Arnav was furious ... no, he was beyond livid.
She was avoiding him again.
How dare she.
His hand gripped the gear stick roughly, his knuckles turning pale under the strain of his grasp.
Lavanya and Akash wisely kept quiet; exchanging looks that expressed their fear for their lives as Arnav sped down the highway back to the Raizada mansion.
"Ohmigosh! I know who you are! You're Arnav Singh Raizada ... Wow, you're amaz-"
"Where's Khushi Kumari Gupta?" Arnav stopped the girl's tirade; tired of hearing the usual 'you're amazing, I'm in love with you...' crap.
The excitement on the girl's face crumbled as she stood stumped for a moment.
"Oh ... she left." She replied eventually as realisation sunk in that Arnav was impatiently waiting for an answer.
"She left?" Arnav asked confused.
"Ha, she finished for the day so she caught a rickshaw," the girl replied looking slightly confused now; wondering why she was explaining Khushi's whereabouts to Arnav Singh Raizada.
What happened after that left the poor girl scarred for life as Arnav swore profoundly, as he stalked back to his car with Lavanya tailing behind him concerned.
"ASR did you and Khushi have a fight?" Lavanya asked; her voice laced with worry.
She had seen the contempt Khushi had worn as she left after Arnav that afternoon and knowing Arnav's temperamental attitude - she wouldn't be so surprised if Khushi had not taken it lightly like those who have known Arnav for many years do.
"No Lavanya." Arnav bit out.
Trading a bemused look with Akash, they decidedly stayed silent.
Lavanya and Akash lurched in their seats, momentarily choking against the hold of their seatbelts as Arnav braked harshly. They winced as the driver's door slammed shut behind him as they too slowly got out and meekly followed him into the house.
"Hell hath no fury like Arnav Singh Raizada scorned." Lavanya whispered to Akash and Akash couldn't have agreed more with that statement as he silently sent up a prayer for Khushi.
"KHUSHI! KHUSHI!" Arnav practically roared as he drilled into the living room.
One could practically see the steam blowing through Arnav's ears - it would have been a comical sight had they not feared Arnav at that moment.
"Chotte! Chotte!" Anjali called. "Chotte, why are you shouting for Khushiji?" Anjali asked with distress. 'Oh god, has something happened between them?'
"Di, where is she?" Arnav demanded, his eyes blazing with fury.
Anjali remained muted for a moment her eyes starting to lace with pain as she began to feel that her brother had done something to upset Khushi; 'Was that why she came home looking the way she did? Did Chotte say something to upset her? Was he the reason for her ill self?' Many questions rattled through Anjali's mind.
"Chotte, Khushiji came home a while ago. She looked really tired and she had a bad headache so I sent her up to take a shower and a nap."
With those words, Arnav's rage immediately subdued before it was replaced with amicable concern.
"Where is she?" He asked her again; the considerable difference in his tone of voice was palpable.
"Upstairs in her room of course -" she need not say more as Arnav bounced up the stairs taking them by twos.
"You know, I never thought that I would see the day that ASR was unconditionally and irrevocable in love with someone other than himself." Lavanya said as she walked up to Di and gave her a welcoming hug.
"Still quoting from Twilight I see," Anjali laughed.
"What? It's a good love story and Edward Cullen - yum!" Lavanya defended.
"So it seems that the masochistic lion fell for the poor lamb," Akash added with a grin, looking mighty proud of himself.
Lavanya and Anjali looked at him with slightly insinuating looks.
"I don't know whether I should cry or laugh at the fact that you know that quote." Lavanya disclosed; as she started at him with a slightly disgusted look as she tangibly questioned his masculinity.
Anjali sniggered, and Akash registered that she was laughing at him and not with him.
"Why is it cool and funny when she says it but not when I say it?" Akash whined to his elder sister, pouting like a small child.
"Why do you even know that anyway?" Anjali asked him, ignoring his question.
"I took Payalji to the cinema to see that film; it was our first date," Akash admitted proudly.
"So you're telling me that you took Payalji to the cinema for the first time after somehow accomplishing to get the permission from her strict, old-fashioned parents and you found yourself in an intimate, dark, cosy place where you chose to watch the goddamn movie instead of wooing your now-fiance?" Shyam asked him with incredulity as he joined the conversation that he'd been watching ever since Arnav arrived at home screaming bloody murder for his girlfriend.
"How on earth did you romance her into marrying you? Maybe Saleh Sahib, NK Bhai and I need to give you some tips." Shyam suggested as he winked at Lavanya (who has been dating NK since her teen years; NK was currently in Australia having just finished MBAs and would be returning to Delhi just in time for Diwali in a couple of days).
Akash glared fiercely at his Jijaji, inwardly labelling him as a traitor as he stalked off with tinged cheeks; choosing to ignore their chortling laughter at his expense.
**
Khushi stirred to the sound of quiet knocking on her door.
"Come in," she somehow managed to rasp out over the splitting headache that consumed her.
Her eyes remained closed until she felt a dip in the bed beside her. She allowed herself to crack one eye open to look at her visitor. Her eyes widened as she quickly sat up, wincing after she did so as searing pain ripped through her at the sudden movement.
"Careful," his soothing voice chided her.
"Oh! I'm so sorry, I completely forgot that you were going to pick me up today, I hope you didn't spend too long waiting for me to turn up;" she apologised.
"It's ok, you were in pain and came back home early. I understand," Arnav excused, watching her with apprehension as he noticed her flinch over even his softest voice.
Her heart fluttered as she noticed that he called this place home; but she quickly berated herself for getting ahead with her wishful thinking.
Unable to withstand the pain, she took advantage of his presence by leaning her aching forehead against his hard shoulder; taking pleasure from the comfort the press of his hard muscle against hers brought.
Realising what she seeked, Arnav quickly wrapped his arms around her, bringing her closer into his embrace.
"Are you comfortable?" Arnav asked her, lightly massaging the back of her neck. She replied with a small downwards movement of her head and a sigh - due to the pleasurable bliss his hands were creating on her strained shoulders and neck.
Arnav felt the tights knots in her muscle and worked with them, slowly stroking away the tension that had formed.
She moaned.
He froze.
'****,' he swore in his head. 'Did she just moan?' He felt his manhood stir in thirst as he suddenly became aware of how her soft feminine curves were pressed against his hard body. The sexual tension in the room rose tenfold to a point where it made the phrase 'to cut the tension with a butter-knife' overt.
"Why did you stop?" She asked him with; her beautiful face portraying genuine innocence.
His heart went out to her; she was so oblivious to the thoughts that were running through his head at that moment in time. Oh how he longed to take her then and there.
Subconsciously he leaned forwards, their noses bumping - there was little to no space between them.
He gave her a moment to decide what she wanted to do as realisation sunk in for her. He gave her the opportunity to move away.
But she didn't.
His breath hitched as he saw the apprehension on her face melt away into acceptance as she took in the force of his dark, hooded eyes that were lined with lust; her eyes portraying a similar expression.
It seemed to take an eternity before their lips brushed tantalisingly against each other.
They always say that good things never last too long and Arnav learnt of it when they were irksomely interrupted not even a millisecond later.
Exasperated, Arnav turned around to see his Di at the door.
If Arnav was affected by the fact that his Di had seen everything, then his schooled nonchalant expression deserved an award because his Di and Khushi were anything but.
They were both mortified! - at least that's what he assumed their flushed cheeks and wide eyes meant.
"Erm, Khushiji, I brought you some milk and some medicine - it will sooth your headache," Anjali stumbled over her reason for being there.
Khushi nodded and accepted the gesture of kindness Anjali bestowed upon her; however, refusing to meet the older girl's eyes.
"Oh and Khushiji ... take a nap soon because Mr. Sharma will be here," Anjali added.
Khushi's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, she was sure that Anjali had mentioned him before but she could not think above the hazy field that smoked her mind - and it had nothing to do with her migraine.
"Why is he coming over Di?" Arnav asked instead when he realised that Khushi was not going to speak any time soon. Why was his clothing line distributor coming to their house at this time in the evening?
"For saree selections of course, he's bringing this season's and the upcoming season's designs - we have loads of events coming up. Mr. Chopra will be here tomorrow with the jewellery as well - I figured we needed the sarees before we chose the jewellery to go with it." She added as an afterthought.
"Why didn't you do this during the day?" Arnav questioned, his family always handled these things during the day - the evening was for 'family time' as his Nani so fondly called it.
"Because Khushiji and Lavanya work during the day and they need to choose sarees too!" Anjali replied. "The Gupta family will be joining us for dinner as well by the way; Nani invited the women over for saree selections as well."
Arnav nodded with consent.
He watched his sister with silent amusement as she walked away with a sinister look of happiness on her face. There was no doubt that his brothers and Lavanya would know about it all in the upcoming few minutes.
He shook his head at his meddling Di as she gave him a conspiratorial wink and closed the doors firmly behind her; lest one of the older members of the family walk in on something similar to what she had.
"Why is it that it's always your Di who walks in on us whenever we are in a compromising position?" Khushi asked him quietly.
"I swear she has the whole mother's intuition going on; I feel sorry for her future children. They've no chance of having privacy or getting away with anything naughty in fact," Arnav quipped.
Khushi giggled, that tinkling laugh died away when she looked into Arnav's eyes.
They were so entrancing; so addicting to look at that she could swear that she could stare at them forever without a care in the world - as cheesy as it sounded.
"Drink your milk Khushi," he prompted her as he held the glass to her lips.
She took her pill, grimacing at the taste and continued to sip the milk that Arnav held for her.
Their eyes locked on each other; as both of them remembered the silky feel of the other's lips. Khushi flushed.
Once she finished her milk, Khushi licked her lips, removing the froth from her upper lips - unaware that she was further tempting Arnav's arousal.
Upon noticing her innocent drowsiness, Arnav coaxed her into bed, tucking her in as if she was a child.
Taking one last glance to make sure that she was alright, Arnav turned to leave.
"Arnav?" she called in a tender voice, he turned around, "thank you."
Arnav let out a small smile and nodded at her.
He turned to leave.
"Arnav? I've never worn a saree before," she admitted, promptly stopping him at the door.
Arnav turned around in shock but found that she had already closed her eyes tightly; not wanting to see his reaction.
"I'll take care of it Khushi," he whispered - not wanting to break the serene atmosphere in the room as he swiftly left his heart thudding with an unknown emotion for her. He was unaware of her adoring eyes that lingered on his retreating back until he was no longer in her sight.
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