SFL {Th:2}Chap 12 parts 1 & 2 pg42 updtd 9/1/13

She barely glanced his way," Baad mein!"

Nidhi turned back, "Suniye... Andar aayiye please.."

The door opened and a very tall and incredibly handsome man walked in followed by two gorillas, who were obviously body guards.

"Hunh. yeh hai aapki sati savitri Dr. Ashutosh. Look she has another besotted old fool in tow. Ab boli..."

Once again Purab was not allowed to finish, as the new arrival moved like lightening. He grabbed Purab's arm and snatched the scalpel and pulled the nurse away, then turning Purab around he punched him in the face, making him stagger and fall flat on the ground.

"Apni gandi zuban apne munh mein rakkho. Yeh meri bahen hai. Aur agar aaj ke baad meri behen ke ass paas bhi dikhayi diye, toh isse zuban ko khench kar tumhare gale ka phanda bana dunga, samjhe."

"How dare you..."

"Apne Mujhe shayad pehechana nahin janab, Mere naam Aazaan Ali Khan hai. Kuch yaad ayaa, nahian? Chaliye koi baat nahin, mera naam itna jaana maana nahin hai. But I am sure aap mere walid ka naam zaroor pehchaante honge. Aalaam Khaan..."

Aazaan paused. He waited till this information registered. When the sheer fright on Purab's face, and the violent trembling of his body had assured him that the man had received the message, he spoke again.

"Waise toh main apne Abbu ke kaam se aur unki uss duniya se alag rehta hoon, lekin apne Abbu ke dil se door nahin hoon. So, I assure you all I need to do is make a call. I think that Abbu declared that he will give a huge reward to anyone who can give any news of your whereabouts. He was really angry, or so I have heard, when he made that proclamation. My father is a very frightening man when he is angry. I would not want to be in your shoes if he ever found out where you were. Tumne aisa kya kiya Pyarelal jo mere Abbu tumse itna naraz hain. And..."

"Phir se 'P'! Yeh 'P' se obssession toh pehli baar dekha hai."

Aazaan turned and grinned, " Yes. Isska asli naam Pyarelal Pitambar Pandey hai. Quite a mouthful, hain na."

Then turning back to Purab, he said," Now if I were you I would cooperate with these nice officers, and tell them anything that they want to know. But ONLY the Truth. No more lies. Otherwise I will have no hesitation about calling my father. I hope you understand what I am saying. I don't need or want the reward reward. For me it will enough to see that you get what's coming to you."

Purab stared at him stupefied, sweating profusely , his eyes darting frantically to and fro desperately looking for an avenue of escape.

Aazaan glared at Purab,"Toh phir kya socha aapne. Are you going to go willingly yaa call karoon?" He took out his phone, and looked pointedly at Purab,

"Jee nahin...m.m.m.matlab jee haan. "

"Jee Haan, Jee nahin. What do you mean Man, saaf saaf bolo."

"Jee I will cooperate. Aap jo kahenge main wohi karunga. Please don't call Aalaam sahab,please...(he was literally begging) IG sahab main apne aap ko surrender kaarta hoon and apne agle pichle saare zurm qubool karta hoon. I will even give you a written confession. Anything you want. Please... Chaliye. Please lock me up. I ...I don't want to be free."

Saying that he reached out and yanked the handcuffs out of one of the constable's hands, and snapped it on one wrist. Then held the other out, looking at the officer , urging him to finish the job. Then to everyone's open mouthed amazement, he walked eagerly out with the officers.

"Well. That was a bit of an anticlimax." Arman said.

Then Ashutosh turned to Manny,"Manny this means Nidhi has been cleared, she is free?"

Manny chuckled and patted him on the shoulder,"Haan bhai Bhabhi is absolutely in the clear. Bas thodi kaanooni karavahi hai, par woh main finish kar dooga. Tum dono phikr mat karo. Ab tum dono jo chahe karo, and jahan jaana hai jao."

Everyone took a sigh of relief. But then Ashutosh remembered Aazaan. He walked over to him and held out his hand,"Thank you Mr. Khan. I don't have the words to express..."

Aazaan put his hand in Ashutosh's and, cut him off mid speach,"Aapko mujhe thanks kehne ki koi zaroorat nahin hai. Nidhi meri behen jaisi hai. Inko hamari zaroorat thi, toh humein toh aanaa hi tha. Inke Baba ke hum pe hamari family pe bahut ahsaan hain."

Ashutosh looked up at him puzzled, "Matlab?"

The other guy just grinned,"Matlab yeh lambi, aur bahut puraani kahani hai. Aap Nidhi behen se poochiye. Accha toh ab main chalta hoon."

Then turning to Manny he said,"IG sahab agar meri zaroorat pade to please do not hesitate. And I will have my people deliver all the information that I have on Mr. Pandey to your office."

Manny nodded, and shook hands with him. Then Aazaan turned once more to Nidhi, and put his hand on her head,"Behen jab kabhi apne iss bhai ki zaroorat pade, phone kar dena. Main aa jaaunga. Khush raho"

"Thank you Aazaan Bhai."

He smiled, and ran a hand over her head once again, then with a wave he turned and left followed by the two men he had come in with.

There was a minute of silence, then Rohan putting his arm around Nidhi' shoulder said," Wow Nidhi, you certainly know some interesting people. So what's the story . And how come you have connections with a gangster? Agar mujhe yeh pehle pataa hota toh main itni saari bhaag daud nahin karta tumhari innocence prove karne ke liye. I swear, teen din se aachi tarah soya nahin hoon, naa dhang se khaana khaya. Itni tension thi. And all you had to do was make a call, and you have your own mafia army. Yaar pehele kyon nahin bulaya tumne apne gangster Bhai ko."

Nidhi jerked his arm off of her,"Pehli baat toh yeh hai ki he is not a gangster. He is a very honest man, and a law abiding citizen. Second, I did not call him. Mujhe toh inko call karne ki soojhi hi nahin. Aazaan ko sab khabar apne aap hui, and as soon as he heard, he came here to help me out of it. Inka call mere paas aaj subha hi aaya, and he told he that he had arrived in lucknow. Woh sirf mere liye yahan aaye the, lekin apne aap, mere bulane se nahin."

"Law abiding!!!!! Yeah that is why he has those two huge gorillas with guns following him."

"They are not gorillas. They are both very sweet guys, who also happen to be his body guards. Rohan the fact that his father is a mob boss does not mean that Aazaan is bad too. He separated a long time ago from his father. Both father and son understand each other. Aazaan needs bodyguards because of that. You know how it is, anyone can try to get to his father through him and his family. If you don't believe me ask IG Sir."

"Bhabhi theek keh rahi hai. Even we were skeptical at first, but he has really proven himself over time. Aazaan is a good guy. He has even helped the police on numerous occasions. Lekin Bhabhi aap kaise isse jaanti ho?"

"Sir, main aapse choti hoon aap please mujhe Nidhi keh ke bulayiye."

"Toh phir tum bhi mujhe Sir nahin kahogi, Bhai keh ke bulaogi."

Nidhi smiled shyly at him,"Jee...Bhai. And aapko Baba ke aur Aazaan Bhai ke Abbu ki kahani baad mein bataungi. I am sure you will find it interesting."

"Theek hai. Kissi din phursat mein baithenge hum dono. Chalo bhai, yahan ka kaam toh nipat gaya. Ab main bhi chalta hoon. Ammy tu honeymoon se wapas aayega tab milenge. Aur haan Arman aur Rohan tum dono bhi inke saath aanaa."

Arman looked at Manny with a pout,"Toh teri dosti sirf Ashu ke saath hi hai. Iske saath agar aaye toh aa saktein hain warna nahin."

"Arman tu toh khote ka khota hi rahega. Yaar yeh toh inki shaadi ki wajah se formal invitation hai. Usske baad thodi hi koi invitation ka chakkar hoga. Jab chahe chale aao sab ke sab, tumhara hi toh ghar hai. Aur waise hi main bhi apni paltan ko lekar tapak padunga. Aur meri beti pe toh Nidhi tune na jaane kya jaadu kar diya hai, kal se tujhe yaad kar rahi hai."

"Toh aap aaj usse ghar le aayiye na. Mere ko bhi uske saath khelna hai."

"Aaj toh tum dono apni trip par nikal rahe ho. Jab wapas aaoge tab aa jaunga. Accha chalta hoon. Abhi toh Pyarelal Pitambar Pandey se deal karna hai."

He left giving them all a salute and a smile.

After he had left Rohan and Arman came up and hugged Nidhi, expressing their relief. Then they plopped themselves down on the couch.

"Whew. Thak gaye yaar. Yeh jaasoosi karna, evidence dhoondana, and villains ko pakadvana...Baap re, bada jhamele ka kaam hai. Main toh Doctor hi bhala. Give me an impacted bowel any day."

Nidhi made a face, and Ashutosh and Arman chuckled.

Rangnath, who up until that moment had been so quiet as to be almost invisible, got up from the chair he had been occupying,

"Congratulations Nidhi. I am so happy for you, and also very relieved that sab kuch itna aaraam se solve ho gaya. (The he turned to Ashutosh, whom he could not look in the eye) Dr. Ashutosh... Congratulations to you also Sir. And ab if you all will excuse me, I need to get back to my duties. I wish both of you a very happy and safe journey. I guess I will see you both when you get back. Bye... Take Care."

"Jeeju..." Nidhi said, and ran after him.

Ashutosh , Arman and Rohan stared at each other helplessly, unsure of what to say, or what to do to comfort Rangnath, and ease his guilt.

"Nidhi ko jaane de Ashu. Iss samay woh hi Rangnath se baat kar sakti hai. Besides, Rangnath hamara nahin, Nidhi ka gunehgar hai. And, itne mein tu abhi Baba aur Bhua ko call kar, woh dono pareshaan honge, and tere phone ka wait kar rahe honge. Phir jaise Nidhi wapas aati hai we need to get home, wahin chalke sab ek saath celebrate karengein. And tum dono ko apni trip ke liye packing bhi toh karni hai."

Meanwhile Nidhi had caught up with Rangnath.

"Jeeju..."

"Nidhi ... Mujhe samajh nahin aata ke main tumse kaise aankh milaun. I don't know how I could ever have believed that you were guilty of something so... so...awful. Tumhe pataa hai, Anji ne 2 din se mere baat nahin ki hai. She has not said a word to me. Usse tumpe poora bharosa tha. I am ashamed to say ke itni time se tumko jaane ke bawajood, I could not do that for you. I am so so sorry. I hope that you will be able to forgive me."

Nidhi touch his arm gently," Jeeju, you have nothing to be guilty about. AApki jagah main hoti toh main bhi yehi sochti. Really. Aap please apne aap ko doshi mat theherayiye. Meri aankhon mein aapki aaj bhi wohi jagah and respect hain, jo pehle thi. Aap aaj bhi mere liye wohi Jeeju hain, meri behen ke jeevan saathi. Jeeju please don't let a little thing like this come between us. Inn baaton se sirf dooriyan aati hain rishton mein. And main aapse door nahin hona chahti. Aap aur Anji hi toh meri family ho, agar aap hi mujhse alag ho gaye toh main kahan jaungi. Jeeju mere liye na sahi toh Anji ke liye please...forget about all this. We are family."

Rangnath looked at Nidhi with wonder, and with new respect , his eyes suspiciously bright with unshed tears. He caught her in a tight hug, then drew back to look at her tenderly,

"No wonder Anji adores you. Tum jaise insaan duniyaa mein abhi bhi hote hain... Thank you. Thank you for forgiving me, and thank you for having such a generous heart. And yes I will try to put this behind us. Lekin Anji ke liye nahin, meri pyaari si saali ke liye, hamari family ke liye."

They both smiled and that moment cementing their relationship permanently.

They were met at the door by Bhua, Baba, Anji, and her parents. The relief on everyone's face was clearly visible. Lunch took place amidst a lot of laughter, and noise.

After Lunch everyone dispersed, with Rohan and Anji promising to be back later that evening , in time to take them to the airport. The last two days had been so stress filled that Nidhi could see the visible signs of that in the fatigue on both Baba and Bhua's face.

"Baba , Bhua ab aap doo jaakr thodi der aaraam kar lijiye. Aap bahut thake hue lag rahein hain. Chaliye main aap dono ko apne kamre tak chhod kar aati hoon."

"Arre haan beta, aaraam toh hota rahega. Abhi bas tum dono ke saat thode der baithna chahtein hain. Shaadi ke baad se waqt hi nahin milla. Tumhari toh abhi saari rasmein bhi poori nahin hui. Unka kya?"

"Bhua woh sab hota rahega, and rasmein humare aane ke baad poori kar lijiyega. Aur iss tarha aapko waqt bhi mil jayega itminaan se saari tayyari karne ka. Aur hum kahin bhaage nahin jaa rahe. Yahin hain aapke paas. Bas ab main kuch nahin sunungi, chaliye. Baatein shaatein, baad mein pehle aap dono rest kariye"

"Accha bhai chal. Lekin tum dono bhi thake hue hoge. Jao tum dono bhi thoda aaraam kar lo. Phir shyaam ko safar bhi toh karnaa hai."

"Baba aap dono phikr mat kariye. Main sab sambhal loongi."

As soon as he had closed the door Ashutosh turned to Nidhi. He knew that she had not said a word to him all morning. And even now, she had turned away and was busy picking out clothes to pack for their trip. He went up to her and caught her in a hug from behind. But there was no reaction from Nidhi. She continued doing her work. Ashutosh sighed as he rested his chin on her shoulders. Then he started nuzzling his lips against her neck.

"Itna naaraaz ho mujhse? Baat bhi nahin karogi?"

"Ashuji, please let me pack. Aabhi pareshan mat kijiye mujhe."

"Agar tumhe pareshaan nahin karunga to aur kisse karunga. Nidhi...Jaan...please yaar kuch toh bolo. I can't stand to have you not talk to me."

"Mujhe aapse koi baat nahin karni hai. Please chodiye mujhe."

"Aise hi naraaz naraaz rahogi kya mere saath hamare honeymoon pe. Waise hi humein itna limited waqt milla hai, agar usmein bhi mujhse gussa rahogi toh kaise kaam chalega."

"Yeh toh aapko pehle sochna chahiye tha."

"Nidhi I am really sorry main subha bina bataye chala gaya. Honestly. But I had good reasons. Pehle mujhe pataa tha ke tum kitna exhausted ho, what with the wedding and then all the police stuff. Phir maine bhi kahan aaraam karne diya tumhe. I wanted you to get some proper rest. Second I did not want you to worry, and I did not want you there because mujhe nahin pataa tha ke situation kaisi hogi. I did not want you to be anywhere where you could get hurt. I knew ke agar tumhe pataa chal jaata ke hum kya kar rahein hain to tum bhi mere saath chalne ki zid karti. I wanted to keep you safe. Please jaan , maaf kardo na?"

Nidhi removed his arms from arround her and turned to face him. There was no anger in her eyes, but Ashutosh could see a waery disappointment on her face.

"I am not angry. And this has nothing to do with your not waking me up this morning. It has to do with the fact that you hid everything from me. Not only that you persuaded Rohan and Arman bhai to keep quiet also. Ashuji I know why you did what you did, and I understand and appreciated it also. Really I do. I know that you love me and want to protect me. But don't you see by keeping all that to yourself and not letting me in on what you were planning to do hurt, mere siva sab ko pataa tha... Then you did not even tell me that you had hired a private investigator to find out about Purab's background, and everything else . That is what I am upset about. That and the fact that, even though for what you thought were the right reasons, you could so easily keep things from me, that fact more than anything else bothers me. It make me feel very nervous for our future. I am forced to think that if you can so easily hide things from me now, aage kya hoga. Ashuji mujhe shaadi shuda zindagi ke baare mein bahut kuch toh nahin pataa, par itna zaroor pataa hai ke patni patni ke beech there should be absolute trust, and faith on each other. Without trust the relationship does not mean much. You did not trust me enough to trust that I would not question the fact that you wanted me to stay at home. Aap ek baar mauka toh dete mujhe aapko dikhane ke liye ke I trust you to do what is best for me. Ashuji all you had to do was say so, and I would not have left the house. Chahe mera man kitna bhi karta saath chalne ke liye, I would have stayed at home, because that is what you wanted me to do. Lekin aapne ek assume kar liya ke main bacchon ki tarha zid karungi. I might be young Ashuji, but I am not without a brain. Mujhe pata hai zid karne ka and apni baat zid karke manvane ka apna ek time hota hai, and I have the sense enough to know that this was not that time. Aapko mujhpe zara bhi bharosa nahin hai, and that is what hurts the most. And I am scared of what my reaction will be if you do it again. Jhoot and deception se rishte mein darar padti hai."

Nidhi lifted her face and stared at her Father's photograph on the wall. A tiny tender smile spread on her face as she walked slowly over to it. Then she reached out and ran her fingers gently over her father's face.

"Ashuji mujhe meri Maa toh yaad nahin hain, lekin woh baatien zaroor yaad hain jo baba batate the unke baare mein. Dono ne jo waqt saath bitaaya tha uske baare mein. He told be about their love, and their bond with each other. They had complete trust and faith in each other, and told each other everything. Ek baari Baba mujhe samjha rahe the about how at times sharing is not always easy. That sharing your innermost thoughts and fears, and certain events of our lives can even hurt those that we love. So I asked him that if he knew something was going to hurt Maa, then why did he tell her about it, why didn't he stay quiet and let her be happy? Baba smiled and looked at me and said that he had preferred to hurt her in the short run and have her complete trust, than cause her even more pain and risk loosing her faith, when she found out later. He said that things have a way of coming out and when they do the hurt is far worse, Not because of the subject itself, but the fact that the person you love lied and kept things from you, broke your trust. He said that Maa appreciated that quality of his, and loved him all the more because of it.

I want that for us too. Maine jabse hosh sambhalaa aapse pyar kiya. Aapke hi sapne dekhti aayi, aur aapke sapon ke sahare hi apni saari zindagi abhi tak kaati hai. I trust you Ashuji, lekin aaj yeh baat jaankar ke bahut dukh ho raha ke aap ko mujhe par bharosa nahin hai. It also hurts that somewhere along the line I have given you the impression that I am immature and irresponsible."

She was about to walk away when Ashutosh caught and pulled her tightly into his arms,

" I am so sorry Jaan. Mera aisa koi iraada nahin tha. Naa hi mere dimag mein yeh trust , age, or anything like that, kabhi aaya. I was only thinking of your safety. Nidhi jiss tarha dheere dheere main tumhare baare mein jaa jaunga, uss tarha tum bhi over time mujhe, meri aadaton ko, mere nature ko jaan jaogi. Sweetheart I tend to act without thinking, and I guess in my zeal to protect you I did not think. Par Jaan you have to stop being so sensitive. Honey don't keep misunderstanding me and my motives. Mere actions ko nahin, unke peeche meri feelings ko samajhne ki koshish karo. Aur main bhi koshish karunga to try think things through before I act. Lekin I can't guarantee that I will not end up doing something dumb again. Lekin no matter what always remember I love you. I love you more than anything, and above all else. Aur meri inn chhoti chhoti galtiyon ko overlook karne ki koshish karo. Agar na kar sako toh mujhse ladai kar lena, mujhe daant lena, mujhe koi bhi sazaa dedena par mujhse kabhi bolna band mat karna. Mujhse bardasht nahin..."

Nidhi moved and put her lips on his, silencing him,

"Please aur kuch mat kahiiye. Aapne koi galti nahin ki. Galti meri hai, mai hi kuch zyada sensitive hoon. Pataa nahin kyon, lekin aapki koi bhi baat, chhoti ho ya badi, mujhe uss se bahut fark padta hai. Kya karoon itne saalon se aapke liye wait karti rahi, I think aapko pedestal par baitha jo rakkha tha, ke mere liye you became a larger than life figure. I guess I forgot that you are human and are allowed to make mistakes just like anyone else. I am sorry."

Ashutosh chuckled as he pulled her closer to himself, and brought his face down close to hers," Aisa kartein hain ke dono ek doosre ko maaf karke iss mamle ko bhool jaate hain. I mean hamari shaadi ko do din hue hain and we have hardly had any time to concentrate on just each other. The next 3-4 days belong to us. Let's forget everything else. Hmm? Time enough for the other things when we come back."

"Aap theek keh rahein hain," she said coming forward to lean on his chest, "Main bhi kitni stupid hoon. Itne saal aapka wait karti rahi, pal pal ginti rahi ke aap kab wapas ayenge. Taras gayi thi aapki ek jhalak paane ke liye. Aur aaj, jab I finally have you, and I know ke aap sirf mere hain, toh main in phizool ki baaton ke chakkar mein padkar aapsi ladai kar rahi hoon. But I promise ab nahin. No more gussa, no more ladai. And jaise aapne kaha, agle 4 din hum dono ke sirf hum dono ke liye hain."

Ashutosh hugged her tighter, and drew back a little,"Thats my girl. And before we get off the topic , that sentence you just said a few moments ago, the part about "having me"... Well main soch raha tha ke why not start on our honeymoon a bit early. Baba aur Bhua ne humein safar se pehle aaraam karne ko bola hain. So...". He leered suggestively, making Nidhi blush.

"Ashuji, aap bhi na...No! Abhi honeymoon shuru nahin hua hai. And I need to pack, usmein bhi mujhe kaafi time lagega. I mean 4 din ke liye jaa rahein hain, there are a million things I need to take. agar kahin kuch chhoot gaya toh main wahan kya karoongi. Accha ab please thodi der mujhe disturb mat kariye, let me just finish."

"Nidhi we are just going for 4 days not 4 months. Aur agar kuch bhool gayi toh jahan jaa rahein hain wahan par khareed lena. We are not of to the wilderness you know. Plus itna kitna pack karna hai tume. 4 din ke 4 jode kapde, kangha, aur toothbrush. Iss se zyada kya chahiye?"

Nidhi chuckled,"Aapki iss baat se saaf zahir hota hai ke you have no clue about the female race. Well I guess maybe some women are different , but me, well if I could I would take the kitchen sink. Mere ko pack karne mein bahut time lagta hai. And agar aapko shyaam ko time se ghar se nikalna hai toh I suggest you let me get to work."

"Par Nidhi we have a few hours before we leave. It takes you that lond?" Ashutosh exclaimed in amazement. Wondering just how much she planned to take with her on this trip.

"Of course not silly. Not hours, but certainly an hour. Then uske baad bhi mujhe bahut kaam hain. I know ke hum dinner wahin karenge, par I want to make Baba and Bhua's dinner before I leave. I have to make sure that their things are organized so that they can find what they need wtihout any trouble. Phir Bhua wants me to go to the mandir with her. Keh rahin thi kuch mannat mangni hai and she needs me with her. So you see, by the time I finish with all that it will be time to go."

Ashutosh groaned as he plopped on the bed. He had been hoping to have some quality time before the flight, aur yahan toh biwi ko baat karne tak ki phursat nahin.

"Theek hai...Tum sab finish karo, and main ek do ghante so leta hoon. That way at least one of us will be rested."

She looked at him absentmindedly,"Hmmm? Jee theek hai. Aap so jayiye. Accha aapka kya saman pack karna hai, batayiye. Main kar doongi."

"No. It's ok main khud karloonga. Plus meri packing mein toh myjhe sirf 5-10 minute lagenge. So it is not a problem. Besides you have enough on your plate with me adding one more thing. Mainkar loonga don't worry."

"Lekin..."

"lekin vekin kuch nahin Nidhi. Maine kaha na main kar loonga. And we have all of our lives, bahut mauke milenge tumhe meri packing karne ke liye."

She smiled and nodded. Ashutosh lay there looking at her bustling about to anf fro, talking to herself as she collected her stuff from all corners of their room. "When did she get the time to shift so much of her stuff into this room," he thought in amazement, his heart filling with love at her innocent childlike ways.

Ashutosh had no idea when he dozed off, because the next thing he knew, he was being shaken awake by his father.

"Ashu, uth beta. Aur kitna soyega. Beta uth aur tayyar ho. Khaane ke baad airport ke liye ravaana hona hai.

Chal beta. Dekh teri Bhua aur Nidhi Mandir gaye hain Unke aate hi bas khaa kar nikalna padega."

"Jee Baba. Uth gaya. I'll be ready in about 15-20 minutes."

"Theek hai beta. Toh main bahar living room mein tera intezaar kar raha hoon. I will tell Chote Sarkar to make some really nice adrak ki chai. Aur, itne mein tu tayyar ho jaa, chai saath mein piyenge."

"Ji Baba. Bas abhi aaya."

Ashutosh reached for is glasses and put them on and sat up slowly removing the blanket from around his legs. "When did I take my glasses off? And this blanket...when did I cover myself?" He thought, puzzled. Then it dawned on him that Nidhi must have done these things when she saw him sleeping. Ashutosh smiled. Baba aur Bhua ne bachchpan meintoh bahut kiya tha, but ever since he had grown up and become an adult, Ashutosh could not remember a single time that anyone had done these kinds of things for him. He had always woken up in the middle of the night to cover himself, and take off his glasses. He also realized that those days were in the past now. Ab usse kabhi bhi aisi cheezon ki phir nahin karni padegi. Nidhi would always be there to take care of him, and his needs and comforts, just as he would be there to take of hers. It was a wonderful feeling knowing that there was someone who cared about you so much, he thought as he got ready.

Nidhi and Bhua came back barely 10 minutes after he had finished helping Chote Sarkar load the cars with their stuff. As promised Nidhi had all her suicases ready and waiting near the door of their room, and also as she had warned, it looked like she had packed everything but the kitchen sink. Yeh aakhin kitne dino ke liye bahar rehene ka plan kar rahi hai? And will she even use all of these things, he thought as he heaped the stuff into the trunk of the toyota land cruiser.

Ashutosh noticed something different about Nidhi as soon as she entered the room. He looked at her closely. "She is Blushing!" he realized in astonishment. "Lekin Kyon? Just where did these two go, and what happened there that had was making his wife blush so hard." Ashutosh thought jealously. But, He did not get a chance to ask Nidhi till much later, why she had been blushing when she and Bhua had come home from the mandir.

As soon as they were air born Nidhi looped her hands around Ashutosh's arm and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Sleepy?"

Shaking her head slightly, " No. Just a bit tired, and a lot excited."

"Well, abhi so jao, and ja plane land karega tab excited ho lena."

"Ashuji... Excitment bhi koi control kar sakta hai. I can't believe it. Hum Kashnir Jaa rahein hain. It's been a dream of mine to visit there someday. Mujhe vishwas hi nahin ho raha ke main aapke saath wahan jaa arahi hoon."

"I know that you wanted to go there, issi liye toh wahan ka plan banaya maine."

Sha lifted her head, and looked at him with surprised eyes," Aapko kaise maaloom hua? Maine toh kabhi kuch nahin kaha."

"Mujhe pataa tha ke tum toh kuch kahogi nahin, issi liye maine Anji se pooch liye if she knew of any particular place that you would like to go to for your honeymoon.. She told me you had dreamed of going to Kashmir ever since you were little. So..."

"Aap koi Jaadugar hain kya Ashuji? Jab se aap wapas aaye hain, dheere dheere mere saare saapne poore hote jaa rahein hain?

"Tum bas sapne dekho Nidhi. Main unko poore kata jaunga. Maera bas chaale toh main duniya bhar ki khushiyan laake tumhare kadmon mein rakkh doon. Lekin woh toh mumkin nahin hai, iss liye itna vadaa zaroor karta hoon ke saari zindagi tumhe khush rakhne ke koshish karta rahoonga, aur tumhe pyaar karta rahoonga."

Nidhi put one fonger on his lips, and shook her head. There were tears in her eyes.

"Main bhi yehi chahti hoon ke aap hamesha khush rahein. Ashutosh I promise that I will try and always be a good wife. And maine toh waise shuru se hi sirf aapse pyaar kiya hai, aapke sapne dekhe hain. Promise karti hoon aakhri saans tak sirf aapse se pyaar karti rahungi, aur humesha aapka saath nibhaungi."

"Accha bahut ho gayi senti baatein. Yeh sade teen ghante ki flight hai. You should be able to get a really nice rest."

Then he lifted the armrest in between their seats and put his arm around her, so that she could rest more comfortably.

Nidhi was jolted out of sleep when the plane touched down on the runway. They were met at the airport by a representataive of the Taj Vivavta Hotel, where he had booked them in for the next four days. Ashutosh was delighted by her childlike enthusiasam and amused by the million question she asked of the driver, who patiently answered all of her questions during the 20 minute drive to the hotel. The scenery that greeted them the minute they stepped out of the car stole their breath away. The driver had told them on the way over that the hotel was located Kralsangri hill and offered a panoramic view of the Dal Lake, and was surrounded by majesty of Zabarwan Mountains. But nothing could have ever prepared them for the beauty that met their eyes.

Ashutosh went to the reception where they were congratulated, and Nidhi wass given a bouquet of flowers. Then they bn vwere escorted to their room by one of the staff, who, as he was handing Ashutosh the keys, said,

"Sir my name is Rajeev. I am at your service anytime, please do not hesitate to call me if you need anything. I will leave you two alone now, but first I wanted to ask you what you wanted to do for dinner this evening. Would you and Madam prefer to dine out, or dine in. The hotel can also arrange a very special dinner outside on the grounds, if you desire. Please let me know and I will be happy to arrange it for you. We can also arrange for a private dinner on a boat. You can get a tour of the dal lake, and spend aa romantic evening togther and have dinner by candlelight. The boat will bring you back to the hotel whenever you want, or you can even spend the night on it. It is up to you."

Ashutosh turned to Nidhi,"Well sweetheart, what do you want to do?"

Nidhi smiled shyly,"Ashuji can we have dinner on the boat."

"Jo tum chaho. Raat ko wapas aana hai, ya boat par hi rahogi."

"Nahin I wanna come back here to sleep. But...can we stay out late."

"Of course Ma'am. Kitni der mein jaana chahenge aap."

"May in an hour or two. I want to relax and freshen up first."

"No problem Ma'am. I will arrange it. And will you both like to have anything right now."

Ashutosh looked at Nidhi, and she turned to Rajeev, "I'll have coffee, and inke liye adrak ki chaye, and maybe something light to eat. Kuch bhi chalega, you choose ."

"Jee. Very good. Ok very well then, I'll take your leave."

Ashutosh gave him a tip, and locked the door. He turned around and saw Nidhi standing outside on the balcony. He came up behind her and put his arms around her waist.

They stood like that in each others arms for several long seconds. Then Ashutosh raised drew back,"Kya soch rahi ho."

She smiled,"Kuch nahin. Sach mein. Bas bahut khush hoon."

He kissed her forehead,"That's why I kept the destination of our honeymoon as a surprise till the last moment. I am glad Anji told me about Kashmir. Main chahta hoon ke tum hamesha issi tarha khush raho."

"Nidhi stretched up to kiss his cheek,"Aap galat samajh rahein hain. I am not happy becaue of the place. I am happy because of you. Aap hi toh meri khushi hain."

"Aur tum meri. Nidhi...ab toh hamara honeymoon shuru ho gaya hai na. "

Nidhi blushed, and lowered her eyes.

"So..."

"Ashuji just look around you. We are in Kashmir, the most beautiful place on earth. Aapko toh pata hoga Shahenshah Jahangir ki famous lines for Kashmir" Gar firdaus bar-rue zamin ast, hamin asto, hamin asto, hamin asto (If there's a heaven on earth, it's here, it's here, it's here.). I just realized how accurate he was," Nidhi said with wonder, leaning back against him. "Look at the Majesty of our surroundings, it is absolutely breathtaking, and you are not even paying attention. It really is heaven on earth."

"No...," Ashutosh murmered, "heaven is having you in my arms like this and knowing that you belong to me. And for me the most breathtaking thing on earth is right here in my arms. And for the next 50 years or so, this is the only thing I intend to pay any attention too."

Nidhi closed her eyes as Ashutosh put a finger under her chin and tilted her face to his. He kissed both eyelids and started to lower his face towrds her when there was a knock on their door.

"Sir, it's room service."

He put his forehead against hers and groaned, "The world is conspiring against me!"

They were met at the front door by Dr. Mathur and Bhua. Both had huge smiles on their face, as they hugged Nidhi and welcomed her back home. No sooner had she entered, than she was once again caught in bear hugs, by Anji then her parents. All three had a worried look on their face, and a million questions, regarding what had happened. Nidhi was also surprised to see Rangnath, and smiled as he came up and also gave her a quick hug.

When they were all seated, Rangnath turned to Ashutosh,

"Sir, I am so sorry that all this happened today of all days. When Dr. Purab came to me with that DVD, well Sir...I was completely thrown for a loop. I tried to convince him to wait till tomorrow, but he would not listen Sir. And considering the seriousness of the matter...well sir, I couldn't...I just couldn't ignore... I am sorry Sir. I can not even imagine what you must be going through. Sir I...I am sorry Nidhi."

"It's ok Jeeju, don't worry about it. Mujhe pataa hai ke issmein aapki koi galati nahin hai. Basically Purab is out to get me, and he will not stop till he does. Par Jeeju aap meri phikr mat kijiye. I have the support of my family, who know that I didn't do anything, and that is the most important thing for me. Sab theek ho jayega, and I will be proved innocent."

Rangnath looked from Ashu to Nidhi, and lowered his eyes, in shame. He would never have believed Nidhi to be capable of anything like this, had he not seen the evidence with his own eyes. And then too, he had ot believed it the first time the proof had been shown to him. After he had seen the DVD 2-3 times, he had admitted to himself that the evidence in front of his eyes was hard to refute.

Just then, he happened to glance towards his wife, and found her glaring at him with daggers in her eyes. Rangnath closed his eyes, and sighed. He and Anji had had a fight on this very issue right before they had come here. When he had told her about the evidence, Anji had scoffed and said that there was no way Nidhi could have stolen anything, and that the DVD had to have been a plant. When he had persisted, she had blasted him out, then they had had words, and now the end result of all that was they she was not speaking to him.

Then Bhua spoke up,

"Accha bhai, ab sab log thoda thoda kuch khaa pee lo, haan. Khaas karke tum dono. Nidhi, beta tune aur Ashu ne toh zara bhi nahin khaaya naa. Bhookh lagi hog tum dono ko? Tum dono pehle khaa lo, phir shyaam ke liye tayyar bhi toh hona hai na."

It was Anji who answered in her stead,

"Bhuaji bhookh toh mujhe bhi lag rahi hai. Kya hai na, woh jaise hi aapne hamein khabar kari, toh main ek dum chali aayi. Lekin abhi Reception ke liye time bahut kam hai, aur hum dono ko tayyar bhi hona hai, toh mai kya soch rahi thi, ke kyon na Nidhi aur mera khana hum upar hi kha lein. Thodi der mein salon se beautician bhi aati hogi, uss se pehele humein thodi tayyariyaan bhi karni hai. Is that OK?"

Bhua smiled indulgently,

"Haan haan, kyon nahin. Theek hai tum dono jao, aur itminan se acchi tarha tayyar ho, main tumhare liye khaana upar hi bhijva dungi."

On the other side Dr Mathur also spoke up,

"Par beta abhi toh bahut der hai, reception mein. Tum dono abhi se hi..."

"Arre Bhaisahab, kya aap bhi. Yeh hi umr hai in dono ki, yeh sab baatein karne ke liye. Jitna sajna savarna chahe, inhe karna chahiye. Kuch saalon ke baad toh ghar baar, pati aur bacchon mein hum auratein itni ullajh jaati hain, ke khud ki sudh hi nahin rehti. Inhe karne do jo bhi yeh karna chahe. Abhi time hai, toh sab shauk, aur hasratein poori karni chahiye. Kyon Shyama, theek kaha na maine?"

Shyama looked at both her daughters indulgently, and with love, then she looked at Bhua

"Aapne bilkul sahi kaha, Saroj-ji. Jao tum dono, hum abhi tumhare liye khaana bhejte hain."

Anji grabbed Nidhi's hand,

"Chal Nidhi. Tere kamre mein chaltein hain."

Ashutosh, who had been sitting and listening to the conversation, interjected,

"Hey, you guys can't occupy the bedroom. I have to get ready too, later on, and all my things are in the bedroom."

Anji laughed,

"Jeejaji, you don't need to worry. We are going to be in your bedroom, we will be using Nidhi's old one. Iss liye aap itminan rakhiye, and aaraam se khana khayiye. Phir agar chahe toh thodi der aaraam bhi kar saktein hain tayyar hone se pehle."

Just as she made to walk away with Nidhi,

"Par Anji ek minute thehro toh. I need Nidhi to get my clothes out for me, for this evening. Chalo Nidhi."

Just as he made to get up,

"Jeejaji, zara theheriye toh sahi. There is no need for Nidhi to do anything. Bhua and I have already laid all your stuff out on the bed. Humein pataa tha, ke baad mein Nidhi nahin kar payegi aur phir aapko problem hogi. ( she makes a half turn to walk, but halts and looks back at a sulking Ashutosh, and giggles. Then she winks at him)

"Waise idea accha tha, Nidhi ke saath akele mauka paane ka. Sorry I had to put a damper in the works. Par koi baat nahin, after the party she will be all yours."

This time she does walk, and starts dragging Nidhi, who gives Ashutosh a helpless look, as she follows Anji out.

Ashutosh watches them leave, and pouts like a petulant child. He really needed to get Nidhi alone for a moment. He had not had any time with her all day. Meanwhile Baba, Arman, the Solanki's and Bhua all smile knowingly, seeing him scowl like that. Then all of a sudden, his face goes blank, as he turns to Rangnath, and demands,

"What is this DVD you mentioned Dr. Rangnath. And what is on it that has you convinced that my wife is guilty."

"Sir, I don't...I mean...It's not that I..."

"Cut the crap, please Rangnath. We have known each other too long for that. It is written all over your face that you think Nidhi is guilty. So now, I want to know what it is that convinced you. What is on that DVD?"

"It's the hospital's security cam DVD, SIR. It shows Nidhi in the secured room where the drugs are kept. Sir, the DVD proves her guilt. She was recorded stealing the drugs."

There was total silence, as everone turned their stunned gaze onto Rangnath. Just as he was about to say something, Ashutosh's phone rang. He picked it up and said a brisk hello, annoyance at being disturbed in the middle of something important clearly visible in his voice and face.

It was Rohan. And as he began to talk, Ashutosh face took on another look altogether. Realizing that everyone was listening, Ashutosh interrupted Rohan and asked him to hold on,

then looking around at everyone, he excused himself and got up and went outside, and asked Rohan to continue. It took Rohan several minutes to finish giving Ashutosh all the details. Ashutosh thanked him, and they talked for a bit longer. Then with explicit instructions about getting to the reception on time he hung up. He had a very pensive look as he walked back into the house. Arman noticing this, looked at him and raised his eyebrows in silent question. Ashutosh shook his head, and then indicating everyone in the room, mouthed a silent, "later". Arman nodded.

After Lunch, Ashutosh tried several times to get a minute with his wife, but got nowhere. He was turned away from the room, on the pretext that they were in the middle of getting ready, and that there were a million things that still needed to be done, or they would be late. He had even tried calling, and got a single word in reply, "Later." He was annoyed, and frustrated by the time he had finished getting ready, and was just about to step out of the room, when Arman came in.

"So you are Ready. Cool! Lets go then, everyone is waiting for you."

"Nidhi tayyar ho gayi."

"Haan mere khayal se toh ho gayi hogi. Bhua keh rahi thi ke bas aa rahi hai. Par yaar tu toh chal na. Nidhi bhi aa jayegi. I swear you newly weds...kya kahoon...tum logon ke mind par bas ek hi cheez rehti hai. (Seeing Ashutosh get annoyed, he quickly pulled him out the room and then looped his arms through his) Par phikr mat kar mere yaar, main hoon na. Sab fit kar dunga."

"Issi baat ka toh dar hai." Ashutosh muttered in a low voice.

"Kya? Kya kaha tune?"

"Kuch nahin. Chal ab. Der ho rahi hai na?"

Arman made a face, but kept walking, and by the time they came into the living room, he once again had a smile on is face. Ashutosh darted his eyes around the room searching for Nidhi and was startled when he felt a hand touch his shoulder. It wasBaba.

"Ashu, beta tu jisse dhoond raha hai na, dekh woh dekh woh udhar hai. Ashutosh looked to where his father was pointing. He was stupified. Basically unable to move or tear his gaze away, as he saw her coming down the stairs. She was a vision in white, glittering from head to toe, like some ethereal being from the heavens. She was wearing a beautiful white net saree, that was studded with diamond like stones, and it glittered like fairy dust in the moonlight. As she drew closer, he saw that her wrists and forearms were filled with her bridal kangnas, flanked in the front the two huge diamond kadas that he had given her for their wedding. That and her Mehendi covered arms were the only things that added color to her white ensemble. Her ears glittered with Long diamond earrings, that reached almost to her shoulders, and sparkled and moved like some sort of celestial river, whenever she moved her head. Their eyes locked onto each other, the minute her feet hit the bottom. Almost as if in a trance, he saw her making a beeline straight for him. As she got closer he saw that her make up was subtle but stunning. It suited her beauty perfectly. It was a beautiful blend of pink, lavender and silver. Around her neck she wore her mangalsutra, and the necklace he had given to her last night. The beautiful silver and diamond bindi she had on her forehead, added the perfect touch to her already god given perfection.

She stopped in front of him, and smiled

"Kaise lag rahi hoon mai?"

Ashutosh reached out and took stand of her hair between his fingers, and gently smoothed it down,

"Aise jaise Chand ne khud tumhe apne haathon se, apni roshni mein tumhe dubokar, aur apni kirano se saje hue iss libaas mein lapet kar mere liye tayyar kiya hai. You take my breath away, my love."

Nidhi blushed, but her face radiated it's happiness at his praise of her.

"Thank you. Aap bhi bahut handsome lag rahe hain. Just like the prince I used to dream about when I was little."

"I thought that was me?"

"Aap toh uske thode baad mein aaye the. Lekin Snow White and Sleeping Beauty ki stories toh pehele pad li thi maine. I wanted my prince to be just like that. Handsome and brave, someone who would slay all my dragons, and charge to my rescue, and scoop me up and carry me off to some far away place."

"And instead you got me."

"Yes, much much better than any dream or fantasy. You are much more."

Ashutosh took hold of her hand,

"Nidhi..."

He was interrupted as Arman came up to them,

"Arre Baba, bahut ho gaya romance. Thoda kuch baad ke lie bhi toh bachaa ke rakho. Abhi tumhari wahan bahar zaroorat hai. Udhar uss tent mein, jahan tumhare dost aane shuru ho gaye hain, aur tum dono ka wait kar rahein hain. Toh ab please, let's go. Hmmm?"

Nidhi smiled shyly, and tried to pull her hand out of Ashutosh's, but he held on tight, refusing to let her go.

"Ashuji...chaliye. Der ho rahi hai. Please."

Ashutosh did not say a word, and neither did he let go of her. He just kept looking at her. After a few seconds, seeing the intent look on his friends face, Arman decided to take pity on him, and let them have a few moments to themselves,

"Theek hai bhai, I give in. Go ahead and have a minute or two of alone time. Mai chalta hoon. Waise bhi Khaane ki itni acchi smell aa rahi hai, I am find it hard to stay here. Munh mein paani aa raha hai. Alright? And, please yaar tum dono jaldi aana, OK. I will handle the situation outside till then."

Arman left, hustling everyone else out with him, leaving Ashutosh and Nidhi alone with other.

As soon as they were alone, Ashutosh pulled Nidhi into his arms, and buried his face against the satiny smooth and fragrant skin of her neck, and breathed deeply.

"I have missed you so much all day."

"Maine bhi aapko bahut miss kiya hai, and it is heaven being held in your arms like this. I just wish that I could stay here, lekin Ashuji abhi humein bahar chalna chahiye. We will have our time later tonight."

"Woh toh bahut door ki baat hai. And yes, I know that tum theek keh rahi ho, but first... Sab se pehle I want the kiss you had promised me this morning. Usske baad kuch aur."

As he started to lower his face, Nidhi drew hers back, and pushed against his chest,

"Ashuji...please kya kar rahein hain aap? Koi bhi aa sakta hai. Please...let me go."

Ashutosh shook his head,

"No! First my kiss!"

"Aap bhi bilkul bacchon jaise zid kar rahein hain. Please samajhne ki koshish kijiye. Why are you being so difficult, Ashuji? Dekhiye sab hamara intezaar kar rahein hain, we really need to go outside. The Party is for us, and has already started, and we are not even there. It really does not look right. Ashuji let go of me, please. Sochiye, sab ko kitna bura lagega if we are not there.( she continued to struggle, pushing against him.) Aap bina baat ki zid kar rahein hain...we..."

Ashutosh let go of her all of a sudden, and stepped back and turned away from her angrily

"BINA BAAT KI ZID? Is that what you just said? Ok then, I've let you go, you can run along now."

Nidhi put went to him and put her hand on his arm. But before she could say anything, he abruptly flung her hand off. What he did not see was her wrist hitting the wall. And he was too angry to hear the the loud thunk of the impact of her hand against the wall. Nidhi bit her lip from the pain, but did not make a sound as she cradled her hand, and rubbed at it, in an effort to sooth away the pain.

"Why are you still here? Jaati kyon nahin? Sab tumhara intezaar kar rahein hain na, so go. Woh sab, jo hamare koi nahin lagte unki feeling ki phikr hai tumhe, par meri nahin. Unko bura lagega

yeh samajh hai, par what about me. Saare din se kitna pareshaan hoon tumhare liye, andaza hai tumhe. Tum jitni der lockup mein thi, meri ek ek saans meri liye bhaari ho rahi thi. I had no sense of direction, of self. But why should you care. You knew that I was there, you knew that I would be moving heaven and earth to get you out. Tumhe meri koi phikr nahin, naa hi meri feelings ki. So fine, if you don't care, then neither do I. You can only think about others. I have been trying ever since we got back home to get a moment with you, par tumhare upar iss baat ka koi asar nahin hua. Text bhi kara, tumhare dawaze par bhi aaya, par lautna pada. Of course that does not matter to you. Ab Jao, I don't want you anymore, go and worry about what everyone out there thinks. After all I am just a husband, and they are what? What are they exactly? Acquaintances? And me? Mai kaun hoon, just your husband? Right? Not really that important on your list of priorities."

"Wiped her tears, and still nursing her wrist, she moved to stand in front of him. Seeing her, Ashutosh made to turn the other way, when the tone of Nidhi's voice stopped him.

"Wait please Ashutosh. You had your say, now it's my turn. Aapne phir se itna kuch keh diya, ke samajh mein nahin aata hai, kahan se shurur karun aur kiss baat ka jawab pehle doon. Khair,

You might not want me, but I want you and I love you too. Now so far as me caring about all the people who are outside, so Yes, you are right I do! I care because they are not just acquaintances, and colleagues, they are also our friends. And while it may not have occurred to you, it did occur to me to ask myself why they were here. You think they haven't already heard all the details of what happened today? You know very well how the hospital grapevine works. So yes in all likelihood they do know. And they are here to support us to show the both of us that they know that I have done nothing wrong, and they are with us in this crisis. Those who do not think that way, I can guarantee you, have not come here tonight. Well I think that the least we can do is show up, since we are the ones who invited them all to our home to help us celebrate our marriage. How can I not care what they think. Tell me Ashutosh don't you care too? Now leaving the guests aside, there is family out there too. Like your parents, and my family, with Anji and her parents. Don't they deserve our consideration too. Ashutosh like it or not, it is just not the two of us involved here. We have family and friends who depend on us, and whom we also depend upon. Jab do log shaadi karte hai, they also inherit each others family and friends. We have a responsibility to our family and friends too. I also want to be alone with you. You know that. I have waited most of my life for you, aapko toh abhi sirf do din hue hain. Meri sochiye. And you do me a great injustice, if you think that I did not know or feel the pain you were in the when I was locked up. Every second I was in there, I was praying to get to be let out, not for my sake but yours. You see while you might not have faith in my love, I have full faith i yours. I was totally aware of what you were going through, and I know that because you love me so much, you would not be able to bear it if anything untoward happened to me. I was also worried about Bhua and Baba. They are not that young anymore, and I know that the strain today could not have been good for them. Ashuji, aap meri zindagi hain, meri aatma mein bassein hain aap, meri dil ki dhadkan aap hai. Par yeh sab bhi meri dil ka hissa hain. Every second I was inside I kept worrying about all of you. I did not spare a thought for myself. And why should I have? I knew that you were doing that already. Ashuji like it or not we are a part of society and this world. We have a family, and we have friends, and also a whole host of other stuff, we cannot just think about us. Baba and Bhua, and then today Anji, and her parents, have worked so hard for us to make this party and evening a memorable one. I for one will not be ungrateful and let all their hard work go to waste. I also know that you did not mean what you said, but were angry and upset, and the stress of the whole day is probably just getting to you. But you have hurt me a lot today, and I refuse to get away with talking to me and hurting me like that, as easily as I did last time. So go ahead and sulk, or whatever. Aapko party mein aana hai toh fine Nahin aana hai toh that is also fine. I am sure I can think of a proper excuse, which will spare everybody pain. Main chalti hoon ab, you can do whatever pleases you."

And then turning around she hurried out of the house. Ashutosh sighed tiredly, as he ran a hand through his hair. He had basically stepped in it again. Of all the stupid idiotic things he had done so far, this was probably one of the ones that took the cake. Nidhi was right, of course, as usual. He had indeed jumped into the deep end, without thinking things through. And in the process he had not only yelled at her, he had hurt her a lot by his cruel words. He knew thar he had to do something fast, otherwise this night would be a fiasco. and he would in all probability have to sleep on the bedroom sofa. The thought lent wings to his feet as he hurried after Nidhi, breaking into a run to catch up with her.

Ashutosh caught her just as she was about to enter the reception tent. He was hesitant, not knowing how she would react to him right now, but then decided to go ahead anyways. So he reached out and took hold of her hand just as she stepped inside, making it appear tat the two of them had come in together. He sighed in relief, that she did not make any attempt to break away from him.

Soon they were busy greeting their guests, and thanking everyone for their good wishes. Ashutosh also made it a point to also thank their friends for their support. He was also pleasantly surprised at how many of those present here believed in Nidhi's innocence and were shocked at what had happened, and offered their unhesitating support.

Throughout the evening, though she stayed by his side, she stayed aloof, rebuffing all his efforts at apologizing. She made all the right responses, at the right times, and smiled and laughed at all the appropriate places. She even blushed at the good-natured teasing from her friends, but not once did the smile reach her eyes, and not once did she look in is direction. No one but he, and those closest to them could tell that all was not right between the two. The family members took turns asking him what the matter was, and his Bhua just came up to him and told him point blank, that he had better apologize to Nidhi for whatever he had done to upset her. Ashu was even surprised by that anymore. Nidhi had completely won over his family during his absence, and now it was almost as if they were heres more than his. The thought made him smile, and pride shown out of his eyes, as he looked at his wife. Everybody loved her, and she made friends wherever she went.

Nidhi even managed to make friends with his friend Manny's wife Megha, just within the short time that they had attended their party. As promised he had come with his wife and three children. Two handsome boys, and one adorable little girl, who apparently was the apple of her father's eye, which was obvious by the way her father was holding her in his arms. But after 5 minutes was sitting on Nidhi's lap, and chatting happily without a care in the world, with his wife. They left a short time later, as they had somewhere else they they needed to get to, as they had had prior commitments for the evening.

He felt really small and was ashamed of himself, when he thought about what he had said to Nidhi, and at the same time also understood and appreciated his wife's vehement defense of the people that had come to their reception. So he had not only insulted and disparaged her friends.

along with insulting her, he had also accused her of not thinking about him, and told her that he did not want her any longer. Boy he needed to think of something good, to try and get back into his wife's good graces.

Most of the evening had gone by, and the party was winding down, and he was still pondering on the issue, unable to figure out what to do, when Arman came up to him and slapped him on the shoulders.

"So...kya baat hai? Hunh? Kyon beta, ladai kar li biwi se? Toh ab pachta kyon raha hai?"

Ashutosh looked at him, thoroughly irritated at being asked if they had fought and whether it had been his fault.

"I wish everyone would just stop asking me that. I don't know, ke iss mein sab ko itni problem kyon ho rahi hai. Hamare beech ki baat hai, hum dono aapas mein handle kar lenge."

"Bacche tu ab london mein nahin hai, jahan phirangi log ek doosre ko akela chodte hain. Yeh Bharat hai mere yaar. Yahan par paarivaar mein ek insaan ki problem sab ki problem hoti hai, and everyone can and does interfere. So chin up budddy, and smile. Nahin toh sab yeh sochenge ke tu mujhse bhi lad raha hai."

Ashu glared at him, but Arman just grinned back,

"Accha meri jaan, biwi ko pataane ki koshish kari hai abhi tak yaa nahin? Nahin toh jaldi karle, kahin raat bhar sofe par nahin sona pade tujhko. Aur agar meri madad ki zaroorat pade toh bol dena, banda aapki khidmat mein hamesha haazir hai."

Ashutosh could never stay mad at Arman for long. He gave a tiny rueful look,

"Yaar kab se koshish toh kar raha hoon. Par yeh toh meri taraf dekhne ko bhi tayyar nahin hai, baat toh karna bahut door ki baat hai. I am lost, samajh nahin aa raha hai kya karoon. Yaar iss se umr mein itna bada hoon, aur phir isska pati bhi hoon, lekin like some love crazed, hormonal teenager, I am always the one rotating around her all the time. Aur yeh hai, ke bhav hi nahin deti."

"Age has nothin to do with it my friend, this is called love. Jo bhi sab se pehele apna sikka jamale bas baazi bhi uski ki hoti hai. Lagta hai, ke tere ghar mein toh Nidhi ki hi chalne waali hai. Par woh meri problem nahin hai, that is yours. Now back to the matter at hand. That I will help you with. Mere paas ek idea toh hai, sun. Par ek minute, pehele hi warn karta hoon, idea bahut purana hai, aur filmy bhi. Kaafi time use ho chuka hai, issliye you can say it has been through the trial of fire. And I can give you a personal guarantee that it will work."

"Arman tu bakwas karna band karega please. Just tell me what the idea is."

"Fine be that way. But let me warn you once you patch up you will owe me. Iss liye kal subha along with a big thank you, I want something expensive, also. OK? thekk hai ab sun."

He started talking, and by the time he was finished, Ashutosh was looking very uncomfortable and very apprehensive,

"Are you sure this will work. I mean..."

"You mean what? Kuch nahin mean karta hai tu. And yes mere gulab chand it will work. I promise. Tu bas jo maine kaha hai, kar and you will see ke kaise teri yeh potential virha ki sofe par sone ki raat, will become a dhamakedar romantic milan ki raat. Now get ready, main jaake announcement karta hoon. Theek hai? Tere sochne ke liye zayada time nahin bacha hai, dekh party almost khatm ho chuki hai, and more then half the people have left already."

After a slight hesitation Ashutosh nodded.

"Par wait kar, tu nahin main karta hoon jo bhi karna yaa kehna hai. I will figure it out."

Saying that he walked a way from Arman and went up to the DJ. He talking to him for a minute or two, and explained exactly what he needed, and when the DJ agreed and said that it would not be a problem. Then taking the mic from him, Ashutosh turned around, took a deep breath and began,

"Hello. May I have everyone's attention please. I know its a bit late in the party for me to be saying this, and that many of our friends have already left, but I thought, that its better then never right? Well, first of all I say thank you to all of you who have come here tonight. More importantly for believing in us, and giving us your support. It means a lot to Nidhi and I, and there not enough words with which I can even begin to express our appreciation. Next I want to apologize to my wife. You see she is not talking to me. And yes, she does have just cause for that. Galati meri thi, I let my temper get away from me. Anyway, ab meri jaan mere se roothi hui hai, baat bhi nahin kar rahi. So I wanted a chance to try and patch things up. I didn't know if she would give me that chance when we were alone, but I know that she will not be able to say or do that here, in front of everyone. So all of you please bear with me, and don't laugh, even though you might feel like it."

Then he turned back and nodded at the DJ, who gave him a thumbs up sign. Then Ashutosh went to stand in front of Nidhi, who had been unable to look away ever since he had begun talking. Ashutosh carefully put the Mic on the table, then right in fron tof everyone he went down on one knee, and held out his hand to her.

"I am so sorry sweetheart. I know I hurt you. But please forgive me. I can't stand to have you angry and not talking to me. I love you, more than words can ever say. Apne iss pagal pati ko maaf kar do please, and smile."

Nidhi's insides melted. And she almost put her hand into his outstretched one. But, then she remembered him saying that he did not want her any more, so she stayed put, lowered her eyes.

"Nidhi, please maaf kardona."

When she refused to react, Anji came over, and took one of Nidhi's hands and placed it in Ashutosh's. Nidhi glared at her, but Anji just grinned, and then turned to give a wink to Ashutosh before walking back to stand next to her parents.

Ashutosh closed his fingers around her hand, and stood up,

"Ok guys, so it looks as if I will have to work a bit harder to get myself back into my wife's good graces. Theek hai. I am game."

Ashutosh led her over to stand right in the middle of the dance floor and let go of her hand. Then he turned to the DJ, and inclined his head. The lights dimmed, until the only bright light was focused on the dance floor. The Music began, and Ashutosh came and stood right in front of her and with his gaze on hers, he stated to sing. She was amazed and delighted. This song was one of her favorites, she was surprised he knew.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9xaWs1AIL0

*Soniyo, o soniyo

He was amazing, and his voice was mesmerizing. Nidhi was powerless against his magnetism, and he made her inside melt as he let his love shine out of his eyes, for the whole to see. Still maintaining eye contact, Ashutosh once again reached out and extended his hand to her, all the while continuing his song. The instant she put her hand in his, and his fingers curled around hers, she fell in love with him all over again. As if in a dream he pulled her close and curled one arm around her waist, while the other still clasped the microphone.

Nidhi put her hands on his chest , and looked into his eyes, as Ashutosh held her waist, his fingers slowly caressing her bare skin, as they swayed to the music. They stayed like that for several moments even after the song had ended, lost, and were startled out of their dream world, when the lights came back on and everyone started clapping. Ashutosh reluctantly let her go, as they were surrounded by their friends and family. Everyone expressing delight, surprise, and off course good nature ribbing, about already being a Joru ka Gulam. They exchanged several searing glances, as they continued to chat and mingle.

About five minutes later,

"Kyon Meri Jaan, kaha tha na maine. Hmm? Sofe se baccha liya tujhe. So please tomorrow morning be ready with my gift. My very expensive gift. Yes?"

Ashutosh shook his head, and started to give him a reply, but was sidetracked, as someone tapped him on the shoulder. He turned to find Rohan

"Rohan! Where were you? Yeh bhi koi time hai aane ka? Maine tumnse specifically kaha tha, ke tumhe time par aana hai. Aur tum aaye bhi toh kab, jab everything is winding up. I am really upset with you."

"I know Sir, and I am very sorry. Really I am. I did not know that it was going to be this late. But when I tell you the reason for my tardiness, I can guarantee that you will not be that upset with me."

"Yes? Toh batao phir, why are you so late. it had better be good."

"Sir, I think that we can prove Nidhi's innocence. You know what we discussed this morning, well I think that we can corroborate my theory. And the DVD, well there definitely some discrepancies there, that, when analyzed properly by an expert, will hopefully give us the proof we need."

"Rohan that is amazing. Details. I need details, Man. I think that we should also get Manny involved in this. What say?"

"Sir, first listen to what I have to say, and then uske baad, if you agree that I am on the right track, and I have some solid basis for my suspicions. Lekin pehele, I think that you should see your guests off. Then we can sit down and talk, if it's not too late?"

"There is no If Rohan. Of course we have to talk about this. I want to clear up this matter as soon as possible. Our life and everything else will be on hold until this issue gets resolved, you know that. Not to mention Nidhi'd reputation and career are on the line."

Rohan nodded, and so did Arman

"Haan Ashu tu theek keh raha hai. Lekin jaa pehle go see everyone off. Hmmm?'

Ashutosh nodded, and left the two, while he walked over to where Nidhi was standing with Baba and Bhua, saying goodbye's to the people who were leaving. The last ones were Anji, Rangnath, and the Solanki's. After he had thanked them, and said bye, Ashutosh hurried over to where Arman and Rohan were sitting, and from the looks of it they had started without him. Ashutosh stopped to make a quick phone to Manny, and brought him up to date on what Rohan had told him. Manny, asked him to come with Arman and Rohan to his house the next morning to talk everything over, and then he said that they would plan their next course of action accordingly. After hanging up with him, Ashutosh went and joined his other two friends. And soon he had forgotten about everything else, as Rohan began to tell him about what his suspicions were, and exactly what happened, and how and by whom Nidhi had been set up.

The three were deeply engrossed and did not even notice Nidhi coming up to them. When he tapped Ashutosh on his shoulder he looked up at her.

"It's late, everyone has left. Maine Baba aur Bhua ko bhi sone bhej diya hai. Chote Sarkar and the catering staff will finish the rest of the work. Maine bhi bahut thak gayi hoon. Aap logon ka kya program hai abhi?"

Ashutosh looked apologetic,

"Sweetheart I really need to finish this. You go ahead and go to sleep, mai jitni jaldi ho sake bas aata hoon I promise."

Nidhi turned and left without a word. Ashutosh knew that she was angry, but...

Nidhi was really angry, and also confused at Ashutosh's behavior. He had been so amazing when he had apologized and sang to her. She had been impatient ever since the for the party to be over, and they finally got to be alone. But , she thought crossly, apparently the impatience and eagerness had obviously been just one sided. Her husband apparently was in no hurry for anything. Well fine, if that's the way he wanted it. She would also not care, she thought, angrily taking off her jewelry, and saree, just dumping everything on the bed. Then grabbing her night dress, she hurried over to the bathroom for her shower.

After she had finished getting dressed for the night, and also pput away her clothes and jewelry, Nidhi took a hairbrush from her dresser and went to her father, to have their almost daily, nightly conversation. She started passing the brush through her hair absentmindedly as she talked to her father,

"Baba, I don't think that I understand him. I mean ek minute it's like he can't be away from me, then the next minute he is so engrossed with his friends that he doesn't even seem to care at all. Baba, it like this with everyone. Ke patni jab tak dikhti hai, jab tak something more important does not pop up in front of them, and then wife is put on the back burner until they have finished with whatever had gotten their attention. I have heard women complaing about how husbands loose interest after several years of marriage, par Baba, hamari to shaadi kaal hui hai. I know technically toh we have been married for 6 years, but you know what I mean. It's not supposed to happen this fast is it. Whatever, if he doesn't care, and thninks that something else is more important than me, toh theek hai, main bhi nahin parva karti. I ave a million things I can be doing

too. He can stay with his friends as long as he wants, I am going to sleep. I don't ..."

She was stopped in her one sided triade, as a pair of muscled arms, wound themselves around her waist, and she was pulled against a hard muscled chest.

"Baba, aap apni iss pagal beti ko thodi sense de saktein hain. Tell her it is not nice to doubt her husband's intentions or his feelings."

"Baba aapki nahin sunenge. He is my father, and he listens only to me."

"He is my father in law. And he gave you into my care, so of course he will listen to me. and I am sure he knows that you are being perfectly silly. All that nonsense, kahan kahan se sun kar aati ho tum aisi cheezein. Tum sach mein pagal ho, Nidhi."

"Theek hai, ab jaisi bhi hoon, aapko kya? Now please let me go. I am really tired and I want to go to sleep."

"I can't let you go, sorry sweetheart. I have been waiting all day to get you to myself."

"Too bad. I don't care what you want. Now I want to sleep, so let me go."

"Of course you care Nidhi, and no you can't go. I love it when you pout like that you know. It just makes me want to grab you, and kiss you till there no tomorrow. bataun kaise..."

And without giving her a chance, he turned her around, took the brush out of her hands and let it fall on the floor, then and stared at her mouth for a second, before lowering his mouth to hers. Heat surged, inside of him at the first touch, and even though he wanted to devour her mouth, he kept the kiss whisper-soft, with barely a hint of pressure. Ashutosh knew that she was annoyed with him, so he had not expected her to respond. So, when she responded by shyly sliding her tongue along his lower lip, it sent a surge of searing fire throughout his body. Their lips slipped together like they were made for each other. A perfect fit, Ashutosh thought with satisfaction, as he glided his tongue along the delicate seam of her lips, and then as she gasped and opened to him, proceeded to kiss her with a single minded ruthlessness that had them both gasping for breath. Their tongues tangled in a hot, frantic dance. Her fingers gripped his arms, nails digging into his biceps in a way that made him groan.

After a few more incredible seconds, he gave in to the soft pressure of her hands on his shoulders and pulled back to stare at her , his wife. Her eyes were a misty, fogged with desire and, he was pleased to see, that there was not even a hint of any anger, or thought to deny him, or keep him from her.

"I am so sorry about tonight sweatheart. Nidhi you know very well what I feel for you. I swear Baby, agar bahut zaroori nahin hota, toh main ek minute ke liye bhi tumse door nahin rehta. My love, my sun rises and sets with you. Tum mere liye sab kuch ho Nidhi. Main tumhare bina kuch nahin. I love you. I love you so very very much."

Then his lips were on hers once again, hot, firm, demanding and giving, taking, all at once. Nidhi eagerly opened to him, and groaned her pleasure, as his tongue slid against hers, the friction slick and wonderful. Utter perfection. She arched into him, running her hands over his back, tracing the hard muscle tone beneath her fingertips. His fingers slipped through the hair at her nape and he drew her closer, and all Nidhi could think about was the exquisite taste of him and the sensation of his tongue touching hers. When he wrapped his arms around her waist, drew her in tightly to the heat of his body, all she wanted to stay just like this forever. And at the same time, she desperately needed more. As his lips continued to claim hers, he poured all of the desire and hunger into it.

After several minutes, he reluctantly drew back. Nidhi looked at him, belwildered, and dazed, the passion still clouding her eyes. Ashutosh bent and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead, then he took her hand and led her to the glass doors in his bedroom which over looked the back yard. He knew everyone had already left, and that it was safe, so he drew back the curtains, and smiled as the moonlight came pouring in.

"Yeh kya..."

Ashutosh put a finger on her lips, quieting her. Then slowly he took off his shirt. Nidhi's eyes lit up as she saw his form, bare to the waist, bathed in the moonlight. She reached out a hand to touch him, but he caught hold of it, stopping her.

"No, your turn later, it my time now. I have had a lot time to dream and fantasize, Nidhi. And believe me I have fantasized quite a bit Nidhi, during this time that I have been waiting for you. Those thoughts have driven to the brink of insanity. I promised myself that as soon as you were mine, I would fulfill each and everyone. This is amongst the first that I had, and also the one I most want to fulfill right now."

"Par...I still don't understand?"She said, confusion written all over her face.

"You are such a baby, Nidhi. Still so innocent. Sweetheart its a beautiful full moon out their, and such beautiful moonlight is meant for lovers. I want to make love with you in the moon light honey. I want to see your beautiful body bathed in it as I join with you."

Nidhi's eyes widened, then she lowered them shyly. This was all so new to her. After all they had only been together for one night. To so totally forget all her inhibitions, was still a very foreign concept. She looked up as Ashutosh approached,

" It's ok Honey. I understand. (He kissed her eyelids tenderly ). This is all new to you, I guess I just jumped ahead of myself. You need sometime to get used to this intimacy between us, hmmm? Koi baat nahin Jaan. Mere liye yeh kaafi hai, hum saath hai, and that you love me. Rest will come in time."

"Suniye. Ek minute. Aap galat samajh rahein hain. Yes, I am shy, and yes all this is new for me. But, I have no hesitations about anything when I am with you. Ashutosh I have longed to belong to you, and have you belong to me. Mujhe nahin pataa kya sahi hai kya galat. But, jo bhi hamare beech mein hai, woh kabhi galat nahin ho sakta. I am yours to do with as you want. But you have to show me the way."

Ashutosh smiled, and drew her close.

"It will be an honor sweetheart, and also my pleasure."

He drew her in his arms, and captured her lips once again. And tenderly and gently, untied the robe, and slipped it off her shoulders, and then down her arms. He continued his exploration of her body, as he rained kisses along the curve of her neck, and over her shoulders. Nidhi shivered, as his mouth continued his downward journey to the cleft between her breasts, that were covered with the lace of her night gown, but did nothing about hiding the treasure underneath. Ashutosh brought his hand to her waist and pulled her closer, than used his mouth to nudge the lace aside. She arched in a pleasure, and moaned as his mouth worked his magic over her breasts. Ashu kissed and caressed his way back up. He looked deeply into her eyes, as he slowly removed the last barriers of clothing that hid them from each others eyes. As he stared at her, standing there in the moonlight, his breath caught in his throat.

"My God, but you are so totally perfect. My widest imagination could not have prepared me for this. Nidhi. By God, I can't wait any longer"

He reach out for her just as she brought her hands to his chest, and then slid them down his torso he released a tightly held breath took her mouth in a kiss he'd been starving for. Tongues twisting together, breath mingling, as they clung to each other. He abandoned her lips, pressing hot, open-mouthed kisses to her neck, her collarbone, and her hands moved up and down his back while he dragged her closer still. Arms tightening around her, Ashutosh held her as if he never meant to let her go. His world came right again. All day he'd been out of balance with everything that had happened, and just the thought that she might be taken away from him, enough to make him panic. But, now that he had hold of her again, all he could think was that he needed to be inside her, join her, make them one.

Slowly, Ashutosh pulled her down onto the floor, where he had made a makeshift bed, with him, and stretched out beside her, and ran his hands reverently all over her body, as if trying to memorize every line, every dip every curve.

Her body was perfection, her skin like silk, her flesh warm and tempting. Ashu watched the play of desire across Nidhi's face, her eyes closed and her lips parted, her breath coming in quick gasps. Electricity seemed to arc back and forth between them, as Nidhi gave herself over to her man, her soulmate. Her mind blanked out and her body took over. Sensations poured through her as his hands caressed every line, every curve. He kissed her and she melted into him, taking everything he offered and giving everything she had. He pleasured her with each kiss, each caress each nip, and each lick, driving her crazy till she was writhing in passion and desire, growing more restless, her body arching toward his lips and his fingers.

"I missed you so much today Nidhi. I have wanted nothing more than to be able to hold you and be close to you like this"

"I've missed you, too, my darling. More than I can say, "

Then finally, he moved over her, covering her body with his. Nidhi looked into his eyes and smiled, and reached up to smooth her palms across his chest, her fingernails lightly scoring his skin. He shivered and entered her in one long, slow slide and she gasped at the feeling of total bliss that their union brought her. Ashutosh filled her completely and she sighed as he moved inside her. Lifting her hips, she echoed his movements and fell into the rhythm he set. Tenderness faded and became desperate passion as two people, two soulmates, came together again in a dance, that was as old as time it self.

As her body coiled with tension and she raced toward completion, her hands grabbed at his shoulders, and her legs wrapped around his hips. Nidhi clung to him, kissing him, and breathed in the scent of him. And when her release crashed down on top of her, she heard him whispering'.

"Take me, Nidhi," he said, voice tight with need. "Take all of me and let me have you. I need you so much. You are ,mine. You belong to me..'"

She was still shaking, still riding that incredible wave of pleasure when she felt him follow her. Then, wrapping her arms around him, she held him tight as the world exploded.

A little later, Ashutosh stood up, and then picking her up in his arms, carried her to her bed, and pulling up the blankets, lay down beside her. He smiled, feeling relieved, content, and at peace with the world. He knew that everything would be alright. Specially with her in his arms like this, he felt as if he could conquer the world. .With his love in his arms, nestled against him safe and sound, he could put up with anything.

"I love you" he murmured and dropped a kiss on top of her head. One hand smoothed her silky hair back from her face, then slid down to stroke her shoulder, her arm.

"Mmm' that feels good. I love you too." She sighed and snuggled in closer to him, her head on his chest, her arm draped across his middle.

Ashutosh smiled and pulled her a little closer, and closed his eyes. Tomorrow...

Yes, tommorow, He could hardly wait for the sun to rise. Hopefully tomorrow would bring an end to the nightmare that had clouded their first day together. Yes, It was going to be so much fun...he thought as he remembered his list of tortures, and wondered whether Manny would be kind enough to let him do at least one thing on it.

He had almost dozed off when,

"Ashuji?..."

"Hmmm?"

"Ashuji?"

He opened his eyes, and sighed,

"Boliye, Nidhiji."

"Aap so gaye?"

"Nahin mujhe neend mein baatein karni ki aadat hai."

"Hey. I was just asking."

"Nidhi, if I am answering you, iska matlab toh I am awake na. You know for someone so intelligent, you sometimes you ask the stupidest questions. Anyway, bolo...What is the matter?"

"I need to ask you something. Aap gussa toh nahin hoge na?"

He let out an exasperated sigh,

"Nidhi you started this. You woke me up from the brink of going to sleep. Now you think about me getting angry, Uthane se pehele kyon nahin socha ke main gussa karunga ke nahin. Listen honey, it's been a long day. We both need to get some rest. Tomorrow promises to be another long day. Please, get this over with. Poocho jo bhi poochna hai."

"I am sorry. Theek hai, poochti hoon. I just...I just wanted to know whether you would still think I was beautiful, and want me as much when we are both old and gray. What I mean is, you know how they say that After a certain number of years, Husbands loose interest in their wives. And they don't feel like...you know...doing it...anymore, cause they have already done it so many times, that it's not a big deal. Well by the time we are old and gray, we will also have...you know...many times. So I just wanted to know whether you would be like other husbands, or whether you would still want to make love...when I am not beautiful anymore. I was just curious you know. I know that this is only our second night together, and it's really too soon,...I mean I know you want me now. I just wanted to know if you would...still desire me."

Ashutosh stayed still for a couple of seconds and then burst out into a loud laughter. Then he propped himself on his elbow and looked down at her precious innocent face, as he smoothed the hair away from her temples,

"Nidhi only you could think of something like this, into the second day of our marriage, at this hour of night. Tum really mein one peice ho. You know that? But you are my piece, and I adore you. Accha memsahab suno. I love you you know that, yes. Well honey Love has nothing to do with age. Mere liye tum jitni sundar aaj ho, utni hi aaj se 50 saal baad bhi hogi. And I will want you as much when I am old and gray, and can't walk, and breathing my last. ( Nidhi reached up to cover his mouth, stopping him from saying anything further. Ashu smiled down into her eyes, and took her hand from his mouth and kissed it before continuing) Infact, let me promise you one thing. When I am about to breath my last breath, I will take only half a breath, and hold it, and make love to you one last time, before I take the second half, OK? Infact, mujhe ek idea aaya hai. Maybe I should maybe give you a small example of just how I plan to hold my breath for that long. What say, My Love. Up for it?"

Nidhi smiled, radiantly, and wound her arms around his neck, and pulled him down to her.

A while later, as they both lay sated and replete, Ashutosh again on the brink of sleep, Nidhi's eyes sprang wide open.

"Ashuji?" She said in an urgent voice, tapping his chest.

Ashutosh sighed, and let out a breath, trying to keep patience. Lord, he thought, this woman is going to be the death of me.

"Ashuji...suniye."

"Ji kahiye. Ab kya problem hai. Any more questions?"

"Nahin...Actually yes...Actually it is not really a question...Well in a way it is...But..."

"Nidhi, you are trying me sorely. Now spit it out, before I loose my sanity."

"Maybe I can ask you tomorrow. It's not that important. aap...aap so jayiye."

She said nervously, afraid of his reaction, and also hesitant due to the obvious irritated tone of his voice.

"Oh no, you woke me up. You better say what's on your mind woman. Now Out With It!"

"I heard IG Sir, call you 'AMY'. Why? Isn't that a girl's name?"

Oh Lord, he groaned. Why me? What have I ever done to you?

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Chapter 11

What!!!!

Both Nidhi and Ashutosh shouted in unison. They were stunned.

"Chote Sarkar tum kya keh rahe ho?"

"Haan Ashu Bhaiya. Hum sach keh rahe hain. Bahar ek inispector aayi hai. Inspector Komal. Woh keh rahin hain ke unke paas Biji ko giraftaar karne ka order hai. Bhua aur Baba bahut pareshaan ho rahein hai Bhaiya. Zaldi chaliye."

Ashutosh and nidhi gave each other incredulous looks.

"Theek hai Chote Sarkar. Hum aate hai. Tum bahar jaakar inpector se kaho ke bibiji tayyar ho rahi hai."

Chote Sarkar nodded,

"Theek hai Bhaiya, hum jaakar bolte hain. Par aap jaldi aayiye. Hum sabko bahut ghabrahat ho rahi hai."

Chote Sarkar turned and walked out of the room, closing the door quietly on his way.

Nidhi and Ashutosh were both silent, still too stunned to react. After a couple of minutes, Ashutosh came up to her and put his arms around her,

"Don't worry sweetheart. I am sure that this is a mistake. They are probably confusing you with someone else. We will sort it out. First I need to make two quick calls. First to our lawyer, and then to a friend. And uske baad if will let me have my hand back for a little while, I promise that I will let you have them back, then I can quickly freshen up. Then we will go out together and meet with the inspector. Hmmm?"

Nidhi nodded quietly. Ashutosh kissed her forehead and walked towards the bathroom,

"Sweetheart can you take some clothes out for me to wear, please."

"Jee Kya pehenge aap."

"Anything casual honey. Whatever think is best."

Nidhi once again nodded, then went towards his closet. After laying his clothes on the bed, she sat down on the sofa. After a couple of minutes, feeling restless, she got up and walked over to her Father's picture, and rand her fingertips tenderly over his face. She was still staring at the photograph when Ashutosh came out of the bathroom a few minutes later. She was so lost in her thoughts that she did not even hear him.

Ashutosh hesitated when he saw her standing there like a statue, staring at her father. His first instinct was to go immediately over to her and comfort her. But he knew that they did not have time to linger. The police were outside waiting, and his parents also. He doubted that either would wait too much longer. So, he hurried on over to finish getting ready.

After he was done, he waked up to her and taking her by the shoulders, he turned her around to face him.

"Nidhi...Honey please don't worry like this. Sab theek ho jayega. I am sure that this is all a huge misunderstanding. Sweetheart, we will sort it out, I promise. Mere upar Bharosa hai na?

"Jee yeh kaisa sawal hai?. Apne se zyada app par hai,, aur yeh aapko acchi tarha se pataa hai."

"Maloom hai. Par ek ar tumhare munh se sunna chahta tha! Theek hai phir, agar bharosa hai toh then why the long face. Nidhi...Baby, I can't stand to see you like this. Please smile. For me."

Nidhi lifted her eyes to his and forced herself to smile.

"I love you sweetheart. I will not let anything happen to you."

"I know!"

"That's what I want to hear. Toh phir chale?"

She nodded, and Ashutosh reached out to take her hand. Nidhi latched on to it greatfully.

"That's like my brave girl. Ab, let's go and get to the bottom of this mess, and find out exactly what is happening."

"Thank you."

"Kiss baat ke liye?"

"For being here for me."

"Nidhi... Peheli baat, woh yeh ke abhi tak humein kuch bhi nahin pataa ke yeh mamla kya hai, and why the police have come to arrest you. Phir doosri aur sab se badi baat...you don't ever have to thank me for anything. Tumne hi toh bola tha na, ke hum ek hain. Hamara dukh sukh, good and bad, everything, hamara sab kuch sanjhi hai. Phir thank you ki kya zaroorat? Hmmm?"

Nidhi nodded and leaned against him, burying her self in the protection and warmth of his embrace. After a few seconds, she loosened her hold, and reach up and placed a soft kiss on his cheek,

"I love you."

"I love you too."

"I feel much better, sach mein. I am not even that nervous anymore. Ab humein bahar chalna chahiye. Kaafi time ho gaya hai, Bab aur Bhua abhut pareshaan ho rahein honge. Inspector Komal...isn't that what Chote Sarkar said was the name of the inspector, who is here. Anyway, naam mein kya hai, chaliye, usse khud dekhte hain. I want to get this thing resolved as fast as possible."

Nidhi turned and moved with quick steps towards the door. The determination and strength of purpose, evident in each step. But before she reached the door to their room, she was caught from behind by a pair of strong muscular arms, that pulled her tightly against an equally hard muscled body. Ashu held her in a steely embrace against himself,

"Hey...slow down my little tigress. Itni bhi kya jaldi hai. Main bhi toh tumhare saath hoon. Let's go in together, hmmm?"

Nidhi smiled, abashed,

"Sorry, I was not thinking. I just want to get this thing over with."

"So do I sweetheart. So do I. But we can't afford to react without thinking. Ok. Ab chalo, and don't worry honey. I am right by your side."

They had barely entered the living room when they stopped dead in their tracks, and stared in amazement at whom Dr. Mathur was talking too.

Nidhi turned her stunned gaze to Ashutosh,

"That's...that's her. Ashutosh do you see...It's her. She is here, and she is talking to our Baba. But how...I mean, how dare she... Aapne meri baat suni? It's her..."

Ashutosh smiled wryly as he too, turned to look at her,

"Yes sweetheart maine dekha. Aur maine tumhe pehle baar mein hi sun liya tha. I was just trying to get over the surprise. So that's Inspector Komal. Well, well well."

"Aap wahan khade khade kya bol rahein hain?"

"Hmmm? Khuch nahin. Chalo, let's go meet the Inspector Komal."

"KOMAL!!! OMG!!! I just realized that this is Inspector Komal. Chote Sarkar ne isska yeh hi naam bataya tha na? Komal... Isska naam komal hai???"

Ashutosh smiled and looked at her with an amused expression on his face.

"Nidhi, honey come on, you have to catch up. Yeh tumhara tubelight effect is cute, but right now, it is a bit much, don't you think. Sweetheart we have established that tis is Inspector Komal. And yes I know that her name is Komal. You don't have to repeat is again and again, kyon ki tum kitni baar hi bol do, phir bhi naam toh uska Komal hi rahega. Badalne waala nahin hai?"

"I know naam nahin badlega. I was just trying to reconcile her name with her, that's all. But dekhyi Inspector ko, how can she be KOMAL, that name just does not suit her. Yeh toh Shoorpanakha ki twin lagti hai. Iska naam ko "Bheemkaya", yaa phir, "Vishaal Shareer", aise kuch hona chahiya tha. Lagta hai, ke her parents must have been blind. How could they have named her komal. Ab yeh komal kahan se lagti hai. She looks like she eats, mountains for breakfast."

Ashutosh held back a laugh, and coughed. Then he said,

"Shame on you honey. Kissi ke parent's baare mein aise bolte hain kya? And unki kya galti? I am sure that she was not born this way, you know. She probably sprouted up later. Koi bhi fully grown toh nahin paida hota hai."

"Yeh, It's just... And I didn't mean to say anything about her parents. I am sorry."

"Yeah, Hmmm. Par I wonder how she ended up here, and that too with a warrant for your arrest."

"That's simple! She is getting back at me for rousting her up in front of the whole hospital. This is her way of trying to teach me who's boss. Aur kya wajah ho sakti hai. She is basically taking her revenge. Par yeh mujhe nahin jaanti. I will show her. How can she abuse her position and power like this. She is a public servant. She can't do this. Main abhi usse dekhti hoon. I will..."

Just as she made to charge in, Ashutosh once again caught her tightly by the waist,

"Arre oh, meri Jhansi ki Rani...zara thehero toh. Aise dandanate hue wahan jaogi toh woh kissi ki ek bhi baat nahin sunigi, seedhe bina trial ke tume umr qaid karva degi. Phir mera kya hoga zara socho toh."

Nidhi looked up at him, and then leaned forward and out her head on his chest with a sigh,

"I am so sorry. Pataa nahin, what has got into me. It's just that I am finding it hard to control myself, where she is concerned. Her association with Purab makes it even worse. I just know that he is involved with this in some way, too."

"You could be right, Nidhi. In fact, you most probably are. But, honey you have to remember that right now the ball is in her court. Sweetheart we cannot afford to do anything that is going to antagonize her."

"I know. And you are right."

"Of course I am. Nidhi meri baat dhyan se suno. I want you to stay absolutely quiet in there. DO NOT SAY A WORD! I know you, and I know that you are just itching to have a go at her. But no matter what, you will not utter a sound. You will let me do all the talking. Theek hai?"

Nidhi looked at him with resentment,

"Par..."

"Ah Ah Ah...maine kya kaha abhi? Not a word. Is that clear. ( Nidhi nods) Good. Now let's go. And don't forget what I just said. Pata nahin kab kya bol jaogi, aur phir lene ke dene pad jayenge."

Ashutosh caught hold of her hand again, and led her into the living room. All eyes turned in their direction the moment they entered. Dr. Mathur sighed in relief, seeing them, andwalked up to Ashutosh,

"Ashu accha hua tum dono aa gaye. Yeh dekho inspector kya keh rahin hain. She says that she has a warrant for Nidhi's arrest. I have asked her many times, but she won't tell me anything. Beta, you try talking to her. Explain to her that there has been some sort of mstake. Hamari Nidhi kabhi bhi kuch galat yah gair kanooni nahin kar sakti. Inn logon ko koi galat fehmi hui hai."

Ashutosh let go of Nidhi's hand and walked over to his father. He put a comforting arm around his shoulder,

"Baba aap bilkul phikr mat kariye. I will handle everything. Maine hamare wakeel ko bhi phone kar diya hai. Woh bhi bas thodi der mein aa jayenge. I sure that we will be able to sort everything out."

Dr. Mathur looked gratefully at his son, then went to Nidhi and took her into his arms. Nidhi leaned against him, and closed her eyes, feeling instant comfort and warmth in her father in law's embrace. It almost felt as if her own Baba was holding her. And true to her promise, did not say a word and stayed right were she was. Ashutosh looked relieved, that she was doing as he had asked. Then with a silent gesture to his father to take care of her, he turned to the police,

"Hello Inspector. What seems to be the problem?"

"Hello Doctor Sahib. Sir, hamare paas Dr. Nidhi ke arrest ka warrant hai. I am so sorry Sir, par inhe hamare saath chalna hi hoga."

"Yeh toh humein pataa hai Inspector, ke aap meri biwi ko arrest karne aayi hain. Par aapne abhi tak yeh nahin bataya ke inka jurm kya hai. What has she done? App kiss liye, aur kisske kehne par meri wife ko arrest kar rahin hai?"

"Jee haan Doctor Sahab, batati hoon. Woh kya hai na, Dr..."

"Yeh kya batayengi, main batati hoon. All she is going to do is tell a bunch of lies, and give some trumped up reason why I am being put under arrest. But, the truth is that she is getting back at me for the other day. That is my only crime, ke uss din maine ek bacche ko aur usske maa baap ko inse defend kiya tha. Inko aur inke dost ko inki man maani nahin karne di. Aur kya..."

Ashutosh whirled around, furious,

"Nidhi!!!!! "

Nidhi stopped mid sentence. She looked at him in dismay, and mouthed a silent sorry. Then hung her head, and stared at the floor. DM patted her shoulder, and shook his heasd at Ashutosh, silently asking him not to say anything further, and then led Nidhi over to the couch, and sat down with her. Ashu sighed, and turned back to the inspector,

"Meri patni ko maaf kejiyega Inspector, woh..."

Inspector Komal, held up her hand, and stopped his apology mid way,

"Nahin Dr. Ashutosh, aap dono mein se kissi ko maafi mangne ki koi zaroorat nahin hai. Actually Maafi toh mujhe mangni chahiye, aapki patni se. Maine inke saath bahut galat kiya tha picchli baar. Woh kya hai na, main uss Gadhe Purab ki baaton mein aa gayi thi, aur inko galat samajh liya. Par jab mujhe pataa chalaa ke yeh sahi keh rahi thi, aur uss bacche ko sach mein woh bimaari thi, tab mujhe pataa chalaa ke Dr. Purab ki galti thi, inki nahi. Uske baad maine Uss chuhe ke baare mein, aur aapki patni ke baare mein bhi pooch taach ki. Pataa chalaa ke yahan toh saara mamla hi opposite hai. Dr. Purab is the creeper, and Dr. Nidhi being the good guy. Dr. Nidhi ki reputation and unki izzat toh aapke hospital ka poora staff, and inke patients aur unke maa baap, sab karte hai. Aur woh Doctor, woh toh poora ka poora luccha hai. He is a snake. Dr. Nidhi, aap galat nahin hai, agar aapki jagah koi bhi hota toh mujhe apne ghar mein dekh kar aise hi react karta. Par Mam, ab ki baar mai aapki side mein hoon."

Nidhi got up slowly, hardly daring to believe what she had just heard. Not only was the Inspector apologizing, she was also talking quite eloquently. In fact, almost flawlessly. Then what was last time all about, what with sounding like a fool, and behaving like a total ignoramus. it was as though Nidhi was seeing a totally different person. Not just in the way she talked, but in the way she held herself, also. If it were not for her sheer size, she would it hard to believe that this was the same Lady Inspector who sided with purab, and whom she had taken to task in front of not only her constables, but also almost the entire hospital staff.

"Inspector Komal..."

"Dr. Nidhi I am so sorry. About last time. You see the Police take child abuse very seriously, so when Purab called and complained, I am afraid that I just lost it. And on top of all I saw you taking the parent's side, and I thought that you were a lousy doctor, probably on the take. Anyway, I have realized my mistake, and that is why I am here today. You see that weasel came to the station early this morning and filed the complaint against you. And when I came to know about it, I asked my Officer to be put in charge of your case. This is my way of trying to make up for thinking the worst of you last time."

"Thank you Inspector. Your apology and explanation mean a lot to me, I really appreciate both. But, can you please tell me exactly what I am supposed to have done. Meri crime kya hai? What am I being charged with?"

"Drug theft, Mam."

There was stunned silence in the room, before Ashutosh shouted,

"Drug Theft! You have to be out of your mind! Inspector, that is ludicrous. Are you sure you have your facts straight? Or better yet are you sure that you have the right person?"

"Dr. Ashutosh I can understand your feelings, but please Sir, getting upset like this is not going to help. We need to get to the heart of the matter. There is no mistake Sir. Dr. Nidhi has been accused of the drug thefts that have been occurring at your hospital for the past few months. We have Dr. Purab's sworn statement, and also proof that she is the thief. So, you see Sir, humne koi galati nahin ki hai, aur koi bhi mistake nahin hai. But, of course that doesnot mean that I think she is guilty. No, absolutely not. In fact, quite to the contrary. The minute I heard about the case, and found out that Dr. Purab was the one who had filed the complaint on behalf of the hospital, I knew that there was "Something Rotten in the State of Denmark."

"Hey that's from Hamlet! Shakespeare. You've read Shakespeare? Are you interested in literature?"

Inspector Komal looked sheepish,

"Yes, I not only have read, but also re-read his works ultiple times. They never seem to get too old. No matter how many times I read them, I love it. But, the whole thing is that I love to read, i will pretty much read anything, an genre, when I am free, but I specially love Shakespeare. I almost did my masters in Literature, but decided to go into law enforcement at the last minute. Par aapko kaise pataa yeh quote Hamlet se hai? Kya aap bhi...?"

Inspector Komal looked at Nidhi with excitement,

"Absolutely! I was president of the Shakespeare club in college. I have read all of his works umpteen number of times, just like you. I come away with something new each time. Is it the same with you? I even have most of his most famous quotes, and some very obscure ones, memorized. My father thought I was crazy. He used to say that I drove him batty, ehrn i was on one of my shakespeare kicks. So, which of his books is your favorite, mine is Midsummer Night's..."

Ashutosh looked from one to the other, and shook his head. They were both off their rocker! He could not believe these two, talking as if they did not have a care in the world. He cleared his throat to get their attention,

"Hello? Ladies...? Can I have your attention for a moment please. (when they both turned to look at him) Thankyou. I hate to bust this mutual Shakespeare appreciation club, but can we focus on the matter at hand. I think that that is just a tad bit more important. What do you guys think? You both can catch up on literature later. After all Shakespeare is dead, and his works are all on paper, and even on line, for that matter. Neither he nor his books are going anywhere. But, if we don't try and solve this pesky little issue of Nidhi being framed for a crime she did not commit...and a fairly serious crime at that, one that could, on being proved guilty, could send her to jail for a good long time. Well I hate to say this, and be the bearer of bad news, but I just thought that you guys should know that it might be a little difficult for the both of you to have any such discussions, should Nidhi get sent to jail. Long distance relations are such a pain, not to mention that the rarely survive, so if you both could please just get back to the issue at hand, PLEASE! After all, a little hard to chat about dead authors, when one of you is in jail, right. Now, the both of you, please, stop acting like teenagers, and behave like grown up women..."

Both of them looked embarassed, but it was Nidhi who spoke up,

"Sorry Ashuji, I guess ek minute ke liye maine bhool gayi thi."

Ashutosh was incredulous,

"Forgot!!!! You Forgot that you are about to be arrested? Of all the Loony Tunes females, I had to end up with the queen of them all. Nidhi are you out of your mind how could you forget? I mean..."

He was interrupted by Baba,

"Beta, jaane de. Yeh ladki toh pagal hai. Par tu apne hosh mat kho. Dekh gussa thook, and find out ke ab aage kya karna chahiye humein."

Ashutosh sighed wearily, and rubbed the back of his neck in agitation

Yes Baba, aap theek keh rahein hain. Inspector Komal, what is the next step? What do we do now?"

"Dr. Ashutosh first we will have to take Dr. Nidhi in custody. ( She throws an apologetic look Nidhi's way, and continues) Then you can go about getting her out on bail. After that we need to do everything we can to prove her innocent. Par iss samay toh inko hamare saath chalna hi hoga. I am so sorry Dr. Nidhi."

Nidhi put her hand on her arm, and gave a tiny smile,

"That's ok Inspector Komal, I know that you are only doing your duty. Please don't apologize. Chaliye, phir. Let's go and get this over with."

Nidhi turned to look at Ashutosh. She went to him and looked up into his eyes, and laid her hand over his heart,

"Sab theek ho jayega. Chaliye."

He looked into her eyes, and nodded. Understanding the silent message that was there for him, and him alone.

"Chaliye Inspector. Main bhi chaluga aapke saath."

"Uh...Dr. Ashutosh, I am afraid that you can't do that Sir. Come with us I mean. Now you can follow us to the station in your own car, but we are not allowed to have anyone else, in there with us. I am sorry Sir, it's the rule."

Ashutosh nodded silently, and looked at Nidhi,

"Nidhi, main tumhare peeche peeche aa raha hoon. Gharrana nahi. Theek hai?"

Nidhi nodded, and smiled. Then Ashutosh turned to his father and Bhua,

"Baba main Nidhi ke saath jaa raha hoon. Arman jaise hi bahar se wapas aaye, usse mere paas police station bhej dijiyega."

"Par Beta, main toh ter aur Nidhi ke saath chal raha hoon. Arman se teri Bhua bol degi."

"Nahin Baba, aap aur Bhua yahin ghar par rahiye. I need you both to stay here and oversee the arrangements for tonight's party."

"Par beta, woh kaise..." Bhua said looking surprise.

"Bhua aap phikr mat kariye. Main Nidhi ko le kar jaldi ghar aa jaunga. Aap bas party ki tayyari poori kijiye. I promise, Nidhi ko kuch nahin hoga."

Both Baba, and Bhua looked at them both. Then seeing the determination in Ashutosh 's eyes,Dr. Mathur nodded,

"Theek hai Ashu. Tu Nidhi ke saath jaa beta. Hum tum dono ka yahi ghar par intezar karenge. Par beta phone karte rehna, and keep us apprised of the situation. If we don't hear from you we will start to worry."

"Nahin Baba, please don't worry. I promise I will call periodically and let you know kya ho raha hai. Abhi chalte hain. And Baba Sameer ko call kar dijiye please, tell him to meet us directly at the station."

Baba nodded and then he and Bhua went up to Nidhi, who bent down to touch their feet. Both Dr. Mathur and his sister, in turn, hugged her and put their hands on her head in blessing. Nidhi looked the both of them and smiled,

"Aap dono please, bilkul bhi chinta mat kijiyega. Ashutosh sab sambhal lenge. Hum bas yun gaye, aur yun aaye. Bhua aap please Anji au Shyama Aunty ko call kar dijiye. Woh dono aapki help kar denge. It is too much work..."

"Arre Meri Bacchi, bas. Main sab sambhal lungi. Tu ghar ki aur hamari chinta mat kar. Bas jaldi se wapas aa. Hum teri rah dekhenge."

Nidhi nodded with tears in her eyes, and hugged bhua quickly before turning to the inspector,

"Chaliye Inspector."

As soon as Nidhi said that, one of the constables stepped forward. When Nidhi saw the handcuffs in his hands, and realized that he meant to put them on her, she lost all color, and groaned,

"Ashutosh..."

Ashutosh started to step forward, but Inspector Komal stopped him, by raising her hand,

"It's ok Dr. Ashutosh. Hawaldar inki zaroorat nahin hai. Ino wapas rakkhdo. Dr. Nidhi kahi bhi bhagne waali nahi nai. Kyon Dr. Nidhi? Waise aga inhone koshish bhi ki toh hum inko ek second mein pakad lenge. After all, how far can she go in this high heels, and heavy saari. Hunh Dr. Nidhi. Am I right or what? Man, when I see those heels, I have to wonder how you are standing, and my mind mind totally boggles when I see you walk in them...Running toh impossible hogi, nahi?"

Nidhi smiled, at the inspector's attempt at humor. Then with a final look and smile for both parents she walked out with the Inspector, followed closely at the heels by Ashutosh.

Ashutosh got to the station mere seconds before they did, but he was waiting for them. The moment Nidhi got out of the police car, Ash hurried over to her,

"Dr. Ashutosh , Please. I can't allow you to come near her now. She is under custody, and we have to take her in."

Ashutosh sighed resentfully, but followed them in without saying a word.

No sooner had they stepped in both he and Nidhi stopped in their tracks, stunned expressions on their face. They both looked at each other, and then back at the man who was walking towards them.

Purab stopped in front of Ashutosh, and looked from him to Nidhi, with a malicious gleam in his eyes, and a false apology on his face.

"Dr. Ashutosh, Sir. Aap yahan? I am so sorry Sir. Mere paas shabd nahin hai, apne feelings zahir karne ke liye. I can understand how totally devastated you must be right now. I also felt the same, when I discovered who our drug theif was. But, I am sure you will understand that it was my duty to to report it to the police. It ripped me up inside to do so, but I had to, I had no choice. It was my duty as one of the staff of the hospital. But Sir, as your colleague, and friend, I just wanted to say that you have my sympathies, and if there is anything I can do to help you through this terrible time...Well, please do not hesitate. You can call on me night or day."

Then he turned so that Ashutosh was the only one who could see him, and winked, and grinned devilishly. Ashutosh reacted, and was about to lunge for him, when he felt Nidhi's hand on his arm.

Nidhi had also seen this exchange. Of course she had not seen Purab's grin, nor his wink, otherwise maybe she might not have stopped Ashutosh. All she knew was that the skunk had done something that had riled up Ashutosh, and there would be hell to pay if she did not stop him. So she had reacted immediately, and had managed to get to him just in the nick of time.

"Ashutosh No! Please calm down, and get a grip on yourself. Don't you see that this is exactly what he wants you to do. He had anticipated your reaction, and knew exactly what buttons to push. He knew you would react, and would probably punch his lights out. After which he would press assault charges, and get you arrested also. Please. Aisa kuch mat kariye. I could not stand it if you were to get into trouble, as well. Meri Khatir, please let him go."

Ashutosh looked down at her imploring face, and afelt her tight grip on his arm. He carefully let out a deep breath, and made himself to calm down. Then he forced himself to smile, just for her sake, letting her know that he had things under control. Nidhi loosed her hold, grateful that she had managaed to avert a potential disaster. However she could not help herself from squealing his name when he turned back to Purab,

"Ashutosh!!!!"

Without looking at her, his gaze locked on to Purab, deadly and full of determination. His voice, when he spoke, was eerily flat and calm, and laced with steel, when he began,

"All right Purab, you can go. For Now! You have won this round. But I will win the final round. That I promise you. I had warned you to stay away from my wife. I warned you to let things be, and not to push me. But you did not heed my warning. I make a formidable enemy Purab, something that you will soon find out. I will make you pay, and you will be coming to me on knees begging for mercy, before I am done with you. Start counting Purab, your time is almost up. Now my time begins. You are finished."

Just the way he had said all those things, sent a shiver of dread up Nidhi's spine, and she wasn't even at the receiving end. She did not want to be in Purab's shoes right now. She saw that Purab reaction, was similar to hers. He had gone absolutely white, and there was, panic on his face, and fear in his eyes. He kept on swallowing, as his eyes darted to and fro, looking for some kind of support, which of course was not forth coming from anywhere. With great effort he got a hold of himself, and cleared his throat, and with a quick bye, and one last panicky look at Ashutosh he turned and hurried out of the station.

After that, Komal led them both to her station, and seated Ashutosh while she escorted Nidhi back, for processing. When she came back a little later, Ashutosh noticed that she was alone. Nidhi was not with her. He turned his head to see where she was and when he could not find her he turned to Inspector Komal,

"Where is Nidhi Inspector?"

Inspector Komal looked at him quietly, without blinking. After a few seconds the light dawned on him.

"You put my wife in lock up!!!! You can't do that!"

He jumped up, and made to move

"I will get her out. How dare you! Locking her up like a common criminal, when you know that she is anything but. I will see that you get your badge taken away for this Inspector. Main..."

Inspector Komal hurried over and caught his arm,

"Wait a minute Dr. Ashutosh . Calm down Sir. Please. Look I know exactly how you feel. Believe me, I hated to do it. But, Sir, being an educated and intelligent man, you must know that this is procedure. Sir, I had no choice. Please calm yourself. You will be no good to Dr Nidhi in this state. Please think of her She needs you now, more than ever. Please Sir, agar aap hi aise karenge, toh unhe kaun sambhalega."

Ashutosh knew that she was right. And on some subconscious level he knew and he had been expecting this. But he had not prepared himself to face the reality. His Nidhi behind bars. No! He could not stand it. Pataa nahin uss par kya beet rahi hogi. She is all alone she must be really scared. Komal was right, Nidhi needed him to be calm, and act rationaly, and most importantly, to get her out of that damed place, quickly. He several deep breaths,

"I am sorry..."

"No Need Sir. Aapki jagah koi bhi hota toh aise hi react karta. No problem. But, now you need to get your lawyr her quickly, and get him to start the bail process. Uss mein thoda waqt lagta hai. Agar abhi shuru nahi kiya toh der ho jayegi and we will have to wait till tomorrow, and your wife will have to spend the night."

"There is no way in hell I am letting My Nidhi spend the night in jail. No way! You hear me Inspector!" Ashutosh shouted loudly.

Komal winced,

"I am sure the neighboring state heard you."" She mumbled under her breath.

"Excuse me?"

She cleared her throat,

"Nahin Kuch nahin. Yes Sir, I heard you. Par aise gussa hone se kuch nahin hoga, you know my hands are tied. App please apne lawyer ko call kijiye."

Ashutosh glared at her, but quickly took out his cell hone and placed the call. After he was done, he hung put his phone in his pocket and turned back,

"He says he will be here in about 10-15 minutes, and that he has already started the process."

Inspector Komal nodded. She had just opened her mouth to speak, when

"Oye Ammy, is that you. Hey Ammy?"

On hearing the voice call out Komal looked up and immediately stood up at attention and saluted.

Ashutosh on the other hand, whipped his head around, a stunned look on his face, at hearing that voice. Only one person had ever adressed him by that ridiculous name. Actually only one person had EVER been ALLOWED to call him by that name. The only person that Ashutosh had let get away with calling him that. His Friend. Manny. Manender Singh.

Ashutosh blinked, making sure he was not dreaming, or seeing things. But no, It was not a dream, it was indeed Manny. But what is he doing over here, he thought wonderingly. Last he knew, Manny had joined the Army. So ... Ashutosh looked closely at his friend. It had been a lot of years since he had last seen him, or even talked to him. He had been one of Ashutosh's closest friends, of course not as close as Arman, but still quite close. They had met during the first week of college, and had hit it off right away. It had always been a mystery to everyone, since both had been so dramatically opposite in every way. Yet they had gotten along famously. The only time he ever remembered that they had had words over anything was the ridiculous name, Manny had dubbed him with, mmy". Manny had chosen that for him because, he said that he thought his name was too long, and he wanted something with 1-2 syllables. Then he had come up with this awful name. It was Manny's idea of a Joke. Basically he had started off by calling him AM. For Ashutosh Mathur. Then somehow, he had graduated to Amy. Ashutosh had argued and threatened. He had tried, to cajole, and even bribe Manny, but all his pleas had fallen on deaf ears. Manny had gone on addressing him this way, and in the end Ashutosh had given up and accepted it.

That was the only thing that they had fought about, other than that, there had been no other issues. Manny had always been a true friend, supporting him and standing by his side, throughout their college years. They had lost touch when, the both of them had decided to go into separate fields as their chosen careers. Manny had always being fiercely Patriotic, and had wanted to joined the armed forces, and Ashutosh had wanted medicine. He had tried to keep in touch, but somehhow life had taken over, and he had gotten busier and busier with his studies and training. But now, to see his old friend here like this. Well...

Manny walked over and pulled him into a tight bear hug. Ashutosh hugged him back. then both drew apart, and smiled at each other.

"Oye Amy, yaar tu yahan? Tu yahan kya kar raha hai, thaane mein? Kahin koi gadbad shadbad toh nahin kari naa? Chal chod yeh toh impossible hai. Anyway, bata tu kaisa hai? Zara dekhoon toh sahi apne yaar ko. Itne saalon ke baad mile hain. Yaar Amy, tu toh bilkul nahin badla yaar. Waise ka waisa hai. Haan thoda baalon mein safedi aa gayi hai, Aur kaafi saari muscle shussle bhi bana li hai. Body builder ban gaya hai kya? Par tu chup kyon khada hai? Kuch bol na, kya khabar hai. Accha ek minute theher.

Ashutosh shook his head in amusement. No his friend had not changed, he thought, not one bit. He had never let anyone get a word in edgewise even in college. Once he got started, he just kept on going on and on and on. Hence the name Manny. It was not short for his name, it was given to him because he talked a lot. Anyway...

"Oye, Komal, yaar tu kitni der tak aise kadak khadi rahegi? Huh? Kitni baar kaha hai, ek baar salute maarne ke bad dheeli pad jaya kar, par nahin. Yunhi khadi rahti hai, jab tak main bolu na. Accha bas bhai, ho gaya. At ease, officer. Khush?"

"Jee Bhai...Sorry! Yes Sir! Actually You were so busy with Dr. Ashutosh that I did not know whether you seen me or not. And I did not want to do anything that looked like nepotism. Iss liye I waited till you noticed me."

Manny grinned and at looked her from top to bottom.

"Oye yeh tu kya keh rahi hai. Tujhe koi kaise miss kar sakta hai. Kabhi aaine mein nahin dekha kya apne aap ko? Oye yeh mai kya bol raha hoon. Kaise dekh hoga, after all aina bhi tere samne chota padta hoga. I don't think ke tere size ke hisaab se kahin milta hoga ya bhi nahin. Accha chal aisa karta hoon, jab teri shaadi hogi na, tab special order par tere liye banwa doonga. Theek hain na. Par Komal, yaar, main tere liye tere jitn lamba chauda, pahad jaisa ladka kahan se dhoond kar launga. Yaar thoda control karna chahiye tha na apne ko. (He turns to Ashutosh) Oye Amy, yaar teri nazar mein koi ho toh batana. Hum log iske liye ladka dhoond rahein hain. Isski umr ho gayi, ab iss bhi ghar basaa lena chahiye. Kab tak chor ucchakon ke peeche bhagegi. Lekin Yaar ek baat toh hai. Yeh meri behen na, isko ek nazar dekhte hi acche acche gundon ki chhakke choot jaate hai. Bina kuch kahe sune hi sab ugal dete hain. Kyon Dr Ashutosh, aap hi batao, dushmanon ke paas bhi aisi koi cheez nahin hogi na. Dushman ki baat se yaad aaya, tujhe pataa hai, maine iss Komal se kaha tha ke Army mein bharti ho jaye, par nahin zid karke aagyi police force mein, mere peeche peeche. Ab soch kitna bada nuksaan hua hai desh ka. Agar Army mein jaati to dushman isse dekhte hi wapas ulte paon bhag jaate. Par yeh hai ki inn chote mote criminals ke chakkar mein pad gayi... Hey criminals, ki baat se yaad aaya, tune abhi tak bataya hi nahin ke tu yahan kyon aaya hai. (One again without giving him a chance he turned to Komal) Oye Komi tune mere yaar ko yahan kyon baitha rakkha hai?"

Komal and Ashutosh looked at each other and smiled in amusement. She raised her hand to him signaling that she would handle things. So, while Manny kept up a constant chatter, she proceeded to take her badge off of her shirt, and her hat off of her head. When she had lain them on the table, she moved towards Manny and then reached out a hand to cover his mouth.

"Bas Bhai. Aap thodi der chup ho sakte hain please. Kissi ko bolne ka mauka toh dijiye."

Manny looked at both of them ruefully,

"Sorry yaar. I guess I got a bit carried away. Kya karoon itne saalon ke baad jo mil raha hooh tujhse. Chal mere cabin mein chalte hain, wahan aaraam se baith kar baatein karenge."

Ashutosh nodded in agreement, and smiled as he patted his shoulder,

"Don't worry about it Manny. Yaar tu bilkul nahin badla, waise ka waisa, baatooni. Never let anyone else get a word in edgewise. Anyway, It is amazing to see you."

"Amy, ek minute yaar. I need to take care of something first."

Then he turned to Komal

"Oye Inspector, you do know that you just behaved inappropriately with a senior officer. I could write you up on that."

Manny wriggled his eyes at her, and smiled devilishly. But Komal, who was in the process of putting her badge and hat back on, grinned back,

"Oh no Bhai. You can't. You see I know you, iss liye I took of my badge and hat. So technically it was just a sister shutting her brother up. I was not on duty. You have to do better next time, Bhai if you want to catch me."

Manny grinned back, and shook his head. Then turned back to Ashutosh.

"Amy yaar yeh hai toh mere chacha ki ladki, par hum dono mein sage bhai behen se bhi zyada pyaar hai. Aur Komi yeh Amy hai. Ashutosh Mathur. Mere college ke zamane a dost. Isske baare mein tujhe baataya tha na, ke yeh yahan lucknow mein rehta hai"

"Manny tu yahan ka kar raha hai? Tu toh fauj mein jaane waala tha?

Manny grinned,

"Yaar Maa Baap ne jaane hi nahin diya. Kehne lage bahut khatra hai. Anyway, before I could agrue, unhone mere paon mein bediyan daldi, and I could not. So instead I joined the force. Either way I get to serve my country, which is what I have always wanted. So here I am. Mere abhi abhi Promotion and yahan transfer hua hai. Oh Bhai, main IG ban gaya hoon. Kya khayal hai, haa? Ban gaya na top, jisse english mein kehtein hain Cannon. Oh Actually cannon toh kuch bhi nahin, Ig is more like a Bazooka. What say Amy? Cool? Abhi bas do mahine pehle. Bas thoda settle hone mein time lag gaya, Biwi aur bacche bhi toh saath hain na. Bas unki khatir daari mein deri ho gayi, nahin toh aate hi tujhe call karta. Accha bahut ho gaya mere baare mein. CHal mere saath, aur apna haal bataa. And Komal, yaar zara chai shai bhej hamare liye. We have a lot of years that we need to catch up on."

Then turning he led Ashutosh to his office. Once had sat down, he asked Ashutosh to tell him why he was at the precinct and what was going on in his life. Just as Ashutosh opened his mouth, there was a knock on his door. It was on of the constables informing him that Arman and Ashutosh lawyer, had arrived. He wanted to know whether to bring them in to ask them to wait outside. Manny informed him to send them in at once. Manny looked at Ashutosh ruefully, and mouth 'Sorry'. A few seconds later the two gentlemen were escorted inside. Arman took one look at Manny and stopped mid stride. After the first surprised look, Arman grinned, and went quickly up to Manny. The two friends hugged and slapped each other on the back in greeting. After that Ashutosh introduced his lawyer, Sameer Thakur, to both of his friends.

As soon as they had settled down, Manny asked Ashutosh what was going on. Ashu started at the beginning, from the day of Anji and Rangnath's sangeet till that last incident at the hospital. He also briefly went over all the little incidents that happened in between also. He knew everything, thanks to Rohan, whom he had asked to keep him apprised of all of Purab's going on, specially if it was in any way related to Nidhi.

After explaing the situation to Manny, Ashu asked his lawyer about Nidhi's bail. He was told that the process was already in the works. Ashu was relieved, but asked Sameer to see if he could speed up the process, at Which Manny intejected, tha he could help in that department, as one of the judges was a close family friend. As they waited for him to make the call, Ashu could not help himself from thinking about Nidhi, and worrying about her. He wondered how she was and hoped that she was not too scared. He did not know what he would do if they were not able to post bail for her today. Well, he thought , the first thing he could and probably would do was Murder that snake Purab, and stuff his rotting carcass under a stone. And, while he was added he could probably have a pair of shoes made for the chapdasi at the front gate of the KGH with the snake's skin. And if that did not work, he would string him upside down by his toenails over a pit of hungry crocodiles. Ashu had just begun to make up a list of all te methods of torture he could think of, when he realized that Manny had finished with his call. Ashutosh looked at him questioningly. Manny smiled,and told Ashutosh not to worry, and that the judge would sign the papers immediately, if Sameer can rush over to the court house right now.

Sameer immediately stood up , and gatheredhis stuff. Then he requested Manny for a copy of all the papers, and the FIR relating to the case, and well as the proof the police had against Nidhi.

Again Manny picked up the phone, and asked his peon to come into his office. He picked up his phone again. Ashutosh looked at Manny and shook his head wryly, thinking that his phone sure got a lot of milage, and wondered what on earth Manny would do if his phone ever went out of order.When he arrived, he asked him to help Mr. Thakur procure whatever he needed, and asked him to let the officers concerned, not to give Sameer a hard time, and that the orders came directly from him. Sameer thanked him and hurried out, telling Ashutosh that he would be back as quickly as he could with the bail papers.

"Ashutosh yeh kya hai yaar. Itna kuch ho gaya aur tu humein abhi bataa raha hai. Aur yeh Purab, iss character ko tujhe kabhi ka chalta karna chahiye tha. Why haven't you done anything about it till now? Agar mujhe pataa hota toh mai usko kabhi ka...Anyway, Nidhi...Kaisi hai woh? Bechari, main soch bhi nahin sakta ke uss par kya guzar rahi hogi. Kal tum dono ki shaadi hui hai, aur aaj...yeh sab. That is just not fair. I swear, if that skunk were in front of me right now, I would twist his already twisted head, and feed t to the vultures. Par aaj toh tum dono ki shaadi ka reception. What are we gong to do about that?"

Ashutosh was about to answer Arman, when Manny interrupted, and questioned in a surprised voice,

"Oye Amy, yaar teri shaadi kal hui hai?"

Ashutosh nodded silently.

"Oye tune pehele kyon nahin bataya? Aur toh aur, Bhabhi lockup mein hai, yeh bhi nahin kaha. Yaar Ashu tu gadhe ka gadha hai. Oye, Bhabhi nayi naveli dulhan hai, usse andar kaise ( Ash opened his mouth to speak, but Manny cut him off again, and Ashu leaned back in his chair tiredly)...Khair tu phkr mat kar Iss baat ka ilaaj mere aas hai."

"Hello, kaun? Haan bhai, Kartaar Singh. Oye zara Inspector Komal toh mere cabin mein bhejo. Ek dum jaldi."

Apparently the person at the other end must have said something tht Manny did not like, because he got a really annoyed look on his face, and his voice held impatience, as he said,

"Oye khotte, haan abhi bhej yaar usse. Nahin toh kab, jab tere potaa poti bharti honge police mein tab? Oye, jaldi ka matlab kay hota hai? Jaldi ka hota hai right now. Abhi isse waqt. Now hop to it."

Ashutosh got up and excused himself, saying that he had a very important call that he needed to make. Both of his friends nodded, and carried on their conversation, as he took out his phone and went to stand near the window. Ashutosh spoke in hushed tones, and disconnected in barely, 3 minutes. As he walked back Arman looked at him questioningly. Ashutosh shook his head relaying that it was nothing important, as he sat down.

A few seconds later Komal knocked and came in. Manny looked up at her and smiled as she saluted, and then stood at ease.

"Oye, very good sweetheart. Tu seekh rahi hai. Khair yeh sab baad mein. Oye jaake Dr Nidhi ko zara lockup se bahar nikaal, aur yahan le kar aa. Shhe can wait in here with us, while we are waiting for his bail to go through."

Komal nodded and hurried out with a smile. Meanwhile Ashutosh turned to him,

"Yaar, how can I thank you for this Manny. I just don't have the words..."

"Good you don't need them either. Kya Amy, tu toh bada formal ho gaya hai. Kyon yaar, mere saath bhi... You know that is not necessary. We are friends. Doston ke beech yeh Thankyou and Sorry, etc, aise shabdon ki koi zaroorat nahin hoti. Aur yaar tere toh waise bhi mere upar kai chote chote, aur ek toh bahut badaa,kitne saare ehsaan hai. Main kaise bhool sakta hoon ke tune college ke dino mein mere liye kya kya kiya tha. Jo mai kar raha hoon yeh toh kuch bhi nahin hai, unke samne."

Ashutosh waved him off,

"Manny, stop it yaar, enough!"

Manny grinned, and opened his mouth to speak, but he was interrupted by a knock on his door. At his bidding the door opened, and Komal came in followed by Nidhi. Ashutosh immediately jumped up and hurried over to her. He stopped right in front of her and stared at her for a few seconds, before reaching out abruptly and pulling her into his arms, and burying his face in her hair. Nidhi, sighed and closed her eyes in relief. She leaned her weight against him, as she felt the comforting warmth of his arms holding her tightly against himself. After a couple of minutes, she realized where they were and that they were being stared at, by three of smiling faces.

Nidhi was embarrassed, and blushed bright red as she tried to push out of his arms. But, he held her in a steely grip , and refused to budge, as she inneffectualy continued to push gently against him., looking from Arman's smiling face to Manny's.

"Ashuji. Ashuji please...let me go. Yeh aap kya kar rahein hain. Dekhiye, Armanji aur IG sahab dono dekh rahien hain."

"That's Ok Bhabhiji, we understand. Oye Koi problem nahin hai Amy, you can carry on. Meri megha ko zara si bhi takleef hoti hai toh meri jaan nikal jaati hai. So I can absolutely understand where Ashutosh us coming from."

Arman looked at Manny with an annoyed expression,

"Manny yaar, tu bhi na...what 'no problem'? Of course problem hai. Yeh bhi koi waqt hai inn baaton ke liye? Oye Ashutosh hat yaar. Dekh woh neeli padti ja rahi hai, itna kas ke pakad rakkha hai tune usse. Abbe zara bacchi ko saans toh lene de. Chal hat, yeh sab ghar par kar lena. Abhi yeh Police station hain. You know public place, kabhi koi bhi aa sakta hai. Chal Ashu, move."

"Haan Amy, Arman theek keh raha hai, yaar. Chal baut ho gaya. Ab thoda hat aur mujhe bhi dekhe de toh zara apni bhabhi ko."

After several seconds, Ashutosh finally loosened his hold on her, but he did not completely let go. Ashutosh kept his hands on her shoulders, as he stared down intently at her,

"Tum theek toh ho na?"

She nodded, although a fine teary haze blurred her eyes, and she quickly blinked to clear it.

"Haan, I am fine. why are you worrying. Thodi der hi toh hui thi. And Inspector Komal was nice enough to give put me in a nice clean cell, which I had all to myself. And besides, I knew that you were right here. So, I had nothing to worry about. I knew that you would not leave without me."

"Dekha Amy? Teri Biwi kitni samajhdaar hai. Amy yaar, chhod usse, let her sit..Then let us talk about what needs to be done next. Main hoon na tere saath, so what's the worry? Kuch nahin hone denge Nidhi ko."

"Sirf tu hi nahin Manny, ME TOO. We are both with you and Nidhi."

Ashutosh smiled gratefully at both of his friends. Then he put an arm around Nidhi's shoulders and led her over to a chair.

"Nidhi, tumhe bhookh lag rahi hogi na? Subha se kuch bhi nahin khaya tumne. Let me get you something, hmmm."

Nidhi caught his hand as he was about to move away. Then softly, so that he was the only one that could hear, she said

"Nahin, please don't go, mat jayiye. Mujhe kuch nahin chahiye, siva aapke. I just want you. Stay, please. And don't let go of me. That is all I need."

"Main yahin hoon tumhare paas, kahin nahin jaa raha. I love you, Nidhi. You will always have me." he said in an equally soft voice.

Then he looked up as Manny and Arman joined them, and took the seat next to hers, but did not for one second let go of her hand.

Barely an hour later, Sameer returned with the Judges signature. After completing all the formalities, Ashutosh and Nidhi thanked Manny and got him to promise that he would come with his family to their reception that evening. Then with Ashutosh and Arman flanking her on both sides, protectively, Nidhi sighed with relief, and sent a prayer of thanks as she exited the police station.