Chapter 21: Will he?
The Recap:
He had jst finished his chocolate when he saw Nidhi standing with tray in the midway of room! "U wer rite Nidhi.. it was relishing… especially after…!" he looked at her.. she was blushing hard! But she slowly came near him and placed the tray on the side table and sat beside him! He was shocked! "especially after wat Dr. Ashutosh!" she asked demurely and he forgot to blink!
She gave instant chuckle of shyness and started to get up.. but he pulled her down on the bed giving Nidhi's heart a big heart attack! He towered slowly over her lying figure on the bed. She jst stared at him with wide eyes.. forgetting to breathe. He neared his face onto hers slowly.. and she clasped onto his bedsheet tightly in anticipation! Her chest pounded more heavily as he almost neared her lips.. she was suddenly feeling tooo hot! Utterly unable to breathe. Her eyes suddenly became heavy.. and she closed thm to feel him…
Oh.. he loved her expressions! Her kissable face was pretty kissable.. he chuckled to himself.. and she always looked sooo sooo ravishing this way.. he looked at her lips and whisphered on thm.. "tell me.. did u do something with ur hair today?" She thot she heard something.. bt her mind wasn't in its rite senses to register anything! Her eyes were closed and oh.. her senses wer again picking up his masculine scent, which she felt was more stronger this time.. or thr was something abt his aftershave tht was making her intoxicated… and his warm breath on her lips.. was already wrecking havoc..
He looked at her for a while.. he was sensing something abt her.. the chng tht thy had found in each other the other nite was but growing… and he was almost drawn to kiss her.. he was oh so near… and she luked oh so inviting! Her tiny little lips had opened up.. and her eyes were closed in deep anticipation!
He had to breathe in a really heavy breath to stop himself.. and then sighed deeply. He jst nuzzled her most lovingly on her nose instead and pulled away from her and laid on his back beside her. Their feet dangling above the floor.
Nidhi smiled shyly at his nuzzle and lay basking in the warmth it imparted. It gave her tht pleasure tht she had started to jst looove! She was almost near to feel wat it wud've been like.. surely something she havnt had imagined in her wildest of dreams.. had thy done it..she blushed...but he had jst returned it with a lovely affection and it had felt equally good! She sighed deeply with satisfaction and opened her eyes and looked for him. She saw him lying beside her with eyes closed and happy contended expressions on his face! She looked affectionately at him. Thy had gotten so close.. without thm even realizing it! She blushed shyly and got up slowly on her feet. "so u really didn't like my curtains hmm.." she asked looking at the old curtains..but lovingly!
"hmmm… wat?" he was brot out of his blissful trance. He opened his eyes and turned his head towards the curtains while still lying. "Oh tht!" "Well I was busy cursing myself!" he joked. She laughed, "okay.. thn lets give u some chance of redemption!" and she went out to bring the stool. When she came in, he was already standing near the window holding her new curtains. "thy r beautiful…!"he appreciated thm. "u really liked thm or its jst for atonement!" he chuckled at her remark.. "no seriously thy r beautiful.. I realy like thm.." he answered sincerely "Good! thn lets put thm up.." said she and thn started to climb up, but he gently pulled her down.."No Nidhi.. its my fault.. and I shud correct it!" he repeated her earlier sentence sincerely.. and Nidhi cudnt help herself chuckle at him lovingly. Thr happy chuckle filled his room with all the laughter and happiness!
At 10, they reached KGH. Both alighted and went in together, thy didn't sense how ppl wer staring at thm! Dr. Rangnath again observed it and he was surprised how Dr. Ashutosh cudnt notice it! He quickly followed him into the cabin. "Good Morning Sir!" "yeah.. Good morning" he greeted him with enthusiasim. "Luks like u had a pretty nice good morning!" "yeah.." he jst replied with a smile opening up his appointment diary. "yeah.. It's the effect of the company one keeps!"Dr. Rangnath answered with some caution and boldness! Ashutosh abruptly stared at him from his appointment book! "well, Its not me.. it's wat is doing rounds in our KGH lobbies these days!" "Oh!" replied Ashutosh knowingly. "yeah.. we better keep thm more occupied so tht their brains don't wander over other things!" "or even better if the other things r kept in better control!" "hmm.. tht sounds a better idea!" "Good!" "yeah.."replied Dr. Rangnath And thy went over Dr. Ashutosh's daily appointments and schedules and the mundane administrative stuff before Dr. Rangnath enquired abt his missed call late in the night and Dr. Ashutosh had a lame excuse to give! Dr. Rangnath smiled understandingly and took his leave stating,"At your service any time, Dr. Ashutosh!" and Dr. Ashutosh jst smiled approvingly at his back.
A while later, Dr. Ashutosh heard a knock and a fuming Dr. Mallika stormed into his cabin! She stood infront of his desk with her arms crossed with fury! "Good Morning Dr. Mallika!" he greeted her formally ignoring her apparent anger. "Dr. Ashutosh.. will u tell me wats going on?" "Dr. Mallika.. wat are u talking abt?" he said in a calm voice. "Please have a sit" He was testing her temper, Dr. Mallika fumed even more. "I haven't come here to chat Dr. Ashutosh!" "Wats the problem Dr. Mallika" "The problem is Dr. Nidhi Verma" "Y.. now wat did she do? As far as I know, her reports r clean" "yeah.. and isn't tht surprising.. the girl who blundered rite from day one is pretty clean suddenly?" "wat do u mean Dr. Mallika?" "Dr. Ashutosh u pretty well know wat I am trying to say.. I didn't know u cud b so good at pretences!" "Dr. Mallika!" he barked, his voice raised slightly,"Will u b please kind enuf to come clean with ur accuations on me" he said in a stern voice. "Okay Dr. Ashutosh.. thn let me come pretty clean.. and b frank! Y r u protecting Dr. Nidhi?" "Wat?" "Dr. Ashutosh every body can c how biased u r for Dr. Nidhi" "Dr. Mallika do u realize this is a serious accusation? U r questioning my professional integrity!"
"Exactly.. Dr. Ashutosh.. Y r u compromising ur professional and personal integrity for tht girl!" "Dr. Mallika this is going too far!" "Oh yeah.. thn y did u favor Dr. Nidhi yesterday.. Y did u try to safeguard Dr. Nidhi from my wrath by telling a lie!" "Bcoz Dr. Mallika u r encroaching in personal space of my life! U r trying to dictate who I shud have coffee with.. who I impart duties of my fav ward.. and who I go and save risking my own life!... U have no right to do tht.. The early u understand, the better it is!" "I have no right Ashutosh.." she finally snapped! "I have been with u for 12 long years.. I have waited for u for 12 long years. And u say I have no right.. I hadn't felt this hurt wen u had said no to my proposal Ashutosh!" Tears welled up in her eyes.
Ashutosh breathed deeply and tried to calm himself down. "Mallika.. thts precisely I want u to understand…" "Its hard for me to understand Ashutosh.. really hard.. wats tht is lacking in me.. tell me.. wats thr in Nidhi thts not in me!" "Mallika.. jst clam down please.. stop crying.. and have this.." and he poured her some water in another glass and offered her. "Mallika please.. " She finally tried to breathe in easy but her tears wer still not stopping. Dr. Ashutosh offered her some tissue and she looked at him with questioning eyes. Dr. Ashutosh sighed deeply and motioned her to have the sip. As she took the sip, he started explaining her. "Mallika.. u had been my best friend.. r my best friend.. u know how much I care for u Mallika.. u had been by my side wen I needed the most.. and I know I shud b by ur side wen u need me.. and so its for ur own good tht I have been deliberately keeping away from u.. Mallika I understand u had feelings for me.. we have been good friends for so many years.. bt.. may b we jst weren't made for each other.. I agree thr was a time wen v mite have ended up tieing the knot not out of luv bt out of companionship.. we had been such close friends thn.. bt thngs turned out the other way.. rite? The situations in my life weren't in my hand.. bt y did u let thm affect ur life Mallika y?" "Ashutosh do u know how much .. how much.. I luv u.. I did it all for u.. jst to get u..?" "Oh mallika please not again!" "Y u don't want to understand my luv Ashutosh.." "Mallika its u who is not understanding.. I don't feel the same thing for u" "Bt y?" "Mallika.. I wasn't really able to answer tht question till now.. really.. bt now I know.. I exactly know y…" Mallika stared at him with apprehension.. she knew wer it was heading to… she cud almost see tht glint in his eyes tht flashed everytime he saw Dr. Nidhi. She felt the rage…. the jealousy in her engulfing her again. "Mallika.." he continued…"yes… I like Dr. Nidhi Verma."
Mallika gulped down dejectedly. Tears again welled in her eyes and flowed down her cheeks. "Mallika.. I am sorry.. bt its not in my hands.. the way I feel for her I haven't felt for u or any other girl in my life.. the emotions.. the feelings tht she invokes in me, no other girl has ever been able to and no girl ever will…" Dr. Mallika gave a pitiful cry.. "Oh.. Mallika.. try and understand.. its not something tht is planned.. it jst happens.. jst as u cudnt stop urself from luving me inspite of my denial.. I cudnt stop myself from falling for Nidhi. It jst happened.. as if.. as if.. it was destined to happen betn me and Nidhi.." Dr. Mallika closed her eyes in grt grief and cried,"thn Y Ashutosh.. Y did u give me false hopes.." "Mallika.." he said with great sympathy.."we have gone thru this thing so many times.. Mallika.. I have already told u.. something more thn fship is not possible betn us.. if it had to happen, it wud've happened wen it was most likely to happen.. bt I never saw u tht way.. plus with baba going out of my life.. my life had suddenly become empty.. it was a barren life.. without happiness or hope.. how cud've I given u any happiness Mallika… thn I had told u to move on and settle in life.. hadn't I? Tell me sincerely did I ever give u false hopes?.." "bt u didn't marry any other girl either.. I had hopes tht one day u wud say yes.. tht my sacrifice wud melt u one day!"
"Mallika.. thn I jst didn't want to marry or think abt any woman in my life..till Nidhi entered and it jst happened.. Mallika.. its not late.. I want u to move on.. get off of this bitterness in ur heart.. its not good for u.. not for ur sanity.. u r a good doctor and a good friend..i don't want u to ruin urself" "I already have Ashutosh.. I already have.. after u.." "Mallika please stop it!" Annoyance now clearly felt in Ashutosh voice. It was precisely why he had kept away from Mallika for these last 5 years after she had proposed him for mrg and he had denied it. He had thot tht she wud come out of it. Staying aloof from her wud knock some sense in her head but alas! Instead she had become more and more bitter and menacing! And he now feared she wud hurt Nidhi. An overwhelming sense to protect Nidhi from her harmful intentions overpowered him and he turned towards Dr. Mallika with real concern.. "Mallika I am really sorry for whatever has happened to u becoz of me and I really sincerely ask for ur forgiveness if have hurt u unknowingly." He had asked for sincere forgiveness.. in hopes tht it wud chng her.. melt her..and make her think wat she had been doing!
Dr. Mallika was actually shocked to see Ashutosh asking for forgiveness… not once in this 12 years had he relented to her.. he always stood firm on his stance towards her.. y giving in now? "Mallika.. It wasn't in our hands.. I think somethings we have to leave on fate. I think me and Nidhi is wat God wants and its no fault of Nidhi.. Its I who have chosen her.. its I who have given her permission to enter my life.. Mallika Nidhi is not to b blamed.. please don't harbor any ill feelings for her.. she is very innocent and nave! U cannot blame her for something tht wasn't in her hands!" Oh so this was the reason.. he jst jst.. wanted to protect her..by asking my for my forgiveness … Dr. Mallika wiped her tears and smiled scornfully at thot of Dr. Nidhi Verma.. Oh y did he luved her so much.y did he preferred her so much over her.... He looked at Ashutosh. He was not looking at her.. huh.. he was.. he was.. jst lost worrying in thots of tht girl.. Dr. Nidhi! Her heart filled with malice for Dr. Nidhi.
"Okay.. Ashutosh.. I understand.. bt I don't think so its good for u or Dr. Nidhi.. I don't know how ppl r gonna approve ur r'ship..but neways.. I am happy tht u at last found the happiness!" She was pretty sure tht she had feigned pretty well! But wen Dr. Ashutosh looked into her eyes, he felt he cudnt trust wat she was saying. Something was different in the way she had said it.. how can she give in so easily.. jst like tht in 5 minutes! Suspicious thots had ran into his mind, but he sighed heavily, pressing his lips, and nodding in approval and Dr. Mallika had left his cabin without any further word and thr conversation certainly hadn't ended in a pleasant note! He mentally took a note of warning Nidhi and to tell Dr. Rangnath to be on alert. Something was not right with Mallika and he cannot trust her with Nidhi.
When he went out for his daily rounds, his eyes fell on Nidhi and an instant fear gripped his mind. He was somehow feeling apprehensive abt his conversation with Mallika. Nidhi looked at his worried expressions. Certainly something was wrong him. She was worried for him.. bt she had to honor the professional decorum betn thm.. and the self-imposed rules tht thy had laid on themselves.. tht thy wud not let thr personal r'ship interefere with professional duties while at hospital. Bt she had to.. she had to comfort him somehow.
She summoned him to Children's ward suggestively. He felt surprised, actually thr was no need for his consult.. but thn he went to consult on Nidhi's patient there. "She is doing pretty okay.. Dr. Nidhi"he told her, but his face looked a bit sad. "but ur worried expressions convey something different?", she asked him suggestively. "R u sure everything is fine here?"she asked. He looked at her. There was clear worry visible for him in her eyes and he smiled affectionately. "Yeah.. I guess so!" He finally smiled a bit freely. He cannot see her worrying for him. And it was actually funny.. He was worried abt her.. she was worried abt him.. and he cudnt see her worrying for him and she wudnt b able to see him worrying for her.. he chuckled in his own thots.. and Nidhi smiled with him. "So can I give her hope tht everything is gonna b okay.. tht everything is already all right?" she asked. "yup.." "tht when God has decided to bestow her with all His blessings, tht thrs no one that can cause any harm!" Ashutosh pondered over her words and smiled! Oh! she was so so wonderful..and rite! Wen God's blessing r with thm, thn who can harm! He sighed with love and affection for her. Nidhi understood his sigh and gave a shy smile. "Okay.. thn Sir can I have a coffee with u in common room.. I need to discuss certain patients?" she asked. He chuckled and said, "Okay Dr. Verma.. I will finish my rounds and b there in 5 minutes!"
And they met in common room over coffee, but Nidhi didn't ask anything abt her patients and Ashutosh didn't equire either. Thy jst sat together and had coffee. Some other ppl had joined in and thy had brief chat with others.. bt spending some time ther with her in watever way gave him some solace. For their peers it was a formal coffee, for them it was personally comforting cool coffee!
Soon the day passed and evening approached. Soon it wud b time for thm to bid each other good bye, thot he.. bt he felt thr was so much to talk.. so much to share.. and the day jst wasn't enuff.. he wanted to spend some more time with her Afterall thy had to make up for the 2 days tht thy had lost in quarrelling! He chuckled. In evening tea break, he called her. She was having coffee with her colleagues but picked up his phone in a quiet corner. "hi" he greeted. "Hi..u okay?"asked she. "pretty fine m'am"replied he and asked,"do u think the morning meet was enuf.. to make up for the days tht v had lost in quarrelling.." She blushed,"I wud think so.. yes! Considering the quality time tht v had spent!" "Really.. quality time?" she blushed,"yeah.. y ur heart still not content?,"she asked teasing him. "Y Nidhi.. u want me to start with tht content part here.. in the hospital?" "Nooo!" she blushed.. if thy start breaking thr own self-imposed hospital protocols, thy wud jst not stop! "so wat do u suggest?"asked she. "Nothing.. if u don't want.. how can I impose!" "Oh.. u really sound offended!" "Highly!"replied he. she chuckled he was too cute! "thn my answer wud depend on how much exactly?"asked she "so is this amount propotional to the time I wud get to spend with u?"asked he. She cudnt help chuckle at his smartness! "I am waiting for ur answer with bated breath Dr. Nidhi Verma.. blame urself if I forget to breathe!" She had to move further away from her colleauges to hide her blush. "Okay.. Dr. Ashutosh .. I am gonna give u some respite.. bt promise me tht u wud not forget to breathe at my answer!" He chuckled,"I promise" "okay.. how abt v meeting over dinner?"she said in a low enticing voice and his heart danced with joy.. he jst wanted to do a jig right thr in his cabin like some 16-yr-old teen! He chuckled at himself for his own crazy thots! "wat?"she asked "nothing" he cudnt possibly tell her wat his heart wanted to do! "thn Dr. Ashutosh.. is it yes or no!,"asked she and chuckled. "Nidhi! U little mischief… I am sooo gonna…. gonna.. kiss u hard some day!" Oh my God! Her cheeks instantly turned into reddest of the finest cherry of Europe! And she was afraid it was gonna lay bare her crazy madly-in-luv self to her colleagues. She hung up in shyness and ran to the rest room to get some breath. Did… did he jst say tht! Her ears cudnt still believe it! And her heart was still racing at its fastest pace! She blushed again heavily as his naughty face from the morning came across her eyes. Thn she got his SMS,"C u at 7 p.m. Lady Blush Blush!" And she blushed hard again and smiled at his naughtiness.. he was too cute.. and pretty naughty even in his calm composed ways.. and he seemed to know exactly how to make her go swooon!
*****k.. so here goes the new chapter.. i know its a small one too.. bt.. the nxt chapter.. The date.. i will make it a bit bigger one.. after all its their first date.. may b even a 2-parter.. jst to treat u!****
will b out of town for a while.. so may b late in replying.. bt do posts ur reviews.. it really encourages me a looot!..
Njoy for now..
c ya! TC😳
Cricket
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
