Chapter 9: N... for Nautanki!
Flashbacks are in blue.
Khushi was sitting in the office happily munching away her jalebis. It was lunch time after all. Her favourite part of the day always. She saw Arnav crossing her cabin and going to his cabin when a certain incident from the past flashed in front of her.
Avni sat down next to her Bhai during the lunch hours in the canteen. It was a tradition that was strictly followed by the Raizada siblings, as instructed by their Badi Ma or Ma. Anjali, Akash, Arnav and Avni this is the order in which they always sat down. Being the youngest, Arnav and Avni were extremely close to each other, while Akash and Anjali were closely bonded. Only one friend per person was allowed to join their gang, as a rule which was put forth by Anjali Di and so, Akash had brought his best friend Payal, while the rest sat there without their friends. But this tradition had continued only till Anjali and Akash were in the school. But of course, Arnav and Avni continued sitting together for lunch. They were the famous bro-sis duo.
Why so much introduction for nothing? Well, the infamous meeting between the only A and A of the story is yet to happen and you are about to witness the historic meet.
"Avni?"
"Haan Bhai."
"Avni?"
"Mmm."
"Avni for heaven's sake, look up from your food. You so remind me of that exasperating chocolate girl."
"Chocolate girl? Uh, Bhai her name is KKG!"
"Whatever, too much of kilogram but lack of some in her brains."
"Bhai, it two K and one G."
"Erm if you guys are done with your heavy discussion."
"Uh! Avni, this is Aman."
"Bhai, I know you for the past 13 years and he has been your friend for the past 17 years. So why this introduction today?" Avni asked royally ignoring a certain Mathur.
"Well Aman suddenly realised that he was never formally introduced to you. So this introduction."
"OH MY GOD Mathur! It is so nice meeting you!"Avni replied her voice dripping or rather loaded with sarcasm.
"Stop being sarcastic Avni. You are perfectly suitable to become a Wakil. Wakil Sahiba Avni, how fitting!"
"Shut up Mathur! When you were pulling my plaits and irritating me to the core, didn't you realise we weren't formally introduced?"
"Erm...this is to close old books and open new ones." Aman raised a glass in the air.
"Mathur, put your glass of champagne down, see the Principal is coming. You are so gone."
"Shit man she is looking at you."
As soon as the words reached his ears, Aman almost made a mad dash to his class, when he realised he had no champagne. Heck, he had no glass in the first place.
Avni and Arnav burst out laughing at that. "Scared are we, Mathur?"
"So much for new books." Aman muttered as he caught Arnav still laughing and Avni smirking.
But his eyes did not miss a certain KKG passing by."Will serve Arnav right for joining with Avni." He thought.
"Hey Khushi." He waved at her, distracting the duo."Hey Aman."
And then, Jalebi's eyes landed on Avni, seeing whom a big grin spread on her face. But but when her eyes moved to Chilli, the grin became a smile which transformed into a forced stretching of few muscles and lastly it ended in a big frown.
"What's up Aman?"
"Khushi, Arnav and Avni here were rather too interested in debating about your initials. Arnav here thought it was KG?"
"What? KG? Are you deaf Raizada? You should be. It is KKG!"
At that, she shot one angry glance at Arnav. "No, I was just wondering about the lack of kilograms in your brain."
"Hawww..." A multitude of expressions followed on Jalebi's face - shocked, to anger, to glare, to pout."Why am I even talking to you?"
Just, we mean Just, literally just as Jalebi turned around huffing, a rude voice interrupted her walking. Yeah, you read it right, walking.
"Khushiii KKumaaarriii Gupta, for how long will you remain a Kumaaari?"
"Shut up, you good for nothing Khurrana." Was what Jalebi would have told. But sadly those words were never heard for it never made its way out of her mouth, because she was rudely interrupted by none other than her nemesis number 2. Yeah, the first spot was bagged by NK, fondly addressed as a pest.
"NK, remain quiet or else forget getting into the football team ever." This had rendered NK speechless.
And for the second time, Khushi had the same O on her face, but this was out of good shock. Raizada helped me? Ah maybe, he thinks it is only his birth right to tease me. It doesn't add up otherwise.
A lost in thought Khushi meant danger and Arnav knew better than to allow such catastrophes to occur."Don't put pressure on that pea-sized brain of yours, Khushi. Not worth it."
And this time, Khushi really stormed away. Too much of insults while Chilli just smirked at having successfully prevented her from thinking. Chilli, himself did not know why he had jumped to help her from that exasperating NK. Yeah he was exasperating for him too!
"Arnav what was that?"
"What was what?"
"Wahi jo ab hua, Bhai."
"Stop translating whatever I say, Avni. I know you find whatever I say interesting and I think your Bhai understands English."
"Stupid..."
While these two were busy fighting, no one noticed Chilli slowly slipping away from the canteen.
A sudden knock on the door put an end to her daydreams. She was surprised to find the man of her dreams.. oops... thoughts... err... that did not come out right.. the man of her whatever stand in front of her."Uh Arnav?"
"Your Ma and my Ma have been trying to call you, what happened to your phone? And I have been trying to get you through the intercom too. Lost in dreams, are we?"
She checked her phone and found 15 missed calls. Shit! Shit! The stupid Raizada made her lose herself in the past. She dialed her mother's number only to receive a sound lashing.
"Achcha achcha I am sorry Amma. Oh Smita Aunty wanted to speak to me? Oh Hi aunty. You are with Amma now?..."
Arnav totally zoned out of the conversation until he heard these words, "When I am free? Yeah next Monday works fine. What time? I will be there in the morning itself, so that I can help you. No, no I am free aunty. Don't worry..." And the phone was rudely snatched from her hand.
"Ma, you want me to be present or her? Yeah, so if you want me to be present, then the work in the office will be done by her only."
Khushi was shocked. She had been into her la-la land of how she would get three consecutive days off- Saturday, Sunday and Monday, when Arnav had harshly thrown all her plans away. No, she could not allow that to happen. He was smirking, which means he was planning something. What was it? Her question was answered too soon.
"Haan Aunty." Aunty? Okay it is my Amma then. "It should be enough if Khushi left by 4. This will give her time to get ready, I suppose?" No, no I want more time. "Yeah she can compensate by coming early. Maybe at 8?" Why isn't anyone asking me that? "Now that is fixed. Here..." The phone was now kept on her hands. Her pouting face did not go unnoticed by Arnav, though.
"Hello Amma", she literally scowled into the phone."You very wonderfully fixed everything. So why ask me now and waste time? Bye."
"So someone else needs anger management classes too?"
"What? Why are you still here?" She bit out.
"Take a deep breath, Khushi. So much anger ain't good for health. Good now count 1-10. Should I help?"
"Shut up. Allow me to eat."
"Ah eat? The last time I checked it is 1:05 PM and the lunch break gets over by 1 PM." The sentence got over with him raising that one single eyebrow to perfection. Stupid Greek God! What does he think? Always make people forget what they are trying to tell.
As Khushi stood their fuming, Arnav came a little too close. "I can see smoke come out from your ears. It so makes you look like a cooking pot."
Her jaw hung open and she backed away in anger only to trip and fall down. She closed her eyes imagining yet another downfall in front of her mellowed down nemesis. "Why do you make me fall down in front of him always God?" She cursed her own fate. The fall did not come. "How come it is taking so long for such a small fall to occur?"Jalebi, of course tried falling back but something prevented her from doing so. She slowly peeked to find a face looming in front. As she opened her eyes, she found herself encased in Chilli's arms.
"My breathing has become rapid and fast. Rapid and fast-Don't they both mean the same?" Shaking herself out of her wayward thoughts, as she was about to open her mouth, she had a sudden doubt. Did she tell those words aloud? She knew she had that crazy habit.
Chilli, on the other hand was waiting rather too patiently for Khushi to get up. But looking at Khushi, he decided she was never going to get up. Okay was he really complaining that she wasn't getting up? Well no. This was the first time he was observing her this close. Large expressive eyes, little pink plump cheeks, sharp nose with that nose pin glittering every now and then and finally lush pink lips. Crap! What is he thinking and where did they come from?
"Khushi, I swear in the name of God, I will drop you, if you keep testing my strength."
She immediately shot up and literally ran out of his grasp and she glared at him. What?!
"Who are you glaring at?"
"No one. If you are done messing my day up, then leave."
He had almost gone, making Khushi heave a sigh of relief, when he made a comeback.
"About whom were you dreaming, when I walked in?" Getting no response from a for-a-change-tongue-tied-Khushi, he continued, "Ha the blush says it all baby." And with that he had walked out."Baabyy? Blush? Oh my God!" And one could see a flustered Jalebi become soggy.
**********
Arnav glanced at Aman who was immersed in his musings. It was Saturday, a day to catch up for both Arnav and Aman. But it seemed to Arnav that Aman was lost and totally at that. The man in question though seemed to be thoroughly unaware. He was lost in his past and with whom.
"Arnav, dekho Aman aaya hain. Jaldi aao." Smita called out to Arnav who was spending all the time with his 5-year old sister Avni. Manohar and Manorama had recently shifted from Mumbai to Delhi after their successful expansion of RHF there.
Arnav and Anjali had been ecstatic to know that Akash and Avni are back to stay with them permanently.
"Haan Ma. Avni mere saath neeche aao."
"Arnav chalo we will go and play."
"Arnav Bhai, aap mereko akele chodke jaayenge kya aur woh bhi iske saath?" Avni faked few tears for good measure.
9-year old Aman was offended at that. That small girl insulting him?! No way. "Yeah Hello kaun ho tum crybaby? Main iska friend hoon. Best friend."
"Main iski behen hoon. Best behen." Avni had retorted.
"Anjali Di is his behen. Tu nahi. She is so sweet."
"Arrey yaar. Shut up. Aman and Avni."
"And that is exactly how we had met." Arnav felt like hitting Aman. After a prolonged silence for an hour, he suddenly speaks some nonsense about meeting for the first time. Arnav felt like a perfect fool to have agreed to meet him in the Golf club.
"Aman for the last time, whom did you meet?"
"Avni, of course." A dreamy Aman replied without thinking about the consequences, of course.
"Aman, this girl happens to be my sister."
"I know. Imagine me being your brother-in-law?"Another dreamy question.
"Yeah, imagine you being the ghar-jamaai."
"Kya?!" And the dreamy bubble was finally broken.
"Didn't Avni tell you?"
"Tell what?"
"She wants to marry only ghar-jammai. So you will be the future jhoru-ka-ghulaam. Congrats bro. I was so worried Avni wouldn't get a match for her." With this statement, Arnav left the club leaving Aman to ponder and suffer.
**********
"Finally! He worked some courage to ask me out and what a fine evening it was." This girl was none other than, (no points for guessing), Avni Singh Raizada. And she was rewinding the date in her mind. A date with Dr. Aman Mathur!
Avni looked around trying to spot Mathur. It was 3:30 PM. She herself was late. Had Mathur already left? Just then, Aman walked in.
"Speak of punctuality." She commented rather too dryly.
"Sorry Wakil Sahiba, had an emergency. Really sorry."
"That's okay Mathur. I am way too magnanimous."
"Well you ought to be when you yourself come at 3:29 PM."
"Erm. Who told you that I came here at 3:29 PM? I was here by 3:28 PM."
"Ah! Speak of punctuality."
"Have you asked me out to taunt me?"
"You started."
"No, you only started it."
"Sir, madam order?" The waiter interrupted them and thankfully that topic was abandoned at that.
"Avni, you know what I thought when I saw you at the hospital that day? I thought you did not remember me. It has been so long! Some eight years, I guess."
"Well for the record, you were never forgotten to be remembered. Not a forgettable specimen."
"Look who is speaking about specimen. Now now allow me to speak woman! Dil ki baath kehna hain. Well where was I?"
"Mathur who even made you pass your exams? Your patients are at risk. What if you forget and do lung operation for a heart patient?"
Aman had had enough. "Shut up or I will make you. So, yeah I had assumed you had forgotten me until I found out that you had chosen Law."
"It has nothing to do with your suggestion."
"I never mentioned about me suggesting it." And a very slow red hue spread adding a glow to her already pretty face. Aman literally whistled at that. "For the first time, I am making a woman blush." As he patted himself, he should have known it was too soon.
"WHAT? This means during my absence you had tried to hit on someone else?" Before Avni could utter a word, Aman pecked her lips lightly. To hell with public place!
As Avni was leading everyone to the most awaited part of the date, a phone call cut her off, making everyone sigh.
"Hi Mathur."
"What are you doing?"
"Thinking about our date."
This very effectively distracted Aman for a few minutes as he allowed himself to be treated with those life changing moments. Their first kiss in Aman's car, of course the peck did not count.
"So?"
"Um so? I have to go home now. Thanks for dropping me, Mathur."
"Anytime and anything for you Wakil Sahiba."
"I had a wonderful evening Aman." She replied earnestly. Her calling him Aman made him happy.
"I am glad Avni." He called me Avni! And this made her heart to flutter and soar in joy. He squeezed her hands gently and placed a soft kiss atop her knuckles, sending shivers down her spine. The car seemed hot even though the AC was in full blast. Aman traced an invisible pattern on her hand as if to comfort her and himself. She could not take it anymore. So, throwing the cautions to the wind, she kissed him. She was a novice. She had only read about lips meeting and tongue fighting. He could sense her apprehension. It was her first kiss, after all. That thought made him giddy. He nipped her upper lip slowly seeking access to her mouth. She tasted of chocolate and vanilla.
Avni heard herself moaning as he slowly introduced her to what people call lip-lock. She gasped as he pulled her closer, the moment giving him enough time to delve into her mouth. She mimicked his actions. He was teaching and she was learning. His warm breath on her lips made her dizzy. Her hands clutched the lapels of his shirt even tighter, if that was even possible.
"Mathur? Are you there? Hello?"
So, yet again this A and A couple keep stopping each other from giving into the full details, as always.
"Yeah. Yeah. You never told me about your wish. I can never be like that."
"Like what?"
"Uh Like what your Bhai told."
"Mathur tell me clearly, will you?"
"I can never be a ghar-jamaai."
**********
Thanks for reading. Do check the drabble (by mints23) and our reply drabble along with the note below.
Edited by Sadh123 - 9 years ago
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