Say something, I'm giving up on you
Here it was. The moment Aryan’s been dreading since the day he decided to help Imlie with her ‘Malini Didi ka PardaFash’. It was done. Mrs. Malini Chaturvedi Tripathi was exposed. It wasn’t necessary, most of the Tripathi’s knew what she was. Except the chosen one, ‘Mr. Aditya Kumar Tripathi’, everyone knew what this woman could do, what lengths she could go to.
Imlie had succeeded anyway.
Because Imlie exposed what Malini had already done. What all was done in the past. What all torture, physical and mental, Malini had imposed upon Imlie.
Imlie had to show everyone, Mr. Aditya Kumar Tripathi, what Malini was doing to their family.
I'll be the one, if you want me to
Because those people were her family. Aryan was not.
It is strange that he even wanted to be.
Aryan hardly accepted Imlie as a friend, why would he want her to be his family?
But he did. He wanted to be her family. He wanted his family to be her family. He wanted her to get out of this house, get away from this family, and he wanted to absorb her into his own. These people didn’t realise her worth. These people only talked about her being their daughter. These people only talked about standing up for her, standing up with her. They never did.
Then too she stood by them. Because she might be their family for only talking, but they were hers in all ways.
And he wanted that for himself. He wanted that for himself, but he could never obligate her for it. He did not want her dedicating herself to his family like she did with the Tripathi’s. He wanted her to reciprocate in his family. And she would, because his family would do for her what these people never did.
However, this would happen only when she was ready, which she was not.
Anywhere, I would've followed you
He saw how the family members all thanked her for making Aditya realise how wrong he was about Malini. He saw how the family members apologised for all the wrong Malini had caused her. He saw how the family members hugged her for, once again, saving them. He saw how she took the praise at stopping Aditya from leaving them.
He saw how she smiled at them.
He followed her as they began taking her inside the house, as he has been since the moment they met. From throwing water at her from his car, to helping her save herself from being sold in a brothel, he had followed her.
Through her divorce, her ex-husband’s third wedding to his second wife, her trying to save her ex-husband from a terrorist in her village, and living in this crazy house, he had followed her.
Say something, I'm giving up on you
Imlie felt good. She felt relieved. She was exhausted, but it was the good exhausted, not like the one felt when every trial resulted in failure. The exhaustion she felt was something that one felt after they had had a tiring day, but a good day, when they had achieved something.
She felt like her goal was finally complete. Her mother was happy that her son was not leaving the house. Everyone else was happy that Malini was no longer in the house. Aditya was happy that his obligation to Malini was limited to the child yet to be born.
Imlie was happy too, after all her family was happy.
She smiled as she was bestowed with blessings from elders and congratulations from youngsters. Her smile turned brittle when Aditya Kumar Tripathi thanked her for stopping him from making yet another mistake in his life, and apologised for having made so many mistakes already.
The thanks didn’t matter because he was not the one who she did this all for and the apology made her laugh because it was too little too late.
She turned her gaze away from him, to her partner.
She waited, hoping he would say something too, praise her, appreciate her.
And I am feeling so small
It was over my head
I know nothing at all
Too soon, it was absolutely too soon to be pulled into the house, a house which remained hers in name only. A house which she no longer missed when she left.
When she left this house, she hadn’t imagined that there would ever come a day where she wouldn’t consider it home. But then, he came into her life, and he gave her a new home. A home she missed when she left it. People she missed when she left. Him, she missed when she left.
She realised early on, that the Tripathis were not someone she missed, but people whom she worried about. People who she feels indebted to. People who were a guiding light when all she wanted in life was a happy marriage and a happy life. A job where she inspires people, which made her husband proud. A husband that loved her. A family that loved her.
She didn’t realise that her dreams were so small, not until she met him. Her dreams felt little in comparison with what he dreamed for her. He made her see, and still does, that she was made for bigger things.
But today, moving forward, she didn’t know what she wanted. That what this, Malini’s betrayal exposed, meant for her moving forward.
And I will stumble and fall
I'm still learning to love
Just starting to crawl
She was following behind her elders, going into the house that held bittersweet memories for her. She had Nishant and Sunder on one side, and Rupi and Aditya on her other side, and all she could feel was this didn’t feel right.
The people beside her felt wrong.
She paused then, just before moving past the threshold of this house.
She has always been desperate to enter this house. But not today. No, today she desperately wanted to run away. Because she knew, she knew forward lies madness.
She wished he would stop her again. She wished he would hold her hand and take her away from here.
But she also knew that he would be considered wrong to do it today.
She took a step towards the threshold again, and her foot got stuck in it. It seemed the house too, no longer wanted her in it.
She stumbled, her balance lost, but before she could fall, he placed a hand on her back. And she knew it was him, she had begun recognising his touch.
She had started feeling when he touched her.
He pushed her a little, so that she wouldn’t fall. He pushed her a little, and she entered the house.
She turned to look at him, on the other side of the threshold, and for the first time ever, she wasn’t sure he would follow her.
Say something, I'm giving up on you
He waited, waited for what he didn’t know. Maybe, for her to invite him in. Maybe, for her to hold his hand and pull him in. Maybe, for her to thank him. Maybe, for her to apologise to him.
Maybe, for her to shut the door on him.
He didn’t know what he waited for, but he also knew what he waited for.
For her to not go any further past that threshold. For her to come back on his side, rather than follow those people inside the house.
For her to move on from Aditya Kumar Tripathi.
For her to move on to him, Aryan.
It was too soon. It was early. But he felt what he felt. And he also knew she felt what she felt.
And they may not know what the other felt, but then too, he waited for her to come back outside, so they could go home.
I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you
She knew he didn’t want to come in. She knew that he hated it here. She knew from early on that he didn’t like ‘The Vibe’ of this house.
What she didn’t understand was why he had come here? What she didn’t understand was why he wouldn’t come in now?
But she did, she just didn’t want to accept it.
Before she could ask him to come in, someone was calling her from inside the house. Then, like a chain reaction, everyone was calling her inside the house.
She turned back to him after answering them, her eyes pleading, for what she didn’t know. But just pleading.
It wasn’t just her that noticed that nobody called for him.
Anywhere, I would've followed you
Aryan saw her pleading with him, not sure if she was asking him to forgive her for going back inside, or for him to follow her. He wanted it to be the first, he needed it to be the first. He hoped it to be the first.
But he knew it would be second.
And he knew without a doubt, even when nobody had called him inside, he would follow her anyways.
Why? Something he knew but didn’t accept. Something he realised but did not see.
He would follow her anyway. That was a fact for Aryan Singh Rathore. One he didn’t actually realise happening, unable to stop it, but which fell on him and caught him unawares.
This woman was, what he reckoned, God’s punishment for every wrong he had done.
And what a punishment she was.
Say something, I'm giving up on you
He followed her inside. She knew he would. He always did.
It was just that Imlie was seeing him now.
It wasn’t that she didn’t see him before. It was just that she didn’t see how he was different with her before.
Aryan Singh Rathore, Imlie thought, wouldn’t follow just anyone to a place he didn’t like.
Aryan Singh Rathore, Imlie thought, wouldn’t enter a place uninvited for just anyone.
She took a breath of relief anyway, when he followed her inside. She waited for him to say something again, hoping he would say that they needn’t stay here anymore. That her mission was complete. That they could go home now.
That she could go with him now.
He remained silent.
And I will swallow my pride
You're the one that I love
And I'm saying goodbye
When they entered the living room, the calls silenced.
No one expected them to come in together it seemed.
He watched as his mother and his sister beamed at them, at least someone was happy to see him here, with her.
He also realised that these people were not unhappy at seeing him here. No, they didn’t want to see him here with Imlie.
They wanted their life to go back to as it was before, Imlie with them, back in the house that caged her while showing her dreams of freedom.
Well tough luck.
He would follow her anywhere.
But, he looked up, would she follow him?
He wanted her to leave this place, but did she want to leave?
He wanted her to leave Aditya, but would she come to him?
Say something, I'm giving up on you
He watched as the Tripathi family drama unfolded for the hundredth time in the days he had been living in the Tripathi Residence. And he was absolutely done.
He watched as the drama outside the house repeated inside it, only with more theatrics, this time involving Sitaa Maiyaa, a veneration plate and thousands of flowers.
He scoffed at this treatment she was getting.
Her not saying anything was confusing enough for him. He could not gauge, sometimes he couldn’t, what she was thinking.
She would have to say for him to understand what she was thinking.
And I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you
Imlie watched as her ex-mother-in-law did her Pooja. Imlie watched as everyone blessed her, praised her, and smiled at her.
She didn’t want it.
She wanted his praise. She wanted his smile. She wanted his partnership.
She wanted to go to him. She wanted him to look at her and tell her what she should do. She knew already what she wanted to do, she knew what he would say she should do.
But still, she wanted him to tell her.
She wanted to ask him to tell her.
And anywhere, I would have followed you
Oh-oh, say something, I'm giving up on you
She watched as he turned around, going to his room, most probably done with this dramatics. She knew he wanted to leave this place. She knew that his purpose of being here was done, maybe not completely, but still.
She waited then too. She waited for him to ask her to go with him. She wanted to tell him that she would go with him.
She knew she wanted to leave this place with more bitter memories than sweet, and walk towards the place that would only give her sweet memories.
She waited for him to say something.
Say something, I'm giving up on you
He left his room, having changed to his business attire once again. His work here was done. He was ready to leave this house. He texted his staff orders for them to come here and take their things back to Rathore Mansion. He would call his mother and his sister later, when this Taam-Jhaam was done.
For now he was leaving this place.
His eyes found hers then. He paused, hoping she would say something now. Something that would make him stop. Something that assured him that she was coming with him.
Because it was her turn now. He had done so much, and it may not be enough, but this time, this time he wanted her to be the one to do something. Say something.
Say something
When his gaze finally found hers, she understood, this time, he was not going to say anything.
This felt like another test.
This was something she couldn’t fail.
This time he was asking her to say something first. This time he wanted her to do something.
His gaze left hers, and her eyes followed him as he went past through the threshold they were standing moments before.
Her pleading, him yielding.
This was more than a battle of wills now.
This wasn’t even a battle anymore.
It was a call for one. One they would have to fight if she stopped him. One they would have to fight if she ran to him.
She did anyway.
She ran for him, ignoring all sounds of shock, all calls for her name, all expressions of disbelief, she ran to him.
And she found him, his back turned to her, him on the bottom of the stairs at the entrance, and her on top of them.
She braved on, taking a leap of faith.
She reached the bottom, his back still facing her, and grabbed a hold of his hand on his side.
He turned to look at the hand first, and then looked up to her.
He smirked, triumphant.
She blushed, ecstatic.
She may have followed him to the bottom of the stairs, but he would take her to the top.
Turns out, actions do speak louder than words.
Itti Si Khushi Sab TV
Bade Achhe Lagte Hain
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
