ArHi FF: Love for Hire (Pt13 Pg146, upd 12th Oct) - Page 95

A few weeks later...

In a room decorated for an Indian couple's wedding night, the bride is sitting, feeling nervous, breathing hard, and hugging her knees close to herself. Her head rests on her knees. She lifts it up slowly and cautiously, with the ghoonghat still covering her face, when she heard someone entering the room and approaching her.

It is the groom, who reaches his hand out to her. The bride freezes, then slowly begins to respond. She turns her head and kisses the inside of his palms. He comes closer and closer to her, making her heart beat faster.

Feeling shy, she lowers her eyelids and just breathes in his scent. He comes closer and gives her a short and sweet peck on the lips. As he moves away, he comes to his senses. She too, realizes what just happened.

She watches his back, as he goes into the bathroom to change out of his wedding sherwani. She gets tears in her eyes, and moves to the attached terrace to gaze up at the moon hoping that the moonlight will soon bring brightness in her life.

"How do I convince you, Arnav, that I am innocent? It's not my fault, and I don't know exactly why and what made you so angry that you had to force me to marry you, but I have a pretty good feeling it concerns Anjali Di and Shyam. I don't know what lies Shyam told you, but I do know that he is playing a game - with me, with Anjali Di, with you, and with your whole family. It was my mistake that I didn't see through Shyam earlier, but now that I know he's putting on a faade, I am determined to find out the truth. More so for you, because I know somewhere deep in your heart, you still love me Arnav. And I also love you... Yes, Arnav. Khushi Kumari Gupta Singh Raizada loves you with all her heart. And she promises to give you all the happiness you deserve.

*************************

A little more than a month later...

Khushi comes down and sees Anjali trying to bend to place some flowers at the mandir. Khushi rushes to stop Anjali from bending down, and gently leads her to the nearby chair. From the 2^nd floor of enormous Shantivan, name of Raizada's home, Arnav sees Khushi behaving extremely gentle with his sister and gets confused.

He thinks back to the day of Akash's wedding, when what he saw changed his life forever...

*Flashback*

Khushi and her fiance pose for pictures along with Payal, who is getting her haldi done. People praise Khushi and her fiance, saying they look really good together. Their backs are facing Arnav, so he doesn't see them clearly, but can hear other people talking to them.

Khushi's fiance hugs her, and then says a few lines of poetry in her praise.

"Nazar jab mili toh fasaane hue.

Ek pal mein hum aapke deewane hue.

Jab se aaye hain aap humari zindagi mein,

Andaaz hi humare kuch shairana hue..."

To Arnav's shock, Khushi's fiance's voice sounded very familiar.

Arnav peers through the window in various, trying to catch a glimpse of Khushi's fiance. Khushi then turns around and spots Arnav, motioning him towards the main door. At the same time that Arnav enters, Khushi's fiance gets a phone call, and goes into Khushi's room to attend it, since it's much quieter there.

Arnav quickly gives the haldi ka paani over to Khushi's buaji, and hurries back out the main door, hoping to go around Khushi's house to her bedroom window and see her fiance. As Arnav approaches Khushi's bedroom, he hears her fiance still speaking to someone on the phone.

Khushi's fiance says... "Yes, yes. Don't worry. I just landed. I am coming home soon. No no, no need to send the driver or anyone else, Rani Sahiba..."

After that, Arnav doesn't hear anything else that Khushi's fiance says. He just stands outside Khushi's bedroom window, peering in. He is shocked to the core at the lying, no-good, filthy, two-timing b****** talking to his wife, over the phone.

And how does Arnav know the person over the phone is Khushi's fianc's wife? Well, Khushi's fiance is none other than Arnav's "dear" lying, no-good, filthy, two-timing b****** of a brother-in-law.

After hanging up the phone, slimeball Shyam turns around, and gets shocked to see Arnav. But Shyam knows that Arnav will believe anything he tells him, especially if it concerns his dear sister Anjali, so Shyam proceeds to tell Arnav a whole series of lies that makes Khushi's involvement in the whole affair as intentional, and her entry into Arnav's life as intentional - with the aim to seem innocent upfront while secretly scheming to destroy Anjali's life.

*End of Flashback*

Arnav comes back to his senses and looks down at Khushi. He thinks back to the Khushi he knew last year - before and during the Goa trip. The Khushi after the Goa trip seemed to be a bit different, but that was probably because of the New Years' kiss they shared.

Thinking back to that kiss again, and remembering Khushi respond for a while, leaves Arnav even more confused. "That kiss seemed to indicate Khushi liked me, had some feelings for me. That Khushi was nice, kind, and innocent. Maybe a little crazy, but definitely not crazily scheming like Shyam has told me. Yet, I can't ignore what he says. It concerns my sister. And I love Anjali Di more than anything else in the world. Except maybe Khushi. But now I hate Khushi as much as I love her. She tried to destroy my sister's life, and I can't stand anyone hurting my sister. And if this is really true, then why the hell is she showing so much care for Di - especially now, when no one is there to look...??"

Arnav looks at Khushi again. After she settles Anjali on the sofa, she goes to the mandir and arranges the flowers and other stuff for the morning prayers. Soon, everyone gathers at the mandir for the morning aarti. Everyone except Arnav and Shyam that is... Arnav has left for office, and Shyam has gone out for some work of his own.

The aarti is soon done, and Khushi sets down the aarti ki thaali near the mandir. Then, she holds head as she starts to get dizzy. Akash notices this, and rushes to save his sister-in-law from crashing on the floor. He reaches just in time as Khushi faints in his arms. Payal rushes to her sister, as does Nani. Anjali, meanwhile, calls the doctor.

*************************

"What the...!!!" Arnav screams over the phone.

"Chotey...!!! There is nothing 'what the' in this. What I am telling you is good news." Anjali tries to calm her brother over the phone.

"But Di, how so soon?"

"What do you mean 'how so soon'...?? Ask yourself Chotey, because it's your baby."

"But Di... It's only about a month or so since I, as you call it, 'officially' got married. How can Khushi get pregnant so fast?"

"Like I said, ask yourself Chotey... You're weird... I'm hanging up now, then calling up Shyamji and Khushi's family to tell them the good news."

Anjali puts the phone down, leaving Arnav shocked for like the millionth time that day at the news she has just told. Apparently, Khushi is pregnant - and it's Arnav's baby. Arnav however, doesn't remember ever having s** with Khushi.

"Is it Shyam's...??? I must ask him." Arnav thinks to himself.

*************************

5 months later...

Anjali is due to deliver any day now. Khushi, on the other hand, has just completed her 2^nd trimester of pregnancy and entered her 3^rd. The doctor has advised Khushi to not strain herself, as she is carrying twins and her pregnancy has a few complications.

Arnav and Shyam have gone to their respective offices. Akash has come home for lunch, so Payal is tending to him. Nani is in the kitchen making Khushi and Anjali's favourite kheer. And, Hari-Prakash and Om-Prakash are busy in their daily household chores.

Khushi has been feeling a little weird since the morning, so gets up a little and walks around Shantivan for a while. She then decides to go into Anjali's room and talk to her, as she is feeling bored.

Khushi and Anjali talk for some time, when Anjali suddenly starts getting labour pains. Khushi panics seeing Anjali, and goes into distress herself. She tries to rush out to call Akash, Payal, and Nani, but collapses on the way. Akash sees that, and before a glass showpiece can fall on her, rushes to her.

"Anjali Di... Labour... Me too... Pain... Help..." is all that Khushi manages to say in between gasps of pain, before she blacks out.

*************************

Both Anjali and Khushi are rushed to the hospital. Anjali is taken into the 'Delivery Room,' while Khushi, whose condition is more serious, is taken into the 'Operation Theatre'. Akash calls Arnav and Shyam, who both promptly rush to the hospital.

As soon as they reach there, the cries of babies are heard. The doctors come out of the respective rooms to speak to the Raizada family.

Anjali's doctor delivers good news. "Congratulations. Anjali has delivered a healthy baby boy."

On the other hand, Khushi's doctor has some good and some sad news to deliver. "I'm afraid I have both good and bad news. Khushi is okay, and has delivered a baby girl, but her twin brother was stillborn. The girl will have to be kept in the incubator for some days since she was premature, but she'll pull through. She was born a fighter." The doctor gives a slight smile, then goes back into the 'Operation Theatre' to give the nurse further instructions.

Arnav and Shyam are filling out formalities at the counter, and registering the birth of their kids. Akash is there too, looking on.

Khushi and Anjali are wheeled into a private 'twin-ward' which both of them will share for the next couple of days till they recover. Soon, Anjali's boy is given to her to feed, as the ladies look on. Khushi closes her eyes and sleeps for a while.

After attending to Anjali, the nurse comes to check up on Khushi. The nurse helps Khushi settle down after she suddenly sits up, scared after a nightmare, and demands to see her baby.

"Don't worry, your baby is fine." The nurse assures Khushi.

"But I want to see her. My other baby died, and I am worried. What if this baby is not fine? I want to see my girl." Khushi gets hysterical, and Payal and Nani rush over to calm her down.

Anjali, who is now trying to make her baby sleep looks over at Khushi worriedly. She reaches over to the bedside-table and picks up her phone, calling Arnav.

Arnav, for a minute, forgets all his fights and problems with Khushi and rushes over to see her. When Arnav sees Khushi acting hysterical, he gets even more worried. Outside the ward, he requests the nurse to let Khushi see her baby, and with the permission of the doctor, she finally relents.

Payal, along with the nurse, help Khushi sit on a wheelchair - since she is still a little weak - and then wheel her to the 'Neonatal Intensive Care Unit'. The nurse points out Khushi's baby girl, all wrapped up in a cuddly pink blanket, in an incubator labelled with 'Baby Gupta-Raizada'.

Khushi slowly touches the glass she is viewing through, and smiles through her tears. "She is beautiful. And looks just like her dad." Khushi says softly, then turns to Payal. "See na, Jiji... She has Arnav's nose and his eyes. I'm already in love with her..."

Payal smiles and nods at Khushi and her baby. She then wheels Khushi back to the ward, both of them unaware that Arnav has been watching them with tears in his own eyes.

Arnav thinks to himself. "I heard everything you said, Khushi. No mother will ever lie about her kid, especially not when she has just lost one. I can see the love you have for your kid and the pain in your eyes when you lost her twin. I have also seen your baby closely, Khushi. There is no doubt that she is my daughter as well. Like you said, her eyes and nose are exactly like mine. She is my daughter. But then, why did Shyam say she is his...??? Did he lie about everything else as well...??? Something really fishy is going on, and I must find out what it is..."

Note: I know you guys might be confused at all the jumps and leaps in the story, but I did it on-purpose. I wanted the story to progress a certain way, so the suspense and cliffhangers are necessary at this point... Don't have to worry a lot though - soon, in a few parts, everything will be revealed... But you guys will have to be a little patient for that...

Love, Neha

ps... do leave a comment with ur thoughts/suggestions/complaints on this ff and story, or simply click on the 'like' button if ur a 'silent' reader :) 😛