hey guys! Here I am with yet another chapter- awaiting for your responses about what you think. Enjoy!
Chapter 4: Tujhsa nai koi iss jag mein
(Early morning, Rudra's room)
She knew he had to be awake, how could he unwind while the Oberoi mansion was gripped with fear of losing its sensitive one, the clouds of darkness had moved for a while but not disappeared yet. The tragedy of being youngest in the house is: having to be a quiet observer and when it came to a family problem, that too like this one- he couldn't even go to his superman finding solace in him- he had to be his strength, not someone looking further for support. She was nonplussed at how much she had started understanding like a wi--. Shoot! She is not supposed to remember this...
'Sumo' He sounded distressed.
'You shouldn't worry about anything. Things will get better. Sareen uncle, Tej uncle bade bhaiya will handle the situation.'
'Sometimes I wish I was Om's twin or not more than a year younger. I could have been of help.'
'You can still be'
'How?'
'Be with prinku and Jhanvi aunty. Bade bhaiya is telling you every detail of the case- convey these details to them so that they are reassured that Om bhaiya will be declared innocent.'
Rudra smiled at her- everyone was not entirely wrong about his... about Sumo. He chided himself for thinking about that' once again. But he was supposed to talk to O about it and he can't now, not in this situation. 'Sumo, about that..'
She didn't let him complete. 'Don't worry Rudra; that was a silly mistake on our part. We better forget it and you focus on the current happenings.'
They smiled at each other before she left. Today, Sareen uncle would ask O about the details in front of Shivaay bhaiya. He wouldn't risk it anymore. He would be with O and make sure that he reveals every single detail about the accident.
(Little later, The study)
'Ishaana would generally accompany me to client meetings whenever shes's around. She reads a lot of criminal psychology. She'll be here soon.'
Criminal. That was the word that grabbed all his attention. Would his existence now amount to that? How would he life his whole life with such a tag. Om's thoughts were distracted by Shivaay's impatient voice.
'I think we better schedule our discussion without Ms. Ishaana. I don't expect her to be up this early after last night I mean she organized everything and it was a pretty lavish party, she must be tired.'
' In that case, I am happy to surprise you Mr. Shivaay'
There the young lady stood. Well dressed. Fresh looking. No signs of having partied till 3 am. Smart.
'Tiresome is a word which I despise and hence, it doesn't fit in my dictionary.'
'So, let's get started. Why this confession?'
Om was stumped at the question. He had prepared all the details of that night to be told. This was not what he expected. Shivaay's glare reminded him that he had not yet been forgiven, he would have to divulge the truth, and he was nowhere close to a spontaneous liar.
'I... I...came...to know...'
'Have some water, Mr. Om and remember- you are not going to be convicted. You are being asked about the details so that dad can help you'
'But I did do an accident and ran from there'
'Ishaana! Let's get back to the question Mr. Omkara or Om, if I can call you that?'. Om just nodded in affirmation. What did you know? You were saying something'
'The girl I killed had a son.'
The 20 year experienced lawyer was still perplexed. Om was not a regular ameer baap ka hit-and-run' convict, he was genuinely guilty- or better say engulfed with guilt. Abhijeet could easily tell that the young man had punished himself enough. He never met anyone's eyes while talking about the incident. Never.
'So?'
Something seemed to be wrong with this man. He took so long. The girl had a son so? How did he himself have so much patience? A rich brat who'd run over a person should quickly tell all details ad plead for saving him. That was the rule of thumb. That had always happened. But that was till Ishana had met Om.
This was the first time when he saw her in the eyes, for that matter, first time he saw anyone on the eyes, 'SHE WAS A MOTHER! A kid lost his mother just because of my carelessness.' She couldn't bear it, so much pain in his eyes that too for someone who was not related to him, for someone because of whom he could be in a massive problem, yet there was sympathy, pain and guilt in his eyes. Was this man for real? For her, idealism and truth had been middle class' tool to show the rich down and to for those people to convince themselves that they were still at a better position than rich people. This was something she had never come across.
Shivaay patted his brother to calm down. Ishaana got a glare from Mr. Sareen which definitely meant that she better be a listener. Her dad had never stopped her from questioning and participating in a discussion but if he was, it must be for a reason.
'How did you come to know that?'
'Why is that important?'
'Every detail related to the girl, the confession and the accident IS important Om. I would request you to just co-operate and answer my questions.'
Om was undisputedly scared. He again lowered his eyes, he had hidden so much for Shivaay, maybe the most important things about his life. He had not been forgiven yet and if Shivaay was to know what ACP had done to his brother and sister, not only would he destroy the ACP but also would he blame himself to have been ignorant of what his siblings had gone through.
The lawyer drank his tea patiently and nodded at Shivaay to be patient too. Om's body language was making him more confident that the accident had been a mistake and his righteousness wouldn't have let him do anything wrong. He just needed to pull out facts from his client which he undoubtedly would. He repeated his question very calmly.
'How did you come to know that the girl had a son?'
'The ACP told me that, he texted me his photo. The girl was his sister.'
At this Shivaay's face flushed red and Sareen comprehended the reason of Om's fear. He had not taken long to notice that more than Tej, it was Shivaay who was impatient to finish off the case and declare Om as guilt-free.
'When the hell did this happen? And why didn't I know it?'
Om dared not meet Shivaay's eyes now. He had started shaking a bit. Sareen handed him the water and signalled Shivaay to calm down.
'Any idea, how would ACP know or someone from the Oberoi family committed the crime?'
'No'
'And how do you think ACP knew that it was you who did the accident?'
'I don't know'
'In the confession, you said that you tried you find the girl after the accident but couldn't find anything apart from a bloodied dupatta. Would you remember the time approximately?'
Om looked as if it were a joke. He had expected to be asked questions about that particular incident and this man was talking about everything apart from it. And how would he have had the mind to see the time, that moment he had felt as if the world was going to end. His sister... NO... he is not to think about it now. The truth is what he mentioned in that piece of paper and Prinku is no where related. NOWHERE!
'Time, Mr. Om'
'I went back when I realised that the sun had started rising'
'And you directly came back home?'
He decided not to hide anything apart from Prinku. Hiding anything else didn't make much sense either.
'After making a phone call'
'From your mobile?'
'From the STD down the road after crossing the bridge'
Shivaay's eyebrows arched. He knew what his brother would have done next, that much he understood his behaviour. Only if he could have found that girl in the night or called him.
'To?'
'I called the police to let them know that there was an accident.'
She got an uncontrollable coughing fit. WHAT THE HECK!! Either the man sitting in front of her was a complete idiot or there was something significantly wrong with the world. HE CALLED THE POLICE!!
'Have water, Ishu. That's good for now. I was anyway sure that this case is a plain accident which is different from a hit-and-run case. So, Om, please convince yourself that you tried your level best. That was all you could have done.'
Om didn't seem to give in. But not knowing how to handle the young man in front of them, both gave up for that time and walked off towards the room where Anika had arranged their stay, which had been her new job since Shivaay;s marriage was once again postponed- indefinitely. A moment later he saw a disappointed Shivaay- disappointed in himself and his brothers.
'Don't blame yourself'
'I should have known that this much had happened' he immediately regretted his words. The lawyer and his brash daughter were having hard time already trying to convince Om that he was not guilty and here, he just increased that feeling by accusing him of not involving his elder brother. He had to go back into the mode of being his wall- he could not let the anger and hurt take over him, at least not now.
'Well, better late than never. You don't need to worry about anything. Me, bade papa and Sareen uncle will handle everything.'
Only if Shivaay knew that his artist brother knew how to read people's eyes, and definitely his brother's. He gave him a small smile.
(The guest section in the Oberoi mansion)
'This is not even a case Dad, they are just spending money for nothing. An accident which no one saw, a girl whose body was never found, no proofs just guesses. If that dumb ACP had some proof I would have asked you to put your mind in some manipulation but it's appasalutely nothing here. I don't understand why these Oberois are so worried about the case at the first place and why should a court case come up? Anyway, there's no problem in minting money out of them if they are asking for it!
'Well well, my angry young child! The thing is that I am here because of Tej today. When your grand-dad's business was dissolved, thanks to his partners- if it was not Tej, I wouldn't have been Delhi's best advocate. The problem that I have understood till now is: that his son is an idealist and terribly honest. But, it's difficult for me to believe that he'll hide 'his' mistake- I know this because in 20 years of my experience, i have seen enough dishonesty. And if he were hypocritical in terms of his ideals, the case wouldn't have reached here at all.
Happy at seeing his brother at least smile after all what had happened, Shivaay realised that they need to rush to Tej and discuss the future course of action of the case.
'Bade papa would be waiting to know the discussion.'
However, in the hall, Tej Singh Oberoi sat with Abhijeet Sareen and Ishana, who'd decided to meet him up before relaxing for some time, partly also because Anika wanted to make a few more arrangements for them. These were the times when both Om and Shivaay realised that even though similar yet how different Shivaay was from Tej. Since his arrest yesterday, Shivaay's mind was one-pointed at thinking how to get his brother out of the mess; however, there Tej was- diverting his mind by chit-chatting with his friend and his daughter.
'Sareen told me that you are interested in starting a new business.'
Dad doesn't lie till he needs to.' (winks)
'But your fashion line is doing really well.'
'Does that amount to saying that I shouldn't expand?'
It was not a usual scene when Tej Singh Oberoi was being picked up on. May be what he thought was brash, was actually a hard-headed business mind with a little bit of over-confidence- though not unrealistic for the daughter of India's biggest criminal lawyers.
'Ofcourse not! This is just my general curiosity. What attracts you to business? I mean for a girl who understands criminal psychology so well'
Shivaay, though interested in knowing more about this girl, had started to lose patience. He had to discuss the on goings of Om's case and see what they should do. Om was calmer, much calmer than he had been in last two years. The truth was out- whatever might be the consequences- he felt like he was the Om of two years ago. And about, Mr Oberoi, he didn't care, he only knew what a father means because he had his great wall- his brother, Shivaay and when they were together, he didn't need a third person.
Ishaana smiled at the question.
'It's simple Mr. Oberoi. The first reason is that I like to bring together the manufacturers and the buyers- sort of middleman-ship but requires so much intelligence and effort and second, the truth of the life is that most of the guys are assholes, hope you take it sportingly. I don't want to cry in some corner because some stupid brat spoiled my life- in fact, they shouldn't even have that right at the first place. Mr. Oberoi, love is only for the super lucky people in the world and I am not a fool to consider myself in that category, and anyway, pyar ke bina life chal skti hai but paise ke bina- I don't think so. So I like making money. And which is much more in business than in law. The funda is simple: Party hard, travel hard, work harder to make first two things possible till 30's; get married with some super-rich guy, if by chance I am in that super lucky category, enjoy for rest of life and if he's an asshole continuing doing what I did for last 10 years. We get life only once Mr. oberoi and I want to live it to the full extent (winks).'
Om could not take this girl anymore. Plain brash and money-loving, and what more than taking pride in the same fact calling it living life to full extent. Shivaay was astonished, he had not seen a girl like her in ages- he had always thought Mallika to be one of the strongest girls he had ever met but Ishana's level was to a different extent altogether.
'Do you have any business plan?'
'Planning is the basis of life, Mr. Oberoi, an unplanned action equals suicide- for what consequences it may bring and what you want might never converge.'
Tej was bowled over. He was very obviously impressed by her.
'So, what do you want from us?'
'Partnership, if possible. I have a proposal. If you like it we'll go ahead and if not, don't take the pressure because dad's fighting Mr. Omkara's case. I like to be judged for my abilities.'
Tej was further impressed. It was rare to see him smiling at people- but ofcourse, she was Ishana, something was definitely not normal about her.
'And the proposal is?'
Om was about to walk off as he couldn't handle more of this but Ishana caught his hand. ( o saathiya bg).
'The proposal needs your presence'
Om raised his brows sceptically but obliged Shivaay who signalled him to sit. She took out a file and kept in front of them.
'It's the proposal for art-business: more specifically (looks towards Om), sculpture business'
For the first time Om and Tej shared the same feeling. Bewilderment. Not that Shivaay's feelings were any different. But Om's definition of business had never been in a positive light and to call his art a business was the worst hit anyone could have given him. But she knew that she had won the game. It was evident in Tej's eyes- he wanted to know what she meant ; he wanted to know if she could bring his son to do what he has been waiting for since years.
'And what made you think that I'll agree to this?'
The prospect of having a successful business and a lots of money in the creative field you are passionate about. Everyone does it.'
'Not me!'
I am sorry Mr Sareen, and as Ishana said that we can reject the proposal if we don't like. We'll exactly do the same because we do not like it.'
'But you don't know it yet'
'And neither do I want to'
'Not only knowing Mr. Omkara, you would want to do it once you know it. Let's discuss it while walking towards your workplace, I would like to see some of your sculptures.'
Her insolent attitude was too much for him to take. In a moment she had disrespected his art and his decision both.
Though his voice was calm but what he said raised Tej's temper to the maximum degree.
'I do not show my work to arrogant brats'
Abhijeet's face fell. No one had ever called Ishana, an arrogant brat. Not that she wasn't; but knowing the person she was no one had ever dared to say that in front of her, leave alone meeting her eyes while talking. As a person, she was stronger than him, yet this man had pounded over the tigress. He walked off to his room to calm down before his father confronted him. Shivaay stood dumfounded. Since Diwali, nothing had been normal in Oberoi mansion and nothing made any sense either. Om was disgusted at even having this talk in the wake of what was going on in his life right now.
And what she said, of-course made no sense either.
'And I would love to work with an arrogant asshole. Be ready,Mr. Tej, Oberois ans Sareens will soon launch India's first full-fledged art-business. '
From her smile and determination, Sareen knew she wasn't making a bold statement. His tigress meant it.
For Shivaay, nothing made sense. It was a first for Om being called an arrogant asshole and for him calling someone with similar adjectives. This Diwali had done something to his house and the world. A major change in currency, Trump sitting in US presidency, his brother being involved in an accident case, his falling in...! Fhat the wuck! He needed to put his mind to rest for a few moments and not think.
P.S.: So, This is a disclaimer for the titles till now and for the subsequent ones. They are mostly taken from a Hindi song intending to be a metaphor for the happenings in the three brother' lives.
Tomatoes/Chappals/Appreciation welcomed
Cheers!
Appy
Indian Idol 15
