Posted:
Thanks a ton everyone for such a overwhelming response! It encouraged me through leaps and bounds!
Part One
~*~
He sat on the park bench, knocking his fist into his palm. That's what Dev Dixit did when he thought all by himself. But soon this periodic action was brought to an abrupt rest as she came there, half jogging and half balancing two cups of steaming hot liquid in her single hand.
"Jaldi lo!", She thrusted one of the cup onto his hand, while she sat with a thud beside him. He kept on looking, how easily she managed to smile amidst their chaotic life.
"Kya?", She asked, raising her brows high. She turned away almost instantly, refusing to miss the delicious aroma of the piping hot coffee. She sipped on with an irritating sound, at least that was what he felt.
"Uh, abhi Bhi yeh chuski waali aadat Gayi nahi tumhaari?", He questioned, visibly disgusted.
By now, a slim layer of foam had carved its way onto the portion above her lips. In a jiffy, he lifted up his thumb and made a move to wipe it off, scarcely touching her lips.
She made a low grunting noise, realising what did her face look like as she licked it off with her long tongue. Dev, further annoyed with her antics, started noiselessly drinking his coffee.
After the entire coffee fiasco wrapped up itself into the chilly vibes of the setting sun, he once again lost himself into gloominess. "Kya hum kabhi ek saath nahi reh payenge?", He reasoned dejectedly. Sonakshi thought about for a bit and then pushed her finger into the soft mud of the park, to make a line. She repeated her action to make another stroke, beside the previous one. And when she felt that it's done, she brushed off the mud by shaking off her hands.
"Yeh lines dekh rahe ho? Ek saath hai, but mil nahi rahi ek doosre se" Soon, realisation dawned upon him. This entire demonstration was of no help in the upliftment of his mood. Still, he looked considerably depressed, specially by those papers that she'd given him to approve. He sighed deeply, sometimes wondering that his life was severely complicated since birth or he'd messed it up all. Was he destined to live in doubt and suppression or his current status was the backlash of his own doings. Either wise, he'd little option. He was suffering from what can be widely termed as a thought disorder. In simple words, inability to reason out a situation and find a solution to the circumstantial problem. Hence, he found solace in succumbing himself truly to the girl seated right beside him. He wasn't even sure how important she was and if she herself knew her own worth. He'd realised this off late that the mighty Mr. Dev Dixit could do nothing, save a few business deals, without the competent Dr. Sonakshi Bose.
"Accha chalo yeh imli toffee lo", she offered him a two rupee bite to lighten up his mood. Sure enough, he took it and soon, a mild, minimal smile appeared on his grim looking face. Sonakshi wasn't sure if necessary really smiling or just that he wasn't tensed. Whatever it be, a victorious smile resonated from her own face.
"Mood sudhaarne aata Hai you bigaadti kyun ho?", He taunted. "Uh huh. Bigaadne mein tension nahi kyunki sudhaarne aata Hai", she giggled.
The barely visible smile shrunk back into itself in no time.
"Accha toh phir Suha ko Dixit Mansion Mein bhej doon, for a week?", She made a last attempt.
Fueling her meaty offer, she lightly clutched his arm and rested her cheek on his flattened shoulder.
"Ho sake toh Suha ki mummy ko bhi bhej dena", He told her. Bitter memories, which she usually didn't allow to let her happiness be hampered, hit back like a storm. "Kaash bhej Sakti", she heaved, as a lone tear slipped down her cheek.
She got up, their meeting time had ended.
"Tumhe drop kar doon", he offered as everyday. "Dev...", She sternly nodded her head in negative. The last time he'd done so, Sonakshi was severely reprimanded by the Boses as the neighbourhood couldn't stop talking about her character to mingle with her Ex.
"Theek Hai, paas waale nukkad tak toh chodne do", he pleaded.
She got into the seat beside him. "Kal woh Sharmila aunty aayi thi", she started. His favourite part had begun, Sona's gossips, worth a million dollars. Not that he was a gossip monger but this proved to be something different than seeing the sulken faces in the meetings or the drowsy heads of his employees at the day's end.
"Hmm", he responded.
"Mere liye kisi Partho ka rishta lekar" "Phir?", He quipped quickly, inquisitiveness taking the better of his soberly demeanour.
"Kuch nahi, Suha ne unko Dada ke do hafte puraane dahi bade khila diye. Bass phir, rishta pakka!", She replied.
There was an awkward moment of silence before both of them bursted out in laughter. It maybe pained, it maybe gloomy. But at least they had the relief of sharing it with each other. Such was their life, for each other but not together. It all sounded so blemish free and perfect, only if they had the opportunity to live with each other, under one roof.
Soon, the turning arrived where she got down.
"Kal aaogi naa Suha ko chodne?", he asked. She nodded and turned away towards her house. And Dev Dixit still had a gleaming smile as he successfully got hold of another chance to meet her on a new day.
~*~
Ciao.
