Hey guys, I'm glad that you liked the last update and I hope you'll like this one as well!!
**
Dinner had gone well except for Sherry glaring in the direction of any fellow diners who made the mistake of staring at her while she constantly tried to adjust her dupatta. Eventually sick of it, she took it off and hung it on the back of her chair while she ate, the rest of them wisely decided not to comment although Naina hid a small smile.
The conversation had been light so far, as Raj and Abhimanyu talked about their academy days, discussing various pranks they had pulled along with Navin, and then moving on to talk about what they had each done in the year or so since they had seen each other. Abhimanyu also made sure to find out about Naina's college from her, how her studies had been progressing up until this point and how long she still had until she finished. Sherry had mainly been quiet, concentrating on eating her dinner as if she hadn't had any proper food for months.
"So what did you two really think about each other the first time you met?" Abhimanyu asks them, "I know your marriage happened rather quickly… but did my charming friend manage to win you over in the first meeting, Naina?"
Raj smiled at this, shaking his head slightly at the memory. "She barely looked at me the first time we met." He tells Abhimanyu, "I was worried that she hated me, or at the very least that she was extremely uninterested in me."
"I was shy…" Naina defended herself, looking a little embarrassed, "I couldn't be expected to keep gazing at you the first time we met."
"Why not?" Raj asks her with a grin, "I did."
Naina blushes, and Abhimanyu laughs. Even Sherry has a small smile on her face.
"You did not," Naina tells him, "You barely looked at me until Baba asked you to marry me."
"I was trying to be polite…" It's Raj's turn to defend himself, "I could hardly come to your parents' house for the first time under such circumstances and spend all my time staring at their daughter. But I definitely did look at you, and that one time you looked up at me…"
They both stop, lost in the memories, and Raj reaches out to take her hand, holding it beneath the table.
"And you got married the next day?" Sherry asks them, "Did you even talk to each other?"
"Well… no." Raj admits, "In fact we never actually had a proper conversation until Naina arrived at KMA."
Then he realises that he might have revealed a bit too much, and looks a bit embarrassed.
Sherry suddenly gets a mischievous look on her face, and unable to help herself decides to ask the question. "So when are you taking Bhabhie for a proper honeymoon then?"
Naina turns bright red and Raj starts coughing, just adding to both Sherry and Abhimanyu's amusement.
"Well you know… I have my duty at KMA right now… and Naina can't miss any college…" Raj starts making excuses.
"We'll go eventually," Naina adds hurriedly, "At the right time."
"Well where are you going to go?" Sherry asks, "At least choose a place."
"Well where would you go?" Naina asks her, unable to think of any options since this is honestly the first time she's ever thought of a honeymoon.
Sherry laughs at this, "You want advice from me for where to go on a honeymoon? I'm never even going to get married."
"Why not?" Naina asks her, "You've got to get married eventually.
Sherry just laughs even more, "Any boy my father would choose for me I would end up murdering, as for normal boys none of them are able to keep up with me."
"Thank god…" Raj muttered, "I would hate to have to try and scare male cadets away from you."
Sherry snorts, "Don't worry Bhaiyya, I'm perfectly capable of scaring them away all by myself."
"And I'm thankful for that every day." Raj tells her honestly, "I'm glad that my sister is capable of looking after herself."
"I got into the habit a long time ago," she tells him and the smile that Sherry gives him is so sad, that for a moment he is entirely taken aback.
"It's nearly time for lights out, shall we head back to the academy?" Naina suggests and they gather their things, Naina not insisting this time that Sherry wear her dupatta.
**
The drive back to the academy is uneventful, and once they arrive Sherry heads to her room straight away, telling Naina that she'll return the salwar kameez in the morning. Abhi also heads off to his own quarters and Raj and Naina enter their room, Raj remembering to lock the door behind them.
"You know I could take you somewhere if you like… for a honeymoon." He tells her suddenly, and she realises he must have been thinking about it the entire way back to the academy. "It might be two years after our wedding but it's never too late."
Naina thinks carefully before she answers, her eyes slightly down with embarrassment and a small smile on her face, "I think I would like that…" she tells him, "Not now… with my college and your mission… but… maybe soon."
Raj takes in a deep breath because he perfectly understands that her saying 'maybe soon' is not only relating to her college and his duty, but also to the way that she is beginning to feel about him.
Taking a step towards her, he takes both of her hands in his, smoothing his thumbs over the top of her hands.
"It doesn't have to be soon…" he tells Naina gently, "Everything will happen at the right time."
Her eyes still down, a small smile on her face, she leans forward so that her head is now resting against his chest, her hair obscuring her face. Raising his hands, Raj brushes her hair back behind her ears, smoothing it gently.
"How can you be so patient with me?" Naina asks him, and he tilts her head up so that she's now looking at him.
"Because I love you." He replies simply, "And as far as patience is concerned… we have the rest of our lives ahead of us."
She looks back at him with such an expression of quiet love, that he can't resist leaning down to kiss her, trying to keep it gentle, soft and undemanding. But when Naina responds, kissing him back only slightly hesitantly, he can't help but deepen it.
He has just wound his arms around her waist when she suddenly breaks away.
"What is it?" he asks her, confused. "Was it too fast?"
"No, no." Naina tells him, "It's just… did you lock the door?"
And Raj starts laughing, because he realises she's worried about Sherry's tendency to walk in unannounced.
"Yes," he tells her, "I did lock the door." And bringing his face back down to hers, he kisses her again, his hands settling on her hips as hers wind around his neck. He's careful not to take things too far, resisting the urge to let his hands wander or to deepen the kiss too much. He knows that he should take things slowly with her, allowing them to proceed at a pace she's comfortable with.
Eventually he breaks away from her, and Naina once again leans her head against his chest, a contented sigh escaping her lips. He wraps his arms around her tightly, hugging her to him.
After changing and climbing into bed, he hugs her back, hugging her waist with one hand, the other under her neck and wrapped around her, bringing her even closer to him. He rests his head in the crook of her neck, kissing her there gently before his eyes close.
As long as she remains with him this way, he can be as patient as is needed.
**
Naina has already left for college the next morning when his phone rings and checking the number, Raj sighs, knowing what is probably going to be ahead and answers it.
"Hello Lalasaheb," he tells the man on the other end politely.
"Raj I just arrived back in the country and heard the news this morning," Lala tells him, a strict note in his voice, "How could so much have happened and you never told me?"
"I never told anybody," Raj replies, hoping that he'll be able to explain himself calmly and logically, "The circumstances at the time were such…. We thought it would be better to wait and hope that nobody found out until I could prove Navin's innocence."
"Really there's a limit to sacrificing yourself, Raj… didn't you think before making this decision?" Lala asks him, a disappointed tone in his voice, "You've thrown away your entire life, your career in order to do what you saw as a duty of friendship."
"I don't think I've thrown anything away, Lala Saheb." Raj tells him, "I'm actually very happy with Naina, I know that the marriage was a hasty decision… but it has turned out well in the end."
"How has it turned out well?" Lala asked him, frustration in his voice, "Do you know what type of things are being said about you in headquarters? Do you realise that your career will now be stalled because of this?"
"Honestly it doesn't matter to me," Raj tells him, "I know you're disappointed for my sake, but I also know that what I did was right. I don't regret my decision."
He hears a noise at the doorway and sees Sherry standing there, Naina's salwar kameez in her hands and a strange look on her face.
"It's my father, isn't it?" she asks, and Raj nods.
"Then give me the phone." She tells him, and without waiting for a reply, she snatches it off him.
"Hello father," she tells him, a cold tone having settled in her voice.
Raj can't hear Lala's reply, but he sees Sherry's expression change, become angrier, harder.
"Don't even think about giving any more advice to Bhaiyya about his marriage," she tells her father angrily, "Because I remember exactly what type of a husband you were to Ma."
It's only a one sided conversation that Raj can hear, but if possible Sherry's expression becomes even angrier as she listens to whatever it is her father is saying.
"Respect?" she asks him in a disbelieving tone, "You sent me here, I agreed to stay. Don't ask more than that from me and certainly don't ask me for respect… that needs to be earned not given. No, I don't want to listen to any more of your stupid lecture… if you can't be happy for Bhaiyya then don't even think of trying to make him unhappy…. I know perfectly well… Just go to hell!" she finally screamed into the phone, hanging it up, then throwing it at the wall.
It hit with a loud clunk, breaking apart onto the floor and Sherry stared at it.
"I'm sorry Bhaiyya," she finally told him, "I'll buy you a new phone." Raj was stunned to see tears in her eyes, it was the first time he had seen her become so emotional.
"Sherry forget about the phone… it's fine." He tells her, "Tell me what's wrong, why is it that you get so upset about your father? Tell me and I'll try to help."
"I'll deal with it Bhaiyya." She tells him quietly, "I don't need anybody's help."
And placing Naina's clothes down on a sofa, she walked calmly out of the room.
**
Abhimanyu walked into a classroom full of cadets, prepared to teach his first ever class. Of those gathered he recognised six, Sherry and the five other cadets that he had met the night before. Of those seated their expressions ranged from excited, to attentive, to disinterested, to just plain bored.
His gaze was drawn to Sherry, who had not responded to him walking in the room at all, even as the others had looked towards him. She was uncharacteristically quiet and seemed to be staring in to space, a lost look on her face.
"Well cadets," Abhimanyu announced, "I'm Captain Abhimanyu Rai Chauhan and I'm going to be your new music teacher. Those of you who wish to be formal can call me Captain Abhimanyu or Captain Chauhan, and those of you who would like to be friendly with me can call me Abhimanyu. Right now, you must be wondering why it is that music is going to be taught in KMA…"
He tried to explain the importance of music to them in order to break the monotony of training, to give them a way of expressing their emotions, noticing that some of them seemed to respond better than others. At the end he handed out instruments, trying to give them all pointers on how they should be holding them, deciding that that would be challenging enough for today.
Huda tried to get Sherry's attention, nudging her from where he sat in the seat next to her.
"Oy what's this guy talking about… the only tune I need is the beat of the drums for Bhangra. You and I should be on the dance floor together some time, girl, we would make beautiful music together."
But Sherry for once did not respond, staring down at her instrument as if she hadn't heard him, and confused at not receiving a comment in reply like usual, Huda just stared at her.
The bell rang and the cadets poured out of the classroom, some of them chattering excitedly about the day's lesson.
"Cadet Gehlot, would you stay behind?" Abhimanyu asked her, and Sherry looked up as if in surprise, blinking at him slightly.
"Why?" she asked, immediately defensive. "Have I done something wrong? Are you giving me detention?"
"No, not at all." He tells her, taking the violin out of her hands and indicating her to take a seat. "I noticed you were rather quiet today… is anything wrong?"
And Sherry laughs at this, "Everything is wrong." She tells him, "Don't you know?"
"I don't understand." Abhi tells her, "What is it that's wrong?"
"I talked to my father this morning." She replies bitterly, "And after that… nothing can be right. He called, just as I knew he would, to tell Bhaiyya he made the wrong decision to marry Naina."
Abhi nods sympathetically, even he had wondered what Lala's response would be when he eventually found out.
"That's to be expected." He tells her, "He's always been concerned about Raj's career."
"Oh of course he's concerned," Sherry remarks sarcastically, "He's so very concerned…." She stops suddenly, and looks him directly in the eye. "I hate him." She tells Abhi, so much venom in her voice that he knows she's telling the truth.
"I know your father hasn't had much time for you Sherry," he tries telling her, gently, "And I understand how it feels… growing up I hardly ever saw my father, and every time I did, I felt as if I had disappointed him, I wasn't strong enough, wasn't brave enough, I hated violence and liked music instead… I wasn't the son he had hoped for. When I joined the army it was because of him, in order to win his approval, and even now I'm not sure if I've done so, but still... he is my father."
"That man… has no right to call himself my father." Sherry tells Abhi, "He has no right to call himself anything. When has he ever been there for me? When has he ever been what he should have been…" and she stops again, frustration clear on her face.
"Sherry, if he hasn't been there much then it's because of his work," Abhi tries to reason with her, "Even my father missed so many important events in my life due to his duties, and it took me a long time to forgive him for that."
"But your father would come if your mother was dying, wouldn't he?" Sherry asks him bluntly, "He would at least sit by her side during her last breaths."
Abhi is shocked by this statement, not having expected it. He had known that Sherry's mother had died, but…
"For those last four days she was in the hospital… I was the one who sat by her side." Sherry continues, tears now shining in her eyes, "I sat there alone, waiting for him to come, and he didn't. I can't blame Raj Bhaiyya, he was on a mission at the time, we couldn't even contact him but my father, he could've returned, he knew, had known for months… she waited for him until the last moment, making excuses about why he hadn't come, and when he did it was only to cremate her."
And that had just been the beginning of it, after that she had had other reasons to hate him as well…
The mask that Sherry so carefully keeps slips, and for a moment all of the pain inside her is visible on her face, so stark that Abhimanyu has no idea what to say, how he might comfort her.
"Have you ever told this to Raj?" he asks her, carefully, not sure of what else to say. "I'm sure if you told him…"
"Bhaiyya has enough problems of his own," Sherry replies, shrugging, and the mask is quickly back in place again. "I'm not going to burden him with mine too. I can cope, I have been for the past three years."
"You might not want to burden Raj… but I'm here to talk about it if you want to." Abhimanyu offers, not sure what else to do. "I'm definitely not a 'shrink' as you would say, I might not be able to offer good advice but I will listen."
And Sherry wavers, torn between a desire to finally talk to somebody after all these years of keeping it inside and a fear of what will happen if somebody knows… really knows….
"Thanks," she tells him, and it's one of the most genuine sounding thank you's she's said in a very long time. "But I'll be fine… I think I've done enough talking today for quite some time."
And before he can protest, she walks out of the room, blinking back angry tears, ashamed at herself for losing control so easily, for allowing her father to affect her so much.
She hates him, she hates him so much. But more than that, she hates herself.
Because she's the one who despite knowing the truth doesn't have the courage to speak it.
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
Bigg Boss 19
Mannat Har Khushi Paane Ki
Kumkum Bhagya
Love Friendship Dating and Relationships
29