Arshi FF/Saffron Fields#10/ Link thread 11 Pg 1.

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canapoem

@canapoem

Sparkler

+ 6

Posted: 10 years ago

#631

Originally posted by: 1chilly

Yay! But at night!

i should set my alarm for what time, Jen?

Waiting impatiently to know who is the Mrs Raizada referred to in the teaser.

Jen, at what time will you res for the update???

Cant wait to read the update.

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IPK007

@IPK007

Rocker

+ 7

Posted: 10 years ago

#632

Will res on the next page now and update in the night :)

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aayt

@aayt

Dazzler

Posted: 10 years ago

#633

waiting yeh raat kab aya gi

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IPK007

@IPK007

Rocker

+ 7

Posted: 10 years ago

#634

Just went over the very interesting discussion on the last few pages...Loved reading it!! And yes, even Khushi would have agreed with all of you! If just a few years back somebody had told her that she would one day find herself in this situation, she would've never believed it.

Thank you so much for being so invested in this story and please feel free to discuss it anyway you want. I will never ever feel offended...even if you openly criticize my protagonists' actions... It's all a learning process for me🤗

Love you all,

Jenny :)

Edited by IPK007 - 10 years ago

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IPK007

@IPK007

Rocker

+ 7

Posted: 10 years ago

#635

[THIS IS A MEMBERS ONLY POST]
The Author of this post have chosen to restrict the content of this Post to members only.

Chapter 29

The Other Woman.

Tampa,

February, 2014

The realization that it was just a dream made relief course through her veins like a salve but she was still unable to shake off the suffocating sense of foreboding and her restless heart refused to be placated.

Turning towards the nightstand, she glanced at the clock.

It was 3:00 AM, she observed, Arnav must be getting ready to leave for the airport. Getting off of her bed, she picked her hoodie from the back of a chair and put it on. There was a sense of urgency in her movements as she shoved her feet into slippers and headed towards the door.

Getting out of the room and walking towards the fire exit, she sped down one flight of stairs to reach the floor below.

"What's the matter with me", her brain struggled hard to understand her racing heart, clammy palms and chaotic thoughts. Thoughts clambering out from her mind's hiding places, the deepest layers, and threatening to overtake. The full extent of the effect her father's whimsical words had had on her struck her and she hadn't even realized it until now.

"And then, the phoenix rises again...consuming everything around it it's fiery unforgiving flames".

Drawing in a deep, ragged breath, Khushi mentally shook her head.

"I'm just tired. It's just the stress from the last couple of days. I should have known that it's never a good idea to ignore stress. That doing that just pushes it deeper down. And it's insane to even think of going to Arnav's room at this time. Crazy, irresponsible...and... ", reasoned a sane, usually predominant, voice in her mind which was today cut short by another.

"I have to see him before he leaves. I have to ask...".

Khushi knew Arnav's room number because she had heard him mentioning it to his mother and it was an easy number to remember.

<<<<<<><<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Arnav had drifted off to sleep while working on a powerpoint presentation for Monday. His open laptop lay on the bed to his side and his glasses were still on. Deep asleep, Khushi's timid knocks didn't penetrate his mind for a while. When they finally did, he frowned, surprised even in sleep, and his eyes fluttered open.

"Who the hell...", he murmured confusedly after glancing at the bedside clock, his eyes bleary with sleep.

Reaching the door, he opened it and froze on seeing who it was. Reading the apparent surprise in his eyes, Khushi hesitated at the doorway, suddenly unsure of herself.

"Khushi?, he spoke finally, and stepped aside to let her enter the room.

Shutting the door, he turned around to face her. She stood with her vivacious face oddly frozen and a storm of undecipherable emotions swirling in her eyes.

"What's wrong, Khushi?", he asked, folding her in his arms, his voice warm with concern.

Khushi's tensed body relaxed and she curled into his solid contours. Feeling his heart thudding next to hers.

She knew why she was here. The realization and the thoughts that led to it deeply saddened her. She knew what she wanted to ask him. Her unasked question compelled her to face unpleasant, complex truths about them, about their relationship, about their situation . She felt like someone she didn't want to be. The other woman...

While she realized how futile her question was at this stage of their relationship, she couldn't prevent herself from asking it.

"Arnav...", she raised her head and met his eyes, keeping a close watch on every flicker, every swirl of his caramel orbs. The room was silent except for the sound of the air conditioner. And her question, although a whisper, sounded unnaturally loud.

"Did you ever love Lavanya?

He stiffened.

With her heart picking up pace, she watched fascinatedly as his caramal orbs slowly froze over and lost their warmth and transparency.

"What kind of a question is that?, he asked, his voice incredulous.

"I just want to know", she persisted, a cold shiver rippling down her back as he disengaged his arms and sat down on the edge of the bed. His eyes were piercing as he steadily regarded her.

"You don't know the answer to that?", he asked, his voice deceptively soft..

Quick to recognize the subtle hint of hurt in his voice, Khushi bit her lower lip and replied, "I know that you love me. I'm not questioning that. Nor am I questioning the fact that when we first met you were both physically and emotionally separated from Lavanya...but..".

"But?

She paused and surveyed his grim expression tentatively. Her eyes were concerned yet conflicted. Although she didn't want to distress him by revisiting painful memories, she felt strangely compelled to purge out the doubts that the nightmare had left behind in her mind in it's wake. Compelled by miserable, little understood forces that pulled strings from the hidden crevices of her mind.

"But you once mentioned that you realized the truth about Aarav's paternity when he was around three...".

"September 2012", Arnav said in a distracted voice, his eyes dark and murky with a flood of memories.

Three blue trick candles, whose little flames had refused to be blown out amidst much cheer and laughter.

Her question took a while piercing through the gray fog of pain that flooded his brain, "You were together for almost three years before that. As husband and wife. Enough time for something that started off as compromise to evolve into something else...to turn into...".

Her eyes were agonized as her voice trailed off...leaving her question unsaid. "What's happening to me", she thought even as she waited for his answer, "What's the point in asking him these questions? What do I want to hear? What do I hope to achieve?

Arnav's eyes flickered imperceptibly. Just for a moment before his mind clamped upon the undesired memories that threatened to stir in their frozen graves. He blinked and that fleeting expression vanished completely.

He met Khushi's eyes and surveyed their turbulence. He fathomed a naked need for reassurance in their murky depths.

"Well, it didn't", he answered shortly, his demeanour clearly indicating his distaste for discussing his shared past with Lavanya.

"It never turned into something else", he elaborated on his statement after a pause, "It started off as a compromise and it remained just that. Till the very end. And I really don't understand", he continued coldly, "the necessity of asking me this question right now".

Despite his obvious annoyance, his words acted as a salve to her restless heart. It was a moment of self realization for Khushi. She realized that at any given moment a person can be both selfish and selfless. She realized that human intentions are just as complex as human behaviors.

On one hand, his words assuaged her hidden insecurity, her hitherto unacknowledged fear of the phoenix rising. Her fear of losing Arnav.

On the other, they thwarted the guilt, which although attenuated over the months, still lurked amongst the shadows of her heart. Guilt that her graphic nightmare had mercilessly exposed. Guilt that she might've been party to the death of a marriage. Guilt that she might've inadvertently harmed the interests of another human.

Cold relief flooded through her...followed in quick succession by warm mortification.

"I'm sorry", she began, looking close to tears, "I don't know what came over me..".

As his frozen gaze continued to pierce through her eyes, she blinked in embarrassment and two long streams of tears ran down her cheeks.

"I had a horrible nightmare", she explained, wiping her tears with her palms, "I was in Pampore again...in a blooming saffron field. It was so vivid, I could even smell the saffron in the breeze. But then I noticed that the flowers were burning. The whole field was bbburning".

She was opening crying now and didn't even realize when Arnav had gotten up and engulfed her in an embrace.

"So?, he asked, by way of reassurance, one hand rubbing her back, "It was just a dream. Don't let it affect you... I hope that you don't believe in omens, premonitions and all that crazy stuff... Come on, Dr. Gupta, I'm sure you know better than this".

"I don't", she said in between sobs, "I think I'm just tired".

"I understand...", said Arnav, his eyes soft and sober. He could understand how torn she felt between him and her parents. Between the person she was raised to be and the person she had to be.

"The past few days must've been very stressful to you. But look at it this way, Khushi. The worst is over. Now, you don't have to hide anything from your parents", he continued as Khushi lifted her head and looked up at him.

"And we just got to be a little patient", a smile lifted the corner of his mouth.

Their smiles mingled and Khushi's spirit, blessed with the typical buoyancy of youth, soared upwards.

Her hands relaxed, freeing his T-shirt, and her arms wound around his neck.

Their lips met and very soon, what started of as a tender comforting kiss turned into an impatient one with their impending separation fanning their passion to dizzying heights. As their tongues mated and danced an erotic dance, their hands crept under each others shirts unable to have their fill of each other. After a while as they broke apart with reluctance, Khushi said worriedly, "You'll miss your flight".

"F#*&", exclaimed Arnav glancing at the clock.

Khushi lingered in his room. Curled up in bed, she watched him get ready with her heavy heart thrumming with very early-morning melancholy. The star spangled sky was still pitch black, she noted, turning her head to glance out of the window. And dawn was stll farway.

"Cheer up", Arnav's voice dispelled her reverie. He stood in front of the dresser mirror, dressed in khaki chinos and a black and white checked shirt, running a hasty comb through his still damp hair, his eyes fixed on her woebegone reflection.

Pulling herself together, she smiled at him, their eyes locking in the mirror.

Their goodbye was brief. Both were determined to make light of the situation and not accord their impending temporary separation any undue weight.

"I'll text you when I reach Cleveland", he said as they walked out of the room together, his bag's wheels trailing on the carpet behind him, " But don't stay up waiting for it, you have a long day in front if you".

Placing his bag upright, he pulled her into a hug. The overhead muted lighting slanted on them and he smoothened her tousled hair with a ghost of a smile, "And don't worry about anything...nightmares included".

"I love you. That's all you need to remember".

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Orlando,

Florida.

Navin and Sujata sat at a window table of Restaurant Makkaresh in the Moroccan Pavilion of Epcot. The Morocco Pavilion is part of the World Showcase within Epcot, a theme park at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.

Bright sunlight streamed in through latticed red stone screens and cast interesting shadows throughout the space. Handcrafted metal lanterns with inlaid colored glass hung from a high beamed ceiling and added color to the subtle tapestry of shadows.

Tired out after spending the whole morning in exploring four miniature countries, the middle aged couple settled back in their comfortably upholstered seats, waiting for their two girls to join them.

Navin's phone, resting on the tiled surface of the table signaled the arrival of a text. It was from Khushi.

"We're almost there. The line is moving at a snail's pace! I hope the ride lives up to the hype...You and Mom and go ahead and order for us. I'm sure there'll be a long wait for the food too. Anita wants you to know that she's starving and "can devour a whole Moroccan horse :P"

As Navin read Khushi's message out loud to her, a wistful expression suffused Sujata's dark eyes. She missed their childhood, she thought with a sigh. She missed that unforgettable closeness mothers have with their children when they're little. Not that they loved her any less now. They didn't. It just wasn't the same anymore.

"Sujata", her husband's impatient voice brought her train of thoughts to a screeching halt.

"Kahan ho? What do you want to order?, he handed the menu card to her.

They studied the menu in silence for a little while and after a parsimonious exchange of words decided on what order to place.

After their server had jotted down their order on a notepad and retreated, Sujata said, apropos of nothing. "Our Khushi has changed so much". The raw pain and disappointment in her voice was unmistakable.

Navin remained silent for a while, taking his time to gather his thoughts before answering.

"I do share your sentiments to a certain degree but I wish you wouldn't be so harsh on her", he replied, "Let alone talk, you're not even letting yourself have an eye contact with her",

"Because I'm angry", Sujata interjected, "I'm very angry with her. There was a time I used to be proud of the way I'd raised my daughters, proud of the time and the effort I'd invested in their upbringing. I was so content with my success in keeping them near our roots despite the all pervading influence of this alien environment. How could she change so much? How could she discard her 27 years worth of upbringing, values and morals so easily for that man?

"How did you decide it was easy for her without even attempting to talk to her first? Without even attempting to find what made her do it. The circumstances, the thought processes, the absolute need that must've compelled her to make this decision. Don't be tricked by her smiles, Sujata, I know she's under a lot of stress".

"You were always too lenient with the girls",Sujata said bitterly, "You always want to justify all their actions".

"There is a fine line between gratuitous leniency and healthy parental trust, which I try not to cross".

"I did trust her, see where it landed us", Sujata shot back acidly.

Navin sighed wearily and looked out of the window. He was suddenly tired of the whole conversation, the whole topic. "Sujata, let's not talk about it for the next two days", he said, "I don't feel too good these days".

His words brought about a miraculous transformation in Sujata's demeanor and a dramatic shift in her attitude. Everything and everyone was relegated to a remote corner of the brain as her concern for her mate, her life partner, her one and only love took supreme precedence.

"What's wrong, Navin? I hope your blood pressure is not up. I know you haven't been watching your diet like you should. Have you been taking your medicines regularly?

"Relax, Sujata", Navin smiled at her, "I'm just tired".

"But you said you weren't feeling well", Sujata persisted..

"I said that just to have you throw a morsel of your kind attention in my direction", Navin teased.

"Navin!, Sujata smiled and shook her head.

With her eyes softening with concern she added, "Accha, I'll talk with her when we reach home. Don't worry too much about it".

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Cole Eye Institute (CIE)

Cleveland.

Arnav had spent half the morning at the Ambulatory Surgery Center, performing intricate Nd:YAG laser surgeries to treat conditions as diverse as diabetic eye changes to glaucoma to complications of cataract surgery. After that, he had rushed to his office which was housed in the sprawling academic wing of the institute. With a jam packed schedule, he didn't get any chance to mull over the events of the last few days or even fret over the fact that he'd had no sleep last night..

Coffee and passion for work kept him going.

As one of the associate program directors of the CIE Residency Program, he took active part in the resident recruitment process. Screening online applications and interviewing young medical students aspiring to be ophthalmologists was a regular part of his job.

He had three interviews scheduled for today and was now in the middle of the last one.

Settled back in his burgundy leather chair, he listened attentively while a fresh faced medical student spoke enthusiastically of her well founded interest in ophthalmology.

With instruction to continue talking and assurance of his attention, Arnav skimmed through the pages of the folder he held in his hands.

Good scores in standardized tests, excellent letters of recommendations, research experience, his brain took notes.

He jotted down cryptic notes for reference during the final selection process.

His cellphone beeped, alerting him of his scheduled power point presentation in the auditorium that was due to commence in 15 minutes.

Quickly wrapping up, he spent the next few minutes in selling their program, expounding upon the various advantages their program had over others. After that he enquired if she had any questions and finally got up for a parting handshake.

"Well, Emily, it was really nice talking to you. We really appreciate your interest in our program. Feel free to call us if you have any more questions", Arnav said, before turning towards Jessica, their program coordinator walked in to lead the candidate towards her next interview.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

When he returned from the lecture-presentation, he was totally unprepared for the surprise that awaited him at his office.

"Dr. Raizada", Jessica called out from her open office as Arnav strode down the corridor towards his. Her voice held the warmth of a smile.

"Mrs. Raizada is here. I asked her to wait in your office".

Arnav's face froze into into an immobile mask. It effectively veiled the fury he felt at her inconsideration in showing up at his office without even bothering to check with him first.

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he turned the door's knob and walked in.

Lavanya stood by the window with her back towards the door and she didn't hear him at first.

"Lavanya?, he cleared his throat and alerted her of his presence.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

As their eyes met across the room, Lavanya felt her heart beginning to stir into life again. Somethings never change, she mused wryly as the familiar magnetism of his presence drew every fiber of her being towards him. Despite all the water that had flown under the bridge in this past one year.

"Hi", she dimpled at him, her eyes taking in his changed appearance. The noticeable weight loss, the faint shadows under his eyes, the glasses she'd never seen on him before.

"Hi", Arnav replied unsmilingly before walking over to the small sitting area, which consisted of burgundy leather sofa and chair and a glass top coffee table.

"You should've called me before coming", he couldn't resist pointing as they took seats, "My clinic starts in 20 minutes", he added glancing at his Maurice Lacroix that was half covered by the blazer sleeve.

"I'm not going to take too much of your time", she replied, making good use of sarcasm to mask the hurt she felt at his indifference. "I was here for a job interview...So thought I'd stop by for a little bit ".

Mollified, Arnav leaned forward and decided to started afresh, "How are you? He managed to keep most of the bitterness out of his voice.

Lavanya shrugged in response and turned her head to look out the window.

The following silence was heavy with years of unresolved rancor, anger, hurt and awkwardness and stretched interminably.

After a while, mindful of his clinic, Arnav said, "Let's decide on the time and place we want to meet at for our...talk".

As Lavanya continued to gaze out of the window, Arnav tried again, "Where do you want to go? We could meet this evening if you're not doing anything else"

"Muse", she murmured half to herself before turning to face him and articulating clearly, "Can we go to 'Muse'? Tonight?

The sudden, brief flicker in his eyes didn't go unnoticed by Lavanya's hungry heart.

"He remembers".

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Dear friends,

Thank you so much for your likes and wonderful, thought comments, feedback and suggestions.

How did you like this chapter? Hope you enjoyed it...do share your thoughts if you can spare the time :)

A warm welcome to the new readers...hope you continue to enjoy this journey!

Happy Dusshera :)

Love,

Jenny :)

Edited by IPK007 - 10 years ago

453

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pixiegirl

@pixiegirl

Sparkler

+ 2

Posted: 10 years ago

#636

Yes!! After a long time... 😆 Charu & Jay... 😛

Jenny, we can never criticize the protagonists at all...You have done a marvelous job of writing their star crossed love-story. But we as readers, also need to be open minded & cognizant about the POVs of the other characters as well... Which, btw, you're doing a splendid job of portraying... We seem to just get carried away in our blind support of our protagonists' & forget where the other characters are coming from & sometimes criticize them... 😉 (Me included)

**Edited**

"The Other Woman" --- The stench of those words is so horrendous to endure, it can give nightmares to anyone, let alone Khushi who is already burdened with so much guilt as it is ... No wonder she panicked at the mere whiff of that possibility happening... Nightmare not withstanding, both the fear & guilt that her father's words had evoked in her subconsciously came rushing back to her... That a completely dead marriage can also sometimes arise from the dying embers like the phoenix...

On one hand, his words assuaged her hidden insecurity, her hitherto unacknowledged fear of the phoenix rising. Her fear of losing Arnav.

On the other, they thwarted the guilt, Guilt that she might've inadvertently harmed the interests of another human.

Her acute fear made her hot foot her way down to Arnav's room in the wee hours of the morning throwing caution to the winds... Her beseeching him for an answer to her question was so disturbing at a baser level, it left me pondering for a while...

Her feelings for Arnav aside, I wonder, what would have been her reaction had Arnav said, "Yes, yes I did love Lavanya for a while... " Would she have broken up with Arnav then rather than be blamed for breaking up a marriage?? No matter how dead it was today?? Or would she have continued her relationship with him knowing that they had crossed a point of no return, but would have to live with a life-long guilt that she had taken away that small iota of chance for a reconciliation & lead a guilt-ridden life??

Hmmm, a tough question to speculate on. Because it is one thing to love a married man knowing his feelings were never involved for his estranged wife in a marriage that is already dead for all intents & purposes, but quite another to know the separation is a result of some marital tiff that theoretically at least, has that 0.0001 % chance of a revival... Knowing how ethical Khushi is, she wouldn't want to face herself in the mirror knowing that she was in some way responsible for that final nail in the coffin of that marriage...

Loved the way this realization dawned on her...

"She realized that at any given moment a person can be both selfish and selfless."

It is definitely one of those moments of truth that dawns on oneself when faced with such life altering dilemmas in life...

Loved the way Arnav though a bit miffed with her question realized the reason behind such a question... Needless to say his affirmation that he never loved Lavanya soothed Khushi's nerves like a cool soothing balm... Her heart felt suddenly a million pounds lighter...

Cold relief flooded through her...followed in quick succession by warm mortification.

Although, I am not sure about this... Unlike Dr. Raizada, I cannot laugh away at the dream... Women have far greater ESP than men in general... Because they think more, they feel more... So, will wait to see what unfolds in the near future...

I hope that you don't believe in omens, premonitions and all that crazy stuff... Come on, Dr. Gupta, I'm sure you know better than this".

Arnav is such a gem of a guy, he understands the huge conflict of emotions that Khushi is facing or has been facing since the time she discovered his marital status...

He could understand how torn she felt between him and her parents. Between the person she was raised to be and the person she had to be.

And I just adored the way he reassured Khushi to stay positive & remember only one thing, that he loves her! Nothing else matters in the long run...

"I love you. That's all you need to remember".

I love the way you are portraying the stages of grief that Sujata is experiencing towards Khushi's actions... And it is grief that Sujata is experiencing at the moment... Her grief at her failure in instilling the right values in Khushi after all... Her grief at what she perceives is her daughter's foolhardiness... Her grief at what she predicts to be her daughter's impending doom. She is showing all the classic stages of grief, her first initial shock & anger & lashing out at Khushi... Then her simmering hurt & anger & her refusal to speak or even look at Khushi... And slowly after being explained Khushi's side of things by Navin, her slow & reluctant acceptance to speak to Khushi at Navin's behest... You've gotten her down so well. Kudos to you for making her so real...

I can foresee a lot of dialog & bargaining in the near future, let's see how that goes... Hoping there will be a gradual acceptance somewhere down the line...

And to answer Sujata's question about Khushi...

"How could she change so much? How could she discard her 27 years worth of upbringing, values and morals so easily for that man? "

The answer to that question is that your daughter, Khushi, is in love. And love always trumps every thing... Love is one of the most inconvenient of emotions... The heart has a mind all its own, no amount of reasoning will ever succeed in changing it's emotions for a person... You either love a person or you don't... As simple as that. And Sujata needs to accept that wholeheartedly. It won't do her any good harping about other values to Khushi when she has made up her mind or rather her heart has made up its mind about Arnav. The sooner Sujata accepts this home truth, the easier it will be for her & everyone else.

Need I say, I love Navin more & more with each update... He is the quintessential professorial & sensible dad... The calm & collected one, who deals with every crisis with a cool, reasonable & unbiased mind.

Btw, I have eaten at that very same Moroccon restaurant at Epcot & watched belly dancers dance there almost 20 years back... It brought back many fond memories... LOL

Geez! Lavanya... The woman is so self-centered. Has no clue or rather does not want to have any clue about Arnav's feelings towards her... What was she expecting that she would be received warmly & cordially by Arnav after their acerbic altercations in the past when she showed up uninvited at his office?? She was getting upset at his "indifference"??? She seems to be still quite delusional to me...

The flicker in his eyes at the mention of that restaurant may have been loathing on Arnav's part at having to endure another evening in a place he would rather forget than visit another time, that too with the last person he would want to go there with... What makes her think he is remembering that place with fond memories?!??!? She seems to only see what she wants to see, she is totally blind to everything else... Why has she stopped seeing the shrink??? And I sincerely wonder what NK saw in her?? 😕

And last but not the least... Nooo! You can't do this to us Jenny... You can't have Lavanya joining Cole Eye Institute & work on the same premises as Arnav... Common, are there no other Opthalmology job opportunities in the whole of Cleveland??? That is plain brutal. I cannot even stand the fact that Arnav has to tolerate her in his office for even a few minutes, & now you will bring her there?? Geez! please give us a break!

Edited by pixiegirl - 10 years ago

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canapoem

@canapoem

Sparkler

+ 6

Posted: 10 years ago

#637

Edited:

Jen, another awesome update.

This update made me feel for Khushi, for her guilt, for her dilemma, for her insecurities, for her trying to console herself, for her need to hear from Arnav that he never loved Lavanya and it is her he loves, he need to get that reassurance from Arnav that indeed his marriage with Lavanya is over.

For one second just even for one second, if I imagine that Arnav would go back to Lavanya to give her another chance, I cant even imagine how much Khushi would be broken inside out. Probably these fears does exist in her subconscious brain and today it surfaced in the form of the dream and invariably she went to Arnav to find solace from her mental turmoils and fears. Glad that Arnav cleared the air and made her believe that he was never in love with Lavanya and he fell in love only with her.

Khushi's consciousness does not want her to be tagged as the "other woman", the woman who broke a marriage. My heart goes out to her here, and I hope society does not tag her that. It pains to see that her mother has already tagged her that and is even avoiding to make a small eye contact with her.

Love...Force it and it disappears. You cannot will love,
nor even control it. You can only guide its expression.
It comes or it goes according to those qualities in life
that invite it or deny its presence

Love can never be forced. Arnav is a classic example. He tried his level best to love his wife but he always felt that it was not love and just a compromise. Ofcourse after knowing the truth about Aarav's birth, even compromise must have been tough on his part.

Three blue trick candles, whose little flames had refused to be blown out amidst much cheer and laughter.

Jen, I did not get the meaning of the above sentence. What does it refer to?

Loved it when Navin said that Sujatha is jumping to conclusions about their own daughter without even talking to her and getting her point of view and knowing her feelings. I hope Sujatha gives a patient hearing to what Khushi has to say and then decide on her opinions and conclusions.

Finally Lavanya and Arnav met.

First Arnav was right, it was not right on her part just to walk into his office unannounced.

Secondly, is she really trying to find a job at the same place where Arnav works? What is she thinking, that she can remain close to him even at work???

Finally the place she selected "Muse", is this the same place where they both got drunk and ended up sleeping with each other?

Why that place? Does she think she wants to start over all again from the same place they did years ago?

Lavanya is a complex character to understand here. From past one year she never tried to talk to him and one phone call from him, she is again pushing herself into his life forcibly. And even the place she selected to talk, I cant understand why chose such a place which is filled with bitter sweet memories for her and knowing Arnav well, she knows that the place does not hold much sweet memories for him. What does she want to prove here?

Edited by canapoem - 10 years ago

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Arshi67

@Arshi67

Sparkler

+ 13

Posted: 10 years ago

#638

RES 😃

"Between the person she was raised to be and the person she had to be."

This line says it all Jenny. It's what is troubling Khushi, albeit subconsciously, and also what's troubling Sujata. Both are having to come to terms with this. Khushi's innate goodness still makes her care for any hurt she may have caused to another person.

Navin and Sujata share such a good relationship. The care, love and respect they have for each other so apparent. Sujata's instant switch to a wife from a mother bears testimony to that.

A striking contrast to the relationship between Arnav and Lavanya. She was only ever Aarav's mother for him. But, she clearly is still hankering for him and is still affected by him. Doesn't bode well. She's still in possession of the title of Mrs Raizada. Can definitely see her clinging on to it for as long as she can.

Edited by Arshi67 - 10 years ago

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A_BA

@A_BA

Inactive

+ 5

Posted: 10 years ago

#639

res😃

Edited:

I know this is super late, but I hate leaving a res un'resd!!

After Khushi's dream, I think that was the beginning of the gloom that had been set upon Arnav and Khushi's relationship. Although their relationship was now in the open and they didn't have the guilt of keeping it a secret, it has also created so many new problems - from the self-doubting from Sujatha's side to Khushi being afraid of the phoenix rising as her dad had suggested. You have definitely done a great job mixing all these different aspects with this complex story.

Is Lavanya still referring to herself as Mrs. Raizada or was that an assumption on Jessica's part? Whatever the case, I see Lavanya getting her hopes high due to Arnav's suggestion of that particular restaurant, which does not sit well with me.

I'm catching up with all the chapters I had missed in the last few months, so more comments to come!!

Edited by A_BA - 10 years ago