Part 40
Geet had been turning and tossing around in bed trying to sleep without much luck. Giving up on it, she sat in upright position and checked the clock once again. Maan had promised to be back soon but it was getting late. He had told her that Naintara had agreed to come to Delhi and stay with them, so what was causing the delay? She had tried desperately to get in touch with both of them but they had neither called her nor picked up any of her calls. There had been a storm earlier, could it be that his flight was delayed because of it? But then he would have at least told her about the delay. Maan was never the irresponsible one. She was!! Worry etched her face as she got up from bed and made her way to the living room. She decided to call Adi and try to get some information. Maybe he knew something.
She had just walked out of her room when she ran into Savitri Devi.
"Aree Geet Bete, hum aapke hi pass aa rahe the." Savitri Devi clutched the phone in her hand as she looked at Geet's worried face. "Kya baat hai Beta? Aap pareshaan lag rahi hain"
Geet plastered a smile on her face, "Kuch nahi Daadima, bas Maan ki wait kar rahi thi"
"Hum aapko vahi bataane ke liye aaye the beta, Maan ka phone aaya tha. Kuch kaam aa gaya yahan. Isliye ab woh dono kal subah ki flight se aayenge. Maan ne kaha hai ki aap unki wait na karen aur so jaaye"
"Maan called you?" She looked at her with wide eyes. Why hadn't he called her?
Savitri Devi smiled, "Haan beta, ab aap jaa kar aaraam kijiye"
Geet nodded slightly and walked away. Dekha babaji!! Dekha aapne... chaubees gante nahi huye unko gaye huye..abhi se mujhe bhool gaye..main yahan unki fikar mei mari jaa rahi hoon lekin unko koi fikar nahi meri.. ek phoen nahi kar sakte the..ek message hi kar dete...lekin nahi janaab to busy hain. Mere liye koi time thodi na hai inko..Chal Geet.. Maan ne kaha hai ki so jaa.. chal ab tu aaraam kar.
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Maan disconnected the phone and sighed loudly. He had wanted to talk to Geet but decided against it. He was sitting in the hospital area getting his arm bandaged. She would have heard the commotion around and would start asking a lot of questions and he didn't want to lie to her. So he had decided to call Daadima and take the easy way out. At least Geet would know he was safe and sound and sleep well tonight. He had told Daadima about his travel plans too. He winced as the nurse cleaned the wound with an antiseptic.
"Sorry" Naintara spoke softly, her eyes downcast.
Maan shook his head "It's not your fault Naintara. Stop blaming yourself. Infact I should thank you for calling the police at the right time. It was a very good and quick thinking"
"I hate to think what would have happened if the police hadn't come at the right time" She shuddered involuntarily, the images of their fight playing in her mind.
"Hey..it is over. Relax" Maan picked up his jacket just as the nurse finished dressing his wound. Muttering a quick thanks to her, he walked out along with Naintara. "I need to call Adi and book tomorrow morning's flight for us"
"Veerji, I was thinking since Dev is behind bars now, I don't have to go----"
Maan held his good arm up and stopped her. "Please we are not having that argument again. You are coming with me tomorrow. Let's take one step at a time. As i said earlier, you are free to cut short your stay whenever you want."
Before she could say anything else "Please Naintara, I am in pain right now and would just like to crash for the night somewhere"
"Good thing, I still have the keys to my apartment" she smiled.
An hour later, Maan lay sprawled on a bed in Naintara's guestroom, his mind filled with thoughts of Geet.
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Light flowed in from the bay windows of her bedroom and crept up onto her face. Her eyelids fluttered open and she stretched her hand on the side trying to find her soulmate. But it was empty. The eyes flew open and she lifted her head to get a glimpse of the clock and groaned out loudly. She hastily yanked her blanket away in anger and got up ready to face the day. She could almost feel a panic attack swelling in her chest, a fear threatening to surface. She pushed the doubts aside as she made her way to the bathroom.
Aaj aane do unko... bilkul baat nahi karoongi...unki taraf dekhungi bhi nahi.. aise bhi koi karta hai kya?? ek phone nahi kar sakte the.. ek message bhi nahi kiya. Hamari koi fikar nahi hai unko...She touched her belly and pouted "Baby, hum dono Papa se naraaz hain...aap bhi unse baat mat karna... theek hai??" Mr. Khurana aaj aapki khair nahin...you better be careful today when u reach home
Having finished with their breakfast, Geet and Savitri Devi were sitting in the in the living room talking to while away the time till Maan and Naintara's return. If Savitri Devi noticed Geet's restlessness, she refrained from commenting, knowing Maan was going to have tough time after returning. She smiled to herself and sent a small prayer thanking God for sending this special woman in her grandson's life.
Geet kept looking at the watch every 10 minutes and complaining to her Babaji! "Kaha tha ke 11 baje tak aa jayenge...11.10 ho gayee..abhi tak nahi aaye!" The opening of the main door diverted her attention from her private conversation to see Maan who had just made it to the main door.
Naintara was right behind him, her eyes downcast and she looked a little apprehensive. Geet saw Maan put the suitcase down as she quickly stood up and walked towards them. She gave a warm hug to Naintara and went to stand a few feet away from Maan. He looked on, baffled and a little frustrated at her. Hadn't she missed him like he had missed her? The look she wore on her face had Maan convinced that his beautiful wife was miffed with him. The frown on his face turned into a slight smile. Savitri Devi smiled broadly as she came to stand with Naintara and pressed a kiss to her forehead. Maan and Geet's eyes locked for a moment but Geet twisted her lips and looked away.
"Tum to pehle se bhi ziada sundar lag rahi ho Naintara" Savitri Devi remarked. Naintara blushed slightly and suppressed a smile. "Hume is baat ki bahut khushi hain ki tumne Maan ki baat maan li. Chalo ab andar ja kar aaraam kar lo"
Naintara nodded her head slightly and gave a quizzical look to Maan. Maan simply shook his head slightly and urged her to go ahead. Not wanting to stay and make small talk with Maan, Geet quickly made her way behind Naintara to show her her room and make sure she felt at home.
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Everyone was seated for lunch when Geet noticed that Maan seemed to be having trouble with his left shoulder. His face contorted with pain as he tried to pour the water for himself in the glass. Geet was on his side in a jiffy. Savitri Devi looked perplexed at her daughter-in-law's behavior. "Kya hua Geet?" She asked.
"Daadima, Maan-" she turned to Daadima to tell her that she was worried about Maan when her eye caught something. Naintara was signaling Maan something and he was shaking her head. His face was stern and fierce. He looked angry at something but she couldn't wrap her head around it. "Maan, kya hua?" She asked tentatively. He met her eyes but didn't speak anything. "Is everything okay?" she asked again. This time the question was directed at Naintara who seemed to have lost all appetite and looked once at Maan and then at Geet.
"Maan Bete, Geet kuch pooch rahi hai. Kya hua?" Savitri Devi asked sternly.
"Woh.. kuch nahi Daadima, bas thodi si lag gayi" He replied as Geet stood near him.
"Thodi si??" Savitri Devi exclaimed, looking at the white bandage as Maan shrugged his shirt off to expose his shoulder.
"Yeh kaise huya?? Naintara bete, did u guys have an accident?"
Naintara looked at Geet with tears in her eyes. "It's all my fault. I should never have called Maan Veerji there. If he hadn't come and gotten that restraining order, none of this would have happened." With that she broke into sobs that she had been holding ever since she reached Khurana Mansion. The guilt that Maan was hurt because of her and the questions in Geet and Daadima's eyes suddenly seem to suffocate her.
"Naintara ---" Maan started to say but Savitri Devi, cut his off.
"Hume koi bataya ki kya hua hai? Aapne hume kal phone par kyun nahi kuch bataya??"
Maan nodded and reluctantly narrated the whole incident that took place in Mumbai downplaying his encounter with Dev and his injury which had led to their late arrival. Savitri devi gasped when she heard Dev had tried his luck again to harm Maan. Thanking Almighty that Maan was safe and back home, she examined his arm and asked him to rest till he got better. Maan looked up to Geet's face but it registered a blank. For the first time, he couldn't read her eyes for she didn't look at him. Her forehead was creased as her eyes were gazing at his wound. He waited for Geet to say something. But to his surprise, she didn't say a word or look at him but stood as a mere spectator as Daadima fussed around him asking Naintara and him all sorts of questions about the incident. He wasn't a fool to not understand his wife, so he decided to keep quiet for the moment and give her sometime. A few minutes later Geet left the living room quietly without anyone noticing except for one pair of eyes that followed her till her fading silhouette was visible. Maan didn't hesitate to follow her out the door after excusing himself
As he set off in search of Geet, he found her, at her favorite spot on their bedroom balcony looking at nothing in particular lost in her thoughts. She was just standing, staring out at the horizon thoughtfully. Only his Geet could look that beautiful in a plain dress with sun's golden glow on her angelic face. He went to her and slid his arms around her waist pulling her close.
She shrugged his hands off her body and crossed her arms protectively over her chest wearing a frown.
He walked around her to stand in front of her. But she didn't meet his eyes. Her breathes came out in small puffs. "Geet'" He began softly trying to talk to her gripping her shoulders softly. She shook her head furiously, refusing to listen to him or say something.
Fifteen minutes later, the silence became too much for him to bear. He couldn't stand the stiffness and the tension in the air was rapidly pushing him to his breaking point. He sighed loudly and walked to retrieve a box lying next to the door. He pushed her palms open and placed it in her hands. The movement forced Geet to look at him. He urged her to open it without saying anything, praying in his heart she wouldn't toss that right out of the window.
With shaky hands, she ripped the wrapping and opened the box. She looked at him in amazement to find a diary inside. She flipped it open but the pages were empty.
"I just thought, you would like to write your day to day experience about this time for our baby.."
She was still silent and he panicked. "I meant that you could read this diary to the baby when she is old enough to understand----"
"he!!!" she corrected him.
"Huh??" he looked at her in confusion as he fought to say the right words.
"he is old enough to understand" she explained. He grinned.
"I thought we didn't care if it was a boy or a girl!!" he gave her a lopsided grin.
"You said, it doesn't matter. Not me" her chin jutted out as she spoke. "Mujhe ladka chahiye and I know it is a boy" She touched her belly gingerly.
"But I want a girl just like my Mishti.. As sweet as her mother. Beautiful as her mother, an angel just like her mother." His hand found its way over to her stomach and laid over hers.
"I thought you said, it doesn't matter" She spoke with accusing eyes.
"If u can change your mind so can I" He said with typical Maan Singh Khurrana attitude.
Inspite of her better judgement, Geet's lips itched a little as they curved upwards. Maan was quick to notice the change in her demeanor.
"Does it mean I am forgiven?" he cupped her face and looked desperately at her.
She leaned into his hand and sighed. Ofcourse she was mad at him but didn't know what to say. When she had seen his wound, something inside her had snapped. She had been angry at him for not informing her about his delay but he had decided not to even tell her about his wound. She knew Maan understood her turmoil. They had reached a stage in their relationship where she didn't have to voice out her concern but then did he really understand her? Before she found the correct words to say to him, she heard his voice.
"I know you are mad at me" he spoke.
"Is that so?" her eyes brows lifted mockingly at him. He let out a soft chuckle, "Oh yes I do"
"I had thought about a lot of things to say to you but I ---" He pressed a finger to her lips silencing her.
"I know that too" He pressed a kiss to her cheek and smiled. "You don't need to say anything Geet. Just smile." He brushed his nose with hers tenderly "I missed you"
Unknowingly, a sob escaped her lips. She leaned back and reached up to stroke his arm tenderly. Maan watched the expressions on her face as she looked at his bandaged wound touching it tenderly as if afraid to hurt him more. Tears glistened her eyes as she looked at him in the eye. "Does it hurt?" He shook his head in negative. Cupping her face he brought her closer, his lone finger stroked her cheek lifting away a drop of the salty water that cascaded down her cheek. He brought the shining drop in front of her eyes and spoke "but this does." She closed her eyes making the unshed tears drip down without any barrier. "Everytime I see you cry, it hurts me Geet"
She sniffed and nodded slightly. She slowly traced his face with her fingers; he leaned into the warmth of her hand against his face. He gripped her hand holding it in its place and with a slight turn of his head, his lips brushed the delicate skin of her wrist.
"Promise me something" she said. He focused on the movement of her tender fingers on his face enjoying the attention. They danced over his face before disappearing into his hair making their way to the back of his neck.
"Anything" he spoke huskily. He kept his hands gently on her hips as he held her close to him.
"You will always take care of yourself. If something happened to you, I will---" she choked on her tears as Maan bend his head and kissed her.
"Shhh shhh, he stroked her hair as he rocked her closer to his body engulfing him in his warmth. "I am not going anywhere. It is all over. I promise" He cupped her face forcing her to look at him. "No more crying!!" his voice was commanding but his eyes were soft. She nodded and gave him a small smile. He softly bumped his head with hers as she smiled through her tears.
"You did take good care of my baby, right?"
"Our baby... and yes I did" she spoke as she put her arms around him. For what seemed like eternity, Geet lay her head over his chest as Maan held her. The nightmare was over. Now she could dream. She was back in the arms of her man and she couldn't be happier. She inhaled his manly fragrance and placed a open mouthed kiss over his chest, in return Maan hugged her tightly.
Her lips moved over to his injured shoulder here she placed another tender kiss inviting a groan from Maan. She didn't have any time to react when Maan placed two fingers below her chin and forced her to look up and crashed his lips onto hers with such a force that her knees gave out. His arms were snaked around her waist holding her steady while her hands tangled in his hair. He kissed her greedily and she returned his kiss with the same hunger. She needed something more from him and when she tried to find it in his next kiss, she got it.
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