Chapter Twenty Eight
Laagi Tujhse Lagan
When Dutta opened his eyes all he could see was tall trees surrounding him, he had a sharp pain shooting up his left arm, the side he'd landed on after the fall, and than suddenly he remembered he weren't alone, Naku was with him, he scanned the whole forest within the distance of his sight, but he couldn't spot her anywhere, he couldn't help feeling a sudden jolt of panic in the back of his mind, for the first time he'd felt fear, where was she, was she okay... ? Did she survive...no what was he thinking, if he was alive than she would have be alive to, that's what she said, her heart was still beating inside of him, and he was still breathing which means his heart's beating too, he could sense it, he just had to look a little harder, that's all.
He got up in an instant and started to search for her, looking for any sign of her, any sound that would lead him to her, and than there she was, she was lying there, still, not moving, unconscious. He'd reached her within seconds and without concentrating on his injured arm, he held her in his arms and got to his feet and brought her to a more secluded part of the forest, where it seemed a little safer, the truth was there were no place safe out in the wild, but that didn't matter to Dutta, as long as he was with her she would be safe, he'd make make sure of it, no doubt.
Babi had told Gaurav they couldn't leave from the basti, as Morey's men would trail them, which would lead them straight to Naku, Gaurav had stayed the night in the basti, and was supposed to escort the family to their new home, but when he received the call the next morning about the accident, he played it cool in front of Naku's house members and told them things were delayed as there were guests in Patil Niwas and he had to head back, and not to worry about things, they would soon return to normal...whatever that meant, thought Gaurav, ever since he'd entered the Patil Niwas life style, he'd forgotten if normal was even a word.
When Gaurav returned by the afternoon he tried to reason with everyone to make them see sense, that if Bhau's phone was ringing than that sure meant they were safe, they tried calling a number of times, but than in one of the final attempts the phone had been answered but there weren't any reply on the other side, but one thing was sure Bhau was alive, maybe there weren't any reception wherever they were lost, said Baji, getting his hopes up again, and quickly ordered everyone to get ready to carry out a search throughout the night, as Dutta and Naku will have to spend the night in the jungle and that could cost them their lives.
While carrying Naku Dutta's phone had rang numerous amount of times, he knew the house members would have been informed by now and it was probably them calling, but at the moment the only thing that was on Dutta's mind was to get Naku conscious again.
He placed her down carefully under a tree, the Sun was setting and the and the forest had looked like it was enchanted with natural beauty, the sun rays were glistening through the leaves and broken tree branches shining stronger in some places and subtle in some, the whole view was breathtaking but the minute the Sun would set, Dutta knew the spell would break, and they would be in danger from the wild animals lurking deep in the forest and what not.
He looked around him there was no water anywhere near but it was sure going to get cold the minute the Sun goes down, thought Dutta, if Naku don't come to her senses soon, than they will have to spend the night here in the wild, he thought looking around for twigs and dry firewood, well he didn't have any bushwhack skills, so he knew he was in for a tough night, as he looked at Naku, who seemed like she were sleeping now, he wondered if she knew anything about being in the wild...he smirked at his thoughts, of course she wouldn't, she surprised him in everything, but he sure knew she couldn't surprise him in this situation, although he did secretly wish she could, 'cause he hadn't a clue on where to start.
Naku...Naku, he slapped her cheeks lightly on both sides, while he called out her name...no answer...Naku, slowly she began murmuring as she woke, the sun rays had caught her eyes, making Dutta look in the direction of the beams, and shield her from them by taking cover over her, protecting her with his shadow.
She got up slowly into a seating position, and tried to hold her pain in from the aches and bruises she'd got during the fall, ...Saab, she gasped, Saab aap theek tho ho na... she asked the minute she realised he was before her.
Haan..Naku main theek hoon, tum batao...tu theek hai na, tujhe koi chot tho nahin ayi, he said giving a once over look as if randomly scanning her for any visible injuries. When Naku looked around her surroundings Dutta had felt the need to tell her that they were lost in the jungle, and that they needed to sort something out for their night's stay, as it would be impossible to find a way out as the night sky was dwelling in on them, not to mention the chill.
Er...main, er...tere liye aag jalaa deta hoon, tujhe thand lag rahi hogi na... he said, noticing her sudden shiver, which she tried to disguise from him. Dutta tried to light the fire but the wood didn't seem to catch it, he looked back at Naku, who was staring at him with a blank expression, and he tried again, trying hard to act like he knew what he was doing.
Naku had inched closer to him and began preparing the fire again from scratch, Saab aag jalaane keliye pehle sooki lakriyon ki zaroorat hai, she said picking out the different shapes and sizes from the bunch of previously gathered pile of wood, she than got up and gathered a few dead leaves from the bushes around her, but not from the floor, all the while Dutta just watched. Saab...woh...yeh pathar waha aag ke neeche rakhne honge, she said hesitantly, indirectly telling him to move the stones as they were heavy for her to lift.
Dutta had reacted quickly to what she said, but didn't speak, he could tell she was nervous about something, well he probably knew what it was, but he'd rather not pick on that topic right now, there were clearly more important things to worry about, he thought as he lifted the heavy stones to the centre, why an earth did she want to start a fire on the stones, and what now she knew how to fend for herself out in the wild, Dutta had stopped guessing by now, when it came to Nakusha, maybe this is what made Dutta head over heels for her, her never ending list of multifunctional abilities, had this been any other girl she wouldn't have a clue, which reminded Dutta himself that what was she planning on doing.
She than returned with her new found resources and began making a nest in the centre on top of the flatter side of the stones, leaving just a small gap, and than placed the smaller sticks at around it, and than guarded it with the dry leaves, and covering it with the larger log like sticks. Than she grabbed one long piece of wood which looked like a cane stick and getting another similar to it, she started to rub the end of the stick in her hand, vertically against the one on the floor held in place by her foot vigorously, eventually burning a hole in the stick, and when after some time the wood started giving out some black powder which would act as coal, causing it to let off smoke, she motioned the stick back and forth even faster now and told Saab to place some of the small dry grass and smaller wood shavings on the stick on the ground and asked him to blow air with his mouth when the smoke becomes more white and the end of the stick red, and upon doing so, the dead wood made the fire flare up, she had carefully motioned the small fire on the stick under the house of wood she made earlier on the bed of stones, where the fire had slowly spread into a bigger and warmer flame, right before their eyes.
The fire grew big and warm, leaving Dutta shocked, he'd spent ages trying to get a single spark and she'd just lit a whole bonfire within what...20 minute's thought Dutta.
What are the stones for, he asked out of genuine curiosity, forgetting the fact that he was being way to casual, but maybe he didn't care, she was innocent and that was all that mattered thought Dutta, as he looked back at Naku's face which was glowing with the bright light from the fire, making her eyes look like they could burn him at a higher degree than the fire itself.
Erm...woh...Saab, er...woh mitti geeli hai na, isi liye aag waha nahi jalti, when the ground is damp it is recommended to light a fire on stones to keep it lit, that's why the fire wouldn't burn up when u tried earlier, not to mention the damp sticks you broke from the tree, which were still alive because they were green, she finished.
How do you know all this... asked Dutta while sitting down on the roots against the leaning tree, and began warming his hands holding them up against the heat, and looking straight at Naku...woh Gaurav ne...but before she could finish, Dutta's head had moved in Naku's direction faster than the speed of light, uh-oh thought Naku, did she say something wrong, ...woh...main... she hadn't a clue on what she was going to say next...
Tumhe thand nahin lag rahi, beth ja, he said motioning his eyes to the spot next to him, why did this girl have to ruin everything with that Gaurav's name, so she learnt how to start a fire from Gaurav, Dutta smirked at his thought, thinking that Gaurav had actually lived up to one of his expectations, literally, thought Dutta.
Main khaane keliye kuch leke aata hoon, he said, knowing she must be hungry, 'cause he sure was starving, he could eat a bus right now, but if only that were an option, he thought, as he got up, only to be stopped by Naku's furrowed eyebrows, what was it he thought, why was she looking at him like that...kya huwa he said, tera chehra kyun utar gaya...
woh Saab aap yahan iss jungle mein kahan se kaana layenge... she said worried,
arre itne panchi yahan udd rahe hai, itne janwar hai iss jungle mein, kuch na kuch tho mil hi jayega... he said, only to find Naku's face expression even more astonished than before... abh... kya huwa, he said sighing and looking away. It's going to get dark soon, and it won't be wise to move around than he tried to tell her. But Naku tried to ask him what he intended to defend himself with, but before she could ask he pulled out his gun, genius thought Naku, how could she have missed it, Saab don't you think it would be better to find something that is growing naturally in the forest rather than killing something she pleaded standing up with him, Dutta had just rolled his eyes, women how sentimental, we're here fighting for survival and she wants to pick fruits from trees that could just as well be poisonous.
Together they'd calmed the fire by removing the larger logs away and went to look for 'fruits' in the jungle, Dutta could see Naku was scared of being alone, but before he could tell her to come with him, she'd already tagged along, this made Dutta slightly pleased and satisfied, but as usual had no way of showing it.
They walked for ages marking every tree on their way so they could trail back to where they were. And than finally they found trees with fruit on them, berries, but there were many different types, red, blue, white, lots of white berries, which Naku knew were poisonous, because of her Ayurveda knowledge, and told Saab that not to touch them and let her pick the ones that weren't poisonous. But the main question was how to get to them, well I ain't no Tarzan thought Dutta, mujhe pedh charne nahin aate... he said like a sulky kid, and he looked at Naku. Naku stared back at him, he doesn't expect me to climb the tree does he, she thought getting nervous and straightening her duppatta our instead.
When Naku didn't bother to answer, Dutta had no choice left before him, he done what he'd do in any situation, he pulled out his gun to shoot the berries off instead, but Naku stopped him, holding onto the front of the barrel. She than suggested that she'd try climbing the tree instead, Dutta somehow knew she wouldn't be able to climb up, but just for the sake of it he'd wanted to see how far she got, unless like everything else she miraculously knew this too, thought Dutta as he watched her tie her scarf up to the side, basically preparing herself.
Dutta had felt like laughing out loud when he saw her put her paw up against the bark of the huge tree, but tried hard to keep a stern face, from what Dutta could see she was clearly no athlete in any sense, she was probably one of those girls in school that was afraid when the ball came in her part of court and hit it with a girl type punch, which reminded him of the time she punched the punching bag in the boxing club, he just nodded his head to himself, when he heard Naku scream...aarrgghh Saab, Saab, aarrhhgg she squealed jumping around him and hiding herself behind his back, grabbing onto his kurta from behind, kya huwa... he asked quickly, noticing a horrible lizard with a beard and frills around its neck, but at the same time it looked like a multicoloured chameleon, when Dutta saw it he understood Naku was scared, but the lizard had made itself scarce within no time, it was probably more scared of Naku's screams than she was of it.
Naku had hid herself completely behind his back, he could feel her heart beating hard against his back, but when he was about to tell her that the creature had disappeared, he had an urge in him not wanting her to let go of him, so instead he told her not to move, ...Naku hilna matt, woh bilkul tere dhai pair ke saamne khada hai, he said in a serious type of tone, as soon as the words had left his mouth, Naku clenched onto him even tighter letting out slightly muffled whimpers, making Dutta tuck his bottom lip under his top lip to stop himself from laughing literally.
Chala gaya Saab... she asked from under her hideout. Dutta didn't know what to say, er...woh haan...er nahin...he said, pata nahin kya kar raha hai, lagta hai ke woh chahata hi nahin ke tu yahan se hile, he said mouthing 'what the hell was that' to himself in regret making him look almost stupid.
While Dutta was busy occupying himself with self talks, Naku had managed to peep up and look out only to see it gone, making her let go in a sudden movement, leaving Dutta a little stunned, but he'd make a quick excuse and said it finally decided to leave, rolling his eyes again behind her back, thinking what the hell what wrong with him, he was thinking of things to say, me Dutta Shriram Patil, god being in love was worse than being drunk, he thought, you have absolutely no control on what you do and what you say, both of them leave no opportunity in making a fool out of you he thought, shaking out this new found disease from his mind, and trying to get on with reality.
You know what Naku I'll lift you and you just grab whatever berries you can, okay, he said not giving her a chance to even say anything and picked her up from the front and swung her around in the air and sat her on his right shoulder, like he was some kind of gymnast, while holding her left hand out to keep her support, Naku was taken off guard, but before she could say a thing she was already sitting above his head literally... with her head amongst a bunch of berries, which she grabbed as many as she could and shook the branches with force making the ripe ones fall to the ground, and at the same time Dutta had almost bounced her off his shoulder, swinging her back round to her front facing him, but before putting her to the ground, he held onto her for a few seconds, and they'd stared at each other while Naku's feet were probably almost five inches away from the ground, but Dutta didn't seem to want to let go of her, but before any of them could speak one word she looked at him, and he looked at her and for that split second it was like they'd forgave each other, and nothing in that moment from the past had mattered. She slipped through his grip eventually but his grip around her waist had still been pretty strong, but Naku had awkwardly managed to remove his hands, making him realise what he was doing, and feel kind of embarrassed at the same time, so instead he just scratched his head for no apparent reason.
Naku had selected the berries and gathered them all in her scarf and they headed back to the where the fire was lit.
On the way back they were both silent and stealing glances from each other, so this is what it would be like if we were the first creation of god thought Naku, looking around the dark forest, this is what it would have felt like for Adam and Eve.
So this is what it would feel like if we were the last man and woman left on Earth, thought Dutta, looking at Naku and finally realising that love was never something you learn, it was just something you know but don't realise it until you find it, and when you find it, it's not to meant to just stay in your heart, because it was only considered love when you give it away, maybe that was when he understood that he loved Naku, when she made him face the truth that his heart had exchanged with hers, the reason why his new heartbeat gave him a new lease of life, but his heart had only given Naku the weight of his stone heart, and since she had it all she was doing was bearing the burden, which was beginning to weigh her down.
When they returned, they sat in silence and stared into the over sized flame, when Dutta broke the silence, tu kuch khaa kyun nahin rahi... he asked.
Main akele... but before she could finish Dutta had interrupted and finished her sentence off while grabbing a few berries and popping them into his mouth and saying ...nahin khayegi... he finished, making Naku blush while forcing herself to eat the fruit even though the moment had become difficult for her to even swallow in front of the man she loved, he was acting totally strange, what was with him she thought.
She was quiet, too quiet, if Naku was quiet than she was thinking a million different things that were running through her head, and she weren't arguing either...so she was thinking, deeply, but than she stared at him while she thought he weren't looking, Dutta had managed to stare back in time and hold her gaze for a while, it was like she wanted to ask him if all this was real, if he were the Dutta that had told her to leave from his life, but she couldn't bring it to her lips, but what she didn't know was that her eyes were telling him everything, she was wondering why all this attention was being given to her, all she wanted was an answer, and I wish I could tell her what she wanted to hear, I wish I could tell her I love her, and in return she would tell me that how she'd missed me all this time, and when she did I would know that there wouldn't be a person in the world that could miss me more than her, but the only problem was that he couldn't, he didn't know how to, how could the simplest thing in the world be so difficult to put into words, it seemed to him that the words would just get in the way, making it even harder to tell her how he feels.
Dutta knew he'd had his share of heartache, he'd had his share of pain, but now he wanted an answer, he wanted to witness what there was to gain, patience was always a key to his character, but today even that seemed to be leaving his side, when he was patient with his family it was out of love, when he was patient with others it was out of sheer respect, but when he is patient with himself it was his confidence of his inner being, but for the first time in his life he had lost that confidence in himself, it was like his guard was let down, and all that was left in front of the woman he loved was a vulnerable soul that wanted to be loved but was scared to say it.
Naku couldn't understand why Saab was behaving strangely, he was constantly staring at her, and when she looked up at him, he wouldn't remove his gaze from her, forcing her to keep her eyes down and play with her fingers nervously.
When the cold breeze blew a few of Naku's hairs in front of her face, Dutta just stared and envied the wind for being able to breathe its air through her loose locks, he tried to look away towards the ground to bring himself to stop thinking such things, it was obvious she weren't going to say anything, so Dutta thought to break the silence himself, finally.
Er...ghar se phone aaya tha, aur Baji ki awaaz thi lekin signal kuch theek nahin araha tha, isi liye kuch baat nahin ho paye, but the fact that I answered the call must have got them the message that we're alive and well, he said, trying to make her feel better. It's better we don't move from here as we can only get more lost if we go further... but before he could finish Naku had spoken...
Saab, agar gharwalo ko pata chal gaya hai, than we should make another two small fires, as three of anything in the woods or jungle means a sign of distress, and if anyone comes looking for us than they would know that we've been here, just in case we have to move, they can follow our trail... she said slowing down her speech with each and every word, why on earth was he staring like that, thought Naku, was he even listening to a word I was saying, she wondered.
How do you know that, he finally asked, have you been lost in the jungle before or something, he asked with a confused look...
Nahin Saab, main nahin, woh... but before she could say the name, she saw Dutta roll his eyes in the other direction, ...G..Ga...Gaurav ne bataya, she finally said, of course I should have known he thought 'Gaurav', ...kya abh yeh Gaurav jungle ka Tarzan bhi reh chuka hai kya... he asked rudely, making Naku trying hard to hold her smile back knowing that Saab hated Gaurav, and the reason was slowly becoming known to her, ... Nahin Saab, jab hum Banaras main the tho Gaurav had gone camping with some foreigner's in Rishikesh, and they'd told him all these survival skills and what to do if anything went wrong, and when he came back he'd told me all about it, and he was the one...that... showed... her speech broke up in the sentence while she tried to direct with her hands that the fire was taught to her by him, and he told her that the fire would never flare on damp grounds, she finished.
Wow, yeh Gaurav tho kamal ka hai, koi cheez hai jo woh nahi jaanta.. he said not actually questioning Naku, but she hadn't realised that it was a rhetorical question, as she hadn't saw Dutta's sarcasm in his face, while he poked a random stick in the ground doodling pictures in the damp soil.
Gaurav knows about a lot of things, but he doesn't understand matters with the heart she said, smiling while she was thinking about him, not noticing how her smile for Gaurav caused Dutta to stare at her lips with his eyes only slightly open and eyebrows creased together like he were offended by the fact that Gaurav had actually bought a smile on her lips.
Don't Gaurav have anyone in his life, I mean like a love interest.. he asked abruptly and curiously, deliberately wanting to wipe that smile off her face with his name on it. No, she said, there was girl that liked him back in Banaras, but apparently he told me that he never saw her in that way, but she got married to someone else, wealthy and of her status, Gaurav don't believe in marriage with people that think differently to him, her parents were really strict and renowned so would never accept Gaurav as their son in law, she said. Lucky them, thought Dutta.
Aur...tum aur...er...Gaurav... he tried to ask in a stretched tone, tum aur Gaurav kabhi ek dusre ko... but he stopped there nodding his head in a no, wondering if that was a right thing to say...
Nahin Saab, aisi baat kabhi nahin thi, na hain... she said equally shocked at his words, but felt the need to answer his unfinished question, making Dutta look back at her but feeling relieved at the same time while trying release his breath on the sly.
Naku, he started again this time with a fresh mind and taking a deep breath, kya tumhe kabhi aisa laga hai ke tum ek aisi ladhai ladh rahi ho jiss mein jeet bi apni ho aur haar bi apni, he finished not looking at her this time and carrying on drawing in the ground with the stick, ...I mean have you ever felt your feelings get stronger towards something... he paused and looked at her, ...or someone, but it doesn't bring you any closer to that person, he asked. Naku just looked at him and smiled delicately and answered ...everyday Saab.
Dutta knew exactly what she was talking about, and than realised how stupid his question had been, he was asking Naku for gods sake, she was sure to give the answer better than he could imagine.
Naku tell me when that day you told me you loved me before everyone, I mean on the day of the wedding, what did you expect to happen, he asked feeling ashamed of himself for that day's events.
Nothing, she replied.
Nothing, what do you mean by nothing, he asked confused now, than why did you tell me that you loved me... he asked kind of irritated.
...Because...I didn't say I love you to hear it back, I just said it 'cause I wanted you to know and made sure you knew, when Bappa gave me the chance to tell it to you, she said looking down, trying to hold back her pain from that day, ...I did, she answered.
Before Dutta spoke another word he knew she was the one, that moment everything had become clear to him, a smile had unknowingly formed on his lips, but it wasn't because he'd just discovered he was in love, but it was because of the person he was in love with that had made him smile.
Do you believe in angels Naku, he asked making her confused, Naku was dumbstruck for once, thank god thought Dutta, 'cause he didn't want her to say anything that moment, ...don't tell me you don't Naku, because if you do than I can tell you're lying, Saab... she tried to say but Dutta hushed her and turned to her and said, ...than what would I call you Naku, how is it that I am seeing an angel right before my eyes, he said looking directly into her eyes, and seeing Naku's tear trickle down one cheek.
Tell me Naku how did you come to love a man like me, he asked not letting her look away from him, tell me I want to know, he asked, Naku had to get up from there, otherwise the chances were she'd drop dead right there, ...mujhe nahin pata Saab she said, ...it just happened one day, but before I could tell myself to step away I was already lost so deep in your love that finding a way out wasn't an option for me, each time I looked at you I fell in love with you, over and over again, she said moving around the trees trying to avoid eye contact with Saab, but she could feel him trailing her from behind, ...I loved your whole being Saab, I fell in love with your soul, and before I knew it I was carrying you heart with me no matter where I was or who I was talking to, I was just filled with you, without even having felt your touch, she said as she closed her eyes tightly and let the tears drop finally feeling relieved of what she just said.
Dutta was amazed, she had put it in better words than he could imagine,but he didn't stop the conversation there, do you want to know how I felt he said, making her face him by holding onto both of her shoulders, ...I felt confused at first, but than gradually everything became clear, I begun to realise that the love I thought I found in the past and lost, wasn't real to begin with, real love stays there when the body is breaking and the mind is failing, that's when I first found you within myself, and realised that this love is here to stay, he said looking into her eyes left and right, making her realise that he was trying to tell her that he loved her too. Naku do you know what this feels like to me today, it feels like I'm handing over a gun to you, and letting you point it directly at my heart, but trusting you will never pull the trigger, he said, wondering if that had made any sense to her, you're right Naku, we are one soul and two bodies, even though I know you belong to me, I get scared, and you know what the strangest part is that each and every single time I look at you I get scared, because the more I do, the more I fall in love with you... he finished wiping one of the tears on Naku's cheek with the back of his knuckles, lightly.
They pressed their bodies against each other within the same instant and hugged, and at that moment Dutta knew his life had just begun, he didn't care for the past, just the present which he knew would be good, 'cause that will define his tomorrow, it didn't matter where he was going anymore, but he knew that it didn't hurt to take a step into the wild in order to gain his happiness. As long he was with Naku, he couldn't care if they were lost for the rest of their lives.
After a while Naku and Dutta had sat by the fire but with a small distant between them, their interaction seemed slightly nerve wrecking for both of them, well not for Dutta, but he could tell Naku was new to this, well so was he in the sense of interaction with someone he loved and respected, and therefore he was kind of confused about how to make the first move, 'cause he knew Naku would never be the first.
Dutta had stretched his hand out and grabbed Naku's hand, which Naku pulled back very quickly, but Dutta grabbed it again and held it up against the fire and told her to warm her hands, she was getting nervous and Dutta could see this, but tried to hold back his laughter, don't worry Naku I'm not going to eat you, you'll find there's plenty of lizards and creepy crawlies in the jungle to do that, he said very casually but slyly, he acted like he was putting more firewood in the flames, while still holding her hand on the left side, but after his comment he felt her inch closer to him, because of her fear, which Dutta knew exactly how to add more fuel into the fire, Naku hilna matt... he said, kya huwa Saab, when she tried to look warily in the direction of Dutta's gaze, Dutta held her head back and said don't move otherwise it'll jump on you, ..kya hai Saab she said, quickly grabbing his arm and weaving it through and holding her full weight on him now, ...a wild rat, he said, while tactfully putting his arm around her shoulder as if her were protecting her from it.
After that Naku hadn't even moved, or so much as even breathed, she tried to stop herself from going to sleep just in case she woke up buried under a thousand wild creatures, so Dutta tried to keep her talking, although he knew there weren't anything around her, but he didn't want her to let go of him, and besides it would save firewood as they were keeping each other warm with their body heat, so Dutta figured there was no reason to feel guilty.
Tell me about the things you learnt in Banaras than, he asked, I heard you play the piano... is this true she said as he looked down at her, but she didn't answer, she was too tense to say anything so just nodded in a yes instead, Dutta started feeling sorry for her, it was like he was holding her prisoner in his arms, and she was caged, but didn't know it yet.
It's gone Naku, it's all safe, you can sit free now he said finally removing his arm from her, unless of course you want to stay there he said, she nodded in a no, and quickly moved away, and rested her back on the tree and stared at the night sky now.
Dutta was amazed at how quiet she was, but than eventually she'd spoken, ...Saab, she said, ...er hum yahan se kab nikle lenge... she asked ever so innocently, pata nahin Naku, he said, but he somehow didn't care not right now anyway, but instead took a deep breath and looked around him and said ...don't you think it's weird that the place that's witnessed our love will never be seen again, the only witness to our love was this fire that will be nothing but earth tomorrow, and the stars that will disappear by the day, he said looking up, only to hear a sound of vigorous scratching and when he looked back to Naku's direction he saw her carving something into the huge tree that was sheltering them, it looked like a heart, and when Dutta asked her what she was doing, she didn't answer until she finished her carving, and said ..Saab, this tree will forever remain witness to the end of days, that our love was here, and our heart will reside as one on this tree, she said feeling the carved heart on the bark of the tree, but Dutta looked at it with furrowed eyebrows, like something was missing, and said ...lekin Naku yeh to sirf khali dil hai... he said, leaving Naku confused, but than Dutta took the sharp tooth like stone, and began carving intials inside of it, he roughly wrote 'ta' with a plus sign and than 'sha', and than looked back at Naku and told her that now we are complete, lekin Saab yeh kiske naam hai... she asked, ...humare, he said, pointing at the initials ...dekh Naku yeh mere naam ke akhri akshar hai, aur yeh tumhare naam ke akhri akshar, aur maine in dono ko hamesha keliye jor diya hai, ab humare dil ke saath saath humara naam bi ek hogaya hai Naku, abh hum kisi bhi roop main do nahin hai, har ek roop main sirf ek hai, he finished, knowing what he had said touched Naku deeply, Naku felt the names and looked around her and wondered if there would ever be a time if they could return to see their names there, but Dutta knew what she was thinking, and pulled out his phone and snapped a picture of the memory they just made, we may be lost in the jungle Naku but we're not in the stone age he said, which reminds me... he looked at Naku and gave a mischeavious type smile and said, ...tune tho kahan tha ke sab ke dil keliye ek aur dil hai, lekin yeh naak bhi to sirf ek hai na, he said touching her nose lightly, and walking towards her but cleverly guiding her around and bringing her back to the tree, ...kya yeh bhi kisi ek naak ke saath takraane keliye bani hai, he said, ...aur yeh hoth bhi kisi ek ke saath judne keliye... he said his voice going lower and lower, almost in a whisper, and when Naku's back had hit the tree she was trapped and she had a gut feeling that she knew what was coming next, he had it planned she thought, the minute he gave her that sly smile she knew there was something wrong, her heart was beating so fast that it could have been mistaken for the jack-in-the-box, and that it could have shot out any moment now, she had to stop him, she didn't know how to kiss, she thought, what if she'd done something wrong, and what was Saab's version of kissing, she remembered the lipstick stains on his shirt and wondered how far he would expect her to go with him, ...Saab, she tried to shout, and stopped his lips coming that last bit closer to hers by putting her hand as a divider between them, and said ...er...mujhe bhook lagi hai, she said quickly pushing him away from his chest and quickly taking a seat near the fire again, and Dutta had just closed his eyes in defeat and held his head against the tree, thinking I knew it, she would definitely find some excuse to stop him, just when there was a space of a hairline left between them.
Dutta had left Naku alone after that, the poor girl would probably end up having a heart attack if he did anything else, and that wouldn't be the best of ideas right now, 'cause there was no way he could get hold of any medics around the jungle, thought Dutta, so he tried to keep a safe distance to make sure she was comfortable, and kept her talking with light conversation, but he couldn't help asking her her remark she made before they left from home about how she didn't have anything to lose but only gained and lost it after she came to his house.
Naku just smiled and told him that there was a famous saying from Banaras by one the famous poets, ...aur unho ne kahan tha ke 'tera tujhko saump de, kya lage hai mera, mera mujh main kuch nahi, jo kuch hai so tera' she recited, ...aur iska matlab kya hai, asked Dutta.
Iska matlab yeh hai Saab ke mujh main aisa kuch nahin jisse main apna keh sakoon, main aap ko kya de sakti hoon, kyunki jo mera hai, woh pehle se hi aapka tha... she said but before she could finish, Dutta had finished her words for her simultaneously, ...jo hai woh pehle se sab tera tha aur hai, the words had come out from his mouth as if her were telling them to her as his own feelings, as did she, Naku couldn't help wondering if he just told her that he was hers, they both gazed at each other, not knowing how long they'd looked into each others eyes, but Dutta knew that Naku had understood that he'd just told her right there and than that he'd handed himself to her, and would forever remain hers.
Dutta had tried to keep the fire alive the whole time, while Naku rested back against the tree, he kept glancing backwards to her, just to make sure she was okay, but eventually he saw her drifting away, and saw her head getting heavy, but when he told her to lie down nearby, she refused saying she weren't tired, so Dutta just gave up, as he was about to relax and lie on his back not too far from Naku, he saw her falling asleep and was about to tip over to the left, and so he quickly took his place next to her just in time for his shoulder to catch her head to rest on it, Dutta removed his waistcoat and placed it over her knees, to prevent whatever wind it could from making Naku shiver, and eventually he fell asleep too resting his head above Naku's.
When the birds started singing, and the Sun rays had shown through the tall trees, they'd both woken up to gradually by movement and held their necks which were beginning to ache now because of the awkward position they'd spent the night in.
The morning was beautiful, and the fire had calmed down, and most of it was a pile of ash, letting out a loose smoke around it, with its smell filling the air, they looked at each other and just smiled, with mixed emotions and feelings, Dutta had got up and stretched into a big manly type stretch and Naku had tried to straighten out her clothes and hair instead.
They both looked at the heart they carved last night into the tree and Naku had walked up to it and felt it once more, trying to make herself believe it was real, but Dutta had walked behind her and trailed her hand over the tree too, and kissed her lightly on the forehead, and gave her a nod to signal that 'should we go', and Naku nodded in a yes, and were about to walk off hand in hand, only to find a large man with no hair, and a big shotgun in his hand ready aimed at Dutta, who had quickly hid Naku behind himself almost immediately.
Yep ur ryt another long one lol, I dunno wot 2 say ryt now, the moods kinda changed a lot in dis one, but dis is d main chapter where their love is mutual on both ends which is y I gave dis chapter the title of the serial itself, as they've both confessed to thier feelings...😳😳
I litereally hav a weird feeling in ma stomach lol, cz of dis update, i'm not lyin wen I say I feel rly nervous abt dis update... n I swear I ain't lyin lool...I actually feel scared of pressing post wid dis one...😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳
well I do hope u liked dis one, cz it uk me quite some tym 2 put 2gva, I did try 2 keep it as close to reality as I possibly cud, but if I hav made ne mistakes den I'm sure u'll 4giv me..😳😳, n I hope d update is up2 ur expectations guys, and do hope u feel dat Dutta's confession to Naku wz k...😃😛
Thanks for enduring the long updates lol...m not gonna say names dis tym, not afta last tym lol, but thank u 2 each and every one of u dat do take out tym and read my updates... Tink takes a bow at u guys for it>>>>>>
Thank u so much 4 reading, and do press like..😉
Tink😉
Harry Potter
Kabhi Neem Neem Kabhi Shahad Shahad
Shiv Shakti
