The club was packed and the music was so loud you could feel the vibration of the beats in your body. She was sitting by the bar clutching onto her bag which was placed on her lap. Her friends had left her and gone to the dance floor, leaving her behind with dozens of empty shot glasses. They had asked her to go with them, but she had declined. This was definitely not her setting and she felt incredibly uneasy and uncomfortable by the looks she was getting from shady and drunk guys. Amidst the thoughts of regretting how she had let her friends convince her to come with them, and the worry of how she was going to get herself home, she was distracted from her thoughts when a stubbled guy in a black suit leaned over the bar counter only a few meters away and ordered something. He rested his arms on the counter while waiting for his drink. Something was not quite right with him. He seemed tired, slightly annoyed. He ran his hand through his hair and, if she was not mistaken, Ragini noted a subtle sigh of exasperation. Unknowingly, a slight frown formed on Ragini's face. The guy crossed his arms while still resting them on the counter. He carelessly looked around while waiting for his drink. Suddenly, his eyes locked with two big brown eyes that were accompanied by a frown. Ragini realised this and quickly and nervously looked away, digging her nails into her bag. The guy's lips formed a half-smile. What was this girl doing here? She looked so misplaced wearing that traditional outfit and seemed very uncomfortable being here. He snorted and slightly shook his head as he turned and looked back at the bar just in time to receive his drink. "Laksh, are you coming?" a squeaky voice shouted trying to overpower the loud music. A girl in a skimpy, pink dress and 6 inch stilettos came up to the bar. He held his drink midway and turned to look at her. He didn't seem too excited to see her, in fact, he seemed somewhat annoyed, his left eyebrow slightly raised. "Yeah, sure, you go, I'll come in a bit" he said and resumed his drinking. "Come soon na!" she nagged before disappearing into the crowd again. He didn't bother to look in her direction again and continued drinking.
Ragini was getting more and more anxious as time went by. She took out her phone and checked the time "1:13 am" she mouthed to herself. Her Dad, and more than anyone, her Dadi ma was going to kill her. Ragini was startled and dropped her phone on the floor when she suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder. She quickly looked up to see an intoxicated guy leaning towards her with a sleazy grin. She quickly pulled away her shoulder and leaned away from him. "How about you and I go someplace else?" The guy said coming closer whilst eye-ing her. "Please I-" Ragini was saying when the guy suddenly grabbed her arm and pulled her up from the barstool. "Please, let me go, please I don't want to-" she kept trying to get out of his grip, her heart pounding against her ribcage. The guy felt a firm grip on his shoulder and turned to see Laksh standing there. He let go of Ragini's arm and turned to Laksh "What do you want?" he asked cockily. Laksh took a step closer to him when the security guards, who the bartender had alerted, came between them and grabbed the intoxicated guy. He turned to look at Ragini. She was beyond terrified, her hands were up against her chest as if she was trying to keep her heart from popping out, her breathing was rapid and her eyes were wandering nervously. He took her phone from the floor and held it in front of her "Here", it took a good few seconds for Ragini to realise that he was holding her phone in front of her. She grabbed her phone and placed her hand back, with her phone in it, on her chest. Laksh looked at the state she was in for a few seconds, he was about to say something but then stopped. He turned around and was about to leave when he stopped in his tracks. He turned back and looked at her again, the girl was shaking like a leaf. He exhaled exasperatedly at his nagging conscious and went back up to her, leaving a meter or two between them and raised his voice to overpower the loud music "Is there anyone that can take you home?". Ragini looked up, with her hands in the same position and her eyes filled with worry. She shook her head as in no. Laksh was hesitant, but the girl was frightened out of her wits. He looked at her for a few seconds, trying to think of what he should do, his thoughts conflicting. "Lets get you home" he ended up shouting over the music and stood sideways extending his hand, motioning towards the exit. Ragini looked at him hesitantly, she didn't know who this guy was, but he had also just sort of helped her. There were no signs of her friends anywhere and it was getting very late, and she did not want to stay another second at the club after what just had happened. She needed to get herself home soon. Now. She took a few small, hesitant steps forward and passed Laksh and he followed behind her. He noticed how her shoulders would twitch when it would touch someone while walking through the crowd of people. He extended one hand forward to her side, creating a barrier between her and the crowd on her right side, whilst making sure he wasn't touching her. Ragini saw his arm appear on her right side, midway between her elbow and shoulder. She didn't know this guy, but she felt safer and involuntarily moved closer to the side where his hand protected her from the crowd on the right, while creating more distance from the crowd on the left. They finally made their way out. Ragini stopped in her tracks after they exited the club, it was dark and she didn't know where she was supposed to go from here. Laksh continued walking and passed her without even looking at her. She hesitantly followed him, scared of being left behind in the dark with shady people hanging out at the street corners. Laksh got into a black lexus and started the engine. He looked out the side passenger's window and saw that Ragini was standing outside the car hesitantly. The girl was still keeping her hands in the same position with her shoulders slightly hunched inwards. He wound down the car window "Look, do you want to get home or not?" he said with a hint of annoyance in his tone. Ragini looked at him hesitantly while still standing in the same position. "You either let me take you home or you can stand here in the dark" he paused and looked at his watch "at 1:35 am and see if you can get a cab" he looked at her rather impatiently and somewhat annoyed, a questioning eyebrow slightly raised. He was resting his left hand on the steering wheel and exhaled rather frustratingly while looking outside the window on his side. He heard the passenger door open and looked to side and saw Ragini get in carefully. She sat down and looked ahead anxiously. Laksh looked at her expression. The girl was really shaken up. "Put your seatbelt on" he said without looking at her while he put the car into gear. Ragini was brought out of her worried daze and put her seatbelt on. "What's you address?" he asked almost apathetically without looking at her as he drove. Ragini told him her address and the next 15 minutes went by without a word being uttered. As he drove, Ragini looked at how the streetlights were being overpowered by the sun's slow appearance. It was almost 2 am, she worried about how her Dad and Dadi ma would react once she got home. She knew that regardless, it wasn't going to be a pleasant homecoming. Laksh's phone rang. He reached for it and pulled it out of his pants pocket while steering the wheel with his other hand. "I'm coming" he said sternly to his friend at the club who had called to ask his whereabouts. Laksh slightly turned and looked at Ragini while still on the phone and looked back on the road and continued "I got a little caught up in something". Ragini glanced at his direction when he said that and quickly looked back out the window on her side. Laksh hung up the phone and the quiet drive continued for another few minutes until Ragini was jolted out of her thoughts by the car coming to halt. She looked out her window to see her house. "Is this it?" he asked. Ragini looked at him and nodded her head. She opened the car door and put one foot out, she stopped and slightly turned, looking at him and said "thanks". "Sure" he replied shortly and somewhat indifferently. She left the car and as she was walking towards her house she turned and saw that he still hadn't left. She arrived to her front door and after she had opened the door she heard the car leave. She turned and looked as the guy drove away in almost full speed. Ragini couldn't really figure this guy out. He seemed indifferent, almost brooding and at times annoyed, but he was also kind. He had helped her at the club and gotten her home safely. The same frown that had formed when she had seen him by the bar the first time formed on Ragini's face again. She slightly shook her head, almost trying to shake off her thoughts. She had bigger problems to deal with now, coming home at 2 am. She went inside the house and closed the door behind her...
Anupamaa
Kabhi Neem Neem Kabhi Shahad Shahad
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
Bollywood
