Arshi FF: A Hundred Flukes. CHAPTER 37; See note pg 82 - Page 47

So Shyam's friend is in the hospital... Wonder if that'll have any impact on his sick tendencies!

C...chapter 35 pileej...;-)

And wanna say that i loved chapter 34 too...it was very good to read

Yes behen, please update the soonest...

c...where are you and chapter 35??

Originally posted by: arshi-pooja

c...where are you and chapter 35??

Originally posted by: cineraria

I am here, and the chapter is coming in 10 minutes. 😃

C...10 MINS ARE OVER long back..U slept kya ??

Originally posted by: arshi-pooja

C...10 MINS ARE OVER long back..U slept kya ??

her definition of half n hour, or ten minutes is really different from hours...

No I did not go to sleep, I had power cut!

Also, one thing I remember reading Catcher In The Rye while writing this chapter. You should never write while you are reading you know, your style assumes an uncanny resemblance to what you had been reading! 😆

This a long update!

Chapter 35 - The Grinning Devil!

If there was anything that made little Arnav crankier than he usually was, it was when somebody dared to make fun of his sister's limp. Then there were other things which made him not just cranky but virulent, like if his mother was hurt or depressed.

He could not understand his mother sometimes, like she always taught him to be happy, to let go, to forgive but she herself didn't seem the kind who were always happy or who could let go for that matter. And then she wrote these depressing poems in her diary that made him cry, not that she wanted him to read them but he would anyway.

He was a pretty volatile kid who was cranky and irascible, but cried reading poetry. He also cried sometimes when Anjali cried, who for that matter cried a lot bringing her knees to her chin. Sheesh Mahal had several low walls surrounding the terraced roofs on many levels- the colonial architecture, Anjali and Arnav used to sit over one of these walls discussing weird classmates, weirder relatives and lousy films. And if any one of them had been scolded, they'd both sit there crying for the heck of it. On one occasion he jumped down from the wall and fractured his leg so that two could limp instead of one, that had made Anjali cry so much that he became cranky.

His mother used to joke that he sulked a lot because he thought he looked really adorable when he sulked and that too made him cranky. He really couldn't understand his mother also because she went to that place she often said everyone has to go one day when he was too young to understand her complex life.

Anyone who knew ASR would find it impossible to believe that the man could cry and yet there wasn't dearth of people who would kill to watch him cry at least once but they never got the privilege. He had very less tears left now and although they emerged at the slightest inconvenience caused to his sister but they merely remained at the surface reddening his eyes without ever falling. Like right now, Anjali looked so sore that had they both still lived in Sheesh Mahal, they would have sat over one of the low walls and cried. Anjali was crazy about her husband, one could tell.

"You alright Di?" he asked her the tenth time since her husband had left, he really didn't know what else to say. One thing ASR did not know how to do was to make a sore person feel less sore. He could worsen it anytime though. But he obviously didn't want to worsen it for his sister, so placing his one arm around her shoulder and taking her hand in his second, he guided her to a chair and made her sit giving her a glass of water. She sipped water and looked up at her brother, nodding her head gently and trying to form a wan smile. She badly wanted to reassure him, they were a strange pair of siblings with always the one upset trying to reassure the other instead of having it the normal other way round.

"I am fine Chotte." she said handing him the half empty glass back. And Arnav knew she felt better for she called him Chotte only when she was teasing him and she wouldn't tease him if she wasn't feeling better. Her smile widened a little more and he realized that the source of it was something behind him. He turned to look at whatever was making his sister smile and saw her walking towards them in her usual jumpy gait, her doe eyes looking everywhere but him and the ends of her red dopatta flying behind her reminding him of all the times her dopatta had flown into his face.

That wisp of a fabric had a mind of its own, what annoyed the heck out of him was the thought that it must then fly into any random guy's face. No way, he thought. For some insane reason he wanted her dopatta reserved for him and that drove him crazy. He saw a concerned smile flicker across her lips as her eyes met his sister's gaze and he remembered that his sister was smiling at her. Why, he couldn't guess, maybe Ms Khushi Kumari Gupta had a funny face, the kind that amused the likes of Anjali, only that he didn't find it amusing at all. He instead, found her face to be extremely kissable in its entirety, add to that, the wisps of hair that often managed to escape her braid and bounced over her forehead, he felt his fingers itch so bad to tuck them behind her ears that he strode away from the scene trying to remind himself that he had a girlfriend.

The guests had been conveyed the message of a family friend's unfortunate accident and Anjali's husband's regret over leaving the celebrations mid way, though Anjali was here and so the party would go on. When Khushi heard of it she felt very sorry for them, especially Anjali, she had seemed so happy this evening. She saw her sitting in a chair looking all dejected, Arnav was with her and she tried hard not to be unnerved by his presence, but Devi Maiyya was kind and Laad Governor left on his own accord. She placed her small palm on Anjali's shoulder gently and sat on her knees in front of her, "Didi, please don't be sad, because there is no point feeling low over things that we can't control."

Anjali couldn't help but smile at the endearment of 'Didi', it sounded so sweet, so natural in her voice. "Yeah right, but sometimes you can't help sulking. I mean MJ's friend is hospitalized and all I can think is that my day is spoiled. What a selfish woman I am." she sighed.

"You are not Didi, you are one of the sweetest people I have known. And though I am nobody to say this but I'd say anyway, that nothing is spoiled. It's really nice to celebrate a day, cut a cake and throw a party but the real celebration is the relationship you share with your husband, it is the love that you both have for each other which isn't lessened by being unable to cut a cake together. Your day is still special because you two are special for each other and are with each other no matter what. A party is only for the others to see how lucky you both are."

Anjali kept gazing at her wordlessly.

"Oops, did I speak too much?" Khushi mumbled silently.

The older woman cupped her cheek, "No my sweetheart, I was wondering, You are so young but you talk really sensible."

"Not always Didi, sometimes I blabber just for the heck of it." she said sticking her tongue out. Sometimes she felt like a twelve year old in a twenty one year old's body.

That made Anjali laugh.

Though Arnav was out of earshot and couldn't hear what she said but looking at his sister he was sure her grief had been assuaged to a great extent. Somewhere he did know Khushi could do that and had hence moved away giving them sometime. The other person who had witnessed and heard their conversation was Devyani who had just met Payal. And beyond doubt, she had begun to adore both the sisters, partly because they were from Lucknow and mostly because they were them. Both of them were so respectful and cultured, she wished she could see more of them. Why could Arnav not find a girl like Khushi instead of that Kashyap which made her wonder, where was Kashyap anyway after the mortifying act she had pulled?

****

"You sneaked in a Tequila Karan Oberoi, you must be crrrazy." she slurred. Placing the bottle's mouth on her, she took another swig and rubbed her scorched throat with her other hand almost squirming with the effect.

Karan gulped feeling helplessly aroused at her every action. If Lavanya Kashyap was exquisite, a drunken Lavanya Kashyap was the sexiest thing on the entire planet or so he thought under the heavy influence of vodka.

"So what were you sayyin', Akash's a dipso?" she asked in that drawl again.

"Both of us." he grinned sheepishly. "Imagine even the shy guy loves breakin' this freakin rule of the Grandmother. He's quite a lightweight though, the kind who become useless after two shots." he boffed on his own silly joke.

"She's a freakin' tyrant." she wailed and placing the bottle on the table she was sitting on and yawned quite blissfully. "A tyrant who walks around with Mutton. I imagine her right now sitting on that Mutton with a stick in her hand beating around ..."

"Mutton? I thought Devyani Aunty was vegan."

"Of course she is, the reason why that mutton is still a goat." she grumbled artfully and took another swig, this time her throat wasn't scorched that bad. Images of the last week were floating inside her head and she wondered why she was in the backyard of Raizada Mansion with this I-flirt-at-every-opportunity son of a business associate of AR.

"You know she asked me to cook the other day."

"Oh." said Karan, busy admiring her legs. Though the split in her gown was high till her thigh, the view with her sitting over a table with the gown having climbed up revealing the entire length of both her legs did crazy things with his libido.

"I told her why should I with all the servants around."

"Oh."

"She said how in the hell would I survive if I didn't know how to cook? I mean that's so illogical. I had a cook in my apartment, they have cooks here in RM, why the hell should I f**k the vegetables?"

"hmm."

"And then she sent away all the servants for the evening. Just to prove me f**king wrong."

"Oh."

"Crap. You can always order. And she argued what if there were bomb blasts in the city, what if all hotels were closed down, what if crap does more crap. Boy, can you argue with that woman?"

"Oh."

"Are you even listening you ass? 'Oh-ing' like a lunatic." she pushed him lightly with her heel.

"Huh."

"Just wherrre are you lookin'?"

"I was..."

"You were leerin' n droolin' over my legs." she snorted.

"Well."

"Pull my dress down."

"Huh?" his eyes widened and jaw dropped to the ground.

"Don't get funny ideas Oberoi, pull it down to cover my legs, my hands are busssy." she slurred again. Yes, her hands were pretty occupied with her curling and uncurling loose strands with her fingers. She was really drunk. Karan gulped again. If she decided to go inside in this condition, he would be done. He got up from his position, and caught the hem of her dress in his fingers.

"Don't try to linger for looong." she said sleepily.

He nodded and pulled it down with a jerk.

"Thanks. You are a good boy." she said patting his head. He felt like crying. She tried getting up from her position.

"Lavanya, where are you going?"

"Mind your own business mister." she said poking his chest with her finger, "I am a little tipsy, I need air."

"We are in open."

"I need more air, now get off."

"Hey, I thought I deserved thanks. And certainly not being ignored by you."

"Where's ASR?"

"Alright, just friends?"

"Business associates." she said poking his chest again. "Where's ASR."

"He must be inside."

"Than why am I outside?"

"Because you said you needed a drink." he reminded her.

"I? Maybe." She then remembered getting down from the make shift stage and the Raizadas instead of being thankful to her for brightening up things greeted her with incredulous looks, including Arnav. Finally she had gone to Devyani who seemed to be deliberately ignoring her. "Didn't you like my surprise Nani?" she had asked.

And she had surprised her with the answer, "For once Kasyap, you did something well. You did not disappoint me, I expected bad and you gave me worse. Especially the last song. What was it? Character Dheela, really suits you." she said with a snort. That had been the last nail in the coffin. Lavanya had never felt this humiliated in her life, when all she did was be nice with the denizens of RM. She didn't realize that her eyes had tears and all till Karan came her way asking her to join him for a drink which was supposed to be an after party he and Akash and a couple of friends had planned in the backyard. But with Akash gone, there wasn't going to be any. Lavanya felt jabs in her head and realized it was time to really let her hair down. And that's how she found herself in the backyard. She grabbed the bottle and licked away the last drop of alcohol from it. Karan stared in awe. That woman really had a capacity. With that strong an alcohol that she had in her system right now, most people would zone out. But he still had to find a way to stop her from going inside the hall.

****

The only person happy right now was Manorma Raizada. She could swear to God, the way her son seemed mesmerized with that good for nothing lower middle class girl from the moment she had walked in sporting her clothes had churned her insides like they were in a stone grinder. She had to get any one of them out of the hall and surprisingly it had been her son. And now was the time to throw the Gupta sisters out.

"Whatever's that bloody contract using which you are busy making contacts." she said to herself. The kitchen was empty, she walked in and saw the sweets laid over the granite counter. She whistled lightly, after years she felt conniving and she loved the feeling. She walked over to the refrigerator and got three lemons, slicing them from mid section she squeezed the juice over a tray full of milk cakes, and another. She then walked out congratulating herself. Gupta sisters would be out for good.

"Tiwari. Mr. Tiwari." Manorma yelled.

Tiwari rushed to her, the dinner was being served, he had to check on the two girls and the sweets and this madam yelling his name looked extremely cross.

"Yes ma'am." he said wiping his forehead with a napkin.

"You dishonest fraud. How long have we been buying sweets from you?"

"Is there a problem ma'am?" he asked his voice not louder than a rat's squeak.

"Hell is the problem, the sweets are stale." she cried covering her nose as if she could still smell them stinking.

"What? No ma'am, I am sure there is a misunderstanding, I checked on them myself."

"You mean to say that I am lying?" she glared at him threateningly.

"No ma'am. I am sorry, here let me call the girls."

"Call the morons right now."

Minutes later they were in the kitchen, she made the manager of 'From Lucknow with Love' smell the milk cake. "Incredulous." he scoffed at the girls. "You two thought you could dupe me and my most important customers."

"No sir, I don't believe this. There is sure something wrong, I prepared all the sweets using everything fresh sir. It's against my ethics to use foul materials." Khushi protested.

"But your sweets smell foul. How else you explain this?"

"Sir please taste the Balushahi, it is perfectly nice and the jalebis." she pleaded on the verge of tears, all their efforts couldn't go waste.

"Question does not arise. Giving chance to people without record was the biggest mistake in first place."

"Sir but you had said about the advance." Payal interjected.

"Are you crazy? You expect advance after this let down? Forget it." he barked. The sadist in Manorma exalted.

"I am really very sorry ma'am. I hope you understand, our cook was sick and I had no option but to hire these people. I did not know they were so incompetent." Khushi was ready to burst, Payal stopped her from opening her mouth. "I need to apologize to all." the manager continued and walked out without throwing them a glance.

"I really don't know Aunty, we prepared everything by late in noon. There was no chance..."

"Shut up will you? Just gather your things and get going. And please take your sweets back too, we are not letting you dump this stinking mess here." Manorma admonished. "Clean this." she said as a last warning sign before parading out.

Payal and Khushi watched in despair. "Jiji how could this...?"

"It's okay, no point crying over spilled milk. I hate this place anyway, let's just pack up and get out of here." said Payal.

"What are we going to tell Buaji, you know she mortgaged her bangles. We are hand to mouth Jiji, why is everything so so wrong."

"We'll find a way out Khushi."

When her sister did not speak for a while she turned and gasped at the sight. Khushi had tied her Dopatta across her waist and was looking for something in the shelves below.

"No Khushi, stop it, this is not our house. Don't even think about it." she cried trying to catch hold of her sister's hand, but the sister was bristling with anger. And when Khushi Kumari Gupta was angry, even Devi Maiyya couldn't do anything to help let alone mortals, it was a lost cause.

Payal grabbed her head, and sat down on the floor. Khushi gathered all-purpose flour and mixed the dough. The oil bubbled and sugar syrup heated, her hands moved expeditiously. Payal stirred at the sound of two women coming towards the kitchen. She jumped up in alarm thinking of some excuse to save her kid sister and saw Devyani and Manorma Raizada at the threshold.

"Uh, Naniji...I am sorry." she began.

"No my child don't be." she said gently, "I trust you two."

"but Ma..." Manorma objected.

"Leave the girls alone Manorma." she said sharply.

"What are you saying Ma, these two..."

"Manorma, I said leave my kitchen. Now." she said loudly and turning to Khushi, "Wow bitiya is preparing more?" Manorma made a distorted face and huffed but strode out.

"Huh?" Payal looked confusedly at Devyani, she hadn't expected this, she expected her to scold them and throw them out and she was doing just the opposite. She went to Khushi side, "Khushi bitiya, can I help you in some way?"

*****

The jalebis laced with generous shots of Khushi's anger, indignation and determination settled in hearts of those who had them. They did not care for the lack of variety, but the guests loved the jalebis wholeheartedly. And the departing guests did not forget to say, "The food was amazing, especially the jalebis."

"You know Mahindra, I admire the resilience in these two, and how they did not disappoint in the end and made up for the loss quite efficiently." Devyani Raizada gazed at the two girls serving the guests with pride.

Her son nodded. "Ma you were saying the manager broke the contract?"

"That's what Manorma told me."

"Well, I am going to see to it that the girls get at least some compensation. And if he objects, I am going to sign a cheque for them myself."

Devyani beamed at her son. Although he did a massive error in choosing a life partner, her son was still a gem. "That would be amazing Mahendra."

Elated with the appreciation she got, the jump in her gait came bouncing back. She quickly fried another batch of jalebis while Payal came to her telling, that no more were needed. She then placed them in a tray and went back to the hall to serve.

Noticing, that Arnav hadn't eaten anything at all and was still busy seeing off the guests, she sent a waiter with a glass of juice for him. Well that wouldn't hurt now, would it?

She also remembered Anjali had asked for her jalebis, with one of her dazzling smiles on her face and a tune on her lips she jauntily made her way towards the new found 'Didi'. Khushi adored the woman. However she hesitated when she saw Arnav joining his sister, and then saying go to hell' to her thoughts, she approached them.

Anjali pulled her cheek softly muttering thanks and then without any further thought Khushi turned to Arnav, placing three jalebis in a small dish for him. He stared at her quizzically.

"Now don't ask me what this is. These are called jalebis Mr. Raizada." she said expecting him to take the dish from her hands. He kept on staring, a mild amusement imperceptibly creeping upon the facade of annoyance.

"Uh, Khushi, he can't have those."Anjali spoke up.

"Why?"

"He's diabetic."

"Haww." she couldn't stop the word from escaping her mouth. She stared at him, his expression inscrutable. She remembered how the day before she had cried, My jalebis will not have a diabetic version.

With him being so bitter and all, she used to call him diabetic among all the names she had given him. She had given him quite a lot of names for that matter - Anaconda, Ajgar, Laad Governor, Devil Diabetes, but that was just for the heck of it, also because she got a bang out of calling him names.

"Haww." when Khushi had a difficulty in digesting something, her needle got stuck on this one word, Haw. And that must have fractured the fragile tissue halting Arnav's temper, he frowned and left.

Khushi felt sorry for him. According to her, it was the most dreaded disease where a man couldn't have sugar. She used to often pray to her Devi Maiyya that when she is old give her any disease, heart problems or any wretched ailment but not diabetes. Never. It would kill her before time to not have anything sweet to eat. She prayed that the disease be eradicated from the planet.

"But he's so young." she said gaping at Anjali.

"It isn't really age related Khushi. He was diagnosed of it when he was thirteen."

"Haww."

****

"Iss it ov-fer?" the slur startled the old woman. "Oh, hi Naniji, we meet again." Lavanya Kashyap greeted, hugging her not so gently. "You remind me of my grand mom. I saw her twice, but then she went to an old age home like grand moms should. I wonder why you don't. Haan, why don't you Nani..jeee?" Devyani Raizada stood mortified. "Ms. Kasyap, what are you..."

"What's the matter with your speech Nansss? My name is Lavanya Kashyap. Kashyap with a sh, it irritates the crap out of me when you chant Kasyap- Ms Kassyap."

As the last of the guests were taking their leave, the sounds from the corner of the now almost empty hall could be heard till the exit. The remaining Raizadas hastened towards them to be faced with a highly embarrassing sight.

"What the hell is this Lavanya?" ASR demanded.

"Oh hi ASR, where were you? See I was telling your grand mom, she must retire now. Along with mutton. Oops. " she brought her finger to her lips, "Shh, sorry, goat. Laxmi." and then joining her palms in reverence, "Laxmeejeee. Forever doing Mehehehe. Who keeps such wild animals in their house? We had a Doberman and a bull dog in Chicago and my Dad had a Terrier but they were always out. Barking like lunatics, but out. But dear little scary goat, roams around sniffing my crap..."

Arnav took her hand dragging her away, "Just shut the f**k up Lavanya."

"Oh I wasn't done yet. Don't you see, I am depressed ASR and she called me a loose character, I mean, me Lavanya Kashyap with a sh, a loose character." she kept on saying, although obediently followed Arnav and finally passed out somewhere between his arms and the staircase.

****

"Haye re Nandkissore, you got nothing?" Madhumati had the flimsy pink towel tied around her head, the migraine had finally kicked in. She had lost her glasses the fifth time this week and now she seemed on the verge of losing a lot more. Or maybe she had already.

The girls shook their heads. It was a cordial mutual covenant between the sisters that they wouldn't open their mouths and instead reply with a shake of head. Buaji won't scream for long that way. Make the colossal mistake of uttering a word in front of her and she'd reward you with hundred.

"Cat caught your tongue?" she wailed.

They nodded.

"The manager refused the advance?"

They nodded again.

"The entire thing was wasted? Haye re Nandkissore, ab toh apne pass bula le. (Kill me god.)"

They shook their head in response.

She wailed for about half an hour and finally shaking her head dejected, and downing a jug of water in her mouth and splashing some on her face retired to bed.

The sisters wouldn't speak of the fiasco to each other. It could wait till tomorrow. They were tired. It had been a long day. A very long day.

Somewhere in that long day, something had changed. Khushi closed her eyes and found herself back in the same large bedroom with jade walls and grey curtains, whose owner had a bizarre collection of pictures, on the wall to her right.

Of all the strange sunsets, peculiar patterns of smoke and sky kissing buildings there was this one picture in the middle, of a weird looking creature with horns on his head resembling a devil playing a weird looking musical instrument. She recalled the creature was grinning and though it wasn't beautiful in any way, it was cute. It was cute with horns and rabbit like ears, and it looked adorable playing that weird instrument which looked like some sort of a guitar. The picture intrigued her, and placed in his room, it intrigued her even more. She had heard that pictures always spoke the mind of an artist which their collectors mostly understood. Sometimes collectors understood even more than the artist!

Would he tell if she asked him what he thought of it? Would he tell her if she asked where had he gotten it from? Would he get annoyed again if she told him she wanted to call the cute devil in the picture Laad Governor, because it made her think of him? A devil who intrigued her. Did he too play some musical instrument? Why did she want to know?

Arnav Singh Raizada was a strange man. Here she should have been only worried about how they were going to get out of the catastrophic financial pickle her family was in. She should be drowning in self pity at night, but no, all she felt was sorry for him because he had diabetes. How old was he? Twenty eight perhaps and to think he had nothing sweet in his life since last fifteen years!

Khushi Kumari Gupta had a large heart, those who knew her, knew that. And owing to this heart, in her present predicament, with a diabolic sword of looming poverty hanging over her own head, she forgave Arnav Singh Raizada for all the wrong he had done to her.

She forgave the man who had only black suits in his cupboard, whose cupboard was the size of a room enough for six people of her size to sleep in. The man who put pictures of cute grinning devils playing weird musical instruments on his wall.

She forgave the man who had locked her in a room on her sister's wedding, who had scared her, bullied her and sullied her honor, who had insulted her on a public platform by releasing her video with him on air.

She forgave the man who did not believe in god but had dived to save the idol of her Devi Maiyya from falling, who had slapped a cruel contract while giving her a job in his company but had not demanded the amount payable when she breached the contract, who made her fall from his office but saved her the second time, who made her write his name a thousand times, who made her stand in rain but conjured out of nowhere to save her from a speeding car in the nick of time, who sent her to a dilapidated building and then risked his own life, swooping in to rescue her again.

She forgave the man who indecently demanded of her to come wearing a revealing dress for a photo shoot and yet the way he gazed at her had sent many shivers down her spine, he had made her feel alive in just a look, the man who made her feel so helpless in his proximity, had anyone else dared to behave with her the way he did, she would have beaten the pulp out of him, yes Khushi Kumari Gupta despite her slight frame was quite capable of delivering a hard blow, but no, her defenses went on a vacation whenever he came near her, touched her, and she hated him for that, but tonight she had forgiven him.

He was a mystery and she could not figure even the first thread of the knots on his surface let alone unravel the splices beneath. Forgiving him did not mean that she wanted to see him again, no, she was still scared of him, very scared, but she had forgiven him anyway. After all he was a poor guy with diabetes who put pictures of cute grinning devils playing weird musical instruments on his wall.

****

He came to the empty pool side where a few hours back she had been, fighting him like always. Did she realize what she did to him when she fought him? She did dreadful things to his herculean ego that had already been bruised by her, she did sinful things to his hormones that made him unable to trust himself in her presence, and she did crazy things to his heart. Wait, where did that come from? Scratch heart. A voice inside him told.

His eyes fell on the tiny trinket that shined in the moon light and the flickering light of the aromatic candles still afloat in the water. He picked up the anklet that had unclasped on itself and fallen when she had stuttered away. It jingled very lightly in his palm, he stared at it, suspending it in his two fingers against the gibbous moon.

What a woman to wear these along with sundry other embellishments, all of the jingling variety! From gaudy jhumkis to colorful bangles, far from the sense of vogue and class, far from sophistication and far from guile. Far from everything likened to him and yet vaguely enticing.

After long he walked back to his room, gathering himself. The sight of a sleeping girlfriend reminded him of the life he had chosen for himself. He opened his closet silently and winced remembering her terrified face and her chewing the cuff of his suit in nervousness. Why did he remember everything about her in such vivid detail? He couldn't even remember what kind of necklace Lavanya was wearing when he himself had removed it of her. Beads or shells? But he did remember Khushi's obnoxious earrings, the fake gold thingies and their de trop gleam. He chucked the ornament in his hand which for a change did not gleam much; it was old and perhaps real, to a random corner of his closet and slid back the door. It would pass into oblivion soon, sometime later, perhaps a servant would discover it while cleaning, he might ask him or pocket it, for all he cared.

Of all the possible scenarios Arnav could never guess that it might just bounce back some day in his face.

Wherever Devi Maiyya existed, she must have smiled at the two loony creatures, one who took her name as rapidly as breath and the other who avoided her name from coming to his lips like potassium cyanide, but both drawn to each other like moths to fire yet resisting each other with equal fervor. Owing to this resistance, Devi Maiyya must have sighed, she still had to devise flukes.

****

Love it! Brillant update