Ariya OS contest(3ed prompt given) - Page 14

Rebound

She crashed through the gates of the police station, slamming her hands on the inspector’s desk. Startled, he looked up.

Girl: kaha hai woh Dave?

Dave: Riya relax (he pointed to the lock up) ye raha tumhara shikaar

Her eyes darted to the side, a few 3rd grade criminals were locked up.However, none of them were of interest to her. They rested on a man sitting cross-legged on the floor. Her resolve wavered for a minute, seeing him after 5 months.

Dave:par please, tujhe jo karna hai jaldi kar, ye illegal kaam mujhse nahi hoga, agar DSP sir ko pata chal gaya toh ho gaya suspension.

Riya came out of her trance: don’t worry, ise main lekar jaa rahi hu

He nodded. They went towards the cell. He was staring at her all the while, from the second she came in. A smirk appeared on his face.

Man: hi Riya, kaise ho?

She glared at him

Man:come on, apne purane boss se koi aise milta hai?

Riya(sternly):main criminals se aise hi milti hu, ACP Arjun Suryakant Rawte

Arjun raised his eyebrow. She didn’t bother to look back.

Riya: cell khol

Dave did the needful expecting Arjun to come out but he didn’t. She glared at him and entered the cell. He wondered if she was going to beat him up but she just bent down and pulled his hands forward handcuffing him. She forcibly made him stand.

Arjun sighed: Do we have to do this? I mean come one, main aaram se bhaag sakta hu Riya. I expected better from you. handcuff toh koi bhi raaste ka luhar 100 rupay mein tod dega

She smiled: jaanti hu, aapke liye mere paas ek special cheez hai. She removed a thin iron chain stunning him. She tied it to the his handcuffs.

Arjun: I can still yank it off

Riya: oh no you won’t

She wrapped the other end around her hand in such a way that it would slice her wrist if he squirmed too much. His mouth opened in shock. Not caring, she thanked her friend and led him out the police station.

She sharply shut the door of the car and started driving towards the ETF office. Her phone rang breaking her concentration.

Riya: ha Shree?

Shree: kaha hai tu? Aayi kyun nahi ab tak?

Riya: aa rahi hu baba

Shree: Rathore sir bhadak rahe hai, jaldi aa

Riya :ha, unse bol ki mein ek pata lekar aa rahi hu

Shree :matlab?

Riya :dekh kar samaj jaoge

She disconnected the call.

Arjun: kya main jaan sakta hun ki mujhe kis jurm mein arrest kiya hai tumne?

Riya: of course, you resigned that day but sir ne aapka resignation accept nahi kiya, duty neglect karne ke liye aapko arrest kiya jaa raha hai

Arjun stared at her but she didn’t bother to spare him a single glance. His heart sank. Maintaining his stoic expression he looked away. He knew he probably deserved her cold shoulder. Their last meet wasn’t exactly the best.

Flashback

Ayesha, Sakshi, Liza and Chotu were tied to a pillar with a ticking bomb. Arjun was desperately trying to remove it. they screamed and pleaded for him to leave but their requests fell on deaf ears. Finally, he succeeded in removing the bomb.He carefully lifted it away and was about to run outside when a girl came running in with her gun pointing straight.

Girl: Arjun sir!

He was surprised to see her there but there was no time. He ran towards the door.

Riya ran after him: sir aap zyaada door nahi jaa paayenge, let me…

Realizing she was about to follow him with the bomb. He stopped short.

Arjun :sorry

Before she could comprehend anything the butt of his gun hit her shoulder dropping her to the ground and ran off locking them inside.

Riya :Arjun Sir NO!!!

The others freed themselves by the time. Chotu helped her up.

Riya: Chotu Darwaaza Tod!!

He didn’t have to be told twice. The door broke open and they ran out. Arjun was threatening a commando of the back-up team to give him the car keys, his being snatched away by whoever the goons were.

Riya: Arjun Sir!!! Please Stop! Aap Kaha Jaayenge?? Pura Area Commercial Hai

Arjun: Riya tum…

Riya: Main Use Diffuse Kar Sakti Hu Please! Time Nahi Hai!

Arjun’s gaze fell on the counter…2 minutes. She rushed forward seeing no movement from him.

Riya: aapke paas pocket knife hai?

He hurriedly removed his multipurpose knife and gave it to her. Her eyes darted around the making of the bomb.

Arjun ordered the others: Leave!!!

But no one moved an inch, frustrating him further.

Arjun: I SAID LEAVE!!!

Ayesha: hum kahi nahi jaayenge sir, marna hai toh saath mein maarenge

He was about to blast again when Riya spoke up.

Riya: ye wire pakadiye

Arjun shifted his focus and did as told. The counter was below one minute now.Everyone was sending silent prayers to their Gods. She uncovered another wire from beneath it and cut it off! The ticking stopped with a long beep. They heaved a sigh of relief. The rest of the team jumped, crushing her into a bear hug as she laughed.

Arjun(stunned):tumhe bomb diffuse karna kaise aata hai?

Riya: mere papa, bomb squad mein the. I used to read his books…..a lot of them

Sakshi(shocked): padhayi se?!?! sirf padhne se tumne bomb diffuse kar diya

She winked at her: aurat ki kabiliyat par kabhi shak nahi kar chahiye

Chotu: par Ri, tu yaha kaise?

Riya :jab aap log bahot time tak waapis nahi aaye toh ek desk holder ne commissioner sir ko inform kiya aur us, waqt mein re-join hone waha gayi thi toh aa gayi

Chotu hugged her again: you’re a life saver!!!

The lot returned to office intensifying the investigation. Hearing the horrid news, Shree and Rathore hurried back from Delhi.

Arjun caught Riya in the pantry: Riya?

Riya: ji sir?

Arjun :sorry, I hit you, main bas…

Riya: jaanti hu, it’s ok

Arjun stayed silent for a second: dard ho raha hai?

She smiled: ab kam ho gaya

He nodded and left. Their grip on Prachand baba turned tighter much to his frustration. A sting by Riya and it was revealed he was not just Prachand Baba but also Sikandar. Arjun was enraged. He wanted to kill him with his bare hands….first his wife and now he had tried to kill his team.

They easily ambushed him in the ashram. A gun fight ensued and at the end, it was the final show down between the hero and the villain. Fury seething through his veins, Arjun threw his gun and went ballistic on him. He tried hard to fightback but Arjun was beyond all limits. He punched him as his wife’s face flashed before his eyes, kicked him as he saw the team being tied to the bomb and choked him as Roshni’s soul left her body.

By the time, the team came there, it was all over. He was sitting cross-legged on the floor beside his body. The sight of him being covered in blood soothed him. Rathore placed a hand on his shoulder.

Arjun answered without glancing at him: tum log jao!

He sighed and asked the others to get over with the formalities. The body was covered and taken away but Arjun remained. Riya’s heart pinched to see him.Gathering all her courage, she went in front of him. She sat on her knees. He barely looked at her.

Riya: aapki jeet ho gayi sir

It was as if he came out of a deep trance. He finally registered her in front of him.

She repeated: aap jeet gaye sir

The realisation hit him! his wife’s murderer was finally brought to justice. A bubble of happiness burst inside of him and he pulled the unsuspecting research specialist into a kiss. She didn’t know what was happening. All she knew was that the lips of the love of her life was on hers.

The sound of footsteps alerted them and they broke apart. Rathore saw the two of them sitting on the floor. Mentally thanking Riya for making him sane, he spoke up.

Rathore: Rawte, we’re done

Arjun nodded. He abruptly scrambled to his feet and walked outside. He didn’t take the SUV to office. Instead, he walked aimlessly on the road and that was the last any of them saw of him. The next day, a resignation had been left in the watchman’s cabin and he vanished into thin air.

Flashback Ends

Arjun came out his thoughts when Riya braked. They had arrived at their destination. They got out of the car and took the elevator to the 5th floor.

Conference room-

Rathore: Shree! Riya kaha hai? 11 bajne waale hai

Shree(meekly):sir…(his gaze fell on her walking towards them through the glass door) AA GAYI!!!

They turned to see Riya entering the conference room.

Riya: sorry sir woh…

They never registered the words ahead, stupefied at seeing Arjun Rawte tied to her…literally! And were those handcuffs?

Rathore: Riya ye…ye kya hai?

Riya glanced in his direction: ye? Maine kaha tha na sir? ek pata lekar aa rahi hu? Wahi hai

The others were too shocked to respond. She casually sat in her chair. Arjun raised his eyebrow at her.

Arjun: kya mujhe baithne ki permission milegi, ma’am?

Riya: ha kyun nahi

He glared at her and went towards his chair but the chain was shorter. She sighed and pulled a chair beside her, gesturing him to sit there. She removed the chain from her wrist and tied it to the glass table’s rod. Rathore’s gestured her outside. She followed him

Riya: kya hua sir?

Rathore gave her a look: tumhe nahi pata?

She lowered her eyes: I arrested him

Rathore’s eyes popped out: kis jurm mein?

Riya smiled: well, unka resignation accept nahi hua toh neglect of duty se woh technically, by defination ek criminal hai

Rathore chuckled: kaha se mila? Aur kaise?

Riya: shehar ke baahar kisi resort mein reh rahe the, ek dost inspector hai, usse manhunt shuru karwaya

Rathore: sach mein aurat ki kabiliyat par kabhi shak nahi karna chahiye

Riya gave him a mischievous look. He shook his head in disbelief and they went back inside.

Arjun: Rathore kholo mujhe!

Rathore: sorry Rawte, but Riya tumhari in-charge hai, usne pakda haina? (Arjun glared at him) waise agar tum jaana chaho toh jaa sakte ho lekin

Arjun: lekin kya?

Rathore: case solve karo aur fir nikal jao!

He immieditaely faced the evidence board. He could see some 5 dead bodies. Rathore gestured Ayesha to brief him.

She gulped and started: serial killing hai, the first body we had, uske forehead par 7 scratch kiya gaya tha, hume laga ki saatvi body hai lekin agli par 6 likha tha, jab chaar par pahunche toh case ETF ko diya gaya…uske baad 3 mila

Chotu: iske ilawa aur koi pattern nahi hai, na woh log ek dusre ko jaante the na unka school ka connection that, na college, families ek dusre se bekhabar hai, jobs alag hai, age group alag hai, gender alag hai yaha tak ki maarne ka method bhi alag hai bas har hafte ek body milti hai

Arjun: tum logon ko ulti bodies mili iska matlab ya nahi hai ki woh murder usi order mein ho rahe hai…

Riya: kya haina sir, forensic analysis mein ek technique hoti hai, post-mortem kehte hai use, yaad hai?

He glared at her but remained silent. He turned to Rathore.

Arjun: mujhe ye sab dekhne ke liye thoda time chahiye

Rathore: jitna lena hai lo, hume toh ab tak kuch pata nahi chala, agla murder kabhi bhi ho sakta hai

Arjun nodded. Shree passed him all the reports, evidence and files. He buried himself into them.

After some time-

Arjun: tum logo ne social media check nahi kiya?

They exchanged glances amongst themselves. Liza nodded in a no

Rathore: Shree! Hack!

Shree: sir!

Ayesha: par sir hum karenge kya? itne saare apps aur na jaane kitni activity hogi

Rathore :jaanta hun, Riya Data analysis karo

Riya(shocked): AKELE?!?!

Rathore teased: akele kyun? Haina tumhare Arjun sir tumhare saath aur waise bhi puri team mein ek hi research specialist hai, jo tumhe dikhega woh inhe nahi dikhega

She sighed and nodded. She started working on how to organize the data and passed Shree a list of things she wanted. He printed out the commonly followed pages and each of their comments and activities on them.

Arjun: chai chahiye mujhe

Ayesha: ji…

Riya: ye ETF hai, aapka ghar nahi!

The team looked at her with worry, getting shock after shock.

Arjun squinted: tum log coffee pee sakte ho toh main chai kyun nahi pee sakta?

Riya: kyunki maine kaha isliye! (dumping papers in front of him) chup-chap kaam kijiye!

He glared at her, muttering curses under his breath as he took the papers in his hand. Arjun and Riya started going through the lists and encircled a certain page where they all were posting hate mail. Her head clicked seeing the singer’s page and she searched through the news. Arjun discovered the group along with two others had started a hate club against her which was filled with abusive comments. She showed him a page on her phone and they nodded.

Arjun/Riya: cyberbullying!

Sakshi: unhe koi bully kar raha tha?

Riya :nahi woh ek influencer ko bully kar rahe the. use ek saal se depression tha aur jab unhone woh hate club shuru kiya toh woh seh nahi paayi. She committed suicide.

Ayesha: iska matlab koi uska badla le raha hai?

Riya: lagta toh aisa hi hai

Chotu: sir, hum uske pariwar aur doston ko pakadte hai

Arjun: nahi! isse khooni alert ho jaayega

Riya: Rathore sir, agar un sabki phone locations check kare toh? Ki kaun har khoon ke waqt crime scene ke aaspaas maujud tha?

Arjun: that’s brilliant!

She glared at him. He looked back innocently.

Rathore suppressed his smile: ha hum check kar sakte hai lekin ho sakta hai woh apna phone apne saath na le gaya ho isliye back up rakhna padega

Ayesha: sir, baakhi ke jo do log un par nazar rakhte hai, agar attack hua toh tabhi pakad lenge

Rathore nodded: Riya tum aur Chotu is Shailesh par nazar rakho! Ayesha hum dono Ruchi ke paas jaayenge, Shree! Tum locations par work karo

Shree :ha sir, lekin sabka nikalne mein thoda time lagega

He nodded.

Arjun: kya ab main jaa sakta hu?

Riya :jab tak case solve nahi hota, tab tak aap kahi nahi jaa rahe hai!

Arjun: tum jaa rahi ho, mujhe saath le nahi ja paogi aur (he smirked looking at Liza and Sakshi) ye dono akele yaha mujhe…

Riya: tension mat lijiye, aapke liye mere paas special jagah hai

Taken aback, he looked at her questioningly. She untied the chain from the table and wrapped it around her wrist again, leading him away.

Chotu: ye Ri kyun aag ke saath khel rahi hai? ho kya gaya hai ise?

Ayesha: ha woh sir ko aise baandh kar aise ghum rahi hai jaise ki woh koi paagal criminal ho

Rathore :I think is baat ko woh dono hi handle kare toh behtar hoga, tum log kaam par lago

Still unsure they nodded. Ayesha and Rathore left to provide security to Ruchi.

Interrogation Room-

Riya tied him up to the table as he looked at her in disbelief.

Riya: enjoy your stay

Arjun: Riya main jaanta hun tum mujhse naraaz ho lekin…

Riya: mera aapse koi lena dena nahi hai

She turned to leave. Irritated, he pulled her to himself, caging her in his hold by taking his hands over her head.

Riya struggled to be free: Sir!!!

Arjun: mujhe bolne ka mauka toh do!

Riya(angrily): mujhe aapki koi bhi baat sunne mein koi interest nahi hai, Leave Me!!

Arjun softened: Riya please….atleast listen to me, main…

Riya: Aapko Ek Baar Mein Baat Samaj Mein Nahi Aati?!!? Chodiye Mujhe!!!!

Arjun: Riya main…

She kicked him in the leg.

Arjun was taken aback by the sudden attack: ouch!!

Riya: MAINE KAHA NA CHODO!!

Defeated, he removed his hands from over her. She pushed him and stormed out. He continued to stare at her retreating back. Knowing that he was going to be stuck there for a long time, he sat on the floor.

He wondered how stupid he could have been to end up there. Only a few months ago, he used to be in the same room, interrogating the hardest of criminals. Now? He was at the opposite end of the table, handcuffed to one of its legs.

On the other side, Riya and Chotu left to keep an eye on Shailesh. Shree was working on the locations and was able to find the contact they were looking for. The singer’s brother was present at each of the places during the time of the murder.

He conveyed the message to Rathore, who along with the others arrested him. A little force from Chotu and his confession came tumbling out. The team started with the formalities while Rathore went to meet Arjun.

Interrogation room-

The sound of the door opening made his head turn but his face fell on seeing Rathore. He walked in with a mug of coffee and a cup of tea for him

Arjun: tum ho?

Rathore smiled: ha

He sat beside him and passed him the glass.

Arjun looked away: nahi chahiye, thanks!

Rathore: tum toh aise muh fer rahe ho jaise maine tumhe baandh kar rakha ho

Arjun: aisa nahi hai

Rathore took a sip: tum dono ke beech koi jhagda hua tha?

Arjun sighed: nahi…jhagda toh nahi hua tha……..I just….(sighing) I messed up, big time!

Rathore: I can see that

Arjun: and now she hates me

Rathore: she doesn’t hate you Arjun, she needs you! to understand her for once

Arjun: mauka de toh na

Rathore: ab galti ki hai toh thodi saza toh milegi na? (he doesn’t respond) ab chal chai pee le

Arjun: usne na bola

Rathore raised his eyebrow with an amused expression: waah! Kya pyaar hai?

Arjun rolled his eyes: tumne dhundhne ki koshish nahi ki na mujhe?

Rathore sipped his coffee: nope! I figured you needed a break aur waise bhi agar tu nahi chahta ki koi tujhe dhundhe toh koi nahi dhundh paayega…haala ki agar ye pata hota ki tu koi kaand karke bhaaga hai toh zaroor gala pakadta

Arjun nodded: tumhe kaise pata ki main aur Riya…

Rathore: mujhe toh usi waqt pata chal gaya tha jab Xora ke waqt tu hospital ko aag lagane se ek kadam door tha

Arjun chuckled: that obvious, huh?

Rathore: yup!

Just then the door opened making their heads turned. Riya came in. Arjun stood up immediately. Rathore suppressed his smile and followed. She opened the chain and handcuffs.

Riya: aapka kaam khatam, jayiye bhaag jayiye (muttering) as usual

His sharp ears caught her whispers. He felt a heavy weight lowering into his chest. She left without sparing another glance at him.

Arjun: see?

Rathore (flatly): shut up and go after her!

Arjun sighed and came out of the room. He saw her shadow turn around the corner and followed her. Riya went into the record room. She was arranging some files when she heard the door close behind her after which footsteps sounded.

Riya: kaun hai?

Hearing no response, she turned to see Arjun standing a few steps away. She turned again and sat on the computer, entering data inside.

Arjun: Mujhe tumse baat karni hai

Riya: Mujhe kuch nahi sunna

Arjun: Mujhe samjhaane ka…

Riya: Jo samajhna tha usi din samaj gayi thi

Arjun(sarcastically): Aisa lagta nahi hai tumhare reactions se

Riya: So what do you want me to do? Cry over you? Curse my fate thinking that jis insaan se maine pyaar kiya uske saath bitaya sabse khoobsurat lamha uske liye sirf ek impulse tha?

Arjun softens: ha impulse tha… lekin jhoot nahi. Main isliye nahi gaya kyunki maine regret kiya Riya, I wanted some time off

Riya: I don’t trust you anymore

Arjun: But I do, bharosa hai mujhe…tum par bhi aur, humare pyaar par bhi

Her eyes moisten. Controlling herself, she jumps out of her chair: Just go from here!!!

Arjun walked closer: aaj nahi…(he shifted the chair from between them) aur aaj ke baad kabhi nahi

Their eyes locked with each other’s. He leaned and rested his forehead on hers.

Arjun: I promise

His words brought him out of her trance and she moved away from him in an effort to leave the room. She was stopped by his hand gripping hers. Eyes brimming with tears, she turned to give him a piece of her mind when she saw him go down on his knee.

Arjun: Riya, I know I haven’t been exactly a Prince Charming kind of a guy but…please be my queen. I swear agar tum gathbandhan ke bajay hathkadi bhi baandhogi toh bhi zindgi bhar tumse bandha rahunga. Please mujhe ek aur mauka dogi?

Riya: kis liye? Aapka samjhe ya samjhau sunne ke liye?

Arjun: nahi, bas tumse pyaar karne ke liye

Riya: na kahungi toh pyaar khatam ho jaayega? Mujhe nahi chahiye aisa pyaar

Arjun: khatam toh nahi hoga, lekin tumhe ehsaas zaroor nahi dila paunga

She couldn’t refrain herself anymore and tackled him into a hug. Arjun laughed as they fell on the floor.

Arjun: I’m sorry Riya, mera iraada tumhe chot pahunchaane ka nahi tha

She lifted her head from his chest: agar agli baar aisa kuch bhi kiya na toh hathkadi nahi seedhe goli maar dungi aapko

Arjun grinned: mujhe toh manzoor hai Riya par

Riya: par kya?

He rolled over taking her by surprise: par kya haina, main nahi chahta ki tum jail chali jao, tum naraaz ho toh keh dena, main khud hi sui

She placed a hand on his mouth: chup! Main toh aise hi dhamka rahi thi, aisi baatein nahi bolte, mareaapke dushman

Arjun chuckled: tumhe nahi lagta tum typical Bhartiya naari ki tarah behave kar rahi ho?

Riya: aap typical Bhartiya mard ki tarah dialogue nahi maar rahe?

Arjun: sawaal ka jawab sawaal nahi hota

Riya: sawaal ka jawab pata ho toh sawaal nahi puchte

Arjun: tum toh bolti hi band kar deti ho sabki

Riya: aapka samjhe ya samjhau nahi karta?

Arjun smirked: filhaal toh tum hi samjha rahi ho… Mrs Riya Arjun Rawte

She blushed hearing the name from his mouth.

Riya: agar samjhaane waala galti kare toh use bhi samjhaana padta hai (she pushed him off her)hatiye ab, mujhe jaana hai

She tried to stand up but he pulled her back to him. She averted her gaze as he leaned forward. Arjun kissed her forehead. Feeling shy, Riya tried to leave but he wrapped his arms around her.

Arjun: mat jao na(resting his forehead on hers) I missed you

Her eyes shot up.

He smiled and kissed her cheek: please?

Roses spread across her cheeks as she nodded. Elated, he held her closer to himself.

Outside-

Rathore was looking around the office wondering where the two idiots had disappeared mv “kya, kya karna pad raha hai is gadhe ke chakkar mein ab, Chief hokar, kaam chodkar inki setting ke peeche pada hu, I hope Arjun firse koi gadbad na kar de.”

Seeing Shree at his system he stopped: Shree! Riya kaha hai?

Shree: sir woh record room gayi hai, data enter karne

Rathore nodded and walked to the records room. The door was closed. He contemplated whether he should check inside or not. He waited, but after a few minutes.

Rathore: hell with this!

He slowly turned the knob and peeked inside.

Arjun and Riya were sitting on the floor with their arms around each other. Her head on his chest and his on hers. They didn’t have a care in the world. All that was important at the moment was the other for each of them.

Rathore smiled and softly closed the door again before heading towards his cabin.

The End……………………..