I was planning to thank everyone, but decided to post the part instead. You can thank Gayatri and Nina for it 💗Will continue to read comments after posting. Please continue to comment and thank you for all the love. Am missing romance-addict
Part 14
It’s Friday around noon, they have just had lunch. Her father is chatting away with Usha Maushi, no one would have guessed this man has had stents put it 4 days ago, she shakes her head listening to them talk about whether garlic or ginger goes with goda masala. The doorbell rings and she knows who it is before she even opens the door. She sits straight and stares at her toes and then curls them and plants them tight on the floor. The bell rings again, poor Maushi steps out, hits her shoulder while walking to the door and opens it.
Her father steps out and exclaims, “Arrey ya ya..Usha, yehi hai ACP Virat”.
A deep voice replies, “Abb toh aap mujhe Virat keh sakte ho” and then turns to Maushi and gives her a box “Usha Maushi aap ke liye, Uncle ko nahi”.
Maushi is shy, but he holds her by the shoulder and insists.
“Kis ke liye?”
With a straight face, he says, “Aapki Sai shaadi karne vaali hai”
Her father claps his hands in excitement and says, “Sai..sachh?!” And tears corner his eyes. He blinks them while his daughter gets up and walks to him.
“Aap royenge toh nahi karungi”
Kamal pats his daughter’s hand and looks at Virat. “Toh Tumne mana hi liya?”
Sai gets irritated, “ismei inko kyu credit mil raha hai?”
Virat with a mischievous smile says, “Actually Sai ne mujhe manna liya”.
Everyone laughs, as Usha Maushi takes the box of sweets and walks into the kitchen saying she will serve it and Kamal follows her.
The couple stare at each other. Virat in a white shirt on jeans holds Sai’s wrist, she gasps but let’s him hold it. Her back is to the kitchen and he is stands opposite her.
He bends and moves his lips under ear whispering, “Just Sai, thank you”.
She smiles softly, “it’s ok.”
He smirks, raises his head and says “Vaise thank you toh tumhe kehna chahiye”
She looks at him and says, in all seriousness, “Bus mei aaye? Shoulder thik hai?”
He nods with a hmmm and then unbuttons a single button below his open collar button, she stares and whispers “Kya kar rahe ho”
He takes the hand he has been holding and let’s her fingers run on his shoulder, “tum batao, shoulder thik hai?” Her hand is hot over his skin, and the scar feels jagged and yet soft. She whispers looking into his eyes, “time lagega”.
He looks into her eyes, “I don’t mind”.
Suddenly, Usha Maushi calls out from the kitchen, “Sai..” Sai tries to pull her hand away from under the collar, yelling, “Haan aa rahi hun” he doesn’t let her, she pushes him, all bothered, and walks to the kitchen door, with him following with his trademark smirk.
Usha Maavshi is in the kitchen with a plate and arti and her father is seated at dining table smiling, Maavshi signs her to bring Virat also inside. He stands close to her, not holding her hand opposite Maavshi as she takes their aarti and tells them to take Abaa’s blessings, they do. Her father blesses them, pats Virat’s shoulder and Sai’s face. Sai has seen her father this happy when she got into medical college, is marriage really that important? She thinks. Her father seems to be chatting with him
“Khana khaya tumne? Thoda varan bhaat hai, kaogey?”
He washes his hands in the kitchen tap and grabs a plate from the shelf, like he was born to eat in the kitchen, while she heats the bhaat for him. She takes the plate from him and serves the bhaat and gives it to him. He sits at the table and starts tucking it in, while Maavshi offers some achaar to go with it.
“Apni Sai ko mirchi achaar bahut pasand hai” Maavshi relates while adjusting her pallu. He smiles at her and asks for more.
“Toh tumhare Aai baba ko bata diya” Kamal asks.
“Nahi, hum pehle aapko batana chahte the”. He replies and continues eating. Her father is touched, and she can’t deny it, she is too, just like that he knew this is what she would have wanted. Her father is slowly getting up, “main dupahar ke liye thoda rest le lu, uske baad tumhare baba se baat karunga, thik hai. Virat, tum raat ke liye ruk rahe ho na? Baatei karenge tab”. Virat smiles, and Sai helps her dad to the room.
When the father and daughter are in the room, he with no inhibitions asks for a second helping which brings limitless joy to Usha Maavshi,
“Sai ko bachpan se padhai ka hi shauk thaa, baaki sab bache, TV, computer, dost, picture, ismei hi busy the, lekin apni Sai ko buss Doctor banna thaa. Raat raat bhar padhti, Jaise voh sirf doctor banne ke liye hi ji rahi ho”
He winks at Maavshi with a mischievous smile and says,. “Toh matlab Sai ko Khana banana nahi aata”
Maavshi blushes, “Aga bai, aisa thodi boli mai”
He continues grinning and says, “Sai Doctori kabhi nahi chodegi, aap fikr mat karo”
Maavshi grins and says, “Apni Sai bahut swabhimani hai, agar voh khud badalna chahe, toh tum bhi usse rok nahi sakte, lekin haan, Sai se pyaar karna bahut asaan hai, kyunki voh pyaar ke badle mei sirf shudh pyaar deti hai. Maine sunna tumhare Aai baba nazdiq mei rehte hai, Sai ko bada phamily se hamesha lagaav hai,”
Virat nods listening to more small bits of Sai’s personality.
Maavshi has stepped out for some errands, while Sai is folding clothes in her room, and Virat is seated on her bed, uninvited, a leg folded and foot tucked under the other thigh which is dangling off the bed, his hands are busy playing catch with his phone, while he stares at Sai walking around and putting folded clothes in her cupboard. She isn’t looking at him, but is very aware of him.
He looks at her desk, “Toh tum yaha baithke state topper bani?” She smiles as she continues to put things away, “Haan. bachpan se ek hi desk use kiya hai maine”.
She shuts the cupboard door and turns to look at him, leaning on the door.
“Aur jab padhai se break ke liye kya karti thi?”He peers at her
“Paas mei ek temple hai, vaha jaake bench pe baith jaati”
He stands up, and walks towards her, “Chalein?”
She nods, goes check on her father and texts Maavshi. They take the short walk to the temple. They sit on the bench next to each other. Virat relaxed with his ankle on the other knee and his hand around her resting on the back of the bench and she crossed legged leaning on the back of the bench with folded hands. Even though its late in the afternoon, the bench is under a tree and not very sunny. They are people watching.
“Uncle aur secretary, ya father aur beti”
“Uncle apne secretary ko mandir kyu leke aayenge??”
“Prayaschit karne, hey Bhagwan mujhe maaf kar de ki mai apne secretary ke saath time spend kar raha hun, lekin tum hi Dekho kitni hot hai” he says very seriously.
She laughs and snarking adds, “Achaa toh voh hot hai?”
He is not even sheepish, looks at her and says flatly, “of course, agar nahi maanti, toh uncle se puch lete hai”
She bites her cheek, gives him a side eye, “Achaa jaake puchlo, agar beti nikli, chappal toh tumhe padne vaale hai, aur soch lo, yeh mandir hai, chappalo ki koi kami nahi”
He laughs, “Rehne do, mere paas bahut chappal hai”
They laugh together. He looks at her and whispers, “Vaise vahaa koi Aunty tumhe ghur ke dekh rahi hai”
An Aunty comes by and says, “Aga Sai..tu hi hai na? Pata chala Joshi Saheb ka operation ke baare mei, tu unke liye aayi hai na, kaise hai voh? Aur tu kaisi hai?”
Sai gets up and a part of her dupatta falls on Virat’s lap. He picks up the edge and feels it, and plays with it, completely ignoring the conversation, when his ears pick up on
“Aur yeh tumhara mangetar hai? Doctor hai na?”
Sai just returns with a smile, the awkward silence goes on longer for a minute and the Aunty looks at Virat and has an uneasy smile.
“Jee nahi, Mai Doctor nahi, IPS hun, ACP Nagpur mei”, he says flatly, while sitting, still holding the edge of her dupatta.
Sai half turns and looks at him. The Aunty nods with an “ache Achaa” and leaves.
“Kuch kehne ki kya zrurat thi?”
“Usse laga ki Mai Doctor hun, agar unhe Kuch ho jaata yahi pe, aur sabse kehti ki yeh Doctor hai, mujhe bachaa legaa, tab aur bhi beizzati ho jaati” he says seriously, still fiddling with her dupatta.
She makes a face, pulls her dupatta from him, “chaliye Ghar chalte hai, bahut ho gaya hot girls aur Gali ki auntiyan”
He stands and chuckles, “ok Just Sai”
She mock glares, “mut bulayiye, Just Sai..main aapse naraaz hun”
He holds her elbow and whispers into her face, “Toh kab bulau?”
She smiles a little, and then with big eyes, “Thodi der baad, main aapse thodi aur gussa toh ho jaun?”
—-
Edited by columbia - 4 years ago
Ishaani
Cricket
