Posted:
IGNITED
1
"How was your lunch with Gauti?" asked Nikhil, pretending to go through a pile of important papers.
"It was good. Food was great," replied Roshni.
"Nice."
"Umm... Nikhil, I hope you know that... yeh sab jo main kar rahi hoon, you know... me and Gauti... this is all for the sake of our plan. I mean... I don't want you to misinterpret my actions," spoke Roshni in a hesitant manner.
"Hey, of course Rosh. I know. And what you're doing is very brave," assured Nikhil.
"Yeah?"
"Yeah."
Nikhil reassured her with a smile. Roshni smiled back.
"So Rosh, I have to take Shivani to the spa tomorrow. I tried to avoid it... but... I hope that's okay with you. I mean I wanted to stay back and figure out our next step, but..."
"Oh no, please go ahead. That's totally cool with me. It's Sunday afternoon. Have a good time," said Roshni with a smile, but her smile didn't reach her eyes.
"Yeah. We will."
A silence ensued. Neither had anything to say to the other person. Or perhaps there was a lot to speak.
"So I'll go now. Would you come with me till the hostel?" asked Roshni, breaking the awkward pause.
"I would love to, but agar koi humein saath mein dekhle, toh khatra ho sakta hai."
"Yeah yeah. I know. It's silly of me. I'll go... on my own."
"Be careful."
Roshni gave Nikhil a tight hug and quickly left after inspecting the corridor.
2
Roshni couldn't sleep or return to her room. She didn't want to see Shivani. She wanted to be alone and decided to take a walk in the lawn. She had to figure out how to isolate Nihaal from the gang, soon. But she was disturbed. She couldn't think straight. Something bothered her terribly, and yet she didn't know what. But she had to clear her head. Avenging Neha must be the only focal point in her mind now. May be she should speak to Gauti. He might just come up with some new insights on Neha and her life when she had been here.
3
"Ouch!"
Nikhil flinched as soon as he sipped the coffee.
"This is so bloody hot!"
He kept the mug aside for it cool down a bit. There was a knock on the door. He decided to put on a shirt before opening the door, but the knock soon turned into a loud thumping noise. He wondered who was so impatient to see him in the middle of the night and quickly opened the door.
"I'm not cool with it!"
Roshni declared instantly.
"What?"
"You and Shivani... and spa... I'm not cool with it." She was heavily panting, perhaps because she ran all the way.
"Sit down first." Nikhil requested her.
"I'm not here to sit!"
"Okay... We can stand and talk. I don't mind."
Nikhil didn't quite know where this was going. Roshni was looking at him and he understood it was his turn to speak.
"Coffee? I made coffee. You want some?"
"Screw coffee. Nikhil I'm telling you that I'm not okay with you going out with Shivani. I thought a lot about it, and I can't be cool with it. In fact I'm miserable. Do you hear me?"
Nikhil was silent for a moment, arranging his jumbled thoughts.
"You know Rosh, it's not a hard and fast rule that you have to be cool with everything. I know we are working according to a plan, but it's okay to be uncool at times. You just need to say it out, loud." Nikhil sighed.
"Yeah, I mean our plan is the most important thing right now, but I can't have this... this, dictate my every move, my life... " Roshni was biting her lips. "I feel suffocated... I feel like I'm in a box, like..."
"Roshni" Nikhil interrupted her. "Even I'm not okay with you going out with Gauti. Not one bit."
"Yeah?" Roshni's eyes glimmered in the dim yellow light, as she looked up at him.
"Yeah. In fact I hate it when you're around him." Nikhil declared.
"See... we are talking now." Roshni moved forward. "So we have to do something about it, right?"
"Yeah we must. I mean we can't let this affect our purpose."
"May be we should change our perspective towards these things that are bothering us?" Roshni suggested.
"Yeah, we should do that." Nikhil nodded taking a deep breath. He had no idea what the hell that meant.
"And may be... we should begin now." Roshni stood on her toes and kissed Nikhil. Nikhil, although taken aback by his best friend's spontaneity, soon responded to it.
As they broke the kiss, Roshni looked into Nikhil's eyes.
"I like the beginning." Nikhil smiled.
Roshni smiled seeing him smile. This time her eyes were smiling too. She swiftly turned off the light.
The lovers explored each other in the almost opaque darkness of the night. Their entwined silhouettes played on the walls, as a thin ray of light from the street lamp made its way through the window.
Outside, a pair of eyes gleamed, as a shadowy figure flashed a lighter, only to disappear soon as the flickering flame died down.
******************************************************************************
This is my first work on Paanch. All the Roshni and Nikhil fans out there, hope you enjoy this.
-Rini
Kabhi Neem Neem Kabhi Shahad Shahad
Love Friendship Dating and Relationships
Tum Se Tum Tak
Financial markets and global economy
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
