New ArShi FF: Birds of a Feather Link to Thread 2 on Pg. 1 [20/04/'20] - Page 87

Posted: 4 years ago

Hey!! I just read all the chapters in one go. Where do I even start? Two people whose lives have always been dictated by others literally pushed into marriage at the brink of destruction of their loved ones. Poor babies!! Though Khushi has very low expectations from her in-laws and her husband, Arnav not turning up on the wedding night and his subsequent absence was the last nail in the coffin. Growing up in an indifferent environment where the only person who was concerned for her was her mother, she didn't have any expectations from her husband and steered clear of his way after witnessing his tempermental outbursts.  I initially didn't have a clue as to why was she putting up a charade of happy couple in absence of Arnav but then things became clear during their stay at Gupta manor. she lost her only supporter and seeing her mother struggling between life and death, it's so painful. It's so heart breaking to see how low her value is in her own house. 

While Arnav didn't grow in a cold environment, he was always burdened with expectations ( irony how nobody expected anything from khushi except being a dutiful, docile daughter). It's nice to see that Arnav is not a cold person even though he considers Khushi responsible for everything that has happened in his life. He actually understood her predicament and has given her an opportunity to do something that's next to breathing for her. 

And the events in Arnav's life that led to marrying Khushi? Extremely distressing. Lost his restaurant thereby losing the only opportunity to prove himself. Girlfriend abandonding, Shankar's stroke and comapany's shares plummeting. Anyone in his shoes would have done the same. Ofcourse that doesn't justify him not owning upto the responsibility he has willing taken up and we get understand him only in chapter 32-33 that he wanted punish daughter for her father's deeds.  But during Vihaan's wedding when he understood that she was as much a victim as him, he thawed a bit.

The journey of their gradual transformation from strangers to waiting for each other to have dinner was so naturally described. I had an inkling that Khushi's father is behind hostile buying of shares and it turns out to be true. How is Khushi going to react when she gets to know this? And the subtle mention of Mr. Gupta's withdrawal and keeping to himself - Is he coming down with something or is this calm before the storm? It chilling to think what would he do once he gets to know about Khushi's internship.

Arnav's closure to his past was so beautifully described. Both have married for some selfish reasons and b'coz they didn't have any other choice, truly birds of a feather. Now that the cat is out of the bag, it's time to let go of past and eagerly waiting to see how they would that staring with the weekend at the farm house. I'm soooo excited !!

Posted: 4 years ago

So this might be a long-ish comment because I haven’t commented since a while so... 

okay let me just start by saying that this is so damn REAL and raw

The love Arnav had for Myra.. the attempts to win her over, the efforts to make sure she’s always happy. 

I know we all wanted Arnav since the time the show aired but can I have your Arnav? 

He’s the version you want so that you function day to day.. 


My thoughts on Myra.. I remember this line from a Jodi Picoult book which I’m going to paraphrase, sometimes there’s 70-30 or a 60-40 effort and love in a relationship, it doesn’t mean that the scale wouldn’t tip but no relationship is 50-50. 

This is what I felt was the equation between them. 


It might sound a little twisted but I’m kinda happy that Arnav had gotten a chance to have his own restaurant, yes, it wasn’t successful but he doesn’t get a chance to blame his parents for stifling him. 

I hope in the future, he might become a chef or have his own restaurant, but life isn’t necessarily fair and you’ve kept it pretty authentic so far, so can’t wait to see what you do with his dreams and aspirations.

 

I was genuinely not expecting Arnav to put a full stop on Myra’s chapter so gracefully, to be honest. But then as your note says, in life, you don’t always get an answer or a closure. 


Now to the bit which made me smile.. our beloved ArHi.

The apology, the insistence on her sleeping in their bed and just being the couple who after so many years could still make our “dhak dhaks” increase. They make things a little brighter.. Hamesha 

I LOVED ITTTT!

Posted: 4 years ago

A BIG THANK YOU FOR TWO UPDATES !! I was so waiting to read whats happenibg in khushi & arnav s current life ..  did arnav just end the myra chapter ? Just like that ? I always wanted him to move on but it seems to good to be true .. i have a feeling myra will reappear in thier lives at the right time .. 😉 lets see what happens .. 

About the apology it was cute .. and  arnav (on his knees )asking for an apology was again  too good to be real .. looks like i will take some more time to understand this man 🤔..  &  why was he asking khushi to say sorry ? What did she even do ..  also if he is apologetic he shouldnt be blaming khushi for anything ..nai ? If he thinks she was rude he might as well believe there was nothing wrong in the way he spoke in response  chalo lets see what happens at weekend .. 

One day to left for next update ⭐️

Edited by Miss.Zaidi - 4 years ago
Posted: 4 years ago

I just read ch 30-33..

I've been busy n m gonna be out of station for one week..

I thoroughly enjoyed the updates n most of the comments ..


Now Khushi is back  n uske bina zindagi se koi shikwa tou nahin..😆


Thanx for writing this splendid fiction ..

🤗

Posted: 4 years ago

Wonderful update

Beautifully written 

At least they are talking now, can't wait to find out what happens next 

Posted: 4 years ago
Originally posted by p4peppa


I have been meaning to write this.... About pressure from parents to choose the career of their choice. In my case, it was different. I followed blindly in my sister's footsteps and chose medical side and failed in PMT. I have made all bad career choices and my parents never interfered once. We were always given the freedom to do what we want. Yet sometimes I wish if my parents had steered me towards my inherent talent, things would have been lot more satisfying. Or may be blaming parents comes easy 😀. Now being a parent to a teenage daughter, I want to guide her what is the best career path for her, but also don't want to pressurise her. Our choices don't match. I know her nature, her personality and know what is good for her. Only solace is that in this country, you can be a scuba instuctor one day and with suitable qualifications, you can be an IT professional the another day. So if her choice doesn't bear fruits, she still has good options to carve something nice. 

Myra does sound selfish from the word go. But it's all Arnav's fault. If we give leeway to people to become God in our life, they truly start believing they ARE the God. But I grudgingly respect him too, to be so in love and doing everything to keep Myra in life, even at the cost of his self respect. Now I understand his behaviour better. And the devastation he felt when he got the news about abortion. .... We can't switch off our emotions just because situations have changed. Morally it is wrong for him to pine for Myra after being married to Khushi. But as I said, we can't switch off emtions in a second. And Arnav is way too emotional person to not feel any pain for his unborn baby. 

You are an amazing writer... Did I tell you?


Firstly, sorry for being three chapters late in getting back to you smiley13


But THANK YOU for writing this all down! I agree with everything you have said (and also all of the comments in the discussion that followed!).


Blaming parents comes easy... I have seen it with my own sister too. They pushed her for a career in medicine, she was alot like Arnav, unsure of what she wanted and ended up going into it... she didn't do well right away, it took a lot of struggle and in the midst of that, there were alot of fights, where she was upset with my parents for ruining her life. But now, a good ten years later, she is happy. She is glad that they saw potential in her, when she didn't have a clear picture of herself... however, at the same time, she does what you do with her own kids. Doesn't want to impose anything on them, give them the freedom to choose, but guide them when necessary. So in the end, it's hard to find a balance as a parent... you want the best, but at the same time, you need them to experience. And not every kid understands that, or has the maturity to see where their parents are coming from.


"But I grudgingly respect him too, to be so in love and doing everything to keep Myra in life, even at the cost of his self respect. " - I loved this! You explained it soo well... he has a very high opinion about love and commitment. Many readers took that as weakness or "blind love in Myra" but it's not that he didn't see problems in her, it's just that he actively chose to ignore them - he valued love over everything else. And those deep feelings cannot vanish in one day.


Thank you once again for the wonderful comment! It motivates me so much when I read people think so much about my characters smiley31smiley27

Originally posted by Bizzykizzy


What a treat!!! I will read first and then comment!! 

Myra: hmm having a tough time disliking her character. I feel like she purposely didn’t tell him about the pregnancy because as much as she’d wanted, she didn’t want him to leave everything and come to her without stability in the picture. Which is what a mother needs for her kid, stability. I wonder if there ever was a chance where she wanted to tell him about the pregnancy (the night of his wedding when she called) but then refrained from it because maybe it didn’t matter anymore by then. I do feel like it was Arnav’s baby and he had all the rights in making that decision too but I feel like she didn’t find it necessary to let him know. Marriage was very important for her. And it must’ve been a huge blow to her ego when the news of Arnav getting married flew around. I hope she has moved on and finally found someone who could give her the stability and safety she needed. Arnav is not a bad person. He was just having a really bad time. And maybe this pregnancy/abortion saved them both from going deeper into a toxic relationship. It brought some closure to an already closed relationship. 

Arnav and Khushi: I’m glad they’re back on talking terms. And I’m loving the fact that they’re not back to being buddy buddy with each other but at least they’re being civil. There’s still that trust and confidence that both are lacking in their friendship which I’m looking forward to reading as the story unfolds. I couldn’t help but realize he felt so bad that she was purposely picking up extra shifts just to avoid him. Like he felt bad that she was over working herself. 

Can’t wait to read the next update!!

As always, great job!

Bizzy 


Congrats for being first! smiley31smiley36


" feel like she purposely didn’t tell him about the pregnancy because as much as she’d wanted, she didn’t want him to leave everything and come to her without stability in the picture. Which is what a mother needs for her kid, stability. " - I loved your analysis on Myra!! It's so easy to paint her as the villain, especially because we know she is a haddi in ArShi's story, but she is not a vamp... she has her reasons and your explanation fits very well with her mentality... and although it is sad, the loss of a child, but it was needed for both Arnav and Myra to realize that they need to let go of this relationship that as you said, was becoming toxic.


"There’s still that trust and confidence that both are lacking in their friendship which I’m looking forward to reading as the story unfolds." - hehe yes, it will come in due time... at least both of them are on the same page about moving on. Before it was just Khushi trying to find balance in the marriage, now Arnav too wants the same.


Thanks Bizzy! Loved reading your take on things smiley27

Originally posted by anjs


Sorry more confused...... Didn't arnav Myra argument happened before the stroke ??

Or mean the final convo was when he went to apologise to her.....Oh..... OMG.... you mean that time when she was probably expecting, yet behaved like a heel with him ????

Another thing i forgot to mention earlier... Ryan is weird... You know the girl doesn't love your friend, won't you rather be happy that he is trying to move on, maybe with a girl who might love him... Why try to push him back to the unloving, undeserving, selfish girl to ruin his life ???

"you mean that time when she was probably expecting, yet behaved like a heel with him ????" - yes.


Hmm... Ryan has a different perspective on Myra than Arnav does, because he saw her from the outside. His point to Arnav was that Arnav should work through his emotions, 6 years of love doesn't just vanish because Myra called him certain names... And don't forget, Ryan has seen how deeply in love arnav was in since day one.


As for Myra, it's easy to paint her as the villain... but she has her own reasons. If she was selfish and undeserving since day one, then their relationship wouldn't have lasted this long. So, clearly something did click in the initial days... I didn't get into details of how they fell love (because that would be painful for ArShi shippers smiley36), but they were happy during college. It's only when Arnav becomes adamant on pursuing cooking, and the pressure of settling down becomes real, that they start arguing... anyway, Myra is a complicated character. Don't want to get into her intentions, but there was love on her part... it wasn't as deep as Arnav's, because she is more practical, but we can't negate that she did stay with him for 6 years.


Thanks for commenting!

Originally posted by yanka


Yay! Thank you for the double bonanza!!

Great to be back to Arnav and Khushi. Looking forward to them working on their relationship... "You are family" even if Anjali pushed for it Arnav being willing to say so is a big step in their growth... Now for Khushi also to realise her folly and apologise to Arnav as sincerely as he did... As of now Arnav seems to be the one giving in first in all his relationships!! 

Wednesday seems too far away ... 

"Arnav seems to be the one giving in first in all his relationships!! " - nicely spotted! It's true... and that's his nature. He is very emotional and giving.


Thanks!

Originally posted by mansaf


Thank you for the two chapters. 😊

I would say Khushi can't handle a fight with a husbant. She acts in a negative way for facts around her. She is angry with him so she keeps away far as possible and remain silent, the only thing she does perfectly. She doesn't enterfere unless Angali or Lavu ask her to do so. In simple words she is a cold woman, very cold. 


Thanks hun!


Khushi seems cold because she prefers to live in her shell... her own experiences made her mistrustful of people around her, and so she'd rather not open up herself and risk getting hurt. But she is not completely unkind either, because she has compassion for her patients, for Arnav's family (even if it took a while) and to some extent, for Arnav too... she just doesn't know how to express herself. It also doesn't help that Arnav had treated her quite badly during the initial days of their marriage. So there is a alot of baggage she is carrying!

Edited by -Archi- - 4 years ago
Posted: 4 years ago
Originally posted by TwilightStar_JP


Next Wednesday is so far off! 

But lovely update! 

Ms.Khushi. Aren't you tad a bit too much? It's not like you were a saint either. You didn't make life easy for him there too! You can apologize too you know! I mean agreed he was not the best guy to you, but, you exchanged a couple of harsh words too! And not acknowledging that but, expecting him to do so is a tad bit too much. 

Nevertheless, I hope you and he get together soon!

Cheers 


smiley36smiley36smiley36


Ms. Khushi will realize her folly in due time!

Originally posted by crazy_vaish


Hey!! I just read all the chapters in one go. Where do I even start? Two people whose lives have always been dictated by others literally pushed into marriage at the brink of destruction of their loved ones. Poor babies!! Though Khushi has very low expectations from her in-laws and her husband, Arnav not turning up on the wedding night and his subsequent absence was the last nail in the coffin. Growing up in an indifferent environment where the only person who was concerned for her was her mother, she didn't have any expectations from her husband and steered clear of his way after witnessing his tempermental outbursts.  I initially didn't have a clue as to why was she putting up a charade of happy couple in absence of Arnav but then things became clear during their stay at Gupta manor. she lost her only supporter and seeing her mother struggling between life and death, it's so painful. It's so heart breaking to see how low her value is in her own house. 

While Arnav didn't grow in a cold environment, he was always burdened with expectations ( irony how nobody expected anything from khushi except being a dutiful, docile daughter). It's nice to see that Arnav is not a cold person even though he considers Khushi responsible for everything that has happened in his life. He actually understood her predicament and has given her an opportunity to do something that's next to breathing for her. 

And the events in Arnav's life that led to marrying Khushi? Extremely distressing. Lost his restaurant thereby losing the only opportunity to prove himself. Girlfriend abandonding, Shankar's stroke and comapany's shares plummeting. Anyone in his shoes would have done the same. Ofcourse that doesn't justify him not owning upto the responsibility he has willing taken up and we get understand him only in chapter 32-33 that he wanted punish daughter for her father's deeds.  But during Vihaan's wedding when he understood that she was as much a victim as him, he thawed a bit.

The journey of their gradual transformation from strangers to waiting for each other to have dinner was so naturally described. I had an inkling that Khushi's father is behind hostile buying of shares and it turns out to be true. How is Khushi going to react when she gets to know this? And the subtle mention of Mr. Gupta's withdrawal and keeping to himself - Is he coming down with something or is this calm before the storm? It chilling to think what would he do once he gets to know about Khushi's internship.

Arnav's closure to his past was so beautifully described. Both have married for some selfish reasons and b'coz they didn't have any other choice, truly birds of a feather. Now that the cat is out of the bag, it's time to let go of past and eagerly waiting to see how they would that staring with the weekend at the farm house. I'm soooo excited !!


Firstly, welcome to the story smiley31

You summarized Arnav and Khushi so well! It is indeed ironic that Khushi, from who no one expected anything, ended up being a doctor, while Arnav is still struggling with… basically everything.

I’m so glad you understood where Arnav is coming from in his behaviour with Khushi… it’s not justified, yes, but as a human, he couldn’t have done better. It’s so easy for us to sit back and judge him for acting selfishly or harshly, but he has been through too much already!

As for Khushi’s father… we are a long way away from his redemption, if there is ever one. But how will Khushi react when she finds out? She probably won’t react… taking away her internship was when she had given up hope on her father, nothing he does after that, for her anyway, can be worse. It’s Arnav’s reaction that will be interesting when he figures out just exactly how much Khushi had suffered at Alok’s hands.

“the subtle mention of Mr. Gupta's withdrawal and keeping to himself - Is he coming down with something or is this calm before the storm?” - hehe let’s wait and see smiley2

Thanks so much for commenting hun! Hoping you will like the rest of the story just as much! smiley27

Originally posted by Gurmeet4Drashti


So this might be a long-ish comment because I haven’t commented since a while so... 

okay let me just start by saying that this is so damn REAL and raw

The love Arnav had for Myra.. the attempts to win her over, the efforts to make sure she’s always happy. 

I know we all wanted Arnav since the time the show aired but can I have your Arnav? 

He’s the version you want so that you function day to day.. 

My thoughts on Myra.. I remember this line from a Jodi Picoult book which I’m going to paraphrase, sometimes there’s 70-30 or a 60-40 effort and love in a relationship, it doesn’t mean that the scale wouldn’t tip but no relationship is 50-50. 

This is what I felt was the equation between them. 

It might sound a little twisted but I’m kinda happy that Arnav had gotten a chance to have his own restaurant, yes, it wasn’t successful but he doesn’t get a chance to blame his parents for stifling him. 

I hope in the future, he might become a chef or have his own restaurant, but life isn’t necessarily fair and you’ve kept it pretty authentic so far, so can’t wait to see what you do with his dreams and aspirations.

 

I was genuinely not expecting Arnav to put a full stop on Myra’s chapter so gracefully, to be honest. But then as your note says, in life, you don’t always get an answer or a closure. 

Now to the bit which made me smile.. our beloved ArHi.

The apology, the insistence on her sleeping in their bed and just being the couple who after so many years could still make our “dhak dhaks” increase. They make things a little brighter.. Hamesha 

I LOVED ITTTT!


Welcome back! Was wondering where you disappeared to smiley36

“I know we all wanted Arnav since the time the show aired but can I have your Arnav? He’s the version you want so that you function day to day.. “ Hayeee… you won me over girl! But yes, he is exactly as you said. Imagine how happy he will keep Khushi when he finally gets around to understanding her smiley2

“sometimes there’s 70-30 or a 60-40 effort and love in a relationship, it doesn’t mean that the scale wouldn’t tip but no relationship is 50-50. “ - SO WELL SAID! This was exactly what I had in mind when I was writing their scenes… we can criticize Myra for not giving as much as Arnav had given for the relationship, but in truth, there is always one partner that is a little bit behind. I’m gonna remember this quote!

“hope in the future, he might become a chef or have his own restaurant, but life isn’t necessarily fair “ - you know he might… he has learned a lot, both personally and professionally. If he decides to open another restaurant now, he would do well, because he will work on everything that went wrong the first time around. You are absolutely right, although Arnav had a lot of failures, it’s good he still got a chance, because it helped bridge the gap with his parents.

“I was genuinely not expecting Arnav to put a full stop on Myra’s chapter so gracefully, to be honest. “ - As much as the chapter sounded like that, Arnav isn’t over Myra… it will take time. After recollecting the past, Arnav has only understood that him and Myra are not meant to be, not that he is OKAY with that fact. It will take more effort on his part to resolve those feelings.

Thank you so much for the wonderful comment hun! Loved it! smiley31

Originally posted by Miss.Zaidi


A BIG THANK YOU FOR TWO UPDATES !! I was so waiting to read whats happenibg in khushi & arnav s current life ..  did arnav just end the myra chapter ? Just like that ? I always wanted him to move on but it seems to good to be true .. i have a feeling myra will reappear in thier lives at the right time .. smiley2 lets see what happens .. 

About the apology it was cute .. and  arnav (on his knees )asking for an apology was again  too good to be real .. looks like i will take some more time to understand this man smiley24..  &  why was he asking khushi to say sorry ? What did she even do ..  also if he is apologetic he shouldnt be blaming khushi for anything ..nai ? If he thinks she was rude he might as well believe there was nothing wrong in the way he spoke in response smiley18 chalo lets see what happens at weekend .. 

One day to left for next update smiley10


"did arnav just end the myra chapter ? Just like that ? " - Not exactly smiley36 As I explained in my comment above, Arnav has realized that him and Myra are not meant to be, not that he is okay with it. That will come with time and acceptance! But at least he is not running after her, beating himself up over it...


"arnav (on his knees )asking for an apology was again  too good to be real " - Hehe... Arnav has always been like that with Khushi tho. If you go back to the earlier chapters, during their dinners, he is light and funny and it's because he knows Khushi has no expectations from him. He can be himself.


"why was he asking khushi to say sorry ? What did she even do" - she jumped to conclusions about him and called him selfish and immature (chapter 28). Khushi spoke to him that day with good intentions, but she still didn't have a right to butt into his personal life and make comments about it. And it's because she said those things that Arnav retaliates and comments about her father... So that's basically why he says in this chapter, either we both apologize (because we both jumped to conclusions about the other) or we both don't... He definitely regrets what he said to Khushi, because he recoginized that she wanted to help him, but at the same time, he wants her to understand that she shouldn't assume the worst about him, especially without knowing all the facts. I hope that makes sense! smiley1

Edited by -Archi- - 4 years ago
Posted: 4 years ago

Hello!


As promised, back with the next update! A big thank you to all of the amazing comments 🤗Replied to some above (pg. 117).


__________________________________________________


The content of this story belongs strictly to the author, -Archi-. Any unwarranted use/copy of it is not encouraged and is strictly prohibited.


Chapter Thirty-Four

Omelette

 

“Nannav! What took you so long?!”

 

“That would be your farmhouse. It’s literally in the middle of nowhere.”

 

Nand-Kishore or NK as everyone fondly called him, grinned in response and hugged his brother. It was impossible not to notice how closely knit the Raizada’s were. They were always pulling each other’s legs, complaining about their family or jobs or partners, but mostly, staying united in all circumstances. 

 

Coming from a family of just four, Khushi had found their bond unbelievable and pretentious at first. But the more she spent time with Lavanya and understood her insane loyalty to Arnav, the more Khushi believed that families were not all like hers: dysfunctional. There were also some that stood by you, that made you believe in love and support. They may be rare, but they did exist. 

 

“Bhabhi!” NK said, turning towards to her and pulling her into a hug. “Welcome!”

 

Khushi smiled. “Please stop calling me Bhabhi, NK. I have a name and it’s pretty nice.”

 

“How about Bhabs? ‘Cause Nannav might just murder me if I call you Khushi.”

 

She looked at Arnav, who shook his head in denial. “He is fine with it.”

 

“Then Prachi will murder me instead. You are too beautiful for anyone not to think that you are my girlfriend.”

 

“Hold up,” Arnav said. “Let me get Prachi and we can have this conversation properly.”

 

“See?” NK said triumphantly to Khushi. “He is too possessive.”

 

Khushi simply laughed, not wanting to prolong the conversation. If NK dug any further, he would see that Arnav and she were barely even friends, forget about being possessive.

 

“If you are done flirting with my wife, can we go inside?” Arnav interrupted. “I am starving.”

 

Khushi couldn’t agree more. It was almost midnight on a Friday. She had finished her usual twelve-hour shift at the hospital before being driven straight to the farmhouse in Agra by Arnav, who was still not on “speaking terms” with her. They had driven so far into the outskirts that even their cellphones couldn’t pick up a signal. Fortunately, after almost two hours of roaming around in circles, someone pointed them in the right direction. 

 

“Yeah come in,” NK said, leading them up a few steps, through a set of French doors and inside a very stylishly designed cottage. “Everyone is already drunk.”

 

“Typical,” Arnav answered. “So who bought the booze this time? It better not be Bhagi.”

 

“God, no! I still haven’t gotten over how badly he picked last time.”

 

Bhagat or Bhagi in short, was Arnav’s paternal cousin. Being a year or two younger than Arnav, he was quite sensible. The few times Khushi spoke to him, he was polite and cordial, so she didn’t quite follow why his choice in alcohol was so badly received. 

 

“Me neither,” Arnav answered. “Mitali seriously needs to teach him a thing or two about loosening up. Apparently he is considering extending his internship for another year.”

 

“No way!”

 

“I’m serious… He overthinks everything.”

 

Khushi followed the men monotonously through the humungous rooms, not really paying attention to their conversation. The Raizada family was much too relaxed to take any of their “problems” seriously. Instead, she admired the decor, wondering how NK acquired such a beautiful taste. 

 

Finally, they arrived at the poolside. Sure enough, the party was already raving. Dev –Arnav’s maternal cousin– was standing in the pool, fully clothed, looking furiously at Bhagi, who appeared to have pushed him into the water.  Bhagi, along with his fiancé Mitali and another one of the Raizada cousins, Samriddhi or Sam as she liked to be called, were laughing hysterically. On the other hand, Arjun appeared to be in a deep conversation with Shyam, while Lavanya was curled up in Akash’s lap, in world of her own. 

 

“LOOK WHO FINALLY ARRIVED?” NK announced to the group. 

 

Everyone looked up, wide smiles covering their face. Then appearing out of nowhere, Anjali suddenly embraced Khushi.

 

“You made it!” 

 

Khushi mockingly narrowed her eyes. “Did you really give me a choice?”

 

Anjali grinned sheepishly. “Sorry – I just wanted to make sure Chote would genuinely try to bring you instead of making up some excuse like always.”

 

“Oh it was more than genuine,” she muttered remembering Arnav going down on his knees to apologize. “He left me with no other choice.”

 

“That’s okay, you need the break. You work insane hours.”

 

“Only because I am still new,” Khushi replied, keeping her tone causal while still making sure the message was clear. “Once I get experience, it will be just another nine to five job.”

 

Anjali smiled. “You say that now, but the truth is, you love what you do way too much to give it up. Trust me, I have seen it all with Shyam.”

 

Khushi couldn’t argue with that.

 

“I actually wanted to thank you,” Anjali continued, lowering her voice. “For talking to Chote that day.”

 

“I did nothing,” she said, embarrassed. Far from making things better, Khushi was sure she had made them worse. 

 

“No, you did something…” Anjali said, glancing at Arnav was busy laughing at a fully-soaked Dev. “Whatever it was, thank you. You made him realize that he doesn’t have to go through things alone, that he has all of us to help him.”

 

Khushi looked at the floor, not knowing how to accept gratitude for something she didn’t even do. She still had mixed feelings about their argument that night, a week ago now. 

 

“So are things better between the both of you now?” Anjali asked, leading her towards the lounge chairs.

 

“Yes,” Khushi lied, wanting to avoid recounting her fight at all costs. And for once in her life, Anjali seemed to believe her, for she didn’t ask any further questions and instead introduced her to Prachi. 

 

The night eventually slipped into the wee hours of the morning. As Khushi became comfortable on the lounge chair, listening in and out of random conversations, she felt her eyes drooping and drifting off into sleep. So when she heard Arnav’s familiar voice after what felt like hours, she wasn’t entirely sure she wasn’t dreaming. 

 

“Don’t disturb her, she was working the whole day... let her sleep.”

 

Sniggering followed. “Whoa Arnav… not even a year and you’re already keeping track of her sleeping habits?”

 

“Shut-up Dev!” It was Sam’s voice. “It’s sweet that he cares so much for her.”

 

Bhagi replied: “What sweet? I thought we weren’t allowed to sleep until sunrise every time we meet up at someone’s farmhouse?”

 

“Ignore Bhagi,” Lavanya said. “He still hasn’t gotten over how we threw him in the pool last time.”

 

“How would you feel after being thrown into ice cold water at four in the morning?!”

 

“Duffer, that was because of how badly you were singing, not because you were falling asleep,” said NK. 

 

“Shut up guys!” Mitali interrupted. “You will wake her up!”

 

“Don’t stress Mitu, Arnav is there na! He will sing a lullaby for her, won’t you?” Dev answered, failing miserably to hide his laughter. 

 

Arnav finally spoke. “This is why you are still single Dev.”

 

And then out of nowhere two warm hands slipped underneath her and Khushi felt herself being lifted and carried away. Although her mind was slightly alarmed, her body weighed down too heavily for her to even move. So she accepted the warmth and comfort and snuggled closer to the steady heartbeat echoing in her ear. 

 

***

 

Khushi woke up the next day to sunlight streaming in through her windows. It took a few minutes to orient herself, feeling alien to the soft sheets she was curled underneath. The room, like the rest of the farmhouse, was exquisitely designed in hues of blue. Her duffle bag, she noticed, was kept neatly beside the door and so was Arnav’s.

 

The thought of her namesake husband brought her instantly sitting up, searching the room. But it was empty, with no sign of him. Pushing herself out of bed, she quickly took a shower and hesitantly crept out of the room, wondering where everyone was. 

 

She finally found Anjali and Mitali in the living room, chatting over a cup of coffee. 

 

“Good morning,” she murmured, sitting down on the sofa. 

 

“Good morning sleeping beauty,” Mitali replied with a grin. “How come you are up so early?”

 

“What time is it?” Khushi asked, ignoring the jibe. 

 

“Only ten in the morning.”

 

Khushi was alarmed. It had been months since she slept in that late. Her alarm, set to 6 o’clock every morning, had never failed her before. “What? Ten already? Why didn’t you wake me up?”

 

Anjali laughed. “Chote’s orders were pretty strict – she works too hard at the hospital, let her sleep.”

 

So she wasn’t dreaming. Arnav had indeed carried her to bed last night. Khushi felt a strange sensation build in the pit of her stomach at that. Was it nerves? 

 

“Look, now she is blushing,” Mitali added. 

 

“You guys are crazy,” Khushi finally said, shaking her head and pulling the tray of coffee towards herself. “Me and Arnav are not romantic. Stop making us so filmy.”

 

That didn’t put an end of either of their grins, however. As their chit-chat continued, Khushi noticed that the house was unbelievably quiet. 

 

“Where is everyone?” she asked, nibbling on some biscuits.

 

“Sleeping like horses,” Mitali answered rolling her eyes. 

 

“Go easy on them… they only managed to get to bed at six in the morning,” Anjali said.

 

“And whose fault is that? I wanted to go hiking today, but by the time they are all gonna wake up, it will be evening.”

 

Khushi interrupted: “But Arnav was not in the room this morning… where is he?”

 

“Oh,” Mitali said pointedly. “So you only wanted to know about Arnav.”

 

Before Khushi could find a retort, Anjali answered: “Chote and Shyam went jogging… and let it be na Mitu. If she is not going to ask for Chote, who will?”

 

Khushi was now seriously getting vary of their comments. It was one thing to see them accepting her sham of a marriage to be true, but it was completely another to be teased about it in every other sentence. Did Arnav face the same thing? Or she was the only one being subjected to their cruelty?

 

As if on the cue, Arnav appeared in the hall, sweating, but laughing hysterically about something with Shyam. 

 

“I swear Jeejaji,” he said, flopping down on the couch beside his sister. “You deserve an award for putting up with him!”

 

“Putting up with who?” Anjali asked, pouring them both fresh cups of coffee. 

 

“One of the marketing managers at the company that Papa is refusing to fire,” Shyam answered, shaking his head.

 

“Good thing you guys came back,” Mitali said. “Sleeping beauty was missing her Prince.”

 

“Who is missing who?” Shyam asked, confused. 

 

Khushi glared at Mitali. Thankfully, Arnav interfered.  “What’s for breakfast?” he asked, nonchalantly. 

 

“Nothing as of now… what do you want?” Anjali said, gathering all the cups and standing up to head to the kitchen. 

 

Arnav jumped up and peeled the tray off her hands. “Don’t even think about it Di, you are going to just sit here and relax.”

 

Anjali protested “But–”

 

am cooking today.”

 

Khushi wasn’t sure she heard right. He cooked

 

Mitali, however, hooted in excitement. “YES! I want your omelettes.”

 

Arnav took a ceremonious bow. “Certainly - omelettes for the ladies. What about you Jeejaji?”

 

Shyam beamed. “Same.”

 

And so within minutes, the house, which was incredibly still all morning, was suddenly plunged into activity. Mitali disappeared upstairs, hoping to lure everyone out of bed with the news of Arnav’s cooking, while Shyam and Anjali talked casually about an upcoming wedding in the former’s native town, Rishikesh. Curiosity getting the better of her, Khushi crept to the kitchen, wondering how on earth Arnav cooked.

 

Perhaps to every other human in the world, there was nothing special about a man scurrying through the kitchen, chopping vegetables. But to Khushi, who hid behind a pillar, watching her husband without blinking, everything was special about the situation. It wasn’t that she didn’t know about his talent –there were lots of things she didn’t know about him– but it was the fact that he did not find cooking or washing the dirty dishes from the previous night, inferior in any way. He simply went about his works without a care in the world.

 

“You are staring Khushi.”

 

Khushi jumped. How had he known she was there? “Erm, no,” she mumbled, stepping out into the open space. “I just came to see if you wanted help.”

 

Arnav glanced up, an amused smile on his lips. “Really? Are you sure you weren’t hiding from all the sleeping beauty jokes?”

 

She groaned. “They think we are these long-lost lovers or something.”

 

“They don’t mean to rub it in your face, I hope you know that.”

 

Khushi shrugged. “In a way, I guess I should be happy… they really do believe we are happily in love.”

 

“Yes, but they only believe that because it’s easy.”

 

“What?”

 

He glanced up from beating the eggs. “It’s easier for them to pretend I am happy, that I got a happy ending… they have seen me through enough rough times to wish I never went back there.”

 

Surprisingly, Khushi didn’t have trouble understanding that. Didn’t Vihaan do the same with her? Ask her repeatedly if she was happy with her marriage, although he knew quite well, that it was impossible? 

 

So changing the topic, she asked casually, “You turned off my alarm this morning?” 

 

He neither agreed nor denied it.

 

She sighed. “You know sometimes I wish I get something other than your silence.”

 

“Like what?”

 

“Like telling me why you didn’t just let them throw me in the pool last night–”

 

“They weren’t going to throw you in the pool,” he interrupted. “Dev just likes to prank people.”

 

Khushi didn’t feel reassured about that. 

 

“So then why did you carry me to bed?” she asked. “And why did you distract Mitali from her sleeping beauty joke just now? And why do you cook?”

 

“Why do I cook?” he repeated. 

 

Of course he picked the easiest question to answer. 

 

“Because I like to,” he said plainly. “All the ingredients are right in front of you, and you can do whatever the heck you want to with them.”

 

“So it makes you feel free, is that it?”

 

“It makes me feel in control. If something went wrong, I know exactly where and why and how to fix it…”

 

Khushi didn’t answer, recollecting his words from a long time ago, on the first day of her internship. 

 

Everything is decided for us… what to wear, what to study, what to be… even who to love. Everything is pre-decided because we had the misfortune to be born to legacies.

 

“And the best thing about it,” he continued, not really paying attention to her. “Is in the end, whatever what you do, it still ends up being edible.”

 

She snorted. “Yeah right, then you haven’t tasted burnt food... or salty food…”

 

Arnav chuckled. “You know, burnt food has a taste of it its own. In fact, some dishes need it–”

 

“I’m not talking of intentional burning–”

 

“Oh I know, but my point is, there is always a way to fix it. That’s what’s magical about cooking, once you figure out the antidote to something, you can never go wrong.”

 

“How do you know so much about cooking?”

 

Arnav turned away, seeming not to have heard her question. Having finished with the eggs, he began searching the kitchen for something else.

 

“Do you want something?” she asked, watching him open every shelf. 

 

“Hmm,” he murmured, oblivious to her words, his attention absorbed completely by the task at hand.

 

Khushi didn’t press, observing him half-amused and half-curious. Not even twenty-four hours has passed since they arrived at the farmhouse, and it was if she was once again with her Arnav, the one who waited to have dinner with her, the one who patiently listened to her recount extremely minute details of the cases she treated, the one who came to pick her up if it was too late into the night, the one who understood what she wanted even before she asked… it was as though he never told her he married her for money, or disappeared to London for two weeks or humiliated her about her relationship with her father. 

 

It was such a welcome relief. 

 

“So what’s your secret ingredient?” she asked after a few minutes, unable to stop herself. It was so soothing to hear him talk so openly.

 

“For the omelettes?” he replied, briefly meeting her eyes.

 

She nodded. 

 

“You want the truth?”

 

“Sure.”

 

“Nothing.”

 

“What?”

 

“I don’t add anything special or different,” he explained simply. “I just know what they like. Mitali likes spice in her food, Jeejaji likes less salt, Lavu likes cheese and so on.”

 

“So you add what everyone likes? That’s it?”

 

Arnav nodded, quite pleased with himself. 

 

“So what are you going to add for me?”

 

He grinned. “Guess you will have to wait and see.”

 

So Khushi patiently waited, wondering if everything he was telling her was even true. It was noon by the time everyone assembled at the dining table, groggy but still very much hyper. Khushi sat sandwiched between Anjali and Lavanya, both engrossed in discussions about some ancestral jewelry. She didn’t bother to pay attention. 

 

And at last, her omelette arrived, handed over by a smirking Mitali. It looked the same as everyone else’s, so wondering how it can possibly be unique, she gingerly took a bite. 

 

It was the best damn thing she ever tasted. 


__________________________________________________


Slowly but surely, Arnav and Khushi are getting back to being best friends... what did you think about farmhouse trip so far?


Since there are so many Raizada cousins, here is a family tree to help keep track 😆:

https://archicornerhome.files.wordpress.com/2020/02/raizada.png


Please like & comment!


Archi


P.S. - Will try my best to update again on Monday 😊

Edited by -Archi- - 4 years ago
Posted: 4 years ago

Loved the Raizadas and omelette is my favorite now 🤗

Posted: 4 years ago

Just loved the update. I loved how Arnav asked others to not disturb a sleeping Khushi. I also loved the morning scene. I hope that they both will share their pasts  and try to help heal each other. 




Waiting for the next part :) 

Edited by virka_luv - 4 years ago


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