Maaneet FF Binding Ties(4) Ch 30, Pg 63, June 9, 2016 - Page 38

CHAPTER 30

The cat peered wide-eyed at Geet as she placed the food bowl just inside the main door. She moved back a little and it stepped inside cautiously. It had been coming regularly at their doorstep for the past week or so. It never came close enough to be touched, but always gobbled up the food she gave it. She stayed a few feet away and chatted with the cat while it ate, or rather chatted at it coz, as usual, it ignored her royally and swished off when the food bowl was empty. On this day, however, just as the cat licked up the last morsel, Miri walked in. She had heard a lot about the cat from Geet and had been desperately waiting to meet it. She gave a shout of joy on seeing it and rushed towards it. The cat was startled to find a tiny human dynamo racing towards it and finding its escape route blocked streaked inside the house. Miri chased it and Geet hurried behind her.

"Miri usse mat chuo. Woh billi tumhe jaanta nahi hai aur shayad tumhe kaat le."

"Accha? Ek minute ruko phir. Hi meow mera naam Miri Handa hai. Lo mamma ab woh mujhe jaanta hai, Ab nahi kaatega." She put her hand forward to pet the cat that was crouching behind the sofa and he growled warningly with a mean look in his eyes.

Geet grinned at her daughter's antics and pulled Miri's hand back unsure of the cat's response. Then she herself reached out cautiously towards the cat. The cat growled yet again, but did not move away. So she reached out and stroked his head gently.

The cat immediately purred happily and rubbed against her hand for more.

"You bluff master. Agar tum chahte the ki hum tumhe pet kare toh gurraye kyun?"

Geet took Miri's hand in her own and let her pet it gently down the cat's back.

"Mamma yeh bilkul Sheru ke jaise hai nahi?"

Geet was startled to hear the words and wondered how her daughter had drawn that conclusion, comparing the cat to Maan Singh Khurana of all things. Also that stupid thing that resided inside her chest cavity thumped just at the mention of that man.

It had been just over two weeks since she had gone rushing to the Khurana house with the hot sheera and then practically run away from there after the emotional upheaval and the fiasco of the investigation report that Maan had done on her. She had been shaken apart completely that day and had avoided going to the Khurana household on some pretext or other. She had gotten into the habit of meeting Dev at the hospital itself, and many a times Dadi and Dev dropped by at the Handa's after his hospital visits were over. She knew she was being a complete coward and was not going to avoid Maan Singh Khurana forever, but she was going to try and put off going there for as long as she could.

She was not looking for logic in her actions, it was driven completely by instinct and she was going to follow it.

She realized her daughter was still talking about her Sheru.

"Yaad hai mamma, hum pehili baar jab sheru ke ghar pe usse mile the toh woh bilkul iss meow ke jaise gur gur kar raha tha. Par jab Miri ne usse first time touch kiya toh Sheru ne Miri ke haath main kissy kia tha." She giggled as the cat's rough tongue licked across her palm affectionately.

"Mamma maine decide kar liya hai. Aaj se meow ka naam Sheru Handa hai."

"No Miri absolutely not. Mujhe nahi lagta yeh accha idea hai." Geet exclaimed.

"Par why mamma? Ek minute hum meow se puchte hain. Meow tumhara naam aaj se Sheru Handa hai. Agar tumhe yeh naam pasand hain to tum one time meow karo. Agar pasand nahi hai toh tum kuch mat kaho. Thik hai?

The cat rubbed its head against Miri's hand and purred loudly.

"Lagta hain billi ko yeh Sheru wala naam pasand hi nahi, bohot zyada pasand hai Miri." A voice piped in from the doorway. They both turned to see a grinning Pari standing there. She strolled in slowly so as not to startle the cat.

"Pari tu tila tya nava baddal encourage karu nakos."(Pari don't encourage her about that name.) Geet's anxious voice fell on Pari's ears.

"Ka tula kai problem aahe hya navashi? Tula Sheru ha shabd mhanayla jeeb adkhalte ka ki kunachi athvan yete?"(Why? What problem do you have with this name? Does your tongue trip on the word Sheru or does it remind you of somebody?) Pari arched an eyebrow.

"Kai-kai badbadte aahes tu he Pari. Asa kahi hi nahi aahe." (What... what nonsense are you spouting? It's nothing like that. ) Geet brazened it out while avoiding meeting Pari's eyes.

Pari's gaze narrowed in on Geet and she stared at her intently, noticing the eyes that would not meet her own and the faint color that marked her cheeks.

God damn it. Why him of all people was the thought that raced through her mind and she wanted to curse out loudly and colorfully but she controlled the urge and instead focused her attention on the cat.

"Toh Miri, Sheru ladka hai ya ladki?"

"Oh. Yeh to maine socha hi nahi Pari maasi. Ab kaise find out kare?"

"Meow ki dum uthane se hume pata chal jaayega." Pari reassured her.

"Woh kaise Pari maasi? "Meow ke bum pe likha hai kya woh ladka hai ya ladki?" Miri looked at her highly doubtful.

Pari was startled on hearing Miri's question and burst out laughing. Geet glared at her and sighed in exasperation.

However before the gender of the cat could be determined it got spooked and escaped from there.

**********************************

The signal turned red and Geet braked her bike softly. Miri who was plastered to her mom's back with her arms wrapped around her tummy was happily chattering away, sharing her school day with Geet.

"Accha ab tumhari baari mamma. Apne day ke baare mein Miri ko batao?" That self-important tone of voice never failed to draw a grin out of Geet. She tilted her head back and bumped it against Miri's helmeted one.

"Hmm. Mamma ka day bhi kuch kam interesting nahi tha. Aaj pehli baar Dev bhaiyya, maine aur Yash Chachu ne milke..." Suddenly Miri gave out a small scream of joy and started jumping up and down in her seat.

"Miri Handa. Abhi ke abhi baith jao. It's dangerous beta. I know Yash Chachu tumhare favorite hain par yeh reaction kuch zyada nahi hain?"

"Offo Yash chachu nahi mamma ...woh woh waha pe dekho." Her voice vibrated with excitement.

"Mamma gadi mein sheru hai." Miri's reverent tone fell on her ears.

Geet's head whipped sideways and she looked at her daughter's finger that was pointing at the car to their side. She sucked in her breath as she gazed at the man who was sitting in the back. His head was bent over and he was busy browsing through some paperwork. Miri began waving her hands wildly to draw his attention, but with no results.

"Mamma jaldi zor se horn bajao. Sheru yaha nahi dekh raha hain."

Geet's mind recoiled vehemently at the suggestion. No she did not want to draw his attention to them at all and prayed that the light would turn green quickly.

"Miri woh kuch kaam mein busy lag rahe hain. Hum unhe disturb nahi karenge bete."

"Mamma no!!!" Her daughter wailed in disappointment. "Maine sheru ko kitne dino se nahi dekha. Please mamma, please bajao na horn."

It seemed the avoidance was at an end and she would have to face him. She was still mad at him for having had her investigated yet, deep in her heart she knew it was not just about being mad, something in their relationship had changed that day.

Geet sighed in resignation and pressed the required button on her bike in short bursts. However. the cacophony of all the vehicles around them was so much that the sound of her horn was lost in the din.

Geet heaved a secret sigh of relief, but before she could say a word to her daughter, Miri scrambled down the bike and knocked rapidly on the window of the car.

Maan had been busy pouring over a contract he had just signed oblivious to his surroundings when he heard a tapping on the car window on his side. He looked up startled, only to see a grinning face pressed to the glass and two tiny hands waving frantically.

"Miri." Geet screamed just as the signal turned green, but before she could get off the bike and grab her, she saw the back door of the car open and Maan pulled her daughter inside.

The car took off and Geet followed it with a racing heart. It turned into a smaller lane and pulled over. Geet parked her bike behind it, rushed over and yanked the door open. She grabbed her daughter, pulled her out and hugged her tightly. Then she set her down and glared at her.

"Miri Handa. How dare you get off the bike without my permission? Ainda kabhi bhi tumne agar aise kiya toh mamma tumse bohot naraz ho jaayengi."

Miri looked completely chastened and hung her head. "Sorry mamma. Kaan pakadke sorry. Par sheru meri taraf nahi dekh raha tha aur maine Sheru ko kitna miss kiya aur woh bilkul mere samne tha." She lifted her head slightly and peeked at her mom through her lashes.

Geet's heart finally calmed down after the fright it had gotten. She glanced up at the man who was leaning against the car and the calm vanished in an instant with a different kind of restlessness taking its place.

"Thank you Mr. Khurana. Woh kabhi aise nahi karti hai, par aap ko dekh ke woh excite ho gayi aur bina soche bike se utar gayi." Even as she spoke the words her mind and heart were working furiously overtime.

What magic was this man weaving around them? She and her daughter barely knew him, yet the pull he exerted over them was undeniable. Just as she herself had gone running to the Khurana house that night, right now her daughter had run to him, heedless of her own safety. She did not want this. She could not do this.

There was a faint smile on his lips as he looked at her. The animosity and defensiveness that he always looked at her with was completely absent. She could not handle him like this. She desperately needed that air of dislike between them to act as a barrier.

She looked at him for a moment with a thousand emotions swirling through her eyes and then shut them tightly, willing herself to blank out everything she was feeling. She opened them and her breath caught in her throat at the look in his eyes. They were looking into hers intently, searching, probing for something. Her lashes lowered defensively refusing to give away anything.

They were both startled when Miri's voice interrupted them.

"Sheru maine tumhe bohot bohot bohot miss kiya." A wide joyous smile lit her face as she stood there looking at him in anticipation.

Maan looked at the little pixie and a strange joy filled his heart. Other than his family nobody had ever been so happy to see him and nobody had ever declared missing him ever so passionately. He smiled at the little girl as she stood there looking at him with shining eyes. After a minute or so the smile on her face dimmed a little and her hand slowly crawled into her mother's palm.

"Tumne...tumne mujhe miss kiya?"

Geet's hand tightened around her daughter's.

Maan's heart pinched at the uncertainty in her tone.

Damn he did not know how to deal with little girls. He nodded at her question and then bent down to her level and ruffled her hair.

Her face lit up with a beaming smile yet again and his lips stretched involuntarily in an automatic response. Her next question however wiped the smile right off his face.

"Aur mamma ko? Mamma ko bhi miss kiya kya Sheru?"

He straightened up slowly and his eyes slid once again to the woman in question. All the mental barriers he had raised against her were falling off. The need to know everything about this woman and the need to be acknowledged by her were at the forefront of his mind. The attraction he had felt for her the first time he had seen at the party had been paltry to the emotions clamoring inside him right now. He had been looking forward to seeing her the day she had come over with that sweet hot sheera. He had thought that they had had finally attained some kind of normalcy between them, but it seemed that Miss Handa disagreed. She had called in and made some excuse and asked Dev to meet her at the hospital. The pattern had continued and she had been absent from the Khurana household for the past two weeks and the urge to see her had slowly turned into a restless craving for a a glimpse of her. So yes, to answer little Miri's question, more than words could say he had missed her.

"Miri stop it bete." She called out to her daughter anxiously. They had to get away from here...now.

"Yes, I missed her too." She looked up at him in wide-eyed shock and this time and his eyes locked with hers and refused to let go.

Geet wrenched her gaze away from his and grabbed her daughter's hand.

"Chalo Miri chalte hai. Tumne dekha na woh gaadi mein kuch padh rahe the. Iska matlab hai ki woh busy hai. Ab tum mil bhi li apne Sher... mera matlab hain Mr Khurana se."

"Par mamma hum abhi toh mile hai abhi jana zaroori hai?" Her daughter protested.

"Bohot zaroori." Geet was determined to get out of there as quickly as possible.

She was trying to avoid him...he could see that clearly. It annoyed the hell out of him and the devil inside him provoked him. "Nahi main bilkul busy nahi hoon. In fact, I was just done with my work when Miri knocked on my window."

Miri beamed at him in approval.

"Dekho mamma. Sheru busy nahi hai." Miri pointed out redundantly.

The chaos in Geet's minds notched up higher. "Par...par hum busy hai. Miri, Baba rah dekh rahe honge."

Maan sighed. Well at least he drew some kind of reaction from her even if it was one that made her want to bolt away from him, he mocked himself. He stood there looking at the two of them trying to come up with something to say that would prolong the unexpected meeting for even a moment longer. His sharp mind came up with several strategies and discarded them until it finally settled on the one that made the most sense.

"I can drop her off home in my car if you don't mind. You can follow us on your bike."

"Yay!!! Sheru you are the best." Miri jumped up and down while clapping her hands eagerly.

"Please mamma." She looked at her mom hopefully.

Geet felt trapped. There was no reason to deny the request. The man before her looked at her with a bland face, but she could not help thinking that he knew exactly what she was feeling. God she prayed not. Even she could not comprehend completely her fierce need to escape.

She finally nodded her assent and after instructing her daughter to listen to whatever he said, she let her get into the car with him. He nodded at her and the car set off into the traffic with Geet following them.

Miri scrambled into the back of the car and occupied the far corner. He got in behind her and sat on the other end. Well, what now? He had invited her impulsively to provoke her mother and for that he was sure he had earned her hearty dislike, but at least the pixie was happy. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do? What kind of a conversation did one have with a five-year-old he wondered? However, she had found something to keep herself busy it seemed. She knelt on the seat and faced the rear view window. He buckled in the seat belt on her in that position and kept his hand against her back for added support. She raised her tiny palm and waved it at her mom. Geet honked at her and Miri giggled in delight. Lucky child he thought.

She would definitely fall of the bike if he turned around and waved. He grinned at the thought and settled back to enjoy the ride to the Handa household.

A few miles down the road, Geet was left behind at a red light and Miri could no longer see her.

Without her mother's presence. she had quitened down a lot. Her giggles had disappeared and now her eyes anxiously searched for her mother's bike in the traffic. Her lower lip started to wobble and she slowly sat back down in her corner.

Maan knew that the Handa house was not too far, but he could not bear to see the anxious child. He asked the driver to pull over once again.

"Miri apni mamma ka phone number janti ho?"

She nodded her head ad rattled it off. He called immediately hoping Geet would pick up the phone. She picked up at the first ring.

"Miri thik hai?" Her tone was anxious.

He told her where he was parked and she was there a moment later. Miri scrambled out of the car and rushed towards her mother clinging to her anxiously. Geet cuddled her for a moment and then set her on the bike.

"I am sorry for the trouble. Woh.. she..." Geet struggled to explain her daughter's anxiety

"It's okay, I understand. She is not yet ready to trust me." His eyes bore into hers as he made the statement. Geet's eyes slid away from his and she mumbled a hasty good-bye.

Like mother like daughter. Both didn't trust him. He had thought that at least the little Handa was on his side, but trust he knew was not earned that easily and his behavior so far had not been the best. That was going to change he promised himself. He had his work cut out for him as far as the Handa women were concerned.

"Sheru tum humare ghar aa rahe ho kya?" Miri called out, her confidence restored.

"Iss baar nahi Miri. Agli baar aunga." She looked disappointed but nodded quietly. She knew it was her fault that Sheru was not coming home.

"Geet." He called out to her. She froze at the sound of her name on his lips but did not turn around.

"At least she came half way with me..."

Unlike her mother. She knew he meant it even though he did not say it.

"I will see you at the Khurana Residency soon. There are things I need to discuss with you about Dev." He did not wait around to hear her reply.

Geet stood and watched as the car drove away wondering how she was going to deal with this man in whose presence she was slowly coming undone.