FF: Separate Journeys, EPILOGUE, Page-20 - Page 6

I have no read Jane Austen's all novels but I surely want to read Emma. Trust me, sometimes the most headstrong people can be bullied and I will tell you why because they know that they are headstrong and can see that it is so damn irritating to others to be such. Moreover bani may be independent, stubborn, headstrong everything but she has an inherent goodness inside her.

Part-7

Bani waved to her sisters, rano and pia were boarding their flight…the marriage had been over yesterday night…the dozens of red and white bangles tinkled as she waved her hand vigorously… she could see rano crying…

"Bye…" she smiled…looking radiant in a red sari which took her eons to waer properly…jai was standing with shobhna…

"Main bhi rukti beta par, karuna aa rahin hain bachon ke saath…" shobhna said, her daughter was coming…

"Bua, thode din baad aajaiye…" jai said relieved that she would be going…

"Haan auntiji…" bani said…

"Auntiji nahin bua…"

"Ji bua…"

"Mere bte ka khayaal rakhna…chalo main jaa rahin hoon…"

Both jai and bani bent down to take her blessings…

"Sada khush raho…"

"Acha bhaisahab main chalti hoon…" shobhna pulled her trolley…

"Papa I will miss them…" bani said hugging him…as their figures disappeared inside…

"Main bhi…"

"Jiju chalen…" vasu said…

"Haan cahlo…"

"Jai main aage baithoongi…tumhe bani ke bare main bohot kuch batana hain…itni badi preshaani se jo shaadi ki hain…ab jhelo…" vasu tugged jai's arm…who just smiled…which he had been doing since the past few days…he took pity over his jaws which had started paining…

"Robert uncle…" bani whined…

"My darling is an angel Vasu…" Robert hugged her from the side…bani gave a triumphant smile…

*******

"Masi…stay for a few more days…" bani said, sleeping on her stomach over a pillow…she was yet to enter jai's house…

"No baby…I need to get back…" vasu said packing her bags…they had a midnight flight to Mumbai from there they had a connecting flight to Canada…

"Masi…" bani pouted…

"I will come again…I promise…"

"Okay…"

"Bani…are you happy with this marriage…" vasu asked suddenly…

"Why are you asking this suddenly…?" bani asked bending her head…not meeting her eyes…

"Because I know you too well…" vasu said staring at her…

"Papa wanted it and…"

"And you…"

"Masi…"

"You never believed in love and marriages…"

"Ya…but papa was so unwell I didn't want to upset him…" bani lifted her head to look at her…

"This is your life bani…I have had an experience bani…why again…"

"Masi Mr. Walia is very nice…" bani said…

"I know but marriage is a big decision…"

"Well, we are not precisely married…" bani blurted…

"What do you mean…?" vasu looked at her sharply…she was upto something again…

"I mean…we have just married by mutual consent, it's a deal…we will annul it…"

"WHAT!!!"

"SShhh…"

"Even Mr. Walia didn't want to marry, he also agreed because of his bua…so we just decided to go ahead…it's nothing serious…"

"And what if it gets serious…"

"What do you mean…?" bani asked befuddled…

"What if you fall in love with him…?"

"Hang on…nothing of that sort will happen…I didn't have a damn boyfriend in college in so many years you are talking about love and that too with Jai Walia…"

"Why not? Jai is wonderful…any girl would want a husband like him…"

"Haan maybe but he is not my type...I am somewhere on the ground and he is flying in the sky…"

"Love just happens bani…you can't say when, where and how…?"

"Oh please…I can't fall in love with a stranger…" bani sat up…

"I just wish and pray that none of you get hurt in all this…" vasu said…

"Chill masi…" bani said…but vasu definitely looked unconvinced…

*******

"It's really no need son…" Robert said to jai who was taking out his car…

"It's okay uncle…it's too late to get a taxi…" jai said putting the luggage…

"But by the time you will return it will be too late…"

"It's okay uncle…" jai asked Robert to sit in the car…

"Oh jai so sweet of you…" vasu said coming out with bani, nishikant had already gone asleep…

"Bani dear, you have got a gem of a husband I must tell…" Robert said getting inside the car…bani gave a depreciating smile…glancing briefly at jai who seemed uncomfortable…bani sat at the back with vasu…

*******

"Thanks Mr. Walia…" bani said as they walked out of the airport…bani pulled the shawl closer, it was really cold…

"It's okay bani…and can you please stick to jai…Mr. Walia…is too…" jai said not able to find the correct word to define…

"Too…what…" bani said…

"Too…senile…" jai said shrugging his shoulders…bani laughed…

"Senile…Okay, okay I will call you jai…" bani said shaking her head…

Once in the car…a complete silence filled in…the quietness of the still night encompassed them…

A few hours later…jai saw bani sound asleep…cuddled in the seat, her legs drawn up…she was shivering due to the incoming wind from the open window… he leaned forward pulling the glass up…her loose hair flew tickling his face…the intoxicating smell of her shampoo filling his nostrils…he moved back…she looked like a child while asleep…he shook his head, concentrating on the road ahead… *******

Bani squinted her eyes…

"Umm…"

"Bani…get up, we have reached home…" jai said...slightly shaking her…

"I want to sleep more…" bani mumbled…

"Bani…go inside and sleep…bani…" he said patiently…bani with great difficulty half opened her eyes, looking at him with a funny expression…

"What is it…?" she muttered…

"Home bani…go inside…" jai pointed towards the Dixit villa…

"Umm…" bani turned to look out…pressed her eyelids together and opened them again…

"Good night…" she sang and unlocked the door…

"Good night bani…" jai saw her drag her feet into the house…he surely hadn't met anyone like her…she was a one piece… maybe he could strike a friendship with her…

*******

God bless

Dhani