Chandini looked at him shocked as he slowly put her down and ran to her room as fast as possible. She shut the door tight and slid down against it as she recalled the happenings of past few minutes.
She and her sisters tried to eavsdrop his conversation but were caught red handed as Advay was quick enough to realise that something was fishy. Her sisters ran for their life while she got pushed and fell on the floor. When she raised her head she found him giving her weird looks but she very wittily made up an excuse that she was practising for her wedding photoshoot. Seeing his face, she concluded that her explanation didn't go well with him. Pulling her roughly, he turned the tables on by forcefully teaching her some famous Bollywood poses.
It started with the famous RK pose followed by the ever so sensuous Titanic pose, the next one being the Spiderman pose, the 'Pyaar hua ikraar hua' umbrella pose, they also immitated the most romantic pose 'Jacket pose from Aashiqui'. She thoroughly enjoyed the sensations she felt while enacting the postures. It took her some time to get back to normal but his next act shocked her like hell. He picked her up and mimicked the DDLJ poster as to how SRK had carried his bride. And whispered those lines which she dreaded to hear
"Dulhan ham le jaayenge" he whispered in her ear.
She was so much surprised at his move that she wasn't able to stand there anymore.
"That pose. How did he know about that? That was our secret..mine and Dev's something which was not known to all. And those lines he said at the end. Dev used to say those lines to me. This is not a coincidence. Not at all. This was very personal to me and Dev and no one absolutely had any clue about this. Does that mean he is ..." She closed her eyes as she feared to think anything further.
And then her mind recalled the happenings of past few weeks since the time Advay met her. 'Bado ko aap kehte hai' or him keeping a hand underneath the table to protect her from banging her head or his deep thinking seeing the height measurement chart on her room wall when he came to select a room for himself or him giving her the punishment or calling her Miss Badbad...everything pointed at a conclusion that Advay has some connection with Dev. She snapped open her eyes as she realised the gravity of the circumstances she is in.
"I will decode this mystery man Advay Singh Raizada" she said to herself.
Determined, she took her purse and holding her source of strength i.e. the stone she stepped out of the Haveli to get her answers. Within half an hour, she reached the guest house where Advay was staying. She had a gut feeling that she will definitely get some clue here. She entered his room and started the search. She opened his cupboard but it was empty. She fished through the lockers and found 4 passports of different countries bearing his photograph but with 4 different names. She was really confused now and read further which took her one step ahead in her investigation. All the passports had same birth date 6/12/1985 and she had to take support of the chair as she realised that it was 'Dev's birthdate'.
Advay had not seen her since half an hour. He was looking out for her that is when he received a call from the watchman of the guest house saying that some girl has visited there. His mind joined the dots when he had seen her peeping in his room. This means that the girl was Chandini. "Shit" he muttered under his breath and left for the guest house. She searched the table drawers for further hints, she then saw a black and white photograph and seeing it her eyes brimmed with tears. She caressed the photo as it was the first photo they had clicked with his new camera. She smiled through her tears as she remembered how badly she fought with him to give her the photo but when she cried he had given her another copy which was now framed and kept securely in her almirah. A strong wind passed and when she turned sideways her gaze fell on the veil that she noted the other day when she came to confront him. Taking slow steps, she went towards and unveiled it. She was stunned to see her huge potrait hanging on his wall and when she neared it, she noticed that in the corner of the frame it was written "Meri Chandu". She stumbled back in shock and shook at the realisation that ASR is Dev.
She smiled as well as cried as her wait was finally over. Composing herself, she veiled the portray and took all the proofs with her.
She turned back as she heard the click of the door. She could sense some sort of panic in his demeanor and noted that he was scanning the room carefully. Thankfully, she had arranged all the stuff properly so that no one doubts her.
Advay - What are you doing here? Let's go.
With that he turned to leave but froze in his tracks as he heard her saying
Chandini (calling out loudly) - Dev
He immediately faced her and saw her tear stricken face. She closed her eyes slowly and let tears freely fall as she saw her dream getting fulfilled. He was staring at her with shocked expressions as the realisation sinked in that his Chand knew that it was her Dev. She opened her eyes and ran in his arms to hug him tight. She embraced him so hard as if she was afraid that he would leave her again. "I missed you so much" she said rubbing jer face on his chest. Well, this was a surprise for him. He hadn't expected her to remember him let alone suspect him to be Dev. His ever so sharp brain failed to analyse that his actions of past can make Chandini suspicious about him. He didn't know that she would go to such an extent to find her Dev. As the feeling of nostalgia hit him hard, he cuddled her close to himself. He set his emotions free today and his eyes became watery recalling their childhood memories.
"Kaha chale gaye the Dev. Tumhe pata hai kitna dhundha maine tumhe. Ganga ghat ke paas jaha ham har shaam jaaya karte the. Shivji ke puraane mandir mei jaha tumne mujhe woh patthar diya tha. Sangam ke kinaare jise dekhkar tum mujhe kehte the ek din tum, mai aur hamaare ehsaas Ganga Jamuna aur Saraswati ki tarah ek honge. 16 saal intezaar kiya maine tumhaara Dev par tum nahi aaye. Pata hai mann mei tumhaari tasveer banayi thi aur usi tasveer ko apna dil de baithi hu 16 se. Jabse pyaar ko jaana hai sirf tumhe chaaha hai dev. Lekin apni Chandini ko maaf kardo Dev woh tumhaara intezaar aur nahi kar sakti thi kyuki usne apni Maa ki khaatir kisi aur insaan se shaadi karne ke liye haa kar di thi. Par ab tum aa gaye ho naa Dev ab ham ek honge Dev hamesha ke liye" (Where have you been Dev? I searched you everywhere. Near the Ganga ghat where we used to go every evening. At the old Shiv Mandir where you gave me the stone. Near the Sangam looking at which you would say that one day you, me and our feelings will become one just like Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati. I waited you for 16 years but you never came. I even painted your image in my mind and lost my heart to it in these 16 years. The moment I came to know what love is, I have known only you. But forgive your Chandini as she couldn't keep her promise since she agreed to marry the guy her mother chose for her. But now you have come back Dev we will be one forever)she said between her hiccups and sobbed hard making her shirt wet with her tears.
Lumps were forming in his throat as he controlled hard to stop his sobs but tears were continuously flowing from his eyes. He was speechless after hearing her words. He knew he was in love with her since childhood but suddenly he felt really small when he realised the depth of her feelings. He just patted her head and cuddled her closer if that was even possible. Coming out of his embrace she continued
"Kaajal and Shakun maasi always told me that you were dead and will never return. But I always negated them saying that you will come back for me."
She wrapped her hands around his neck and kissed all over his face. He balanced her by holding her waist. Touching their foreheads together, she said
"You know I felt a pull towards you the moment I saw you for the first time. But you always intimidated me (pouting) (Advay smiling). Our every encounter made me crave you more. I always that I had some connection with you. I always chided myself that I loved Dev and that is the reason why I behaved angrily with you inorder to get rid of this attraction. But I didn't know that my heart had already recognized you." She whispered leaning close to him.
She always remained confused at his words. But irony is such that today she didn't need any words to understand him. His eyes which were always full of mischief was now filled with nothing but sincerity, guilt and love. She somewhere had realised that he was not good with words. She wiped his tears and gestured a no and she herself cried seeing his tear stricken face. "I am sorry" was all he could utter but she shushed him by placing finger on his lips. Looking deep into her eyes, he hugged her again and lifted her off the ground. After sometime, when she knew he was calm she thought to lighten the mood.
"You will definitely be punished for not letting me know that you were back and that too with a different. I knew you did it purposely to harass me."
He didn't get her playful tone and the feeling of guilt again swept over his mind. He kneeled down in front of her with eyes lowered. Taking her hands and placing it above his heart, he said
"My heart was already yours. Now this soul too belongs to you. I am ready for any punishment. I am all yours"
She bent down to his level and said
"Zindagi bhar ki sazaa chalegi" (Are you ready for a life time punishment)
He nodded a yes when she again said
Chandini - Soch lo (Think again)
Advay - Soch liya (I have already decided)
Cupping his cheeks and rubbing her nose with his she whispered
"Make yours forever. Marry me Advay Singh Raizada aka Dev Kashyap."
He smiled through tears and nodded a yes. She hugged him with such a force that they fell on the floor laughing.