never pushed. His face only hinted at the darkness that was his existence in Lucknow, but the tendrils that tethered him there were plain and far-reaching, Tamanna knew that, even though she didn't understand it.

She tried to be his friend. He shot her down, again and again. Yet she kept going back because all his anger, his austere attitude was worth it to see that smile. My God, his smile. It was almost as if his mouth was a person by itself, searching for words, until it decided to do the wonderful thing by blessing her and stretching the smile that moved along the corners of his mouth, a small dimple deepening into his cheek. Then, slowly, he began to be friendly back. Little things, like standing up to Avni when she teased her. Or offering to halve his sandwich with her. From then on, they became inseparable.

Playing the guitar on his porch. Reading together, studying, tutoring. Watching Friends together, lounging on the couch. Camping trips. Summer Jobs. High school dances.

Their first kiss.

First date.

First time.

First marriage.

First love.

He was always too generous, to his detriment.

How is it? Am I laying it too thick with the 'dying parents' bit? -KKG

Khushi...wow. Your writing here is different. I like it. - PS

Because it's true. It's personal. It's us, no garnishes, no alterations. -KKG

Your fan base will devour this stuff, Khushi. India's most famous author's first love. -PS

It's too honest to be published, P. It isn't Honest Lies. And...I would never do that to him. -KKG

My darling author, such artistic temperament. "My God...his smile." You're crazy about that man. -PS

Sabrewal, you're incorrigible. -KKG

And you're a stubborn idiot. -PS

Gotta go, Payal's breathing down my neck. -KKG

Thought of a name? -PS

Pocket Change. -KKG