"How dare you?" he hissed. "How dare you question Maan Singh Khurana?"
It took every bit of Maan's will power to keep his face screwed in anger and his voice low and menacing, when all he wanted to do was take the woman standing in front of him into his arms, never to let her go. But he knew Geet. She wouldn't let him do anything of the sort without first getting answers to her questions. How could he answer those questions when for half of them he didn't know the answers himself and the other half he was too ashamed to disclose. If he wanted to answer Geet's questions he would have to reveal his greatest weakness to her and that was out of the question!
"TUM KAUN HOTI HO MAAN SINGH KHURANA SE SAWAL POOCHNE WAALI?" He raged on frantically as his confusion and his unexpressed love burned the insides of his stomach.
Geet stared into his eyes, beginning to betray the shock and bewilderment his anger had caused her. Just when she felt like she was starting to understand this man, allowing herself to accept his affection and wanting to give him a second chance, he caught her completely off guard. But no, she gathered herself, this time she would not go silent. This time she would get her answers no matter how much she had to strive for them. There was something there and shout as he might he could not deny it. Geet stood her ground, as he hurled abuse after abuse at her. Strangely at some point she stopped hearing the words and became fixated on his eyes. More than the nature and volume of his words, the tortured soul she could see within those eyes, desperately begging her for something, disturbed her mind---
---"Bade Papa?"
Suddenly Maan went silent and Geet studied his face. She could see the guilt wash over him at the sight of Suhana on the top step wearing a confused, worried expression and some how she knew, she knew he was going to hurt himself the next chance he got and the need to stop him, protect him from himself came over her.
"Bade Papa, aap aunty pe aise kyun chila rahe hain?"
Maan's eyes were blank, he was filled with self-loathing. He wanted to kill himself for abusing Geet again. Hadn't she gone through enough pain because of him? But what choice had she left him?
"Vo...vo...kyunki...vo aunty... mujshe sawal pooch rahi thi" he answered Suhana absently.
"Bas?" Suhana asked innocently. "Kal jab main apni test ke liye tayar ho rahi thi Aunty ne mujhse bhi bahut saare sawaal pooch liya. Par maine aapki tarah chilayi nahin, Maine bas sab sahi sahi jawab de di" she said with a confident smirk.
Geet took one look at the smug little face, looking almost in contempt at a bewildered Maan and as tense as the situation was, as disturbed as she had been by the torture in Maan's eyes only seconds before, she burst out laughing.
Suhana very pleased at herself for making her aunty laugh ran over, clung to Geet's leg and joined her laughter.
Maan, who had been lost in guilt for shouting and Geet the way he had and for allowing Suhana to hear it, snapped out of his stupour only to witness the most soothing sight he had ever laid eyes on, to hear the most beautiful harmony of laughter coming from the two people he loved most in the world. At that moment all the anger, confusion and hatred simply disappeared from inside him because of the love that was forcing its way in, leaving room for no other emotion. He looked at the two of them laughing and felt, for the first time in his troubled life, complete peace and utter happiness.
Geet, catching her breath in between gales of laughter glimpsed Maan's altered face. She had never seen that serenity in the habitually tempestuous eyes before and somehow it made her peaceful as well. She took Suhana into her arms and said over the little, puff-sleeved shoulder with a long-absent sparkle in her eyes, "Apni pyari Suhana se kuch sikhiye. Mujhe sab sahi sahi jawab de dijiye. Bas"
"Main intezaar karungi"
------
I hope you liked it and forgave poor Maan a little. But what is his greatest weakness? đ˛
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
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