Bani confined herself in the garden. She did not want to come across anyone and spoil their mood. Anu was having exams, the next day. So, she did not disturb her. She wondered why Jai did not respond to Aditya's call. Her thoughts became more negative. She suddenly stood and took a deep breath, she wiped her face with the back of her hand and closed her eyes. She tried to calm her turbulent mind. After a few seconds, she opened her eyes. Her gaze fell upon jasmine bush across the fern. It was approaching evening. The jasmine buds would bloom into a flower soon. She observed them for sometime without letting her eyes go anywhere. After sometime, she saw a small bee landing upon the top of the flower and sucking the nectar. She went near and watched it without disturbing the scene. After few seconds, the bee flew away. But, Bani was still staring at the flower. After sometime, she brought her hand forward and touched the flower. She caressed the side of the petal. She plucked it from the plant and brought it to her nose to smell it. She closed her eyes and concentrated on the odour.
Suddenly, she opened her eyes and looked at her hand. She closed her fingers around the bud. She waited for a second and walked into the house. She entered Anu's room, collected her bag. She smiled at Anu.
"Anu, main nikhalti hoon…" Bani said.
Anu was staring at her. "Itni jaldi…?" she said.
"Haan. Actually, mujhe kuch kaam hai. Aur tum…" Bani came near her and touched her cheek. "Kal exams teek tarah se dena… samjhi… Nervous hone hi zaroorat nahin hai. Stay cool. Paper easy aayega. Zyada fikar nahin karna… Okay?" Anu nodded her head. "All the best…!" Bani said.
"Thank you didi…" Anu hugged her.
Bani hugged her back. After few seconds, she said, "Chalo… ab distract ho jaaoge… main nikhalti hoon. Okay. Kal sham ko phone karti hoon… teek hai?"
Anu happily nodded and released herself from the hug.
Bani patted her cheek once and walked out of the room closing the door behind her.
She walked to Aditya's room and knocked the door. After few seconds, Jigyasa opened the door.
Bani said, "Didi, main nikhalti hoon."
Jigyasa was surprised. Few minutes before, she saw Bani in great anxiety and she wanted to speak to Jai. Now she was telling that she was leaving. What happened? Jigyasa wondered. "Kya hua, Bani? Itni jaldi…" Jigyasa said as she opened the door wide.
"Woh… mujhe kuch kaam hai…" Bani said and smiled.
Aditya came near the door. "Kya hua?" he asked.
Jigyasa turned to face him to respond. Before, she said anything, Bani said, "Jiju, main nikhalti hoon…"
Aditya was surprised. "Kyun? Shaam ko hi jaati ho na?"
"Haan… lekin, aaj jaana hai. Kuch kaam hai…" Bani said.
Aditya looked at her. He said, "Jai ka phone toh aane do…"
Bani looked at the floor, then said, "Nahin jiju. Mujhe jaana hai. Main baad mein phone karti hoon…"
Aditya and Jigyasa looked at each other.
"Main chalti hoon." Bani said again.
Aditya nodded his head at last.
Bani smiled once again, then turned. She turned again and said, "Dadi se bata dijiye…"
Aditya nodded with a smile.
She immediately turned around and started walking out of the house. Jigyasa and Aditya followed her till the door at a distance. After she had crossed the portico, Jigyasa said, "Isko kya ho gaya?" she looked at Aditya.
Aditya shook his head thinking about something. Then, as if remembering something, he said, "Chalo, Jai ko phone karte hai…"
Jigyasa looked at Aditya in surprise. Aditya was already walking towards the phone. He did not delay any more and dialed Jai's number.
Jai answered the call. "Aditya…"
Before Jai could say anything further, Aditya said, "Jai phone mat kaatna… Bani chali gayi…"
Jai asked, "Itni jaldi?"
"Haan…" Aditya answered and then asked, "Kya hua Jai?"
Jai took a deep breath. "Woh nahin maane…" he said.
"Kyun? Kya wajah?" Aditya asked.
"Wajah… Sirf itna ki uski maa humein pasand nahin karti hai…" Jai said briefly.
Aditya was startled. "What?" Aditya was confused. "Lekin, woh humare baare mein jaanti hi kya?" he said.
"Woh hi jaane…" Jai said.
"Aur uske papa?" Aditya asked.
Jai thought for a while and said, "Lagta hai, uske papa ko koi aitraaz nahin hai…"
"Yeh toh achchi baat hai…" Aditya was excited. "Woh Bani ke saath—"
Jai cut him in the middle. "Nahin, Aditya. Woh Bani ke saath nahin denge. Aur aaj… jo hua… uske baad… pata nahin woh kaise honge…" Jai said.
Aditya frowned. "Matlab? Kya hua?"
"Aisa samaj lo ki aaj humari insult ke saath Bani ke papa ka bhi insult hua…" Jai said.
"Wha… Jai… kya keh rahe ho? Mere samaj mein kuch nahin aa raha hai…" Aditya said.
"Bas… itna hi keh sakta hoon." Jai said.
Aditya kept quiet. After sometime, he asked, "Ab kya?"
"Dekhte hai… Aaj raat ko laut jaayenge…" Jai said. After a short pause, he asked, "Bani kaise hai?"
"Bahut tensed thi. Woh yakeen ke saath keh rahi thi ki uske maa, papa nahin maanenge… Yahin ghoom rahi thi. Achanak aake kaha ki woh chalti hai… Pata nahin kya soch rahi thi…" Aditya said.
Jai listened carefully. "Aditya, yahaan jo bhi hua…. Main Bani se nahin keh sakta…" he said.
"Kyun?" Aditya asked.
"Mujhe gussa aa gaya tha, aur…" Jai said.
"Aur?" Aditya said.
"Maine unse keh diya ki main Bani se kuch nahin kahoonga…" Jai said.
Aditya stayed silent for a second, then asked, "Toh Bani se kya kehnewale ho?"
"Sochna hai…" Jai sighed.
Aditya could not help, but ask, "Kya ho raha hai, Jai? Mujhe toh kuch samaj mein nahin aa raha hai…"
Jai let out a slight laugh. "Shayad yehi hona tha. Kuch had tak maine aur, I think Bani ne bhi yehi expect kiya…" he said.
"Lekin, woh log humein pasand kyun nahin karte? Humne toh kuch nahin kiya…" Aditya said.
Jai kept quiet knowing the reason. "Aditya" he said. "Hum iske baare mein baat nahin kiye toh achcha hai."
"Masi kaisi hai?" Aditya asked.
"Teek hai. Unhein yakeen hi nahin ho raha tha…" Jai said.
Aditya sighed. "Okay Jai. Main airport aata hoon, pick up karne ke liye…" he said.
"Nahin Aditya." Jai said. "Kal Anu ka exams hai. Tum uska khayal rakhna. Hum aa jaayenge…"
"Okay Jai…" Aditya said. "Rakhta hoon."
"Mmm…" Jai ended the call.
Jigyasa was waiting for Aditya to complete the call. As soon as he kept the cordless on the receiver, she asked, "Kya hua? Nahin maane kya?"
"Haan…" Aditya said nodding his head.
"Kyun?" Jigyasa asked as if she was offended.
"Jai ne sirf itna kaha ki… woh log… I mean, Bani ki maa ko hum log pasand nahin hai." Aditya said.
"Kya?" Jigyasa was shocked. "Woh jaanti kya hai humare baare mein?" she asked.
Aditya shook his head. "Aaj raat wapas aa rahe hai."
Jigyasa bent her head thinking something.
"Kya soch rahi ho?" Aditya asked.
"Pata nahin… Kya ho raha hai, Aditya?" Jigyasa asked.
Aditya smiled. "Yehi sawaal main Jai se kar raha tha…"
Jigyasa said, "Aditya… itni koshish hum maa, papa ke sapne ko poora karne ko kar rahe hai. Lekin… kuch bhi teek nahin ho raha hai."
"Kya kehna chahti ho?" Aditya asked.
"Aditya… main yeh soch rahi hoon, agar woh donon aaj zinda hote toh kya hota?" Jigyasa said.
Aditya was clueless of what she was trying to tell.
"Mujhe aisa kyun lag raha hai ki… kahin na kahin maa aur papa jaante the ki Bani ke gharwale nahin maangenge…" Jigyasa said.
Aditya was puzzled. "Tumhein aisa kyun lag raha hai? Aise kaise keh sakti ho?"
"Ab dekho na… woh log achanak se Jai bhaiya ke shaadi ka topic le aaye aur yeh kehkar ki Bani ladki hai." Jigyasa said. "Tum maano ya na maano, kuch na kuch baat zaroor hai… jo hum log nahin jaante hai…"
"Jigyasa…" Aditya did not know what to say.
"Nahin Aditya. Mujhe aisa lag raha hai. Kuch na kuch baat toh zaroor hai." Jigyasa said.
Aditya just looked at her. After sometime, he asked, "Bani ke baare mein kya khayal hai?"
"Matlab?" Jigyasa was confused.
"Matlab… kya tumhein lagta hai Bani ka is maamle mein koi haath hai?" Aditya asked.
"Mujhe nahin lagta… lekin Bani toh hamesha mere samaj ke baahar thi… ab bhi hai… ek baat ke liye khush hoon. Woh hum logon ko apna bahut maanti hai." Jigyasa said.
"Kya yeh kaafi nahin hai?" Aditya asked.
"Nahin Aditya. Mujhe nahin lagta, jab tak yeh maamla saaf dikhe, yeh shaadi karni hai… koi na koi baat zaroor hai, jiske baare mein hum nahin jaante." Jigyasa said.
"Tum kahin Bani ko toh dosh nahin tehra rahi ho?" Aditya asked a frank question.
"Nahin Aditya. Bani ko kyun? Woh kal bachchi thi. Aaj bhi hai. Pata nahin, akele kaise sambhaal leti hai. Woh Anu se kam nahin hai. Maana ki Anu se badi hai, lekin Anu ki tarah hi hai. Isliye kabhi kabhi darr lagta hai, ki donon ko ek tujhe ka influence na ho jaaye…" Jigyasa said.
"Achchi baat hai na, agar Bani ka influence ho toh…" Aditya said.
"Nahin… achchi baat nahin hai. Anu, Anu hai. Aur Bani, Bani. Donon ek nahin ho sakte…" Jigyasa said.
"Mujhe lagta hai ki tum khamaka kuch zyada hi soch rahi ho…" Aditya said.
"Tum nahin samjhoge Aditya…" Jigyasa said and walked towards her room leaving a confused Aditya behind.
***
Jai was still sitting in the easy chair after attending Aditya's call. A servant brought coffee for him. Jai sipped it slowly. His thoughts were somewhere. How was he going to explain Bani? In fact, what was he going to tell Bani? The question haunted him. He recalled what happened at her parents' home. It was not only that Jai was insulted, but even Bani's father and even to some extent, Bani also was insulted. If he realized correctly, Bani was insulted right from the beginning along with his family. But only the extent differed. Jai smiled in his thoughts. Poor Bani, doesn't even know what was happening around her. What was he going to do now?
The other side of his mind was still reeling in the insults. It asked a strange question – does he have to proceed with the marriage after what happened? But it answered itself – Yes, he will have to marry after all that happened to show Bani was theirs, not hers.
Jai tried to shake off his thoughts. But, the thoughts still remained in a corner of his mind.
***
Bani came back to her room. She took a drawing sheet and all necessary things from the shelf and arranged them on the bed. She unzipped and took out the lone jasmine from the pouch. She still felt the perfume of it in the air even after such a long time. She put the lone bud on the bed and took out a pencil and a drawing sheet. She started to make the outline. At times, she took the color pencil and started to draw with them. For the next two to three hours, her concentration lied on making the sketch.
At last, when she felt it was over, she brought it in front of her to have a look at it. But, before it, she heard her mobile ringing. She fished out the mobile from her bag. She looked at the display. It was some landline number from Delhi.
She answered the call confused, "Hello…"
"Yeh main kya sun rahi hoon, Bani?" The person on the other end asked without any preamble.
It took a second to realize who the person was. "Didi…" Bani exclaimed.
"Haan… didi… yeh kya ho raha hai, Bani?" Pia asked.
"Kya ho raha hai?" Bani asked not able to understand anything.
"Tumhari wajah se aaj maa aur papa ke beech bada jagda ho gaya… Aisa kyun kar rahi ho, Bani?" Pia went on speaking.
"Maine kya kiya, didi?" Bani asked.
"Maa ke mana karne ke bawajood tumne Jai Walia ko milne ko bheja?" Pia asked.
"Wohi milna chahte the…" Bani said.
"Toh tumne rokha kyun nahin?" Pia asked.
Bani did not say anything.
"Pata hai, aaj maa aur papa ke beech kya ho gaya… Papa maa se baath hi nahin kar rahe hai…" Pia said.
Bani was shocked. "Kyun? Kya hua?" she asked.
"Tumhari shaadi ke baat ko lekar us donon ke beech jagda ho gaya… aur Papa unke jaane ke baad maa se baat hi nahin ki…" Pia said in an accusing tone.
Bani did not know what to say. That meant her marriage proposal was rejected.
"Agar tum hum logon ki bhalai chahti ho, toh please yeh shaadi bhool jao." Pia said.
Bani was disheartened. "Didi…" she said.
"Haan Bani. Jab shuru hi humari family mein itni problems create kar rahi hai, toh pata nahin, baad mein kya hoga?" Pia said.
"Lekin, main yeh shaadi karna chahti hoon…" Bani said.
"Kyun Bani? Aise kya rakkha hai?" Pia asked.
Bani was silent for a second, then said, "Main un logon se bahut pyar karti hoon…"
Pia was shocked. Then she asked, "Hum logon se bhi zyada?"
"Khud se zyada…" Bani said softly.
Pia went speechless. "Dekho Bani, mujhe jo kehna hai, maine keh diya… baaki tumhari marzi." Pia ended the call without waiting for Bani to respond.
Bani sat with her mobile over her ear for some seconds. Then, she kept the mobile down. Thank Lord, her room-mate was not there. Otherwise, it would be difficult to put up a composed self.
Bani's eyes fell on the sketch she had made few minutes back. She stared at it. A dirty wasteland being rained by jasmine petals… she felt as if she could smell the perfume amidst the foul odor of the garbage. She clipped the sketch in the folder and closed it. Her mobile rang again.
She picked her mobile and looked at the display. It was Pushkar's mobile. She answered it. "Hello!"
"Sorry Bani. Galti se muh se tumhari mobile wala baat nikhal gaya…" Pushkar said.
"It's okay…" Bani said feebly.
Pushkar cleared his throat. "So… dulhan kya kar rahi hai?" he teased her.
Bani stayed silent.
"Kya hua?" Pushkar asked.
"Pushkar, ghar mein kya hua?" she asked slowly.
"Kuch nahin. Tumhari maa ne mana kar diya… tumhare papa ko achcha nahin laga… bas…" Pushkar said.
"Aur?" Bani asked further.
"Aur kya? Tumhare papa ne sirf itna hi bataya…" Pushkar said.
Bani sighed heavily.
"Lekin Bani…" Pushkar said slowly. "Shayad tumhare papa is shaadi ke khilaaf nahin hai… lekin is baat par woh tumhare saath nahin de sakte. Unhone saaf-saaf keh diya ki faisla tumhare haath mein hai… Ab tumhari baari hai…"
Bani was surprised, "Papa ne aisa kaha?" She frowned and said, "Lekin… didi toh kuch aur keh rahi thi…"
Pushkar sighed, "Pia tumhari maa se baath kar rahi thi aur main tumhare papa se… so.. mujhe nahin pata ki tumhare maa ne kya kaha…"
Bani thought for a second. "Ab main kya karoon?" she asked.
"Tum decide karo. Yaad rakhna, job hi decide karoge, main tumhara saath doonga…" Pushkar said.
Bani smiled a little. "Thanks…" she said.
"Sochkar faisla lena…" Pushkar said again.
Bani nodded her head with a smile. "Mmm…"
"Main ab phone rakhta hoon. Baad mein phone karna. Teek hai?" Pushkar said.
"Haan…" Bani said.
"Bye…" Pushkar said.
"Bye, Pushkar." Bani said and ended the call.
Now, the ball was in her court.
***
When Jai and Masi arrived, it was late at night. So, they had a quiet dinner at airport before they started to drive back home.
On the way home, Masi asked, "Aditya se toh baat kar di tune. Bani se kab baat karnewale ho?"
Jai took a deep breath. "Karoonga, Masi."
"Tu karega, main jaanti hoon. Lekin, kya kahega?" Masi said.
"Soch loonga… Aap fikar mat kijiye. Waise bhi, Bani khud samaj bhi jayegi…" Jai consoled.
Masi did not ask anything more.
***
"Aditya…" Jai sighed as he answered his mobile. "Maine kaha na, main phone karoonga…" Jai said.
"Main Bani bol rahi hoon."
Jai went silent in shock.
"Sab… sab teek hai na?" she asked slowly. She did not get an answer. "Jai… aaj tak tumne mujhse kabhi jhoot nahin bola hai… Kabhi bolna bhi mat…" she said.
Jai swallowed.
"Agar tum batana nahin chahte toh… toh koi baat nahin… main tumse poochoongi nahin… lekin, ek din zaroor pata chalega." She spoke confidently.
Jai looked at the floor.
Bani continued, "Pata hai, Jai, maine shaadi ke liye 'haan' kyun ki? Tum mere liye khaas ho… bahut pasand karti hoon… bahut… tumse ek baar door hokar…" she stopped. Then she spoke, "Ek aur baar tumse door nahin hona chahti… tumhare saath rehna chahti hoon…" She sniffled, then said, "Mere liye toh, humari shaadi ke liye hum donon ki marzi kaafi hai… mujhse shaadi karoge na, Jai…" sha asked.
Jai closed his eyes to stop spilling the tears forming in his eyes. "Haan, Bani… humari shaadi zaroor hogi…" Bani laughed slightly, which reached Jai's ears and that earned a smile from him. Jai said, "Wapas aake baat karte hai…"
"Teek hai." Bani said nodding her head. "Bye… Jaldi aana…" she added.
The three word phrase 'I love you…' came to the tip of his tongue to be slipped out, but Jai just said, "Bye…" and ended the call.
Bani woke up from her sleep, breathing rapidly. She wiped her face with her back of her hand and blinked. When she remembered the dream, she smiled slowly. The feeling that Jai loved her made her smile widely. She sighed and fell back on the bed. She stared at the ceiling for sometime smiling, then fell asleep.
***
Next day morning, Bani called up Walia house around seven o' clock in the morning.
Masi answered the call. "Hello…"
"Hello Masi, main Bani bol rahi hoon. Aap kaisi hai? Kaisa raha safar?" Bani said.
Masi stumbled for a second. "Main teek hoon beta. Tum… mera matlab… itni subah-subah… kya baat hai?" Masi said.
"Anu hai? Usse baat karni hai. Wish karna chahti hoon." Bani said.
"Haan, haan. Ek minute hold karo. Main bulati hoon use…" Masi said.
After few seconds of chaos, Anu came on line. "Hello…" Anu answered.
"Hey Anu. Ut gayi?" Bani asked.
"Haan didi. Bas tayyar ho rahi thi…" Anu said.
"All the best. Language hai iska matlab light mat lena. Teek hai. Khoob likhna. Aur haan, apni grammatical mistakes zara check karna. Time zyada hogi. Isliye aaraam se likhna. Teek hai?" Bani went on saying.
"Haan, didi. Aapne yeh sab kal hi bata diya…" Anu said.
"Jaanti hoon. Ek aur baar sunoge toh kuch kam nahin hoga." Bani said.
Anu giggled. "Didi. Aap toh mama jaisi baat kar rahi hai." Anu said and giggled.
Bani smiled back. "Sorry. Anyways, All the best…" Bani said.
"Thank you, didi." Anu said.
"Shaam ko call karti hoon. Mmm?" Bani said.
"Haan…" Anu said.
"Bye…" Bani said.
"Bye…" Anu said and kept the receiver back on the hold.
"Kisse baat kar rahi thi?" Jigyasa asked from behind.
"Bani didi se…" Anu answered casually.
"Kya hua? Kya baat hai?" Jigyasa asked.
"Wish karne ke liye phone kiya tha." Anu said and walked towards her room.
Jigyasa was taken aback a second hearing Bani's name. She was brought out by Masi's voice. "Kya hua Jigyasa? Aisi kyun khadi ho? Jaake Anu ke naashte ki tayyari karo." Masi said.
"Ji…" Jigyasa said and left for the kitchen.
But the same thoughts were running in Masi's mind too. Why hadn't Bani asked anything? She shook her thoughts and walked towards the puja room.
***
Masi had narrated the whole scene that happened at Bani's place to Dadi, Jigyasa and Aditya.
Jigyasa was angry, Aditya found it unbelievable and Dadi found it ridiculous.
Jigyasa asked, "Unki yeh himmat? Masi aapko jawaab dena chahiye tha." She said angrily.
"Jawaab diya na… Jai ne… Baat aur bigad gayi…" Masi said.
"Bigadti hai toh bigadne dijiye. Uske liye hum bekaar mein aisi baatein sun nahin sakte…" Jigyasa shouted.
"Jigyasa…" Masi tried to calm her.
"Nahin masi. Agar unhein yeh rishta manzoor nahin hai, toh teek hai. Iska yeh matlab nahin ki woh humein beizzat karein aur hum chup chap sehte rahe. Yeh teek nahin hai." Jigyasa said.
Masi went silent.
"Lekin, humare Jai mein kya kharaabi hai ki woh aise baatein kar rahi thi?" Dadi asked.
"Pata nahin biji… Lekin, afsoos ki baat yeh hai ki Bani ke maa aur papa ke beech jagda ho gaya…" Masi said.
"Kyun?" Jigyasa frowned.
"Shayad Bani ke papa ko uski baat achchi nahin lagi…" Masi said.
Jigyasa looked at Aditya, who was in deep thoughts.
"Tum kya soch rahe ho?" Jigyasa asked Aditya.
"Hmmm?" Aditya sighed. "Soch raha hoon ki Jai Bani se kya kahega?"
Everyone looked at each other.
***
Later in the evening, Bani called again to ask how Anu's exams went. They spoke for nearly 10 minutes analyzing the question paper. Never once did she ask others what happened at her parents' place. She knew to some extent as to what happened and she could guess to some extent what might have happened. She did not want to speak about that until she decided what she wanted to do.
***
Masi and Jigyasa informed Jai about Bani's call.
Jai stiffened for a second and waited for them to continue.
Masi said, "Lekin usne kuch bhi nahin poocha. Anu se baat karke phone rakh di…"
Jai frowned. Then he nodded and started leaving.
"Jai…" Masi stopped him from behind. Jai stopped. Masi asked, "Baat ko kab tak taaloge?"
Jai did not say anything, but left.
***
Bani called Anu every morning on the day of examination. They spoke briefly in the morning, and detailed in the evening. Their conversation did not divert to any other topic.
***
Then came Sunday.
Bani came to Walia house as usual. She spoke with everyone casually. But, she felt a distance while they spoke with her. After she sent off Anu to learn, she came and sat near Masi.
Masi looked at her anxiously. Bani smiled to relieve the uneasiness. She said, "Sab ko bulaake aati hoon."
Masi nodded. She went and called everyone to Masi's room.
Aditya and Jigyasa was curious. Jai came with a heavy mind. Dadi joined them.
Bani sat near Masi.
There was silence for sometime.
Jai cleared his throat. "Bani… us din---"
Bani interrupted him in the middle. "Nahin Jai. Jhoot mat bolna." She said. That was enough to stop what Jai was going to tell.
Everyone was looking at Bani curiously.
Bani turned to Masi. She spoke, "Masi… main nahin jaanna chahti ki us din mere ghar mein kya hua." Everyone was shocked. Bani continued, "Andaaza toh hai ki kya hua hoga. Lekin poori baat toh andaaza nahin laga sakti na." She paused. "Waise bhi Pushkar ne bataya ki ghar mein kuch teek nahin hua. Papa aur maa ek doosre se naraaz hai. Mujhe nahin pata kyun? Mujhe nahin pata ki wajah kya hai? Main jaanna nahin chahti. Jitna sunna tha, maine sun liya, aapne bhi sun liya. Aur nahin…" She paused again and spoke, "Masi… us din Jai ne kaha ki shaadi ke liye use meri manzoori kaafi hai. Us din maine 'haan' kaha tha. Aur aaj bhi 'haan' hi kahoongi…"
Everyone looked at each other, then at Jai, who was staring at Bani and they looked at Bani.
Bani said, "Pata hai Masi. Aap log mere liye bahut khaas hai." Her eyes started turning teary. "Aap logon se bahut kuch seekha hai. Ek waqt tha jab main hamesha aap logon ke saath rehna chahti thi. Aur aaj bhi wohi chahti hoon…" As she finished, the tear drop got settled at the end of the eyelash, ready to roll down her cheeks.
Masi smiled. She looked at Jai, who was still staring at Bani. Masi turned to Bani and wiped her tears. "Rote nahin. Aur khushi ke mauke par toh bilkul nahin… Mmmm…"
Bani smiled through her tears.
"Aaja…" Masi said and enveloped her into a motherly hug. Bani happily accepted it.
Dadi was delighted. Aditya was smiling. Jigyasa was happy, but still was looking at Jai doubtfully.
Jai surprised everyone by leaving the room.
Bani looked at Masi. Masi smiled at her in response and closed her eyes as if saying 'Don't worry'.
Masi looked at Dadi and said, "Biji… kal hi pandit ko bulate hai aur shaadi ka muhrat nikhaalte hai…"
Bani smiled, but did not reach her eyes. She was still wondering why Jai left all of a sudden.
***
Jai came to the study and sat in his chair. He leaned back comfortably and recalled what happened few minutes before. He still could not believe that Bani said "Nahin Jai. Jhoot mat bolna." He smiled unconsciously. Though Pushkar would have filled her with the information, the details were still unknown to her. And she had given her consent for the marriage.
The thoughts at the back of his mind crept to the front. He frowned. Now that Bani had given her final answer, it would be ideal if the news was shared with her parents. He fished out his drawer and took out the paper where Bani had written the address and the phone number. He dialed the number and waited for the call to be answered. He wished Bani's father to attend the call so that the conversation would end politely.
But to his unluck, Bani's mother answered the call. "Hello…"
Jai sighed. "Jai Walia." He said.
"Yahaan kyun phone kiya?" Kiran asked curtly.
Jai chuckled. He decided to take some pleasure. "Bas, aapko ek news sunana tha."
"Kya?" Kiran asked.
"Bani ne manzoori de di. Aur jaldi shaadi ka date pakki ho jaayegi…" Jai said.
Kiran was speechless.
"Kya hua? Pata hai ki aapko yeh khabar achchi nahin lagegi. Phir bhi, batana toh padega hi na…" Jai said.
Kiran did not say anything.
"Aaj ek baat ke liye khush hoon ki meri maa ki dua sach ho gayi. Aakhir Bani aapki baat nahin maani." Jai said. "Aura age bhi nahin maanegi…"
Kiran at last said, "Bahut pachtayegi, apne maa-baap ke khilaaf jaake. Aur tumse shaadi karke…"
Jai smiled.
"Lekin, tum ek baat bhool gaye… Bani meri beti hai. Woh meri baat maane ya na maane, lekin beti toh meri hai…" Kiran was not ready to leave the argument. "Aaj meri baat nahin maani, toh kal shaayad tumhare baat bhi nahin maanegi…"
Jai was taken aback a little. "Kal ki kal dekh loonga… Haan, shaadi ka card zaroor bhejoonga…" he said and ended the call.
He ended the call, but Kiran's words rang in his mind.
***
Jai did not come down for lunch. Bani was eagerly waiting for him. Then, she walked to the study and entered without knocking. She saw Jai sitting in his chair with his eyes closed. She walked to him and kept her hand on his shoulder. Jai opened his eyes and looked at her. Bani blinked once, then smiled. "Khana khane chalein?" she asked.
Jai looked at her keenly. Her mother's words were still echoing in his mind.
Bani called him. "Jai…"
Jai came out of his thoughts. He took her hand resting on his shoulder and brought it to his cheek. Bani just looked at him. Jai smiled and nodded.
They both walked down the stairs holding each other's hand.
Thanks for reading 😳
Bigg Boss 19
