Angad keys some numbers into the calculator and hits the equal button, he notes down the figure on the balance sheet in front of him, then he stretches his back and leans against the sofa while sitting on the floor. His books are scattered around in front of him with papers here and there, he's wearing his reading glasses, the glasses he uses when going through the accounts of his company. He shakes his head and wonders what made him go into accounting, from what he heard when he was in college was that it was one of the most boring jobs in the world, but yet he went into it. Maybe he had wanted to make it less boring with his presence, who knows, he picks up his pen and begins writing some details down in his notepad when he hears the front door, he puts the notepad down and gets up heading for the door.
Angad opens the front door and grins when he sees Rahul standing in front of him, Rahul grins back at him and Angad lets him in.
"Rahul, so great to see you"
Angad smiles and gives him a warm hug, Rahul replies the same thing back to him then follows as Angad goes back into the living room, Rahul sits on the sofa and waits as Angad picks up his books and papers.
"Sorry, I thought I would get some work done before you came, guess I didn't realise the time, anyways what can I get you?"
Angad places the books on the table then grabs a chair and sits opposite Rahul
"Nothing, I'm cool Angad, how are you?"
"Great" Angad replies.
The two begin talking about general things, their work, and their lives and for the first 15 minutes neither dares to mention Kripa. Rahul follows Angad into the kitchen when Angad insists that Rahul have something. Angad hands him a beer then sits at the kitchen table with one himself, Rahul prefers to stand against the counter, he watches as Angad sips his beer then takes a sip himself before going for the gold.
"So Angad, what's up with you and my sister?"
Rahul grins as he notices Angad's reaction is very similar to the reaction he had got from Kripa when he had mentioned Angad to her. Angad shrugs his shoulders.
"No idea, why?"
Rahul shakes his head and chuckles, Angad wonders what he's laughing about and asks him, Rahul sits down at the table.
"I'm not stupid Angad, I may have been young when you and Kripa were together but I knew she was happy with you, every time she saw you she would come back smiling and giggling, but then one day it stopped, one day she came home in tears and I never saw you again nor did she mention you again. Now I may have only been a kid but I knew something had happened, so I ask again, what's up with you and my sister?"
Angad shakes his head and leans back against the chair and folds his arms.
"It's none of your business Rahul; it's between me and her"
"Cut the crap Angad, of course it's my business, she's my sister and you're my friend"
"If Kripa wanted you to know she would have told you herself, so drop it Rahul, there's no use in me telling you"
Rahul doesn't take no for an answer and continues to persist, Angad tries to avoid the subject and goes into the living room but Rahul follows, Angad picks up a book and pretends to read but Rahul snatches the book from him and puts it back on to the table then stands in front of him demanding an answer, Angad finally gives up.
"She thinks I betrayed her" Angad tells him sadly as he sits with his head bowed.
Rahul looks confused and sits on the edge of the table and urges Angad to divulge in the details, Angad sighs and begins to tell Rahul everything that has happened, from the prom night misunderstanding to him trying to win her back in Scotland. Rahul listens attentively as Angad lets out all his feelings, when he is finished Angad sits back with his eyes closed, he breathes deeply then opens his eyes and gives a faint smile to Rahul who is sitting quietly not knowing what to say, he looks at Angad and frowns.
"I never knew things were so bad" Rahul finally speaks while Angad smiles weakly and stands up and shakes his head.
"Well they are, but it doesn't matter what I do, Kripa will always hate me, but I've learnt to deal with her hatred"
Rahul shakes his head and also stands up
"Maybe I can help, I know Kripa, I know the things she likes, I know what will make her happy"
"No offence Rahul, I'm very sure you know your sister, but not as well as I know her, she's stubborn and once she gets a thought in to her brain then it will take a miracle to change her mind"
Rahul tries to argue but Angad is persistent and requests Rahul to leave well alone, but although Rahul verbally agrees, mentally he decides he'll do whatever it takes for him to bring the two of them together. As he is on his way out he stops at the door
"How about we go out tonight? Maybe to a club?"
Angad nods his head and agrees then gives Rahul the name of a club where he'll meet him in the evening. Rahul gives Angad a warm hug then leaves. Angad shuts the door then makes his way back into the living room, he picks up a book and begins to read but his mind is elsewhere, he puts the book down and silently prays that Rahul heeds his words and leaves everything as it is.
*********************
Kripa is on the phone speaking to her client, she is assisting her boss in a straight forward domestic abuse case but right now her client has decided to back out, decided she doesn't want to press charges against her husband and will be very grateful to Kripa if she lets her take the case back. Kripa tries to reason with her, she tries to make her understand that if she lets her husband get away with it all then he'll just be encouraged to do it again, when Kripa fails to persuade her, she hangs up feeling defeated.
It is when she is making her self a coffee that Rahul walks in, he senses her frustration and makes her sit at the table and makes the coffee himself, he hands her the mug and hugs her from behind
"You work too much sis"
He says giving her a small kiss on her cheek then goes to sit opposite her, he takes off his jacket and hangs it on the chair then folds his arms while sitting back against the chair. He inquires about her case and Kripa sighs.
"It seems my client wants to continue getting beaten by her husband, I hate women like that"
Rahul smiles then changes the subject.
"Well since you have nothing to do and since I hate sitting around the house with nothing to do, why don't we go out? I've heard of this really cool club nearby, we should go"
Kripa sips her coffee and shakes her head and tells him she has a ton of work to do but Rahul urges her to forget the work for one night and to have a blast with him.
She gets up and goes into her room to work but Rahul follows her there and pleads with her
"Please Kripa, it is my first night here after all, then I'll be busy with work that I won't be able to go, so come on please"
Rahul puts on his best puppy dog look and Kripa no longer resists, she pulls his ear lightly but agrees to go to the club with him, triumphantly Rahul leaves the room to get changed.
Kripa sits on her bed in deep thought, she knew Rahul had gone to see Angad and part of her wondered what they spoke about, she feels like asking Rahul but that will just confirm his suspicions that she still has feelings for Angad, and as much as she knows Rahul then he'll stop at nothing to bring them together. She sighs deeply then thinks back to the fight she and Angad had in Scotland, lots of things had been said that probably both of them regretted, Angad had told her that he hadn't betrayed her, that she had made a mistake, but she had seen them together with her own eyes. Angad could always be lying but her eyes couldn't, could they?
Kripa shakes her head and looks at herself in the mirror; she's a lawyer and one of the first things they teach in law school is not to believe everything you see, and to make sure you collect all the facts before deciding something. She looks confused, her profession tells her that possibly Angad is right, that possibly he never betrayed her, but her gut is telling her that what she saw was the truth. Kripa closes her eyes and puts it all out of her mind, she doesn't know what to believe anymore, maybe later in the future everything will be clear, but for now things will go on as normal, there is no way she will speak or interact with Angad Khanna, at least not tonight.
Kripa looks at herself in the mirror, Rahul is right, she does work too much and it clearly shows by the heavy bags under her eyes. Maybe going to the club will be a good thing after all. She goes to her cupboard and picks out an outfit and begins to get changed, she applies some make up on, just enough to cover the dark patches under her eyes. She brushes her hair softly the puts on a pair of sandals, then leaves the room to find Rahul waiting in the living room for her, he compliments her then both of them head out for the club.
*********************
Kripa follows Rahul into the club, it looks jam packed, from what she could tell everyone there is a university student, it is no place for a graduate, she's in a right mind to turn and leave but Rahul holds on to her arm and leads her to the middle of the club where by chance, for Kripa, but on purpose for Rahul, they meet Angad.
"Fancy seeing you here Angad" Rahul says as he shakes his hand.
Angad looks confused after all it was Rahul who insisted they go out, he is about to say something when Rahul announces he is going to the bar to get some drinks leaving Angad and Kripa alone with each other. Angad shakes his head as he realises this is Rahul's idea of getting him alone with Kripa. He is about to turn and leave when someone bumps into Kripa's back causing her to crash into his chest; he balances himself and holds her arms to stop her from falling then asks her if she's ok, Kripa can't hear due to the loud noise, both of them look around and see the university students drinking and laughing and dancing, Kripa spots Rahul chatting up a girl so she grabs Angad's arm and heads for the exit.
When both of them are outside she lets his arm go and takes a deep breath.
"Finally I can hear myself" Angad jokes.
Kripa smiles faintly and leans against the wall of the club, Angad stands next to her and leans himself.
"So what you doing here Angad?"
Kripa finally speaks, she looks at Angad who smiles and shrugs his shoulders. He's about to tell her that Rahul had invited him but decides against it, the last thing he wants is for Kripa to get angry at him.
"A friend of mine told me to come here, guess he forgot to show up himself" Angad lies.
Kripa nods her head and looks around her, a bunch of students stagger past them all drunk and loud, Angad senses her discomfort.
"Shall we go somewhere else?"
Kripa reluctantly agrees.
"But what about Rahul, we came together in my car and I have the keys"
Angad nods his head and makes Kripa give him the keys, he makes his way into the club and hands Rahul the keys then comes back outside to Kripa.
"Where shall we go?" Angad asks while he walks with Kripa to his car.
Kripa shrugs her shoulders, she waits for Angad to unlock his car then sits in the passenger seat while Angad sits in the drivers seat, he looks at her again and asks the same question, Kripa looks at him then looks out of the window at a couple holding hands, she frowns for a split second then looks at Angad.
"Lets go to your house"
Angad isn't sure if he heard correctly but when Kripa says so the second time he's taken aback, he wonders why Kripa wants to go to his house but doesn't question her and simply starts the car. As he drives he glances at Kripa who merely stares out of the window, he feels like stopping the car and pulling her into his arms but resists the urge and concentrates on the road.
Kripa reaches out and switches the radio on, a love song plays so she skips it and puts it on another station, when she hears another love song she simply turns the radio off and goes back to staring out of the window.
*********************
Angad stops the car outside his house and both him and Kripa get out, he goes ahead and opens the front door while Kripa trails behind. It had been a long time since she last came to his house, she probably didn't even know herself why she told Angad to take them there, she sighs and goes into the house. Angad is in the kitchen making some coffee for them both when Kripa sits at the table, she looks around the kitchen and notices some of the changes Angad had made over the years, she comments on them, Angad nods his head and informs her of some other changes he had made around the house and inquires if she wants to see, Kripa hesitates but agrees and follows him into the other rooms and looks around while Angad tells her what he has had done.
They stop in Angad's bedroom; Kripa sits on the bed and recalls the countless times she had been into the room, Angad looks on nervously.
"I'll just get the coffees" Angad tells her just before he quickly leaves the room. Kripa looks around and spots a framed photo of her, she walks over to the bedside table and picks the photo up, she tries to remember when it was taken when Angad puts the coffee mugs down on the table next to her, he looks at her then at the photo and smiles.
"Remember when that was taken?" He asks but Kripa shakes her head.
"It was just after we got together, we decided to go away for the summer, it was taken then" Angad tells her as if it happened yesterday. Kripa recalls and nods her head.
"To Wales right?"
Angad nods his head and takes the photo from her then puts it back down and hands her the coffee mug, he watches her as she sips it then sips his own, after a few minutes he places the mug down and takes Kripa's off of her much to his dismay, he gently holds her by her arm and makes her face him.
"Why did you want to come here Kripa?"
Kripa looks at him speechlessly, she tries to avoid his stare but he makes her look into his eyes and repeats the question. Kripa shakes her head out of confusion and tries to get away from Angad but he tightens his grip on her and asks her the question again, it is then he notices the tears forming in her eyes, he thinks it is probably because he held her too tight so he lets her go but to his surprise Kripa holds on to him and slowly her hugs him burying her head in his chest. Angad is taken aback and isn't sure what to do but eventually he puts his arms around her and kisses her hair softly letting her stay there.
Sorry for the long delay once again, won't happen again, anyways plz do comment😃
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