(Slap...)
His sentence was left incomplete, for the impact of her slap was greater than his own strength.
He looked up, to see her teary eyes filled with hatred and disgust for him. Without saying another word, she wiped her tears and walked out of his room, her head held high, yet her shoulders drooping, silently vowing to never return.
*************************
As she walked out of his room, the reality crashed in with such a force that his legs couldn't support him. He sat on the bed with a thud, the bed in which, a few minutes back, he had laid her so gently.
How dare she leave him!!!
First, she pretended that she was innocent, then she went on to 'confuse' Lavanya with her stupid ideas of marriage. And now she tried to seduce him, and even had the guts to slap him!!!
How dare she slap Arnav Singh Raizada, the man who wrote his destiny as well as others' destiny!!!
She has to pay for it. I will make her pay for it...
With these thoughts in mind, he made his way to the hall, where the Diwali celebrations were going on. He wanted to show her that her presence or absence doesn't affect him.
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On the other hand, Khushi couldn't take it anymore, nobody has insulted her to this extent. All she wanted to do was, to go away from him.
How could he hurl all those abuses against her?
Wasn't it he who initiated all this?
Why did he do this to her?
She wanted to go away to a place where she wouldn't be meeting him.Yes, that's what she would do, once Lavanyaji was accepted by Naniji.
With a firm determination, she left Shanthivan, politely excusing herself, saying that she was suddenly unwell, and that she wanted to go home.
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Reaching the hall, Arnav started looking for her, but, couldn't find her anywhere.
He decided to ask Lavanya about her, "Lavanya, are all the employees of AR Fashion House and Shanthivan here?"
"Everybody except Khushi are here, ASR. Khushi has gone home as she is tired." replied Lavanya, wrapped in beautiful blue saree.
How dare she leave without informing him!
Without uttering another word, he took his keys, and dashed out of Shanthivan. Knowing by which route she would go home, he sped his car in that route. It was not hard to find her, a petite figure in red, standing on the road. But, sight in front of him, woke up the green eyed monster inside him, for Khushi was talking to a guy, whose back facing Arnav.
The guts of this chit of a classless girl!
Unable to control his temper, he strode out of his car, mentally preparing himself to give her a piece of his mind. As he neared them, he halted, for the voice of the man sounded familiar.
It can't be...
As Khushi saw Arnav, her face expressed disgust, which made the man turn around and face Arnav.
Arnav was shocked to see his Jijaji with Khushi.
What was he doing here?
Shyam, on the other hand, started sweating. If Khushiji said something that revealed his pretense, he would be done for sure. He had to do something to save himself. His mind hit upon a plan, a plan to betray Khushi, and make her look like a gold digger.
But, even before he could open his mouth, "What are you doing here Jijaji?", came the voice of Arnav.
"Jijaji? But, Shyamji, when you had started living as our paying-guest, you had said that you had no family." replied a shocked Khushi.
"No family? Paying-guest? What the hell is going on here, Mr.Shyam Manohar Jha?"
"I.. I.. I am sorry Saale Sahab..." came the quivering voice of Shyam.
"This means...You... Arnavji's Jijaji... Anjaliji..." Khushi let out an almost inaudible whisper, her eyes filling up again, reflecting her inner turmoil.
How would she say about Shyam's betrayal to her parents and Buaji?
How would she face Anjaliji?
Why were men hell bent on hurting her?
First, it was Arnavji, and now, Shyamji?
Why is it always happening to her?
Unable to bear with all these thoughts, she took a few steps backwards, and before any of the men could stop her, she literally ran away, as if trying to escape the harsh realities of life.
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There were continuous knocks on the door of the Gupta household, forcing Madhumathi to rush from the kitchen and open it. One look at her niece, and she knew that something was seriously wrong with her.
On seeing her Buaji, Khushi launched herself into her arms and cried like never before, ignoring her buaji's concerns, not uttering a single word.
She cried on her fate.
She cursed the fateful day on which she had met Arnavji.
She cried for she was tired of everything and wanted to go to her biological parents.
As she pulled herself out of the hug, she felt as if she was falling into an endless pit, the darkness engulfing her. She swayed a bit, and before she could fall, a pair of arms held her by her shoulders.
"Khushiji" came Shyam's voice, as he tried to steady her, with Arnav standing behind him.
How dare he! How dare he come here again!
Just as she was about to blast him for his callous behaviour,
"My long lost sister, the sister whom I thought I had lost along with my parents. Don't you recognize me, Jalebi?"
Jalebi...
Jalebi...
This one word was enough to bring a load of memories.
"Shyam Bhai... But you? Accident... Amma... Babuji..."
Her head spun, unable to process all the recent incidents, she welcomed the darkness, falling into the arms of her own personal demon, her saviour, her Arnavji...
To be continued...
Next: Below
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