A variation of the story **To tell or not to tell**PG8 update - Page 6

"Haan, haan, taunt karne waali aur sarcastic comments karne waali toh mein akeli hi hun na yahan per," Kasak said, sipping the juice.

"Tum toh sarcasm ki Queen ho," said Dev rolling his eyes.

After breakfast, Dev asked Kasak to follow him to his room. "I wanted to show you the results of my latest online shopping spree," said Dev as they climbed the stairs. "I asked Tina to buy me some newer clothes. She knows the colors and brands I prefer. So, she just orders my clothes online. Come, take a look," said Dev. Meanwhile, Kasak stared at him in disbelief as they climbed on.

"Tamaru chaski gayu che (have you lost it?) How can you let someone else shop for you?" she asked him as they entered his room.

"No, I haven't lost it," said Dev, checking the translation app on his phone.

"Half the fun when you go shopping is trying on clothes that you know will look weird or will make you look fat. But, you still try them on"just to see yourself wearing them," explained Kasak. Dev stared at her, dumbfounded.

"That sounds like a gigantic waste of time," said Dev. Suddenly, an innocent expression masked his face; it was like that of a five year old who just figured out a magic trick. "Now I know why women take so long when shopping!"

"DEV! You should seriously go to the mall yourself and shop! Nobody, not even Tina, or online shopping can replace the experience," argued Kasak. "And by the way, trying on various sized and funky colored clothes is fun. It's sometimes even relaxing. For some, it's therapeutically,"

"REALLY?!" roared Dev.

"Yes, I'm serious. Research it if you want to, it's a corollary of retail therapy," said Kasak calmly. Dev stood like a stranger in his room, watching Kasak from a distance, examining each piece of clothing and then finally picking out a maroon tie from one of the bags. .

Suddenly, Dev said: "Oh, that's a mistake! They delivered the wrong colored tie. It was supposed to be..."
"Black," Kasak finished. "I know. This colour maroon is quite ugly too. But, let's see you wear it anyways,"

"What?!" said Dev. "First of all, the colour is awful. Even if I do decide to wear this, it doesn't match with my navy blue shirt,"

"Eisi liye toh...try something weird. Just to see if you have fun," Kasak said. Dev was still relentless. Finally, Kasak took the tie out of the fancy box and unleashed it from the shackles plastic packaging. She then walked upto a hesitant Dev and wrapped it around his neck. She smoothly lifted his collar to tuck the tie beneath it. Dev was still rolling his eyes at her act; she decided to tie the tie herself. Unfortunately, Kasak had no prior experience of knotting a tie. As it was, she was a bit nervous standing so close to Dev and attempting to do something against his wish. After a few unsuccessful attempts, she moved away from Dev. "Bandh do na. Mujhe practice nahi hai," she said.

Dev smirked at her failure and reluctantly agreed to her request. He swiftly knotted the tie around his neck and walked towards Kasak. "Ab batao, ekdum joker lag raha huh na?" he said. Without a word, Kasak grabbed his arm and walked him to the mirror. Dev looked at himself and examined the maroon tie. Then, a few silent moments later, he looked back at Kasak and said, "You know, this color isn't so awful anymore. Maybe it would look good with an off white shirt, or a peach one,"

"Dekha? "said Kasak. "Nayi cheezein try karoge toh aise naye type ke kapade pehanne ka idea milega," Dev laughed as he took off the maroon tie. "Waise, ab aap mere boyfriend hai toh I'll ask you: What do you think about my dressing sense?"

"I think it's fine," said Dev. "You're always very professional. And your dresses are usually colorful. The other thing is, all the colours look good on you. So, I don't really have any criticism...Oh haan...ek baat, " said Dev.

"What?" said Kasak narrowing her eyebrows inquisitively.

"Sometimes...not always..." began Dev, fumbling with his hands. He didn't know how to say it, but there was one thing about Kasak's fashion sense he found peculiar. He still fumbled with his hands, fingers nervously wrapping around one another. "The earrings you wear are a little too big... again"sometimes, not always," he finished. As if he had said something really wrong, Dev could not make eye contact with Kasak. "I mean...aachi lagati hai tum par. Lekin, woh toh koi bhi cheez lagegi because you're very pretty, lekin tumhari earrings kuch zyada hi badi aur thodi si annoying hai," finished Dev.

"Dev?!" said Kasak. "You notice my earrings? I'm genuinely shocked and impressed. The other day you noticed my heavy makeup. Today you noticed the earrings. Wow," she said. "I like wearing large earrings. I think they frame my face. Anyways, I'll try to go for the medium sized ones next time,"

Dev's face lit up again: "Woh jewelry waale log small, medium, large ke hissab se earrings bechte hai? Batao... size ke hissab ke bechte hai kya?" he asked genuinely.

Kasak didn't respond. Instead, she stared at him in disbelief. She wondered how he had grown up amongst three sisters. But, it appeared as if Dev had found a new field of research. He continued.

"Haan toh, what about your facial bone structure? Is that how they determine the size of the earring: small, medium or large?"

"Dev, let's not get diverted from the topic. Why don't you return these clothes, and buy something a bit different this time?" Kasak said.

"I'll try and buy different shades of grey next time," said Dev annoyed that Kasak had dismissed his earring comments. "Besides, Tina was reading an interesting book on colour schemes: Fifty Shades of Grey,"

Kasak stared at him shocked. And then, she let out a small giggle as Dev looked at her curiously. WHAT'S SO FUNNY-was written all over his face.

"No, Dev. That's not a book of..." Kasak continued laughing.

"Oh, so you've read it too?" said Dev smiling. "The author must have a good sense of humor if you're laughing remembering it,"
"No, I didn't read it," Kasak retorted. "And the author of that book has a demented sense of life," explained Kasak.

"Why?" asked Dev innocently. "Just because the author wrote a book about what you consider a dull colour?"
"No, that's not why," Kasak and Dev began to pack the plethora of clothes that they had arranged on Dev's bed. After they finished, Dev suggested that they go downstairs and relax in the garden area.

"Listen," Kasak said as they sat in the swing in Dev's beautiful garden. He looked at her with affection shining through his honey brown eyes. "Please don't ever mention the book Fifty shades of Grey to anyone. I mean anyone, like not even family...Nahi, definitely not family. Aur Nikki ya Riya ke samane toh bilkul nahi varna aapki respect kam ho jayegi. And yes, don't let Tina know that you saw her reading that book, okay?"

"Yaar, kya hai aisa eis book mein?" said Dev in bewilderment throwing his hands up in the air. "I'm gonna have to research this further," he said taking out his phone from his front pocket. Before he could unlock it, Kasak grabbed it from his hands. Dev looked infuriated now." KASAK..." he began.

"What, huh? Why do you always to research everything? The internet doesn't have the answer to everything okay? Aap ek businessman hai koi CID officer Daya nahi jo har cheez ki excessive research kare," Kasak yelled back at him.

"Aur tum ek doctor ho koi censor board officer nahi jo mujhe research karne par ban laga do," Dev snorted back. For a few moments, they swung in the swing together in silence. Suddenly, Kasak felt the swing move backwards really fast. Dev had jerked the swing in annoyance. She grabbed the metal bar to keep herself from falling.

"Aa manas ne shanti rakhta j nathi avadatu. Pota nu dhariyu na thay aetle beeja par gusso kadhse (He doesn't even know how to swing in peace. He's angry just because I didn't do as he said)," Kasak said under her breath in Gujarati.

"Ab eiska jawab bhi nahi de sakata mein," said Dev who had been observing Kasak from the other end of the swing. "Mera phone bhi tumhare paas hai. Ab tu hi translation bata de ke abhi abhi tune mujhe kya kaha,"

"Kasu nahi (Nothing)," said Kasak again and jumped off the swing. "And here's your phone," she said putting in on a nearby bench. She went into the kitchen, prepared some lemonade for herself and Dev and then came out with it. "Here. Try this," she said gesturing him to come off the swing.

"Hmm...it's good," he said sipping it. "Chalo at least tumhe neembu-paani banana toh aata hai," said Dev in a teasing tone.

"You know, on a serious note"I always wanted to learn how to cook. But, I was so busy in studies that I honestly never got the opportunity to do so," she said. Dev listened on. "I always used to study even in summer vacations just to make sure that I wouldn't fall behind and that I would be in the top ten students of the class. And then when I did get little free time, my parents used to insist that I relax instead of learning new things because they couldn't bear to see me so stressed out all the time,"

"I understand," said Dev. "Mein toh summer vacation mein paise kamane ke liye extra job karta tha. I used to work at local businesses, calculating daily accounts when the CA used to be absent or on leave. Aur jab thaak kar ghar aata tha, toh Ma mujhe aur kuch karne nahi deti thi,"

"Dev, you know I had some weird summer jobs when I was trying to pay for medical college. I mean, my parents have taken out some loans and such, but it never hurts to save up anyhow," said Kasak.

"Of course," agreed Dev, and poured another glass of lemonade for himself and Kasak from the jug. "What was the weirdest job you ever had?"

"Me? Oh my...I had so many crappy jobs as a student! Okay, if I had to pick one: I worked at an ice cream shop for like 6 months as a first year student," said Kasak. "I had to convince the customers to buy ice cream and cookies in the winter," Dev laughed heartily, followed by Kasak. "But, you know what? I wasn't so bad at it. Still, they fired me and it wasn't even my fault,"

"Then whose fault was it?" said Dev.

"My brother's," continued Kasak. "One day, when I wasn't looking, he snuck into shop and ate all the strawberry ice cream. The owners caught him and sacked me," Dev and Kasak looked at each other seriously for a moment and then cracked up laughing. "What about you? What was your weirdest job?" asked Kasak.

"Mera toh ek particular job bohat kharab tha. Do you remember before satellite TVs and such, we had those antennas to run the cable TVs?" Kasak nodded. " I used to have to work for the local cable guy who sent me to his customers' houses to repair their antennas. I would have to twist and turn and shake up the antenna until the TV worked while enduring the customers, who were mostly elderly women's taunts," Kasak laughed.

"I can only imagine," she said.

Dev continued. "Those ladies used to get so mad that they couldn't the afternoon repeat of their daily serials," Dev said angrily. The job was so awful that Dev was still angry about the experience. Kasak could clearly the frustration on his face, as he shook it in disapproval of those elderly ladies.

"You know though," she said after a few moments. "That used to be a real problem. In Ahmedabad, when I was growing up, we had to go up to the terrace to fix the antennas in the scorching afternoon heat," she said. Dev continued shaking his head in disapproval.

"Haan...Ahmedabad ki 50 degree garmee mein aap woh stupid TV ka antenna fix karne upper chat pe jaati ho. Lekin yeh nahi ke ek din TV nahi dekhna hai,"

"Kya kare?" said Kasask smirking. "Gujarat mein mera jo cable waala tha uska koi handsome assistant nahi tha na!"

"It's not funny," said Dev. "That job was really awful,"

"So was mine! How do you feel when someone tells you that you cannot work at their God-forsaken ice cream shop because and I quote "your family members cannot control their strawberry ice cream appetite," ?"

"I can imagine," said Dev. "Anyways, those days are gone now," said Dev heaving a sigh of relief.

"Take it positively Dev! Though those days were tough for us, they were interesting. We both got to learn a lot from them. Look, there will always be problems in life, but the best way to deal with them is to simply laugh at them. Trust me, this is what they teach you in counseling sessions. Try to view your problems as being humorous and just see how everything becomes easier!"

Dev looked at Kasak in admiration.

Thanks for the appreciation everyone! Here's the next update. Hope you like it and let me know what you think!!

Dev looked at Kasak in admiration. Sometimes, he forgot how she, just like him, was a self-made woman. Suddenly, he asked Kasak: "So, baatein karne ke seeway, dates par log aur kya karte hai?"

"Patah nahi," said Kasak. "Aap bhi mere pehle boyfriend hi ho Dev!"

"Seriously?" Dev asked. "You've never had anyone before? I myself never had the time to look for anyone, but you never had anyone?"

"No," said Kasak. "There used to be guys who'd flirt and who I could tell were interested. But, I wasn't interested in them. Honestly, I thought most of them were idiots. In fact, believe or it or not Dev, one of the things that attracted me to you was your arrogance," she said smiling.

"Oh reallly?" said Dev smirking. "Mujhe patah tha, ke mere attitude hamesha se ekdum perfect raha hai, chahe phir woh business deals ke liye ho yaa phir ladakion ko attract karne ke liye,"

Kasak giggled and the duo decided to have lunch at one of Dev's restaurants. "You know," Dev said as they entered the restaurant. "I'm really becoming very fond of Gujarati food. Maybe you should learn how to cook it," Kasak gave him an annoyed look. "Seriously yaar," insisted Dev.

"Maybe I should go to Darshan's house next time I'm in Ahmedabad. His mom can teach me," Kasak retorted. That made Dev quit the subject immediately. Dev and Kasak ordered the food and waited for it arrive while listening to beautiful music being played in the restaurant. Chalo ji aaj saaf saaf kehta huh...itni si baat hai. Mujhe tumse pyaar hai.

"By the way, Dev," began Kasak. "It's been a while since I haven't seen my parents. I was planning on visiting them soon,"

"Sounds good," said Dev. "When do you want to go? Next month?"

"I was thinking more like next week," said Kasak.

"What?!" said Dev. "Tum paagal ho? Wahan par eis waqt 50 degree garmee hai. Ahmedabad is on fire!"

"I'm used to it Dev. And I really miss my family," said Kasak.

"Okay," said Dev. "I can understand. Don't you have to tell the people at your hospital that you're leaving?" Kasak explained that she had already spoken with Dr. Singh. He had approved of her leave; she just needed to tell him the exact dates. After lunch, Dev dropped Kasak home and went to pick up his Ma and three sisters at Mama's new house.

Kasak was terribly excited to go to Ahmedabad after such a long time. She hadn't been there in two years! She had been so busy taking care of her career for the past few years that she had ignored her inclinations to take a vacation. "Ketala wakhat paachi huh tya paachi jaish (I'll go back after such a long time!). I wonder if everything is still the same! I think the first thing I'll do is go to eat at Manek Chawk," she thought as she folded her clothes and arranged them in a suitcase. Kasak had very little packing to do as she was just planning to buy most of her clothes and jewelry anew since her current belongings were more than a year old. Finally, she decided to call her parents and tell them that she would be leaving for the train station in about twenty minutes.

As excited as Kasak was, there lingered a strange disappointment in her heart. This disappointment was borne of her affinity for Dev. Their relationship had just begun and she was going away from him so soon. She was very happy that Dev was so understanding of her emotions. He had, without any delay or objections, approved of her visit. "Tum jao," he had said, "and give my regards to your family,"

She was not sure whether to tell her family about Dev or not. Though she had not given it much thought, Kasak decided against it. Since Dev and her relationship was so new, Kasak decided to wait to inform her parents. This way, they would not get their hopes up. Besides, she did not want to unveil her Dev in front of her family just yet. This was a very difficult decision for Kasak to make; she loved her family the most in the world. In fact, she was sure that she loved them; case in point, she wasn't even sure that what she felt for Dev was love! She cared about him deeply, and could not bear to see him upset or sad. But, was it really love? Kasak was not sure. The truth was"she had never felt like this towards any other guy; she just never had the opportunity. Before declaring her feelings as "eternal love etc.", Kasak decided to stay in this beautiful relationship and let her feelings mature for a while. Yet, she did not want to unveil her Dev in front of the Sheth family yet. Dev was as close to Kasak's heartbeat as one's most well kept secret; her whole heart fluttered at the mention of him.

"Are!" Kasak exclaimed, as she walked out of her apartment without her keys. "Aa shu Dev, tamara lidhe huh gaandi thai gayi chu! (Oh my! I've gone nuts thinking about Dev!)" Kasak blushed as she walked back inside. As Kasak descended the stairs in a dreamy state of mind, thoughts about Dev preoccupied her and then, suddenly, a radical thought came into being. She thought of visiting Dev before departing for Ahmedabad. "Na, na have! Train miss thai jase! (No no!! I can't! I'll miss the train)" called out her rational self. And yet, she didn't listen to it.

"Dixit mansion," she told the rickshaw driver. She decided to quickly bid good bye to Dev and then head to the train station.

"Are beta, tu toh jaane waali thi na, apne ma-papa se milne?" Ishwari warmly greeted Kasak as she walked in.

"Nahi, woh...aunty jee, actually, mein aap sab ko Bye' bolne aayi thi. Phir mein ek mahine tak nahi milungee na toh," Kasak haphazardly explained. "Waise toh aap ab meri patient nahi hai, phir bhi kehne aayi thi ke please dhaan rakhna Aunty jee," Kasak's eyes scanned the Dixit mansion for a hint of Dev, but alas.

"Oh, you're so sweet Dr. Kasak!" said Nikki hugging her.

"Haan, haan beta. Ab tu jaa, tujhe der nahi ho rahi hai?" said Ishwari.

"Jee, Aunty jee," Kasak said as a wave of disappointment took over her. She began to walk towards the door; the rickshaw driver waited outside with her baggage still in the rickshaw. Kasak finally gathered the courage to ask Ishwari. Afterall, she had not travelled all the way here and risked missing the train just to go back with a heavy heart. "Aunty jee, Mr. Dixit kahin dikhai nahi de rahe?" Kasak said turning around at the door.

"Woh, Dev toh gaya hai. Kisi badi meeting mein," explained Ishwari with a prideful smile on her face.

"Yeah, bhaiyaa kal raat se eis deal baare mein bohat excited the. Yeh hamari company ke liye bohat zyada beneficial hai," Nikki explained.

"Oh, I see," said Kasak as she walked out. While in the rickshaw, she hoped that Dev's meeting would go well. She figured she would text him later on from the train. Raat ko lori ban, chupke se mathe ko chule. Taanke hue shirt ke button sa. Godh rakh soya bachpan sa. Haath ki laali sa...kabhi lage dhaaga resham sa. Ho ho pyaar mein lipte kitne rang mile...Kuch rang pyaar ke aise bhi...kuch rang pyaar ke aise bhi! Kasak's new caller tune emanated from her purse; "Mom" flashed across her screen.

"Beta, kya pohchi? Tu station per che ne? (Dear, are you at the station yet?)" Kasak's mom asked from the other end.

"Na, mummy. Rasta ma chu, (No mummy, I'm on the way)" she said. She could imagine her Mom frowning on the other end.

"Ketli vaar tane kahayu che ke ghare thi time par neekalvanu. Ane hava travelling na time e toh dus minute vehalu nikalvu saaru, (I've told you so many times to leave on time or even a little early for travelling purposes)" Kasak's mother scolded her from the other end. Kasak quietly listened to and accepted her mother's scolding as she usual. "Have ketli vaar ma station pohchis? (How much longer till you get to the station?)" asked her mom.

"Bus, ten minutes," said Kasak. "Huh tane have train ma besi nej phone jodis, (I'll you back when I'm at the station)" Kasak said.

"Bhale. Shaanti thi jaje beta, (Okay. Go forth peacefully and calmly dear)" said her Mom affectionately.

Given the rickshaw driver's exceptional skills, they reached the station in eight minutes. Kasak paid him and headed towards the train. The train was supposed to depart at 7.55PM and would arrive in Ahmedabad around 9.30 AM the next morning. Kasak sat in the train and arranged her baggage. Then, the first thing she did was text her mother that she had arrived on the station and had settled in the train just fine. Then, she texted Dev: "Good luck for your meeting. I came to see you but unfortunately missed you. I'm leaving now. See you soon!" Before sending the message, Kasak deleted the middle sentence; she didn't want Dev to feel guilty for having missed her good-bye. He would hear that she had come there from his family anyways.

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Kasak woke up to the heavy sound of the train wheels the next morning in the train. The very first thing that came to her mind immediately as she opened her eyes was: Dev! She checked her phone to see if he had replied. There were five notifications on her phone: 1 message from Mom, 1 missed call from Mom, 2 messages and 1 missed call from Dev. Kasak checked her mother's message first since she knew it would be a much quicker response (both emotionally and otherwise). Formulating a response for Dev would take a lot more effort and emotions from Kasak.

"Beta, hope you're doing well. Call me when you wake up," : read the message from her mother. Kasak decided to freshen up a bit, eat breakfast and then call home. As she returned from the bathroom and ordered food, Kasak dialed her home phone number. Her mother picked up the phone and Kasak told her that she would be arriving in about twenty minutes. Kasak told her family that there was no need to pick her up; she would reach home on her own, but her family insisted that they come to the station to pick her up. This was a match she could not win and Kasak finally gave in.

Kasak wanted to open and read Dev's messages. But, she decided to eat breakfast first and then do so in peace. "Hey! Thanks for the good wishes. I cracked the deal!! I heard you were to home to see "my mother" last night. Sorry I missed you. Call me when you reach there."Dev." Kasak smiled as she read his informal signature at the bottom of the text message.

"You don't need to sign at the end of a text message," she remembered reprimanding him a few days ago. "If your number is saved in my phone, I'll know it's you," she explained.

Nahi par, just in case. Aacha lagata hai. Aise kaise apna naam likhe bina hi hum kisi ko message bhej de?" argued Dev.

"Dev, maari vaat sambhalo. Juo (Dev, please listen to me) ...Listen, nobody and I MEAN NOBODY does this okay? This is abnormal," Kasak had said, losing her patience.

"Well, in that case, tell me something: why do people write their names on the bottom of cards? They already put the receiver's and the gift giver's name on the envelope. Then, why at the bottom of the card, do people write: "With love, XYZ"?" retorted Dev.

Kasak had finally given up trying to explain to him why it was peculiar to sign your name at the bottom of a text message, especially one meant for your girlfriend. Coming out of her memories, Kasak opened the second message from Dev. This one was more recent. He had sent it an hour ago: "Hey, kahan tak pohchi? I hope tumhara safar aacha ja raha hai. Talk to you soon. -Dev."

She tried to call him, but she could not find steady network in the train. Kasak observed the Sabarmati River and the grand Railway Bridge stretch across the morning sky. She smiled again as nostalgia usurped her being. She remembered her childhood in this city. She had such amazing memories here. Yet, every time she visited the city, she could feel the joy of the child within her surface again. Kasak loved living in Delhi. She had grown accustomed to the traffic, the bindass attitude of the public and the food. But, there was something so special about returning to one's childhood home.

Suddenly, Kasak understood why Dev had built his grand house in the middle of such a low class area. He found immense comfort living in the same area where he spent his childhood years. He and his family had lived so far from home for so many years; they had struggled so hard to try and carve out a decent life for themselves. Finally, when he had achieved it all for them, it was time for him to return to his childhood home. By living in this home, Dev had attempted, perhaps even unconsciously, to reclaim a slice of his childhood that had been snatched by harsh circumstances.

"Chalo chalo, station aa gaya!" Kasak heard various passengers say as they dismantled their luggage. She patiently waited for most of the passengers to get off of the plane before getting her luggage. As she got off the train, Kasak observed her parents and brother furiously waving to her from a distance. "Kabhi kabhi family simultaneously cute aur embarrassing harkatein karti hai," she said as she walked towards them.

Each one of them gave Kasak a tight hug; the next one always being more tighter than the former. "Chal beta, ghare aaram kari leh, (Let's go home and you take rest)" said her Mom. Kasak insisted that she wanted to eat at Manek Chawk. She and her brother Nilay went to Manek Chawk to eat street food while Kasak's parents headed home with the luggage.

"So, tya koi malayo ke nai? (Did you find someone for yourself over there?)" said Nilay as Kasak munched on Chinese puffs.

"Na na have. Taru business kem chale che? (No, nothing like that. How's your business?)" Kasak questioned Nilay.

"Business is good. I'm really making good money. Thanks for working so hard and giving me money to start my business. I know how hard you've worked and that because of me. You probably cannot save any money. But, trust me, you'll be very proud of me soon. I'm really trying hard and doing well," said Nilay sincerely.

"Nilay, tu chinta mat kar. Agli rakhi pe tujhse saare paise vasul kar lungi," joked Kasak.

Nilay and Kasak headed home after their brunch at Manek Chawk. Kasak took a shower and then went to sleep for a few hours. She woke up around 2 PM and walked in to the drawing room, where her mom was preparing for dinner.

"Beta, you want a late lunch?" she asked.

"No, mom. Have siddhu sanje j jamis. Meh already Manek Chawk ma bahu junk food kahi lidhu hatu. Have 3-4 days only Khichdi for me (No mom. I'll directly eat dinner now. I already had a ton of junk food this morning at Manek Chawk. I'll only have Khichdi for 3-4 days now)," Kasak said.

"Haa toh, aa age ma toh badha junk food j khaay. Don't worry. Tu kya roj khaay che? Enjoy yourself. Have aakho divas aa healthy food na kha kha karis, (That's fine! People your age should enjoy and if it means eating junk fine, that's also fine once in a while. You always eat healthy. So it's fine once occasionally)" said Kasak's mother.

"Mom, only khichdi for me tonight," said Kasak angrily.

"Okay, beta. I'll only make Khichdi for you, fine?" said Kasak's Mom, finally giving up. Kasak grabbed the remote and turned on the sports channel to catch the IPL highlights. She was hoping she could catch an exclusive Virat Kohli interview also. "Beta, your phone was ringing a lot too," said Kasak's mother, sincerely peeling a potato. "Since you were sleeping, I turned it off. Maybe it's from the hospital. Did you inform them you were coming home?"

Oh no! Kasak had forgotten to reply or call Dev. She immediately sprung up from the couch and headed towards her room. Before going in, she assured her Mom that she had informed the hospital and that it was probably her friend who was worried whether she reached home on time.

Kasak closed her door and dialed Dev's number within a fraction of a second; he immediately picked up the call before even the first ring went through. "Hello. Kahan thi tu? Kitne phones kare maine? Messages kare...aisa koi karta hai kya?" roared Dev from the other end.

"Sorry Dev!" said Kasak. "Actually, I fell asleep as soon as I got home and there was no network in the train. So, my calls would not go through to Delhi," she explained. "By the way, I'm glad your deal worked out. Ab 3-4 days tak coffee ko haath bhi mat lagana," Kasak continued, now assuming an authoritative tone.

"Kya? Tum wahan se kya CCTV camera mein dekhogee mein kitni coffee peeta huh?" Dev responded.

"Aacha listen, I may not unfortunately get as many chances to talk to you as I would like. We can definitely text though. It's just that I can't hide in my room for long periods of time without my family getting suspicious. They'll know something is up," said Kask.

"Okay. Toh tum apni family ko bataogee nahi?" asked Dev.

"Nahi Dev. I don't think the time is right just yet. I want this to be...ugh. It's a long thought process. I'll call you later tonight?" asked Kasak. Dev agreed and they hung up.

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Y did u stop writing pls pm me once u update