Part 12
Kritika informed Samrat of Viratâs visit. He was worried but she reassured him that she handled it. Later that evening, he came to check on Sai. They chatted for a while. Once Samrat was reassured that she was fine, he wished her good night. As he was walking towards his bike, Aniket whistled from the garden. His legs dangled from one arm of the chair while his head rested on the other. In front of him was a bottle of Vodka, Sprite and some chips. Samrat took a seat opposite him. Aniket slid a glass towards him and he made himself a drink. The two chatted about old times and Aniket left no chance to tease him about Kritika.
Half an hour later, a car came up the driveway. A man stepped out of the driver's seat and opened the passenger door for Kritika. The two laughed about something. âYe cartoon kaun hai?â Samrat asked Aniket. âThodi der nahi hui hai Sam?â He teased. âBas pooch raha tha,â Samrat answered. âDr Sid. He works with Di.â Aniket took a swig of his drink. Dr Sid waved to Aniket before driving off. Samrat wanted to know more but stopped as Kritika was walking towards them. She took a seat between the two. She placed a glass on the table which made the two of them look up in surprise. âDr Kritika aaj humaare saath bethegi?â Aniket asked, pouring her a drink. âIâm off the clock.â Kritika took her drink. âHaan dikh raha hai.â Samrat said looking at her black bodycon dress. âKuch kaha tumne?â Kritika questioned. She sensed the jealous tone in his voice. âKuch nahi. Kuch bhi to nahi.â Samrat stuttered. Aniket stifled a laugh. âMain thodi der mein aaya.â Aniket indicated he had to pee.
It was the first time Kritika and Samrat were alone. He put his legs on the table and crossed them at the ankles. âTum army walon ki baat hi alag hoti hai.â Kritka looked at his posture. Samrat pulled her chair towards him and leaned forward. âTo is army wale se shaadi kyun nahi karna chahti thi Dr Kritika?â She wasnât expecting this. âIâm an army brat myself.â Kritika said, crossing her arms. âIâm waiting, Kruti.â He leaned back. Kruti. He was the only one who called her that. It felt so intimate. She quickly composed herself. âFor starters, tumhari family to Maratha bahu chahiye. Now Iâm not sure what that means par Iâm sure woh drink nahi karti hogi.â She took a swig as if to make a point. âMain mana leta unhe.â Samrat said. âI donât doubt it, Sam par mera us ghar main dam ghut jata.â âI wouldâve moved out.â He didnât know why he was bringing this up now. âPar kya tum apne ghar walon se door ho kar khush rehte? Dil se jawab do Sam.â She poked him in the chest. Samrat held her hand. Kritika felt butterflies in her stomach. Itâs like nothing has changed. âVodka khatam ho gayi.â Kritika tried to deflect from the topic. âTo isme se pi lo.â Samrat offered his glass. âMain doosra leke aati hoon.â She stood up to leave. âNever stopped you before.â Samrat chuckled.
Flashback
It was New Yearâs eve and Nachiket had thrown a party. Since Samrat had been in his team, he was invited too. He was standing in a corner when a pair of arms snaked across his chest. âKruti!â He closed his eyes. She bit his ear. âKoi dekh lega.â âItne andhere mein kaun dekhega.â She turned him around to face her. âSir yahin kahin hai.â Samratâs eyes darted across the room. âItna daroge to unse shaadi ki baat kaise karoge Captain.â She rested her elbow on his shoulder. She tried to take his glass but he shook his head. âMujhe bhi ye expensive whiskey taste karni hai.â Suddenly the clock struck twelve. Samrat snaked his arm around her waist and pulled her in for a kiss.They were lost in the kiss until the lights came on and they had to break apart. âKar li taste?â Samrat winked. She blushed and ran away from there.
Present
They looked at each other sadly. Just then Kritikaâs phone rang. She was grateful for the distraction. âBolo Sid...â She spoke. Samrat gestured he was about to leave and walked out of the gate to get a taxi.
Aniket finished his business and was heading outside when he saw the light in Kritikaâs room. Seeing the door slightly ajar, he knocked once and stepped inside. Sai sat on the bed hugging her knees to her chest. She was sobbing quietly. Aniket sat next to her. âSai?â He spoke softly. âAaj agar Aaba hote to ye sab nahi hota.â She continued sobbing. Aniket knew this was coming. He put his arm around her. She clutched his tshirt and sobbed loudly. Aniket rubbed her back. After a while, her sobs turned soft. Realising the position they were in, she pulled away. This was the first time she hugged a man that wasnât her father. Seeing Sai like this, something broke in Aniket. He just wanted to make everything go away.âSsh Sai. Sab theek ho jayega. Main hoon na.â Sai rocked herself back and forth while Aniket just sat there. Soon she was asleep. Aniket put a pillow behind her head and covered her with a blanket.
Aniket picked up his guitar and started strumming. When nothing made sense, he always turned to music. He thought back to the first time he met Sai. How her silly advice helped ease his anxiety. On rare occasions, when she let her guard down, he would catch a glimpse of this playful, gussail, ladaku viman. He couldnât bear to see her like this and promised he would stay by her side whatever came next. He opened his eyes and saw Kritika leaning against the door. âI havenât heard you play in a while.â She came and sat on the bed. âSai ke saath aisa kyun hua Di?â He asked. âSometimes good things fall apart so better things can come together.â Kritika smiled. Their father had always shielded from the real world. She experienced some of it when she walked away from Samrat but Aniket had been shielded from most of it. âLike you and Sam?â Aniketâs voice brought her out of her thoughts. âWhat about me and Samrat?â âWe both know youâre still in love with him.â Aniket said. âItâs complicated.â Kritika said, sadly. âItâs only as complicated as you make it.â âTu itna samajdaar kab ho gaya. Bohot raat ho gayi hai. So ja.â She wished him good night and went to her room.
The following day Samrat dropped Aniket and Sai to college. After college they would move her stuff to her hostel. Sai walked out of the college gates after classes when she spotted Samrat on the other side of the road. âDada is too protective,â she said to herself. As she was about to cross, a jeep stopped besides her. She knew whose it was. âMujhe tumse baat karni hai Sai.â Virat said, removing his cap. Within seconds, Samrat reached there and stood next to her. âMain thodi der mein aati hoon Dada.â âAre you sure?â Samrat asked her. She nodded. âIâll be on the other side.â Samrat sat on the hood of his car. âJeeva kaafi protective hai tumhe leke. Waise bhai to mera hai par tumhari zyada care karta hai. Dekho to kaise ghoor ghoor ke dekh raha haiâ he smiled. âIf looks could kill then ACP would be dead,â Aniket said, as he joined Samrat. âRishte pyaar se bante hai.â Sai said. âJo kuch bhi hua uske liye Iâm sorry Sai.â He held her hand. Samrat was about to step forward when Aniket put his arm in front of him. Sai pulled her hand back. âTumhara gussa jayiz hai. Mujhe aaj pata chala ki Pakhi aur kaku ne tumhare saath kya kiya.â He looked down. âI know I havenât been the best husband but can you give me a second chance?â He looked up at her. âSai kuch to bolo.â âI want an annulment.â she broke the silence. âHosh mein to ho?â He grabbed her arm. Sai pushed him with all her might. Virat stumbled backwards. âYe to on duty officer to dhaka de rahi hai. Should we step in?â Aniket asked Samrat. Sai pushed him again. âI think sheâs got this.â Samrat crossed his arms across his chest. âJab itne dino se main keh rahi thi ki Pakhi didi aur kaku mere saath galat kar rahe the tab aapne hamesha apne ghar walon ka saath diya. Ye jaante hue ki main jhooth nahi bolti. Aaj jab aapki best friend ne ye kaha to aapne believe kiya. Only you can insult me this way.â âSai Iâm sorry.â he tried to speak. âSorry wonât make up for what youâve done, I told you I didnât want to marry you. Still I accepted it. Your family didnât like me. They didnât even let me grieve my fatherâs death. Har roz naya drama. Aap aur Pakhi didi ek doosre se pyaar karte the. Humari naam ki shaadi thi still she inflicted so much on me. Ye dekh rahe hai?â She held up her hands. âGhaav abhi bhi nahi bhare hai. College was my only solace usme bhi you wanted me to manage housework and college. Har waqt main hi kyun compromise karu? Iâve had enough. Aur nahi hota sehen.â âSai main sirf ek mauka chahta hoon ki sab theek kar du.â âAur kitne mauke do aapko? Sorry Iâm all out of maukas.â Saying this she crossed the road and joined Samrat and Aniket. The three of them left leaving behind an ACP who lost the best thing he never had.
Part 13
Edited by StarryStarryNyt - 4 years ago