Part 6
They sit in silence in his balcony, sipping Horlicks. Its almost 6pm and the evening is merging into night. The street lights are on and the sun is coming down. She can just about hear the traffic from below, but the voices from inside an apartment in the adjacent building are louder, she sips from her cup and watches the terrace lights in the opposite building come on. He is so quiet next to her, she glances at him, he looks at her and says, “Dhyaan se sunogi toh Mr aur Mrs Dubey ki baatein sunayi deti hai” she grins, “Toh roz shaam aap yehi karte ho?” He grins back and takes another sip, “Kaash kar pata, lekin Dubey apni wife ke saath roz nahi jhagadta na.” She giggles while he has a sly smile.
“Toh kya tum bhi Mumbai jaa rahi ho graduation ke baad?” She shakes her head to his question and says, “Nahi, mujhe yahaa medical camp mei mauka milaa hai and I am going to take it” He turns and stares at her and says “Tumne Samrat ke vajah se apply kiya thaa?” She laughs and says “Main Samrat ke liye sab Kuch nahi karti..aur anyway voh Mumbai jaa raha hai” He nods and says “uska matlab sirf yeh hua ki Samrat tumhare liye Kuch nahi kartaa” she testily says, “Mujhe pata nahi aapke relationships kaise hotey hai, lekin hum ek dusre ko rokte nahi” He smirks and says “Yeh baat bhi sahi hai, Samrat ko rokna nahi aata, unless of course, Pakhi ki baat chal rahi ho” She looks at him pointedly while he gets up and stretches like his words have not pricked her in a thousand places and says “Chalo adhe ghante mei nikalte hai, dinner ke liye wait kar rahe honge.” She keeps quiet and watches him walk inside, and she keeps wondering. She then picks up her phone and dials, as soon as Shilpa picks up, she says, “Tum kehti thi na ki Samrat Bilkul phattu hai, passionate nahi hai, voh hamesha apne emotions ko kaabu mei rakhta hai,...tum galat thi!”
Why can’t he shut up? Why is he getting riled up and itching for a fight with her? Why hasn’t Samrat called and asked if she is ok? Why hasn’t she called Samrat and fought with him? He turns the shower on and starts to soap himself off the sweat and the inexplicable frustration off his body, he promises himself that he will play nice. He won’t bring up his brother in every conversation with her, he should leave them alone, he should leave her alone. He will play a good host, one who can behave like nothing has happened, like how his family will behave at dinner, God! What a mess his brain has become. She is affecting him in ways he didn’t know he can get affected, but it’s not her, it’s him, his family, his mother and now ....it’s her..isn’t it?
He walks into his living room, where she is washing their cups, in his kitchen, using his dish brush, his dish soap, and suddenly an image of her cooking and asking him to taste what she makes flashes in front of his eyes. He steps back, slightly shocked, what is wrong with him? Good lord! They better leave right away, the sooner he watches her with his brother, the better it is for him, God! She looks at him “Theek hai?!” He realizes she has said something and he completely missed it, “Kya?!” She rolls her eyes, sighs and says, “Main fresh up hoke aati hun phir hum chalte hai”. He nods and watches her go inside. She comes out and he is collecting his keys and she puts her toilet kit inside her duffel, while he opens the door and she takes the duffel and follows him into the elevator.
The ride to his home is quite silent and he wonders why is she taking her duffel bag but refrains from asking thinking it’s probably personal. At the dinner table, everyone is extra nice to her, making her feel a combination of pathetic and grateful. It begins with Ashwini, “ Sai, maine varan bhaat banaya hai, Samrat keh raha thaa ki tumhe yeh bahut pasand hai” Sai smiles,, “Actually mere Abba almost roz banate hai, yeh meri favorite hai”. Shivani adds, “Tumhari aur Viru ki achi banegi, usse bhi varan bhaat bahut pasand hai”. Devyani giggles and adds, “Actually agar Virat dada ko Marathi Khana banane aata, toh voh kabhi ghar nahi aata” Everyone else becomes silent, Virat continues eating and Samrat who is seated next to her softly says, “Sai, mai tumse akele mei baat karna chahta hun, khanne ke baad, garden mei chalei?” Sai nods, curious, but also slightly relieved, she needs this talk too. She glances at Virat to see if he heard, wondering why is she doing that in the first place. Suddenly an image of him eating and offering her a spoon of varan bhaat and winking at her while she eats flashes before her eyes, she looks away, down at her food, shocked. Hey Bhagwan!! What is wrong with her? She better have that talk with Samrat soon, she realizes Samrat is trying to say something, she looks at him, “kya?!” Samrat continues, “Tum theek ho na?” She nods and says “Pakhi kaisi hai?” Samrat replies, “Maine usse Heparin de diya hai, So rahi hai.” She nods and watches his face full of concern. She continues eating and misses Virat’s eyes on them.
After dinner, everyone moves into the living room when Virat gets a call, he steps away to take it and returns and says, “Mujhe station mei Kuch kaam hai, mai aadhe ganthey mei aa jaunga” he looks at Sai after announcing it, she is busy looking at a book on the bookshelf, he comes near her, he removes the book from the shelf gives it in her hand and says “tab tak yeh kitaab padh lena” she looks at him confused, he smirks and leaves. Ashwini comes by and asks her if she will have some cofffee, she refuses, when Samrat walks over and says “Aai, isse Horlicks pasand hai”. Ashwini looks at Sai with soft eyes and pats her head. Samrat looks on and says, “Bahar chalein?” She nods.
If it was beautiful during the day, the garden is extremely pretty in the night. It’s like if nature does its job when the sun is out, the people in this home make sure the moon is celebrated as well. They walk to a wrought iron round table and two chairs under a tree which has string lights running all over. The sounds of water from a small fountain at the corner can be heard well into the silence and crickets croak in its symphony. Sai sits down and Samrat stands leaning to the table, Sai looks around and can barely make out his parents and sisters by the window. She doesn’t know why, but she finds it endearing and smiles. Samrat looks at her and asks, “Kya baat hai? Hass kyu rahi ho?” She shakes her head and smiles, “Kuch nahi, Buss yahi ki Tumhari family humei dekh rahi hai, it’s cute.” Samrat shakes his head and says, “Tumhe pata hai, mujhe hamesha se pata thaa, ki agar koyi meri family ke mentalpanti ko handle kar sakta hai, toh voh tum ho, pata nahi kyu, mujhe hamesha lagta thaa ki main tumhe yaha le kar bhi aau, toh tum aur meri family ek dusre se pyaar karne lagoge.”
He gets quite all of a sudden, she looks at him and says, “Aur abb kya lagta hai tumhe?” He says quietly, “Sab kehte hai ki mujhe tumse maafi maagni chahiye, ki maine tumhe bahut horribly treat kiya hai” she continues, “Aur tumhe kya lagta hai?” Samrat nods and looks at her with a sorry face, “I am very sorry Sai, tumhe yaha lake maine bahut badi galti kar di, mujhe pata nahi kya hoga ya tha..Mai Pakhi ko leke itna pareshaan ho gaya, ki maine tumhare baarei mei socha hi nahi, I am really sorry. Lekin mai kya karta, jab Pakhi gir gayi, mujhe bachpan ka har lamha yaad aane laga jab voh girke aspatal pahunch jaati thi, Mai phirse unn lamhon ko jeena nahi chahta tha”. Sai stares at the man, who is supposedly her fiancé. She has been a fool, she thinks, she never got him wrong, it was just that she was wrong for him. His sad face melts her and she asks “Kya tum bachpan se doctor Paakhi ke liye banna chahte the?!” He nods with tears in his eyes, which elicit tears in her eyes, she removes her ring and stands up and walks to him, she holds his shoulder, and takes his hand and puts the ring in his hand. “Tumhari galti yeh nahi hai, ke tum mujhe yahaa laaye, tumhari galti yeh hai ki tum pyaar ko dosti aur dosti ko pyaar samajh baithe ho, aur main iss galati mei shamil nahi hona chahti”. Samrat stares at the ring in his hand, and his tears fall into his palm. He looks at her, “I am so sorry” She laughs through her own tears and says, “Jaldi se apne aap ko sambhalo, nahi toh Shivani Tai Tumhari bahut kheechne vaali hai.” He laughs too. “Virat dada toh mujhe maar daalenge” She chuckles, “ek dost ke liye thodi si pitayi nahi le sakte?!”
Shivani yells, “vapas aa rahe hai, chalo chalo”...the family immediately scatters away from the back windows into the living room. Devyani suddenly says, “driveway mei kisski gaadi hai?” Ashwini says, “Virat vapas aaya hoga”. Suddenly the “couple no more” walk into the living room. Sai says “Aunty Uncle, voh Uber mere liye hai, Maine apne liye bus ka reservation karva liya hai, mujhe bus station ke liye nikalna hai”. Ashwini is shocked, “Kya? Abb? Iss vaqt?” Sai smiles and says, “Haan Aunty, vahaa Abaaa bhi jage honge.” Ninaad loooks at Samrat, who looks down and just says “Sai ki marzi jismei hai”. She bids her goodbye to everyone and gets into the Uber. She feels a deep sense relief mixed with sadness as the Uber drives out of the driveway.
She calls Shilpa on her phone and starts talking to her, “Haan ho gaya. 9’o clock ki bus hai, ....Abba se kya kaha tumne?” As she talks, her driver is yelling at her...she tells “Shilpa ek minute, rukk...Kya hai ?” Her driver looks into the rear window and says “Aap chori karke bhaag rahi ho kya?” She replies with a shocked, “Kya?!” The driver shows his thumb behind and says “Police ka jeep peeche hai, Kab se peecha kar rahi hai” Sai holds the phone and turns in her seat and lo and behold, Virat is following in his jeep, she rolls her eyes and speaks into the phone, “Shilpa Main baad mei call karti hun, Virat peeche hai” Shilpa goes “Kaun Virat?” Sai frustrated says “Arrre bataya toh thaa, Samrat ke dada”. Her driver says “Madam, Samrat ka pata nahi, yeh toh area ke dada lag rahe hai, main gaadi ko side mei daal raha hun”. Sai hangs up on Shilpa and frustratedly says “lekin meri bus chut jayegi”. The driver could not be bothered, “Voh aap apne dada ke saath discuss kar lijiye” As the driver parks the car on the side of the road, Sai mutters “Voh mere Dada nahi hai”...
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Next part - page 21
Ishaani
Cricket
