PART 37:
The next day, Angad and Kripa left for their respective jobs, maintaining the cold silence between them
Angad, as usual had a horrible day at work. He was cranky, screamed at the nurses, the OT staff, his assistant-no one was spared!
Angad overheard one of the nurses whispering, "lagta hai Dr Khanna ka phir apni biwi ke saath jhagda hua hai…" The other nurse giggled, 'sab mardon ke yahi haal hai…zaroor unki misses ne unhe khaali pait sone diya hoga….bechare sab surgeons ka yahi haal hota hai….aakhir kab tak koi aurat unka intezaar karti rahegi?" they both burst out into a laughter but shushed up as they saw Angad approaching with an angry expression., "sister! 711 number ki file kahan hai? Aap log baithe baithe baatein banaati rehti hain…..can I see some action from both of you?" Angad yelled. The nurses were terrified; they were used to the staff surgeons and their ill tempers, but never before had a trainee raise his voice like that. They got up obediently and got down to work, or at least pretended to get busy.
Angad went to his office and reflected upon the events of last evening and tried to make sense of what the nurses where trying to say.
He looked at his schedule; he had no more patients or surgeries scheduled for another hour. He picked his bag and left the office in a hurry. He hailed a cab, "Sukoon music studio!"
He could not take it anymore; he had to see Kripa and decided he would take her out to lunch, "shayad Kripa theek keh rahi thi…main kal Manan waali baat ko lekar pareshaan tha, aur gussa Kripa par nikaal diya….I might have over reacted…..," he said to himself.
After arriving at the studio, he looked around for Kripa. There were a few singers and musicians rehearsing in some of the rooms.
"Hi! I am Josh! Can I help you?" a pleasant looking, bearded, tall, broad-shouldered man greeted him.
"Yes, may be you can! I am Dr Khanna!"
"Oh! Kripa's husband?" Josh said
"Oh well! I guess, I am…..ab yahan meri pehchaan Kripa ki wajah se hi tho hogi…..you are right…," Angad was not used to this- he was always Dr Khanna or Angad to people- so far no one had ever identified him as Kripa's husband!
"Kripa aapko bahut maanti hai," Josh smiled, "kal yadi aapka phone nahin aata tho wo recording hi nahin karti…"
"Mera phone?" Angad asked curiously
"Haan…shayad aapne Prithvi se kaha tha na ki aapki meeting der tak chalegi, tho recording shuru kar dein….warna Kripa tho raat bhar hum sab ko yahin rok kar rakhti…bahut jadoo kar rakha hai aapne apni patni par…," Josh laughed again.
Angad smiled back; he suddenly felt as if a huge weight had lifted from his chest. He shook his head and thought, "zaroor Prithvi ko galat fehmi ho gayi hogi…..he mis interpreted me….bechari Kripa ka kya kasoor tha? Main bhi kitna pagal hoon…..Kripa ki baat dhyaan se sun ni chaahiye thi…"
"Tho Dr Khanna…..lagta hai aap Kripa se milne hi aaye honge?" Josh asked
"Haan…actually main usey lunch par le jaana chahta tha…I had an hour in between surgeries…kahan hai wo?"
"Oh…Oh…aapko 15 minute pehle phone karna chaahiye tha….Prithvi aur Kripa abhi thodi der pehle hi lunch par gaye hain….sorry you just missed them," Josh apologized.
Angad was disappointed, "Oh…is that right? Well, may be next time…..main chalta hoon….nice to meet you Josh!"
Josh shook his hand and smiled, "ab tho aap se mulakat hoti rahegi…Bye!"
Angad headed back to the surgical center, dismayed at not being able to meet Kripa. He was a little more relaxed, now that he understood what might have happened the previous evening.
He was walking back to his office, with a sandwich in his hand, when he spotted Mishti and Manan walking into the center.
"Hi Mishti!" Angad called from a distance.
Mishti waved at him and gestured him to wait. She gave a friendly hug to Manan and walked towards Angad, "Hi stranger! Kaisi gayi tumhari biwi ki recording?"
"Oh…it was pretty good….but I missed it," Angad replied
"hamare saath rehte tho kuch bhi miss nahin karte!" she smiled and then whispered, "waise hum sab ne tumhe bahut miss kiya!"
"really? Manan tho tha wahan!" Angad said
"Par Angad….Manan is not the same as you! Tumhari baat hi kuch aur hai….my friends were not impressed with Manan at all…..tum tho jaadugar ho Angad! Manan is not even 10% of what you are!" Mishti inflated Angad's ego once again. Angad felt elated at hearing Mishti sing his praises, "Mishti..tum bhi na….well, tell me how can I help? My schedule is wide open next week…..I can schedule your friends for tummy tuck, breast implants, dermabrasion…..you name it…..i am at your service….," Angad held out his hand for Mishti. Misht gladly accepted his hand, 'it is a deal Angad! I will have to work on Manan…bechare ki feelings na hurt ho jaaye," she smiled and squeezed his hand.
Angad withdrew his hand, as he realized Mishti was holding it a little too tight for his comfort, "OK Mishti…I will talk to you later….got to go to the OT…Bye!"
Mishti waved, "Bye Angad! Aaj shaam ko thodi der ghar aa jaana….i would like to have a drink with you….don't worry, I will not hold you away from your wife…..chale jaana uske paas baad mein….kuch pal humein bhi de dena apne…,' she requested.
Angad could not say no, especially after the deal she had just struck with him, 'Ok…I will be there…"
Mishti swung by Manan's office, "Manan, my dear! Aaj raat ko main tumhara intezaar karoongi…..remember…it will be just the two of us…..be ready to have the time of your life tonight!"
Manan said hungrily, "Yes baby, I will be there!"
When Kripa and Prithvi came back from lunch, Josh approached Kripa, "hey Kripa…..you just missed your hubby…"
Kripa's face lit up," kya Angad aaya tha yahan?"
"Jee haan! Bechara tumhey lunch par le jaane aaya tha, but he just missed you by minutes…,bahut pyaar karta hai tumhey…itna busy doctor apne schedule mein se apni wife ke saath lunch karne aaya tha….how romantic!" Josh remarked
Kripa blushed at Josh's words and thought, "Angad, tumhari aisi baaton ki hi tho main diwaani hoon…..kaash main yahin hoti tab….," She thanked Josh and took her phone out of her bag. She walked towards the rehearsal room and dialed Angad's number. She just got his voice mail as he was in the OT.
Kripa was relieved and cheerful all afternoon. She could not wait to get back home and spend her evening with him. She thought, "Angad…kitni achhi baat hai ki jab bhi hamare beech koi bhi problem hoti hai, hamare pyaar se sab sulajh jaati hain…shayad yahi sachha pyaar hai…"
Kripa left work as soon as her recordings were done. Prithvi tried his best to hold her back at one pretext or the other. He finally threw an attractive bait in front of her, "Kripa….ek aur gaana record kar lo aaj….waise tho yeh doosri singer ko de raha tha, par tum chaaho tho aaj hi apni awaaz mein record kar lo…..she will not even know…"
Kripa was very clear about her priorities, "Nahin Prithvi….yeh kaam tho kal bhi ho sakta hai…..aur waise bhi main kisi aur ka gaana nahin cheen sakti…..anyways, I need to be home before Angad gets back…"
"Kripa, tum Angad se itna darrti kyon ho? Ek din shaam ko tumhare bina reh lega tho kya jaayega? Waise bhi usey aadat hai akele rehne ki…..college mein tho kabhie room mate bhi nahi tha uska….."
Kripa smiled and said, "Prithvi…..lekin ab uska room mate bhi hai, aur life mate bhi hai! I am sorry, I have to go….see you tomorrow….."
Prithvi just clenched his fist, "Mishti! This nut is not an easy one to crack! Kahan phansaa diya mujhey….par aisi kya baat hai Angad mein jo yeh uski itni diwaani hai?"
Kripa prepared Angad's favorite dishes and laid the table for a cozy candle light dinner for the two of them. She hummed and sang songs as she cooked and got ready for Angad's arrival. She had tried to call him several times, but he did not pick up his phone.
Angad spent the good part of the evening with Mishti. He was eager to leave after he finished his one drink, but Mishti kept him engaged in one conversation after another. She attended to a lot of phone calls from producers, directors, journalists etc while Angad sat around, hoping to find a logical break and excuse himself. Angad did not want to be rude and interrupt her; despite last evening's fiasco, she had just obliged him with some new clients and he was very grateful to her.
He wanted to break the ice with Kripa by surprising her at home, so he did not call her either. His mobile had been in the silent mode all day; he had forgotten to switch it back to normal mode, so he did not receive Kripa's calls either.
At home, Kripa was getting anxious about Angad, "kahan hoga? Abhi tak ghar kyon nahin aaya…office mein bhi nahin hai…kahin Mishti ke saath?"
Kripa called Prithvi, "Prithvi…aapke paas Mishti ka contact number hai? Shayad Angad wahin ho"
"Dekha Kripa! Jis pati ke liye tum yahan se bhaagi bhaagi gayi thi, wo tumhari kitni kadar karta hai? Kal recording ke liye bhi late ho gaya tha, aur aaj dekho ghar bhi nahin pahuncha….yahan abhi tak tumhari recording bhi ho gayi hoti….khair likho Mishti ka personal number deta hoon tumhe….," Prithvi spoke with an evil smile.
Kripa just thanked him and did not comment on Prithvi's negative statements about her husband.
"Hello! Main Kripa bol rahi hoon….kya Angad aapke saath hai?" Kripa called mishti's number.
Mishti took the phone call to a quiet corner, so Angad would not hear her, "Kripa! Tum apne pati ko apne aanchal se baandh kar kyon rakhna chaahti ho? Wo koi bachha nahin hai! He knows what he is doing…..why do you keep tabs on him? Zyaada baandh kar rakhogi aadmi ko tho wo tum se door bhaagta rahega….give him a break!"
Kripa felt her blood rushing to her cheeks, "Mishti ji….aadmi ko baandh kar rakhna tho aapka khel hai! Shayad aapko hi thodi dheel deni chaahiye, kahin aisa na ho aadmiyon ka shikaar karte karte aap hi khud shikaar ban jaaye….jahan tak Angad ka sawaal hai, wo jis bandhan se mujh se juda hai, usey PYAAR kehte hain…..shayad aap parde par pyaar karte karte, asal zindagi mein pyaar karna bhool gayi hain…..Angad se keh dee jiye ga, ki wo jab chaahe ghar aa sakta hai…..uska pyaar hamesha uska intezaar karta rahega…GOODBYE MISHTIJI!" Kripa hung up before waiting for her response.
Angad was getting impatient now; he saw Mishti hang up her call. He picked his bag and said, "Mishti….I need to go…I will see you tomorrow…."
Mishti stopped him, "Angad…dinner kar ke jao na.."
"Sorry Mishti…aaj nahin…." Angad remarked
"Chalo jao…thode din tho apni biwi ke saath khaana kha lo….baad mein tho wo bahut busy ho jaayegi….phir tours par jaayegi…late night recordings hongi, and then she will be having most of her dinners with Prithvi…my house is always open for you Angad…..jab chaaho aa sakte ho…BYE!" Mishti was pleased to see a worried expression on Angad's face.
Angad walked out, pondering over Mishti's statement…..….baad mein tho wo bahut busy ho jaayegi….phir tours par jaayegi, late night recordings hongi….and then she will be having most of her dinners with Prithvi…….
Angad shook his head, "nahin…meri Kripa kabhie aisa nahin karegi…she will never ignore me….wo mujhey kabhie neglect nahin karegi…..i know her…."
Angad arrived home to find his beautiful wife waiting for him with a smile. She hugged him as soon as he came in, "thanks for remembering me at lunch today…."
Angad dropped his bag on the floor and hugged her back tightly, "you are always there in my thoughts jaan!" He kissed her neck, ears and then her lips, "I am starving….I don't know about you…."
Kripa smiled mischievously and shut the door behind him and whispered, "I am famished too!"
Angad grinned as he remembered the nurses's comments from this morning: zaroor unki misses ne unhe khaali pait sone diya hoga….bechare sab surgeons ka yahi haal hota hai.
Angad thought, "sister, aaj yeh surgeon khaali pait nahin soegaa!!"
…to be continued…..
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