Arakshi FF: Intezaar [Updt - pg 39, 20 March] - Page 18

Sameer's POV

Four Months Ago

"Hello?" His voice was groggy as he spoke. Whoever the caller was, awakened him from a

very deep and peaceful sleep. Glancing at the clock on the wall, he realised it was almost one

o' clock. Anxious to know who was calling at the odd hour, he looked down at his phone

screen for the caller ID.

"Ayesha, are you okay?"

"I...no..." Her voice shook. "Papa...City Hospital main...I didn't know who else to call..."

Sameer never heard her voice quiver the way it did at that moment. His heart clenched at

how tired and scared she sounded.

"I'll be right there" His tone was firm and reassuring.

~oOo~

Sameer grabbed the two coffee cups on the counter and headed towards Ayesha. They sat in a

quiet corner of the hospital caf. He sat across from Ayesha at the table and slid one of the

cups in front of her. As her shaking hands curled around the coffee cup, Sameer spoke.

"Ayesha ab ghabrane ki koi baat nahi hain. You got him to the hospital in time" He spoke

with appealing gentleness. Her eyes, fixed on the cup, slowly lifted up to reveal large drops

of tears. Before he could say anymore, she started crying. Sighing, he sat next to her taking

her in his arms.

He held her close, letting her cry. He knew she was shaken by what happened and would

have cried earlier if she could. But, at the time she had to take care of her father, she had no

time to breakdown. She held it in for as long as possible, Sameer was just glad when the

inevitable break down came - he was there for her.

Still holding her tightly against his chest, he leaned against the chair. The embrace was

warm and his hold on her protective. Not sure what to do, he rubbed small comforting

circles on her back. The movement seemed to calm her down so he kept at it.

When she finally calmed down, they went to see how her father was doing. Sameer stayed

with her the whole night and the next day. He was there for her whenever she

needed him. It may have been a distressing time that brought them closer, but the bond

that came with the incident was lasting and one that grew

as days passed.

Sameer knew without a doubt in his heart that he loved her. But, he never spoke of his

feelings - not to Ayesha or anyone else. For he was scared, in case she did not feel the same

about him, the friendship they build would be lost.

Present

Sameer's head rested against the plush leather of his office chair, his eyes were closed and a

deep frown formed between his brows.

"Itna seriously kya soch raha hain?" Arjun's voice broke through the silence.

Sameer did not open his eyes but the frown between his brows cleared as he spoke.

"Kuch nahi...bus aise hi. What are you still doing here? I thought you'd have left for home"

"Sakshi took the car to work today, subha Shree ke saath aaya tha...ab..."

Sameer opened his eyes to find his friend already seated on the chair opposite him. He

smiled and leaned forward on the table,

"Mein drop kar doon?"

"Nahi, Sakshi aa rahi hain muhe pick karne...she said she'll be a little late"

"Hmm..." Sameer nodded and fell silent. His thoughts immediately took him back to Ayesha.

She had a small accident on field today and he may have reacted a bit protectively. He knew

his team members noticed but, he didn't care. Until now, until his best friend sat across him

and gave him wary looks.

"What?!" He asked knowing what was coming.

Arjun shrugged, playing with the paper weight on his table.

"Mann mein koi baat hain toh bol de" Sameer said and looked up to find Arjun staring at

him silently.

"Okay fine, aaj Ayesha ke baare main maybe I over reacted...a little. But, she's the only

female officer on the team, I need to..." He stopped talking when Arjun's eyebrows shot upon

his forehead.

"Ayesha has always been the only on field female officer Sam...pehle toh kabhi aise..."

"I have always been protective of her" Sameer chipped defensively.

"Haan, par aaj kal kuch zyaada nahi ho raha??"

He let out a dramatic sigh and got up. He stood by the window with his hands on his hips,

contemplating whether to tell his friend about his feelings for his subordinate or not. The

only reason he kept his feelings from Arjun was he had his own problems to deal with, but

now that his relationship with Sakshi was sturdier, he wanted to tell him.

"Arjun mein Ayesha se..." He paused and sighed once again before turning around to

face his friend,

"I like her"

There was silence for a moment as Arjun stared at him with a blank face and then to his

surprise, he smiled and started saying, "I knew it!!"

Sameer, though glad that his best friend was so encouraging about his feelings for Ayesha,

had to stop him and explain his predicament.

"I don't think she sees me as more than a friend though..."

"Then why don't you tell her how you feel? Bata de usse!!"

Sameer moved uneasily, "I don't want to ruin the friendship. And, if she doesn't feel the same

way...things could get very awkward at work and I don't want that"

"Sam jab thak tu usse baat nahi karega pata kaise chelega?? For all you know, she might feel

the same way!" Arjun spoke earnestly. Sameer thought for a few minutes before deciding that

his friend was right. Instead of worrying about what will go wrong, he should think about

the good things that could possibly come out of confessing his feelings.

He slowly nodded his head, making a promise to himself to talk to Ayesha.

TEN