*Hey guys!! Sorry I didn't update for so long...I was busy with a lot of things and then I got really sick..This is an extra long update to compensate...So I hope this update helps to clear some of the questions you guys had...I really really hope you enjoy it...Fell free to comment and like and give suggestions :)*
Give Hope A chance - Part 5
He waited impatiently for Aman's arrival, when his phone rang. It would be an understatement to say what he heard next left him shocked. He was flabbergasted. Stupefied. He tried to breath but his body seemed to be failing him. "Mr. Raizada, Finally we speak," an oddly familiar voice greeted arnav when a phone call had destroyed his trail of thought. The voice was calm and collected, with a hint of arrogance and high-handedness. And the arrogance in the caller's tone was did not go unnoticed by Arnav. "Who the hell are you?" Arnav demanded quite unused to being at the receiving end of arrogance. He was Arnav Singh Raizada. No one spoke to him like that. No one dared to speak to him like that. No one spoke to him like and got away with it. The fury was building up within him. He was about to scream out something but the words died on his lips.
"I would have told you, if you gave me a chance to speak, Mr. Raizada or should I say Arnav Malik?" the man asked, his every syllable punctuated by an calmness ' quite undaunted by Arnav's rising temper. Arnav felt the rage being rapidly replaced by an unidentifiable sense of dread and forerboding. His mind was already racing trying to comprehend what he had just heard and make sense of its implications. He had just answered a stranger's call. This man had just called him Mr. Malik. Malik was his father's name. His surname. At least that was his surname until his world had come crashing down almost 10 years ago when he had been abandonded. Abandoned by his parents, by love, by fate itself. Life itself had given up on him. But he had pesevered and had won. He built a new life for himself and had tried to erase every link to his painful past. He had created a new identity. He had gone from the broken hearted teenager Arnav Malik to the most sought after business tycoon - Arnav Singh Raizada. He had vowed never to fall weak again, to never allow his past to creep back into his life. He had vowed never to be associate "Malik" with himself again. Ever again. He had vowed never to let anyone know of his past. And he had succeeded. Up until now that is.
Till now he had been Arnav Singh Raizada to the world. Yet a complete stranger had referred to him as Mr. Malik. How could he have known? Who was he? As if in answer to his mental question the man spoke again, "So you finally decided to give me a chance to speak, Mr. Raizada? This time let me ask you a question Mr. Raizada, You really don't recognize my voice?" the man questioned. He seemed to be almost enjoying the way the conversation was proceeding. It was as if he expected the exact reaction from Mr. Raizada.
This reply caught Arnav completely off guard. He was too shocked and confused to speak coherently let alone try to recognize his voice. There was silence for a few seconds before the man spoke again, as calm and unaffected as ever, "They told me you are not as smart as the world makes you out be. They told me you let your anger get the better of you and did stupid things. They told me you are blind enough not to see truth even if it was staring you in face. Little did I realize that they were so right. You are blind. Blind to the world around you. Blind to your own feelings. I tried to tell myself that they were wrong but only now I realize how right they were. I never thought my son wouldn't even recognize his father" He paused, giving Arnav a few seconds to let it all sink in.
Arnav felt the breath leave his body. He felt his lungs constricting. He couldn't breathe. He needed to get a grip of himself. He closed his eyes trying to calm himself. He was being bombarded by thoughts, questions, blurred images. Somewhere amid the pandemonium a voice was screaming out to him to breathe. Suddenly an image flashed in his mind. An image of her - she was smiling, her smile reflecting genuine happiness. She was smiling at him, for him, because of him. He felt himself breathe again. His nerve steadied. He almost felt peaceful before the questions, the thoughts, the confusion and the uncertainty crashed against the still forming wall of peace and smashed it to smithereens. This man was his father? That's impossible - his father was dead. Or was he? When his mother died his father had just disappeared. Without a trace. It was as if he never existed. For a few months they thought he was missing. Months later some vague news reached them that Mr. Malik had died in a small town in Bihar. By then the family had already accepted that he was probably dead and had moved on.
Arnav for one had no difficulty moving on with his life. He hated the man who he once called his father. He suspected that he was cheating on his mother. He blamed him for his mother's death. He blamed him taking away the one person who mattered the most to him. If anything Arnav was glad he had died because he didn't know if he would be able to control his rage if he ever saw that man in front of him. He had not forgiven him. Even after all these years Arnav hated him with every fiber of his being. He loathed him with all his heart. Where was he all these years? But why did he contact me after so many years? How did he suddenly remember we exist? What does he want with me? Why the hell did the man who destroyed his world suddenly resurface again? And why did he sound so smug? Like he was in control?
For the first time in his life Arnav Singh Raizada was utterly clueless. The questions were piling in his mind with every passing nanosecond without the least hope of finding answers. His rationality and logic had long since abandoned him. Even his heart only served to confuse him further by telling him something was wrong. Horribly wrong. The questions were too many now. Arnav couldn't push them away. He couldn't answer them. He was backed up against a wall and they were fast surrounding him, threatening to crush him. This wasn't the first time that Arnav Singh Raizada wanted to escape from his own thoughts. Luckily for him, the man at the other end spoke again, bringing him back to reality. "I think I have given you sufficient time to come to terms with the truth Mr. Raizada. I trust that you have returned to normalcy. We need to talk Mr. Raizada. You will meet me. Two days from now. I hope you will be prepared because it seems we have an awful lot to discuss".
"WHAT THE HELL!" Arnav bellowed, trying his level best to convey all the hatred he felt for that man just through those three words. He was glad that at least his voice had returned and he intended to make best use of it. "What do you think of yourself? You think you can just appear out of nowhere after 10 years and everything will be ok? Do you think everyone will just forgive you and accept you after you drove my mom to her death? Do you think I am Desperate to meet you? I don't give damn about you. You could be rotting in hell for all I care. You are dead to me. And I will NEVER come to meet you. I don't want to see your face. Not now, not ever. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"
"Now, now Mr. Raizada no need to become so emotional. Take a deep breath. Relax. Atleast I hope you will be in a better state of mind when we meet." the man replied in, completely unaffected by Arnav's angry outburst. The man's nonchalance only served to incite Arnav further. "A man who supposedly dead for over 10 years suddenly contacts me and DEMANDS that I meet him? AND YOU EXPECT ME TO RELAX? WHAT PART OF 'I DON'T WANT TO MEET YOU' DO YOU NOT GET? I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOUR FACE YOU SCUMBAG! DON'T YOU DARE CONTACT ME AGAIN." Arnav screamed in his most menacing tone.
"Like I said, you really need to calm down. But seriously, your arrogance is really getting on my nerves. As far as the meeting, Mr. Raizada I assure you it will be in everyone's best interests for us to meet. By the end of this phone conversation you will want to meet me. Not the other way around. And before you start yelling your head off just let me tell you it will be best if me meet. Especially for your Di and your wife. What was her name again? Khushi, I think?" It took a few seconds for him to process what he was just told. "What did he mean when he said it would be in everyone's best interests if they met? How did he know about Khushi? Why had me mentioned her and his Di?" The questions were pounding his mind.
Then the realization hit him - the realization that this man was threatening to harm the most important people in his life if he didn't comply with his wishes. Arnav felt an overwhelming sense of de javu. His lungs were constricting. He couldn't breathe. Again. Only this time the dread and fear that washed over him was a hundred times worse. But the thought of someone harming his Di brought him back to the present. He couldn't put his Di's safety at risk. He couldn't take any chances. He would just have to give this man whatever he wanted because just the thought of losing his Di was unbearable. And Khushi? He couldn't lose her. Though he didn't want to admit it she was important to him. Very important in his life - more important than even his Di.
"Tell me what you want? I will give you WHATEVER you want. But don't you dare lay a finger on my sister or my wife" Arnav replied. This time his voice was much calmer but also firm and authoritative. "It seems you have finally regained your composure Mr. Raizada. Like I said I just wasnt you to meet me in Nainitaal, two days from now. And you will come alone. We have a lot of matters to discuss. Oh and since you are my son, I'll give you a little heads up because I would really feel sad if you underestimated me. I know a lot about you and your family. You know your Di had a little accident a few months ago? I have information about that. I'm sure you'll be willing to do anything for it? And let me just tell you that I would have no trouble arranging a very similar situation. Only I would be smart enough to ensure she doesn't get out alive. I would love chit-chat for a while but duty calls. I will contact you in 24 hours with the details of our meeting. I'm looking forward to meeting you Mr. Raizada." The disconnected the call without even giving Arnav a chance to speak.
*So guys what did you think?*
Edited by randomiesta - 13 years ago
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
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