FF: New York times with Maan and Geet Thread 2 - Page 68

Originally posted by: 6thElement

It was not just Sameera I had to deal with at that moment, but it was an endless list and how stupid was I not to have thought about it? He was 29'and ofcourse I should not have expected him to have been'Some of the notes in the book flashed to my mind and it was plain uncouth. I couldn't believe Maan had a past with a sybaritic lifestyle. I wondered what else I didn't know about him. Babaji, mujhe toh yeh bhi pata nahin ki yeh kitna kamate hain'I remembered the time he was down with Mono'."I smoked a joint'" Did he mean a cigarette or'?

There was just one sentence that echoed in my ears'"Earth calling little Ms. Sunshine"'I had been lost in a perfect world'in my Mr. Perfect. Reality called out to me. He was not perfect after all.

Originally posted by: -pixie-

So i went back and read the part where I felt he had a self compiled scrap book...

My first reaction was she found a copy of KS...but with all the girls names, notes etc I got confused. Is it a prank gone wrong? But why is it his secret stash then?

Anyway, like I said yesterday- I am patiently waiting for today's update...Sorry for jumping the gun!😃

Also finally got around to reading the promo for day and night- It sounds interesting- so my vote is you must continue...I really liked Chandni/Geet's character but why did u make Maan a don? Just curious? or let me pose the question vice versa- since you wanted a badass Maan then why make Chandni what she is?

Just trying to understand your thought process 😊

ps: What is this mahi moment series? I read a couple- they were real fun...You should totally link to them in the first page!

Part 59 Event horizon

<Maan's monologue>

It was practically impossible to catch hold of her, for I was seated on the day bed and she was standing with her face turned away from me.

Maan:"Geet meri baath suno'"

Walking away from me she got out of the study and entered the bedroom to sit by the smaller window seating at the bedroom. It was only smaller compared to the Mansion one, but it was just right for the two of us.

Maan:"Yeh kya bachpana hain Geet? Mujhe laga we are past all this?"

I called out to her in a flat tone as I entered the room, careful not to come forth with my frustration down under. It had been quite a show that day already with all the shoving and now her new find in the study got me worried, for the time it was going to take for her to come close to me again. Guilty that I was, I couldn't scream or force her to listen to me now and so I went and sat next to her. Moving away a bit, she turned to look at me with a scorned look on her face.

Geet:"Mera pass mat aayiye Maan'baat bhi mat kijiye ga"

I was no turtle when it came to issues now as I strangely sought closure after marriage and couldn't let any coldness between us linger for long. She had turned away completely to face the wall by the window and so I moved closer to hold her from behind. It was an unannounced act from her for she turned around with a veil of tears in her eyes and came close to hug me. What had changed now? A glum tone answered my call.

Geet:"I missed you so much'dopahair se mujhe tang kar rahe te'aura ab itna pass aakar bait gaye?"

I grinned from ear to ear and took her into a tight embrace, to let her know that the feeling was mutual. Apparently I had settled down too fast for now she let go of me with disgust and got up to walk to the bed. I knew that minute that the hug was for her and the disgust that came later were for me. The situation clearly called for a levelheaded conversation, but we were still jet-lagged; I feared that it could only go downhill from there for both of us were in low spirits.

Anticipating rejection, I walked to the bed, to lie down next to her. My pillows were still by the door and so I inched in closer to sleep on her pillow. I was wrong. She didn't push me around or sigh in disgust. Moments later, I slid my arm down her waist to hold onto her and she still didn't rebuff to my shock. I strangely felt she needed assurance and gave it to her the very instant.

Maan:"Geet so javo'tumhara tabiyath bhi teek nahin hain'I promise we will talk tomorrow" And she did sleep'after she turned and came close to sleep on my shoulder.

<Geet's monologue>

Was it a dream? The book'the notes...I was still lying down on his shoulder and we had cuddled to sleep just like any other night and I knew it was not one. Early was the way to go for me and I woke up to get ahead with the day. In about an hour and half, I was done with my morning drill and was now at the door eyeing for him. Hmm'Odd'I had not run into him the whole time I was getting my chores done. Getting ready was indeed a chore, for I absolutely detested setting foot outside on a cold wintery Friday morning. At that moment Nakul came by to let me know that he had already left for office. Surprising as it is, for it was the second day in a row we had not stepped into office together. Did it matter? I brushed the thought aside to break into a run to catch my morning ride at the subway station.

At office everything was the same old, same old. Shasha was at her desk, busy answering phone calls, Meer walked by me to get to an early meeting and Yash followed her closely. I took the elevator to my floor and walked to my cube to only stand there in wonder for a good lapse in time. There was a Max Brenner's LifeStyle gift basket, a steaming cup of hot chocolate, with a note stuck to it and ofcourse a tiny flower boquet neatly set in a square glass vase. Mr.Husband was trying to woo me, now that I had skimmed through his past from that book, but amidst all the frigidness that was there between us, my mind couldn't help repeating one statement to me. He had gotten me flowers'and now my eyes were fixed at the vase.

Not at the hot chocolate cup or the gift basket, but at the tiny vase of flowers that sat by the corner of my desk. I had anticipated one from the time he had divulged that he secrectly delivered flowers to random strangers. Something caught up to me and now my eyes fished around for him, I ducked to see if he was behind Meer's cube separation. He was not there and not at Yash's cube either. I turned to look around once again when my phone beeped and it was a text from him.

It read, "Don't look for me. I have left and if you didn't know you already smiled moments ago" and I couldn't help but beam at that message of his once again. He had been around exactly as he had mentioned to catch my smile in my time. Picking up the cup of hot chocolate in one hand, I tried to read the note which I had grabbed using the other.

"We need to talk'How about a date by the window seating? 6.00 PM?" The invitation had been packaged well and Hell Yes! We needed to talk.

Work beckoned and so I got to my chair to get back to emails and attend meetings. My last day here was only a couple of days away and I still had loads to complete and attend to? I sighed and got up to get to the next one with Ralph, it was about 3hrs long and I detested when meetings cut into my lunchtime.

Bored and beaten, I was at 11.45, when I returned to my desk. I slumped into the chair and stared away at the laptop screen for I was still very much jet-lagged. A chime from the messenger woke me up.

MaanKhurana:"Why so serious?"

Huh!...Its stale Maan. I pinged him back with hesitation for guilt was holding me back. I had still not thanked him for the gifts and flowers from the morning.

GeetKhurana:"Duh! Dark Knight? Could do better for a opening line."

<Maan's monologue>

Humor? She was interesting even then.

MaanKhurana:"Ok. How about? Your welcome'"

She moved her head close to the laptop, which was now on her lap as her feet rested on top of the CPU that was on the floor.

GeetKhurana:"For what?"

I was glad she was pinging me back.

MaanKhurana:"For the very word you have been mulling over since morning'"

She leaned back to smile.

MaanKhurana:"and for the two times you swung by my cabin, but didn't dare to enter"

Her forehead wrinkled with worry and she once again leaned to type in a message for me.

GeetKhurana:"You saw?"

MaanKhurna:"From Josh's cabin'"

I saw her that morning twice, hung in dilemma to enter my cabin and that gave away she wanted to talk to me. I kept away for some time, but eventually turned into Yash's cabin to wait for her. Lost in her own world, she came back to her desk and fell back into her chair. She had no clue I was here and I took the opportunity to toy with her. Resting her cheek in the palm of her hand that was on the armrest, she continued to type with one hand.

GeetKhurana:"Do you think Josh saw too?"

She was digressing and that didn't cut for me.

MaanKhurana:"Back to the topic'Say it...I know you want to"

The look on her face changed to a serious one now, for she peered at the laptop as she typed away.

GeetKhurana:"I'm not saying anything until you explain yourself'"

She was right on, but she was forgetting it was her turn to do so.

MaanKhurana:"Alright, explain away'for I'm still waiting for you to finish off your side"

She was poker faced now and I had to wait for her message to read her.

GeetKhurana:"Not until I hear from you first'"

MaanKhurana:"Geet'"

GeetKhurana:"Maan'"

She typed my name and giggled away.

I couldn't help getting up to get close to her. Unaware of my presence, she jumped at my whisper into her ears.

Maan:"You should do that more often you know'"

She collected herself to question me back.

Geet:"Aap yahin pe the? Chup ke mujhe dek rehe the?'Mr.Robinhood Pandey"

Ah! The name game'

Maan:"Hmm'what else can I do? I didn't want to miss Ms.Hoshiarpur Express"

We laughed together, but she abruptly stopped to collect her stuff and walked away. Partly I didn't blame her, for I would react the same if I were to find such love notes for her. She had no clue what it meant and how it had come into my possession. She just had to wait until the evening now, Didn't she?

<Geet's monologue>

I struggled to push through the afternoon and wanted to get back home early. When I indeed got home, my eyes were laden with sleep and I wanted to crash immediately. I decided to take a shower to wash away the sleep and it helped a tad bit to awaken me. Coffee did a much better job as I sat there at the window seating, waiting for him to show up in the same green saree and diamonds he had gifted me on our wedding day.

<Maan's monologue>

It was the same sight as the other day for she had the look of a new bride in that green saree. I moved in to meet her at the very spot fixed for our date.

<Geet's monologue>

Maan:"Thanks for showing up"

A gift? I had least expected one and he stretched it out to me for he was now seated at the far corner of the window seating. I took it and carefully opened up the present to be greeted by a blue diary. I blinked and his eyes gleamed with expectation, for me to explore the gift further. Not wanting to disappoint him, I opened the thick velvety cover to read a message on the first page.

"A guide on how to shove your HUSBAND in the lobby'By Geet Maan Khurana" with a smiliey face'

That was the last straw. I got up to get close to him and whacked him with the diary on his shoulder and he lifted his hands to shield himself, and called out to me to calm me down.

Maan:"Voi'This is another kind of shoving by the way'"

He caught my hands and locked it behind me and pulled me close to seat me on his lap. Struggling to free from his hold, I dropped the diary and scuffed his hands to break loose. He had a straight face and his hands tightened around my wrists to tug me closer. We were inches away from each others face and his tone mellowed to whisper into my ears.

Maan:"You pushed me all you want'lekin uske liye sazaa bhi tho milni chaiye'kyon manzoor nahin'"

As he inched closer to complete his sentence, his voice had an alluring ring to it. My wrists were free now, but I remained still for his breath was toasty on my cold skin and it strangely comforted me. His hand moved up to hold me by upper arms and I was sure under his spell, for my head titled sideways to kiss him. My cheeks lay cupped in his palms and my hands rested by his collar partly on his chest and on his shirt. Maan'main hamesha aapko itna miss kyon karti hoon? Itna door hoke jab aap paas aate hain'tho bilkul apni aapko bhool jaati hoon'

<Maan's monologue>

I let go of her to look into her eyes. Forhead crumpled with an aching look on her face, she seemed to be in a pitiful state and I wanted to mitigate her pain that moment.

Maan:"Kal raat ke baare main tum sahi nahi ho Geet'tum jaise samaj rahi ho vaisa nahi hain'"

Her face eased a bit but still seemed eager to hear me out.

Maan:"Haan'It doesn't mean that you are completely wrong either'"

Tears poured out of her eyes and she voiced out her concern.

Geet:"Mujhe toh kuch samaj main nahin aa raha hain Maan'voj sab kya tha?...Kya itni saari ladikiyan aapke zindagi main the?"

I wondered how much it hurt her inside. I hugged her expecting her to either shove me or not to acknowledge my affections for her, but to my wonder, she once again hugged me back.

Maan:"Not so many as you think'Sirf Sameera ke saath...She was my girlfriend for two years'Kyon vusse bhi problem hai tumhe?"

Wanting to face me, she pulled out of the hug and questioned me. Traces of a smile waiting to show up by the corner of her lips, gave me hope that my Mishti was not too far away from me either.

Geet:"Tho who saare notes'aur saare ladikiyon ka naam kyon likhe hue the'"

I laughed out loud and that threw her into a bemused state. I went on to reveal the most embaraasing of my B school days.

Maan:"It was a gift for my 22^nd Birthday from my pledge group'they had found out that I had not done it yet'tum samaj rahi ho na'"

She turned away for she was perhaps mousy to face the moment of truth. I lifted her chin to face me and continued.

Maan:"So they got me a book on Kama Sutra and made those hooligan sorority girls to sign up those foul messages to only tease me a tad bit extra if the book was not enough"

She was laughing and crying all at the same time and instantly hugged me to apologize.

Geet:"Sorry Maan'Nahin'aapke guzre hue kal se mujhe koi shikayat nahin'lekin bahuth dar tho gayi thi'vutne saare ladikyon ke naam dek ke'kahin'aapko"

I wanted her to face me as my wife was this close to calling me a playboy, but she proved me wrong for she meant to refer to one of her insecurities.

Geet:"teek tarah se samaj paayi ya nahi'"

It was my turn to tease someone back.

Maan:"Kyon ab se sab kuch samaj na hain kya?'baki zindagi kya karne ka iraada hain'"

My Mishti was back, for she was humming now'

Geet:"True'Don't they have a song'Can't hurry love'"

I smirked to let her know it was just not going to happen that way.

Maan:"Perhaps in your world'not mine"

I pulled her close and kissed her lips feverishly and she returned the favors too. I was taken back, when she suddenly pulled out of the kiss for no reason and turned serious to talk to me.

Geet:"Maan'mujhe aapse kuch kehna hain'actually I have something for you."

She got up from my lap to get to the nearby desk and got me a sheet of folded paper. Her tone expressed profound pain and that just didn't sound right to me.

Geet:"I will never be able to tell it to your eye'and please if you can don't judge me'And I will be in the living room"

I pulled her by her wrist to stop her from going for it was all too sudden for me and I didn't know what to expect.

Maan:"Yeh sab kya hain'tum yahan kyon nahi bait sakti'"

She freed her hand from my hold and walked away. With much apprehenshion, I opened the letter to read on.

Maan,

I don't know if I should have told you this any earlier, but our marriage was unexpected and I didn't know how in those 2 days I could have put this across to you. Please don't ask me why I didn't make an effort to tell you after our marriage'You were so happy'I just couldn't spoil it for you. All I can say is that I'm sorry I kept it from you all this while.

This involves Meera as well and I know you will maintain discretion, but a word of caution from my end, to make sure I don't hurt her in anyway.

I was 11 that time and was playing hide and seek with couple of other girls by our farm in Hoshiarpur. Meer and I hid in a near by storeroom that had the hulls and husks from the farm. As we waited for my friend to come look for us, two men came in with a girl bound by her dupatta. Meer instantly silenced me by closing my mouth and held hers too for we were struck by fear of being hurt by those vandals. We stay hidden behind the sacks and for the entire time the other girl was shrieking and crying as those thugs raped her'

I had an inkling where she was getting at and it meant only one thing'Or was I too soon to concur? I lifted the sheet to continue reading.

We didn't tell anyone about it, even when the whole town was questioned about her and those thugs'We didn't know what happened to her and as days passed we recovered'or so I thought.

Let me give it straight to you'I couldn't get intinate with my ex-hu'I don't know'I'm sure that was one of the cardinal reasons why he perhaps could never understand me at all and I never made an attempt to tell him either. We broke into many fights over this and he constantly blamed the circumstances under which we were married and took it as my revenge for the same. I slapped him once when he had crossed his bounds and was brutal to me' things changed and it was all cold and downhill after that.

I felt you should know'I want you to know everything there is to about me. I know I have a lot of baggages'and you probably think I'm stupid to have messed up my past for something that I had witnessed a long time ago.

I probably am the only reason why my past didn't work out and I just didn't know how at that time'I'm sorry for myself'and I'm sure this changes things for us'I know I was a goof up.

Ready to face your wrath over this'

Your wife,

Geet'

P.S'I don't know how you feel after this'but I love you loads. And if this is ever the last time I get to say this'then here it goes'you are and will always be my first breath of air that gives me the desire to live...and now love.

She had written over and over the last sentence'I wondered how many times she had traced it'perhaps her pain had blinded my love for her. Pagal thi'bilkul pagal'

Wrath? Did she know me at all? My love for her had only increased exponentially'

I couldn't wait one moment longer and I rushed to take her into my arms. Standing by the corner of the living room glass wall, she was crying bitterly and was driving herself to despair. She didn't notice me come towards her for she was lost in thought and now that I was close, I scooped her into my arms and walked back to our spot.

We sat down at the window seating and I pulled her closer to have her sit between my legs. I held her in my arms and she cried away her pain as she rested on my chest. I didn't stop her neither did I console her for there were no words that could stand up to those years of soreness that she had inside of her. I didn't know if she was relieveing it or if she was blaming herself for not having stood up to her previous relationship'She kept repeating "I didn't know'I just didn't know how'" and that gave out her inner agony that needed allaying.

I kissed her by her forehead and let her cuddle into me.

I remembered her words at my bedroom at the mansion "Upar se toh teek hi thi...what not right? Hot chocolate and all'" Upar'How true? I had judged her too by her external jolly good spirits when I had first met her. I smirked. I had even envied her for being a little bit too cheerful, but now, I have come to realize that her external self did not reflect her suffering. It was not something that I could understand in this lifetime and perhaps could never'

How do you even let go of such trauma? And now she was beating herself up for her failed relationship too? How do I convince her that it was probably meant to be? Or even perhaps that she needed age and time to tell her the right way to make peace with the tragedy she had witnessed...These were things beyond my comprehension and now my own life's sorrows in juxtaposition to hers seemed too inifinitesimal to even compare. She was being sucked away into oblivion'a black hole'continuously shredded into pieces by her love, relationships, and all the inner toments of her past. Argh! If only I could do something'

She was at event horizon'at the boundary of slipping away into limbo' she needed saving'from herself.

There you go...Guess everyone have their answers...Its too late and a difficult one. So I'm off to sleep. Please comment and post by the time I wake up.

Originally posted by: Water.

Is Geet not jumping to conclusions here? Can she even give him a chance?

Had she not said...he was the first breath of air...that she needed to breath? All that is gone?

Bus itna vishwas, bus itna bharosa. N so what ..if there was a past....she knows how closed off he was...and how he used to live his life before she came into his life. She had accepted him for who he was.....when she had said Yes to dadima for the marriage....

N what about...Chalna Aahiste Ishq Naya Hai?Pehla Yeh Vada Humne Kiya Hai.....had she not told him this in Central Park?

Questions, doubts, insecurities, fears.....are all devils that take over your mind n make you forget ...trust, love, compassion, understanding, kindness......

Will just wait for the next chapter to unfold....

Rachana