Ashutosh n nidhi sat in the lawn sipping tea and having crisp aaloo parathas ..as nidhi smiled n said "aaj kya karenge hum.."??and ashutosh replied "jo tum kaho..iss trip me..i m all yours.."!!and nidhi pouted"achcha ..sirf iss trip mein??maine to socha tha poori zindagi ke liye mere hain.."!!and she laughed as dr ashutosh took up the newspaper n said"jaao..ready ho jao..phir chalenge baahar"!!and nidhi got up n tried to kiss his cheek as he held her away.."hey nidhi..waiter aa jayega.."!!and she wrinkled her nose n said"saaf kahiye na..mujhse door reh sakte hain..paper se nahi"!!and ashutosh was lost in the newspaper as nidhi skipped n hummed a new song..ashutosh tried to understand the lyrics but they seemed beyond him..and he shook his head...
It was a little later that nidhi in her olive green n crimson churidar kurta..with a black sweater around her shoulders n ashutosh in jeans n grey jacket looked stunning as they walked hand in hand on the camels back road ...n ashutosh pointed to the clear snow covered peaks..n then sat under a huge deodar..savouring the silence ..as nidhi spoke"kitna achcha lagta hai..bus hum dono..aur yeh khamoshi...door tak koi nahi..."!!ashutosh ran his finger tips through her hair n said..with mischief in his eyes"cant be sure ..ki sirf hum dono hi hain..kya pata ki cemetry hai jo wahaan..wahaan se koi bhoot aa jaye..kyun"??and nidhi closed her eyes n hugged him...as he laughed..but she pulled him to walk back to civilisation of mall road..and immiediately bought a bhutta..a roasted corn cob!!as she bit ..ashutosh mocked"darr ka ilaaj bhutta"!!and nidhi replied'aap to lenge nahi..acidity hogi aapko"!!and ashutosh replied..biting into the cob.."dont worry..maine subah hi zinetac leli thi..din bhar tumhare sath junk jo khana tha...chalo..lets walk"!!but nidhi insisted.."ek bite aur"!!and as he obliged she clicked a selfie!!and he just glared in disbelief!!
"Aage ek chinese joint hai...i guess its good..."but nidhi disagreed"na..lets go to that omlette corner..hotel ne bhi tecommend kiya tha...aapko pasand bhi hai..what say"!!and they walked on...as nidhi hummed"ISHQ WALA LOVE"!!ashutosh teased her"kya lyrics hain!!no sense atall"!!but nidhi argued"kyun..sense kyun nahi hai ISHQ WALA..SURKH WALA FAIZ WALA LOVE..HOTA HAI KO LOVE SE ZYADA WAISE WALA LOVE"!!and ashu laughed"tumhari generation janti bhi hai Faiz ko"??nidhi pouted"koi writer the..kya farq padta hai Faiz ya chetan bhagat"!!and ashu smliled"waah kya comparison..faiz aur chetan "!!!but the argument had to wait as they reached the omlette corner n soon sat biting into soft spanish omlette n bread with hot tea!!!"hmmm.tastyyy...wow maza aa gaya...i wish..."stopped nidhi...as her husband looked up and asked"kya wish hai??yehi rehne ki"??n she shook ger head in refusal n said"naa..i was wishing ki kaas armaanji aur baba bhi hote..they d have loved this omlette bread"!!and she saw a strange softness descend into her middle aged hubby's eyes!!
As they sauntered thru the coty...walking up to chaar dukaan..the old market..high up in the mountains..as the climb was tough..nidhi panted..and ashutosh held her...as he said "chalo waapas ..lets take a cab up tomorrow...theek hai"??and nidhi seemed to agree ..as they walked down hill...and the sun seemed ready to set...n chill descended..as ashutosh zipped up his jacket n put the buttons of nidhi's cardigan..and as they reached the far end of the mall...Savoy just a turn away...nidhi smiled n said"ab..ab kya??"and ashutosh smiled n replied'tea dinner...n news"!!and nidhi left him in mock anger n ran into the hotel gates...as ashutosh smiled n hummed his wife's favourite song"ISHQ WALA..SURKH WALA..FAIZ WALA LOVE...HOTA HAI JO LOVE SE ZYADA WAISE WALA LOVE"!!
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"Beta come for dinner..."said mr Solanki to anji n ranganath as anji slumped onto the chair n said"mujhe mann nahi hai..i am tired"!!and dr ranganath replied"12 ghante fashion house me rahogi to...tired hogi hi"!!and anji looked at him n said"ohhh to kya karoon??bachche khilaaoon??i m so bored...wahi ghar office..office ghar...aur nidhi ko dekhiye..jeejaji mussoorie leke gaye hain usse..aur ek hum hain..."!!as anji got up n went into hr room...as ranga dipped into the dinnner with a glum face n a heavy heart...as Shyama ji looked at him..trying to understand his angst!!
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"I dont want dinner..."it was mallika telling her maid as she retired...into her lonely bedroom...her large empty bed...just as her life. ..her gaze fell on the photo colage of her college days..she n ashutosh at oxford...together in a restaurant...n memories seemed to flood her lonely eyes..as she closed them n offed the light...and lay on her pillow ..opening the gateway to tears...the begining of another long n lonely night...when she d have nothing except the memories of her ashutosh...while he...where was he??mallika felt furrowed...n dialled baba's land line...
Kaka picked it
"Kaka..ashutosh hai kya"?
"Arre beta woh to nidhi beti ke saath gaya hai baahar..."!
"Kahaan kaka..kab gaye"??
"Kal..ab yeh to nahi oara ki kahaan..per lo tum armaan se baat karo"and armaan cleared his throat n took the phone
"Yes mallika...Ashutosh gaya hai nidhi ko leke ..hills mein...ab kahaan ..yeh to hume bhi nahi pata...aakhir shadi hui hai..dono ko huq gai waqt butane ka sath sath akele..hahaan koi disturb na kare..."!!and mallika banged the phone...
Just about 2 months back they had gone to simla...n now somewhere else...why??was it just desire...or did ashutosh really love that infernal kiddish intern so much!!how could he???but the recent changes..the smile on his face..his diet..his relaxed ways...it all showed how nidhi had changed ashutosh..her ashutosh...ashutosh who was desired n deserved only by her...but life...ufff!!!!!!!and tears flowed out helplessly!!!
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"Brush kiya..bhutte ke baad"??asked ashutosh...as nidhi flaunted the nightie that she had bought...n said "aap mere nursery ki head mistress jaise hain"!!and he laughed as he hot up to keep his coffe cup and finally nidhi irritated with his neglect"dekhiye to meri nightie..achchi hai na"??and he raised his eyebrow.."nightie mei kya achcha bura...its night wear..."!!
"I mean..isnt it...isnt it...hmmm dont u like me in it"??
Ashu laughed as he replied"you dont need to wear a seductive nightie for me...tum jaisi ho..mujhe bahut pasand ho...u are not an item girl..biwi ho meri..."and nidhi giggled as she sat in his lap..and both looked at the lights of a far off village as ashutosh slowly worked at her nightie straps...and carried her to bed...her fingers scraping his beard...n then she closed her eyes...as she held him close ..and shut her eyes to everything else...he was ger today n..tomorrow...and ashutosh kissed her eyes...and said what he rarely said"jaan...i love you..."!!and nidhi bit her lip...n answered"aapki khamoshi samajhti hoon main...kehne ki zaroorat nahi..."and the rest was lost in their mutual supernova...
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