Barsega Saawan
She was given a silver key chain with baby feet and bells as charms by Parul as a send of gift
"I never brought anything for you"
"Thats a lie" Parul smiled thru tears
"I will miss Gagan's face"
"Aisi baat mat karo, I know which building your office is in, I will show up to drag you home for dinner every two days" Parul warned
Arya didnt know she was moving
She sat on her lap and played with her new fire truck, Tapan had sent with a friend that was vacationing in Delhi for two weeks
"He keeps sending her stuff"
"I am telling you" Parul shook her head "If he had saved up that money he could have bought a apartment like this"
"he loves her" she hugged Arya
"Midget?" she whispered in Arya's ear as she pushed her silky strands back behind her ear
"I AM NOT middet" Arya was shocked to hear Shubhra say it
"Dekho Maasi... I mean Shubhra aunty bhi tumhe midget keh rahi hain, you should eat your palak and grow tall" Parul fret
"Can I come to yo house?" Arya held Shubhra's cheeks and begged
"Umm.. how about I finish my work and call you?" Shubhra kissed her cheek gently
"My home okk is done... alll done" she claimed
"Jhoothi, spelling list kaun padhega?"
"Maaaa pweeez" she begged
"Shubhra aunty is getting married?"
"To Nitin Mamu?" she asked
Kids expected the same people to get married over and over again
"Nahi ghodi... to a nice Uncle" Parul described
"Tomorrow?" Arya asked now on the floor running her truck across
"No, after 6 months" Shubhra showed with her fingers
Arya mimicked with 3 on one hand and two on other
"this many?"
"Close"
"One more?"
She opened both fists
"This"
"Haha... Shubhra bent Arya's fingers crouching on the floor
"can I come?"
"Yeah I want you to" Shubhra smiled
"Ma?"
"Of course"
"Papa?"
"Yes"
"Nitin Mamaji?"
"Sure"
that was it... Arya was off
Then she returned 10 minutes later
"Can Tapan Mamaji also come?"
"Sure"
"You can come" she screamed joyously into the phone
He had WAed her in her room
Parul lowered her gaze, so did Shubhra
This was weird
They could have been marrying each other
No longer
"I will go now" she got up
"Raat ko khakar" Parul forced her down
"No I still have to pack Shubhra got up nervously
"I am expecting you at least once a week" Parul ordered
They hugged and didnt speak
Held each other quietly
"thanks Parul"
"Silly girl" Parul tapped her cheek
She opened the door and Gagan stood in shock as the door opened on him just in time
They greeted each other and she walked back with no energy
Arya came out screaming a few minutes later and spent the remainder of the evening craving for Shubaaa aunty
Good friendships were rare
everyone was hurting that night
Plus another Kusum Nitin drama was looming Parul was exhausted she went to bed right after dinner and stayed up most of the night
she knew Shubhra would not visit much now
Shubhra made a sandwich did not eat much and slept on the couch
A week at her parents house
Ashutosh came to work to resign she was not shocked or unhappy
She feared what was brewing between Punita and him
As she agonized all morning
Punita sent over notarized documents through her lawyer saying she was not going to pursue any case against Vinod
she jumped up from her chair squealing
Completely unexpeted
Never in a million years she would have expected that move
She was meeting Mr Nautiyal tomorrow to talk about how to proceed
She called Ashutosh frantically to understand what had happened
He didnt answer
she texted him
"Did you convince Punita?" she texted
He never responded
She smiled all the way home that evening, re-reading the document on her phone, each station the Metro stopped at she tried to call Punita and Ashutosh but there was no response
How did it happen
she sat in her balcony after a shower with a glass of her favorite wine, overlooking the dense foliage of trees, the tree trimming guys were finishing up down below, laughing and cracking jokes, winding up their equipment
Radio played Hindi songs...
"Tumhari yaad aa rahi hai aaj maine bhindi aur paneer fry banayi" Parul texted
"I miss you all soooo much I wish I lived next door I would have come running" she texted enthusiastically
"Aa jao na?" Parul begged
"I am home.. I mean parents'... Mehrauli.., showered drinking wine" she took a pic of her wine glass on the balcony rail
"Kyon khush ho, tumhare honey waale hain kya udhar?" Parul teased
"No... no" Shubhra suddenly realized Pawan existed in her life
"Phir?"
"A big crisis solved on its own"
"Arey wah"
"I am so happy"
"Khush raho" Parul wished
That made Shubhra cry for some reason as she stared at the rare clear night sky with a smattering of sparkling stars
The tunes of a song floated up from the radio
Saason ki lay madham chaley, To se kahey
Barsega saawan
Barsega saawan
Do dil aise milenge
Chanda Ko Takoon Raato Mein
Hai Zindagi Tere Haton Mein
Palko Pe Jhil Mil Tare Hai
Aana Bhari Barsato Mein
Sapno Ka Jahan
Hoga Khila Khila
Barsega Saawan, Barsega Saawan
Jhoom Jhoom Ke
Do Dil Aise Milenge
Ufff Yeh Love Hai Mushkil
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