FF-Tum Kaun Ho (Epilogue) - Page 8

Tum Kaun Ho?

A Maaneet Fan Fic

Chapter 73
June 17, 2011 9:26 pm

Geet wiped the sweat from her face on her pants and paused to take a break. She walked across the ballroom to where her bottle of water was and opened it for a drink. She then checked the time on her iPhone and saw it was getting late. Maan would be calling her soon. Geet was debating if she had time to get anymore practice in, when Naintara walked through the door.

"Haven't you had enough for today?" she asked as she walked over to where Geet was standing. "You've been at it for almost an hour."

"I know, but I want to do a good job."

"Geet, this is your sangeet, not a dance competition. You're supposed to have fun, not work yourself into a state of exhaustion."

"I could say the same thing to you," replied Geet, giving Naintara a good look. "You seem quite tired. Is everything okay?"

"Of course, everything is fine."

"Di, I really appreciate all that you do for me, but I don't want you to take so much stress."

Naintara smiled and reassured Geet. "You don't need to be concerned for me. If I seem a little tired, well, what do you expect, running after two energetic little boys? I thought one was a handful, but two? JD and Harsh can get up to more mischief than any two children have a right to."

Geet frowned and said, "Di, I'm sorry. I've been so busy, but I should have been helping you with the kids."

"Oh, Geet, you don't need to be sorry."

"But Di..." Geet was interrupted by an alert from her phone. She saw a Facetime invitation from Maan, but for some reason, she didn't want to answer it in front of Naintara. She also didn't want to give him any hint of what she was doing.

"Did you just get a call?" asked Naintara.

"No, Di," said Geet quickly. "It was just an alarm. To remind me to stop practicing. Anyway, it's late, so I should go get ready for bed."

June 17, 2011 9:37 pm

"Geet, why didn't you take my call?" came the accusatory question from her impatient fiance the second he answered her call.

"I was with Di and..."

"You didn't tell her that I called, did you?"

"No, I..."

"Thank God! I know you think of Naintara like a sister and talk to her about everything, but don't tell her that we talk on the phone at night. Don't tell ANYONE!"

Geet hadn't been planing on saying anything, but was a little taken aback by Maan's strong response. "What are you getting so worked up for?"

"Geet, Dadi is already doing everything she can to either keep us apart, or keep us from being alone. If she finds out how much time we spend talking, she'll do something crazy, like confiscate our phones."

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. Actually, I like that we talk secretly. It's kind of like being in high school and having a secret boyfriend. It's a new experience for me."

"That's good. If you had had a boyfriend before, I might have to kill him."

"Maan!"

"What's so shocking. You know I can't stand the thought of any man with you but me. You are only mine."

"Of course I'm only yours, you crazy, possessive fool. Now, if you can get out of your jealousy for a moment, I want to talk to you about Di. I a little worried." The seriousness of Geet's tone immediately had Maan's attention.

"What's wrong?"

"Maan, I think Di is taking too much stress over the wedding preparations. I've tried talking to her about it, but she just shrugs off my concerns and changes the subject."

"Hmmm. I'll talk to Dev about it. Maybe he needs to take her out for some time alone. To tell you the truth, between his work and the children, I don't know when the last time my brother took his wife for a romantic date was."

June 22, 2011 11:58 am

"Maan, what are you doing? Why are you taking this exit?" As Maan drove them home from the dance studio, Geet had been paying little attention to where they were, until he seemed to alter their route in a way that made no sense to her.

"I'm taking this exit, because you and I are going to the Morton Arboretum, which is just to our right, here."

"Maan, we need to be getting home."

"No, we don't."

"But Maan, everyone is expecting us in an hour. I'm supposed to discuss menus with Dadi and JD..."

"They won't be expecting us for a few more hours. In a couple of minutes, Dev is going to pretend to have gotten a call from me, saying we are staying for another hour of dance practice, and then going to get some lunch. As for JD, you know that he is busy with his activities at the zoo, so you don't need to worry about him."

"Maan, did you ask Dev to lie to Dadi?"

"Yes, and he was glad to do it. We looked after Harsh and Meenal so that he and Naintara could go out. Now he's just returning the favor."

"But, what if she finds out? Then we will all be in trouble."

"Geet, you worry too much. I've gone to all this trouble just to have a date with you, and you're worried about Dadi finding out? Didn't you just say a few days ago that you felt like you were in high school and had a secret boyfriend. Well, with secret boyfriends, sneaking around is half the fun."

June 22, 2011 12:22 pm

Geet watched as Maan opened the trunk of the car, took out a blanket and a large picnic basket. She then followed as he walked around the picnic area until he found a secluded spot near a large tree. She offered to help set things up, but Maan was determined to do everything himself. Geet sat down as Maan opened the basket and began taking out dishes and containers. When he opened the containers, Geet's face showed her shock.

"Maan, how did you get this?"

"I arranged to have it prepared and dropped off at the studio near the end of our session. It's a freshly made, so I hope you like it."

"Like it," repeated Geet faintly, as she watched Maan place some rice on her plate, before spooning a generous portion of butter chicken over it.

As Maan continued serving her, filling her plate with aloo gobi, steamed vegetables, and pouring a large glass of lassi, Geet had a hard time keeping her emotions in check. She knew Maan was not a big fan of Indian cuisine, and that he preferred to eat Italian food. The fact that he arranged to have her favorite foods, that he disregarded his own preferences, just to please her, made the meal all the more special.

June 22, 2011 1:50 pm

"So, my soon-to-be Mrs. Khurana," said Maan, "after eating that enormous meal, what should we do now?"

Geet and Maan were currently in each other's arms, their backs against the tree where they were picnicking. Geet's head rested on Maan's shoulder, and his free hand was drawing lazy patterns on her wrist. A cool breeze was blowing, and the calm sounds of nature gave a feeling of being in another world. Geet felt so content being with Maan, that she never wanted to leave. But, there were too many things to do at home, so she suggested that it was now time to think of leaving.

"Leave? We don't need to leave. We still have some time. I wast thinking it would be nice to take a short hike to see the Big Rock."

Geet looked at Maan like he was crazy. "Maan, we can't go on a hike. There's not enough time, and we don't have the right shoes, or any water. There's just no way."

"Geet, never underestimate Maan Singh Khuran," he said, as he stood up, and then pulled her up with him.

Picking up their things, he took Geet back to the car, where all her objections were met. Geet hadn't noticed before, but Maan had kept a pair of shoes for him and her in the trunk as well as a small backpack filled with water bottles. He also had hats for them, to help keep the sun off their face. As they got themselves ready, Maan explained that there were multiple ways to the Big Rock, and they would take the shortest, allowing them to be back in less than an hour.

Shaking her head in defeat, she commented, "You think of everything, don't you."

"Of course. Now, are you ready to go with me?" Maan asked, holding his hand out.

"I'm ready to go with you anywhere," replied Geet, placing her hand in his, smiling with love and happiness.

June 22, 2011 4:35 pm

"Maan, if I tell you something, you won't get a big head, will you?"

"How can I say if I don't know what it is you want to tell me?"

Geet shrugged and then let go of his hand to put her arm through his, pulling him to a stop also. Looking up into his face, she said, "You always make everything so special. I never thought that walking to see a rock could be so enjoyable. Thank you."

"You don't need to thank me, Geet. I do all of this because your happiness is my happiness. When I see your beautiful smile, there is a warmth inside my heart that I just can't describe. If there is anything that I can do to see that smile, I will do it."

Unable to hold himself back any longer, Maan cupped her cheek softly, before leaning down to take her lips in his. The kiss was tender and sweet, more about conveying how happy he was to be with his Geet, than expressing his pent up desires. When the kiss ended, neither wanted to move away, instead resting their foreheads on each other.

"It's been such a wonderful few hours," sighed Geet, "but it must be about time to leave."

As she pulled back, Geet grabbed Maan's wrist and asked, "What time is it, anyway?"

When she saw the time on his wristwatch, Geet thought she must be misreading it. Looking more closely, she saw that it was much later than she expected. Her eyes widened in fear, as she thought about how late they would be arriving at home now. Dadi was sure to be angry with them, but especially her, for missing an important part of the wedding preparation. Oh, they were in so much trouble!

Here is the picnic basket that Maan arranged for.