The Best of Things
(Ragya, Swasan) Fan Fiction Series +16
By Bubble
Chapter 48
The sunlight was filtering in through the glass. Wishing he had closed the curtains properly, Lakshya put an arm across his eyes. A shadow moved across the glass and then instead of adjusting the curtains close, opened it fully.
"What the hell!" he muttered and squinted.
Ragini stood by the window, smiling. "Abhi tak soye hain, Laksh! Utthiye!"
He sat up with a jerk, astounded. "When did you come?"
"Just now! Papa dropped me. Maa is back to feeling quite alright and today is Sunday, and Papa is home, so we just decided I should come back!"
"Oh great!" he said, leaping out of bed excitedly, "Kya baat hai! I didn't expect you home today! You should've said, I would've come to pick you up. Has Papa left?"
"Yes... just dropped me and went off... I think he wanted her to himself as well before Dada-Daadi come back... " she went on, chatting lightly, setting the room right, which had gone a bit astray after so many days of her absence.
Suddenly, the prospect of the day seemed to have brightened, but Lakshya didn't quite know why.
+++
The elders had had breakfast early but almost every single member of the younger set only turned up at the breakfast table at around 11 for Round Two. It was frowned upon for them to be so indisciplined but Sunday was an exception... everyone just surfaced late. Ghanshaam waited on them, bringing in fresh cups of tea.
Swara was a little worried that anyone who looked at her would at once know the cataclysmic change in her life since last night. She came down alone... and was relieved that everyone was fairly normal with her... maybe it didn't show after all!
She greeted Ragini brightly, and asked after Maa's tabeeyat. Everyone was having first cups of tea, so Swara went into the kitchen to see if she was needed there, and brought out a cook-and-serve pot full of sambhar. "This is hot, everybody... be careful," she warned and went back in to bring the idlis. The Maheshwaris were having a South Indian breakfast today.
When she came out, Sanskaar had come down as well, and was just sitting down. He reached for the sambhar, when Swara exclaimed, "Careful, Shona! That's hot!"
Everyone froze. Ragini and Lakshya looked at each other, suppressing their smiles.
The tips of Sanskaar's ears turned pink. Swara looked around self consciously and said again as if correcting herself, "Sanskaar, sambhal ke, tumhara haath jal jaayega!"
But the damage had been done. There were grins all around but no one said anything for five minutes. Then, Lakshya cleared his throat and said to Sanskaar, "Will you please pass me the salt... Shona?"
Ragini, Uttara and Parineeta burst into giggles and Sanskaar, who went a shade pinker, turned around to glare balefully at Swara.
But Swara was now laughing as much as the others and she giggled, "Mai kya karun, muh se nikal gaya!" He narrowed his eyes at her... I'll see to you later, 'Shona'! and went back to his idlis.
+++
But the Sunday didn't stay normal for Swara. Sanskaar attended a few work calls, so Swara sat on the lawn chatting with Mom, Uttara and Parineeta, when he came to stand at the door, looking pale. He seemed to want to say something, so she quickly followed him upstairs to their room.
"Naraaz ho?" she laughed as she shut the door. "Sorry, I'll remember not to embarrass you next time!"
He shook his head, looking upset.
"Kya hua, Sanskaar!" she asked him, in alarm.
He took her into his arms. "Swara... baby... I need to go to Japan!"
"Okay..." she said, slowly. "Kab?"
He swallowed painfully. "Tonight."
"Kya!!" Her face crumpled. "No!"
He just looked back at her miserably.
She wailed, "Sanskaar, mai jeeyungi kaise?!"
He held her closer still. "Darling... it's just a few days - we've been trying for Japanese contracts for seven months. There is a trade conference - someone from my team was supposed to go, he's broken his foot... I have to go myself."
"Tonight? you need to go tonight?!" she whispered, her hands on his chest.
He nodded, looking as upset as she felt herself.
"And I can't go with you because..." she started to say... "...because we don't have a visa for you," he finished. She nodded.
Although Swara told herself not behave like a spoilt child, she couldn't help the tears. She wiped them away and said, "Ok, if you have to go, you have to go... I'll pack your things. Tokyo will be cold, na?"
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