PART 10:
RECAP: A boulder had just hit Mahi- her world came crashing down; her heart was shattered into a million pieces at that momentā¦ā¦ā¦her dreams were no longer dreamsā¦ā¦.how could she ever snatch her sister's happinessā¦ā¦why didn't she notice that Jeet and Soni loved each other? Mahi froze at the spot, numb of any emotionā¦ā¦just a dark cloud hung in front of herā¦ā¦
Was this dark cloud with a silver lining though???
Mahi retired to her room and stayed up all night. She soaked her pillow case with buckets and buckets of tears. As the morning sun peeped through the curtains in her window, she sat up and felt her pillow, "fitteh mooh tera! Mahiā¦.tu itni kamzor kab se ho gayi? Soni ke liye khush hone ki jagah, yeh takiya geela karti rahi raat bhar? Main sach much pagal hoonā¦ā¦agar Jeet se meri shaadi ho gayi hoti tho wo saari umar apni saali ke liye tadapta rehta," she remembered Shabd's words, "mujhey tho poori ghar waali chaahiyeā¦.aadhi nahin!"
"Haan mujhey bhi poora gharwaala chaahiyeā¦aadha nahin!" she got up and picked her clothes from her closet. She had a busy day ahead of her.
After showering and scrubbing the weariness from her face, she walked down for breakfast in a bright yellow salwaar kameez.
"Good morning mummyjiā¦daddyjiā¦Raji didi? Aap raat ko yahin rahi?" she hugged her oldest sister and held her close for some time. She wiped a little tear trying to escape her eyes and then smiled at everyone.
"Maine aaj ek faisla kiya hai!" she announced.
"Faisla?" Soni walked in; her heart fluttered at the thought- Mahi was probably going to announce when she wanted to get married to Jeet as soon as possible, "kaisa faisla Mahi?"
Mahi ran to Soni, "yahan baith jaaā¦..phir bataati hoon," she helped Soni settle down at the dining table.
"Maine faisla kiya hai ki main abhi shaadi," she paused and looked at everyone's faces. Raji and Soni glanced at each other; they knew what was coming, "main abhi shaadi NAHIN karoongi!"
"KYA?" they were all shocked. Their little Mahi who ate, slept, dreamt, inhaled the word 'shaadi' since she was 5 years old had decided to not get married at this point?
"Aisa kya hua puttar?" Brij asked, 'main tho aaj hi Khurana saheb se teri aur Jeet ki shaadi ki tareek pakki karne jaa raha tha."
"Nahin daddyjiā¦ā¦abhi shaadi nahin karni mujheyā¦.aur Jeet se tho bilkul nahin!" she said firmly and then noticed the color come back on Soni's face. Soni tried her best to not blush in front of everyone and just lowered her head.
"Kya keh rahi hai puttar?" Mouni got worried, "Jeet ka dil toot jaayega."
"Mujhey koi farak nahin padhta!" Mahi said ruthlessly, "aakhir meri zindagi ka sawaal haiā¦ā¦mujhey Hotel management ka course karna haiā¦.phir kuch ban na haiā¦..paise kamaane haiā¦..phir sochungi shaadi ke baare mein."
"Mouni! Main pehle hi kehta thaā¦.isey Mumbai mat bhej! Dekha tuneyā¦.kaise oot pataang khayaal aane lage hain iske dimaag mein? Aur wo Mumbai ka ladkaā¦.kya naam hai uskaā¦.Shabd? Wo bhi brain waash kar gaya hai iseyā¦.matt maari gayi hai iski!" Brij was enraged at the thought of his daughter wanting to get a job and earn before getting married, "main soch raha tha Mahi ki shaadi jald se jald ho jaayeā¦.phir bas Soni reh jaayegiā¦..aakhir main bhi kuch din mein retire hone waala hoonā¦..2 kunwaari ladkiyon ko kaise rakhoonga?"
"Daddyjiā¦.rehne deejiye naā¦..Mahi aage padhai karna chaahti hai tho karne deejiyeā¦..aaj kal ladkiyan apne pairon par khadi ho tho accha rehta hai," Raji reassured her angry dad. Raji's calming voice had always soothed Brij whenever he was upset.
"Mahiā¦.yeh achanak hotel management ka bhoot kahan se sawaar ho gaya tujh par?" Mouni asked.
"Mummyjiā¦.Manali mein ek hotel mein training course shuru ho raha haiā¦..maine newspaper mein dekha thaā¦.tab se hi mera mann kar raha haiā¦please mummyji," Mahi lied- it was a friend in Mumbai who had mentioned that she would be doing that course, so Mahi just blurted the first thing that came to her mind.
"Suno jiā¦..karne do na isey courseā¦..Jeet agar Mahi ko chaahta hai tho intezaar kar lega," Mouni placed her hand on Brij's shoulder.
Mahi noticed that Soni had turned pale again.
"Nahin mummyjiā¦.Jeet mere type ka nahin haiā¦..main us se shaadi nahin karoongi," Mahi whined.
"Kya keh rahi hai puttar?" Mouni was aghast.
"Lagta hai wo sheher waalaā¦..kya naam hai uskaā¦.Shabd? Wo pasand aa gaya hai is pagli ko," Brij flared his nostrils, "jaanti hai wo kaun hai? Sareen Enterprises ka ek lauta waaris haiā¦ā¦uske sapne dekhna chhod de! Wo kahanā¦.aur hum kahan?"
"Daddyjiā¦.Shabd se mera aisa koi rishta nahin haiā¦..main tho bas yeh keh rahi hoon ki mujhey Jeet pasand nahin haiā¦..aap samajhte kyun nahin hain?" Mahi stomped her foot.
"Daddyjiā¦..waise ek baat kahoon?" Raji asked hesitantly.
"Haan bol puttar?" Brij calmed down at Raji's question.
"Soni aur Jeet ki baat kyun na kar lein? Papa (Khurana is her father in law) se keh deejiye ki pehle Soni ki shaadi karna chaahte hainā¦.Soni badhi bhi haiā¦..tho bura bhi nahin lagega," Raji suggested.
"Idea bura nahin haiā¦.lekin Jeetā¦usko kya kahenge? Wo tho Mahi se pyaar karta haina?" Brij asked.
Soni blushed profusely and got up from the table. She joined her mother at the stove and pretended to cook something in the pan. Mahi noticed every move and expression of Soni and smiled tearfully for her.
"Daddyji!" Mahi walked to her dad and put her arms around him, "Jeet tho budhhu haiā¦..usey hum dono hi pasand hainā¦..wo hamesha kehta tha ki tu mujh se shaadi nahin karegi tho main Soni se kar loongaā¦..aap poonch kar tho dekhiyeā¦.shart lagaa leejiye ā¦.wo na nahin karega!" she chuckled and kissed her dad's cheek.
"Theek hai theek haiā¦..Soni se tho poonch lein?" Brij asked, "puttar Soniā¦tera kya khayal hai Jeet ke baare mein? Pasand hai tujhey?"
Soni turned around with her eyes on the ground, "jaisa aap sab chaaheā¦..mujhey aap logon ki marzi manzoor hai," she said softly.
Mahi rolled her tongue and thought, "Soni ki bachhiā¦..kitni bholi ban rahi haiā¦..oopar jaakar seedha Jeet ko phone milaaegi shaitaan kahin ki!"
"Theek hai phir puttarā¦.main aaj hi baat karta hoon," Brij caressed Soni's head and then looked at Mahi sternly, "aur Manali jaana zaroori hai tera?"
"Haan daddyjiā¦..Manali tho main jaaoongi!" Mahi grinned.
Brij softened a little, "theek hai puttarā¦.jaise teri marzi."
Soni ran upstairs as Brij left to talk to the Khuranas. Mahi followed her sister and stood outside Soni's room. She overheard Soni dialing a phone, "Helloā¦Jeet?" she whispered.
Mahi wiped her tears and walked into her room. She picked her cell phone and called her Mumbai friend, "Helloā¦.. Geeta? Main Mahiā¦.haan wo tu Manali mein hotel management ka course karne jaa rahi haina? Uski deadline kya hai?"
"15 tarikh," Geeta replied.
Mahi looked at the calendar, "4 din aur hain iska matlabā¦..thanks Geetaā¦.bye!" she hung up.
Mahi walked out of her room and ran into a blushing Soni, "Soni jaanā¦..yeh mann hi mann mein laddoo kaise phoot rahe hain?"
"Kuch nahin Mahiā¦.yeh bataaā¦.tuney Jeet se shaadi kyun nahin karni? Kya wo Mumbai waala Shabd pasand aa gaya hai?" Soni teased her back.
Mahi was at loss for words; she did not want Soni to suspect that she had purposely sacrificed her love for her sister's happiness, "haanā¦haanā¦kuch aisa hi samajh le," she said shyly. The sisters hugged each other joyfully. Mahi hugged Soni tightly and caressed her back, "khush reh meri behenā¦..aur jald hi shaadi kar le," Mahi could not hold her tears.
"Tu ro rahi hai?" Soni pulled away as she felt her warm tears through her kurta, "kya hua?"
"Pagli!" Mahi laughed tearfully, "khushi ke aansoo hain."
"Theek haiā¦.main bhi tujh se vachan leti hoon ki jab tak teri aur Shabd ki shaadi nahin ho jaatiā¦.main bhi Jeet se shaadi nahin karoongi!" Soni declared firmly.
Mahi's face froze- she was stunned and shocked beyond words, "ab main kya karoongi?" she was in a bindā¦.what was she supposed to do now?
ā¦to be contdā¦
Cricket
