FF: Ishq Masoom Hai, Last Part Page 16 - Page 5

Beautifully written story. I loved the dialogues between the family members, very nice. Pushkar's character is adorable. Please let Jai listen to him. Update soon.

BD

Part V

Goodbyes were said—some more reluctant than others—and a peaceful calm descended upon the Walia abode.

Outside, the sky promised snow, and Jai knew the wintry weather would delight his son.

Nachiket and Purva stoked the fire while Anu arranged pillows and blankets in front of it.

Jai turned from the window when he heard his nieces' surprised squeal just in time to see Atharva's head peeking from the mountainous pile, his smile mischievous and bright.

"Atharva!" Anu held a hand over her racing heart. "You scared me."

Atharva giggled at the good-natured tousling his cousin gave his hair.

"Come here," Anu patted the place beside her, hugging the little boy close as he crawled near.

"Nachiket," Mausi's muffled voice was heard from the kitchen.

"Help your papa keep an eye on that fire for me," Nachiket instructed as he departed the room.

"Okay" Atharva promised, disengaging himself from Anu's side and standing watch over the fire as pledged.

"Don't let it go out," Anu teased, scooting closer and helping Atharva add small twigs to the crackling fire. Orange embers glowed in the dim lighting of the living room and the reflections of the flames danced in the boy's lively brown eyes.

Watching the two of them together made Jais' heart swell with affection, but his vigilant nature made him warn, "Don't get too close." His mother's softly exhaled "Careful" behind him had Jai smiling.

"Hot chocolate," Purva held out the sweet offering as an enticement. "Come," she indicated the sofa. "Sit. And be careful. It's hot," she cautioned as Atharva scampered toward her, wrapping greedy little hands around the mug, his earlier tummy ache all but forgotten.

"For you," Nachiket stood in front of the fire once more, presenting Anu with her own mug.

"Thanks mamaji," Anu smiled, bringing the steaming mug to her lips and blowing across it gently.

"Jai," Bani appeared before him, a tentative smile on her lips as she held a matching mug out to him. "Hot chocolate?"

Jai looked into her chocolate eyes so much like their son's and gratefully accepted her gift, and the possibility that Pushkar may have been right as he felt his pulse quicken at her fleeting touch. "Thanks."

"You're welcome," Bani murmured, her eyes searching his, wondering at the imperceptible difference in his eyes, his voice, and his entire demeanor. "Jai?" she softly entreated.

"Mama!" Atharva's excited exclamation dispelled the moment, garnering everyone's attention as they followed his pointed finger to the scene outside.

Jai watched the smile on Bani's face grow, traveling all the way to her beautiful eyes, and he was taken by the identical joy in the voices of the two people he held most dear to his heart.

"Look, Jai," Bani's hand unconsciously sought out Jais' larger hand and held on. "It's raining. Isn't it beautiful?"

Jai eyes fell upon their entwined hands, and his voice dropped to a gentle whisper. "Yeah. Yeah, it is."

"Yeah," Jais' voice sounded gruff as he carefully untangled their clasped hands and fixed his gaze on the softly falling flakes outside. "The rain is beautiful."

Bani frowned at his perceived efforts to rid himself of her touch and puzzled again over the abrupt change in his behavior. She felt a pang of sadness at her inability to read him and wondered if this was all they had left, if this was all they would remain to each other: past acquaintances, almost strangers, who shared a child.

"Mama!" Atharva bounded to her side, his small hand tugging eagerly at her sleeve. "Can we go play in the rain?"

"You silly boy," Anu captured him in her arms from behind, tickling his tummy and making him giggle. "You'll get sick."

"Not true. I didn't get sick last time Simran and I played in the rain!," Atharva cried between shrieks of laughter and bouts of squirming. "Tell her papa," Atharva insisted stubbornly.

His son's pleas finally reached Jais' ears, and his response was stern and not at all the one the boy had been hoping for, "Tomorrow."

Atharva's young face fell in disappointment, tears springing to his eyes. "But Papa," he pouted.

Anu sobered, hugging her arms about the child loosely for comfort. Tomorrow, Anu knew, could never be as wonderful as today. It just wouldn't be the same.

Beside Jai, Bani hung her head in guilt and turned away, unable to bear witness to the heartbreaking scene unfolding even as she ached to take Atharva in her arms and whisper promises that weren't hers to make.

Ignoring Atharva's forlorn expression, Jai instead sought out his mausi's sympathetic face. "Mausi."

"Atharva," Mausi took Atharva's slender shoulders in her hands.

"No, Dadi," Atharva tried to push her hands away, and he squirmed to get down when she scooped him up into her arms.

"Atharva," Jai spoke warningly.

"Mama!" Tears rolled down Atharva's face as he reached for Bani.

The slight, silent shaking of Bani's shoulders was the only indication she heard Atharva's plaintive wails as Mausi disappeared down the hall, carrying the child away.

"Bhaiya," Nachiket stepped forward to confront his brother as Anu and Purva placed a tentative hand on Bani's arm. "Bhaiya, this is crazy. At least allow them a proper goodbye."

"Stay out of this," Jai advised his brother. "I'm his father."

"And Babhi's his mother," Nachiket snapped, his patience with their stubbornness having run out. Softening his tone, he continued, "What harm can a few more hours do?"

A few more hours, Jai wanted to shout. A few more hours would only raise Atharva's hopes, making the fall that much harder and that much more painful to recover from when Bani did what she always did after these visits—left them both behind. No. It was easier this way, like ripping off a bandage—more immediately painful but better than prolonging the inevitable. And if it made him the bad guy, he was okay with that because he didn't want to taint his son's love for his mother. "Bani," he finally spoke, "I think you should leave now."

"Mamaji," Anu made one final attempt to protest, but Jais' heavy sigh and Bani's soft whisper stopped her.

"Don't. Don't," Bani gave Anu's hand on her arm a grateful squeeze. "Jai is right. I," she fought to speak over the lump in her throat, "I should be going. Tell Atharva…tell Atharva I love him, okay. Tell him I'm sorry, but I just can't stay. Do that for me?"

"I will," Anu nodded her dark head vigorously as she pulled Bani into a brief but tight hug. "I will tell him," she promised.

"Take care babhi" Purva said as she hugged her sister-in-law she'd gotten really close to.

"You too Purva. Give my love to Simran" Bani said hugging her back with tears threatening to fall.

"Babhi," Nachiket stepped forward, his own words faltering as he strove to make sense of things the way they were. He finally settled for a somber "Take care."

"Thank you," Bani gave him a trembling smile as she gathered her purse and the rest of her things in her arms. "Give Mausi my love."

Jai held his breath until the sound of her car's engine faded in the distance; Atharva's soft cries the only remaining sound in the too-silent house.

"I don't understand you," Anu shook her head sadly as she regarded her mamaji with disillusioned dark eyes. "Either one of you."

"What was that?" Nachiket demanded when he and Jai were alone. "I know you're not that cold, Bhaiya. Driving her away is not the answer."

Jai crossed his arms over his middle defensively. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"I'm not blind," Nachiket countered. "And I'm not stupid. That little scene you just pulled…"

"It wasn't a scene," Jai interjected. "It's the way things are. It's the way they have to be." He tried to shrug, appear unaffected by his own words, but he couldn't hide the pain or unrest in his eyes.

"Would you listen to yourself?" Nachiket asked incredulously, pacing the confines of the living room restlessly. "You're succeeding where Jigayasa Di and Pia failed."

Jais' face was dark, unreadable as Nachiket continued to rail at him.

"How many times, bhaiya, did Jigayasa Di try to keep you and Bani apart? How many secrets, lies, evil plans?" Nachiket's hands moved agitatedly, speaking for him. "You went to hell and back to be with her, to love her, many times over, only to let your own pigheadedness do you in. You're doing our sisters' dirty work for her, Bhaiya. You're pushing her away and hurting everybody in the process, especially that little boy in there."

Jai felt a crushing ache in his chest at the minutes old memory of his son, inconsolable over Bani's leaving. Shaking the image from his mind, he reminded himself that what he was doing was for Atharva's own good. Then he reminded his father. "I'm doing this FOR Atharva."

"You're not doing any of this for Atharva, bhaiya," Nachiket wouldn't be convinced. "You're doing this for you because you're hurt and angry and too scared to take one last chance."

"What if I'm all out of last chances?" Jai ventured, the weight of his feelings finally dragging him down and showing in the minute wavering and tiredness of his voice.

"Then I'd say you have a lonely life ahead of you."

To be continued…

Thank you all for the comments. I do apologize for not having updated sooner. It's been a very busy week at work.

Also, I'm a bit behind on my replies for PMs, I promise to catch up to all of them tonight!

Hope you liked the chapter. Looking forward to your comments.

Anam

😭 😭 👏 .. hey anam.. great part hun.. u made me cry like always.. awnnn jai stop being so damn selfish and stop blaming atharva for wat ur doing.. and listen to nachiket.. bani jai needs u.. he just wont say it cuz hes a guy and guys r slow and stupid.. anywayz plzz continue soon. cant wait for ur next part hun..

Jai needs someone like Nachiket to make him confront his fears and feelings....Great part...
👏 👏 👏

haila!!!!!!!!

awwww 😭

plz cont soon!!!

Awww..Poor Arthuuu... 😭
Wow..Nachi's all the way up there with JW..wohooo..keep it up and make JW see some sense 👏

Awesome Part Anam 👏

Part VI

Bani stared at her hands on the steering wheel, her knuckles white, her fingers clenched painfully. She stared at her hands and remembered the scene in Walia Mansion, the images playing like a mocking slideshow in her mind.

If she weren't living it or feeling it, she wouldn't believe it possible to hurt so much and still be breathing.

The rain fell heavier now outside her window. Mumbai was disappearing beneath a puddle of water. But her house loomed before her, looking warm and inviting.

She needed the cold; maybe the numbness would save her.

She stared at her hands again, her eyes drawn to the finger where his ring once rested, and felt a sob rise in her throat along with astonishment over the fact that she had any tears left.

Her hands left the steering wheel to cradle her head, and for a brief moment she wallowed in the enormity of her grief and the choices that had led her to this place in time. In this cold car, all alone as Diwali winded down.

She hadn't deserved them. But had she deserved this?

---------------

Atharva's eyelashes curled against his tear-dampened cheeks, thick and dark, his full mouth plumped into a pout even in sleep.

Mausi's eyes fell on the silver frame clutched close to his heart and a soft sigh fell from her lips, "My baby." She feathered her fingers tenderly through the sweaty strands against her grandson's forehead, wanting to soothe his sadness away. "Your papa loves you. Very much," she punctuated her words with a kiss to Atharva's temple.

"You know I do mausi." Jai stepped into the darkened room.

"I know," Mausi answered with a solemn whisper, torn between wanting to comfort her son and wanting to reprimand him for the way he'd handled things with Bani earlier. She remained silent; the best she could offer in the circumstances, instead letting Jai speak.

"I DO love him, Mausi. You know that," Jai seemed to seek her reassurance on this statement, and at the nod of her head, continued, "More than my own life. I'd do anything for him—anything to keep him safe and from getting hurt. Bani hurts him, Mausi. Every time she walks out of that door…"

And you, Mausi thought, studying her nephew's profile in the soft light provided by the lamp at Atharva's bedside. Jai wore his pain like a heavy winter coat; his shoulders slumped under its weight. His eyes were dull, his jaw set in an unhappy, hard line.

"Each time is harder than the last," Jai rubbed a tired hand across his face. "Each goodbye is more painful. But the longer she's here, the more time she spends with him…it makes it that much more difficult to watch her walk away, to watch him watch her walk away," the admission seemed to tumble from Jai's mouth as he crept closer to the bed. Kneeling at its side and dwarfing Atharva's small hands with his larger ones, he coaxed the silver frame from the tiny fingers and reached beyond his mausi to place it on the bedside table. "I couldn't do it. I couldn't bear to see that disappointment in his eyes again as he watched her walk out on him. So I did what I did. And it nearly killed me when he looked at ME with that expression. But he still loves her and that makes it okay."

"Oh, Jai." One look at Jai's glittering, moist eyes and Mausi cupped a palm around his cheek, tears coming to her own eyes. "It doesn't make it okay." She brushed the fingertips of her other hand gently across his cheek, both relieved and saddened that there finally appeared to be a breach in the dam and wetness met her touch.

"What can I do, Mausi?" Jai asked a broken man's question. "To make things okay?"

Mausi pulled him into a fierce hug as Bani's sad blue eyes stared at Jai from the silver-framed photograph behind her. "Ask her, Jai. Ask her to stay."

--------------

She'd sat there, unmoving, her eyes frozen on her barren hands for almost an hour before the knock startled her.

A face stared back at her from the window, its features blurred but familiar to her, even hidden in shadows.

Frigid air stole through the window as it lowered, and a chill swept down Bani's spine, making her shiver as she gasped in surprise. "Rohan!" She rubbed briskly at her arms and regarded her brother questioningly. "Where did you come from? I thought you were at the house."

Rohan, he was Tarun's little brother. He was a brother that Bani never had. He'd been her pillar of strength when she needed someone to talk to, someone who understood her and gave her advice as an older brother.

Rohan didn't tell her that he'd been standing there, watching her, wanting to offer comfort he didn't know how to give, for the last five minutes or more. In fact, he didn't answer her question at all. He simply said, "In case you haven't noticed, it's cold out here. Ma was getting worried."

For the first time, Bani noticed Tarun's mother, huddled against the cold and waiting on her front steps. Fumbling for her purse in the passenger seat, Bani withdrew a small silver key and placed it in Rohan's gloved hands. "Take ma inside. I'll just be a few more minutes."

Rohan turned the key over in his hands, fingering the tiny numbers engraved there. He pocketed the key and cast concerned eyes upon his sister. "Bani…is everything okay? Did something happen at the Walia house?"

"Nothing happened," Bani lied. "Nothing. I'm fine, Rohan. Really." Rohan still looked skeptical, so Bani relented. "Well, not really. But I will be. I always am," she said tearfully when Rohan, in a move shocking and uncharacteristic of him, cupped a palm around her trembling chin.

"I'll make us some hot chocolate." Rohan let his hand drop awkwardly from Bani's face. "I know you like it. You always say it makes you feel better."

"Rohan," Bani grabbed her brother's hand when he turned to leave, ready to stop him, the scene in Mausi's living room still fresh in her mind. But Rohan, she knew, was unaware, and she didn't want to turn away the kind but misguided gesture so she bit her tongue.

"Yes?" Rohan raised a brow in curious expectation. He clung to the fingers that so tightly squeezed his own.

Bani's response was simple but heartfelt. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Rohan gave her hand a fond if embarrassed pat. "Don't be too long."

"I won't," Bani promised. "I just…give me a minute, okay?"

Rohan nodded and turned to go. Only when Bani had sent a reassuring wave her way did she allow herself to be led inside.

With a sigh, Bani rolled the car's window back up, took the key from the car's ignition, and reached for her purse again, only to feel her heart clench painfully again. There, at her fingertips' end, lay a mangalsutr, THE mangalsutr.

It was just another reminder that she'd never, ever get over loving and losing Jai. No matter how far or how fast, she couldn't run from the truth, and her hand in making things the way they were.

She put the mangalsutr back inside her purse and stepped outside into the wintry coldness, her head bent against the wind.

------------------

"Mamaji."

Jai's eyes fluttered open at Anu's faint whisper.

Anu stood in the doorway to Atharva's bedroom, looking impossibly young in her red and green oversized flannel pajamas. Her hair was loose, flowing, and her feet bare. Her brown eyes welled with remorse as she approached him hesitantly, her movements silent in an effort not to wake her sleeping cousin.

Atharva sighed and rolled over away from Jai, curling into a protective ball.

Jai reached to tuck the blankets Atharva's move had dislodged back around his shoulders, stilling when the boy whimpered in his sleep.

"Mama."

Jai sighed heavily and his shoulders slumped.

Guilt weighed heavily on Anu's heart at the sight and apologies spilled from her lips as she padded the short distance across the room to wrap her arms around her mamaji's neck. "I'm sorry, mamaji. I'm so sorry. I know you love Atharva. I know you're only doing what you think is best for him."

For a brief moment, Jai hugged her back, then he released her, holding her at arm's length. "No," he said, shaking his head. "You were right. You and Nachiket."

"Mamaji," Anu interrupted, confusion making her frown. "I don't understand."

Careful not to disturb Atharva, Jai stood up and moved to stand in front of the window, tracing a finger over the glittering crystals etched on the pane. "I'm scared, Anu."

The quiet admission stunned Anu. Never had she known her mamaji to be scared, of anything or anyone. She mirrored Jai's position at the window, touching Jai's arm with a timid hand. "Mamaji?" His eyes dark and intense, Jai answered her, though Anu wasn't really sure he was aware of her presence in the room anymore.

"Failure. Not giving Atharva the family he deserves. Rejection," he said, his mouth twisted and grim. "Will I be enough? For her to stay?"

"You're enough," Anu cried, gripping his forearm tightly. "You've always been enough. Can't you see that? She loves you. You both love Atharva. That's enough." Anu knew her words were nave, but she believed them, fiercely in this case.

Cognizant again of her presence, Jai told her, "It won't be easy."

"Love isn't easy, mamaji," Anu replied, a little exasperated. "So there'll be obstacles."

"Obstacles?" Jai's brows rose. "Marrying you're husbands' so-called best friend isn't your average obstacles."

"Well, neither is your stubbornness," Anu retorted, taking Jai's hands in hers and forcing him to look at her. "Mamaji, do you still love Bani?"

"What kind of question is that?" Jai hedged, looking away uncomfortably. "I can't believe I'm getting advice about love from my niece."

"Stop avoiding the question," Anu scolded. "Do…you…still…love…her?"

His answer, when it came, was so soft, Anu almost didn't hear it. "Yes. Yeah, I still love her. I never stopped. Is that what you wanted to hear?"

Unable to contain her inner joy, Anu grinned, hugging him hard.

"Anu," Jai forced out with what little air he had left in his lungs.

"Mamaji, none of those obstacles stand a chance."

To be continued…

Awwww...poor Arthu...misses his mommyyy way 2 much😭...did Jai just realised he still loves Bani?😲😍

Hopefully...im right..😍

Pls continue soon Anam👏

Hi,

Nice update; poor Atharva misses his Mommy just like his Dad ;) Await your next update!

Anam!

It was a very touching update.I cant wait to see them together...I am sure there will be a very emotional confrontation....

Please continue soon 😛