AR: Love Is... #2[NewThreadLink: Page 1 & 150] - Page 101

He stretched himself as he got up. Being buried under files was not his favorite task. But if he wouldn't do it then who would? He longed to design, to unleash all those ideas that came to him oh-so-often. But designing would have to wait until he had the firm under control. He didn't know HOW his dad had managed it. Shaking his head, he took out his cell phone only to see Riddhima's text.

Hey :)

I need to talk to you! Come by my cabin whenever you're free!

I can see you getting all hyper. Chill. It's nothing major ;)

x

Armaan grinned. She knew him well. Just then he saw the time at which it was sent. Half an hour ago? Hurrying, he made his way to her cabin.

He knocked but she didn't open and so he went in.

"Ridd-"

He stopped when he saw the sight in front of him. She was sleeping, while her pencils and her sketch lay on the table, incomplete. The window was open and the slightly chilly air, played with her hair. He shook his head. She was probably the only person in this office who actually kept the window open. Smiling, he closed it; the weather was getting quite chilly.

He walked towards her and looked at her for a moment. He didn't have the heart to wake her up and disturb this aura of calm that prevailed in the air. What the f**k am I thinking? Geez. Just wake her up, Armaan.

He shook her ever so softly. "Riddhima?"

"Mmph. Go away Rahul, mujhe neend aa rahi hai!"

He grinned. "Riddhima, it's me."

"Yeah Rahul I know it's you, but go awayyy...kal tum dono ke wajah se I was up, the entire night! Now let me sleep...please! Jaa aur Muskaan ko pareshaan kar." She said, her eyes still closed. Why wouldn't just Rahul LEAVE?

"Riddhima, it's me, Armaan."

Her eyes flew open in shock and she almost screamed. Stopping herself on time, she stood up, embarrassed to no end. What in the world was wrong with her?

"Woh...umm sorry...yesterday I was up the whole night so I fell asleep and uh Rahul hi roz mujhe uthaata hai so..."

"That's alright!" he said, chortling.

She smiled and had a sip of water before they both sat down.

"Toh? Kya baat hai?"

"Yeah, about that...I wanted to ask you this – How much chance do you think I have of winning this award?"

He blinked in surprise. She was always so confident about her ability. Then why the question?

"Riddhima, yeh kaisa sawal hai? You have every chance of winning the award!"

"Armaan, I'm not doubting my capability here! I really wanna know that exactly how likely is it that I'll win this thing!"

"I'd say you have the odds in your favor...to be honest, in the "New Architect" category there are usually only 3-4 nominees, so the competition is less. But more importantly, you've got serious talent! It's enough to win the award!"

She smiled. "Thank you! Oh and before I forget, we're gonna have to buy the costumes for our dance! Not today, but next week or so. What I meant is, give me a date when you're free and we'll go!"

"Sure thing! I'll have Tracy check my schedule!"

He went back to his cabin after discussing some of her work. Opening his laptop, he sat down to work.

Riddhima looked wistfully at the pictures she'd saved in her laptop. They were all of cars. Cars that she wanted to buy. Not cars, but a car, she corrected herself. She'd been saving for it since forever. But she had decided to break the fixed deposit account that she'd kept aside for buying a car. Rahul and Muskaan were much, much, much more important. Shaking her head, she surfed the net carefully, hoping she would find what she wanted.

It was evening and she was sitting in the studio, waiting for him to arrive. The music was on and she sat against the wall and just as she began feeling a little drowsy she heard him.

"Am I late? Shit! I'm so sorry Riddhima! Mujhe laga tha ki hum char baje mil rahe hai!"

She got up laughing. "Nahi, tum late nahi ho! I came early!"

"Kyun?"

"Aise hi! Main yahaan kai baar akeli aati hoon! Just like that."

"Toh shuru karein?"

Smiling they went to the centre of the room and she switched on the music. Time flew by amidst laughter over insignificant things and lots of dancing.

"Uh...Armaan...main woh..."

"Damn it! I can't even say THIS much? Come on Riddhima! Itna toh tu kar hi sakti hai! It's not like you're confessing your undying love for him. Phirse try maar."

"Actually, Armaan woh-"

"Nahi. Actually se start nahi karna chahiye! Maybe I should take a more confident approach?"

She practiced in front of the mirror so that she could get it right when she was actually talking to him. Kya yaar! It's so embarrassing! I hate not being able to do it myself! Mujhe usse help nahi leni! It makes me sound like this damsel in distress sort of person and I'm NOT that! Calm down, Riddhima and try again. For Rahul and Muskaan, remember? Here we go again.

She practiced again and again but this was tougher than she'd thought. No matter what had happened in her life, she had always maintained her dignity and her independence. She'd always had enough for herself. And today, taking help from someone was so humiliating. She'd promised herself to never rely too much on someone and here she was, doing this. Shaking her head Riddhima went to the bathroom. She didn't want to be late today.

She entered the office removed her headphones. She'd been listening to music in the car to calm herself. Not that it had helped.

She stood in front of his office and took a deep breath. You can do it Riddhima. Help maangna shayad itna bhi tough nahi hoga...after all people do it all the time. It can't be that bad. Chill.

She knocked on his cabin door.

"Come in!"

"Hey!" she said smiling nervously.

Armaan looked up to see Riddhima and he smiled. "Hey!" He looked at her. There was something different about her today. She was...nervous? The thought surprised him. He had never seen any nervousness in her eyes. Pushing that thought aside, he told her to have a seat.

"Bolo, kya hua?"

She smiled nervously at him. He blinked reassuringly. Feeling better, she gathered the courage to say it. Bas bol de, Riddhima! Zyaada soch mat!

"Umm Armaan?"

"Hmm?"

"I need 30 grand."

Armaan's eyes widened. THIRTY grand? Not that he didn't have the money, he could give it to her in minutes, but the question was why did she need it?!

He sensed the nervousness in her eyes. He looked at her, trying to decipher what on earth would make her ask this. He saw how tensed she was about his response but then there was something else too. Humiliation? He remembered how personally she'd taken it when he had offered to take care of the expenses for their Paris trip. And she was asking him for money?

"I'll be happy to give it to you, Riddhima. But do you mind me asking why you need the money?"

He looked at her. It was like a weight had been removed from her shoulders. Half serious, he asked, "Did you think I'd refuse? Is that why you were nervous?"

Riddhima smiled faintly. His tone wasn't serious but she could see he meant it. "No, I didn't think you'd refuse. It's just...this is...I mean asking for money is just really...umm embarrassing for me." She said, avoiding his gaze.

"You're a strong, independent woman Riddhima. Borrowing a few grand from me isn't going to change that!" Trying to lighten the atmosphere he said, "Aur waise bhi, tumhe pata nahi, lekin mai bahot bada kanjoos hoon. Free mein thodi tumhe paise doonga? You're gonna have to pay me back!"

Riddhima laughed. "Of course I'll pay you back! And since you asked me, here it is. Woh kya hai na, I want to send Rahul and Muskaan on a trip to Austria and Hungary. They've always wanted to go there! But umm after they got married and stuff they haven't got the time! Unka honeymoon bhi bahot short tha! And they've been working so much...they need time off. So, I've chalked out a plan. I'll send them there for two weeks and hence the money. I have savings, but I can't use them all, so...you know. And that's why I asked you how likely you think it is, that I'll win the award. I'll use the prize money to pay you back!"

Armaan looked at her in wonder. She was so amazing. That's nice of her! I mean, no one does stuff like this!

"That's really nice of you Riddhima."

"Thanks! Achha, tumne Tracy se apna schedule check karvaya? We need to go shopping Armaan!"

"Shoot. I forgot all about it! Abhi karvaata hoon. I'll tell you the date when we meet for practice today, hmm?"

"Sure thing!"

"Wait a sec, I'll give you this cheque."

She took the cheque and left for her cabin, after deciding what time they'd meet in the evening.

Riddhima was waiting for him outside the studio. It was two weeks before the final performance and NOW they were going to get the costumes. But it'd been impossible to fit it in, earlier. They'd decided to meet, buy the costumes and then do a little bit of practice before heading home.

Armaan saw her waiting outside the studio. He waved and she came, smiling. Sitting in the car, they headed for the mall.

"Holy shit..." he muttered as he saw the rush. "Riddhima, aaj kuch hai kya?"

"I don't know..." she replied in the same shocked tone. It was almost like a stampede. People kept on entering the mall and it looked like no one was leaving. Just then she saw the bill board.

"Armaan?"

"Hmm?"

"Aaj yahaan par bada sale hai, hence the rush. Are you sure you wanna go in?"

"We have to! Hum basement parking wali line mein already ghus chuke hain! It'll be alright."

"Okay..."

It was an hour later when they entered the mall. Parking had taken them half an hour and another half an hour had been wasted in walking through the crowd. And the car was parked quite far.

Just as they entered Armaan said, "Shit! I forgot my phone in the car! Charging ke liye rakha tha!"

"Ab kya? Do you wanna go and get it?" she asked, her voice laden with worry. "Yahaan bahot crowd hai-"

"Its alright Riddhima! Chalega! Hum saath hi rahenge! Come!"

She nodded uncertainly and followed him in.

"How about this one?" he asked her. They'd been shopping since an hour but nothing seemed perfect. The clothes were good, but there was nothing that seemed PERFECT for them.

"Nah...I don't like the collar! It's weird..."

"Yeah you're right! Damn it! Yahaan pe kuch nahi hai! How are we EVER going to find something good enough?!"

"Chill Armaan! Abhi toh there's so many shops to go to! Kuch na kuch toh mil hi jayega!"

"I guess you're right. But please make it fast! I'm bored, Riddhima."

"Armaan, it's only been an hour!!!"

"ONLY? Do you know how much one hour is? SIXTY minutes! Three thousand six hundred seconds! And you say, ONLY? Ek toh waise hi, I hate shopping! Chodo na Riddhima! We'll come some other day!"

"Armaan yeh kya baat hui?! If we get out now, it's rush hour so we'll waste so much time in reaching home! Usse achha, we'll browse a few more shops!"

"But-"

She put on her cutest pout and looked at him with a pupp-dog expression.

"That's not going to work on me." He said.

Riddhima grimaced mentally. Damn! Think of something Riddhima! Aaj toh yeh shopping khatam kar ke hi rahoongi!

She made the saddest expression she could. "Theek hai...let's go. Agar tumhe shopping nahin karni, toh fine. We won't do it."

Armaan looked at her feeling a little guilty. Maybe they could stay for a while. She was right. Going home would waste a lot of time.

"Achha chalo bas, hum ghar nahi jaayenge!"

"No Armaan, it's okay. I'm not forcing you."

"Riddhima! Yaar, don't make me feel guilty! Chal na! We'll finish the shopping and then only we'll go home! Pakka!"

She stood there smiling, with her back facing him. Turning around, she said, "Sachi?! Chalo!"

Armaan looked at her. Itni jaldi mood change ho gaya? Abhi toh itni sad thi! Shit! She fooled me? Ugh. Ho kya gaya hai mujhe?!

"You did that on purpose didn't you?" he asked her, narrowing his eyes.

Riddhima blinked innocently. Where were halos when you needed them? Putting on her most innocent expression she said, "Did what, Armaan?"

"That...that making me feel guilty thing!"

She laughed. "Sorry! Par tum maan nahi rahe the!"

Laughing they went out of the shop.

It was two hours later that they came out of the shop with their costumes. Finally they'd found something that had screamed perfect, the moment they laid their eyes on it.

"Man, I'm beat!"

"Me too! I don't know HOW people shop so much! Thak nahi jaate kya?! Oh well, thank God humein costumes mil gaye!"

"Yeah!"

He started climbing down the stairs when he heard her. "We're taking the stairs?!"

"Yeah! Riddhima, ab chalo bhi!"

"Armaan! I'm tired, man! I'm not climbing down 7 floors! We'll take the lift!"

"Riddhima, lift ke paas bahot crowd hai! We'll take so much time, getting in!"

"But we'll get down fast, na!"

"Come one Riddhima! Stairs se time nahi lagega!"

"Nahi! Let's do this. You go by the stairs and I'll take the lift! We'll meet downstairs!"

"Riddhima you've come to this mall for the first time. Are you sure you'll be okay?"

"I'll be fine! Trust me! See you downstairs!"

"Alright then!"

They left separate ways. Riddhima waited for a while, until she got a lift that wasn't too crowded. She didn't want to have a panic attack in front of everyone. Getting in she sighed in relief. Her feet were aching terribly.

In a few minutes she got down and exited the lift. As she came to the main area she looked around in confusion. This wasn't where they had decided to meet! She looked at the guidelines above and thanked God that atleast she was on the right floor. Now, only if she could find him. Her eyes scanned the area and she looked for him. But he wasn't there.

"Calm down. I need to calm down. He's just taking long because he's coming down the stairs." Trying to reassure herself, she rushed to find the right staircase.

Armaan looked at his watch. He'd been waiting since the last 20 minutes. She should've come down by now. He frowned. She was in the lift, she should've been first! He went towards the sign that pointed towards the lift and asked one of the employees if the lift from the seventh floor got down there.

"The lift from the seventh floor gets down on the opposite side, sir!"

Muttering a quick thank you, he moved to the other side, hoping that she hadn't started searching for him. Otherwise they'd never find each other. He cursed as he remembered he'd forgotten his cell phone in the car. He stopped for a moment and tried to recollect her phone number. She had her cell. But try as he may, he just couldn't remember more than the first five digits. Getting more worried by the minute, he moved towards the other side, scanning his eyes all over the mall, just in case he spotted her.

Riddhima went all the way up to the other side of the mall and looked everywhere. She went in all the shops that they'd been to, hoping she would find him. But he was nowhere to be seen. The fear began creeping in her heart. Although she knew it was silly of her, after all she was the one who was lost, he knew his way around, the fear spread through her, making her feel agitated and jumpy. Willing herself to take deep breaths and calm down, she sat on a nearby bench. Tears of frustration filled her eyes and she blinked them back. She would not cry. But that inexplicable feeling of being abandoned just wouldn't leave her side. She looked around at the sea of people in front of her and she felt terribly alone. It was terrifying not to see Armaan by her side, all of a sudden. It was terrifying not to hear his silly jokes and relive their easy camaraderie. Her breaths started to come quicker and she gripped the sides of the bench and told herself to breathe deeply. This wasn't the time to have a panic attack.

She closed her eyes and tried to focus on their memories. She reminisced how he'd held her in the lift in the empire state building. She remembered their football match and off recent, their meetings in the coffee shop. Slowly she calmed down and opened her eyes. She quickly wiped away a tear before it dropped and decided that it was best she went back to his car. Sooner or later, he would come there. With renewed determination she walked back towards his car ignoring the ache in her legs and the fear in her heart.

Armaan ran a frustrated hand through his hair. He'd been looking for her since the past hour but he couldn't see her anywhere. He swore loudly, causing a couple of dirty looks to come his way. But he couldn't care less. All he could think about was Riddhima. He should've taken the lift with her! Then none of this would have happened. And although she was a sensible woman and could take care of herself, he couldn't help but be worried. It'd been the worst feeling in the world, not seeing her by his side all of a sudden. It made him question everything he felt for her. Forcing the unnecessary thoughts aside, he moved ahead, deciding to scan the area one more time and then move towards his car. There was nothing else he could do now.

He walked back to his car feeling low. All sorts of thoughts plagued his mind. What if something happens to her? Nahi. Aisa mat soch. She'll be fine. Right? I should've just taken the goddamn lift! Why did I take the stairs?! Way to go Armaan...aaj hi apna stamina dikhaane ka bahot man kiya na tujhe?! Ab agar kuch ho gaya toh? She hasn't even been to the mall! Ugh...what the hell did I get us into?! I hope she's fi-

His train of thoughts was cut short when he saw the sight in front of him. Riddhima was leaning in front of his car, glancing everywhere. He could see the sheen of unshed tears in her eyes and the way she kept blinking them back. His heart warmed at the thought of her being alright and he quickened his pace.

Riddhima glanced at her watch. It'd been half an hour since she was waiting here and she considered going home. But she knew she wouldn't be able to leave. Not before seeing him. She had no idea why seeing that he was fine meant so much to her, but it did. It meant a lot.

She glanced towards the exit of the mall and her eyes widened. Was it really him? It was, wasn't it? Almost immediately her thudding heart quitened and the fear was replaced by happiness. She rushed towards him.

Armaan saw her coming towards him. They came face to face and stopped. He smiled and without a word he crushed her into a bear hug, murmuring a train of apologies.

"I'm so sorry Riddhima, I should've taken the left with you."

"No I'm sorry. Mujhe tumhare saath aana chahiye tha, after all you've been here before!"

She hugged him back, glad that she found him. Breaking away, she looked at him, her joy reflecting in her eyes. Armaan looked at her and on an impulse, kissed her forehead. He'd never been happier, than when he saw her, waiting in front of his car.

They didn't say a word. Sitting into the car, they drove towards her house, both of them absorbed in their thoughts. What had happened wasn't anything major but if anything, it was a wake up call. She sneaked a glance at him as he drove. And she realized she never wanted him to leave.

He looked at her, as she looked out of the window and without giving much thought to it, held her hand. Neither of them made an attempt to move it.

It was 11 pm when Armaan switched on his laptop to get some work done. But thoughts of Riddhima kept playing on his mind and he decided he wasn't going to be able to do much work that night. Closing his files, he started checking his mail. He saw the latest mail by Nikki and started replying to it.

Hey :)

How've you and Modi been? And mom? Sab theek ho?

I hope hospital ka kaam achha chal raha hai! And how's junior Modi? Ah, of course he's cool, he's got the coolest chachu in the world, innit? :D

Take care :)

-Armaan

He quickly received one back from Nikki telling him to come online on Skype. Smiling, he logged in.

"Hey Nikki!"

"Armaaan!!!! It's been SO long!"

"Nikki, humne last week baat ki thi."

"Exactly!!! It's been so long!"

"Baby kaisa hai?" he asked, looking at Nikki's stomach.

"Armaan, my stomach is not going to grow humongously in just a month, aise mat dekho! Baby achha hai! Abhi ko lagta hai it'll be a girl!"

"Oh no please, let it be a guy! Agar ladki hogi toh bechaari pagal ho jayegi Modi jaise dad ko pakar! Kitna boring hai!"

"Aur ladka hoga toh?"

"You're right man, Modi is boring for both sexes." And they shared a laugh.

"Speaking of Modi, woh hai kahaan? Aaj toh Sunday hai, in India, I mean! He should be at home!"

"Woh mere liye ice cream lene gaya hai!"

"Itni subah subah tumhe ice cream chahiye?" he asked her incredulously. Nikki wasn't that big an ice cream lover!

"See?! Now even you're talking like Abhi! Ussne bhi mujhse same baat kahi! Kyun subah ice cream khaane ke aginst koi law hai kya?"

Armaan looked at Nikki's angry face and sent a silent prayer for Abhi. Poor guy needed it. One month into pregnancy and his wife was already so moody.

"Nahi nahi, Nikki. OF COURSE tum ice cream kha sakti ho!" he said, smiling widely.

"Achha woh sab chod, yeh batao, Riddhima kaisi hai?"

"Yaar tum log har baar uske baare mein kyun poochte rehte ho? Mere dost ho ya uske?!"

"Yours Armaan, but when our bestfriend is in looovvveee, it's our responsibility to ask about the looovvveee of his life." She said, laughing.

"Gee, Nikki that was so funny, my stomach hurts from all that laughing." He said dryly.

"Arre, sach mein! Batao na! Are you in love with her yet?"

"What kind of question is that?"

"A pretty simple one actually."

"Nikkiii..." he started dangerously.

"Fine! Peace out! We'll skip that topic! Aaj kya kiya tumne? And how are your rehearsals going?"

He told her all about their rehearsals, the fun they had, everything. He was glad Nikki was there. He needed someone to talk too and although he could approach Riddhima, he couldn't talk to her when he wanted to talk about her. So he told Nikki everything, right up to how they lost and found each other. Just then his mom came into Nikki's room. And Nikki proceeded to describe everything to his mom in explicit detail while Armaan grew red with embarrassment.

His mom looked at him fondly. "Beta, I have to say, iss baat mein main Nikki ke saath hoon! Tum usse pyaar karte ho!"

"Mooom! Not you too!" he said, childishly, making them all laugh. He talked a bit more to his mom and then logged off, his mind buzzing with thoughts.

Was this really love? He lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling while he continued to wonder. He remembered each of their memories. The way they fought, the way they'd played football, the way her eyes had sparkled with happiness when he had given her the chocolate cake in celebration of her first paycheck, everything, right uptil today. That feeling of satisfaction that had filled his heart when he saw her waiting for him, made him question their relationship. Was it really only friendship and maybe a little crush? Almost immediately his heart rejected the notion. This wasn't a crush, it was something so much more.

Just then his cell phone buzzed.

Goodnight Armaan :)

See you tomorrow!

xoxo

Riddhima

He smiled widely as he texted her back. He continued smiling until the thought wiped it off his face. Since when had texting her goodnight begun to make him smile like an idiot? And it was then that he realized. It was then that his heart finally relented and accepted what it should have, long back. He was head over heels in love with Riddhima Gupta. With the new realization in his heart and her thoughts in his mind, he fell asleep, only to dream about her.