CHAPTER 25
Vish: What? But how is it possible?
Ajitabh: That's why I said don't send him up. I will go and verify first, then I will bring him up.
Mrs. Sharma: We don't know what really happened. For all we know it was not Mahir in the car. I think you should go and check.
Ajitabh begins to leave.
Vish: Wait, I will come with you.
Ajitabh: No, don't. You wait here with ma, I will be back soon.
Vish: I did not ask for your permission. I told you that I am coming with you.
Ajitabh smiled a little at this. He held out his hand and she hesitantly held his hand. She gave him a tentative smile. He smiled back at her. Mrs. Sharma smiled at the two of them and silently blessed BeHir for making her kids realise their mistake. She hoped that the guy who was waiting near the watchman's cabin was indeed Mahir. She found herself silently promising god that if that boy was indeed Mahir then she would donate fifty thousand rupees to a nearby orphanage. She was tempted to go and tell Bella that perhaps Mahir had returned, but she stopped herself. If it was not Mahir then Bella's hopes would shatter. So she waited, silently praying to god.
Ajitabh and Vish knew BeHir quite well. BeHir frequently visited Pratham and Suhani and hence were quite familiar with their neighbours as well. So when they came downstairs, they did not have any trouble in recognizing that it was indeed Mahir. He looked slightly battered and bruised but none the worse for wear. His clothes were torn in places, and it seemed as though he had hit his head and it had been bleeding. Now the bleeding had stopped and the congealed blood had turned a nasty shade of bluish purplish red. His elbows were slightly bruised and he was limping a little. But other than those minor injuries, he looked fine. A policeman stood with him. When Ajitabh reached Mahir, he coulddn't stop himself from hugging Mahir. Mahir winced a little at Ajitabh's tight hug. Ajitabh felt him wince and released him immediately. As soon as Ajitabh released him, Vish gave him a sideways hug.
Ajitabh thanked the police officer for dropping Mahir safely and he and Vish helped Mahir walk. They took up the elevator to Pratham Suhani's flat and helped him inside.
M: Where is Bella?
Vish: She is inside.
M: But why?
Ajitabh: It's a long story. First of all you sit and call Sumitra aunty. They have been off their heads with worry.
M: But why? What happened?
Vish: Have you looked at the time Mahir?
M: Yes but..
Ajitabh: We will tell you everything. Just drink this.
He made Mahir sit on the couch and gave him some water to drink. He then told Mahir how everyone thought that they had lost him forever, he told him about what they had seen on TV. Mahir immediately video called Rehan from Bella's phone. Everyone was relived to see Mahir safe and sound.
Sumi ma: Thank god Mahir you are alright.
Appa: Yes Mahir.
Amma: But what happened?
K: Yes, we thought...
M: You thought that I am dead, right?
Mahir got a light smack on his back from Vish for talking so casually about his death.
M: Okay! I am sorry. I will tell you all what happened but first I want to meet Bella.
R: Before you meet her there is something you need to know.
M: What? Is she alright?
K: No she is not. That's what we are trying to tell you. Listen carefully.
Rehan and Kuhu told him about Bella's behaviour when she saw his burnt out car. How she had been screaming and shouting nonstop and how she kept on fighting to go out to look for him. How they had to lock her because there was no other option left. Mahir listened to all this very carefully. After Rehan was done, Vish took Mahir inside to Suhani's room where Bella was locked up. Just as she was unlocking the door they heard Bella scream out Mahir's name in a tired and cracked voice. Mahir looked at Vish; he had tears in his eyes.
Vish: She has been sporadically screaming out your name for the last few hours.
Vish carefully opened the door to find Bella lying by the door, her hands bleeding slightly because of broken glass bangles and shards of broken glass bangles strewn around her. Her face was swollen from crying continuously and her lips looked dry and cracked. Her forearms were covered with minor scratches from the bangles and there were two or three major cuts that had stopped bleeding. She woke with a jump when she heard the sound of door being opened. Vish quickly pushed Mahir out of the room as she did not want Bella to get any kind of shock. Bella hardly had any energy left in her. She could barely stand. She slipped a couple of times while attempting to stand up. The second time she slipped, she landed on a shard of glass and her palm started bleeding, but she didn't feel the pain at all. Mahir was standing just outside the door and watching all this winced seeing her bleed.
Vish called Ajitabh and asked him to lift up Bella and place her on the bed. Ajitabh gently placed Bella on the bed. Then Vish cleaned away all the shards of glass. Ajitabh then made her drink a glass of water. Vish then went and sat down besides Bella and gently told her that Mahir was alright and that he had come to meet her. Bells looked at her with haunted look in her eyes. Vish called in Mahir and made him stand in front of Bella.
Abhi mujh mein kahin
Baaki thodi si hai zindagi
Jagi dhadkan nayi
Jaana zinda hoon main toh abhi
Kuch aisi lagan iss lamhe mein hai
Yeh lamha kahaan tha mera
Ab hai saamne
Ise chhuu loon zara
Marr jaaun ya jee loon zaraaa
Khushiyaan choom loon
Yaa ro loon zara
Marr jaaun ya jee loon zaraa
Although Bella could barely stand, she managed to stand up and looked at Mahir as though she had seen ghost. She walked towards him as though walking in her sleep. Vish and Ajitabh left the room to give them some privacy. Mahir had half raised his hands as though expecting a hug from Bella.
Vish came out and told Sumi ma that Bella was alright and that she had left BeHir alone to give them some privacy. The atmosphere in the living room had changed drastically in the last few minutes. Everyone was feeling giddy with relief. Suddenly they heard Mahir shout. Vish and Ajitabh rushed inside the bedroom to find Bella attacking Mahir with whatever she could lay her hands on.
B: HOW DARE YOU? HOW DARE YOU COME INFRONT OF ME AND EXPECT THAT I WILL HUG YOU? (She had a pillow in her hand and was mercilessly hitting Mahir with it while Mahir tried his best to dodge her attacks) WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? SPIDERMAN? SUPERMAN? IRONMAN? BATMAN? WHO ARE YOU? HUMAN RIGHT? THEN WHY DON'T YOU BEHAVE LIKE ONE. MERI JAAN NIKAL GAYI THI. (She had begun to chase Mahir around the room and eventually she chased him till the living room. Video call was still going on and so everyone sitting in the Kapoor and Sehgal House could clearly see what was going on. Bella was still screaming at Mahir.) I HAD TOLD YOU THAT I WILL CALL YOU ONCE I REACH PRATHAM AND SUHANI'S PLACE; YOU ARE TO STAY AT HOME. I HAD TOLD YOU THAT I WAS ONLY A FEW MINUTES AWAY FROM THEIR PLACE. BUT DID YOU LISTEN TO ME? NO YOU DIDN'T!
M: Owww! Bella it hurts. Ouch! Don't Bella. It's paining. OWWW! Bella, please, it hurts...
B: HURTS? HURTS? DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT IT MEANS? HAVE YOU EVER EXPIRIENCED PAIN? NO! YOU HAVEN'T! I HAVE EXPIRIENCED PAIN. I COULN'T BREATHE...
Bella was still attacking him.
M: Ma, ma, please save meee. Owww.
Amma: Bella stop it, he is hurt...
B: You stay out of this Amma. This is between me and him.
M: Ma... please???
Sumi ma: You deserve it Mahir. Bella give him couple of whacks on behalf of me as well..
B: Glady ma..
M: KUHU! Kuhu my darling sister, my sweet sister please tell Bella to stop...
K: Bella give some more whacks on my behalf as well. Mahir you are lucky that I can't reach you now. If I could reach you right now, I would have...
Appa and Rehan were laughing loudly, giddy with relief that everything had turned out fine. Only Amma was trying to make Bella stop. Bella was still chasing Mahir around the room. Eventually, drained out completely she sat down. Mahir heaved a sigh of relief. The Sharmas were also laughing. He went and sat down beside her and tried to put his hand on her shoulder but she gave him such a glare that he backed off immediately. Mahir had his signature drenched puppy look on his face. He knew from experience that Bella couldn't resisit his puppy face. But that day even that did not work. She continued to glare at him. In an attempt to distract Bella from her mission of hitting Mahir, Amma asked him how come he had escaped from the burning car.
M: I did not escape as I was never inside the car when they set it ablaze.
Amma: Meaning?
M: Bella had called me to tell me that I should turn back and go home. When we were having this conversation, my car had run across some nails that had been strewn across the road. In order to stop the car I had to apply emergency breaks. Phone fell from my hand when I applied the brakes. When the car came to a standstill, I picked up the phone when Bella called me once again. I was about to speak with her when I heard sounds of an angry mob coming my way. The car was completely useless so I got down from the car and in that hurry, I dropped my phone. Right across from where my car had stopped, there was shop that had been ransacked completely. I ran towards that shop and hid inside. I saw people come and smash up the car completely. Once they had totally destroyed the car, they went away. After some time I saw a very gravely injured man come running towards my car and get inside it. He was bleeding badly and was being chased by an angry mob. He tried to start the car and somehow even managed to do but he couldn't take the car very far and because of punctured tyres and damaged engine the car spun out of control and overturned. The mob had caught up with him by then and they set the car ablaze. Seeing this I decided that it was not very safe to stay there and when they had gone away I stepped out of the shop. I was feeling very scared by then and it had become quite dark. Most of the streets were in complete darkness. I couldn't see where I was going and I slipped a couple of times and that is how I hurt my head, knees and by elbows got bruised. (He looked at Bella hoping to get some sympathy but Bella simply sat there with a stony expression on her face. Seeing that he was not about get any response from Bella, Mahir continued with his story.) I kept running till I reached the police station. Once there I requested them to bring me here. They couldn't start off immediately and hence the delay.
After finishing his story Mahir once again glanced at Bella but she was steadfastly refusing to meet his eyes. Mahir gave up after a bit. He answered some more questions that ma and Amma had and then they disconnected the call. Sharma aunty signalled her kids to leave them alone.
Mrs. Sharma: I will go and heat up some food for everyone okay? And Bella we will need to bandage your hands. They are scratched rather badly. Come here I will do it for you.
M: No aunty I...
B: No aunty, you do it.
Mahir kept quite after that. Mrs. Sharma first gently broke away all the bangles that Bella was wearing. She then brought a first aid box from her house and gently cleaned Bella's wounds. There were two or three major cuts that had been bleeding. She carefully cleaned those and then bandaged them after applying some ointment. She then moved towards Mahir, but Bella stopped her.
B: Aunty, Mahir will not let anyone apply ointment to his wounds except me.
Mrs. Sharma: Okay dear, you do it. I will leave you two alone.
Saying this she left leaving behind the first aid box. Bella took the first aid box and went and sat besides Mahir. Mahir was looking at her guiltily. When she saw him carefully for the first time, she saw that there were minor scratches on his neck and chest as well.
B: Take off your shirt Mahir.
M: Bella I... Let me explain...
B: I said take off your shirt Mahir. Or else I will do it.
Her voice convinced Mahir that this was not the time to mess around. He quietly took off his shirt and laid it on the couch. She saw that there were a few minor scratches on his chest; nothing serious. She gently began to clean those scratches with Dettol; she then applied ointment to them. Once she was done, Mahir began to put on his shirt.
B: Don't! Let your skin soak in the ointment.
She then moved to his swollen and bruised elbows. Here the cuts were pretty deep. She began to clean them very gently, blowing on them every now and then to soothe the burn. She then bandaged his elbows as well. She then moved towards his forehead. Mahir could see that she was beginning to soften a little, and so he tried once again.
M: Bella, I was worried about you. I couldn't sit at home and do nothing when you were out there... Owww!! ( She had deliberately applied a little extra pressure on his wound) So, as I was saying I had to do something Ouch!!!(She had once again pressed his wound with light but deliberate pressure.) I had to be with you. Ouch!!! Hey are showing your love or are you taking out your enmity on me? OUCH! OWWW!!! (Some more deliberate pressure) Okay!! Okay!! I am sorry. I should have listened to you. I should not have stepped out. No amount of justification can erase the fact that I acted stupidly.
She had finished cleaning the wound and applying the ointment on it. She proceeded to bandage his head. Once done she moved towards his knees.
M: Bella, stop! I will do that. You don't have to sit near my fee...
Bu she gave him such a glare that he did not finish the sentence. She had begun to clean his bruised knees.
M: Bella I know I acted stupidly, but in that moment I couldn't think of anything except that I wanted to be there with you. I couldn't stand not knowing what was going on with you. I wanted to see you with my eyes to ensure you safety. (Bella had begun to tear up by then and she gave a small sob) I couldn't leave you all... Hey are you crying? (She shook her head violently without looking up even as another sob escaped her throat. She has finished bandaging his knees.) You are crying. Bella don't cry.
He slowly raised her to her feet and he himself stood up. He placed his hand beneath her chin and tilted her head upwards so that she was looking at him. She refused to meet his eyes. In that moment she looked very vulnerable with swollen face and cracked lips, her face full of childlike innocence.
M: Hey! Why are you crying now?? See I am safe and sound. There is nothing wrong with me.
B: How could you do it Mahir? How could not think of me, Amma, Sumi ma, all those people who love. Did you even stop to think what would happen to them if you were not around? Did you stop to think what would happen to me if you were not around?
M: Bella I was thinking of all these people only when I stepped out. I wanted to ensure that Amma, Appa Sumi ma got their daughter back safely. I wanted to ensure that Rehan and Kuhu got their sister back. I wanted my best friend back safe and sound. I know it was stupidity to step out but since when love has been sensible and logical? They all love you Bella and I love them and most of all I love you, so I had to do something, anything to get you back.
B: But Mahir what if something had happened to you? What if it had been you in the car? What if we had lost you today?
M: Bella I knew nothing would happen to me. You want to know how? Because meri jaan tum mein basti hai Bella. As long as you are fine, breathing, nothing will happen to me. If you want me to be safe, then just keep breathing, and I will be fine.
They both had come very close while saying this.
B: Don't you think this applies the other way around as well? As long as you are fine, nothing will happen to me.
Bella finally looked at him, and he saw love, trust, vulnerability in her eyes. He could see that that day's events had emotionally broken her completely. Her childlike innocence enamoured him. He felt drawn towards her.
Ki teri jhooti baatein main saari maan loon
Ki teri jhooti baatein main saari maan loon
Aankhon se tere sach sabhi
Sab kuch abhi jaan lu
Ki teri jhooti baatein main saari maan loon
While Bella saw love and assurance in his eyes. Behind the assurance there was genuine fear of losing her, and that was what had prompted him to step out of the house in such a dangerous situation. She saw right through his facade. In that instant she knew that he was equally worried for her and was simply pretending to be strong as she had fallen weak. The words from song Ae Dil Hai Mushkil played in her mind
Mujhe aajamaati hai teri kami
Meri har kami ko hai tu laazmi.
She thought those words were perfect for them. She had always known subconsciously that they were two parts of the same puzzle, each was incomplete without the other. But that day she consciously realised it and involuntarily she hugged him tightly.
Dhoop mein jalte hue tann koo
Chhaya pedh ki hil gayi
Roothe bacche ki hansi jaise
Phuslane se phir khil gayi
Kuch aisa hi ab mehsoos dil ko ho raha hai
Barson ke puraane zakhmon pe marham laga sa hai
Mahir returned her hug. This hug was different. They both could feel it. It was more intimate; as in whenever they had hugged before there had always been this invisible wall between them. But today that wall had fallen off completely and they could actually feel each other's bodies. Mahir could actually feel Bella's arms around him, delicate but strong pulling him closer. Bella, for the first time felt a weird sense of safety in Mahir's strong muscled arms. She felt as though nothing could harm her in his arms. After a long moment they pulled back and looked at each other. In that moment it felt very natural to close the distance between them and their lips met in a tender yet passionate kiss.
In that one moment time stood still for both of them. Nothing existed for them except the feel of their bodies. Bella felt Mahir tighten his arms around her, his lips kissing hers fiercely, one hand steadying her and the other exploring her body. Mahir felt his hand slip form Bella's shoulder and gripping her back tightly, he felt Bella respond to his touch. He felt Bella's hand on his bare back, caressing his cheek, pulling him in deeper. In that moment both of them felt such a pleasure; which they had never experienced before. Mahir felt Bella's long nails pierce him lightly as she pulled him closer to her. Mahir's hand had involuntarily slipped Bella's pallu from her shoulder and was caressing her exposed neck and back when, suddenly the doorbell rang.
The sound of the doorbell brought them to their senses and they became aware of their immediate surroundings. Embarrassed, they let go of each other and turned away. Mahir reached for his shirt while Bella once again covered herself with her pallu. She hurried to the door and opened it. She found Sharma aunty at the doorstep holding two glasses of turmeric milk and Vish and Ajitabh holding plates of food.
Vish: We thought, let's have our food together.
Bella and Mahir secretly heaved a sigh of relief. After what had just happened they did not want to be left alone in each other's company. With other people around for buffer, things would be easier. The Sharmas had seen how angry Bella was with Mahir, so they thought they could help Mahir in gaining Bella's forgiveness and so they had planned to eat dinner with BeHir. Little did they know that there was no anger now, only awkwardness of having passionately kissed their one another.
Mrs. Sharma: So Bella I was saying, that Mahir was wrong to not listen to you, but you will also have to understand his side of the story. I mean, he was worried for you and so he decided to look for you.
Vish: Yes Bella.
Ajitabh: Bella I know you are angry as he nearly lost his life today; but please forgive him.
BeHir were too embarrassed to even look at each other, let alone speak with each other. On top of that these people were trying to resolve their differences. They did not know the reason behind their silence. Bella simply nodded her head and tried to change the topic.
B: Aunty this food is really good.
Vish: Bella, its simple dal and rice. I know ma makes great food but...
Mrs. Sharma: Beta, don't try to change the topic. I can understand your anger, but he has suffered a lot toady for you. He is even hurt. I think he should apologize to you.
Ajitabh: Yes Mahir, you have made a mistake so you should say sorry.
Vish: Yes, Mahir do it.
Left with no other option,
M: I am sorry for troubling you Bella. I will never do it again.
Mrs. Sharma: See he has even said sorry. Now forgive him. When two people love each other they should not stay upset with each other.
B: It's okay Mahir.
Vish: Now hug each other and put an end to this fight.
Ajitabh: Come on! Don't think so much.
With everyone egging them on, Bella and Mahir approached each other and tentatively hugged each other. Immediately the images of their passionate kiss flashed before their eyes and they winced and guiltily pulled away. Sharma aunty was looking happy. She then insisted that they feed each other a morsel of food and forget this fight. To satisfy her, BeHir fed food to each other; trying not to think about few minutes ago when their lips were touching. Once that was done, everyone resumed eating and after that aunty insisted that they take some rest. The Sharmas went to their home and BeHir were left alone.
They sat looking in opposite directions, wondering how to broach the topic. Multiple times they turned to face each other, but each time their courage failed. Eventually Mahir gathered enough courage to speak up.
M: Whatever happened tonight was...
B: Wrong...
M: Exactly...
B: But technically it was not
M: Wrong. Yes, we are married and we are expected to
B: Do such things. But even then it was wrong.
M: But in that particular moment
B: It felt right. No, it felt perfect.
M: I think that's because we were emotional wrecks and we were feeling light headed because of hunger.
B: Yes that must be the case. So we reacted that way.
M: Let's forget it ever happened.
B: Yes let's forget this incident.
M: Still best friends?
B: Absolutely.
Udne Ki Aasha
