Chapter 2
"Love?" I questioned.
"Aur kya?" he answered.
The next few days were a teacher-child day with Preet as my teacher and I as his students. Wohi na, Guru-chela typesh. Preet told me all about Prem Juneja. He told me what Prem does, what he eats, what brand electronics he carries, where he lives, how much houses he has. Where in the world he had travelled. Everything and for some reason, I was excited, very anxious and looking foward to learn more. Normally I run away from al this likes and dislikes lectures, it is not like I will really get married or something. Apun ko Oscar kaun sa jeetne ka hai. Slumdog won, woh ishch kaafi hai. At the end, Preet also told me what time he goes to the bathroom. I looked up at the him in a very disgusted manner.
"And why do I need to know that?" I ask.
"Kuch bich nahin. Just a heads up." he replies.
I shrug my shoulders and I continue to listen. As I kept listening, I found out that to me, Prem Juneja was someone different then anyone else would be. All his needs, likes, dislikes, how he behaved, tastes, his way of living seemed to be catching onto me. It felt as if it was a need of me to know about that and for some reason, it was not for our plan. It was for something way different and personal. It felt as if I actually enjoyed learning about Prem.
"To phir, he has 20 personalized cars from different companies such as Ford, Lexus..etc and he likes to eat Gajar Ka Halwa the most, is it?" I asked sitting in the tight and conjusted bedroom of Preet at 8pm.
"Hann Heer." replied a very tired and bored Preet.
"And he has a big mansion and he jogs to the beach every single morning at 5am."
"Heer! You have asked me these questions since 2 hours! You know all the information needed and remember, you need to act as a GIRL and not a guy. To phir, your baggy shirts, ruffled hair won't work. Aur hann, you can't wear your running shoes to his house, you need to be wearing heels kyunki, paise wali mem woh hi panti hai. I have 5000 Rs, we will go and buy some nice girl clothes such as skirts, and Indian dresses, make-up and heels, Okay?" he explains.
"What?" I question, staring at him, wide eyes and open mouthed. I gulped. "Heels, skirts, Indian wear? Make -Up? Tu pagal ho gaya hai Preet! Tujhe pata hai, that I don't wear such things." I protest.
"Heer! Tu bichna, ek dum darpokch. Fookat mein daar le rahi hai." Preet said in a very stern voice.
"Preet! Tujhe pata hai, I can't wear girlie. Torture mat kar." I plead.
"Agar main tere ko lessons dega, toh chale ga?" he offers.
I fold my arms around my chest. I turn my face to the other side. "Agar lesson de sakta hai, toh tu khud hi kyun nahin mera place le sakta? Why don't you be the one to trap Prem Juneja?"
"Paise kisse chahiye?" he asks politely but at the same time, in a stern voice.
I look down. "Mujhe."
"Aur ladki kaun hai?"
"Apun."
I turn my face towards Preet, helpless. "I know, I know."
"Good." He smiles at me in a 'nice-to-know-you-understood' way. I give him a nervous smile while I thought about the real tests, opposite Prem Juneja, I will have to face. It was easy for him to tell me what do do, but it was way harder for me to actually take the plan forward.
~*~
The next day, Preet took me out to shop for heels, make-up and everything. I simply agreed to take everything he offered and this time, I didn't even protest. I was just too deep in thoughts about the plan. What if everything didn't work out? What if at the end, Nihaal wasn't all right? What if Prem Juneja started to love me? What if I started to love him? Wouldn't I be then destroying Prem's life? I got a tangly feeling inside me. It was not right. I was not right. I couldn't do this. I just couldn't. Woh main nahin hoon. I am not someone that can ruin someone else's life because I need to save someone's life that is really dear to me. I just can't.
"Heer? Ye kaisa hai?" Preet asks, holding a pink and white ankarkali design, simple Indian wear out for me.
I come out of my thinking mode and look at the dress. I give him a weak smile.
"Theek hai Preet."
Preet turns around to the counter and tells the sales man to pack that dress. At the end of our shopping spree, I had 10 Indian attire dresses, 5 western, 5 sets of heels, a make-up kit consisting of different shades of eye-liners, lipsticks, lipgloss, nail polish, eye shadow, blush and mascarra. And I also had 5 pairs of heels.
"Chale Heer." Preet asks after he is done paying. I smile warily at him.
As we are walking down the street, towards Preet's house, Preet keeps blabbing on and on about what will happen after I get the money from Prem. I don't say anything and keep walking. He then notices that I am not smiling and not even listening to him.
"Heer, tu kya soch le rahi hai?" he asks.
"Kuch bhi toh nahin." I answer.
"Dekh, if you are thinking about Prem, then don't. Woh ek business man hai, use toh koi bhi ladki mil jaaye gi. You just think about Nihaal and his operation. Okay?"
"Per.." I try to protest, at the verge of questioning about what if Nihaal doesn't make it, when I stop. Preet will not listen to me.
That day, Preet made me try on all the dresses he had brought and even made me talk to him as if he was Prem Juneja. So basically it was my Parade day and I can guarantee, then when I meet, Pem Juneja tomorrow, I would be fully trained for whatever may come. And I hoped that tomorrow would never come. I hoped that I would never would have have to carry my plan out. Call me weak or whatever, or even call Prem Juneja a big man that could get any girl that he wanted, but if I got his heart beating for me, I knew that no girl would be able to take my place afterwards.
~End of Ch 2~
Kabhi Neem Neem Kabhi Shahad Shahad
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