Ok guys here's my next installment of the series...I hope you enjoy reading it...
The Banner (2)
Banner Credits : Binnu (my darling Binnuuddiii)
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Chapter Sixteen
Sona entered the kitchen to see her mother making her favorite sweet dish Gulaab Jaamun...she quickly put on the apron and joined her mother to help her out while her mother looked on to her fondly..."pata hai Sona...log kaha karte the ki shaadi ke baad betiyan badal jaati hai, pehle se jyaada mature aur jimmedaar ban jaati hai...mujhe lagta tha ki yeh sab baatein hai...par tujhe dekhkar ahsaas ho raha hai ki yeh sab kitna sach tha...tu sachmein badal gayi hai...jo ladki pehle kitchen mein pair bhi nahi rakhti thi woh aaj khud se aakar mera haath bata rahi hai, jise college jaane keliye tak apne papa ya Dev ki jaroorat hoti thi woh aaj khud se jaakar job interview de aayi aur select bhi ho gayi...tere papa aur Dev kitne khush honge yeh jaankar kit u apne pairon pe khada hone ki koshish kar rahi hai...iss meethe ka swaad to tab aur bhi bad jayega..."...Asha affectionately caressed her hair..."par mumma, iss meethe ka swaad aur jyaada badega agar main apni pehli salary papa ke haathoan mein rakh ke unse aashirwaad lungi...tab to unhe khushi ke saath saath mujhpar garv bhi hoga..."...Asha looked on to Sona all confused about what exactly she was trying to explain..."arrey mumma, mera matlab yeh hai ki abhi papa ko batane ki koi jaroorat nahin hai meri naukri ke baare mein...waise bhi unhe kahaan pata chalega?...woh kahaan din bhar ghar pe rehte hai...unke jaane ke baad main office chali jaungi aur unke lautne se pehle aa jaungi...to yeh baat aap bass secret hi rehne do..."...Asha couldn't help but be amused at her childish excitement...suddenly she remembered something..."papa ka to theek hai Sona...par Dev?...use to batana hi padega na..."...Sona felt her plan crash infront of her...she immediately covered up..."Dev ko to main bata dungi mumma...uski chinta aap mat kijiye...unhe main raat ko sonese pehle sab bata dungi..."...Asha didn't want to spoil her daughter's probable romantic surprise for her husband..."accha baba theek hai...main tum dono ke beech bilkul nahi aaungi...karo jo karna hai..."...she shook her head laughing away at her daughter's antics as Sona had planned something else for Dev tonight.
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Dev had a very hectic day today at work...first of all his aching back had not even let him lean back and sit during the entire presentation...and then his back to back 3 meetings which his PA had absent mindedly set up for him all on the same day...he couldn't even scold her for that as she would give him an apologetic smile for her slip of mind...and then he wouldn't be able to stay annoyed with her for longer...wrapping up his meetings for the day Dev headed straight back home...ofcourse Sona's house...as he had planned to become a permanent member there till Sona decides to get back to him...as he entered the living room he could smell the fragrance of a sweet dish emanating from the kitchen...he saw Asha fiddling near the dining table and casually asked her..."mumma, aapne aaj kuch meetha banaya hai kya?...badi acchi khusboo aa rahi hai...kuch khaas hai kya aaj?"...Asha was about to reply back to him when Sona arrived from the kitchen holding the container of Gulaab Jaamun in her hand...her expressions immediately turned to that of frowning when she saw him..."kyun?...kuch khaas ho to hi meetha banta hai kya?...bina kisi occasion ke hum meetha nahin kha sakte?..."...her anger made him conclude that she may be upset because of the morning incident...trying to lighten her mood he said..."maine aisa kab kahaan wifey...ofcourse bina kisi occasion ke hum meetha kha sakte hai...aur jiski tum jaisi sweet wife ho woh to roj mauke dhoondega na meetha khane ke..."...Dev winked at Sona who had her mouth wide open at his open flirting infront of her mother who had by now left the place all embarrassed.
"chalo main kapde badal ke aata hoon...phir papa bhi aa jayenge, to saath mein khana kha lenge...aur phir humein meetha bhi to khana hai..."...he emphasized on the word" meetha" irking her even more..."sab samajhti hoon main...yeh sab uss chudail ka asar hai...bohot shauk haina meetha khane ka...aaj itna meetha khilaungi ki tumhari saath peedhiyan yaad rakhengi...Cheeku se panga liya hai to sazaa to milegi ..."
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All gathered at the dining table as Dev had a chat with Bijoy discussing his future business ventures, while Asha was busy serving everyone and Sona was waiting for Dev to finish his meals...as soon as Dev stuffed the last bite of his roti, Sona at once sprung up on her feet and put two Gulaab Jaamun's in a bowl and forwarded it towards Dev..."Sona abhi abhi khaana khaya hai...thodi der baad kha lunga..."...Dev who was actually full after his meals tried his best to buy some time..."baad mein kyun...agar khaana hai to abhi khao...warna saaf saaf boldo ki maine banaya hai isiliye nahin khaana...bahana banana ki jaroorat nahin hai..."...Bijoy who was annoyed at Sona's childish behavior was about to scold her when Dev signaled him to stop..."bahana nahin bana raha tha baba...mera pet sachmein bhar gaya hai...(when he saw her face dropping he quickly took the bowl from her hand...)...accha baba chalo dedo...tumhe naaraaj thodi na karunga...lao main kha leta hoon..."...Dev although was not in a state to have it right now, ate it reluctantly so that he doesn't give Sona another chance to be upset with him...as soon as he finished having them Sona asked him how was it to which he said he did like them...and soon after she poured two more Gulaab Jaamun's into his bowl shocking one and all by her behavior..."aisa kya dekh rahe ho sab...Dev ne to kahaan ki accha laga ...to uska mann hoga aur bhi khaane ka...sharma raha hai kyunki humare ghar mein haina...koi nahi, Dev tum khao...aur bhi lena...ghabrao mat mote ho jauge to bhi main kuch nahin kahungi...(when Dev didn't have the courage to eat anymore and he kept starring at the dish infront of him Sona cozxed him even more...)...kya hua kha kyun nahin rahe ho?...ruko main khilaati hoon.."...Sona kept on feeding him till Bijoy had completely lost his temper and chided her for troubling Dev with her childish games...Dev who was not at all feeling well now excused himself and went upto the room.
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"kaunse janam ka badla le rahi ho yaar Cheeku...aise kaun karta hai kisi ke saath...ab kya mujhe maar ke hi dum logi tum?..."...Dev reprimanded her as he rolled on the bed holding his now aching stomach..."yaar kal couch pe soya to peeth dard kar rahi thi...socha aaj jaameen pe so jaunga to theek ho jayegi...lekin tumhe chain kahaan...peeth dard kam hua nahin ki pet dard gift kar diya mujhe...tum ek kaam kyun nahin karti...maar hi daalo mujhe...tab to chain milega tumhe..."...Sona stood guilty in a corner shedding tears at her own foolish behavior..."to aur kya karti...you deserve it, kisne kahaan tha mujhse aisa behave karne ko...pehle khud galti karo aur phir mujhe blame karo...stupid."...Dev couldn't decipher exactly which mistake of his she was referring to..."ab kya kar diya maine?...yaar tum agar abhi bhi Indore waali baat ko lekar naaraj ho to main kitni baar sorry bol chukka hoon...ab to maaf kardo...tumhare iss gusse ke chakkar mein ek din meri jaan chali jaani hai."...Sona's eyes shot up in worry as he mentioned this to him..."shut up duffer...khabardaar jo marne maarne ki baat ki to...main itni asaani se maaf nahin karungi tumhe...aur meri maafi haasil kiye bina kahi jaa bhi nahi sakte tum...aur aaj jo galti tumne ki hai uske baad to bilkul bhi maafi nahin milegi..."...one side Dev was having a troublesome stomach and the other side a troublesome wife..."ab aaj kaunsi galti ki maine...kya nahane ke baad bina shirt pehne bathroom se nikalna bhi galti hai..."...he tried reasoning from a point where he could farthest remember..."buddhuram to tum the hi...ab ghonchuraam bhi ban gaye ho...how mean could you be Dev...tumhe yeh tak yaad nahi ki aaj mera result day tha...tumne ek baar bhi call karke nahin poocha ki main paas hui ki fail..."...she had still more to complain when Dev suddenly replied back..."fail ho tumhare dushman...mujhe pata hai ki tumne saare subjects mein top kiya hai, apne college ki first rank holder ho aur overall university mein 2nd highest...tumhare aur topper ke beech sirf 2 marks ka fark hai, jo agar tum chaho to paper recheck karwa ke hum door kar sakte hai...ab jab mujhe sab pata hai to bhala main tumhe call kyun karunga?...ab batao buddhuram cum ghonchuram kaun hai?...main ki tum...waise bhi mujhe laga ki kya pata tum mujhe kuch bataogi bhi yaa nahin... inn dino mera babu mujhse katti hai na...isiliye seedha tumhare principal se hi pooch liya...par tume isse kya?...tumhe to bass iljaam lagane ka bahana chahiye yaar Cheeku..."...Sona felt the land beneath her feet should just open up and swallow her...he knew about her result much before her and in a more precise way then her...but still she troubled him so much...due to her stupid misunderstanding.
Crying she sat on the other side of the bed where Dev was lying helpless now..."sab tumhari galti hai...tumne hi mujhe aisa bana diya hai...kya jaroorat thi mere saath yeh sab karne ki...kitne acche se kat rahi thi na humari life...kyun sab kuch bigaad diya?"...she wept silently as Dev forego of his pain and consoled her..."Cheeku, I know ki maine sab bigaad diya hai...par tum hi socho, shayad yeh bhi humaari kismat thi...hum waise to shaadi karte nahin...kya pata humari shaadi hona pehle se tay thi...tabhi to itna sab kuch ho gaya...pata hai, beeti baatoan pe afsos jataane ki bajay hume apne rishte ko sudharne ki koshish karni chahiye...pata hai main kya keh raha tha..."...Dev was now completely lost in her innocent looks as she looked on to him like an obedient student...both of them were so lost in each other that they didn't realize that their faces were now mere inches apart from each other...Sona who was listening to him intently all lost in his honey brown orbs didn't intend to move behind or push him away...this all might have continued till eternity if Dev had not experienced a sudden spasm in his tummy...clutching his stomach again he growled in pain as Sona helped him lie down on the bed and ran her hand over his forehead to comfort him...as Dev relaxed a bit Sona hurriedly got up and ran to wake up Asha who made some homemade medicine for Dev and asked Sona to feed him at regular intervals so that he has a sound sleep and becomes alright till morning...the medicine worked wonders as Dev fell into a peaceful sleep while Sona slept besides him in her sitting position keeping a close watch on him.
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Dev had an early morning meeting to be attended...he woke up late and realized he was already late for the meeting...he hurriedly got down from the bed not before adjusting Sona into a lying position ...he quickly grabbed his clothes and rushed into the bathroom to have a shower...as Sona woke up a little later than her usual timing, she found Dev missing from his place, anxious she was about to run downstairs to look for him as she heard the noise of running water from the bathroom, she felt her cheeks heat up as she remembered the previous day's incident ...suddenly she remembered that she also had to rush today as it was her first day at office...picking up her clothes she ran to Asha's room as basically this would fulfill two motives...she could avoid facing a half-clad Dev yet again and also get ready in time as it was her first day at office and she didn't wish to start it on a bad note ...she wore a formal beige colored shirt matched with her linen trousers, her hair tied in a loose ponytail made her looked just so impressive...as she came back to the room to pick up the rest of her belongings she saw Dev tying his tie in haste...walking upto him she turned him around and pulled the tie in her hands and began tying it herself as Dev was busy glaring at her from head to toe as he was mesmerized by her formal look..."ab tabiyat kaisi hai tumhari?...pet dard to nahin kar raha naa?"...she enquired genuinely as Dev was in no mood to answer her back as he was all lost in his own world...she nudged him to answer as he replied..."tum kahin jaa rahi ho kya?...mera matlab hai subah subah tayyar hoke..."...Sona knew by his looks that he was all worried to know where she was heading being all decked..."haan bass ek do jagah interview dene jaa rahi hoon...college to khatam hua ab soch rahi thi ki job kar lu..."...Dev was about to ask her if she wished to work for his firm when suddenly his phone threw up a reminder message for him about his meeting...deciding to talk to her in the evening he quickly said bye to her and rushed out picking up his laptop bag...as soon as he left Sona also came down and took the blessings of her mother before starting off her new journey...vowing to keep Tina all away from Dev she left for Dixit Enterprises on her scooty...as she took the elevator and reached the office which was on the 9th floor, two floors below Dev's office, she saw Tina waiting for her with some files in her hand...she looked all irritated as Sona realized despite of driving like a maniac she was 5 minutes late on her 1st day...as she approached Tina, who was very punctual about the timings just like her boss, gave her an earful..."aaj tumhare office ka pehla din hai...aur pehle hi din late...aise karogi tum kaam...when are you guys going to be professional...MBA to kar lete ho par punctuality mein zero...agar Dev sir ko pata chala na ki unke office ki new recruit pehle hi din late aayi hai to bawaal mach jayega..."...Tina continued her rant about her Dev sir and his particular behavior trait as world seemed to be dazed out for Sona as she cursed Tina in her mind..."haan haan chudail...chilla le mujhpe...jitna marzi chahe chilla le...acche se pata hai ki tere Dev sir kaunsa bawaal machayenge...agar unhe pata chala na ki unke office ki nayi recruit main hoon to bawaal machana chod billi banke mere peeche peeche ghumenge...lekin tu bhi kya yaad rakhegi...chal chod diya tere Dev sir ko...waise bhi apne staff ke saamne bheegi billi bane unhe dekhna tujha accha nahin lagega...main bhi to dekhu ki tere Dev sir apne staff ko kitne acche se jaante hai...main tab tak wait karungi jab tak unhe khud pata nahin lagta ki maine unke office mein job karna shuru kar diya hai...aur kasam se usse pehle agar tujhe mere pati ke saath binawajah chipakte hue dekha na to..."...Sona was snapped out of her reverie as Tina shook her by her shoulders..."kya kar rahi ho tum...sapne dekhne aayi ho kya yahaan...ye files pakdo aur inhe study karo... aur haan inn se milo...yeh Rahul hai, tumhara trainer...yeh tumhe tumhara kaam samjha dega...aur kisi cheez ki jaroorat ho to mujhe keh dena...aur haan kal se time se office aana..."...Sona nodded affirmatively as Tina left for her desk...she turned around to face Rahul who was ogling at her like a mad person...initially she felt weird by the way he was looking at her but later she calmed down as she realized she was but in her husband's office and had nothing to worry...deciding to keep him on his toes she shot back at him..."Mr. Rahul...kya hum yahaan ek doosre ko ghurne keliye aaye hai...aapse agar nahin ho payega to bata dijiye...main Tina se kehkar dusra trainer rakhwa loongi..."...Sona walked past him towards her desk as Rahul kept on looking at her in his shocked state..."baat to aisa kar rahi hai jaise boss ki biwi ho...itna to mujhe kabhi boss ne bhi nahi sunaya"...Rahul walked behind her scratching his head mentally making a note not to mess up with her.
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Dev had just reached office after attending his meeting...Tina entered his cabin with some files and resumes of the new recruits she had appointed in his absence..."sir yeh woh files hain jo aapne mangwayi thi...aur yeh unn logon ki list jinhe maine kal interview lekar alag alag posts pe appoint kiya hai...mujhe laga ki aapko ek baar dikha dun... I know ki aap busy hai phir bhi...bass 4 hi log hain sir"...Tina forwarded the file containing the list of 4 candidates who had recently joined office which also contained Sona's name..."Tina ab tumne appoint kar hi liya hai to main dubara dekh ke kya karunga?...tumne acche se jaanch parak kar hi rakha hoga na inhe kaam par...ab mujhe itna time kahaan ki yeh sab bhi dekhu..."...he was about to return the file back as he saw Tina's eyes filled with expectation that he would appreciate her for her hard work...not wishing to hurt her sentiments he kept the file back with him..."accha theek hai...aisa karta hoon ki main ye file ghar le jaata hoon...ghar pe baithke aaram se dekh loonga ...abhi filhaal yeh files dekh loon jo maine mangwayi thi..."...Tina felt happy that Dev had agreed to look into the list on his own as she didn't want him to be uninformed about any development in the office off late...this office had been set up by him almost an year back as a branch of his already successfully running Dixit Enterprises H.O. which was looked after by his dad Jay Dixit...most of the staff here was new and was appointed by Dev himself after personal scrutiny and filtering...explains the fact as well as to why nobody was aware of Sona's real identity at this place as Sona had never visited this office and also Dev had never mentioned to anybody about his personal life to any of the employees...the only fact they were aware of was that Dev had been married for more than a month now to his best friend, whose name and identity was not known to anyone...off late the work load had increased and hence Dev didn't get much time to look into these matters...thus he had handed over the responsibility of creating new posts and appointing candidates on Tina...but Tina being the gem she was never took any decision on her own and even if she did so she made it a point to inform Dev about it at the earliest.
Tina was about to leave his cabin when she got reminded of some incident..."sir ek baat batani thi jo mujhe kuch ajeeb lagi...if you don't mind can I share?..."...Tina probed as Dev nodded asking her to go ahead..."kal ek ladki ko appoint kiya maine jiske academic results brilliant hai...par bass woh ladki thodi ajeeb hai...mera matlab hai ki interview uska tha par sawaal woh mujhse kar rahi thi..."...Tina recollected the incident when she had intervied Sona...
FLASHBACK
Tina came back after seeing off Dev and was informed that a girl has been waiting for her to be interviewed for the new posts...she went to her cabin asking the peon to send Sona inside...as Sona entered she was busy looking around the office as Tina asked her to settle down...Sona handed over her file to Tina who took a while to go through it...this gave Sona some more time to look around as her sight fell on the picture kept behind on the shelf which had Dev accepting the award for his business excellence with a photo frame around it with the salutation, "You deserve all the success and love in your life, Sir...we are proud of you!!!!!" ...the word love mentioned there was enough to boil Sona's blood all the more..."to Ms. Malhotra...aap yahaan kaunsi post keliye interview dene aayi hai?"...Sona was in no mood to spare Tina shot back at her..."aapke office mein kaunsi post hai jo mere liye theek hogi...dekhiye job aapko deni hai to aap hi decide kar lijiye...mujhe koi problem nahin hai, main kisi bhi post pe kaam kar sakti hoon..."...Tina was shocked as well as confused at her approach...Sona sensed she had gone a little ahead considering the situation that she was in right now...she just smiled and replied..."mera matlab hai ki kaam jitna seekho utna kam haina...to aap jahan bhi kahengi main kaam kar lungi...mujhe to bass aapki iss famous firm mein kaam karna hai..."...Tina proceeded to ask her few more questions which she answered satisfactorily enough for Tina to appoint her as the junior marketing head of their company..."dekho, yeh firm abhi nayi hai...so yahaan jyaada kaam nahin hai filhaal...par dheere dheere kaam badhega to you have to be prepared for it...tumhara appointment letter tumhe HR department se collect karna hai aur baaki saari cheejein bhi wahi samjha denge tumhe...agar kuch aur janna ho to abhi pooch lo"...Tina had just managed to utter this when Sona asked in utmost urgency..."aap iss office mein kabse kaam kar rahi hain?...yahaan ke boss ko pehle se jaanti hai ya yahi mulakaat hui thi?... "...Tina was a little bowled over by her questions as she looked on to find the reason behind this..."mujhe Dev sir ne yaheen appoint kiya tha aur main unhe pichle ek saal se jaanti hoon...lekin tumhe yeh sab kyun janna hai...tum apne kaam se kaam rakho...jyaada interfere karne ki jaroorat nahin hai samjhi"...Tina chided her as Sona nodded and made a mental note to be careful around her.
FLASHBACK ENDS
"sounds interesting...kya naam bataya tumne uss candidate ka?..."...Dev enquired about this new recruit...Tina was about to tell him about Sona when his phone rang...he signaled her that he will talk to her later as he had to attend a very important video call...thus Dev had yet to learn about Sona being there around in his office.
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