Part 27
Since Sameer was the only one with a car it was decided that he would drop everyone home since it was getting late. Natasha was to be dropped off first and Shaantanu and Khanak would follow. However, a few minutes after they left the restaurant Alpana called to asked Khanak how long it would take her so it was decided Shaantanu and Khanak would be the first ones to be dropped home. Sameer asked if it was alright with Natasha, who agreed albeit a bit too eagerly.When Khanak and Shaan reached home they notified Alpana who was relieved to see them back and bade them good night but not before closing her eyes for a split second to reassure Shaan that she was not upset with them spending the evening together.
When her mother had left, Khanak contemplated whether she should gauge the reaction Shaantanu had to Sameer's presence or initiate conversation. She decided that his patience had been tested and he had been surprised enough for one night, though the meeting had not been scheduled.
"Aap sonay ja rahay hein?" she asked Shaantanu, who stood still, probably in deep in thought like Khanak.
"Umm..pata nai Khanak. Tum kya karo gi ab?"
"Pata nai."
"Hmmm..."
Awkward silence ensued. Silence which had never before crept between the two of them. None of them was sure of what the other was going through or what their motive was? How important was Sameer to Khanak? How important was Natasha to Shaantanu? How important was Khanak to Shaantanu and vice versa? Neither knew.
"Raat kaafi ho gai hai and you've had a few drinks as well tou mein chai bana doun?" asked Khanak.
Shaantanu nodded and gave a half-smile. Khanak did the same and walked towards the kitchen. Unsure of what to do, Shaatanu followed her.
As Khanak turned on the stove and put the water to boil, she rummaged through the cupboard to find out tea leaves and cups.
"Tum ne wine nai li..." said Shaan. It was a question but not posed as one; Shaan didn't know where his right to asked stood at the moment.
"Jee." answered Khanak.
"Kyun?"
"I don't drink."
"Never?"
"Can't remember the last time I drank."
"But why?"
Khanak stopped arranging the tea stuff and looked directly at Shaantanu. He noticed she had a faint smile on her face.
Does she always smile or is her face like that? Is she always happy or is a pro at looking like that? thought Shaan.
"Aap ko lagta tha ke mein peeti houn gi?" Khanak asked.
"Hmm...I guess not."
"There you go then, ask yourself." she smiled more openly.
"But still, I mean tum bata do na."
"Shaantanu agar sab kuch mein hi bata doun gi tou aap pata kya karwaein ge?"
She turned and got busy with the tea. Meanwhile Shaantanu was struck by her words.
"Shaantanu agar sab kuch mein hi bata doun gi tou aap pata kya karwaein ge?"
Was she trying to tell him something? Was she feeling that he wasn't putting enough effort in getting to know her? But that was ridiculous. He was the only one out of the two of them who was constantly asking questions to get to know the other person better. He definitely knew more stuff about Khanak than she did about him!
"Natasha seems to be a really nice person," Khanak brought him out of his self-talk.
"Uh...yeah she a great person."
"Aap ne bataya nai us ke baray mein"
"Like you told me about Sameer!" Shaan wanted to say, but he controlled himself.
"Kabhi baat hi nai huwi iss topic pe," replied Shaan.
Khanak took a few seconds to reply. She wanted to remind him that they had talked about his friends. He had mentioned Rahul, Samaira and Ducks but no Natasha! And from tonight's dinner she seemed to be a good friend. Natty, that was what he had called her! So, how could he now say that they never talked about this topic? Did he expect her to magically know about the girl and ask him specifically about her to raise the 'topic'? Like Shaan, however, she refused to address her fears.
"Hmmm..kitni cheeni lein ge aap chai mein?" she asked, seeing the tea was ready.
"2 teaspoons please."
"Ye lein."
"Thanks." said Shaan.
As was ritual, they moved to the terrace. There was a light cool breeze blowing. A perfect weather to have tea outside. Khanak sat down and closed her eyes, savouring the feeling of cool wind caressing her face. Shaantanu sat opposite her and admired the subtle smile that now settled on her lips. For a moment it seemed that the rest of the world did not matter. The beauty of watching Khanak enjoy the weather blissfully unaware of Shaan's gaze was a breathtaking feeling for him.
However, Khanak opened her eyes a few seconds later and the moment was complete. Shaan moved his eyes away from her before she noticed his gaze was on him and got uncomfortable. To avoid an awkwardness from creeping in.
"Sameer is a nice chap too waise," started Shaan.
"Yeah. Definitely. He's a gem of a person." said Khanak, looking at Shaan.
But as soon as she met his gaze she wished she hadn't said the last line. She noticed it hadn't gone down well with Shaantanu. Though Sam's plan had been to make Shaan realize and decide whether or not he had feelings for Khanak by making him believe Khanak was not unknown to male attention, whether friendly or more than just friendly, Khanak had not said the last line to provoke Shaantanu.
"Yeah wo tou lagta hai," said Shaan.
"Sam and I are really good friends. So I know him really well," Khanak tried to extinguish the fire a bit, or at least calm it down a bit. Of course, for those of us who know Shaan- she wasn't too successful.
"Sam? Why do you call him Sam?" asked Shaan.
"Because he's a great friend of mine Shaantanu. I have a right to call him whatever I want according to him," Khanak laughed.
"Ahan.."
"Aap kyun pooch rahay thay?"
"Nai waise hi. The other day...I mean..mujeh laga ke you like calling people by their full names." Shaan completed the sentence with a little difficulty. His mind reminded him of the day when Khanak had refused to call him Shaan instead of Shaantanu.
"Haha...well I never thought of it like that. But jo bhi, Sameer is Sam."
The rest of the tea was finished with the help of small talk. They bade each other goodnight and went to their rooms.
Behind closed doors, under duvet covers and the dim moonlight that filtered through the partially drawn curtains Shaantanu and Khanak lay in their respective beds thinking about each other. It had been almost two months since they had known the other existed. Two months, several letters and many conversations later each heard a voice inside them telling the other was special. There was a feeling of mutual attraction to say the least, but how could one count on it?
Where Shaantanu was skeptical of how Khanak would view his bachelor life, Khanak worried about Shaan feeling alien to her simplicity. Where Shaan worried about Sameer, Khanak thought about Natasha. Where Shaan thought Khanak was different, Khanak wondered if all guys weren't that different after all?
Thought about putting in a Shanak convo since a few of you guys wanted that. What I wanted will be revealed in the next update! 😉
As always, looking forward to your feedback! 😃
Edited by ABlank90 - 13 years ago
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